Mad magazine nails it.
Read Mad.
Category: government
Rick Mercer – CND online privacy
It’s been a really, really bad week for Public Safety Minister Vic Toews.
Once Rick Mercer rants, you’re done in this country.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Not all of that is true, by the way.
But I’m happy to see the normally stupefied and inert Canadian public pay attention to this issue.
I’ve recently used the internet in totalitarian police States like China and Italy. We don’t want that here.
The right wing ‘tough on crime’ agenda does not work. They need to focus on eliminating the causes of crime.
(via Geist)
I will not vote for Harper
@pmharper @toewsVic #TellVicEverything
Up until now, I’ve not been all that unhappy with the Harper Conservative government.
But their non-stop efforts to restrict online freedom have forced me to look for another Party.
The latest BAD LEGISLATION (Bill 30) is called Protecting Children from Internet Predators Act
WTF !?
Vic Toews Canadian Conservative Public Safety Minister said on February 13, 2012:
“.. either stand with us or with the child pornographers” in response to questions from Quebec MP Francis Scarpaleggia (Lac-Saint-Louis) regarding extensive Privacy Commission concerns about ‘warrant-less access’ to all Canadian Internet and Cell phone accounts under C-30
Does that sound familiar?
… George W. Bush, in an address to a joint session of Congress on September 20, 2001 said,
“Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists.”
Toews has been mocked and attacked for that polarizing, disingenuous statement.
Next time you hear the statement:
… somebody is trying to hide something.
If you want to know the many, many reasons why Bill 30 is lousy legislation, follow Dr. Michael Geist.
who accumulated $14 trillion debt?
And who holds that debt?
George W Bush was by far the worst President from an economics point of view. I always felt his goal (Cheney’s goal) was to shovel as many dollars to rich friends as possible.
Leave a comment if you’ve got data to refute these numbers.
(via myinnermonoblog)
SOPA-like Internet piracy laws could be coming to Canada, expert warns
That’s the headline on the Financial Post this week.
There is a behind-the-scenes campaign underway to bring laws such as the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) in the United States northward, warns a noted Canadian digital policy expert. …
The expert is Michael Geist, a law professor at the University of Ottawa. He’s my most trusted source on this issue.
The Conservative government under Harper is tempted by corporate lobbyists — but caves quickly as soon the Canadian public becomes aware of dirty tricks.
Geist is not completely against the latest version — Bill 11 … Here’s a succinct summary of the legislation currently under consideration.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
And here’s a list of organizations opposed to the “digital lock”.
The old music industry is dying. Something new will be taking its place. We want the NEXT music industry to be better, not worse to what we’ve had in the past. 🙂
(via strombo)
Game Change – a review
Many recommended this book:
Game Change: Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime (2010)
… In 2008, the presidential election became blockbuster entertainment. Everyone was watching as the race for the White House unfolded like something from the realm of fiction. The meteoric rise and historic triumph of Barack Obama. The shocking fall of the House of Clinton—and the improbable resurrection of Hillary as Obama’s partner and America’s face to the world. The mercurial performance of John McCain and the mesmerizing emergence of Sarah Palin. …
It’s the definitive account of what happened.
You learn that you’d NEVER want to run for President of the USA. It’s ugly. It’s dirty.
Of the lead characters, John Edwards (in prison, I hope) and his wife Elizabeth (1949-2010) come off worst. A horror show.
Bill Clinton won’t be going to Heaven. I wouldn’t share a beer with him.
Michelle Obama comes out of the slime pit cleanest.
Actually, my opinion went UP for John McCain and Hilary. I personally campaigned against McCain in 2008, thinking him spawn of the Devil. He’s not as bad as I thought. I particularly liked how he backed Sarah Palin even after it became obvious that she was an insanely bad choice for VP.
Hilary would have been a great President.
