Keepin' em' busy

If you've been following the Canadian press of late, you'll be well aware of the potentially looming Spring election, brought on as a result of the Sponsorship Scandal. I'd say the complaints against the Liberals are legitimate: given the testimony against them recently, it's becoming abundently clear that serious abuses happened under the Liberal watch. Prime Minister Martin said as much in his recent address to the nation. That said, I believe his calls for waiting till Justice Gomery can finish his report makes perfect sense. A Federal election deserves clarity, and only a finished, professionally handles report, can truly bring that. What really set me off has been the Opposition's recent spin on the matter. Evidently, according to Harper and his gang, an election should be called because the Federal government hasn't been concentrating on other issues (health care, education, etc). The problem with that logic is that it's Harper's Conservatives won't allow the government to address any other issues. Every time they try to, Harper brings it back to the Scandal, and blames Martin for trying to change the subject. Talk about between a rock and a hard place. And unreasonable.

Something here is very wrong...

Does anyone else have a great deal of trouble reconciling the emphasis placed on the death of Terri Schaivo and the complete lack of emphasis placed on the repulsive genocide happening right now in the Darfur region of Sudan? How is it possible for the Bush government to value one 'life' (the term is questionable in this case... in my view, Terri had already died 15 years ago, only her body remained) so heavily that the President himself took the time out of his busy vacation schedule to fly back to DC and sign a Bill for that one person, yet completely ignore the tens upon tens of thousands of people dying elsewhere? Is the value of an African life really that much less than that of an American to these people? An estimated 180, 000 people have died over two years. This after Rawanda, a short decade ago. Where is the collective conscience of the West? Genocide is not a local issue. It is not an issue to be handled by one government. Nor is it a crime merely against those directly affected. This is a crime against humanity in every sense. I fear that this generation will be known for a few things: the proliferation of the internet, the war on terror, and the complacency in turning a blind eye to half the world starving, dying of under-researched and preventable diseases, submissive to the whims of irresponsable or actively dangerous governments. All when we in the West and in Europe are readily able to put a stop to the madness.

I find it reprehendable that if 5 people die in a school shooting it gets coverage for weeks on end, while 20 thousand more people die on the other side of the World. The thinking behind this? 20 thousand died last month. 20 thousand more will die next month. Whats the point of reporting on something that isnt changing? Some logic there. At this rate it will never change.

Damn you Hoots!

If you're my age or slightly older/younger, you likely have fond memories of Sesame Street. I for one recall it being the one show I was allowed to watch for some time, and how I would eagerly await it's airtime. Kermit the pansified singing frog, The Grouch, who most closely represents actual people, the disturbingly over-lashed Snuffy, the pimpish Count, the ravenous Cookie Monster and the partially paralized and aptly named "Big Bird" were all mainstays of my childhood, and doubtless countless others. Well bit by bit they're changing this fine old show, for the worse.

Cookie monster no longer lives up to his extravagently amusing name. He is, I suppose, still a monster. Some things never change. But now they're phasing in a healthier, less cookie-centric version of our beloved friend. "C", it would appear, is not always for "cookie". In a bid to make the Monster more health conscious for the sake of the wee tykes watching, he's recieved a makeover. In place of his classic tunes, there's a new song "A Cookie Is a Sometimes Food," where Cookie Monster learns there are "anytime" foods and "sometimes" foods. Sacralidge I say! Spurred on by his new buddy "Hoots" (pictured above), Cookie Monster (CM) is losing touch with his roots, and in so doing, upsetting the fragile balance of Seseme Street. For you see, it was through Cookie's indulgences that we learned what not to do. CM stood as a foil to the other characters, and his deranged, sugar induced escapades stood as a grave warning for all. Without him being hepped up on Cookies, the show loses its "immoral compass", and in so doing becomes more generic and pandering. For shame I say, for shame.

"Hello old bean, I simply adore how... whoops."

Prince Charles, a couple days off of his wedding, has screwed up, by shaking hands with Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe at the Pope's funeral. The prince was "caught by surprise" when Mr Mugabe leaned over to greet him, Clarence House said. Mr Mugabe sidestepped a European Union travel ban to attend the funeral service in the Vatican.
Some politicians condemned Prince Charles' greeting as "stupid" and "not very sensible". Alright. It was clearly a mistake to shake the guy's hand. It can be interpreted as sympathy for his case, etc. ect. But c'mon. This is a fairly honest mistake. If I'm attending a funeral, in which I'm to be in full "diplomacy mode", I'm liable to shake whatever hand is extended to me. It happens in the blink of an eye, and its really not reasonable to expect Charles to carefully weigh the pros and cons of such a simple thing in that small amount of time. He screwed up, but its quite understandable. Move on.

