all things new found land: 2010

Ending 2010

As we jump into the 11th year of this new millennium, I figure I'll post one more update to close out the 10th. The following additions will the be last for 2010 and in adding these few, we will have the final list of blogs to be included in the NL Bloggers Choice award. Details of such will come in the New Year, but for now please take the time to welcome these newbies to the listings!

Island Girl
http://jennabarnable.wordpress.com/

M. Paterson's Class Blog
http://grade4beachycove.blogspot.com/

The Fighting Newfoundlander
http://thefightingnewf.blogspot.com/

Progressive Tory
http://progressive-tory.blogspot.com/

Designing Home
http://www.designinghome.blogspot.com/

Port aux Basques
http://portauxbasques.blogspot.com/

Two Hundred and Ten Thoughts For 2010/11
http://blockader.wordpress.com/

Happy New Year everyone. I wish you all the best in 2011, and by the best I mean all the peace, love and happiness that you can find!

Newfoundland, Labrador, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, BlogRoll

Categories Complete: Next!

Okay, so having a minor case of OCD isn't a bad thing when you want to get things done. I sat down and really focused over the past 24 hours and my reward is that I now have all the mini blogrolls for each category listed. You can check them out on the right hand sidebar. I hope you enjoy!

Oh, and to those listed here; if you happen to see your blog in category you feel it doesn't fit, please don't hesitate to let me know and I'll change it.

So, what's next for this ol' place? Well, it's probably easiest to show my to do list:

Scrap the current NL Bloggers Choice award and announce how things will progress starting early 2011. As a hint, the main focus now will be on awards for each of these new categories and will also feature more involvement with fellow members of the BlogRoll.
Return to posting Blog of the Weeks and try really really hard to do so more consistently, you know like every week... considering the title of this initiative.
Continue to try and find ways to help cross promote each other, something we've lost with the BlogRolling software being down.
Search for possible willing participants to be Guest Bloggers for this ol' hub here.
Do some general cleanup of the roll, removing blogs which have not been posted; normal stuff every year.

As you can see, there's still lots tickin' in this brain of mine and lots more to come to this BlogRoll of ours. With the holiday season here however, a lot will have to wait until the New Year. 2011 is shaping up to be pretty exciting around these parts though. Stay tuned!

Newfoundland, Labrador, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, BlogRoll

Creating Categories

As I previously mentioned, one main focus of mine in this new re-development of the BlogRoll is the creation of categories for the listings. It's actually something I've wanted to do for years, but never found the motivation until recently. It was forced motivation perhaps, but BlogRolling's shutdown has certainly lit a fire under my butt to get it done... and I'm getting closer as each day passes.

At this point I have all 180+ blogs organized into categories that I feel they fit best and believe me, this was no easy task at times. As I visited each blog over the past few days, one thing I noticed (beyond how awesome this collection of blogs is) was that each space is so unique to itself and finding a common theme for many was difficult. Luckily however, in my days within the blogosphere I've come to learn of the term 'Mixed Bag' but I really tried to refrain from using that label unless absolutely necessary. I wanted to put the blogs in a category that I felt they fit best, what the main theme was. A Mixed Bag blog to me, has to hit several different topics in their posting, never knowing what will come the next time, which some of the blogs do.

Looks like we'll have about 15 different categories at this point though, which is pretty neat-o if you ask me. In the coming days and weeks, I'll be adding mini blogrolls to the right hand side of this blog; one for each of these categories. Like the main roll, newly updated blogs will bump to the top of each of these lists. The idea is to give visitors a better browsing experience by giving them a way for topical reading.

Beyond that however, the NL Bloggers Choice award will soon be updated as well. It will soon not be about the Blog of the Weeks any longer, but instead it will be about these categories. You'll have to stay tuned for that though. Give me a chance b'y! :)

Newfoundland, Labrador, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, BlogRoll

Next Step: Newbies

Now that I have all the oldbies added to the main roll, it's time to add all those people who have been waiting (some of them) months to be added to our beloved list here. I do very much apologize for the wait. I've had a busy / crazy half a year...

Regardless, the wait is over; behold, the newbies! Be sure to visit every single one of them and say hello for me!

This and That, but Mostly the Other Thing
http://mostlytheotherthing.blogspot.com/

The Penny-Roach’s
http://blog.canadianparents.com/pennyroach/

thenewfoundlandjournalist
http://thenewfoundlandjournalist.blogspot.com/

Knix Hand Knit
http://www.knixhandknit.blogspot.com/

travelling infinity
http://travellinginfinity.wordpress.com/

Sedna Photography Blog
http://sednaphotography.wordpress.com/

365 Project Blog
http://project3three6sixty5five.wordpress.com/

Technological Affair
http://technologicalaffair.blogspot.com/

Trevor Dean Photography
http://trevordeanphotography.blogspot.com/

BLARM!
http://blarmcast.com/

The Owlette
http://www.theowlerychronicles.wordpress.com/

Sorcha's Haven
http://anunquietspirit.wordpress.com/

Charlotte Morgan
http://www.charlottemorgan.com/site/

Brain Droppings
ringkeeper.blogspot.com/

24 Hours to Midnight: The Blog!
http://24hourstomidnight.wordpress.com/

Matthew Barter
http://matthewbarter.wordpress.com/

Danielle's World
http://daniellepercy.wordpress.com/

Crysto'
http://cryst0.blogspot.com/

St. John's Mom
http://stjohnsmom.blogspot.com/

that girl from around the bay
http://baygirl32.blogspot.com/

kim Vazquez.com
http://www.kimvazquez.com

Da View From Here...

http://daviewfromhere.blogspot.com/

Now that that's done, next up on my list of things to do is the development of the Categories. Stay tuned!

Newfoundland, Labrador, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, BlogRoll

Reconstructing

If you haven't noticed, things are a little different around these parts. If it's your first time here, well I just finished updating the template a little. While I still have a long way to go to get everything I have planned in order, having some progression feels good.

I've decided to move on completely (for now) from finding a widget or gadget to applet or whatever to host our blogroll in a way that we can all have the list easily. There is just nothing else that does what blogrolling did. Not in any realm which I've searched anyway. So, in moving on I have begun using the blogroll widget here within blogger which does indeed bump updated blogs to the top of the list. You can see this list to the left. Ain't it pretty? I plan on creating several more of these for a variety of categories in the future as well, each displaying 5 of the most recently updated blogs in that topic. I already have the nearly 200 blogs categorized and now I just have to add them. First up is finalizing the main list however, which includes an addition of many new faces that have been waiting a very long time to be added.

As I said, there's a long way to go but, things are moving along. Check back soon for more updates!

Newfoundland, Labrador, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, BlogRoll

Minor Setback

Some sad news to share as I continue redeveloping things around these parts; it appears that the new system I found doesn't quite do everything we were used to. I can indeed create a list that with a little code we can all share, but this list does not update as new entries are posted. It seems that BlogRolling was the only system out there that does this or all that I can find anyway. It's a sad day in Stephen land...

Having said that, I will continue to collect the list in the new software and provide for sharing soon. It'll be in alphabetical form but, a great list none the less. I'll also continue looking for alternatives and please let me know if you come across any on your net journeys.

I'm also going to continue developing the categories idea I have and organize things a little better with these in mind. This will also be the start of the evolution of the Bloggers Choices Awards...

Not all is lost, but BlogRolling continues to be a service that is sorely missed.

Newfoundland, Labrador, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, BlogRoll

Plan of Attack

So you know, I am busy trying to get everything back up and running again. I've been spending any chance I have as of late adding all the links (over 190 of them) to the new system I spoke of in the previous post. As soon as I have that done, I'll reveal it and pass along the new code for everyone to add to their sites. This is of course in attempt to reconnect our beautiful network of Newfoundland and Labrador Blogs.

It doesn't end there though. I'm also visiting each page and categorizing each link this time around. I plan on adding more navigation sections throughout (like mini blogrolls for each category for example) to the site and also intend on redesigning the NL Bloggers Choice award to be now about winners for each of these categories. I'll have far more details in the future, but things are movin' in my mind and my available time is being spent getting things in order.

Oh, and to all those who have requested to join the blogroll in the past few months, you will definitely be added to this new system.

Bare with me but, I'll be sure to let you know as things progress!

Newfoundland, Labrador, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, BlogRoll

Well Holy Crap

It looks like I may have found a solution that fits pretty much every need (so far as I can tell right now) that we have. I won't get into the details right now, but it looks like we may be able to keep this thing going as it was. You're still going to have to bare with me as I get all the links listed in this new location, but so far I'm pretty excited about things. Motivated.

