It is so frakking cold…,

January 14, 2009 at 11:55 PM (notes and thoughts, politics, Random Political Thoughts)
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That my eyeballs froze solid.  Okay, not literally.  But it is mindboggingly, breathtakingly cold.  We have not had a cold like this in a few years, so one tends to forget what -30 or below actually feels like.  Now that we’ve had our little reminder, I won’t complain about -15 again!  That is positively balmy in comparison!  Too cold to ride, and too cold for the horses to stay out very long.  The condensation from their breath was forming little icicles in their nostrils outdoors.  At home the cats would step foot outdoors, think about it for a second, then turn to look back at me as if it was somehow my doing.  Of course, they would try first the front door, decide that was too cold, and then head for the back door, as if it might possibly be warmer out there.  Too funny sometimes.  They do the same thing when it’s raining or snowing.  Just in case the back yard has a different weather system happening.

I really feel sorry for the homeless on a night like tonight.  Not just the homeless people, but also the homeless animals.  It is hard enough to survive on the streets, but when this kind of weather hits, deaths start happening.  And Canadians are so kind to the homeless.  I heard recently that 75% to 85% street people are mentally ill.  So obviously we take really good care of people with mental illness as well.  And no, I don’t have any easy answers.  But in a strange and retarded look on the bright side kind of way, that number is almost a good thing.  At least we seem to have a good enough social safety net, that people who are poor don’t usually end up on the streets, or living in their cars, the way they do in the US.  (And yes, I do know how politically incorrect it is to use that word – retarded.   I am not always a PC person – maybe more of a Mac.  Get that dumb pun?)

Anyhoo, needless to say all the animals are inside, well fed on their new transitional diets heading towards absolutely no more crack kibble.  Sasha had a chicken leg for dinner.  Bones and all.  And some left over from yesterday’s doggy dinner: beef/barley stew.  Which coincidently, we also had for dinner last night.  Yes, it is true.  My dog is eating as well as we are, which seems to be only fair.  Or you could say I am feeding my family dog food.  Although I don’t think I’ll go so far as to throw the kids a slighlty cooked chicken leg and pronounce it dinner.

The thing about the dry food, especially the cat food, that really bugs me is that I never used to feed it until I heard a vet say it is good for them.  Lower fat than canned food, and good for cleaning their teeth.  So I actually thought I was depriving them of healthy stuff by only feeding canned food.  Now, looking at the labels, I realize that no matter how crappy the canned might be, it is still a million times better than dry food.

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So are we ready for our new president?  What is it about Barack Obama that Canadians like so much?  It’s gotta be more than simply he is not W!!! We seem to be so enamored with him.  We’re like a highschool girl, who is so exited to get asked on a date,  because his first official state visit will be to Canada.   How dja like them apples, Mexico!   If he’d run in our next election, he’d probably win, hands down!  Mind you, he’s got a lot on his plate already, I don’t know if he’d be able to find the time to run Canada too.  And our system is a bit different.  Political corruption and bribery and scandal must be conducted in both official languages!  Unless you’re Jean Chretien, then you can savage both languages, still engage in corruption, bribery and scandal, and we will love you even more.  Don’t get me wrong, I loved JC as much as the next Canadian (well, one who thought he was pretty cool – plenty didn’t!).  But really, nobody could hold a candle to him, in French or in English.  Harper can slaughter french, but his english is excellent.  Dion was great at making english look like Swahili, but his french was immaculate.  JC made both languages look like  the ancient lost tongue of Betelgeuse 5. And I realize if you are RC, then calling him JC is also un-PC.  I don’t care.

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Battlestar Galactica is coming out with it’s final ten episodes.   On the SciFi channel.  Which we don’t get.  Frak!!!  (My substitute swear word, which I stole from the show, thereby making me very cool a real geek.  I also try to say Snap (from My Name is Earl- love that show) but I always forget, so I end up saying shit, and then my kids go all: ‘Mom said a bad word!’- but I digress.)  Todd thinks they’ve jumped the shark, but I still like BG, and I can’t wait until they show it here (which will probably be ten years from now!!)  But if you’re Jonesing for some cool sneak peaks and recaps, check this out.  Tres cool not geeky.

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A Big Sigh of Relief…

November 15, 2008 at 7:43 PM (notes and thoughts, politics, Random Political Thoughts)

I know I am a bit behind here, but I’m joining the crowd of cheers that Barack Obama has won the presidential race in the USA.  Will he make a difference?  Will the US suddenly become a sane nation under his guidance?  Will the sharp swing to the right curve back around to reality?  One can only hope.  And as people have said, can’t be any worse, right??

Did anyone catch this interesting interview on the CBC this morning??  Wow!  Mind you, can’t say I’m surprised.  I copied this from the CBC website, don’t know if the links will work, but go to CBC for the full story.  It was pretty interesting, to say the least.

