This was one scaaarrry week, kids:

• Terrifying: Dalton “that’s not true” McGuinty had his face on TV, and broke yet another promise.
• Alarming: Hospitals in Alberta, and now Saskatchewan, are re-using single use syringes.
• Very Scary: In a federal election recount, where the difference between MP and No-P is 33 votes, the counting of a mere 28 boxes out of a possible 184 is enough for Justice Dohm to uphold the original result. This is the state of our great democracy.
• Scary: Had snow on October 28, and a caller to the Lowell Green show said “Global Warming is causing Global Cooling”. He was very serious, and THAT’s scary!
• Disbelief: Taxpayers will have to pay the cable bill at Collins Bay prison because the inmates who usually work to pay for the bill are on strike.
• Truly Frightening: Bob Rae is running for the liberal leadership. If Bob Rae ever becomes PM, God help us.
• Oh, and happy Black and Orange Day!

Jack, I need you to tell me this is a global catastrophe, and that something needs to be done! Snow on October 28th? Where are you?

We woke up to some 4 cm of snow today (I know, the STORM TEAM from A-News announced 15 cm yesterday, but hey, we’ve got that STORM TEAM all fitted out with the parkas and the ski-goggles, so we’ve got to use ‘em!), and, of course, Ottawa’s streets are filled with idiots who do not know how to drive. On my modest 20 minute drive to work I came across three cars in the ditch and one spinning out of control coming up to a stop sign you can see from four miles away. On top of that, there were numerous cars with the windshield “cleaned up” by windshield wiper instead of snow brush, leaving the driver to peer through two small half-moon holes in a white sea of snow. This was 4 cm of snow, people. Neither a STORM nor weather worthy of a WATCH or WARNING. Slow down, clean your car properly, watch your fellow road users and you can easily stay on the road.

And Dalton, never mind banning gadgets, how about banning idiots?

Microsoft announced a new system called Windows Azure. It is joining Amazon.com Inc. and other rivals in selling information storage space and computing power “in the cloud,” distributed across massive data centers worldwide. That will let companies build web-based programs without having to manage their own data centers.

Leaves this question: do you think it is wise to put all your data in Microsoft’s hands?

There was just enough humidity in the air this morning to, combined with the -5C temperature, create an almost mythical appearance around our home. One of those perfect frosty fall mornings where there isn’t any snow on the ground yet, but the frost has set in, and the fallen leaves create a drab, olive backdrop to the glistening drops of ice that are being illuminated by a rising sun. The Wayfaring Tree, especially, due to its naturally downy leaves, was spectacular.

Take a look: read more…

Yes, Canadian Tire has been running a new series of ads: buy a blue planet CFL light bulb and “save the world”.

From every sale of these $6 light bulbs, CT donates $2 “towards planting a tree” (only for the first 125000 sold). As I’ve said before, it costs about 7 cts to plant a tree in Ontario (the program is in collaboration with Trees Ontario), so someone either at blue planet, TreeCanada or Trees Ontario is making a profit of $1.93 somewhere (I’m guessing the only commercial one of the bunch: blue planet. I guess the name “green planet” was already taken. What “blue” has to do with “trees”, I don’t know). read more…

So, what other things you have been saying during the campaign that have now proven to be untrue? Or, in other words, what other things has Mr Harper said during the campaign, that you said were lies, turn out to be true?

Yes, Dion held his L O N G awaited press conference yesterday, after HIDING OUT for nearly a week. Saying he’ll step down, but stay on for now (?). He blames everything on himself, but mostly on a number of other things (is that possible? It’s like a shirt is 100% cotton, AND some wool h/t Seinfeld), such as: read more…

Let’s face it: Harper did not get a majority due to the following facts:

1. The boneheads in Newfoundland who voted for equalization handouts even though they are a “have province” now. They would rather risk a carbon tax on their precious oil than to finally take their place in confederation and pay towards this country.
2. The idiots in Quebec who vote for the Bloc and thus for separation. In particular the idiots in Gatineau who mostly work for the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT and would surely lose their jobs should their party of choice succeed in its goal and separate.
3. The idiots in downtown Toronto; How ANYBODY in Ontario can vote for Bob Rae, I will never understand. Another vote for hand-outs. Lovely.
4. 59% turnout. It’s a shame.

And there you have it. Last night’s election results.

Took a nice fall walk today with my wife. It was one of those windy, but sunny and warm days. Just perfect for taking a stroll through the countryside admiring our fall splendour:

read more…

All over the world and throughout history, people have fought for the right to have a vote. In many countries people brave hunger, illness, penalties, torture or even death by force, sometimes walking for miles and miles to stand in line for hours and hours to have their say. In this country, we are very fortunate to have none of that, thanks to people who fought for these rights in our past, and are fighting for them right now. Voting in this country means at most a 10 minute drive in the comfort of our cars, or going down to the lobby of our own apartment buildings.

My daughter, I am very proud of her, is twenty years old. This is her first election. She is currently out of the country, trekking through Nepal. She was smart and involved enough to request her ballot from Elections Canada and send it in before she left. She’s 8000 miles away, on the roof of the world, and she voted.

There is no excuse not to vote. On October 14th, go out and vote.