In the meantime, as I do that, be sure to remove the current BlogRolling code that you have on your websites if you haven't already (but you can keep the image and link to this place if you want). The service is officially dead. I'll have some new code to provide the the coming days (weeks... umm, maybe months because of the busy season) so be sure to keep an eye out.

Stay tuned!

Just so you know...

... the blog IS being reworked. I have some ideas that I'm working on in my spare time and am constantly searching for alternatives to BlogRolling. I have a couple to test, but nothing solid as of yet. I do have a remodeling idea for this whole thing though, so if all else fails, I'm going with that. Bare with me.

Merkel hits the proverbial nail on the head...

"We don't have too much Islam, we have too little Christianity. We have too few discussions about the Christian view of mankind..."

This excerpt from German Chancellor Angela Merkel's latest speech will no doubt create a firestorm of tiny little hissy fits in the brains of millions of Progressives - Worlwide. Samuel Gregg offers a poignant commentary here.

In short Merkel is saying nothing that should surprise anyone. Europe is in a state of cultural crisis - a crisis similar though different than the one starting in Quebec right now. Multiculturalism, widespread new age liberalism, moral relativism all combined with low birth rates has created a perfect storm with the arrival of new Muslim immigrants.

As a result of Europe denying the historical fact of its European Christianity, and embracing a view of the world that has led to it's own death, an identity crisis is in full swing.

What European culture needs is to be more confident. Confident cultures don't have panic attacks when new comers come into the mix.

The Bloc Tory Coalition

The rumour seems to be showing some truth.

I find the media spin on this quite surprising. The Bloc joined the Tories in blocking (no pun intended) an attempt to open competitive bids for the CF18 jet replacement.

Apparently Bloc MPs were "looking to protect the Quebec-based aerospace industry..."

Not too long ago Stephen Harper was lumping the nefarious Bloc with the NDP and the Fiberals as anti-aerospace for daring to question the uncompetitive contract. Apparently the Bloc had a change in heart regarding the uncompetitive nature of this process.

It's well more than possible that as this session of parliament comes to an end, and then comes another, that some well placed victories may be coming to Stephen Haper... Along with a shiny new arena in Quebec.

That Tricky Senate

The cry babies on the left are whining their little plump urban elite behinds out. Their climate change bill got the Senatorial treatment - the thing got killed like a Senate reform bill.

Now those oh-so-much-smarter-than-the-rest-of-us "progressives" have suddenly woken up and realized that the Senate is being - gasp ! - UNDEMOCRATIC.

Well gee now, that seems peculiar. It's filled with bozos who have never had to once face a ballot box, or canvass a poll. None of them can get fired. The PM appointed them. They can do whatever they want without any consequences. Yep that sounds pretty undemocratic to me.

So does that mean that the Laytonators out there are now suddenly going to be converted to the Senate reform bandwagon? Will they finally give up this silly stalling tactic of pushing for a "PR Senate" and nothing else?

They liked the "undemocracy" of the Senate when it suited their ends for the past 30 years of liberal governments... How can the people that blocked Harper's senate reform now turn around and decry him giving up and using the Senate exactly the way he didn't want to in the first place?

When you're on the Road to Damascus, just when do you start to realize the stupidity of your previous actions?

The Iggy Tax

Close your eyes. Take a deep breath. Imagine this situation:

Massive financial and economic crisis. Government steps in and bails out a number of large corporations. Under the gun, the state moves to inject a huge monetary stimulus into the economy. Government is spending like drunken medicinal marijuana smoking Dippers. Birth rates are dangerously low. Populations are aging at a rapid pace as the average age increases and increases. Soaring health care costs continue to hammer government coffers.

You know what sounds like a great idea? Let's raise taxes and expand our already generous unsustainable health care system. Who cares about the long term anyways - hell we're all dead in the long term! Burn baby burn!...

That's exactly what Lord Iggy wants to do.

I don't know what math they teach you down in Harvard, but the Puffster's arithmetic needs a double check.

Guelph Predictions....

Mayor: Karen Farbridge.

Ward 1: Bob Bell & Sean Farrelly

Ward 2: Ian Findlay & Ray Ferraro

Ward 3: June Hofland & Maggie Laidlaw

Ward 4: Gloria Kovach & Cam Guthrie

Ward 5: Lise Burcher & Leanne Piper

Ward 6: Karl Wettstein & Todd Dennis

Socialist Harper

Mike Brock is deservedly angry. Stephen Harper's Tories have vastly increased the size of government. Trudeau would be no doubt approve.

Except that not everything is quite as bad as Mike believes.

Clocking in at an impressive $55.6 billion, the Harper government has single-handedly managed to inflate the size of the Federal government since taking office in 2006, by approximately 50%.

I don't mean to nitpick, but that number seems wrong to me. The Federal Budget since 2006 has run in the 200 to 300 billion dollar range. Actually, based on the numbers I have the federal spending ran at 223 billion in 2006. The last numbers I saw for projections of 2009 to 2010 fiscal year was 271.4 billion (based on a 54.8 billion dollar deficit). So really this increase is closer to 22 %. Still bad. Just not THAT bad.

The next thing that should let Mike's blood pressure drop a bit (or raise it) is comparing Stephen Harper's new found spend crazy ways to those of US President Obama.

Harper's 56 billion dollar deficit equates to about 3.7% of our GDP.

Obama's 1.6 trillion dollar deficit equates to 11% of their GDP. That's almost 3 times bigger comparatively.

Also Trudea's increases in spending over his tenure works out to 69% in his first stint, followed by 12% in his second.

The Noble Fight Against Duck Hunters

The noble fight against duck hunters has found a new soldier:

A third New Democrat MP says he's changed his mind and will vote against a bill to do away with the long-gun registry.

Claude Gravelle, the member for Nickel Belt, says he wants the registry fixed, not killed.

His reason for his newfound enlightenment? He's perturbed at Tory "hardball" tactics.

“The mounting rhetoric and divisive debate egged on by Conservative MPs has convinced me that I needed to make a decision sooner, rather than later..."
(...)
“There are problems with the long-gun registry which could easily be fixed to address the concerns of hunters, farmers and First Nations communities..."
(...)
“Unfortunately, but not surprisingly, Conservatives had no interest in working collaboratively with other parliamentarians because they had intended all along to use this bill as a fundraising tool, and as a cynical way of dividing rural and urban Canadians.”

This is a weird argument for registry converts to use. I now support the registry, not because it's a good idea, or because I now believe in it, but because the other side is mean.

The other side suggests conspiracy theories like "cops just want to get rid of all our guns." How crazy is that? Just looney isn't it?

Except that really it isn't. I would bet dollars to pesos that if you took a poll of gun registry supporters and asked them whether banning all long guns was a good idea a good chunk of them would agree.

I don't see what's so shocking about this statement. It's like saying that someone who wants lower taxes really wants even lower taxes than that. In my case I'm guilty as charged.

These new converts to the Crusade Against Duck Hunters must know this. I refuse to think otherwise. Their logic makes no sense. My beliefs and my opinions in certain positions do not change based on the bad behavior of some fellow arguers.

This leads me to conclude that this MP and others are finding a convenient sword to fall on.

Yes it's the horrible mean Tories and their divisive rhetoric that changed my opinion. I wouldn't have supported the registry if those mean old Tories had just been a little more polite. See constituents - If I voted against the registry those damned crazies would win.

Baloney.

Don't Worry...

...It's coming back.

To all those waiting to be added, you'll get there.

Stay tuned... :)

Recycle This!

Residents of Cleveland Ohio (Hello Drew Carey) are being introduced to a new type Big Brother. This time he's "green":

Cleveland residents, beware: Your recycling bins may be watching you. The city of Cleveland is introducing a $2.5 million Big Brother-like system next year to make sure residents are recycling.

Chips embedded in recycling carts will keep track of how often residents take the carts to the curb for recycling. If a bin hasn't been taken to the curb in a long time, city workers will go rummaging through the trash to find recyclables. And if workers find that over 10% of the trash is made up of recyclable materials, residents could face a $100 fine.
(link)

Of course, my immediate reaction was to fantasize about how many recyclables I could junk in the dumpster in protest at this ridiculous invasion of personal property rights.

