Dec. 17, 2005

    Last night I watched "The Interpreter" [5/10] which would have got a 7/10 if Will Smith or someone less irritating had played Sean Penn's role.
==

    Bush is cooked? Not likely, but one can dream. Violating the US Constitution just doesn't hold the same stigma it once did. Bush authorized the NSA to spy on Americans in America, thus breaking the law, although he will try to argue that there was oversight and another law that authorized him to order the spying without a warrant. Will he be impeached? Hopefully.
==

    I'm off to bowl now, 5 pin. I haven't 5 pin bowled in a couple years but I'm hoping to hit 200 points in at least one game.

    Well, I'm back now, and I scored 138, 151, then 77 [in an abreviated 3 frame game because our hour was up]. My friends and I had so much fun that we are going back tomorrow too. When our time was running out, I encouraged my friend Brien to try left handed because he was having trouble scoring more than 100 points. It turns out he's better left handed, despite his claims that he's quite "dextrious" and not "ambi-dextirous". On his first bowl, he got all but a 2 pin, and cleaned the last pin on the 3rd bowl much to everyone's surprise. In my last three bowls, I got 2 strikes, and then a spare, meaning I had to quit in my best game of the day, as I was on track to shatter my score record of about 260. My first strike of the day came in the 10th frame, and I was so excited I didn't notice it was the 10th frame an I had my next two shots right away. Brien ended up missing in my second shot, then I missed in the third :-) There were remarkably few scores in the 100s across the 20 lanes or so there. It was also glow bowling, which means there are black lights to make white stuff glow green, and loud music and disco balls everywhere.

    On the way back home, we saw a truck that had mounted the pile of snow in the middle of Albert St. It wasn't clear why he was there, but there was a cop behind him already, and the guy was sitting in his cab on his cell phone, probably telling his wife, "You'll never guess where I am..."

    I watched "The 40 Year Old Virgin" [8/10] with Steve Carrel, which was a bit painful at the beginning, but settled into a groove for the bulk of it that was hillarious. "The Legend of Zoro" [8/10] was a bit better than "Virgin", although it wasn't as good as the first movie in its series. In between movies we went to the Broken Rack and played a couple games of pool.

Dec. 16, 2005 Friday

    It's a cold day today, and I'm going to Norquay, right away.
     I went by hiway, which was a little icey.  There was some blowing snow, and a snow bank over part of the road near Norquay.  I cleaned up the computer I went to fix, and got back to the office at 3:30 after filling up, and noticed a chip on the windshield that hadn't been there the last time I drove anywhere.  So add another thing to fix on my busy schedule for next week when I'm only working two days.
     I'm headed to Regina this evening, so I don't know how much I'll be updating the blog on the weekend.  Don't be disapointed if there isn't much, as I will return.

    On Angry's blog, I posted the following in response to a claim that Harper being asked about his actions should a child of his be homosexual, was unfair:

I think it's important to know if Mr. Harper would disown his own children, or worse, if they happened to be homosexual. I think his own children would like to know the answer to that question too, when they know their sexual identity. It wasn't a nice question, but it was a fair one. He's reopening the debate, on a settled human rights issue, and he should be prepared to answer questions if he's reopening the debate on gay marriage.

Dec. 15, 2005 Thursday

    Monte Solberg is a Conservative with a popular blog because he has the occasional witty catch phrase that has them rolling in the aisles in the House. In an offhand comment on his blog he said, "Oh, the other thing [Tim Horton's]-- get rid of the blowdryer things in the washroom too and go back to paper towels."  Now I enjoy paper towels more than air driers too, but it's my understanding that air driers are more energy efficient even with their use of electricity, than it is to bring in paper towel rolls, and dispose of them.  It is disappointing that Monte is not aware of this reason, or doesn't care.  Although it is encouraging to hear he washes his hands when leaving the restroom.

[I've sent the above paragraph as an email message to Mr. Solberg in case he'd like to clarify his position on air driers and the environment.]

    We need a new national controversy.  Move over "Beer vs. Children", it's going to now be "Air vs. Towel"!  We know where Monte stands.  Where do you stand?
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    Read Stephen Harper's speech from the 1990's.  Harper wouldn't want you to read it, so you can either wonder why that is and not, or read it and find out why.  My friend 'Leet Hacker has archived the speech so that it will be preserved in its entirety as found on the web in a Google cache this morning.  Feel free to share the link with others who are interested in learning more about the Conservative's mysterious leader.

    In other election news, the Green Party has assembled a factual webpage explaining the unfairness used to exclude them from the debate.  They aren't whining, they have legitimate complaints because the choice to exclude the Party's leader Jim Harris from the Leaders debates starting tomorrow, is breaking the precedents of 1993, when both the Bloc and Reform parties were allowed to debate despite not winning any seats in the previous general election.
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    Feeling morbid?  Here's a link for you to read about recently dead Saskatchewan residents.
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    There was more bad weather today, and I was fortunately able to do most of the repairs I needed to do over the phone and using remote control software.  Tomorrow I'm probably headed up to Norquay though.

