Wednesday digest

- No one should ever mistake me for an analyst of high finance, but I have to say that I'm not surprised by the market correction emanating from China this week. I have long though that the Chinese economy was as overrated as a Kurt Cobain guitar solo, which is to say, quite. Here's an article that explains things in something as close to layman's terms as I've been able to find.

- Sen. Joe Lieberman (CT-I) penned an op-ed in Monday's edition of the Wall St. Journal that is getting considerable attention around the blogosphere. Read it here.

- Ryan Smyth was traded from the Edmonton Oilers to the New York Islanders yesterday because he couldn't come to an agreement on a contract with Oilers GM Kevin Lowe. Smyth, who was looking for a contract in the $5-$6 million dollar-per-year range, openly wept today when he said that he would go to Long Island and try his best to win a Cup in order to bring it back to Edmonton because "that's where his heart is".

That, and a couple hundred grand more that should have come your way, right, Smitty?

Gimme a frickin' break.

Tuesday digest

- I don't want to get into a detailed discussion about the Liberal neutering of Canada's anti-terror laws tonight for the same reasons I never touch Maher Arar and anything to do with security certificates, and those who know me off-line can understand why I'm reluctant to comment, but I'll allow myself this.

Preventive arrest and investigative hearings, the essence of the law in question, were put in place to avoid another 9/11 by allowing for authorities to round up perpetrators and enablers of mass violence before that violence was to be committed. However, by throwing out these provisions, bringing terrorists to justice will have to wait until after politically-motivated murder is carried out. In other words, the Liberal party has decided that the burden of proof now lies in the smoldering ruins of Madrid, London and New York rather than in the twisted minds and warped fantasies of Islamists.

However, applying the same principle, they are not allowing Canada's security apparatus the same courtesy they demand for would-be terrorists. These laws have never been used, and so law enforcement, intelligence agencies and those who work tirelessly within them are being cast as being "guilty" of an act they've never carried out by Canada's opposition parties. And isn't that what the socialists, separatists and Trudeaupians were against?

Michael Ignatieff, you should be ashamed of yourself. And I wouldn't be surprised if deep down, you are.

- Jean Charest has stepped in it by suggesting that the ref in the Quebec soccer tournament who asked the 11-year old Ottawa girl to remove her hijab because it was a safety hazard was only enforcing the rules of soccer. Perhaps I'm giving the Premier too much credit, but I think he took a tougher line on this because in the wake of Herouxville, voters are increasingly looking at the competitive ADQ as the defender of traditional Quebec society. As for what he said, I'm totally in favour of promoting assimilation into the value structure of the larger culture, but those values include freedom of religion, including the right to express that religion within limits. It's not a safety hazard to wear a hijab, as, say, it would be to have a pocket knife at one's side on the soccer field if a young Sikh adolescent insisted on it. Standing up for the rules is important, but a little flexibility now and again is a good thing, too. Charest is wrong on this one, as was the referee.

- I'm a guy who believes in Jesus, the Christian faith, and is damn proud of it. That said, you won't see me rioting in the streets because some filmmaker has suggested that folks like me have been sold a bill of goods.

Now, if he had drawn a cartoon, that'd be another story.

Just kidding.

- Hey, how long till Bill Maher, Rosie O'Donnell, Al Franken or some other similar authority starts mouthing off and says that a) it's a damn shame Cheney didn't get blown to bits or b) the murder attempt was a failed Rovian conspiracy to both get him out of the #2 spot and also shore up sympathy for the GOP in advance of '08?

I give it till the weekend - Sunday to be exact.

- I'd like to congratulate all of the so-called conservative Kool-Aid drinkers tonight on a significant milestone: a federal government that now spends well in excess of $200 billion per year. I recall door-knocking for a certain political party that our esteemed Prime Minister was a key part of about ten years ago. At that time, federal spending was about $120 billion a year, and the party I was supporting wanted to bring that level down by less than 10%. Radical surgery, indeed. Now, only ten years later, that figure has almost doubled under Stephen Harper's watch.