Isn't trash after all your property? How I use, dispose or recycle my stuff I would think is my own business. You have a right to your trash. If trash didn't belong to someone I guess these people made art they can't sell:

No government has the right to tell anyone what they can do with stuff they own... so long as they don't harm anyone else.

I suppose that's exactly what those members of the Green police will argue - by not recycling people cause harm. But do they?

A New York Times article published in 2008 suggests that some forms of recycling cause more harm to the environment: "Recycling is supposed to be good for the environment. But if it’s not carried out properly, certain kinds of recycling — notably the dismantling of electronic circuit boards, which contain lead, zinc, copper and other metals — can cause environmental harm." Ok, but when Cleveland talks about curbside recycling they are no doubt not generally talking about electronics.

Discover though also published an article in 2009 describing how recycling can be harmful for the environment if sorting is done improperly. I can't tell you the number of times I've found it next to impossible to judge just which recycling bin to throw what into. Should I be fined for choosing to throw that piece of plastic away instead of causing more harm by possibly throwing into the wrong bin?

To make matters worse recyclers in Asia have faced recent criticism for their poor environmental practices. "Recycled products made from plastic from these enterprises are often of poor quality and harmful to health..." Although these problems aren't generally reported here in North America, can we really be sure that recycling operations here aren't causing some similar harm?

We also know that with most curbside recycling, a second truck is used for collection. This means more pollution not less - and the CO2 global warming kind.

It hardly sounds like recycling is so clearly a better choice for the environment. And it seems perfectly reasonable for someone to take differing view that shouldn't automatically be considered a "green crime."

Apparently not so in Cleveland. Those poor Comrades are living in a Green version of 1984, where we all love Big Green Brother - or else!

h/t PowerBlog

A Very Special Place In Hell

I truly believe that a very special place in hell is reserved for those inflexible rigid sociopaths in business and government that refuse to apply common sense and good judgment when applying rules:

He wasn’t a health officer; he was a bylaw officer. Yet he demanded to know what the guests had for lunch. In the name of the law!

Armed with this devastating information, the officer charged Peter’s parents with running an illegal “commercial conference centre,” which carries a fine of up to $50,000. The officer, a burly, tattooed, six-foot-something man, told Peter’s mom to “be very careful.” She burst into tears.

I phoned that bylaw officer to ask him about the Jaworskis. I found a man on a mission, boasting to me that his next step would be to take down the street sign for the family’s small bed and breakfast.

He was particularly pleased that he could do that without issuing a summons, or even receiving a complaint. When he sensed my sympathy for the Jaworskis, he hung up on me.(link)

What a hollow hollow soul killing man. His only concern is enforcing an arbitrary set of rules. A set of rules he can use to satisfy his own sick need to dominate over other people.

When he meets his maker he'll have his mountain of rules and his overblown ego - nothing else. His never ending need to push down others to feed his selfish pride will be stuck without an outlet. It'll be like an itch he can never satisfy. A horrible urge he can never stop.

I couldn't think of a worse hell.

Can You Spot The Psychopath?

Psychopathy is a personality disorder manifested in people who use a mixture of charm, manipulation, intimidation, and occasionally violence to control others, in order to satisfy their own selfish needs.
(...)
Interpersonal traits include glibness, superficial charm, a grandiose sense of self-worth, pathological lying, and the manipulation of others.
(...)
Ironically, these same traits exist in men and women who are drawn to high-profile and powerful positions in society including political officeholders.(link)

Recognize any Canadian politicians that fit this bill?...
h/t Tranterrestrial

Senate Regression

Rumblings of a disaster on the PM's senate reform strategy. Apparently appointing a whack of loyalists to the chamber of not-so-sober second thought to ram through Senate reform can have its hiccups:

While a handful, like staunch Ontario Conservatives Bob Runciman and Doug Finley pledged full support for an elected Senate, senators Mike Duffy, Irving Gerstein and Glen Patterson refused to say whether they still support the government’s legislation.(link)

It's the 21st century - and yet we still have a body of legislators not chosen by the people? Shouldn't it be a right for people to choose who represents them, or am I just crazy?

I think it's time for responsible government to make a comeback in this country.

If there are some turncoats that want to change their minds at the 11th hour - I say let them.

They're fighting a tide that has no end. It's an eventually for it to happen. The issue has been around since Confederation, and it will stick until it's finally fixed.

Over the long term people have a habit of fixing bad decisions. For that reason Senate Reform is an idea that can't be beat.

G20 Costs V

Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse:

Sources tell me [the] security cost of the disastrous G-20 summit will reach at least $2-billion. (link)

That puts the final cost of the G20 summit at about 150 times the cost of the two other summits last year in the US and the UK.

For the same price of one summit in Toronto, the UK could have had 150 summits.

At what point does something become a debacle?

G20 Costs IV
G20 Costs III
G20 Costs II
G20 Costs I

Richard Neufeld: The Unelected Tory Senator

Has elected to change his mind on the Senate:

"Before I came here, I only thought about it when it was brought up in newspaper articles, or someone was ranting and raving about the Senate when they talked about elections. But I thought we should have an elected Senate," Neufeld said.

Indeed, Neufeld has become a big booster of the current unelected Senate.

"It is time to quit kicking the Senate. It is time to start talking about the good things we do," he told fellow senators.(link)

His reasons for his newfound opposition?

Neufeld said he supports term limits but the Senate election bill is "neither workable nor effective."

By contrast, he said: "The appointment process is quick and cheap. You can have regional representation and do all kinds of things. You can get a cross-section of the people that you want in this place."

"...that you want..."?

That who wants? The people? Nope can't be them. They don't decide zilch.

What I'm guessing he means by "you" is the enlightened few and mighty up in Ottawa. That sounds like a healthy run-by-the-people democracy to me!

You can't be too picky about who you do and don't appoint as Senators. That would cost too much money. Senators only get paid hundred of thousands of dollars each year and make far reaching decisions on public policy that effect millions for decades... That isn't election worthy. That's just too much money.

But the Senator leaves his best argument for last!

He said he's the first senator ever to hail from northern British Columbia. If he'd had to seek election for the job, he doubted he'd have garnered many votes in Vancouver and the populous southern portion of the province.

Furthermore, he noted that the bill contemplates holding Senate elections at the same time as provincial or municipal elections. He said that would be confusing to voters, particularly in British Columbia where there is no Conservative party provincially.

Sooooo basically he's saying "gee whiz, I wouldn't even be here if I had to actually run in an election!"

Well me, being one those "confused" voters that won't be able to tell the difference between Dalton McGuilty, David Miller, and Hugh Segal, I guess should thank Mr Neufeld for looking after us stupids.

Ok my sarcasm is done for today. I promise.

How the Liberal elites lost touch with Canadians

Lorne Gunter: How the Liberal elites lost touch with Canadians

Read more: http://fullcomment.nationalpost.com/2010/07/07/lorne-gunter-how-the-liberal-elites-lost-touch-with-canadians/#ixzz0t1owkhzL

I used to be a Liberal — big time.

There, I’ve admitted it.

I handed out campaign pamphlets on a street corner in my hometown when I was 10, was a member of the party’s national youth council while in university and chief of staff to a minister in the last Trudeau cabinet.

Then I smartened up.Part way through my time on Parliament Hill in the early 1980s, it dawned on me the Liberal party I was working for was not the Liberal party I had joined. And although it sounds clichéd, I was convinced the party had left me, rather than the other way around.

Sometime during the Trudeau years, the Liberals ceased to be the party of the individual and became the voice of special interests, the face of elitism.

The transformation began under Lester Pearson, when the Liberals launched huge new social programs — universal medicare and pensions — that were uncharacteristically collectivist for the party. Their central characteristic was the suspension of personal responsibility. Canadians were to be guaranteed health care and retirement income regardless of whether they had made plans and sacrifices during their healthy working years for the time when they became sick or old. They were have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too programs.

Pearson set the Liberals on the road to socialism, but it was the technocrat Pierre Trudeau who turned the party into the elitist family compact it remains to this day.

Trudeau convinced the party that bureaucrats knew better than the public what should be watched on television and listened to on the radio, and so gave the CRTC more power to regulate Canadian content. Trudeau was convinced that politicians could tell, better than businessmen and consumers, which investors were good for our economy (i.e., not foreign ones), and that experts oblivious to market forces could decide the “fair” price of oil. Government could (and should) use massive transfers and equalization payments to manipulate where Canadians live and work. Multiculturalism and mass immigration could help the world and reshape Canada. And public services should reflect the country’s two-language history.