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Dec. 14, 2005 Wednesday

    While looking up information on blood clots, I came across a story of a cyclist in Montana who didn't escape from her crash as well as I did from mine.  What I found surprising is that a hit-and-run isn't a felony in Montana.
==

    Rick Mercer has once again set the bar in political humour, with his Beer not Children petition.  A spoof election site might be a good way to pass the time if you're looking for political humour.
    Especially amusing on The National tonight was word that both Harper and Martin have promised an elected Senate.  While Harper might be serious, the idea that Martin is telling the truth is laughable.  Months ago he appointed 3 Alberta senators, and none of them were from the elected group that Albertans chose in a democratic fashion.  Actions speak louder than words, and Paul Martin does not really want an elected Senate.

    The Green Party leader Jim Harris was on The National tonight.  They started talking about "kiss and rides" and apparently it's a popular thing, but I thought they were talking about prostitution.  Kids getting a kiss good bye from their parents before dropping off their kids at school, is really what it means, and it's fuel inefficient.

    Mansbridge got very defensive when Harris brought up the elephant in the room - the media lockout of the Green Party.  Trying to butt in when Harris was saying this, Mansbridge whined several times, "But you're getting time on the air nowwww."   The simple truth is that the Green Party was shut out of the CBC TV Leaders debate, when more than a half million Canadians voted Green just a year and a half ago.  A half a million TV viewers isn't a horrible audience in Canada, so why the lockout?

    Harris did a fair job, and made a solid case for the environment and supporting the Green Party if you give two farts about your grandchildrens' future.  He pushed the idea that a better environment creates jobs, reduces health care costs significantly, and saves people money too.  You can't have a better economic plan than one that will continue indefinitely, instead of one that goes bust when the resources dry up or die off.

    He got a few digs in at the NDP, including the ones in Sask.  Saskatchewan has a horrible environmental record, and since 1990 we've only become worse.  The NPD have ruled in SK since 1991 so they can't blame this on anyone else, although you can be assured they will soon try.  One case of their environmental incompetence is allowing the removal of the CP Rail line to Wood Mountain and Mankota, instead of ensuring that CP Rail would be liable for environmental restoration of the rail bed to its natural prairie condition.  Additionally, the rail line could have been used to reduce CO2 emissions, and its absence is being felt by a kaolin mining project that is held up because a rail line is needed for the materials to be shipped efficiently.

    Would the NDP really force GM and Ford into making hybrids and other alternative fuel cars, when the CAW union is so scared that change is going to kill their jobs?  Well wake up Canadian Auto Workers, 30000+ of you just lost your jobs because your companies didn't change and make better cars for Canadians.  Adapt, or rust out.

FORD = Ford Only Releases Derelicts
GMC = GMC Makes Crap After Not A Darn Advancement
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    The Bell of Batoche is a missing war trophy from the Northwest Rebellion in central Saskatchewan, and it may be on the verge of being found.  I saw this on the National news several weeks ago, and it seems that one of the thieves has confessed to the crime from his prison cell, and says that his accomplice should still have the bell in hiding, waiting for a good time to bring it back into public view, but this time in the West instead of the East where it was taken over 100 years ago.
==

    Shocking stats out of Florida: 1 in 5 "Middle school age" kids are having sex, and their parents don't know about it. I don't know what's worse, that the parents don't realize what's going on, or even if they did they apparently wouldn't be able to do anything to stop it.  And there are still people that think sex education in schools shouldn't start in grade 3, before kids have to worry about puberty and the confusion and worry that can cause?  They are going to grow up eventually, and nothing is served by keeping them in the dark about the inevitable changes.

    The worst quote from that article has to be:

Parents at the meeting, who often are involved in schools as PTA board members, said they didn't know about the survey. Had their children been a part of it, Zimet said, they would have been asked to sign permission slips.

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    Mandatory voting ?  On the radio John Gormley was making a case for requiring Canadians to vote in a general election, or face a small fine.  This is how voting is done in Australia, and the only drawback they brought up was that it's very important to be high on the list of candidates, since the non-voters tend to pick the first few selections on the ballot rather than taking the time to make an informed choice.  I think this is already a problem for some elections, although not general Canadian elections since it's rare to have more than 4 or 5 choices on a ballot.
    I'm in favour of making voting mandatory, since people who don't vote don't make the laws anyway, so it's essentially a tax people will pay only if they are unwilling to contribute to our political system.  It's easier to fine or tax the non-voting, than it is to give a tax break to those people that do vote.
==