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Part 2: UN Spying – Katherine Gun

We started this segment with a clip of former US Secretary-of-State Colin Powell speaking to the United Nations Security Council on February 5th, 2003. It was the Bush Administration’s last ditch effort to get the UN onside with its plans to invade Iraq. But it wasn’t the only attempt to influence the council.

In March of 2003 — just a month after Colin Powell gave that speech — an incredible story emerged in Britain. It had to do with a secret memo from the U.S. National Security Agency, one that had been leaked to the media and showed that the United States had been spying on U.N. delegates from Security Council member countries.

Katharine Gun was the one who leaked that memo. She was working for British Intelligence at the time and she was charged under the Official Secrets Act. She was eventually cleared even though she admitted to leaking the memo. And she says she’d do it all again if she had the chance. Katharine Gun is the subject of a new book by Marcia and Thomas Mitchell called, The Spy Who Tried to Stop a War: Katharine Gun and the Secret Plot to Sanction the Iraq Invasion. She was in Gloustershire, England.

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One final politcal note.

Quebec is now in the midst of a provincial election.  WTF??!!??

Please, someone, tell me who on earth there is that will represent me.  The lying, conniving present premiere, Jean Charest of the red bullshit party?

Or the ADQ, who proposes that Quebec schools do not teach the histories of different religions, but go back to the good, old catholic days to reflect Quebec’s cultural heritage.  Remember all those good ol’ boys, the priests?  The nuns who would sooner beat you than praise you?  The eighteen children per family, (those poor women) because condoms are against God?  Yes, let’s go back to that wonderful time.

How about the Parti Quebecois?  I’m sure they would love to slam the door on my butt.  (You know, don’t let the door hit you on your way out… or get the frack out of my province, English pig dog!)

Conservatives.      Do we have those in Quebec?  Are they edible?

NDP.            No.  Definetely.  PigDog.

So who the hell I’m I supposed to vote for?  Can I write someone in on the ballot?  My dog would do a better job.  Seriously.  Bah!!  Politics.  I’ve had enough.

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In the name of security…

July 8, 2008 at 10:35 AM (Random Political Thoughts, random stuff)

KissMyRobot

A thought provoking, well written blog that touches on various issues surrounding our use of technology.  Some times we are too acquiescent and accepting, as a society, to the restrictions on our freedom and rights, and to the prying eyes who want to classify and document our movements, all in the name of security.  I have to say we need to do some serious thinking about where we are headed.

Driving back from Hamilton, Todd and I briefly touched on it.  It’s hard for me to put into words what I think.  But I’ll try.

We have never been more free, (most of this applies to the First World, such as we are).  In the past centuries, humanity was always under the yoke of someone or something.  The Roman Empire, the Church, the Noblemen, the Royalty, you get the picture.  It’s only in the last few centuries that society has somewhat liberated itself, and now everyone is free to be who they are, supposedly.  Which is why I find it so disturbing when we give up our freedom, like good little sheep, in the name of security.  Security from what?  For what?  All the politicians have to do, whenever someone questions these restrictrions, is shout ’9-11′, or ‘Al-Quaida’,  ‘Osama Bin Laden’, ‘Terrorists’ and the questionner will look foolish in everyones’ eyes.

Now how many spy-bots do you think will pick up those words I just used?  Especially cause they’re all in the same sentence.  Think the RCMP or Homeland Security will check it out?  Wait, isn’t one outfit Canadian and one American?  Not really anymore.  It’s called ‘collaboration’.  It is  becoming more dangerous to even question the government’s actions, and believe it, you are being watched.  Sounds paranoid, doesn’t it?  That’s the unfortunate part.  I don’t think it is anymore.  I think it is true.  And I did a Google search on the spelling of Osama Bin Laden.   Bet that was picked up too.

Look how easy it was for the Canadian government to put people under security certificates.  Quote:

“Amnesty International believes that the security certificate process falls far short of international standards for fair trials and may result in arbitrary detention and violation of the right to liberty. Detainees are effectively denied their right to prepare a defence and mount a meaningful challenge to the lawfulness of their detention. The right to appeal is also denied. This lack of due process has further grave consequences given that security certificates are frequently applied in cases where the likely outcome is deportation to a country where the person is at serious risk of torture and other human rights violations.”

But it doesn’t apply to Canadian citizens so many people are not concerned.  That is the slippery slope.  It’s only a matter of time.

Anyway, back to KissMyRobot, I’d like to quote one quick little sentence, in reference to Orwell’s book, 1984, that kind of sums things up:

“we, humans, have read the book and thought “Cool, let’s do that!” rather than “Crap, that’s some scary stuff. Let’s steer clear.”

Need I say more?

KissMyRobot Go read it.

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