Perhaps when Harper and Brian Mulroney are having their next father-son chat, the #1 rule of politics will come up over course of the discussion, and that's this: never alienate your base. However, that's a lesson that I think is lost on not only the teacher but increasingly, the student.

Monday mini-digest

- And they said it couldn't be done: Ottawa city council has crafted a budget - in record time, no less - that has a zero percent property tax increase. Some may quibble because it means that the odd user fee is about to go up, but I say "what's wrong with that"? As a general rule, and speaking within reason, I think people should pay for what they use and not have to pay for what they don't. It's only fair.

Congratulations to Mayor Larry O'Brien for winning round one with the special interests that dominate municipal politics here in the nation's capital.

- I don't often blog about sports, but I must take issue with St. Louis Blues-Atlanta Thrashers trade for Keith Tkachuk over the weekend. The Thrash gave up quality forward Glen Metropolit along with a first, second and third round pick with another first rounder to follow if the Thrash sign the soon-to-be-unrestricted Tkachuk, one of the laziest, half-assed guys ever to play the game of hockey.

To me, this trade demonstrates everything that is wrong with the NHL, new or old. You've got a team based in a non-hockey market that is so desperate for people in the city which they play to take notice of them that they will overpay big-time just to make the playoffs, because if they don't, the writing will be on the wall that they'll have to move. (To where, I might ask?) And why does that team exist in the first place? Because shortsighted owners, hungry for the quick bucks that an expansion fee would bring in, had to keep pace with the big-market teams like the Rangers, Flyers and Leafs who were all too happy to shell out the cash to high-priced free agents in recent years despite it being clear to anyone with an iota of common sense that this league just couldn't sustain those kind of salaries over even the short term (resulting in the ridiculousness of the cancelled season two years ago).

Take a look around. Carolina? No one cared about the Cup win last year outside of Raleigh. Nashville? Dominant, yet averaging a half-full rink. The Thrash? I would be surprised if they've had more than 5 sellouts this year. Then, you've got teams like Phoenix, Anaheim and Florida to boot, where I'm sure at least 20% of those "fans" in the seats got comped tickets. Even in places where hockey shouldn't be as tough a sell, like St. Louis, they've had to resort to handing out free concessions to get people into the building, and my beloved New Jersey Devils, despite setting a consistent standard of excellence over the last fifteen years that is rivalled by only Detroit, are basically a farce off the ice. Even Canadian markets like Ottawa and Vancouver have had their difficulties.

For the good of the game, everyone in pro hockey needs to recognize the limitations of the sport. It does no one any good to see a franchise basically go for broke in such a stupid way like Atlanta has done and only serves as a reminder that the game is never going to be major league if nonsense like this persists. When the Thrash get bounced in the first round, if they even make it to the post-season this year, and three years down the road, when management would kill to get even Municipal Stadium-era Cleveland Indians attendance numbers, you can point to this past weekend as the reason why.

- I was very happy to hear that "The Departed", probably the best movie I've ever seen, cleaned house last night at the Oscars, but the question that should have been on everyone's mind as posed by Fred is whether or not Al Gore used public transit to get to the show, and if not, did he at least carpool?

CD/DVD Review: "The Confessions Tour - Live from London" - Madonna (2007)

I picked up this CD/DVD package as part of Mrs. H's Valentine's Day gift, and we got around to watching the live show this afternoon.

After seeing this, it's clear why Madonna tours so infrequently and charges hundreds of dollars per ticket when she does. Opening with energetic Cirque-de-Soleil-meets-gay-pride-day-ish numbers, she then shifts to playing global conscience (complete with challenging visuals about Jewish/Islamic reconciliation, female emancipation in non-Western societies, and the AIDS epidemic in Africa) to anti-establishment rocker, then to unplugged troubadour and finally to glam disco queen, all backed by a contemporary sound that gets in your head whether you want it to or not - and refuses to leave at that. The set draws heavily from her 2005 "Confessions on a Dance Floor" disc, but since that's arguably her best album of the last 15 years, I didn't mind it at all. Considering that Madonna is pushing 50, and with a career that is now at the silver anniversary mark, it's even more impressive ... both urgent and provocative, but at the same time, fun, slick, and just massive.