    Sask. Smartest Radio Listener was today, like it is every Wednesday, and the question was this:
They are abound in Europe, but in SK's two largest cities, there are only 19 of them.
    I phoned in early, and didn't hear the question until I was on the phone line, and was stumped, giving no answer since anything I could think of was a worse answer than something. Some people tried Traffic Circle, and Bidet.  Stop lights, yield signs [influenced by the traffic circle guess], and "I don't know" flashed through my brain before I was cut off :-)  The answer was 19 statues, 14 of them happen to be in Saskatoon including the Gordie Howe statue.  That's kinda surprising to me because there are temporary and permanent art works everywhere in Regina.  There's a wire frame grasshopper on Albert St., several cattle in front of the art gallery, the Queen at the Legislature, many pigs including one in front of the Cathedral Freehouse, and a giant beaver in a park on the west side.  I suppose the technical reason is that a statue must be of a person, and I can't think of many I've seen here in the entire province.
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    When I heard that US Ambassador Wilkins had "rebuked" Canada for "involving the US" in our election, I would have snorted something had I been drinking anything at the time.  It's both laughable and enraging that he'd dare accuse Canada of "threatening" our two nations' long standing partnership.  Softwood Lumber, missile defense, Rice/Bush visit postponement snubs, "Prime Minister Poutine", blaming Ontario for the big blackout and Canada for the 9/11 terrorists, and countless other slights to Canada I guess are just supposed to be overlooked?  After all, as the neighbour with the bigger yard whose leaves are blowing over onto the American lawn, we've just not put our back into complaining like we should be about the shabby treatment we're getting in return.  If the USA would say, "Shut up Canada", are we to just say, "Okalie-doke-ily neighbour-reno" like a good Flanders-style neighbour.  We put our foot down when "Homer" asked to fire rockets over our house, because we saw what happened to the last countries that the US sent their rockets zooming over.  And when they borrowed from our lumber pile, we let them have it because they were going to give it back just as soon as the appeals were over.  They wouldn't steal from their neighbour, right?

     When Wilkins said that we shouldn't involve the US in the election, I immediately thought of our missing $5 Billion for our softwood lumber and how that's a heck of an election issue.  If Harper or another leader isn't going to pursue Canada's money to the ultimately victorious conclusion awaiting us in the American courts, then I don't want that person leading Canada!  Perhaps Canada isn't doing enough to combat climate change, but just because we're Peanuts Pigsty, doesn't mean that the US Lucy can keep our 1 Billion Nickels and tell us we stink and need to mind our own business!  Imagine if we flat out told the US to "stuff it" when their DEA asked for Mark Emery, the pot seed distributor that Canada has deemed unworthy of prosecution?  After all we told them to stick their missiles where they belong, and how was that request of theirs not infringing on Canada's sovereignty?

    The USA is a Canadian election issue, but we didn't make it one.  It's just a fact of Canadian life that America influences our own lives.  We count our own loonies in regard to how well they stands up to American greenbacks for goodness sake.  We don't have to needlessly bash the USA's incompetent or criminal administration in our campaign, but we can't ignore the issues either.  Pollution is an issue, and while it might be fine for Harper to point to Bush's refusal to join the world in Kyoto's agreement and say he wants to be like that, it's not fine for Martin to thumb his nose at the US for not signing on.  What does nose thumbing accomplish, since we know Bush has no shame when it comes to the environment?  There are thousands of caribou who'd attest to that fact.

    We need to know where the parties stand when it comes to trade talks, the environment, and war plans.  So I hope the parties leave their cheap shots at home, because even Wilkins oddly admits that it's 'easy to bash the US administration'.  I mean, how hard can it be to say something bad about a President with approval ratings in the 30% range?  If someone can think of something good to say about Bush, they deserve a Medal of Freedom from him.

    Meanwhile Harper played the role of a hypocrite today on the campaign:
"I always remember when you had the kid who was always name-calling from a safe distance. There really wasn't much risk of a fight, and Mr. Martin reminds me of that kid. ... Mr. Martin. He's the kid name-calling from a safe distance. He couldn't throw a punch to save his life."
 It seems Harper figures that fist fighting is the best way to settle a dispute once and for all, aside from the fact that he's calling Martin a weak coward which qualifies as name calling in my books.  To his credit though, he also rebuked Wilkins for involving the US in Canada's election campaign :-D  Wilkins denies involving himself in the campaign.  Martin pulled a "Bush" and got the Ambassador's name wrong, calling him Williams instead, and said he had the "highest respect for him".

    "It may be smart election-year politics to thump your chest and constantly criticize your friend and your No. 1 trading partner," Mr. Wilkins said. "But it is a slippery slope, and all of us should hope that it doesn't have a long-term impact on our relationship." ... "It's also a great time for a political junkie like me to be here to watch your first winter election in 25 years and I've discovered that in Canada, politics is very much a contact sport. It shouldn't be lost on any of us that some of your politicians use my country to score political points."

