tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3935970679248504402009-11-22T00:06:30.896-05:00Progressive opinions and commentaries on past, current (and even future) events.Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.comBlogger1254125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-6237649221702220962009-11-20T19:00:00.001-05:002009-11-20T19:32:40.569-05:00

Another Remembrance Day has come and gone. But with the current torturegate cutting through our national soul, perhaps we should reacquaint ourselves once again with our noble principles of human rights, of keepers of peace, of human decency, of upholding the Geneva Conventions.But this time, let us never forget these principles again - especially in light of our current most important Canadian

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-24577853328522312442009-11-20T14:30:00.001-05:002009-11-20T14:30:00.303-05:00

Read it and weep, folks:Banking, pt 3 of 4: Show us the moneyStarting next week, Canada’s big banks will report multibillion-dollar annual profits that are among their best ever.It comes against the backdrop of a Canadian economy that has just experienced one of the worst 12-month stretches in its history. But while credit quality has been under stress from the aftermath of the global credit

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-82801565191355189282009-11-20T10:30:00.000-05:002009-11-20T10:30:00.925-05:00

...is our current mission in (the) Afghanistan (quagmire) - so said our Prime Poseur.Sure ...'Liberation Was Just a Big Lie'Outspoken Afghan MP says Canadian mission is a big waste of timeby Olivia WardShe sleeps in safe houses, with a rotating squad of bodyguards securing the doors. She goes out only in a billowing burqa. Even her wedding was held in secret.Elected the youngest member of the

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-65103804094841905742009-11-19T19:00:00.001-05:002009-11-19T19:00:02.455-05:00

So, let me get this straight:A) The Harper Government, along with LPC and NDP MPs, have formed the Canadian Parliamentary Coalition to Combat Antisemitism (CPCCA) which is currently holding an inquiry into what they call the "new anti-semitism", as defined by them thusly: "Anti-semitism is an age-old phenomenon, yet it is always re-invented and manifested in different ways. For example, while

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-77361694138055683862009-11-19T14:30:00.003-05:002009-11-19T14:30:00.138-05:00

More evidence that the "Obama Era" is changing absolutely nothing (emphasis added):U.S. pressures International Energy Agency on peak oil timelineWhy would Western industrialized countries want to downplay the arrival of peak oil? There are two related reasons: First, as consumer nations they want to keep the price of oil low and second, they want to delay taking any action on climate change

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-8145141966911391242009-11-19T10:00:00.001-05:002009-11-19T10:00:04.619-05:00

Back there, Transport Minister John Baird (yes - this same John Baird) was caught privately encouraging Canada's big airlines to step up their lobby campaign in order to kill a proposed "passenger bill of right" while his predecessor, then-Transport Minister Lawrence Cannon, publicly supported such legislation - in the name of the Harper government, of course.Like the true incompetent that he is,

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-32955579065826706862009-11-18T19:00:00.000-05:002009-11-18T19:00:00.561-05:00

Same as it ever was.Hence, the following is offered as additional food for thought on this matter:The New State SolutionBy Chris HedgesThe collapse of the Palestinian Authority, the result of Israel’s 42-year refusal to implement a two-state solution, leaves the Palestinians no option but to unilaterally declare an independent state. Israel acted unilaterally when it announced independence in

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-7322276890908880482009-11-18T14:30:00.012-05:002009-11-22T00:06:31.045-05:00

Oh, this is too rich:Canadian corporate tax cuts hand $4-6 billion to U.S. treasury: studyPlanned federal and provincial corporate tax cuts will transfer $4-6 billion of annual revenue from Canadian governments to the U.S. treasury, concludes a study released today by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).The study, by economist and CCPA Research Associate Erin Weir, explains that

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-34888604056631525912009-11-18T10:30:00.004-05:002009-11-18T11:56:03.903-05:00

Once again, Harper and his Harpies are caught saying one thing while doing the exact opposite:Transport minister opposed passenger rights bill contrary to public stanceThe federal transport minister's office privately pleaded with Canada's big airlines to step up their lobby campaign to kill a proposed passenger bill of rights even as the minister publicly rallied behind the popular

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-29794837378565946322009-11-17T19:00:00.003-05:002009-11-18T12:08:39.088-05:00

Let us Canadians be proud of the Harper government and, especially, of our current Environment Minister, Jim Prentice (emphasis added):Climate change laws years away: PrenticeThe federal environment minister says it may be a few years before Canada tables regulations to cut greenhouse gas emissions.Jim Prentice said the world has to first negotiate a new climate change treaty and Canada and the

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-28916903404750839212009-11-17T17:00:00.000-05:002009-11-17T17:06:35.831-05:00

Woop-dee-doo.Then again - I did tell you so, eh?Do you get it now?Well - do ya?(see also Dr. Dawg's take)

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-19690842397854345952009-11-17T14:30:00.002-05:002009-11-17T19:52:57.735-05:00

God bless America - fucking indeed ...Absolutely.And then some.'Nuff said.(Addendum: of course, I should add "God Bless Canada fucking indeed" as well - warm h/t to Chrystal Ocean)(sigh)

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-58024862859979483272009-11-17T10:30:00.001-05:002009-11-17T10:30:01.789-05:00