I have about probably 30 live music DVDs and this one is right up there with Pink Floyd's "Pulse" for sheer spectacle. For those who appreciate pure showbiz but can do without the tackiness of a Celine Dion or a Rod Stewart, this is as close to perfection as it's going to get. Here's a little sample from this simply amazing package.

Overall rating: 9.25/10

DVD Review: "Half Nelson" (2007)

This tedious piece of garbage is a story about a crack-addicted, neo-hippie, inner-city history teacher who gets caught freebasing by one of his students. Afterwards, they form an unlikely friendship against the backdrop of their very dissimilar histories.

"Half Nelson" is slow, ultra-liberal (there's plenty of needless America-bashing that contributes the square root of zilch to the plot), and totally pointless. I can't believe star Ryan Gosling is being considered for an Oscar for this role. Why is that Hollywood always loves the tragic figure of the self-destructive do-gooder (see Hanks, Tom in "Philadelphia" as Exhibit A, Cage, Nicholas in "Leaving Las Vegas" as Exhibit B, and Spacey, Kevin in "American Beauty" as Exhibit C) , portraying the hero as a well-meaning victim of circumstance instead of as an ultimately pathetic individual who made a series of bad choices along the road to Loserville? In the case of "Half Nelson", things are made even more irritating by the look of this film, which screams hand-held camera all the way.

Do yourself a favour and just avoid this one.

Overall rating: 2.25/10

DVD Review: "Trailer Park Boys: The Movie" (2007)

In the epitome of the word "rental", if you've seen about three episodes of the Canadian show on which this flick is based, you'll have seen this entire thing already. To wit: the fellas get out of jail, Ricky tries to set things right with Lucy, Julian tries to come up with a foolproof get-rich quick scheme, Cory and Trevor screw things up, Bubbles starts wheezing a lot, and Lahey gets drunk as the local cops come to the park for what ends up being no good reason. Of course, other characters are in the background like Ray, Randy, Barb, Sarah and J-Roc, just like you'd expect, but altogether, this flick, just like the show it is based on, is a pretty stale affair that deserved a much better script. Big ups for the soundtrack, though, which includes Canadian rock luminaries like Helix, Rough Trade, Platinum Blonde and the Northern Pikes.

Overall rating: 5/10

Live Review: White Cowbell Oklahoma/The F*cking Machines, Barrymore's, Ottawa, ON, February 24, 2007

The legendary White Cowbell Oklahoma descended on the nation's capital last night to promote their second disc, titled "Casa Diablo". Lots of Foghat-esque riffage and meaty soloing on stage from the nine-member band (drummer, bassist, keyboardist, lead singer, four guitarists and a cowbell player), and the new material sounds great alongside classics from their debut, "Cincerro Blanco", like "Southern By the Grace of the Lord" and "Put The South In Your Mouth".

Unfortunately, although there were chainsaws, sparks-a-flyin', and gratuitous nudity from the two tattooed strippers that were in tow, we didn't get to see the famed penis guitar solo for some unknown reason. Because of that, for me, the show wasn't as good as the first time I saw them about a year and a half ago, while both Mrs. H and good friend NTC thought the faux lesbianism of the skanks was a little too over the top.

What also might have saved the day would have been a much better opening band. I've seen some real garbage at Barrymore's over the years (the Million Dollar Marxists come immediately to mind) but these nu-metal screamers that inexplicably got the opening gig were just awful. I humbly suggest that the next time the 'Bell comes to town, they ought to get in touch with Lucky Ron (see here, here and here) to properly set the stage rather than hollering hacks who use profanity (see name above) just to shock.

