Human density transfer

From the Undercurrent :

"One of the fun activities that came from Ft. St. John was the walk to Whistler. They actually had the whole community come out one day and walk together; they added up their mileage and had the 1300 kms it would take to walk to Whistler from Fort St. John."

Wait for it...

"Well, obviously the distance from Bowen to Whistler is a little shorter, so the parks and rec. girls have decided to change the challenge slightly. For the week of Feb 3 to Feb 10, you add your mileage up to the 101 kms it is to Whistler. That's a long distance for most people to complete individually so you may form a group and add your miles together."

Yes, it's the human density transfer principle.

So why the fuck would we sign on to this dense idea?
Well apparently the "2010 Legacies Now" committee want us to start up some winter traditions now so that we'll be in the mood by 2010 because :

"The Olympics are not just about the actual competitions anymore. A very important aspect of having the Olympics in the lower mainland is the legacies that will be left long after the Olympics are done."

Ah, yes, legacies. In one of the original pitches for having the 2010 Olympics here, the council of Salt Lake City was quoted as saying they would definitely host the Olympics a second time if they got the chance. When I wrote to Salt Lake City council asking for more details, they wrote back to explain that hosting the Olympics a second time was the only possible way for Salt Lake City to recoup their losses from the first time.

I would suggest that rather than join the "Walk to Whistler" campaign, if you really want to show your support for Olympics 2010, a more fitting tribute would be to just park your car in your driveway and leave the engine running for 45 minutes or so.

Brian Jungen at the VAG

A whale skeleton made from plastic lawn chairs.


A native mask made from running shoes.

Proportional representation, anyone?

In the riding next door, 63% of the voters chose Lib, NDP, or Green.
63% of the total votes were "wasted" under the 'first past the post' system.
Think any of these libs, greens, or dippers are happy about being represented by a conservative?
One argument against "prop rep" is that it might allow a "fringe" candidate to get elected.
Under first past the post, 63% of this riding got fringed.

Attention shoppers!

The following are not recorded at Elections Canada as protest votes:

• "I'm really just not into the whole political thing."
• World of Warcraft addiction
• sleeping it off - all day
• "I wish it would stop raining."
• not feeling 'included in the system'
• Auto Antiques Roadshow marathon
• your Trailblazer is blocking your Pathfinder in the driveway
• "Only politicians are running"

Onward Christian litigants

Our Lady of Fatima Shrine Catholic Church in Scarborough Ont was the scene of a small tax-exempt political brawl right after Sunday Mass yesterday morning.

The Conservative candidate for Scarborough South West took a swing at a campaign worker handing out endorsements for Liberal MP Tom Wappel and a scuffle ensued in which one of the campaigners was knocked down. The campaign workers in question, LifeSiteNews director Steve Jalsevac together with his wife and four children, were distributing a “pro-life pro-family” leaflet endorsing Liberal MP Wappel, one of 32 liberals who voted against Same Sex Marriage and Bill 6.
The Conservative candidate had evidently declined to answer a Campaign Life Coalition ‘Vote for Life and Family!' questionnaire and so did not win their endorsement. The LifeSiteNews director made an audio recording of the scuffle which you can hear here and has said he intends to press charges.

I have to question the wisdom of the repeated use of the term 'bastard' in this exchange. Wasn't Jesus technically a bastard?
And remember, every time the six o'clock news runs a story of so-cons duking it out on the church steps after Mass, the baby Jesus cries.
Thanks to Politics from the Heartlands for this lovely gift of schadenfreude.
Rick also has links up to get some early election results.

Scraping the 'compassionate' off the 'conservative'

John Weston finally gets down to it in his final campaign mail-out before the election.
It's all about the stuff.
Getting more stuff and keeping everyone else off your stuff.