Montana to join civilization

Sometimes it takes an odd news story to bring to light something really damn odd that's been going on for ages. In this case, it reveals something about the State of Montana that's really quite remarkable. Up to now, Montana has had no law prohibiting drinking alcohol while driving. I shit you not. Last month, you were perfectly within your rights to cruise on down the freeway with a nice cold one in one hand, the wheel in the other. And evidently noone saw a problem with this. Now, I'm generally all for personal freedoms. Your body, your life, your decisions. The key limitation being when you impinge on other people's rights. Or run them over. That's a bad thing. So that said, I'm not sure where Montana has been the last 100 years. Do they not realize alcohol impairs your judgement? Hasn't a single lawmaker from the state had an unfortunate incident fuelled by alcohol? Not shockingly, and I'm sure linked to this lack of regulation, Montana has the highest rate of alcohol-related deaths, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

So what's the defence of this asinine lack of control? University of Montana sociologist Jim Burfeind said the state’s holdout status was understandable, given the long, lonely drives often required when only 927,000 people live in a state the size of New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio combined. “We think we’re a very different place than other places and that we don’t have to run by the rules that other people have to in more congested areas,” Burfeind said. Um... yeah. All I know is, putting someone behind the wheel of a 2 ton truck capable of hitting 100k an hour in ten seconds, and letting them booze it up while they're at it is a bad idea by any reasonable standard. Are you allowed to get sloshed while at a shooting range? Are Surgeons allowed to quench their thurst with a nice brew while some patient is under the knife? You may not run into many people on those long stretches of highway, but when you do, having a brew makes you a helluva lot more likely to actually run into them.

This is a reasonable man

No, really. He kinda looks like a vapid, insincere politician, but in fact he's pretty decent. He is Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich. Interesting name, and interestingly independent views on drug use. No, not the fun drugs, the un-fun variety. In the US, due to fairly strong lobbying by the pharmisudical companies, foriegn made generic drugs aren't allowed in most states. No longer the case in Illinois. Blagojevich helped push for changes to U.S. laws that prohibit buying prescription drugs from Canada, where they are cheaper. Furthermore, he was the first governor to order Canadian drugs for state employees in 2004. These policies help to get life-saving drugs to those who most sorely need them, but cannot afford the exhorbident prices generally associated with them. Sounds good right? Well he's made another bold and much needed policy decision.

Blagojevich has signed an emergency order that requires all licensed pharmacies to fill birth control pill prescriptions regardless of an individual pharmacist's objection on moral grounds. The Associated Press reports the measure went into effect Friday in response to a February incident at a Chicago Osco drug store, where a woman complained that a pharamcist refused to fill her birth control pill presciption because of moral opposition. "Our regulation says that if a woman goes to a pharmacy with a prescription for birth control, the pharmacy or the pharmacist is not allowed to discriminate or to choose who he sells it to," the wire quotes Blagojevich as saying. "No delays. No hassles. No lectures."

Bang on. It's not the pharmicist's job to play moral guide to anyone. The fact that the birth control pill requires a perscription is dubious in my mind, but because that is the case, the woman has likely already gotten about as much lecturing as she can take. Good for Rod for taking out unessicary obstructions to a woman's choice. In Rod we trust.

The Pope not long for this world

I figured that would be an appropriately grim picture. The funniest thing about it is that I actually believe it's unaltered. The Pope, as memory serves, was actually entertained by some breakdancers at some point. And what a marvelous celebration of the human spirit it doubtless was. Anyway.

Leaked reports from the Vatican indicate that his Holiness has passed away, after a reported heart attack and infection caused by the insertion of a nasal feeding tube. News of the pope's death follows an update from around noon that the Holy Father had suffered a loss of blood pressure, and then a loss of consciousness. Honestly folks, this one has been a long time coming. Still, while I disagree with virtually all his political stances, I have to hand it to the guy for toughness, and seemingly genuine good intentions. He was a man of character and resolve, a good man, albiet wrong about a great many things, by my estimation.

As an interesting sidenote that only bears relevance every 50 years or so, traditions surrounding the Pope's death have been carried out through the ages. When the pope dies, the cardinal chamberlain (Camerlengo) of the holy Roman Church (currently Eduardo Cardinal Martinez Somalo) ascertains the pope’s death, traditionally by calling the pope three times by his baptismal name without response. The ritual of, I shit you not, striking the head with a silver hammer (which would later be used to break the Fisherman’s Ring and the papal seal) may be replaced by covering the face with a cloth. Poor Popey. First the assasination attempt and now getting smacked with a ceremonial hammer. I guess it can't all be ham and plaques.