Overall rating: 8/10

Movie Review: "The Last King of Scotland" (2006)

This film recounts the relationship between heinous Ugandan strongman Idi Amin and his personal physician, a young Scottish lad fresh out of school, over the course of the 1970s. Amin, warm and approachable one minute yet megalomaniacal and ruthless the next, is played by Forest Whitaker who is likely to win the Oscar for best actor, however, in my opinion, the actor who plays the doctor should have garnered a nomination over Whitaker.

This film is difficult to watch at times, in part because it doesn't shy away from demonstrating the brutal reality that corruption, bad economics and the cult of personality are primarily responsible for the problems of many African nations. That said, it's largely unremarkable. Both "Hotel Rwanda" and "Blood Diamond" are more interesting if you're in the market for a tale about the difficulties faced by the Dark Continent.

(In the interests of full disclosure, I must also add that I fell asleep for what my buddy said was a good half-hour about halfway through this flick, having had a little too much fun the night before singing Toby Keith tunes at my neighborhood karaoke bar.)

Overall rating: 6.25/10

Friday mini-digest

- Two years after a strike, Hershey's Smith Falls, ON plant is closing. How come everything associated with Canadian Auto Workers president Buzz Hargrove ends up failing miserably, except of course, for his own career as a union boss?

- Thanks to an old pal who knows who he is for this piece which gleefully takes the piss out of limousine liberals and their latest save-the-world campaign.

- Memoirs from the hip-hop Woodstock, courtesy of the Webber.

Wednesday digest

- Not so much a pullout as a transfer of control. Cut through the media filter and read what Tony Blair had to say for yourself, here (although do I think this observer makes some salient criticisms).

- David Suzuki, corporate shill; but don't expect the sympathetic mainstream media in Canada to put this angelic do-gooder under the microscope. Wanna know why? Click on this link for a partial answer.

- Some quick yet provocative thoughts on the global economy, here, along with a few numbers for those who like to measure by result rather than intention.

- Speaking of results, here are some observations about teachers' unions from a guy who knows a thing or two about success.

- Consider the following:

The Vancouver Sun alleges that the father-in-law of a Liberal MP was once the mouthpiece for a known terrorist.

A Serbian businessman has been both a long-time donor to the Liberal party and allegedly a former advisor to known war criminal Slobodan Milosevic.

Former Prime Minister Paul Martin's games of footsie with terror groups goes back almost twenty years.

Now esconced in Opposition and free of the pressure of dealing with Washington, Stephane Dion is now ordering his MPs to vote to remove the teeth from Canada's Anti-Terrorism Act and reduce the risk of any light getting into dark Liberal corners.

Who's got the hidden agenda now?

- Why do people mouth off and say things they wouldn't dare to a person's face when online? Here's a possible explanation.

Tuesday digest

- A couple of interesting articles about failure: America in North Korea, here, and the Iranian government's nuke program, here.

- Why is it that the forces of tolerance and understanding too often let radical Muslims off the hook?

- Don't get too comfy: Al-Qaeda, far from being back, never really left.

- The Conservative ads currently running in Quebec take issue with Stephane Dion from the left, complaining that Dion is not adequately committed to social spending.

Just thought I'd mention that for all you Tory Kool-Aid drinkers.

- I always thought P-Mac was in over his head. If he can't tell Toronto apart from Halifax, how can we expect him to know the difference between Sunni and Shi'ite?

- How about this proposal: bitchiness should be considered just as offensive as body odor.

- Thank the good Lord above that this pathetic display is not about to be unleashed on the world.

Monday digest

- Some leading Democrats are already touting the idea of Bill Clinton as a replacement for Hillary if and when she leaves the Senate to assume position in the White House.

Isn't that a little bit presumptuous, twenty months out?

- Seven of the nineteen 9/11 hijackers are apparently alive and well.

Who knew?

- This just in: Canadian foreign aid dollars are largely wasted.