    It also shouldn't be lost on most people, that this is the first Canadian election that Wilkins has ever seen, from anywhere, since he'd never been here before his posting, and does not strike me as a man who'd know what Saskatchewan is, never mind the Governor General.  How likely is it he got any more information about Canadian politics than the rest of his average southern neighbours?  He's an excellent ambassador for Bush - he's ignorant of Canadian politics, is rash with his words, and infringes upon other country's democratic processes.  It's a perfect match.
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Dec. 13, 2005 Tuesday

    Bad language alert: This link is an insanely funny fake essay, but only if you're comfortable with some bad words and really odd trains of "thought".  If you need to know how not to succeed in University, this is the perfect guide.  I got the link from Mr. Hansen who used to live in the same residence building as I did.
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    A snowstorm was supposed to be on the way today.  So far it hasn't hit very hard.  When I got out of work, there was a sheet of ice covering every window on my car, and it took me about 5 minutes to scrape everything so I could see.  I drove rather carefully over to the insurance agent, and then to the Co-op for groceries.  I saw a jogger out in a reflective jacket, but he was running rather gingerly trying not to fall on the ice.
==

    The riding I live in has been voting Conservative since 1993.  Perhaps because it is THE OLDEST POPULATION IN CANADA!  I've got nothing against my old neighbours, but do you think that you could perhaps try this "voter apathy" thing that my generation does such a good job at pulling off?  Then maybe the playing field would level, and a progressive candidate could have a chance at winning.
==

    Do you wonder what the 1940s looked like in colour? [The next link isn't safe for Internet Explorer users, please upgrade to Firefox first.]  Yes they had color back in those days, people weren't either black or white.  I think it's hard for people of my generation to empathize with people in black and white photos since so few of our own pictures are in black and white.  Black and white photos and movies are things depicting our parents and grandparents who were always "old" for as far back as we can remember.  To see a colour photograph from WWI or WWII is to see that the world was pretty much like it is today, but with different technology and expectations.  We expect our roads to be 4 lanes, our cars reliable, our food plentiful, and buildings modern.  To see the old buildings that we tear down today, as new, fresh, and colourful architecture makes me feel like I've been transported back in time.  So put a wax cylinder on the Edison, load up a few colour photos of decades gone by, and slip into the early 20th Century.
    And if you really want to go way back, check out the earliest sound recording [according this this site], it's from 1878 which is two years before the Laura I. Wilder novels begin with the Little House in the Woods.
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    Well, I spent some time tonight with my friend Brien, tracking down an error in my web page's code.  It was just like we were back in University; I was getting my broken code fixed.  Anyway I eventually spotted the problem and now my foil hat page loads without Internet Exploder complaining that I'm a bad coder.  It was Google's fault.  Yeah that's it.  I blame Google for me putting their code in the wrong spot on my page!  Remember, it's not your fault if you can blame it on someone else.  That's what I've learned from politicians at least...
==

   
    What can you do for fun in Yorkton?  Well, one thing you can do is grow stuff.  I grew a 11 foot tall sunflower this Summer, and this Winter I grew mold.  This particular mold is on plain yogurt which expired October 23, 2005.  You might be asking yourself, "Saskboy, why would you grow mold?" and that would be a valid question.  I'd say, "Because I grew weary of yogurt before I finished this container, and since I thought I might never have another chance to see what 'bad yogurt' looks like, I took my opportunity by the horns, and set out to create the best yogurt mold picture that exists on the Internet."  Go ahead, I dare you to find a picture of something more impressive growing on yogurt.
    Bread mold, after all, has saved millions of lives, and old grapes make wine, and I wondered, "what can two month old yogurt do for the world?"  You've just seen what it can do, it makes a really disgusting picture.  Not quite as noble as merlot, but it wasn't a total waste.  I'm sure the mold spores would say "merci" if they could talk, or think, or thank en francais.
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You might be an Internet redneck if:

• You've ever blogged from the toilet.
• You've taken your laptop into the washroom.
• You've ever considered peeing while posting.
• You've posted a picture of mold to your blog. [I had to include myself in the labeling.]
  

    I can't understand how people talk on their cells while in the public toilet.  I was in a stall once, and all of a sudden someone in the stall next to me said loudly, "Hello!"  I jumped out of my skin at first, and then wondered what the proper response was for when you're addressed from an adjacent stall.  I said meekly, "hello?" back, and then the other person proceeded into a conversation that made no sense and I realized that they were talking on their phone. Talking on their phone, while sitting on the can, in a public washroom, while it was occupied by more than just them.  Classy.
    Cell phones play that trick on me anywhere I can't see a person is holding a phone to their ear, since I think that loud person is talking to me, especially since I'M THE ONLY OTHER PERSON IN THE ROOM, and their darn phone doesn't ring so I can hear it.
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    I'm going to "guest write" for another blog this holiday season.  I'm doing it because I have too many words in my brain right now, and I want to see if it's any fun to write for another website.  Odds are it will be, since I've been writing on eBay and Slashdot for about three years now, and eBay just tosses away everything I say after a few weeks anyway.  That's part of the reason I made this website; so I could save my favourite insights, or rants, or whatever.
    As far as I can tell, guest blogging is a lot like working for someone else, without getting paid in currency, while the other person gets a real holiday.  But I can write my article(s) in advance, so really I'm not losing out on any "away from the computer time", which is what holidays are good for these days.