As a follow up of yesterday's post regarding the continuing running in circle around climate change, here's what is at stake and why doing nothing will have drastic consequences:The climate peril: a race against timePaul RogersThe latest climate-modelling projections underline the potentially catastrophic impact of global warming. The implications for civic and political action are profound.The

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-32051197252653744752009-11-16T18:50:00.002-05:002009-11-18T21:43:12.396-05:00

In the U.S., whatever shape and form health care reform will take shall not prevent Big Pharma from satisfying the bottomless pit that is their greed (emphasis added):Drug Makers Raise Prices in Face of Health Care ReformEven as drug makers promise to support Washington’s health care overhaul by shaving $8 billion a year off the nation’s drug costs after the legislation takes effect, the industry

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-34051579187234434782009-11-16T10:30:00.005-05:002009-11-16T17:27:32.376-05:00

Of course they are - given their atrocious, abysmal record so far on this critical matter.And as usual, they blame first and foremost so-called emerging economies (i.e. India, China, et al.) for being the major holdovers of any emission reduction deal. Even worse, they keep playing the usual childish card - dixit our Prime Poseur himself (emphasis added):"Our message is that all major economies

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-72495604563129295222009-11-13T19:00:00.000-05:002009-11-13T19:00:02.225-05:00

That's right, folks - considering my return to blogging after a hiatus of about 6 months, I figured that the return of Late Friday Night Ode at APOV should be about nothing in particular ... but definitely f-u-n.So here's Joe Satriani/Surfing With The Alien for ya'll - enjoy:As always - keep on rockin'!(And have a great weekend. I'll see you folks again Monday)

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-51094902794679767482009-11-13T14:30:00.001-05:002009-11-13T14:30:00.425-05:00

Welcome to 21st Century capitalism:Business Groups ‘Worried’ About The Effects Of Banning The Importation Of Goods Made With Child LaborOne of the worst abuses in the international labor markets is the use of child labor. The most recent report on the issue by the International Labor Organization found that as of 2004 more than 218 million children were engaged in illegal work, as defined by

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-38190246346655591462009-11-13T10:00:00.000-05:002009-11-13T10:00:05.250-05:00

I definitely could not have put it better myself (emphasis added):A Multitude of Creatures by Abby Zimet In intriguing news, the Vatican has just finished a five-day conference exploring the possibility of extraterrestrial life. Participants agreed the issue raises difficult questions: Would Jesus save aliens, too? We applaud the open-mindedness the conference

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-76619330455391189502009-11-12T19:00:00.003-05:002009-11-12T19:00:00.564-05:00

Go read.Just remember that I've been saying so again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again ...(as but a few examples over the last two years or so)Thank you for your time and consideration.

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-86264870080858291662009-11-12T14:35:00.007-05:002009-11-12T20:38:39.743-05:00

... will always take a back seat to more important things like imposing the church's dogmatic and parochial tenets - even at the risk of actually hurting and harming people (emphasis added):Catholic Church gives D.C. ultimatumThe Catholic Archdiocese of Washington said Wednesday that it will be unable to continue the social service programs it runs for the District if the city doesn't change a

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-79473163580002550042009-11-12T10:30:00.000-05:002009-11-12T10:30:00.801-05:00

I've been saying this for quite a while now (one example here). Hell, this is no more a matter of insurgency, but one of insurrection - of civil war - where it now looks like the Taliban ends up being funded by ... the USA!Although Canada's top commander announced that all Canadian soldiers will withdraw from this never-ending quagmire by 2011, I remain skeptical of this for three reasons:1) Our

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-46283821548995735232009-11-11T20:45:00.000-05:002009-11-11T21:06:42.537-05:00

A while ago, back in this (quite) old post, I approached the question of what exactly is terrorism - all the while drawing on the inherent double standard in applying the label (you know, like, war crimes and all).With the recent, tragic Fort Hood shooting, many (of the usual) suspects fearmongerers have been decrying this senseless act as terrorism - especially since such an insane act was

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-26668983429560134672009-11-11T15:35:00.002-05:002009-11-11T19:19:57.805-05:00

I was struck the other day by how Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein describes himself (h/t): "(...) He is, he says, just a banker "doing God’s work"".Incidentally, this was in justification for the following position of his (emphasis added):(...) For Blankfein, in the end, it all comes down to one thing: finding the best, fastest, and safest way to make money with money, then make some more money

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-39096846759773952252009-05-31T14:48:00.002-04:002009-05-31T14:51:52.551-04:00

Too much stuff going on regarding work and/or happening in my (personal) life, Hence, I just don't have the time to blog - at least for the time being and for the next couple of months ahead.Hopefully, I will be able to resume decent blogging sooner than later ...In the meantime, ya'll be excellent to each other.I'll be back ...

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-393597067924850440.post-30636530509147601182009-04-23T15:30:00.000-04:002009-04-23T15:30:00.052-04:00

The barbarism and savagery keeps on being exposed ...Five Terrible Truths About the CIA Torture Memosby Andy WorthingtonThe OLC, as the New York Times explained in September 2007, holds a uniquely influential position, as it “interprets all laws that bear on the powers of the executive branch. The opinions of the head of the office are binding, except on the rare occasions when they are reversed

Mentarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03128624329790456529noreply@blogger.com2