- Here in Ottawa, much fretting about the annual circus at City Hall known as budget time. The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) has found time to stop damning Israel and are now running ads threatening the end of municipal services such as libraries unless taxes go up accordingly. Meanwhile, the Ottawa Public Library system as run by City Hall is also running ads telling kids that if they need help with their homework, there's a dedicated number that they can call to get help.

Call me old-fashioned, but I thought parents were supposed to help kids with their homework. Perhaps that's expecting too much these days. More to the point, since when does having a good public library system include paying people out of the public purse to answer grade 7 science problems over the phone?

With programs like this in place, I'm not buying this "crying poor" routine from CUPE for one second.

Nor should you.

Album Review: Hank III - "Straight to Hell" (2006)

Hank III has issued this double album which is a shot in the arm of traditional country, much needed after the hangover-inducing "Walk the Line" and all the phoniness and posing that accompanied it. With toe-tappin' twang like "Thrown Out of the Bar", "Smoke and Wine" and "Dick In Dixie", this album certainly does not betray the heritage of its author, instead, reinforcing it despite the just plain weird one-track second disc that is full of train noises and the like.

Separate the men from the boys with "Straight to Hell" and remember that just like David Allan Coe said, cowboys do more dope than rock n' rollers.

Overall rating: 8.25/10

Sunday digest

- Mixed reviews on the North Korean nuke deal.

- I know of no team in all of pro sports that would have the hubris to celebrate 40 years of not getting it done like the Toronto Maple Leafs did last night.

By the way, I thought the plural of the word "leaf" was "leaves".

- Where do the Conservatives find joke candidates like this?

- Unions: well past their best-before date.

- Here's a damning piece on the recent machinations in Congress, while James Taranto of the Wall St. Journal posted a thought-provoking piece on Friday about how the hard left still can't get their heads around al-Qaeda:

"Venezuela's defense minister said Thursday that the nation would reinforce security measures after a branch of al Qaeda called for attacks on suppliers of oil to the United States," Reuters reports from Caracas. But one Venezuelan official isn't worried:

Luis Cabrera, a military adviser to the president, earlier had questioned the authenticity of the threat in comments published by local media.

He said it was illogical that "al Qaeda, which is against North American imperialism, would go against a state that is fighting, though in a different way, against that hegemony."

Cabrera may be right that al Qaeda views Hugo Chavez's Venezuela as a de facto ally and thus fairly low on its hit list. But what's interesting about his comment is how he ascribes his own ideology to the terror group. As we noted in September, Chavez himself, speaking before the U.N. General Assembly, slyly claimed the 9/11 attacks as an example of "rising up against American imperialism."

In truth, al Qaeda's leaders do not see themselves fundamentally as fighting against "American imperialism," much less for Third World socialism. Theirs is a movement based in religion; their grievance against America is infidelity, not imperialism.

There is a certain ideological parochialism among many on the hard left (and some on the right, if the reviews of Dinesh D'Souza's new book are accurate). For them, al Qaeda is essentially an inkblot. Recall Michael Moore's immediate reaction to 9/11: He was flummoxed that al Qaeda would attack a part of the country that had not supported George W. Bush--as if the only motive for the attack that he could understand was American domestic politics. Or remember George McGovern's analysis of a few years ago:

President Bush has said repeatedly that the terrorists hate us because of our freedom. I don't believe that. The world's people have always admired our freedom. What they don't like is the arrogance and indifference to world opinion inherent in so much of our international policy. Plenty of my fellow citizens don't like that either. I'm not alone . . .

Note how McGovern equates "terrorists" with "the world's people," then moves on quickly to "plenty of my fellow citizens" and finally to himself. It seems he is simply unable to imagine someone seeing the world through anything but a McGovernite prism.

After 9/11, we kept hearing: Why do they hate America? It's an important question, but the inquiry is pointless if the only answer it yields is: For the same reasons I do. Obviously!