Trudeau completed the transformation of the Liberals, begun by Pearson, from a party that believed in equality of opportunity (classic liberalism) to one that sought equality of outcome (socialism).

In short, the Liberals have become “elitist” — because they no longer trust ordinary people to make the right choices for themselves.

And so it is fascinating for me to read a surprisingly candid series on the future of the Liberal Party of Canada on the blog (glenpearson.ca) of the party’s London North Centre MP, Glen Pearson.

“The essential meaning of liberalism today would be found in the empowerment of the individual,” writes Mr. Pearson, a retired fire captain. “Yet following a history as Canada’s ‘natural governing party,’ today’s Liberal party spends an inordinate amount of time talking about institutional politics and policy as opposed to the key role of the citizen as an agent of progress. One of our key weaknesses as a national party at present is our distance — physical, emotional, empathetic — from the average lives of citizens.”

Unfortunately, he barks up the wrong tree when it comes to putting this observation into practice; he thinks the Liberals need to attract more unionists, social workers, environmentalists, anti-poverty activists and, maybe, small business leaders. Frankly, such advocates for special interests are typically as far removed from ordinary Canadians’ lives as the Liberals themselves. Joining forces with them would only reinforce the Liberals’ aloofness.

What the Liberals need are more supporters such as farmers, entrepreneurs, duck hunters and self-employed tradesmen.
Symptomatic of the Liberals’ remoteness is their demand for universal, government-regulated daycare versus the Conservatives’ policy of giving every family with children under six a tax credit they can use for whatever kind of child care they choose. That’s individual empowerment versus the Liberals’ faith in a big government solution.

It is unlikely the Liberals will ever break with the powerful and fashionable interest groups that control their caucus and drive their policy. But, as Mr. Pearson concludes, unless they somehow can reinvent themselves as the party of the individual, they are doomed “to recurring years in the wilderness.”

National Post
lgunter@shaw.ca

.

Read more: http://fullcomment.nationalpost.com/2010/07/07/lorne-gunter-how-the-liberal-elites-lost-touch-with-canadians/#ixzz0t1owkhzL

The Queens farewell dinner, July 5, 2010

Ok.

THIS was a cool event!!!

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2010/07/05/queen-toornto.html

June Round-Up

June was a strange month in the world of Canadian politics.

It started with Poll numbers showing a left wing coalition would actually drive up Conservative support. The media reported that fact most forcefully... Actually they didn't, and sort've sucked the oxygen out of the room by implying the exact opposite.

The Liberals soon thereafter released a stinky ad. Iggy Puff's attempt on turning the page on the coalition circus? A complete utter failure.

What did do the job for the Puffster was the G20. Escalating costs were an embarrassment - especially when French President's mused they could hold the same summit for a 1/10th of the cost. The complete stupidity that seemed to ensue that weekend proved to be much more captivating to the media then whether Layton and the Puffster need to get more comfortable.

Was it a good month? Well... It was a month. I'm sure there's a lot that people want to forget about the last 30 days... Especially in downtown TO.

Canuck Space Cookies?

Hey Federal Tories: Looking for stuff to cut?

Access to Information documents obtained by The Canadian Press reveal the Canasnacks were the first step in a detailed proposal to develop "Nutritious Foods for Space Travellers."

The project began in December 2006 when the Canadian Space Agency commissioned Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada to create a one-day menu for astronauts on board the International Space Station.

The CSA kicked in $65,000, while Agriculture Canada's contribution was budgeted at almost $350,000.(link)

I could've saved Ag-Can $350k by telling them to just buy and re-package some good ol' PC chocolate chip cookies from the RCSS.

All this cookie talk is making me hungry.

Gee... Let's Consult The Enemy

I don't know what it is this morning, but it seems like there's non-stop stories of non-sense out there for me to comment on:

The Canadian Space Agency is seeking advice from its Russian counterpart in a long-term project to put a satellite over the North Pole.
(...)
Russia is developing a similar program. The two countries would share scientific information gained from the new satellites.
(...)
Canada already has two satellites orbiting northern reaches. Radarsat 1 and Radarsat 2 keep an eye on northern waters and provide climate and weather information.

Images from those satellites are being used to help the military track activity in Canadian Arctic waters in a program called Polar Epsilon.(link)

Ok. So let's get this straight. The DND has been pursuing a space strategy centering around providing space surveillance of the Canadian arctic.

Make's sense.

If Canada is going to protect its borders it needs to have a way to monitor such large arctic borders.

Canada especially needs to protect it's borders against other artic nations like Russia.

It may be a stretch to call Russia an "enemy" of Canada, but it definitely is a competitor with Canada when it comes to the arctic.

And so here the CSA comes along and wants to consult with them on how to develop this capability?

It's the equivalent of Iran asking the US for advice on how to build a Nuke.

Sounds like great cooperation. Doesn't make much strategic sense.

No One's Buying It

Ridiculous is the only word to describe this:

“There was an honest misinterpretation by people who were dealing with these matters in the midst of the heat of the moment,” Mr. Mukherjee said.

“It was the government, the minister of community safety, that realized that there was a misinterpretation. And they drew it to the attention of the staff and they then advised the chief right away. … There was no willful misinterpretation. There was no intent to mislead anybody.

“And as far as the police officers were concerned, they were advised right away, as soon as the mistake was detected.”(link)

Do they honestly expect anyone to believe this claptrap merely a day after the police chief admitted to the ruse?

Asked Tuesday if there actually was a five-metre rule given the ministry’s clarification, Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair smiled and said, “No, but I was trying to keep the criminals out.”(link)

If this were a business, and I were running it, the police chief and half these knuckleheads would be out the door faster than you can say "five-metre rule."

If I were a police officer I would be ashamed right now.

Allan Rock Should Be Fired

Remember the Ann Coulter affair? Remember that notorious letter sent by the provost of the University of Ottawa? Remember how Allan Rock, former Liberal cabinet minister and Prez of U of O was mysteriously silent the whole time?

Turns out he was behind the whole damn thing:

"You, Francois, as Provost, should write immediately to Coulter informing her of our domestic laws. ... You should urge her to respect that Canadian tradition as she enjoys the privilege of her visit."

After seeing a copy of the final email to Coulter, Rock praised Houle: "Quel excellent message! Merci et felicitations. I am sure she has never been dressed down so elegantly in her life!" (link)

These emails show a lack of professionalism, a lack of good sense, and a lack of character on behalf of Rock. He should be fired.

He should be fired if U of O wants to maintain the basic semblance of any credibility whatsoever.

He should be fired for using his position to intimate visitors to this country merely because he disagrees with them.

He should be fired because he clearly has no integrity whatsoever.

The G20 Idiots

I've sat back and watched the coverage. Police cars burning. Police harassing seemingly innocent protesters.

Those same protesters destroying public property.

Then I watched videos of real wanna-be "hero's" confront police officers to prove some sort of point. Who knows exactly what they were trying to prove. Then I watched police officers, believe it or not, professionally handle these situations.

Then to make matters worse, I just watched a police chief admit he lied to the public.

There was no 5 metre rule. It was just a tactic used to intimate individuals into complying with searches.

The end result? There were idiots all over downtown Toronto this past weekend - Both Police and Protester.

In my opinion everyone should be ashamed at their behavior. Police should be ashamed at the abuses of power that their police chief apparently sees no issue with. Protesters should be lamenting the horrible damage those that destroyed property did to their cause.

In the middle of this stupidity their were no doubt true innocents not reported by the media who have experienced financial loss or a violation of charter rights.

This past weekend was not a good weekend for Toronto or Canada.

G20 Costs IV

I was just forwarded this email exchange from a fellow Tory. Relevant names and email addresses have been deleted.

----From: Donations
Subject: FW: Help us end the long-gun registry...
To: [DELETED]
Date: Thursday, 24 June, 2010, 12:34

Thank you for taking the time to contact the Conservative Party of Canada and for sharing your thoughts with us regarding the G8/G20 security costs. Please be assured that your comments and suggestions have been carefully reviewed.

Since the tragic events of 9/11, increased security has, unfortunately, become a fact of life. Security is costly, but it is imperative to the safety and well-being of the G8/G20 participants and all Canadians, that we spend this money. Some 30 world leaders will be in attendance, along with thousands of delegates and media. All of these people need to be housed, fed, transported, and protected. These individuals will face the entire range of security threats that accompany such meetings, which is why we need to go to such lengths to ensure their safety.

