August 27 2010 by The Systemic Analyst.

This editorial cartoon ran in the Metro today:

Posted in In The News, Politics | No Comments »

August 25 2010 by The Systemic Analyst.

While this analogy is likely to anger most Canadians, it will be posted in the hopes that there are some with open minds. Sometimes, when reading the news, I get the impression that Canada is like some sort of national carcass, with vultures encircling to scope the remains for scavenge. You see, we starved, waiting in vain for one of our masters (either Britain or the United States) to re-emerge with enough to feed us as well as themselves. Our belief in these feeders was so great, we weren’t willing to do anything else but wait.

The latest news bite that brought this analogy to the fore, was that of Russian planes edging near “sovereign” Canadian territory. (The same Arctic sovereign territory so remote we can’t prevent boats from entering it.) It is the second time in two years our government has told us that Russian planes have flown very close to Canadian airspace. Each time the image heralded is that of some bygone era, the Cold War.

I think more the question should be for those Canadians squawking about sovereignty when such things happen, why does any other government think so little of us that such actions would ever be commanded? It is doubtful that it has anything to do with our Cold War allegiances, and much more to do with the current state of a affairs in those countries to which we have so consistently tied ourselves. Could it be that the model our young men were encouraged to fight and die for, capitalist democracy, is heaving its last systemic breaths? If yes, planes edging near our shores is a much worse omen than some forgotten past.

Posted in In The News, Politics | No Comments »

August 20 2010 by The Systemic Analyst.

David Descôteaux has an excellent piece in the Metro News today. It simply must be added to this week’s Friday Fun pile:

“Funny dream last night …

I walk into a dark room. Above the poker table, six faces are lit by a hanging lamp. From left to right: Ms. Economic Crisis, Government, Consumer, Taxpayer, Banker, and a strange creature — farmer’s thighs, artist’s hands, torso of a business CEO and head of a union boss. Let’s call him Pressure Group.

Consumer and Government play like beginners, wasting chips like there’s no tomorrow. After a failed bluff, Consumer loses all his chips. He’s already borrowed from Banker three times to keep playing, and remortgaged his house. “That’s enough!” He gets up and leaves.

I look at Taxpayer. He plays carefully, but loses chips at every turn — because Government plays aggressively. And because Pressure Group, seated beside him, dips into Government’s chips and pesters him constantly, driving up the bidding, Taxpayer just can’t keep up.

Meanwhile, Ms. Economic Crisis scoops up other players’ squandered chips …

The most hated player is Banker. He bets big each turn, whatever his cards. He doesn’t care. He knows that his friend Government will bail him out if he loses everything. The next turn, he makes a risky bet … and is wiped out. Bah! He gets up, winks at Government, and heads off.” Click here to read more.

Posted in Friday Fun, In The News, Politics | No Comments »

August 19 2010 by aliciaw.

Well, if that isn’t inciting the battle of Armageddon, I don’t know what is: several news sources are reporting on the limited time frame, as short now as six days, Israel has to prevent Iran from developing nuclear warheads. By prevention, what is discussed is Israel attacking Iran, which really can’t end well either way - derailed nuclear warhead ambitions or not.

Posted in In The News, Politics | No Comments »

August 19 2010 by The Systemic Analyst.

These people get points for creativity; the proprietors of an outdoor marijuana growing operation lured black bears as a front line of defence for the farm. Police encountered the curious and relatively friendly bears in British Columbia along with a house-raccoon and a pot-bellied pig.

I wonder what will happen to all the animals now that the owners are in jail.

Posted in In The News, Security Measures | No Comments »

August 17 2010 by The Systemic Analyst.

The news is awash with the parents in Barrie who attempted to block the use of Wi-Fi in their children’s elementary school and lost. Call me crazy, but if parents didn’t want something that they believe is harmful to their children, and which isn’t likely necessary for their education, why is it imposed on their offspring? The School Board is there to serve the parents and children, no? Not there to rule them. Or have I missed something?

The focus on the debate as to whether or not Wi-Fi and the electromagnetic radiation it produces, (regardless of how slight,) is harmful misses a bigger point: why do elementary school children even need to have Wi-Fi access? Shouldn’t they be learning to read and acquiring other fundamental mental skills, not surfing the internet and dependent on technology for answers?

As a society we have become mental midgets. Ask anyone under 30 to navigate a road trip without the aid of a GPS and see how far you get. What if all of Canada’s spellchecks failed in computers one day, would documents created be intelligible?  Heaven forbid the electricity ever going out for an extended period of time - most Canadians wouldn’t know what to do with themselves, much less survive.

The issue with Wi-Fi isn’t just a health concern, it’s one of mental competence.

Posted in In The News, Health Preparedness, Environment | No Comments »

August 16 2010 by The Systemic Analyst.

Here is an unsettling story; apparently, the equivalent of 1.16 micrograms of bisphenol A was traced per litre of urine. Along with the plastic hardener, some 88 percent of Canadians also had noticeable amounts of mercury in their blood. While the thought is unsettling, it shouldn’t be surprising, just consider the crap we are putting in and on ourselves - cardboard fast food, chemical creams and dyes, botox injections - and this is to say nothing of the containers in which we store consumables. In a city such as Toronto where the sewage is treated and then water reclaimed from it released into Lake Ontario, the main water supply for city dwellers, the list of additional chemicals that might be found in bodies there could be even more startling.

Posted in In The News, Health Preparedness | No Comments »

August 10 2010 by The Systemic Analyst.

Why these things make news is beyond me. I am not sure what is worse, that it made the news or that someone actually did it. The Toronto Sun reported:

“A student from Brazil entered a Florida bar Tuesday morning, peed in two cups, then placed them on the bar, police say.

The 24-year-old, who is in the U.S. on a student visa, walked into the House of Blues bar at 1:15 a.m. Tuesday, the Orlando Sentinel reports. He had been thrown out of the bar earlier in the evening, but returned wearing a different shirt. When he got back into the bar, he allegedly peed in two plastic cups, setting them on the bar where other people were drinking.”

Beyond the general  stupidity of the event, isn’t anyone asking how a change of shirt was enough to gain re-access to the bar?

Ever watched the movie Idiocracy? You should.

Posted in In The News | No Comments »

August 9 2010 by The Systemic Analyst.

Well, child labour is illegal in Canada. Does it matter if the child is the boss as well as the employee? I guess not if he or she has a vendor’s permit. I wonder if there is an age limitation on acquiring a permit?

In any event, two twelve year-old boys in British Columbia were forced out of operation last week, selling lemonade illegally outside a city park.

What is this country coming to?

Posted in In The News | No Comments »

August 6 2010 by The Systemic Analyst.

The New York Times ran an interesting piece on the allure of the television show “Mad Men”, which is definitely worth a read:

“THE nation is once again transfixed by “Mad Men,” by the pouring of cocktails in the office, by the lighting of cigarettes, by the extramarital carousing of elegantly dressed advertising executives in hats, and ah, the mixed feelings!” Click here to read the article in full.

Posted in Friday Fun, In The News | No Comments »