If this stuff bores you to tears, you might want to wait on Game Change – the movie:
… an upcoming (March 2012) Jay Roach film based on the book of the same name by journalists John Heilemann and Mark Halperin. The film will primarily track the actions of the Republican Party during the 2008 Presidential Election.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Staring Sarah, I assume it’s a comedy. 🙂
US airlines must advertise TRUE fares
Good news — under the Obama administration:
A series of new airfare rules put forth by the Department of Transportation (DOT) will go into effect Jan. 26 and offer travelers better “passenger protections.”
The most visible of the new rules is a law that requires airlines to include mandatory government taxes and fees in all advertised fares. Other rules pertaining to ticket cancellation policies and baggage fees went into effect on Jan. 24. …
Luggage fees are still not included. And code-share flights not necessarily disclosed. When you buy a flight on Alaska, for example, you might find yourself on Horizon.
What happens in the States often ends up happening worldwide, the aviation industry so international.
jobs and the “wealth gap”
Jeff Jarvis is at the Davos World Economic Forum in Switzerland, the elite of the elite.
The theme is “jobs, jobs, jobs.”
… They’re discussing growth strategies and so far we’re hearing the same notions we hear elsewhere in Davos, the complete trick bag: spend money on infrastructure, be nice to business, regulate less, reform taxes, reform immigration. OK and OK.
“The problems of job creation are more complicated than that. …
Buzz Machine – Efficiency over growth (and jobs)
For example, Apple and Google are two of the wealthiest companies in 2011, but they don’t have many employees. Some jobs have been eliminated by technology. Others are gone overseas because people just as competent as you are willing to do it cheaper.
Obama’s State of the Union again chastised the American rich for not doing enough. That might be good politics, but it’s not going to do anything to create many American jobs nor reduce the “wealth gap“. I appreciate that he’s trying. … It’s better than nothing.
Is there any solution?
I don’t think so after listening to a new BBC audiocast documentary: The Wealth Gap: The View from London.
The future looks grim for most wealthy nations. The “occupy” protesters, most jobless, will continue being frustrated. And the rich will get richer. If you try to tax them, they’ll relocate abroad.
source – BBC – The Wealth Gap – Inequality in Numbers
If you have a job, I’d recommend you keep it. And start putting away emergency resources. (I’ll not be following my own advice, as you might guess.)
… One of the few bright spots is philanthropy – Davos 2012: Bill Gates commits $750m to fight AIDS
absurdities of American politics
Having read Game Change, two things jump out moronic:
1. Iowa … why (since 1972) has the first major electoral event of the nominating process for President of the United States been held here?
Though only about 1% of the nation’s delegates are chosen by the Iowa State Convention, the Iowa caucuses have served as an early indication of which candidates for president might win. It’s by far the most important State. Unfairly.
If you want to be nominated you try to win Iowa. And how do you win Iowa? You buy Iowa …
2. Super PACs (new since 2010):
… which can raise unlimited sums from corporations, unions and other groups, as well as individuals. …
Supposedly independent, both Romney and Gingrich have Super Pacs … run by former employees. They are a joke and a lie.
To mock Super PACs, Colbert legally formed his own — Americans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow (also known as the Colbert Super PAC)
Here’s one of Colbert’s real TV ads. Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
The Parliamentary Democracy of Canada is not perfect. But I like it far better than the system in the USA.
The Iron Lady
The Iron Lady is a biographical British film about Margaret Thatcher, longest serving Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of the 20th century, portrayed primarily by Meryl Streep, but also, in her formative and early political years, by Alexandra Roach. …
It was met with largely mixed reviews, though critics did give praise to Streep’s performance. Roach is excellent too. And Jim Broadbent is superb as Denis Thatcher. In fact, Olivia Colman is very believable as Carol Thatcher, Maggie’s daughter. It’s hard to fault the acting.
It was obviously a mistake to try to fit Maggie’s entire life into one film. Much better would have been a snapshot — like The King’s Speech. Or … The Queen.
Helen Mirren won Best Actress in 2006. Streep should win this year. She’s already won the Golden Globe.
I didn’t learn anything new about Thatcher. But Streep fans should see The Iron Lady. She’s perhaps the greatest actor all-time, male or female.
I saw it at Canary Wharf, London, adding to the ambiance.
Rick McCharles 