Walking Through Markham

I decided to go for a walk through my new Markham neighbourhood tonight.

Now, I've been feeling a little bit down about my family's move to Markham for the last few days.
I never thought I would, but I think I miss Scarborough. And everything takes longer to get to in Markham.

Anyway, I went for a short walk tonight. Nobody walks in Markham.
Even though it was 9:35 when I left the streets were essentially deserted. But not scary, more like calm.
So it was quite surprising when I saw a woman walking down the street in the opposite direction from me. I looked at her and she looked at me. And then it happened.

It a nice, friendly voice she said "Hi. How are you?"

I was shocked. I grew up in Scarborough and I now spend most of my time in downtown Toronto. Such friendliness is strange to me. So strange in fact that all I could muster was a weak, almost inaudible "Hi" and a slight smile. I hope I didn't offend her.

Her nice gesture was all I thought about on the rest of the walk. And it really cheered me up.

They're building an elementary school near my house. It's not done yet but it looks like it will be done by September for the new school year. Walking by it I thought about all the children that will go to that school and all the memories they will have there. It's sweet.

This really is a great place to raise children and have a family.

This will never feel like Scarborough to me. This will never truly be my home. But this walk today made me like Markham a whole lot more.

Some pics from Edgefest 2006

Saturday July 1st, 2006 - Molson Amphitheatre, Ontario Place - Toronto, Ontario, Canada



Mobile



Neverending White Lights (featuring Raine Maida)


Hot Hot Heat


(Blurry) Keane



Our Lady Peace


Steve Mazur of Our Lady Peace


Our Lady Peace


Raine Maida of Our Lady Peace


Our Lady Peace

How 'liberalism' became a bad word

There are numerous good points in that story, but this one hits home the most, and can be related to Canada:

energy alone won’t win the day. “Being against Bush isn’t a policy. His name
isn’t on the ballot now. The question becomes: `What is the story we have to
tell to the post 9/11 world?’ And how are we as liberals going to make the world
better?”

While Stephen Harper will run again in the next election, the point made here still stands.
It does make sense, to a certain extent, to criticize Stephen Harper, but one thing I disagree with is how many Liberal leadership candidates seem to be running their entire campaigns by being "not Stephen Harper."
That was the Liberals' issue in the last election: They didn't stand for anything except for being against Harper.
People are rarely passionate about not standing for something, they want to support something.
If the Liberal party of Canada hopes to envigorate people, they have to do so by standing FOR something, not just against something.

Six hours, Ten Chase Points, One Free Beer!

The Bell City Chase

On Saturday my fiancée and I participated in the Bell City Chase. This was our second year participating, and it was a great experience.

GOD do my legs ever hurt today!

Essentially the Bell City Chase is a quasi-Amazing Race ripoff. It's a scavenger hunt/race/obstacle course/team building exercise.

And this year was MUCH harder than last year.

The event started at Dunday Square at 9:30am for a kick-off and the actual race began at 10am.

Our first clue, given at 9:59am, was this: "Your clue sheets are located at two different fire stations in Toronto. One is in the entertainment district, and one is in Regent Park." And, like that, we were off!

We chose to head to the Regent Park site, since we felt it was closer. When we got there (after a crowded street car ride and some pushing and shoving on the car) we were handed our clue sheet. Fifteen possible Chase Points - 10 needed to be completed to finish the event, and a few were mandatory.

The first mandatory one was a "Scivanger Hunt" ("Scavenger" and "Triva", get it?) Again, 15 questions, 10 needed completion. The questions ranged from "How many days since the Toronto Maple Leafs last one the Stanley Cup" to "What is the phone number on the Bell phone booth at Dundas and Bathurst" to "Find an inflatable object." The sheets needed to be brought, completed, to the VIA stage in Toronto's "Gay-bourhhood" (which ended up being at Church and Wellesley.

We read the clues and planned our root for a few minutes, the only stipulation was that you needed to complete two out of three other mandatory tasks. The Chase Points could be done in any order.

We chose to do one of those tasks first, since it was at Riverdale Farm (both near where we were and far from pretty much everything else.)

Once we arrived there, we were to carry a large bale of hay down a hill (heavier than it seems!) build a scarecrow at the bottom of the hill, and then carry the bale back up.