The infrastructure that will be put in place will remain long after the G8/G20 has finished, benefitting residents of Toronto and Muskoka. The new infrastructure ranges from new equipment and road improvements, to buildings and improved communications networks. Please rest assured that our Conservative Government has planned accordingly for all costs and are on target and within budget.

Once again, thank you for taking the time to write.

Yours truly,

[DELETED]
Fundraising & Membership Services Department
Section des Activités de financement et des Services aux membres
Conservative Party of Canada
Parti conservateur du Canada
Tel./Tél. 1-866-808-8407 Fax/Télec. 613-755-2001

----From: [DELETED]
Date: June 16, 2010 8:07:10 PM PDT
To: "Irving R. Gerstein"
Subject: Re: Help us end the long-gun registry...

Put some money towards a tax cut for me, instead of this silly G8/G20 summit combo, and you'll get my attention!

--- On Wed, 16/6/10, Irving R. Gerstein, Chair, Conservative Fund Canada wrote:

From: Irving R. Gerstein, Chair, Conservative Fund Canada
Subject: Help us end the long-gun registry...
To: [DELETED]
Date: Wednesday, 16 June, 2010, 22:09

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Dear Mr. [DELETED],

Last week, I sent you an email asking you for your opinion on how we should handle the upcoming battle to scrap the expensive and ineffective long-gun registry.

Right now, the final vote on the bill to scrap the registry hangs in the balance: the difference between success and failure being decided by 12 NDP and 8 Liberal MPs who have previously voted in support of the bill but whose commitment may be flagging.

This is your chance to tip the balance.
(...)

I get that the responder is merely a peon carrying out orders. But I gotta ask: does anyone up at the PMO know what they're talking about?

Using 9/11 as a reason for escalating costs would be reasonable in a world where G20 summits have only happened prior to 9/11. In the "real" world, the Toronto summit is one of four since 9/11.

Two of the four happened in major urban centers and two cost between 12 to 28 million. Gordon Brown, the British Prime Minister, was roundly criticized for the 28mill price tag of his summit just last year. Our summit is nearing $1billion.

Britain surely had to deal with the increased security costs of 9/11 - they somehow seemed to spend 35 times less for the same service.

Let's put this into perspective here. For the same cost of our G20 summit Britain could have held the following summits:

1) The London G20 Maternal Health Summit
2) The London G20 Holy Moly The Economy is bad Summit
3) The London G20 "Cause We Can" Summit
4) The London G20 Climate Change Summit
5) The London G20 Bank Tax Summit
6) The London G20 Irish Drunkards Summit
7) The London G20 Drug Dealers Summit
8) The London G20 Mafia Summit
9) The London G20 Horror Film Summit
10) The London G20 Soccer Summit
11) The London G20 Bollywood Summit
12) The London G20 Stars on Ice Summit
13) The London G20 Washed-Out Actors Summit
14) The London G20 Nuclear Summit
15) The London G20 End of World Summit
16) The London G20 Mama's Boy Summit
17) The London G20 Meddlers Summit
18) The London G20 Old Aging Hippies Summit
19) The London G20 Old Aging Hairy Arm-pitted Hippies Summit
20) The London G20 New Age Summit
21) The London G20 No Name Summit
22) The London G20 Britain's Got Talent Summit
23) The London G20 Austin Powers Summit
24) The London G20 Pad Thai Summit
25) The London G20 It's Called Football Stupid Summit
26) The London G20 We Are Not Alone Summit
27) The London G20 Star Trek Summit
28) The London G20 Haggus Summit
29) The London G20 Braveheart Summit
30) The London G20 Teabag Summit
31) The London G20 Europhile Summit
32) The London G20 Euroskeptic Summit
33) The London G20 Riot This! Summit
34) The London G20 Chinese Buffet Summit
35) The London G20 Summit to End all Summits

For the same summit that Canada has done once, Britain could hold one summit every year for next 35 years!

Now that's a cost overun!

G20 Costs III
G20 Costs II
G20 Costs I

G20 Costs III

An apparent blunder by Sarkozy? I don't think so:

He then went on to make a bold declaration that could come back to haunt him in 2011.
(...)
“...As for the French G8/G20, even though I can’t confirm the Canadian numbers, they will be ten times less. Exactly.”(link)

Except that previous summits held in the past had a price tag closer to 1/63 of the cost of this summit. 1/10th, it could be argued, is actually a pretty extravagant target.

Sarkozy's rush to name a number (in my opinion) is a smack against Harper. Sarkozy could have easily said nothing. Instead he chose controversy.

Something tells me some background politicking may be in play.

G20 Costs II
G20 Costs I

MP Pensions By The Numbers

Last week, the group called attention to the new list of MPs qualifying for the pension plan by putting 75 plastic pigs on the front lawn of Parliament Hill. Watson's name was on one of them.

Also included was disgraced former Tory MP Helena Guergis. Each is entitled to $32,000 to $44,000 a year once they turn 55, even if they stop working as MPs at the end of the month.(link)

The issue here is whether or not a pension that pays out $30k / year is excessive or unreasonable.

Let's do the math here. The nest egg someone would need to amass to ensure a $30k /year retirement is somewhere in the range of $500k to $1million.

Let's presume that the average qualifying period for this pension is 8 years. That's the equivalent of around 47k to 95k a year stashed away based on an interest rate of 3 to 6% and annual inflation of 2%.

The average MP salary is around $150k/yr. That's a final benefit adjusted salary of 200k to 300k a year. The average MP also has about $280 k of miscellaneous expenses every year. That brings the average MP's annual salary + benefits to about 500k to 600 k a year.

Comartin is also under fire from the group after making remarks in a recent radio interview. He said MPs are comparable to the "semi-elite" of the working world and should be at the level of upper management or even professional athletes in terms of their pensions.

If we took Mr Comartin's basis for this evaluation of what an MP's salary should be then we should compare an MP's salary to the average salary of a an executive at a private corporation. (I quite frankly think that a professional athlete's pay is just an unreasonable comparison).

The average board member of a corporation earns $139k/yr.

As far as I can tell there are no "pensions" for directors on corporate boards for the most part. Travel fees are reimbursed. I did find that the Bank of Montreal directly lists total compensation packages for Director's. If we use a BMO director as obtaining a "typical" level of compensation for a director in private industry, at about 40 meetings a year the average director has a total compensation of salary + fees of somewhere in the range of 200k to 300k / year.

The basic conclusion of these numbers is that the compensation that MPs receive in Ottawa is nearly double what their private sector counterparts get.

Is that excessive? If these MPs were cars, and I had to buy an MP-car I would say they're overpriced.

G20 Costs II

“So that is exactly why we need these type of summits, that is exactly why leaders sitting around the table face-to-face—and not through Twitter, Skype or video-conferencing—will eventually produce more results.”

Soudas also suggested that once leaders get down to business, any questions about Harper’s credibility as a result of the $1.2 billion cost of the meetings and the controversy over the “fake lake” at the media centre will be left far behind.(link)

The problem is that's a really bad reason for costs to be 63 to 3 times the cost of similar summits held in other countries. The issue isn't that the costs are unnecessary, but it's that they are extravagant and ultimately unreasonable.

It's the equivalent of the government buying a car for $1.2 million, yet similar cars go for $20,000 in the market. If you ever saw that type of expense you couldn't tell me you would buy the car.

This is a big whopping mistake. No business would accept cost overruns like these. I just can't figure out what the Tories in Ottawa were thinking.

G20 Costs I

G20 Costs

2008 Washington Summit: $??
2009 London Summit: $19 mill UK ($28 mill CDN)
2009 Pittspburgh Summit: $12.2 mill USD ($12 mill CDN)

2010 Toronto Summit: $1 Billion CDN

That's a pretty big difference.

This Liberal Ad Stinks

I realize I am fully biased saying this but I think it anyways: this new Liberal Ad stinks. It's wholly ineffective and it's a waste of Liberal Party donors moneys.

Where's the Contrast?

This ad is all about Stephen Harper. It isn't scary. And it says nothing about the "other" guy. Negative ads are only good if they provide a good contrast to the other guy IMHO. A "billion dollar boondoggle" sounds bad but it does nothing to make a voter think "hey those Liberals aren't as bad as this guy."

Poor Positioning

Watch this ad but Imagine Stephen Harper's face is not there and his name is never mentioned. It could have easily been an ad made by the Tories criticizing Paul Martin during the Sponsorship Scandal.

When it comes to "fiscal responsibility" I don't believe this issue is a Liberal issue, just like Healthcare is not a Conservative issue. It's a strange topic for a negative ad for the Liberals.

