Sunday, December 24, 2006

Norad's busiest day!



That would be today, December 24. The NORAD Santa site is perhaps one of the coolest websites in the US defence department. Plus it doesn't have any classified information or right wing neo-con dogma that is now endemic in the United States military.

It was good to find out that Norad will be able to track Santa even though they are snowed in. Thats good news, because hopefully they could track any Russian bombers coming into North American Airspace that would have come in the past 40 years. Apparantly the story goes, that a Coloardo Springs store, had a santa hotline and that it was misprinted in an advertisement to be NORAD's phone number. When Children called the number, the NORAD staff were able to confirm that Santa had indeed entered North American Airspace and was quickly approaching.

Santa also made a pre-christmas visit to Afghanistan, looks like our boys are having a wonderful time despite the circumstances of things in Afghanistan.

Merry Christmas,
and happy Holidays Everyone
cheers
-Jamie

Friday, December 22, 2006

Crazy stock?


Lets put it right out there!

Aaaaanyway, it appears that local libs now send bits and pieces of my local columns to their favourite spear-chuckers down east who are quick to unleash a volley of indignation, which makes for good fodder back here at home.


I read this whole column, and I may feel indignant to be called a spear chucker. But please, could someone teach this guy how to write a proper article. Don't they teach you how to write in bible college? We know Stockwell is all about adam and Eve running around with the dinosaurs 5000 years ago, and other various crazy ideas. He also back-handedly complimented Ajax-Pickering MP Mark Holland, calling him "Perry Mason on steroids", in regards to the committee meetings on the RCMP and Arrar probe.

I read his article, and for someone who once wanted to be prime minister, he wrote his column at such a low level I found it painful to read. The gaps between sentences, made me feel like he was just brainstorming ideas and putting them down to look organized. So, please Stockwell, get someone to properly edit and form your thoughts. Politicians already have enough bad reputations, hack columnist who write at the same level of a teenager isn't one. Please Stock, edit, rewrite, edit again. And spear-chuckers, what kind of slang is that? I have never heard that before, seriously.

One last thing, why didn't he ride a Canadian built Sea doo?

Thursday, December 21, 2006

more climate change, and musings....

I was listening to a CBC radio program this morning, where Canadian skiier's were interviewed along with the president of the International Skiing Federation. It looks like they have noticed that in the past few years, the Alps are melting, and ski season has had to be changed and cancelled in regards to the alps in November and December. This made me think that these winter athletes, being creatures of the winter all their lives, training and skiing would notice this type of change over the years.

So, this is another example of our climate change, along with our Vancouver like weather, and the Vancouver windstorms, it is safe to say that something is up. But our "so-called " prime minister is using his neo-con fact sheet about what is really happening in his hair?

For those of you not totally familiar with the neo-cons and their child like denial of climate change, check out this 60 minutes story about how NASA's top scientist on climate change was censored by the wonderful people in White house.

To me this does not make any sense (in Canada's political landscape), the Republicans are just covering their own behinds. They get so much money from big oil that it makes sense for them to basically cover their ears and go lalalalalala, in regards to the environment. There are no donations from big oil in Canada to political parties. With emissions trading, any excess from the oil sands can probably be covered with emissions credits. Its another free market, wouldn't the Conservatives be in favour of that?

What I am trying to point out, is that this is another example of Stephen Harper, and his strange fascination with American Republicanism. It started with his old job, as the taxpayers lobbyist, and until recently was hidden quite well in his role as PM. But his true colours are finally starting to show up! What is next Stephen? 2 tier health care? SUV subsidies? Tax cuts for the extremely wealthy?

Just a few thoughts....

Monday, December 18, 2006

newsmaker of the year?

Its funny, this issue of Time Magazine is used primarily to move a few more copies. You have to wonder why they chose Stephen Harper? Maybe for his gaffe's on the international stage. His important men's room meeting with the President of China? Maybe it was his so-called gutsier foreign policy, which in reality was a copy of the Bush administration foreign policy? I guess time doesn't read about our lost respect on our non-compliance of Kyoto. Got to love all these maybes

Some important questions to ask?
Does the cover of the magazine have a picture of Stephen harper as a puppet?
Is this an example of right wing media bias? (Was Paul Martin last year's newsmaker of the year?)
Does Time know about the lack of credibility Canada now carries in the EU?
Don't Canadians use youtube, myspace, blogger as much as Americans?