After completing that, it was back to Dundas Square. We entered the Olympic Spirt Cafe and were again given a choice: Mental or Physical. Mental involved answering a series of questions using artifacts inside the cafe. Physical involved completing two Olympic sports simulations. We chose physical. It turned out to be a good choice. We quickly completed a 100-metre dash and scored a curling rock each into the house to complete the task.

Next, off to King and Bay to the photo hunt task. Using a Bell cell phone (did I mention the blantant product placement on this race yet? Because there was tonnes of it) we needed to take pictures of four out of seven things. We snapped photos of a man with a mustache, a mannequin wearing jeans, a kid (in McDonalds) eating ice cream, and somehow managed to convince a girl to let us draw a City Chase logo on her cheek! Once that was done, we raced back, received a stamp for that Chase Point, and we were off! All and all, everything was going quite well!

Thought the task we had dreaded came next. We had completed this task last year and had vowed not to do it again. But since it was a place we knew and it was along the way, we went for it once again.
The task? Climb 27 stories to the top of the larger tower at the Toronto City Hall. Again, it's a lot more difficult than it sounds. After some serious hard work, some fear of heights, and some minor stress, we made it to the top! What a view! After looking out at the city for a few seconds (I raced by the view last year and was determined to enjoy it this year) we moved on, with aching muscles.

It was then off to the National Film Board on Richmond. There we needed to piece together a piece of paper that would form a question. We then needed to watch a film for the answer to that question. It didn't take long - another good choice of tasks. Five down, five to go!

Then it was off to Kensington Market. There we had to find five sites out of seven and record information about them. Thanks to some help from some friendly fellow teams, we completed this one quickly.

Then we took the streetcar back to College, and took another streetcar across to Ossington. There we had to compete against another team of two in a short game of ultimate frisbee. We did not do so well in this task. Let's just say that we were beaten by two all women teams, and I hurt my leg pretty badly. Thankfully, you either had to win a game or lose two games before continuing, and thus we eventually moved on.

Next, it was off to Harbord and Ossington for the next task. We had to tie sponges to our arms and, without using our hands, we needed to soak up water from a small pool and drain it into a bucket. We struggled for a bit (my inability to tie knots slowed us down) but we completed the task!

Eight down! Only one more task, and then we had to hand in our "Scivanger Hunt" sheet. We had almost all of the items at this point (again, thanks to some very friendly teams that we traded answers with.)

For this task we went to the Royal Ontario Museum. Anna had to dress me in a toga using a bed sheet and some instructions. Not a bad task. We completed it and moved onto the homestretch!

Two items short of our required ten, we raced to the VIA stage anyway, hoping we would find some help along the way (we needed either a live animal, a man in tighty whities, a man in cut off shorts, a shaved eyebrow, or a City Chase magazine ad to complete the task.) Thankfully, being Church street on Pride Weekend gave us the man in the underwear. And another friendly team gave us a bug of some sort in a bottle. Thankfully no eyebrow shaving was necessary!

With ten Chase Points under our belt (actually punched on the card around my neck) it was back to Dundas Square! We ran into Wellesley Station and barely caught the subway (yes, holding the doors open is technically illegal - but this was a race!) Several other teams were on the same subway car. We knew we'd need to beat all of them out of the subway or risk finishing behind all of them.

The train came to a stop and everyone ran. Now, this is where attending Ryerson for four years finally paid off. Some teams ran towards the Atrium on Bay to exit the station. Some, along with us, ran up the steps leading to Ryerson. There were a few teams ahead of us. We emerged from the subway and ran across the street (yes, jaywalking is technically illegal - but this was a race!) Looking behind me I saw Anna on my side of the street, and a few teams on the opposite corner, heading towards Dundas Square. I ran across the street again (yes, jaywalking is technically, yadda, yadda, yadda) and sprinted into the Square. Almost getting hit in the face by a stream from the fountain, I hit the finish line. I turned around, expecting to see several teams barrelling down on me.... instead there was only Anna! She ran up to me, I hugged her, and we finished the race!

Five hours and 25 minutes! Nine minutes less than last year, and the race was much harder this year. Still, we had wanted to improve greatly on our 348th place from 2005. But when they told us our place we were shocked: 103rd! Out of over 550 teams! We were really pleased!

From there it was off to the afterparty at Philthy McNasty's (one free beer coupon each - a far cry from the six we managed to scam last year!)

All in all, it was a great time, and this is a really long blog entry.

We are seriously contemplating entering again in August, but we'll be there for sure next year!!!

I want a Nintendo DS Lite

I want one of THESE.