Quote of the day:
"Bio-terrorism is nothing to sneeze at." -Saskboy

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Dec. 12, 2005 Monday

    I'll be on 980 CJME.com streaming audio today right after lunch, to discuss the Canadian election campaign.  Tune in to 980 AM in southern Sask., or stream it online anywhere in the world.  Hopefully Murray Wood asks questions I'll have a solid opinion on, although I'm only slightly nervous.  Any time I'm on live radio it's a little nerve wracking, but I haven't made a complete fool out of myself on air yet.  My best and worst days in the media are yet to come :-D. [UPDATE: The panel was postponed, although the radio station didn't bother to phone me and explain that, I had to find out by listening and waiting for their call that never came.  They then had a segment on "Customer service", and I was tempted to phone them and complain on the air about their customer service, but I thought better of it :-)]

    I'll keep you up to date when I find out my next scheduled appearance on air is set.

    I'm working on a logo for my site, and unfortunately this is all I've come up with.  I'm looking to make something better, or even have someone make me one that I like, so that I can reward them by proudly displaying it and a link they like.  I've also noticed that photos have been few and far between lately, and they'll pick up again when I do more traveling.  Today I worked in Earl Grey's spiffy, and newly automated library, but never left my office - oh the joys of the Interweb and "tele-phoning" device!
    Then I had fun at the doctor, while waiting for 1.53 hours to see him.  I rounded up to the nearest hundredth for convenience.  I showed some elderly people my digital camera, while a couple of teenage girls feigned disinterest, and then found out that I have blood clots trapped in my muscle under my skin! Yay!  But it's okay.  They can't go to my heart, and will go away in about six months, so for now they are just a lumpy oddity when I press on my leg.  I guess things could be worse, after all I was run over by a van.  Okay, okay, run "into" by a van, since it didn't go over me.  But it sounds cooler to say it the other way.

    Holly's Fight For Justice is a heart wrenching story of a woman who spent $200,000 of her own money to bring a serial rapist to justice in Canada.  Sadly the rapist only got a 4.5 year sentence, when it sounds like he should be in jail for 20.  How can we let violent people out of jail without ensuring they are a low risk to re-offend?  The recividism rate for rapists is surely too high to let any of them out on parole.

    I'm wondering what it would be like if we celebrated Christmas in July?  Not literally Christmas, but celebrated like it was Christmas, only when it's +30C outside, instead of -30C.  Think of it, there'd be no holiday travelers getting stuck in a snowbank, you'd not get cold when shopping, and commercialization of Christmas could finally go away and return to the true meaning of giving and celebration.  We've got July 1 Canada Day already, we could either all agree to buy gifts then to support the economy, or tack on another holiday, like July 4 and call it North American Freedom Day (NAF Day).  Then some Americans wouldn't get confused when a Canadian tells them we don't celebrate July 4, because we would.

    NAF Day would put the 'Y' back into JulY.  It would give people who were doomed with birthdays falling within the Christmas season, a chance in their lifetime at having two gift-getting sessions each year.  And it would simply be another cool Canadian invention.

    So write your MP, phone your Congressman, and lobby our leaders to proclaim a day in July as North American Freedom Day.   More enjoyable Julys, and less buying at Christmas will be your reward.
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    Wait times for surgeries are entirely too long in Canada.  The Conservatives today announced their guidelines for wait times, and set 26 weeks as the reasonable [maximum?] time to wait for a hip replacement!  I understand some people already wait longer than that, and to me, that's completely unacceptable.  What could be more important than being able to walk, and all that stands in your way is a line up for an essential service?  You thought waiting in line at the bank was annoying, just think about waiting for months to get cut open, while you're in pain and can't do anything!  If we can't allocate the resources to treat an average number of patients within a week of them becoming severely injured, we as a society stink!  If we can't cope with average casualty numbers, what would we do when there is a massive disaster where millions became sick or injured?  I don't think we want to think about that, so we don't, and are happy to ride the gravy train we're on for as long as it can last.
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  Oh My Goodness, "The Colosseum" a restaurant that delivers in Regina, just used the word "gitch" in their ad on the radio.  For those that don't know, gitch is slang for tight white men's underwear.  The ad featured the announcer recounting a dream he had where he was eating food from The Colosseum and he looked down to see he was in his gitch.  Then he remembered he'd ordered the food while at home, and it was delivered, thus he wasn't ever in public dressed only in his underwear.  Sort of amusing, but is it really a good idea to associate your food with a half naked man on the radio?  And I've got nothing against people on the radio, but my experience is that many of them tend to be a little on the overweight side of the population. A heavy radio guy eats Colosseum food in his gitch? That's definitely not a good idea for an ad.
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    Election news today was a bit more interesting than usual, and I heard that the Liberal's top dog behind the scenes had the bad sense to say parents would spend new money on "beer and popcorn" instead of their children's needs.  CJME says earlier this year he had told a reporter "Alberta can blow me," which is rather impolite at best and scandalous at worst.  You don't have to wonder why the West feels that Ottawa and in particular the Liberals don't see us as anything other than a stream of resources and labourers.

