Wednesday, February 28, 2007

Liberal defence of liberties can go anywhere except across the floor.

You may find it disgraceful that some civil liberties must be forgone to protect innocent Canadians, but how would you consider their suspension in the interest of saving seats in the House?

The National Post is reporting this morning that the two anti-terrorism measures put forward by Stephen Harper's government have been defeated in the Commons (159-124), an event seen by many to be the first major success for Liberal leader Stephane Dion.

The two measures that were proposed involved preventative arrests (basically what it sounds like...arrests/detention of terrorism suspects based on substantial evidence) and investigative hearings (ability of the judge to order someone to court to testify against terrorism activities).

I'm all for the protection of civil liberties, within reason of course. Good people must relinquish one or two of the benefits of a functioning democratic society once in a while to ensure the longevity and protection of that society.

What irks me is the stance of Dion and the Liberal party as some sort of defender of the faith against the usurping Conservative government (and yes, they do believe the last year and a half has been a usurpation).

And I'm ESPECIALLY irked when they back up their statements with the threat to SUE Conservative leaders for having the audacity to suggest that Liberals may have bowed to pressure from outside sources. Apparently freedom of thought and expression is easily denied if one dare accuse a Liberal of being less than morally stable.

Yet accusing a politician of being a Bush lackey is not only acceptable, it's fodder for an election-time ad campaign? Get real.

The detention of terrorism suspects to protect the country comes second to the political ability to shut up one's detractors.

Click here to see the whole story, and decide for yourself.

Tuesday, February 27, 2007

Sneak Preview


Just a small side-note for any Ann Patchett fans out there. According to IMDB.com, there is currently a movie adaptation of Patchett's acclaimed novel Bel Canto in the works.

Italian director Bernardo Bertolucci is set to direct, and the writing credits will be shared by himself and Ms. Patchett. Bertolucci is best known for his daring films Beseiged and The Dreamers (does this mean Eva Green may star?)
I have a particular interest since I read this novel two summers ago based on a friend's recommendation, and loved it. The story revolves around a banquet of international diplomats, socialites, performers, and businessmen that is taken hostage by rebels and held for over a year. An excellent read.

Monday, February 26, 2007

Is it getting hot in here?

How inconvenient...

It's a Tuesday Two-Fer! Our first story comes on the heels of the Oscar cast and Al Gore's acceptance of the Oscar for Achievement in Self-Inflation...sorry, Documentary Feature, for An Inconvenient Truth. You've heard of it; I doubt I have to give any background on it.

Turns out that Al's Oscar is a tad tarnished - a different kind of green gold than what he'd like to see. According to the Nashville Electric Service (NES) Al's 20-room mansion consumes more energy every month than the average American household does in a year.

Now just imagine all those people burning gas to rush out and buy his Oscar-winning DVD ...all those DVD players running at top capacity to churn out the 4+ hours of extra features...

The Horror

See the link for the full story...
http://www.fairviewobserver.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070227/NEWS01/702270382/1321/MTCN06


In Other News...

It's hardly disputed that H.G. Wells was a science-fiction visionary, but this is just uncanny. Turns out that the "heat-ray" used by the Martians in his terrifying thriller The War of the Worlds is now in the hands of the US military.

The Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Program website has released a nifty video of the new "Active Denial System" weapon for public viewing. The weapon itself is not intended to significantly harm its target - it rather inflames (in the swelling, painful sense) a fraction of the target's upper skin layer, lending a burning sensation that is intended to disable much in the same way a TASER would.

Check it out...
https://www.jnlwp.com/ActiveDenialSystem.asp

The battle for J.C. dominance.


If you were to go all the way back to 1997, you would not have been chastized for perhaps thinking that Titanic had replaced the New Testament when it came to ripping good yarns. James Cameron certainly figured it did. He made a bundle off of it too; by September of the following year, the film had "King of the World'd" it's way into a tidy $600,000,000+ dollars in the US alone.


I remember running out to buy the 2-tape VHS the day it came out, just to enjoy the sheer grandure of owning what the hype had labelled one of the best films ever made. I actually remember hearing Sean Connery announce "TITANIC" as the Best Picture in that sonorous baritone of authority that he possesses.


Apparently all the adoration might have gone to James' Cameron's head (perhaps rightfully so...it's not as bad a movie as I once thought, upon reflection). Cameron is now planning to create a documentary that makes the claim that the actual tomb of Jesus Christ has been found here on Earth, thus disproving the Christian claims of Christ's divinity and ascension into heaven (a main tenet of the Church's teaching).


People are not pleased. You can find the full story here...

The Outset

As I outstretch my fingers ever further into the WWW, enabling people to stalk me with even greater ease, I recoil from the thought of posting too much of my personal life in this blog's contents. It doesn't make me comfortable, and I'd much rather spare you all the boring mundanities.

Rather, I'll indulge in a little news-gathering. I like the news. I like gossip, which is simply news-as-rock instead of polished gem. I try to read as much as I can every morning, and it's generally my best option for killing time between the fits and spurts of work ethic I generally experience.

So what I'll try to do here is, every day, I'll post a new link to an article from the web. I'll do my best to keep it to Canadian content (fostering what little Canadian identity any of us may have left). The beauty of the news is that it's, well, new. And the newness of a thing will generally dictate how quickly it comes up in conversation.

My trouble is, I'm not a great conversationalist. When one spends most of their time doing homework are gazing blankly at the tv, there is never quite enough time to do things worthy of a good conversation. The news, on the other hand, basically makes it's gravy by tossing together delicious bits of beefy, juicy, tender-for-the-chewing tidbits of activity that most people would probably miss otherwise.

I know this isn't a strikingly new idea. I myself visit a number of blogs and websites a few times a week that do this exact same thing, only with far more aplomb and vitality than I figure I'll have the time for.

But, say you're on your way to the bar, and you're feeling boring. Probably means you are. And nobody gets laid by being boring, except perhaps Larry David (but if you could make being boring funny like only Mr. David can, you have a bajillion dollars and probably don't give a good goddamn about going to bars to get laid). If you don't have time for a quick scan of the internet before you leave, give The Daily Art a click and see what's tickling the fleshy interest lobe of my brain. You can then either take that as a jumping-off point for some witty dialogue, or go to the bar and trash me and my "who-does-he-think-he-is?" ego while you pound back your sorry Blue Lagoons.

Just promise me that if you DO get laid, you'll think of me. Go get'em killer.