A far more effective issue to make a negative style ad would be regarding the Afghan detainee issue and the release of documents. To be clear I believe Law & Order issues are the Conservatives natural strength. That being said when the debate switches to secrecy and human rights I believe these are natural Liberal strengths in the public's eyes.

Either way I think it's just a weird issue for the Liberals to be pushing. I realize that the issue has shown some play in the polls, but who actually believes that this will be a long term problem?

Given a few months, the G20 will be over, and no one will remember a darn thing. Like prorogation the issue will fizzle. What the Liberals need to be looking for right now to win is are issues that stick over the long term.

Iggy's Turn The Page

What the Puffster needed right now was an ad that grabbed your attention. They needed an ad that got people talking. I don't believe this is that ad.

Iggy's problems of late with low polling numbers and the never ending talk of "merger" needed a moment to turn the page. This was an opportunity to do just that.

This ad was a failure in the sense that it failed to live up to what it could have done.

As a Conservative this makes me happy. If I were Liberal this wouldn't be an "up" moment.

Someone's pants are on fire...

Kinsella on NDP/Lib Merger:

"Serious people are involved in discussions at a serious level," Warren Kinsella, a former adviser to former prime minister Jean Chrétien, told CBC News.(link)

Iggy Puff on NDP/Lib Merger:

“We had some discussion of this ridiculous discussion of fusion of the two parties,” the Liberal Leader told reporters. “No one has any authorization to even discuss this matter. It’s ridiculous. I am a Liberal. I am proud to be a Liberal. The people around me are Liberals. We are going to form a Liberal government.”(link)

This is an interesting circus. But a circus is all it is.

If talks were really in progress Iggy wouldn't be denying it. He would be using his regular Iffy lingo and avoid the topic...

I really think this is being done for far more strategic reasons. Jeff Jedras is right: this is all about leadership politics.

The media firestorm this is creating is de-stabilizing Iggy Puff's leadership.

Let's look at the people at the center of this controversy pushing the merger story: Kinsella, Rae, and good ol' Chretien. All three of these clowns are not exactly Iggy-Friendly. Kinsella left Iggy's office not to long ago for reasons all too unclear. Rae is the Puffster's natural replacement should the Supreme Iggy decide to return to Harvard. And Chretien hails from the left of the party and has numerous connections in his past to Bob Rae which leads me to think he would support Rae over Iggy.

A scheme by the anti-Iggy-ites in the Fiberal Party of Canada?

On a balance of probabilities I would say so.

Approaching Two Hundred

With the addition of the new blogs below, we stand at 192 blogs on the BlogRoll. Outstanding!

Please take the time to check out the new additions and be sure to say hello.

Meadowsweet Organics

http://www.meadowsweetorganics.blogspot.com/

The Bellevue Guy - Bryan
http://thebellevueguy-bryan.blogspot.com/

Stephen Rowsell Photography
http://srowsell.wordpress.com/

RONiN photography
http://roninphoto.blogspot.com/

Birding Newfoundland
http://birdingnewfoundland.blogspot.com/

JeffPower.ca
http://jeffpower.ca/

Newfoundland, Labrador, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, BlogRoll

Triple 'E' Doubts

Stephen Harper's Elected Senate plans have come under fire from one of his own:

"I don't think that being elected that will add to sober second thought," Nolin told the Senate.
(...)
"Quite to the contrary, I think that will create havoc between this house and the other house because at the end of the day we will try to challenge them (on) being more popular than them, being more democratic than them."(link)

Nolin is wrong on several fronts.

Accountability

An elected senate would make Senators in the upper chamber actually accountable. The question of accountability has been the central reason the Upper Chamber's reputation has been called into question over the last 20 years.

Making senators accountable, even in a loose way, to an electorate gives them a boss.

Legitimacy

Canadians don't take the Senate seriously.

Maybe that last sentence should have an exclamation point. No one believes that the senate actually holds parliament accountable in any way shape or form.

The senate is merely a rubber stamp for a Prime Minister who crams loyalists into the upper chamber who will do his bidding. Recent sporadic signs of spine by Senate do not undue the years of rubber stamping under successive Liberal and Conservative governments.

An elected senate gives the upper chamber a legitimacy that otherwise will never come on its own.

Sober Second Thought

Nolin's argument that instead of more sober second thought "... two elected chambers would be a recipe for parliamentary gridlock..." makes no sense. If the Senate is going to provide "Sober Second Thought" it needs to question.

Questioning means in some cases gridlock. Gridlock means that it will be tough to pass legislation. For some reason this is a bad thing.

Governments do not have a natural tendency to create less laws. They create more. And then more. And then when that's done they create more laws.

Ensuring a hint of division in an otherwise undivided senate injects into the upper chamber a questioning attitude. It'll lead to less laws, less government, and better quality in the bills that do make it through.

Less government is a noted goal of conservatives last time I checked. We'll just have to wait and see if the Harper's bill manages to shrink big old government just a tiny bit.

Progressive Not So Strong

The latest poll shows interesting polling numbers for a Conservative Party vs Left-Coalition scenario.

What it shows more importantly to Conservatives is that Conservative support increases:

"... Conservatives led by Stephen Harper would defeat a coalition led by Michael Ignatieff 40-34 per cent..."

There must obviously be a large chunk of Liberals who are more willing to vote Conservative than they are willing to vote for the NDP.

The Coalition of $&%$*!

Bob Rae says there’s no rule preventing the Liberals and the NDP from ganging up and toppling a newly elected Tory government: He’s done it before and now he’s hinting it may happen again.
(...)
“This week marks the 25th anniversary of the signing of the Liberal-NDP Accord in Ontario...
(link)

Hey Rae! Do you remember what the end result of your Ontario accord was?

One Man: Mike Harris.

Go ahead and form your Coalition of $&*! The Liberals will shift away from the center in order to gain Dipper support. The public will only be able to take so much nanny-state progressivism from an overactive left. People will be outraged.

Us "regressives" will just sit back and watch a bad idea play itself out once again. Some people just never learn.

Chretien's Retirement Blues

OTTAWA - Jean Chretien says he thinks politicians get a bum rap from ungrateful and cynical voters.(link)

Ya... Because a billion dollar boondoogle is just an "ungrateful" and "cynical" public. We mere peons are so undeserving.

The complete gall and absolute arrogance of the man that is Jean Chretien never ceases to amaze me. This man said he would ditch the GST and lied. He said he would ditch NAFTA and lied. He was response for a government that squandered billions of dollars fattening the coffers of Liberal "friends" and has never taken responsibility for it.

That is Jean Chretien's legacy.

So my response to his current meanderings is "Boo-hoo!" Go suck a lemon... The peons aren't buying your lousy excuses and neither will history.

Canada's Korean Blunder

Canada is imposing sanctions on North Korea after the country was implicated in the sinking of a South Korean warship in March, killing 46 sailors.(link)

North Korea was "implicated"?... More like North Korea was caught red handed:

This situation seems crazy. North Korea spent years doing nothing. Why now?

Possibility recent Communist blunders have lead to internal instability. Internal instability leads to external insecurity.

The decision to impose economic sanctions against the North is baffling to me. The North, in a state of economic collapse, has no one to blame except itself for its troubles.

Here comes the west to give Kim Jong-il someone else to blame.

Sanctions have worked where exactly? Iraq? Cuba? Zimbabwe? Somalia? Burma?

They've worked no where. They do nothing except harm the local populace and turn them against those that imposed them.

North Korea should be scolded privately for this blatant act of aggression. Publicly the game of diplomacy needs to better played to strategically isolate the regime and to give them no political legs to fall back on.

If war is coming the cards need to be played right now to seed discontent in the North. We don't want the opposite to happen.

Registry Blues

The Liberals, or rather, the Young Liberals of Canada, are launching another salvo in what is turning into a pitched battle to save the long-gun registry.

Starting Saturday, the youth wing of the party will be putting up posters in New Democrat ridings targeting leader Jack Layton as well as the local MP.
(...)
Officially, the NDP wants to keep the long-gun registry but many of its MPs live in rural ridings and made commitments to their constituents to support the private member's bill. Layton is reportedly now dealing with the issue personally within his caucus, holding one-on-one meetings with MPs, trying to convince them to get on board with the party's official position.(link)

To all members of the Young Fiberals: good job doing the Jack Layton's job for him.