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Dec. 11, 2005 Sunday

    I'm still learning the newest features of my blog, namely the Trackback feature, as I think it will help bring new readers to me, and help me promote other bloggers who I find interesting too.  I'm more accustomed to online forums where there are already plenty of readers and responses to my comments, so the more isolated world of blogging is new and strange to me.  I just learned that it will cost me $12US to back up my Haloscan comments, so if they get well used it will probably be worth it.

Conservatives Dating: Not Just in Private and Sunday Schools Anymore

    While looking at other sites, one thing you find on many of them are strongly political, or downright stupid advertisements.  One in particular I've put here to the left, where it has a screeching woman apparently fed up with "liberal guys".  I've linked it to the unofficial webpage of Conservative Jason Kenney, in homage to a Rick Mercer joke.

    What would bring someone to click on an ad like that?  Even curiosity shouldn't do it.  If you have a desire to date someone who looks that angry, you're made of tougher stuff than me, or you're a glutton for punishment.

    Remember conservatives, if you decide to use a dating site online, it's generally considered the "right thing" to first break up with your current liberal ball and chain.  You'll be better off without their "bleeding heart", "do-good", "peace in the Middle East" attitude.  There's hope yet that you can find someone who would yell out "Don't forget Poland!" in a debate, offer to constitutionally ban minorities from enjoying equal rights, and give tax breaks to the rich but not the poor or middle class who "don't work as hard as you do".

Link: Saskatchewan church goer not putting up with sexism.
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    The other day I watched "The Shawshank Redemption" [10/10] for the second time.  It's one of the best movies ever, and is very interesting, and inspirational.  It's hard to imagine what it would be like to live for weeks at a time in a small dark room, but chances are most people wouldn't hold up too well under that kind of treatment.

    I found a Canadian blogger who noticed that there's an honest to goodness Marijuana Party in Canada: The Doped Up Great White North.  I've known this for a few years, and not because I'm a big fan of the drug [I'm more against it than for it].  The [former?] Party leader Mark Emery [who I wrote about back in September 2005] was targeted recently by the USA's war on drugs, and they are trying to put him into a US prison, and convince Canada to ship him down there even though he's broken no Canadian laws.

    The Pot Party is nothin' though when it comes to a "minor party". We've got both a Communist Party, AND a Marxist-Leninist Party in the country too. At least the pot smokers have enough sense to work together to further their objective, and haven't formed separate Hemp Party, and Wacky Tobaccy Parties respectively.  I guess when you only expect a couple thousand votes nation wide, splitting the vote isn't a serious issue.  Before he died, I think they'd convinced Pierre Burton to join their ranks, or so a Rick Mercer TV comedy clip would have us all believe.

    To wrap up the Election talk for the night, please go and help the Green Party get into the next National TV debate.  Even if you don't want to vote Green, it serves all Canadians to let small parties have a national voice for free, when only the big parties have the corporate dollars to advertise in paid-for time.  It's especially unfair for a environmentally conscious party like the Greens, because there aren't going to be the big donations coming in from companies like Cameco, GMC, or RBC.  Companies that rely on corportate greed, or damaging the environment are not going to want the Green Party to have any clout, ever.

Dec. 10, 2005

    I've found where to comment on Rick Mercer's blog posts from his site.  I've also added the ubiquitous comments feature to my blog, finally, so people can leave a message here if they don't feel like emailing.  They can also blog about something I've written here, by putting a "trackback" link to my site.  Don't ask me how it works, I've not learned how to do that part yet, but the comments part is very straight forward.

    Make Stupidity History: A site about the dumbest criminals in the world.

    Yorkton is getting a curbside recycling bin program, starting with a mere 400 bins, in this city of about 18000 people.  Hopefully this will help keep down taxes in the long run, as the landfill ought to last many more years because of it.

    Remember President Bush, when you're looking for a place to illegally torture suspected terrorists, "Don't forget Poland!" Bush famously made that remark during a presidential election debate against Kerry.  Now his government is accused of using secret CIA prisons to "render information" from suspected enemies of the US.  Who needs due process or military law when you have secret prisons?  Worse still, he's been shipping some of these victims through Canada on CIA affiliated private jets.  After the Arar torture incident, it's highly likely that the US and even Canada are guilty still today, of state sanctioned torture.

Dec. 9, 2005
   Sony started the day with its foot in its mouth. Mediamax, their other known DRM infection had a patch released a few days back. The patch opens new flaws which can endanger your computer. The EFF which is typically a good guy had sadly endorsed the patch, so now they look like idiots too.  The bottom line is, don't  even think about buying a CD with the Content Copy Protected logo which is a black circle with a white triangle offset in it. I tried submitting this story to fark.com as: "Microsoft files "patch with hole" patent infringement suit on Sony, after a released patch for Sunncomm DRM has a hole in it".