Why? I'm not sure. See, I have this issue: I think that I like video games, but I'm not sure if I actually do.
Sounds ridiculous? It is.

See, I currently own a NIntendo GameCube and have put a decent amount of money into buying games (though mostly used off of eBay so I haven't spent THAT much money.) I play it once-in-a-while, but I'm not "hardcore" at all.
And yet I still consider myself a video game fan.
I'm eagerly awaiting the launch of the Nintendo Wii, moreso than I'm awaiting many other things to be honest!
And now that the DS Lite has come out, I want one. I think I've just fallen for the hype. Why do I need a portable game system? I spent 99% of my life either a) at home b) at work c) driving or d) at my fiancee's place. There is very little need for a portable game system at any of those places.
I don't take public transit anymore and it's not like I'd be playing video games outside or anything.
But I still want one..

It's probably just the hype.


But I also want to play Tetris DS, Mario Kart DS, and New Super Mario Bros. so perhaps I will end up buying one someday.
But I've spent too much money this month thus far.

In other news, it looks like the Oilers are going to end up losing game four to Carolina.

God I'm a lazy ass...

For a while there I was actually posting regularly!

Honestly, there were many times when I thought "That would be an interesting topic to blog about" but then laziness took over and I did nothing instead.

In fact, a great deal of my life can be summed up with the end of that phrase, "but then laziness took over and I did nothing instead."

Morrissey says the seal hunt is like the Holocaust

Statement from Morrissey

27 March 2006

Statement from Morrissey:

"We will not include any Canadian dates on our world tour to promote our new album. This is in protest against the barbaric slaughter of over 325,000 baby seals which is now underway.
I fully realise that the absence of any Morrissey concerts in Canada is unlikely to bring the Canadian economy to its knees, but it is our small protest against this horrific slaughter - which is the largest slaughter of marine animal species found anywhere on the planet.
The Canadian Prime Minister says the so-called "cull" is economically and environmentally justified, but this is untrue.
The seal population has looked after itself for thousand of years without human intervention, and, as the world knows, this slaughter is about one thing only: making money. The Canadian government will stream all of the pelts into the fashion industry and this is the reason why the baby seals are killed with spiked clubs that crush their skulls - any damage to their pelts is avoided. The Canadian Prime Minister also states that the slaughter is necessary because it provides jobs for local communities, but this is an ignorant reason for allowing such barbaric and cruel slaughter of beings that are denied life simply because somebody somewhere might want to wear their skin.
Construction of German gas chambers also provided work for someone - this is not a moral or sound reason for allowing suffering.
If you can, please boycott Canadian goods. It WILL make a difference. As things stand, Canada has placed itself alongside China as the cruelest and most self-serving nation."

---

Excuse me Morrissey, but fuck you.

I'm sorry, I usually try to be more witty than that, but saying that profitting from the seal hunt is no different than "Construction of German gas chambers" is pure idocity and an attempt to create a sensationalist headline.

Yes, maybe I am biased since the seal hunt at the centre of all of this controversy takes place in Canada, but the outrage against it is simply insane.

I, for one, do not agree with hunting. Hell, I don't even like how they kill cattle for beef (though I still eat it... which, yes, does make me a hypocrite.) I would never hunt an animal and, quite frankly, the idea of hunting makes me quite sick.

But hunting is hunting.

Hunting deer, or moose, or quail, or seal... hunting is hunting.

And thousands of people around the world do it every year.

And it's not like it's complete lawlessness in the Canadian north. There isn't a constant orgy of baby seal killing running rampant through our country. I don't club some cute little white seals on the way to work in the morning.

Just like all hunting and fishing, the seal hunt is regulated. Is it right? I'm not sure. Do I agree with it? I'm not sure about that either. I just know that I'm sick of all of the commotion and celebrity attention it's drawing.

I don't see past their prime-entertainers and fringe pop culture personalities coming out and boycotting American goods because they hunt deer there, or British goods because they hunt pheasant.

And, FOR THE LAST TIME, the killing of white coat baby seals is illegal. Do some people still do it? Probably. But lots of people commit lots of crimes around the world, and I'm not boycotting the goods made by their countries.

And comparing Canada to China?
Yes... the seal hunt and Tiananmen Square are very similar.
I knew someone who visited China and saw nurses carrying garbage bags filled with dead female babies by the truckload out of a hospital.... yes, that IS equal to the seal hunt.