Thats all I can think of right now....
what are your theories?

Friday, December 15, 2006

so called?

I didn't know Washington dictated our environmental policy? Its a new phenomenon that we have given up our sovereignty in an area like the environment. Let's be honest here, the so-called Bush Administration (really called Big-oil administration) believes that contrary to just about every ounce of scientific knowledge, greenhouse grasses are not causing global warming.

So, the so called Harper Government (really American neo-con Junior government) , decided to agree with this. This is a sad day for Canadian politics, that our Prime Minister has to consult American propaganda to get his environmental policy. What about all that money that our own government spends on science and the environment. Did he forget that Canadian government funded studies might not agree with his official view on global warming?

No wonder Harper never talks to the media, he will scare us with his brainwashed Republican views on things. He will drive us to to the polls with his ideas of 2 tiered healthcare, and tax cuts for the extremely wealthy. What is next? Tax subsidies for buying giant SUV's? School vouchers? Now I might be fear mongering right now, but its cool to be a Liberal right now. But that damn global warming is heating things up too much!

Thursday, December 14, 2006

Pinochet......part 2

It has been a few days since the Funeral and the celebrations in Chile, but I believe there is one positive to come out of this whole Pinochet death story was the truly evil and vindictive nature of the Augusto Pinochet Junta.

Hearing the details of the Orlando Letelier on the radio, about his impeccable reputation in Washington, DC, and hearing his widow, Isabelle Allende perhaps one of the most celebrated female writers in Latin America speak about the pain that the Junta put the people through, really put things into a good perspective. The fact that this interview happened on CBC radio made me feel happy that we do to a certain extent have a free and fairly liberal media. Operation Condor, and the Caravan of death are things that we should not forget, as well as the scapegoating of communists for this.

This sad story could really teach us how not to wage a war on terror! Pinochet had a reign of terror.

Monday, December 11, 2006

Pinochet: he got away with it all.....

So today, Augusto Pinochet,
perhaps the most paranoid of the pro-American dictators died of a heart attack. He was famous for believing that the Soviet Union was trying to invade Chile and fund a non-existent insurgency that was happening in the Andes.

He was also responsible for the caravan of death, that went around the country, killing political dissidents, all under the watchful eye of the American government and their corporate interests. The worst part of Pinochet was that towards the very end, like 2 weeks ago he wanted to meet with the victims of his crimes. His daughter had expressed this on Chilean tv, that he was lucid enough to do this.

He should have been tried, he should have been convicted, and he should have died in a prison cell, not in the mansion that he lived in thanks to the corrupt nature of his government. Other countries have started to clear their books. The Argentinians recently took immunity away from their dirty warriors, and Brasil has enough demons that it has excised from its authoritarian past. But what can we learn from this? I don't know, I am just glad that the people of Chile have not turned Pinochet into a martyr and they see him for the evil reign of terror he put through Chile.

Wednesday, December 06, 2006

talk about a sideshow

Today, I'd like to bring to light the possibility of another war in this world. But I am not sure whether this will be a good war or a bad war. It looks like the Ethiopian Government is this close to invading Somalia.

Here is the real dilemma, looks like Crazy Islamic Militias have taken over most of the Somalian capital of Mogadishu. They will control the horn of Africa, Bin Laden calls this place the 3rd front of their little Jihad. The Americans were funding the secular warlords, but of course they are too corrupt and too busy making themselves rich to care, and the Islamic Sharia courts and clerics have taken over.

Where does Ethiopia fit in?
Ethiopia is one of the oldest countries in the world, and one of the oldest Christian civilizations in the world. Currently they have the biggest army in region. They fought a brutal war about 5 years ago against the Eritreans, over a piece of desert, and simply put they smashed them. Now, the Somalian government is calling for help. This Government was in exile in Kenya, and is supported by Kenya, and Ethiopia, has not had the power to go back to Mogadishu, and sits waiting in a town by the Ethiopian border.
Now, being a patron of the Exiled somali government, and a recipient of American military products, Ethiopia has some issues with the Clerics running Somalia. Ethiopia has a large ethnic muslim population, and their authoritarian leader is not one to allow bombs to go off in their capital city?