    Glyn Hotz has since found evidence that in late September 2005, EMI was aware of a problem in a DRM infected CD from the band Switchfoot that was breaking people's ability to burn any CD on their computer after playing it.

    CJME.com has asked me to be on their People's Panel for Monday afternoon at about 1:00PM so I should be on air then.  You can listen online if you don't get 980 AM radio in Regina.  The topic is supposed to be just about the election generally, so I might get to spout off on whatever issues I think are important.

    I went out for Christmas lunch with my co-workers today.  There was freezing rain, which on the radio was said to be bad enough to make it hard for emergency workers to stand up on the highway.  However, when we went at 1:00 PM, the rain had stopped, and the roads were fine because it was warm enough for melting.  I don't know if it was the shrimp, chicken, sausage, or crackers that might have done it, but I had some flare up of my allergy again today.  It's not been too much of a bother, and I hope it will be gone again soon.
    I used my ING bank card to get money for maybe only about the 2nd time since I've had it in all these years, and I went and got my car registration until next November.  They gave me 18% off the regular price, because I'm such a fantastic guy... errr... fantastic driver.

Dec. 8, 2005
    I sent this as an email to John Gormley today, due to the announcement from Toronto that the Liberals will seek to ban handgun ownership in Canada.
    Paul Martin has proved he has no love for the West.  If there's a single issue that Alberta and Saskatchewan agree 100% on, its that the gun registry has been the biggest Liberal government farce in a decade.  To think that banning handguns will affect violent crime numbers in any significant way, is bordering on delusional.  Criminals should be tossed in jail for the crime they commit, not which weapon they use to commit it with.  If they hold someone up with a bread stick and steal $200, put them in jail for 10 years; if it's a hand gun, 10 years.  Criminals do not use legal guns as it is.  Use the blasted registry to show they stole the gun or didn't register it, and take it away from the criminals, not the average citizen!

    If you like pop culture, video clips, and have high speed Internet, then Ifilm for for you.  Not all clips are good for kids, but that won't stop them from watching them if you let them onto the Internet unsupervised, anyway.

    The temperature today was finally warmer than -10, and it snowed some too.

December 7, 2005

    A new flaw has been found in another of Sony's DRM infections, called MediaMax.  A bug fix is being offered by Sony, and it's been independently verified to fix the hole, although it will not remove the DRM modifications to your computer. [UPDATE Dec. 9: The patch opens new flaws which can endanger your computer, just like the original XCP patch did.  Sony has failed its customers yet again.]

    I got a call today offering an appearance on the CJME People's Panel.  Although I have an opinion on the child care dollars offered, I declined to have the possibility to debate a topic later that I feel more strongly about.  I told the reporter who called me that I support the right for parents to have the money directly to choose how they raise their kids, rather than day care centers raising their children, and she agreed with my opinion.  I suggested I'd be best suited to a panel on technology or young voters issues, so hopefully I'll get a chance another day I'm in the office.

    The Sask. Smartest Radio Listener was on today and it was a tough one:
Q: The people of Quebec, PEI and SK do this the least of Canadian people.
A: I phoned in after a minute, and people before me had guessed things like "divorce" and "winter tires" I ruled out because I knew that Quebecer get divorced a lot, and use Winter tires more than SK people too.  I narrowed in on elections, but I couldn't pick what party would be elected least since NDP, Conservatives, and Liberals are elected in all 3 [as far as I knew]., which was wrong but helped narrow the field for everyone else calling in.  I phoned back in, and guessed "use seat belts" and later was going to try "use signal lights", which was also wrong.  By the time I figured it out from the hints, the winner had already called in and answered correctly before the time delay allowed it to be aired.  The correct answer is "spend money at Christmas on gifts".

    It was yet another frigid day outside, and I had whole wheat noodles, with cheddar and salsa, and a side of coleslaw for supper.  For lunch I had left over steak, and tomato, and cookies for dessert.  I even had some of my left over rice cakes that have been in my desk drawer for almost way too long.  Mmmm, rice cakes.

Health Care in Canada

    Jack Layton of the NDP was on Adler On Line today, and he actually said that he'd discussed with his wive Olivia Chow the possibility that one of them would be critically ill, and instead of paying for care at a privately funded clinic, they'd rather die to support the public system.  Wow.  Now that's a discussion spouses shouldn't have to have.  They should be talking about organ donation and living wills, not laying down their life or comfort for an ideal.  I'm seeing Layton in a new light; he's either a dangerous idealouge, or a liar and would do whatever is required to get medical help for his family just like any other sane Canadian would do.  Someone isn't turning their back on the public health care system if they seek out treatment elsewhere that is better.  They shouldn't have to do that, because the best care should be available 99% of the time in the publicly funded system.  If they have to go elsewhere, then the public system has turned its back on them!