And, for your reference, this isn't the first time Morrissey has cancelled/delayed a Canadian tour, just the first time he's given a ridiculous excuse like this. He also rescheduled his 2002 Canadian tour twice before cancelling it (Source) and he only played one date in Canada in 2004 (Source) so snubbing Canada on tours is more like par for the course for Morrissey and not a political statement.

By the way, "a veterinarian study published in 2002 found that several hundred animals examined after they had been clubbed were, for the most part, efficiently and humanely killed."(Source)

Maybe the seal hunt is wrong and it needs to be stopped. Part of me agrees that it should be stopped. But comparing the seal hunt to gas chambers and human rights violations (when it would be much easier to compare the seal hunt to... I don't know... maybe HUNTING!?) has the same effect as blowing up an abortion clinic or suicide bombing an Israeli settlement to prove a point.


That's right, two can play your ridiculous "what you're doing is the same as anti-Semitism" game Morrissey.)

Sidney Crosby Video

There's no hiding that I'm a huge Pittsburgh Penguins fan, I love the team,

I've edited a video as a tribute to rookie sensation Sidney Crosby.

Enjoy!



^ Click to view.

How to Spot A Conservative Baby

"Remember the whiny, insecure kid in nursery school, the one who always thought everyone was out to get him, and was always running to the teacher with complaints? Chances are he grew up to be a conservative."

Who would have expected a left-leaning article from the beacon of truth in this city: The Toronto Star

I mean... that would be like reading an article about how Stephen Harper is God from The Toronto Sun or National Post.

(=

Regardless, it leads to a somewhat interesting, if not controversial, point.

However, I was far from confident as a child, so how does that explain my liberal-leanings?

Either way, it's still interesting.

Microsoft made me use Firefox

I've always been a fan of Internet Explorer.
Regardless of how evil I believe Microsoft to be, regardless of how many other browers I've tried, I've always gone back to Internet Explorer.
I tried Netscape years ago... didn't like it. Same for Opera. And Firefox.
I loved my IE.
So, imagine my delight a month or so ago when I heard that IE 7 was being launched! Finally, an updated version! It sounded really good as well! More security!!! I'd show all of those Firefox fans! I new IE was going to be great.

So I downloaded it.

In short, I hated it. They moved everything around. It looked different.
It had tabbed browsing (for the life of me, I can't understand the popularity!)
I wanted the old IE back! I wanted IE6!

And there was the dilemma.

As far as I know, you cannot downgrade back to IE6.

I tried. Believe me, I tried! I spent hours - no, DAYS - trying to get my old IE back.

And I managed to get it back. But it doesn't work right. It freezes a lot and crashes. As far as I know, safely downgrading to IE is impossible without using the Windows installation disk (which I lost.)

And so, because I didn't like the newest version of a Microsoft product that I had always enjoyed, I'm now using Firefox.


Dammit.

I'm watching the Much VJ Search

So I'm watching the Much VJ Search, and now that it's ending I just stopped and thought "Why am I watching the Much VJ Search?"
Is it because - for some odd reason - I love watching reality TV?
Is it because I like music and pop culture?
Is it because I studied broadcasting and thus this interests me?
Or is it because, in actuality, I really would like to be a VJ?

I have no idea....
Now THIS is one of those pointless posts that I expected I'd be making in this blog!
All of that socially relevant stuff I was talking about earlier is all CRAP! Okay, not really, I can be socially relevant too.

Okay, it's time for "Flight 93" on A&E!

God... why do I watch this stuff!?

Thank you Mario!

Yes, a post that's not about politics!

Mario Lemieux retired today, for the second and final time.

Throughout most of my life, since I started watching hockey at least, Mario has been one of my heroes. I was lucky enough to meet him in person twice, at charity golf tournaments. This year, after watching him at Maple Leaf Gardens a few times many years ago, I finally saw him play in Pittsburgh, at the Mellon Arena. I had no idea then that this would be his last season.

But Mario made the right choice in retiring. Once you start to develop heart problems like he did, playing hockey should be the least of your concerns.

It's simply amazing what Mario has done for hockey in Pittsburgh - God knows I wouldn't be a Penguins fan if it wasn't for him. He's done a lot for the city of Pittsburgh as well, participating in several local charities and starting up his own - the Mario Lemieux Foundation - to help, mostly, children in the city.