Abort The World

Pro-Choicers decided to stage a "die-in" this weekend. Minister Bev's office was the victim of this teenage like stunt. For those that don't know what a "die-in" is (neither did I until I looked it up), Wikipedia defines it as a "form of protest where participants simulate being dead." Sounds like loads of family friendly fun! Then again pro-choicers aren't exactly about being "family friendly."

The article offered three reasons for their "protest" of the governments recent actions:
1) 70,000 women a year die from unsafe abortions
2) The United Nations thinks it's a good idea.
3) "... it’s needed so women can be equal participants in society."

Three things off the top of my head:
1) What about the millions of unborn babies killed every year from very safe abortions?
2) The UN also thought a lot of not so good things were good
3) I suppose the millions of female babies aborted in China in the last decade were also in the name of gender equality?

The government has taken a VERY neutral stance on Women's health and Abortion: not to promote abortions galore around the world.

They could have funded pro-life programs around the world instead! Hey they could have even taken the extremely successful abstinence program in Uganda and tried to impose it on everybody else. That's not arrogant at all is it?

That would have been "die-in" worthy.

Blog of the Week : 05/16 - 05/22 2010

The 'Blog of the Week' for the week of May 16th to May 22nd 2010 is "Newfoundland Labrador Travel Blog". With summer fast approaching, so is the tourism season and I figured this was a good a time as any to select this space for promotion. The blog is a subsection of NewfoundlandLabrador.com which in itself is a wonderful tool to help plan your trip to our beautiful province. The blog itself focuses on things you can do while you are here and features pictures, videos and articles of many activities, sights and sounds of our beloved province. It's well worth the visit and more importantly, its something to share with non Newfoundland and Labradorians as they start planning their vacations. We love visitors!

Newfoundland, Labrador, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, BlogRoll

The CBC Conundrum

How do you like that big word: "conundrum?" I thought it was pretty impressive. Especially for a rural-Conservative intolerant gun-toting moron like me. Oh well I guess there's always some grand socialist scheme to wipe me out anyways so why worry?

Admit it: that's exactly what those urban downtown TO yuppies at the CBC really think of any small-c-conservative out there. Frank Grave's partisan faux pas was just the tip of the iceberg. Everybody knows it. This isn't some big secret.

The Communist Broadcasting Corporation is in a decades old love affair with everything Trudeau, statist, and "progressive." It gets tiring to see them hide it.

And yet they still try. This past week the CBC declared it was going to commission a study to determine if its coverage is biased. I've sat back this past week and watched the oh-so very predictable jokes.

Resisting the oh-so easy target I've decided to let go. The CBC's "bias" is joke enough already.

Instead I've focused on one thing in the brouhaha: the CBC for once in its cushy existence feels the need to prop-up its laughable credibility. It's the equivalent of having FOX news feel the need to reestablish its credibility with its Conservative viewers in the US. That would only happen if FOX really screwed up.

The CBC's image has been tarnished so badly that they must be worried even old Liberals don't trust them anymore. That thought fills me with a tiny sliver of hope.

Fantasy artist Frank Frazetta dies

I loved this man's work when i was in high school....

http://www.cbc.ca/arts/artdesign/story/2010/05/12/frank-frazetta-obit.html

Blog of the Week : 05/09 - 05/15 2010

The 'Blog of the Week' for the week of May 9th to May 15th 2010 is "K. Bruce Lane - Photo of the Day". It's been a while since I've selected a photo blog for this initiative and with so many of this type on the roll, I figure it's about time I did. K. Bruce's blog is particularly unique due to the frequency of posting. For several years now, he has posted a beautiful original photo (or many most times) each and every day. It takes dedication to keep this sort of thing going and I commend him fully for doing so, especially considering how wonderful all the pictures are. I highly suggest a visit and no matter what day you choose to do so, you're in for something new. Get going!

Newfoundland, Labrador, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, BlogRoll

Unforgettables

There's a couple of reminders I've been meaning to make for quite some time now and as I mentioned in my last post, I've reserved this week to do just that. I can't believe how fast Wednesday has come actually....

Adding the BlogRoll List to Your Blog

I can't stress the importance enough of adding the actual blogroll to your own blogs. The reason why this whole thing works so well is because it's a targeted (the main topic of course being Newfoundland and Labrador) interconnected list of blogs. A portion of your traffic is most definitely coming from other blog owners who have the list on their site and the more that have the list, the more the traffic everyone will receive. Without the connection, nobody is finding anyone and we certainly don't want that, right?

Adding the code is very easy if your familiar with using your blogging software at all. You just have to grab the code (which is here) and put it wherever you want on your site. There's a couple of different display options for you to chose from as well.

I encourage everyone listed on the BlogRoll to do this. There's a link about this on the main menu up top for future reference as well.

PING Your Blog

I should actually put this topic first in the post, but now that I'm on a roll here I'm going to keep rolling on...

It is highly, extremely, incredibly important to take the time and ping your blog; but not only pinging it using free services like pingoat.net/ or pingomatic.com/, but also BlogRolling itself. This is the service that is hosting the BlogRoll and often times is not listed on those aforementioned free ping sites.

The key thing to keep in mind here is that, by doing this, you will bump your blog up to the top of the list letting everyone know that you've updated. I'm sure you can see why this is a handy thing to do. It's honestly the first thing I do when I hit submit on a new post. Keep in mind that there are over 180 blogs listed here and at least half have the BlogRoll added to the page. Pinging is important...

... and to close by return, you can now fully understand why adding the list to your own site is as well quite important. The community thrives on it.

Newfoundland, Labrador, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, BlogRoll

New Blogs But No Blog of the Week

I've decided to postpone the Blog of the Week selection for this week, mainly because I have a number of posts that I wanted to write that I've yet to have time for. I figured I'd use this week to do just that and not risk bumping the Blog of the Week selection too far down the page as I do so.

In the meantime, please take the time to check out these 6 new blogs I just added to the roll. That should keep you busy for a bit...

Rock Solid Politics
http://rocksolidpolitics.blogspot.com/

It's A Cabana Life
http://its-a-cabana-life.blogspot.com/

Creating Health
http://healthwithmax.wordpress.com/

Torbay Today
http://torbaytoday.blogspot.com/

Pyro Pat's Newfoundland Fireworks
http://pyropatsnewfoundlandfireworks.blogspot.com/

Little Green Room
http://littlegreenroom.blogspot.com/

Check back next Sunday for the selection that week and be sure to tune in during the week as well as I have a number of this to discuss. Until then, be well!

Newfoundland, Labrador, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, BlogRoll

Story, thoughts?

Le Petit Chaperon Rouge

The early spring rains had pooled below the canopies created by the bows of the towering great maples and oaks that lined the gorge. Torrents of water ebbed and flowed on the forest floor, fighting a losing battle against gravity, and then finally, fatefully, streamed silently over the mossy outcrop and mixed undistinguished with the river below.

The red splash of colour was a bold statement contradictory to the greener so prevailing throughout the forest. The young girl who wore the red oiled cloak, moved lightly and easily amongst the rocks and roots that created a maze of obstacles in her path. She had long, auburn hair, tied up to keep it out of her heart shaped face, large piercing green eyes and delicate lips. The hood of her cloak was pulled up and taunt, trying unfailingly to keep as much of the rain and secondary water from soaking the occupant any more than necessary.

The young girls name was Virginia, she carried a small covered whickered basket over her one shoulder, within which she had lovingly placed fresh home baked bread, strawberry preserves, and a pie, made with the last of the apples from the root cellar. She walked, the half-day walk to her Grandmother’s cottage with purpose, it had been a fortnight since she had last visited and her Grandmother had been out of sorts, but spring planting had kept Virginia’s young life too busy to make the journey. She hurried her step a bit, spurned on by her sudden thoughts of regret and guilt.

The rain had slowed, becoming a fine mist that hung in the air, reminiscent of a fragile spray one might encounter when venturing too close to a thundering waterfall. The leaves had stopped their partnered dance as the dying wind fled back to where it first began, a few fervent birds chirped to their mates as they began to seek out the worms torn so violently from their subterranean homes.

The forest floor, containing the soil, the pooled water, the decaying autumn leaves and the young shoots that strained towards the hidden sun, muffled a rhythmic padding of feet that advanced steadily towards Virginia. The air was still cool as the sun still lay hidden behind the retreating storm clouds, the breath of the beast that disturbed the forest floor, steamed as it was expelled through a lopping grin of primeval jaws.