    Last year I was sick with a mystery illness.  I saw a half a dozen different doctors, and several of them gave a diagnosis that contradicted another's diagnosis.  The treatment in most cases was for the symptom, not the cause, and I was told that I was the most likely person in the world to find the cause of my sickness.  Most of the doctors did everything they could within their limited time and power for me, but in the end I got better by myself [or possibly with the help of one of the doctor's medication recommendation], and I never learned what had made me ill.  When I was sick, in agony and concerned I might stop breathing one day, I was on the verge of depression.  In my case I learned that when someone is potentially terminally ill, waiting for treatment is very difficult.

    A private lab had drawn too little blood for the tests ordered in one case, and didn't get me the paper work to have more taken to complete all of the tests for about a week or more, until I phoned and took it upon myself to get treatment moving again.  The only one looking out for your health is yourself if you're an adult; you can't rely on doctors, nurses, labs, or politicians to remember about you if you don't have an appointment scheduled or aren't in a hospital bed.  Out of sight, out of mind, is how our health care system works, and if you have a broken hip, look out!  How could a worthless hip possibly not be considered an emergency, yet apparently people wait many months to have a replacement put in.  And I heard months ago on the radio that people can wait months for non-pregnancy related ultrasound diagnosis.  Clearly we aren't paying technicians enough, and aren't training enough, because there's little else worse in the world to be sick, and have no one to care for you.  What would you rather have for example?  More telemarketers, or more people available to interpret your ultrasound report?  What would give an employee more joy in their job?  Calling people to talk them out of their money, or finding someone's cause of illness so they can get better?
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December 6, 2005

    This morning Glyn Hotz, the lawyer bringing a class action lawsuit against Sony BMG, was on CKOM.com's John Gormley Live explaining the reasons to sue Sony, and how to participate if you've run one of their malicious music CDs.  He mentioned my email address, which is listed on this site, since people are welcome to contact me to explain what DRM, XCP, or even what spyware is, and how best to avoid it.  Also check out BoycottSony.US for the latest news and tips as they develop.  Sony's has finally issued an uninstaller for XCP DRM, but be cautious running any Sony software.  Microsoft is working on their own uninstaller and detection system to repair Windows systems crippled  by XCP.

    The election debate question email is working again, but only until the end of today.  I got my question through when I just tried sending it now.

    The radio also talked about "Christmas vs. Holidays".  There seems to be many places that have removed Christmas from signs and events like Christmas concerts to avoid offending those who don't celebrate Christmas.  I celebrate Christmas, and have no problem saying "Merry Christmas" to someone, but if I think there's a good chance they aren't Christian I'll tell them "Happy Holidays".  When you think about it, "Happy New Years" isn't a safe expression either, because not everyone uses the Gregorian Calendar.  Simply put, people shouldn't take offense at being told "Merry Christmas", "Happy Holidays", or "Happy [whatever]" because it's just as politically correct and annoying to insist upon "Merry Christmas" for everyone, just because Canada is predominantly Christian. "Merry Christmas" doesn't need affirmative action to stick around where it's wanted.
    The affirmative Christmas action in a Nova Scotia town earlier last week was especially annoying.  What a slap in the face of non-Christian town members who might not care to celebrate or promote Christmas in their Holiday displays.  The Consitutionality of the proclaimation that all holiday signs would be Christmas signs only, is certainly in doubt.  Not even Christians of various denominations can agree to disagree on the subject though.  Hopefully peace will prevail.

Link: Merry Holidays everybody!

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December 5, 2005

    O RLY owl humour page: Year of the Owl.

    What a day it was!  It was very cold out, but I didn't have to scrape thanks to the windshield blanket I put on it last night.  A bit after I got to work I heard an odd noise from another room.  It turned out a fan was dying in my main server, so I had to deal with that on the phone a bit.

    I tried emailing my national debate question to the organizers like they asked on TV, but their mailbox was already full.  I'll try again later. question@electiondebate.ca

"For all participants:
Why don't you demand other registered parties be allowed to debate on TV with you?  Doesn't it hurt democracy to not let national parties like the
Green Party get the same national media exposure?"

    Still after it hit the wider blogosphere days ago [and was noticed months ago by some people], the Conservatives national website still falsely claims secure page status, when it's not secure SSL.  It's not until you get to entering the credit card data that they use SSL.  http://www.conservative.ca/EN/1191/ See for yourself.  The lack of a "padlock" icon indicates the site isn't encrypted and secure.

    In an effort to be more artistic with my photos, I framed a highway sign, and rotated the camera 360 degrees before taking the shot.  Yes, that's a joke.

December 4, 2005

    It was an exciting weekend.  I visited my friends in Regina, I went laptop shopping with my brother and didn't buy one, and bought a 2000 Buick Century from my parents.  I also met a fellow King's Quest fan at Roca Jack's coffee shop, and we talked for a few hours [not all about King's Quest mind you].

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