And that's why it really bothers me reading the stuff I do online. It seems like the governor of Pennsylvania could not care less if the Penguins remain in Pittsburgh or not. The team draws in tourism for sure, the Penguins' official message board is filled with stories of people like myself who travelled to Pittsburgh and spent money there solely because of the Penguins. And yet, no one in the government seems to care about the team. Living in Toronto, where the Leafs are essentially a religion, that really confuses me. (Okay, there's a BIT of politics in this post!)

Hopefully Mario can do one last great thing for Pittsburgh and gain some leverage that will help them get a new arena. Maybe he can sell the team to someone who is dedicated to keeping the team in Pittsburgh.

But even if he can't do that, the city of Pittsburgh, and hockey fans all around the world, should thank Mario Lemieux for everything he had done for the game, the city of Pittsburgh, and Canada (Canada Cup, World Cup, and Olympic Championships afterall!)

It's ironic that someone who didn't even want to put on the Penguins' jersey when he was drafted would be responsible for such a large part of the Penguins past, present, and - hopefully - future.

But a lot of that future is left up to the various levels of government that could award the slots license to the Penguins and help them get an arena.


And Sidney Crosby. A lot of the future is up to him as well. (=

"Don't Blame Me, I voted for Kodos!"

So this is the way the world ends.....

Not so bad actually. 21 seat majority, with the Liberals still over 100 seats. If it had to end, this is the best possible way for it to end. The Bloc lost seats, the NDP gained them, and I love Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal! (=

I'm proud of the Liberal party. They didn't die, and they outperformed many expectations, including my own. BRAVO!

But with the defeat, Paul Martin is stepping down.

I've never been a fan of Martin as leader, seeing as how I was a huge Chretien supporter, but it leaves me a little sad that he'll be gone.

He seemed to have a true passion for Canada, even if he didn't know how to lead a party. (=

His consession speech last night was the best speech I've ever seen him give. Maybe it's because he was relaxed, or because he could speak without worrying about the polls, I don't know. But it was a great speech.

On the other hand, Harper's speech still sort of scared me. He seemed to pay a lot of attention to Alberta, the west, and Quebec, paying only lip service to Ontario. Perhaps it's because we didn't elect enough of his party.... I don't know. Maybe I'm just dreaming up scariness out of no where.

The whole thanking the troops in Afghanistan thing, while possibly noble, does scare me a bit, since Harper seems to want a more active military, which I don't think we need. I have nothing but respect for the troops, but mentioning them in his speech was a little weird. Unless he's trying to show his support for them after the whole "Soldiers. With guns. On our streets" fiasco.

And "God Bless Canada?"

I don't like that at all.



Regardless, hopefully the Liberals find themselves a dynamic new leader, preferably one who is not Ignatieff (I don't think he's the new leader this party needs right now... maybe some other time) and in the next election, whenever that may be, they regain the throne.

Until then, I'll be bracing for the drastic changes that I hope are kept in check by the slim minority.

I just voted!

It's up to the rest of Canada now!

Regardless of who wins, I at least hope that voter turnout is higher than the last election!

GO VOTE!

Election Time!

Get out and vote!

Do it! Regardless of who you are voting for... VOTE!
If you hate every mainstream party, vote for the Green Party, or the Marxist-Leninist Party, or an independent, or ANYONE.
Just VOTE.

Okay, that's it for my non-partisanship ways!!! (=

Who's gonna win?
Unfortunately the Conservatives and Stephen Harper.... it sucks. It really does.

"If you lend Jack Layton your vote, then you will hand Stephen Harper your country."

Paul Martin makes a good point... he's run a pretty terrible campaign so far, but he's not Stephen Harper.
Jack Layton and the NDP will NOT form the next government. No one other than the Liberals or the Conservatives will. So... if you hate the Conservatives, vote for the Liberals!

I'm actually pretty annoyed with Jack Layton and the NDP right now. Not only did they side with the Conservatives (who are completely philosphically opposite from them) to bring down the Liberals, but Jack Layton, by pressing progressive voters to vote for the NDP, is helping Stephen Harper become Prime Minister.
And all this so that the NDP can gain a few more seats.
What was so wrong with the old parliament that it had to be overthrown so quickly? I'll never understand.

Anyway, my predictions?
I've never been good at this sort of thing, but here goes:

CONSERVATIVES: 135
LIBERALS: 97
BLOC: 54
NDP: 22

That's not based on much other than guessing.... it's not like a did a riding-by-riding breakdown or anything.