A vote For George Harper is a vote for Stephen Bush

"Conservative leader vows to end anti-U.S. rhetoric
By Levon SevuntsTHE WASHINGTON TIMESJanuary 21, 2006
MONTREAL -- Canada's Conservatives, who look increasingly sure of winning national elections on Monday, say they are hoping for a fresh start in the nation's frosty relations with the United States.
John Reynolds, official opposition house leader, said while trade disputes between Canada and the United States will remain, the tone of political discourse will change. "We had a government that for 12 years in Canada has called [Americans] words like 'coward' and 'stupid,'?" said Mr. Reynolds, who co-chairs the Conservative elections campaign. "That would change. Our party is not filled with anti-American people like it is within the Liberal Party." Mr. Reynolds said the first practical step in improving security cooperation between Canada and the United States would be to restart discussions about joining the anti-ballistic missile program."

In the last few months I have written several times to John Weston, Mr. Reynolds' CPC successor in our riding, asking him very politely for a clarification on his own position on the anti-ballistic missile program and the Security and Prosperity Pact of North America.
No reply from John Weston's campaign office.

As I recall, it was Bush, and not [Americans], who was referred to as 'coward' and 'stupid'.
So likewise when I call Mr. Reynolds a quisling and a disingenuous lying sack of shit, I do not mean all the people living in the West Van/ Sunshine Coast/Sea to Sky riding.

OK, to be fair, sometimes Canadians have referred to Americans as stupid, mostly because so many of them voted for Bush. I'm afraid we're about to find out what that's like.

As David Hill put it on the Forum : "A vote for George Harper is a vote for Stephen Bush."

We are family

Stephen Harper appeared in public in his secret Promise Keepers Canada crown for the first time today, as seen above. Introduced at a news conference by David Sweet, a Tory candidate and former president of Promise Keepers Canada, Mr Harper has also obtained the endorsement of the 'Globe and Mail' and the 'National Post'.

Oceanopoly

Item 46 of the Conservative Party Policy Declaration reads :

"Off-shore gas and oil development
A Conservative Government will promote exploration and environmental assessment of off-shore natural resources...."

I thought we had a moratorium on off-shore drilling and seismic testing...

"We will ensure that companies follow best practices and the precautionary principle to mitigate environmental risk...."

Oh well then - "best practices and the precautionary principle". Why didn't you say so right away?
This obviously beats a total moratorium on off-shore drilling all to hell by comparison.
And "mitigate environmental risk"? As in "to make less severe"? As in "the environmental disaster from a faultline earthquake will be less severe if it is first preceded by 'best practices and the precautionary principle' "?

Chris Corrigan reported that following a visit to Bowen in December, local CPC candidate John Weston had this to say about us in a press release: "And as island residents, they are particularly worried about the Canadian military's inability to respond to natural disasters such as floods or earthquakes."

No, John, we are particularly worried about government policies that may actually cause disasters, especially the ones that can in no way be passed off as 'natural'. Like fatal whale strandings, large-scale fish kills, and damage to crabs, squid and other marine life.

"and to consider the potential of these natural resources before designating new Marine Protected Areas."

Yeah, well, we saw that one coming.

Scam, Bam, Thank you, Ma'am

Over at the excellent Bouquets of Grey is a story from the Winnipeg Free Press about CPC Winnipeg candidate Linda West and her mail-order PhD.
Here's my diploma mill story.
Some years ago I started getting emails from The Western Ivy Covered University College or something like that. For a while I amused myself with just returning their "acredited univercity diplomas" solicitations with the spelling and grammar corrected (yeah, I know, but I was sick at the time and besides the whole pooter thing was new to me). Then I heard about a scambaiter who had conned one of those Nigerian "please help me-I'm very rich" scammers, and I was inspired to respond to WICUS regarding my interest in a PhD. Back came an invitation to obtain one in any field I liked for $2800US and the good news was that it was a self-directed study program in which all my previous work experience would count too. What a deal. Plus when I explained that I wasn't interested in writing any tests or submitting anything till my final paper - they were fine with that.
I do wish my old computer hadn't suddenly retired, taking with it all the ensuing correspondence in which Western Whatever U patiently adjusted their program to accommodate my rapidly changing career objectives. You see initially I really wanted to pursue a Doctor of Philosophy in Policy Objectives for General Human Sciences, like the former deputy director of the US Dept of Homeland Security has, but eventually I came to see that there were more opportunities awaiting me in "Motel Management and Firearms Consulting". Sadly, my correspondence with them finally came to an abrupt end with my request for a financial prospectus on completing my Grade 10.
Snobs.