The economist wrote a great article, about that, saying that war is only being avoided by a flood in the area. Right now, I am actually in favour of the Ethiopian's invading, I would take a secular dictatorship over any form of strict Islamic law. They will not persecute women nearly as much, and Islamic law is perhaps the most brutal form of law around, compared to our system of common law. Do the Somali's deserve this? No, but they have had chaos for 10 years, they don't need Islamic law, I think cha0s is better than Islamic law for its arbitrary brutality, as shown by the Saudi Kingdom, and the horrible experiences of Taliban rule in Afghanistan.

Hardcore Islamic rule, is like if they let all the judges in North America to be chosen by the 700 club, and those type, its extremism. I am not saying there is anything wrong with Islam as a religion, but once again as an extremist front, its a pretty pathetic way to run a country.

Monday, December 04, 2006

Living by the sword.....

The koolaid is having an aftereffect on the iggy supporters! Micheal's campaign created divisions, and it eventually led to his demise. So do all us real Liberals a favour and either get with the program, or get off the boat. For the record I joined the party because I like my MP, and party as a whole rather than any particular leadership candidate.

When you run a campaign based around divisiveness and ideas that were actually non liberal, and more Mulroney like, it is bound to happen. Trudeau would have been spinning in his grave, yet Michaels people thought he was the second coming of Trudeau. Ignatieff's people have no idea how divided us non-iggy people were about him. Thanks to their blinders of course. It drove us to Dion, it pushed us far away, we didn't want the koolaid, we never did. We wanted a leader that brought us together, not the choice of the backroom boys. We wanted a new leader, not the POWERCORP backroom selection. Micheal's campaign was that divisive and his policies led him to die by the sword. So that is what happens when you live by the sword, you die by it!

Saturday, December 02, 2006

So, Did Stephane Dion win, or did Michael Ignatieff lose?

My personal opinion is yes and yes! Why, because Stephane Dion and his people built bridges to the other delegates, while Ignatieff's people were arrogantly spouting their talking points to former Rae and Kennedy people, who looked at them with eyes of disbelief.

Michael's people had too much koolaid, this koolaid was the Jim Jones brand of the cult of personality rather than good ideas and bringing together people. When the 3rd ballot results were announced to me in the Laurier club, the room was almost divided, between people who were there only for Michael, and the rest of the people who were trying to decipher the results. Delegates reported to me, that desperate Ignatieff supporters spouted off their rhetoric to them on the convention floor desperately trying to convince them with talking points rather than sincerity. This summed up their attitude in through campaign. Michael is the best, everyone else in inferior. My previous dealings with his youth people were the same as this. Debating them, was debating Michaels talking points, not their own opinions, and that infuriated me as someone who likes talking about issues, and hearing peoples opinions. Not their "Fox news" Bill O'reilley talking points.

From the onset of the convention, Michael's people were very different, they acted aloof, had a total sense of entitlement, it was like they were so self absorbed in having Michael anointed leader that they had no perception of the movement and momentum that the Dion camp picked up when Gerard Kennedy stepped aside. Micheals people were wearing political blinders, and that crippled them on the last two ballots. They ignored all the signs, they ignored what people had to say, they were simply put IGNORANT.


Kudos to Stephane for being a big tent candidate, representing the new Liberal party, and not the old boys network of Ignatieff's and Rae's. Stephane must also give credit to the Kennedy organizers, and their delegates for voting en masse for Dion. Along with Martha, and eventually Ken Dryden, this led to the eventual exodus of the majority of Rae delegates to give Stephane the final victory. As a scrutineer, the sea of green grew with third and fourth ballots, to me, it was impressive, and felt like I was watching a growing movement. Stephane represents a chance for a party to be built by consensus and by the people. We did it, we took the politics to the people and out of the backrooms.