But some people did!
And here's what they said:

DEMOCRATIC SPACE:
http://democraticspace.com/blog/seat-projections/
CONSERVATIVES: 128
LIBERALS: 94
BLOC: 56
NDP: 29

JORD.CA:
http://www.jord.ca/
CONSERVATIVES: 149
LIBERALS: 68
BLOC: 60
NDP: 31

ELECTION PREDICTION PROJECT:
http://www.electionprediction.org/2005_fed/index.html
CONSERVATIVES: 118
LIBERALS: 104
BLOC: 56
NDP: 29
OTHER: 1

So.... it looks bad, but not THAT bad.
It could be a Conservative Majority.

Then I'd have to move to France!

GO VOTE!

Things Stephen Harper Has Said...

On THIS site I found a few quotes from the man it appears many Canadians want to be Prime Minister. Such as:

"[M]ake no mistake. Canada is not a bilingual country."
(Calgary Sun, May 6, 2001)
And this guy is making huge gains in Quebec!?

"Albertans should decide that it is time to seek a new relationship with Canada. …Having hit a wall, the next logical step is not to bang our heads against it. It is to take the bricks and begin building another home – a stronger and much more autonomous Alberta. It is time to look at Quebec and to learn."
(National Post, December 8, 2000)
So now we have TWO separatist parties in the running!?

"Whether Canada ends up as o­ne national government or two national governments or several national governments, or some other kind of arrangement is, quite frankly, secondary in my opinion."
(Speech to the Colin Brown Memorial Dinner, National Citizens Coalition, 1994)

“We should have been there shoulder to shoulder with our allies. Our concern is the instability of our government as an ally. We are playing again with national and global security matters.''
(Canadian Press Newswire, April 11, 2003)
That was regarding the war on Iraq...

“We must aim to make [Canada] a lower tax jurisdiction than the United States.”
(Vancouver Province, April 6, 2004)

“They (taxes) can be lower than the U.S. and that should be our financial objective.”
(Canadian Press, April 11, 2003)

And, of course, the most famous...
Canada appears content to become a second-tier socialistic country, boasting ever more loudly about its economy and social services to mask its second-rate status…”
(National Post, Dec. 8 2000 p. A18)


Now, I realise that I sound like a Liberal ad here, but it really confuses me how so many people can be seriously thinking about voting for this man!
If you're upset with the Liberals... it doesn't mean you have to let Stephen Harper run our country!
Vote NDP. Vote Green. Vote Progressive Canadian. Vote Independent.
And if you still want to vote for Stephen Harper, fine... just do some reseach and please find out what he actually believes in before you do.

Paul Martin and the Liberals are very far from perfect... but they're the lesser of two evils by a long shot.

Just another day in the life...

Happy New Year!

So, here we are... a new year, yadda yadda yadda!
So, what's new with me? Well, I spent the last few days in December and the first few days in January in New York City. It was AMAZING! I love New York.
So, while I was there I got engaged. Yes, I'm going to get married. ME. MARRIED!
It's a little strange. But I'm really looking forward to it. I feel like I'm ready. And I love my fiancé very much. I couldn't picture my life without her.
But now the planning of the wedding.... and finding a place to live....
It should be hard work, but fun work as well. I'm looking forward to it

Elections Canada

I'm watching the French language debate translated to English on CBC right now.
I really dislike all of the leaders. In all honesty, I'm starting to like Duceppe... and he's a separatist!!!!!!!

Stephen Harper seems very disingenious to me. It looks like he wants to be Prime Minister simply because he wants to be Prime Minister, not because he wants to help or represent Canada. You can tell from the way he acted in the last parliament, constantly trying to over throw Martin and not trying to work on running the country at all. Besides, he'll run us into a deficit.

Jack Layton has that mousey, used car salesman look to him. He's not a bad guy - I think - but his party doesn't stand a chance, and his constant selling of the NDP with that smug look on his face drives me nuts.

Paul Martin bumbles. He stumbles. He gets too excited. He dithers and sometimes looks confused. But he's the best we've got. Sad? Yes. But I believe in the Liberal PARTY, not just the man who runs it.

Everyone who's hoping to "punish the Liberals" doesn't see that they could risk punishing themselves as well.
We don't need a Conservative government, not after 12 years of economic growth and general prosperity. They've been 12 pretty decent years and I don't see the need to throw them all away because you're mad.