Virginia abruptly halted in her step. The carpeting of puddles, leaves and twigs beneath her small feet gurgled as her black boots sank into its depths, the rustling of the fabrics of her cloak and dress stopped as she did. She quieted her breathing; her green eyes darted around looking for something out of the ordinary. She tilted her head and listened, her hand reaching into the pocket of her cloak and grasped the handle of the knife held within. Something wasn’t right thought Virginia.

“Young lady, if I may enquire, where is it you are off to?” spoke a malevolent voice directly behind Virginia.

Virginia drew the knife as she spun swiftly on the heels of her boots, loose strands of her hair cascaded over her eyes, distorting her vision for a moment, but she could still recognize what was there before her. Seated nonchalantly on its haunches, as if it was the omnipotent master of all the forest contained, was a large, imposing grey wolf. The wolf’s fur was matted heavily with water, and it trickled in a steady stream from the beast’s throat. Virginia blinked a few times, and tilted her head as she examined the creature before her, “Excuse me?” she asked in a voice stronger then she felt.

Words dripping from its long tongue the wolf smiled and leaned forward, “I said, if I may enquire? Where is it you are off to?”

Virginia adjusted her footing in the water soaked mud beneath her feet, her boots made small sucking sounds as she freed them from the mire, but she had to ensure mobility if the wolf advanced upon her. “Why sir, would you require such information?” She replied.

As if contemplating the inquiry the wolf cocked its head, its large unblinking black eyes locked and never leaving Virginia’s own. His ears twitched as he spoke, “My Love, I consider myself the guardian of these woods, I protect those who walk its paths, that is the duty charged to me by the gods.”

The blade Virginia held before her dripped with rain water, the well worn leather wrapped handle had become soaked with both water and her sweat, but her petite hand never wavered. Delicate fingers, displaying white knuckles held fast. “I question your authority Sir, and I do beg your pardon, however, as such, I decline to answer.”

The black eyes of the wolf narrowed slightly, its leg muscles tensed and quivered, though the beast made no other noticeable movements, it inclined its head slightly, “As you wish, but I would advise you to be vigilant on your travels, these woods contain many dangers.” With those last spoken words, the wolf turned and disappeared along a hidden trail that vanished into the damp underbrush of the forest.

Virginia remained where she was for a moment, watching the back of the wolf as it retreated, and then with a small rustling disturbing the undergrowth as it weaved its way through, it was gone. The forest returned to its normal self. She dried the knife on her cloak, returned it into her pocket, twisted on her heels, and continued her journey to her grandmothers.

It was just short of midday when the trail Virginia followed came upon the clearing where sat her Grandmother’s small well kept limestone cottage. The finely thatched roof steamed as the sun, now visible after a victorious battle with the clouds, streamed down to provide sustenance of both heat and light to the forest. Small wisps of smoke did aerial aerobatics as it was freed from the small chimney, and then when the dance was over, died on the wind.

The rhythmic clicking of Virginia’s boots on the nearly dry flagstone pathway she walked seemed to be carried unencumbered by the air itself, she stopped at a sturdy door, white oak, dark with age and wear, cut and seasoned from the surrounding forest many decades in the past. Virginia took hold of the bronze door knocker, shaped like the old man of the river, decorated with oak leaves and creatures of faire; it was corroded green with age and mystic. She pounded on the door, her hand vibrated through the force, as she felt, more than heard the echo reverberate off the interior stone walls of the cottage.

“Come in”, spoke a voice from within the cottage. Virginia took hold of the handle and clicked the latch open. As expected the door was heavy, but it swung easily inwards, the ancient solid iron hinges were well tended and oiled, they gave no more than a low mournful groan as the door traversed.

Virginia crossed the threshold into a single room. The lighting was imperfect, smoke hung list fully in the air, the two windows were both closed with the drapes drawn tight, the combined smell of multiple herbs were very noticeable, as they hung dry from every conceivable location the ceiling had to offer. To her right was the chimney with a small smoldering fire to take the dampness from the air, to its left an old set of pine shelves lined with last years canning, an odd assortment of tableware and a couple of misbegotten cobwebs. The large Oak table, to the right of the chimney, its grains dark with care, love and age, was dashed haphazardly white with bits of flour, otherwise it stood empty.

Virginia lowered her load onto the table and turned to face the rear of the cottage. It was well organized and reasonably tidy; an imposing yellow painted pine dresser against the one wall was decorated with mass produced stenciled works of flowers, though it was dwarfed by the armoire, butted against it Along the remaining wall sat a simple bed of black iron, covered with an odd assortment of quilts and blankets, the largest part of which had seen much better days. Burrowed beneath the bedding was a solitary figure, though all that was visible was a head covered by a flowered nightcap.

“Good afternoon Gran”, spoke Virginia as she walked to the bedside, “I do hope you’re feeling better, but being in bed this time of the day, makes me question that assumption.”

“Don’t you worry your head little one, I’m fine. Bit of a chill is all”, came the reply.

Her boots scuffing, Virginia stopped short of the bed. She stared intently at the figure before her, with the combined smoke and meager lighting it was extremely difficult to distinguish details, but she did see a pair of exceptionally large black eyes intently looking back at her. “Why Gran, what large eyes you have.” Virginia rebalanced her weight between her feet and causally slipped her hands into her pockets as she spoke.

The figure smiled intensely, “Oh sweetheart, that’s only so I can see you better”.

Virginia’s full lips had gone dry, she swallowed hard, not taking hers eyes from the face in the bed, her tongue licked her lips moist again. “Gran, what rather large ears you have”.

Countless rows of glistening white teeth from yet another smile came from above the quilts, “My dear that is so I can hear you better.”

Virginia purposefully slowed and regulated her breathing, she inched back a small handful of steps away from the bed. “Gran, what large teeth you seem to have”.

When one carelessly drops a glass or falls off a stool, there is a moment in time, where the guiding laws and principles of the universe pause, and for but a brief instant we see the consequences of our actions, though impossible as it may appear, time slows for scarcely a heartbeat or two, then rushes with all its pent-up intensity at us yet again.

The figure in the bed exploded into motion in a burst of ripped quilts and blankets, scores of feathers and patchwork, took flight to the air as the wolf launched itself. Virginia twisted her body hard to the right, claws ripping her cloak as it did and the wolf shot past her. The wolf skidded on the wooden floor, scratching the polish loving applied, and without pause, spun and faced Virginia. It eyed her calculatingly, a bead of saliva hung motionless from its gapping jaws, he panted, “I told you young Miss, these woods are dangerous for the likes of you. You should have listened to me.”

Her heart beating ferociously, sweat forming on her forehead, Virginia held her ground. “You had best leave dear Sir”, she said staring into the wolfs eyes, “You are unwelcome in this household, and I would ask you to please depart.”

The wolf’s response was to propel itself forward once again, claws racking deeply into Virginia’s side this time, as she side stepped aside avoiding the latest attack. Droplets of her blood begin to fall onto the floor, making a shockingly beautiful patterns of colours and designs when mixed with the wood grains. Her eyes flashed with the twin sister’s, pain and fury, as she twisted to stare at the wolf.

The wolf panted deeply, gasping for air, its tongue hung from the corner of its mouth, a trail of saliva dripping onto the floor, bit by bit, its grey fur standing erect on its back, it crept towards Virginia, trying to close the distance between them.

Green eyes never leaving the wolf’s own, her boots clicking rhythmically on the floor, Virginia moved backwards, only to be stopped suddenly and unceremoniously short by the oak table. It didn’t move. Barely audible she spoke softly to the wolf, “Don’t”, was all she said.

The wolf smiled, its jaws well lubricated with its growing accumulation of salvia, a primordial growl of hell coming from somewhere deep within itself rose and escaped from its mouth, “Mine”, he whispered and then hurdled himself for Virginias exposed frail throat, willing himself to tear it apart.

The moment the wolf left the ground Virginia stepped forward, and dropped herself to the floor, while at the same time driving the knife upwards catching the wolf in its exposed underside. The momentum of the wolf drove the knife in, hilt deep, and tore through intestines and organs, spilling the wolfs life blood everywhere. Virginia rolled to her side as the wolf connected with the table and collapsed onto the floor in a crushed heap of flesh, bone and blood. Virginia watched intently as it breathing came in staggered gasps, blood pooling and congealing beneath it, its large black eyes still on her, the life dimmed slowly from them, and then was extinguished.

A loud pounding from the armoire startled Virginia out of her haze; she rose unsteadily to her feet and went to investigate.