And, as for the new Liberal "attack ads"... I like most of them. Except for the "Where's Harper getting his campaign money from?" one... that's just a stretch and pretty sad.

"George Bush doesn't care about black people."

I love Kanye West.

I mean his albums are pretty good. I like his wit and his cleverness always makes me smile. Jesus Walks and Diamonds From Sierra Leone are both great songs. But now I truly love the man.
Why?

I hate the way they portray us in the media. You see a black
family, it says, "They're looting." You see a white family, it says, "They're
looking for food." And, you know, it's been five days because most of the people
are black. And even for me to complain about it, I would be a hypocrite because
I've tried to turn away from the TV because it's too hard to watch.
I've even been shopping before even giving a donation, so now
I'm calling my business manager right now to see what is the biggest amount I
can give, and just to imagine if I was down there, and those are my people down
there. So anybody out there that wants to do anything that we can help -- with
the way America is set up to help the poor, the black people, the less well-off,
as slow as possible. I mean, the Red Cross is doing everything they can. We
already realize a lot of people that could help are at war right now, fighting
another way -- and they've given them permission to go down and shoot us. ...
George Bush doesn't care about black people.

Bravo Mr. West.
By the way, those comments came during an unscripted moment on NBC's A Concert for Hurricane Relief that aired Friday night. I applaude Kanye for standing up and speaking his mind, on live national television. I'm sure he knows this could cost him. I'm sure he knows that this could hurt his career. This could be Kanye's Wardrobe Malfunction. MTV and other networks could stop playing his videos, or at least keep him off of award shows and interviews where he'd have a live mic. But he did it anyway. He did it because that is what he truly believes in. And for that he deserves applause. As Kayne himself says on Diamonds From Sierra Leone, "You gotta love it though somebody still speaks from his soul."

However the thing that really annoys me about this whole situation is NBC's pathetic, politically correct, cop out statement that was issued after the show:

Tonight's telecast was a live television event wrought with emotion. Kanye West departed from the scripted comments that were prepared for him, and his opinions in no way represent the views of the networks. It would be most unfortunate if the efforts of the artists who participated tonight and the generosity of millions of Americans who are helping those in need are overshadowed by one person's opinion.

Yes, the man broke from the script. But I'd rather have someone come on television and give a heart-felt real statement in a situation like this than hear someone read "scripted comments that were prepared for him."

Whether you agree with West or not you should respect him for coming out there and refusing to give a wooden statement like his partner on screen at the time Mike Myers did. A monotone, emotionless reading of "and subtle, but in many ways even more profoundly devastating, is the lasting damage to the survivors' will to rebuild and remain in the area. The destruction of the spirit of the people of southern Louisiana and Mississippi may end up being the most tragic loss of all" does not make me emotional. It does not make me feel anyone's suffering. It does not make me want to help. While Kanye's statement wasn't what he was supposed to say, I'm glad he said it.

If more celebrities actually said what they thought and not what was prepared for them the world would be a hell of a lot better off.

I might actually update this frequently afterall...

I want to get in on all the Bloggy goodness too!
So I'm going to actually update this more... I think.
Right now I'm wasting time at work. I can't wait until tonight, the season finale of The Amazing Race is on! Go Rob and Amber!
God my blog (and therefore my life) is boring!
Maybe I'll update more when I find something interesting to write about.
(=

So.. I actually decided to update after all!

Only because I'm bored, mind you.
I really don't have much to say.
I just bought a digital camera and I love it. But the rechargable battery I bought doesn't seem to charge all the way, which kind of sucks. Now I'll have to take it in and exchange it, yadda yadda yadda.
God my life is boring!
I mean, seriously, why the hell am I writing about NOTHING on a blog that NO ONE will ever read?
Ah well... maybe this should become one of those staunch political blogs! Then I could end up on CNN! But I'm too lazy and undedicated to do that.
By the way, I just realised that Google owns my life.
I use their search engine, I read new from Google news, I have a Google deskbar, I have a Gmail account, I downloaded Picasa from Google even though I rarely use it, and I use Google Desktop Search. Almost everything I do on my computer, I use Google for! And voluntarily! (I just used the deskbar to look up how to spell "voluntarily.") It's not like Microsoft, that has to force people to use their products. I use them with little prompting from anyone!
Hmmm.... I guess that's it for now!

EDIT: I completely forgot that I'm writing this on Blogger, which is owned by, guess who? Google of course!