Meanwhile, Steyn points out that even when the news from Iraq is good, the mainstream media treats it as bad. And two days after the Democratic vote on the troop surge, with Hillary shamefully reversing her position amid hollow claims of support for the troops, Iran's Ayatollah Khamenei is confidently predicting American defeat in the region.

Certainly this is all just a coincidence.

And what might a soldier have to say? See here.

Friday digest

- I have found a website that is good for at least minutes of entertainment, and with all the crap out there online these days, that's saying a lot. Check out Gizoogle. It turns proper English into jive talk so you can up your rep with all the homies on the street, belee'dat. For instance, a recent speech by President Bush, before and after Gizoogle.

Now that is comedy!

Speaking of which, Fox is debuting a Daily Show-type news satire that is going to tip right rather than left. I don't expect it's going to be any good, as conservatives are usually more cynical than funny, and when they do attempt humour, it usually ends up falling flat (see here for a totally lame example).

- In what amounts to the cinematic equivalent of ambulance chasing, Charlize Theron is about to portray Anna Nicole Smith. Certainly not one to miss an opportunity to grind an ideological axe, I'm sure that Ms. Theron will portray the deceased as a victim of her own destructive choices in life rather than something like, oh, say, male-dominated society, for instance, and would certainly not insist on adjusting the script at all to reflect her own ball-busting bent.

- Now here is a great article that everyone should read.

- During an appearance yesterday, Justin Trudeau, son of the late former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, suggested that we need to reform capitalism. No doubt he immediately donated his entire $10,000 speaking fee to charity upon the conclusion of the event.

- I wouldn't call Chrysler's buyout package as offered to employees excessive, but it's pretty sweet, especially if you're an unskilled worker.

- Did America overreact to 9/11? The answer, according to this observer, is no.

- The always-worthwhile Anne Applebaum suggests that conflict with Iran is in no one's interest, but Caroline Glick suggests it's inevitable, especially after this week's half-baked, Clintonesque deal with North Korea.

- Is there room in the G-8 for a tinpot dictator?

- Hezbollah enabler, sponsorship scandal beneficiary, and libelous slanderer of Olympian athletes, Denis Coderre, has maligned the 2007 Road Hammer Man of the Year. I don't recall Coderre piping up about "props" when the son of the Chief Electoral Officer of Canada was employed in the Prime Minister's Office under Coderre's former leader, Paul Martin.

- I didn't know this gentleman very well, and was only served by him twice in the last six or so years, but he was one you didn't easily forget. I also recall a certain reader of this blog once trying to arrange a blind date with his daughter, probably because he was more enthralled by Spedi himself than anything else.

Thursday digest

- I know it's a long-dead horse, but hell, for the sake of a good cheap shot, I'll still beat it.

- Moqtada al-Sadr, wherefore art thou?

- Thomas Sowell has provided a valuable three-part series of brief articles on the global warming debate. See here, here and here.

- I wonder if the no-nukes deal with socialist North Korea, buttressed by almost half-a-bil in aid money, will mean that people can stop eating blades of grass for dinner in Pyongyang, but I'm not hopeful.

- One has to be disappointed that individuals like this would reach such heights in the presidential campaign of a former Veep nominee.

What a waste, as in "(W)e ended up launching a war that should have never been authorized, and should have never been waged, and to which we have now spent $400 billion and have seen over 3,000 lives of the bravest young Americans wasted."

More commentary from the would-be philosopher king du jour, here.

- It's time to consider putting Vladimir Putin in the penalty box and suspend him from the G-8 for a good six months (for behaviour that goes far beyond run-of-the-mill anti-Americanism) unless he starts to shape up.

- As if the Liberals' rendering of the Anti-Terrorism Act completely toothless wasn't disappointing enough - despite the sage counsel of two former deputy PMs and a former Justice Minister, I might add - now they're embracing this ridiculous piece of legislation.

- I for one hope that Marion Boyd hasn't slept all week upon hearing this news.

- Take a look at the size of the trough, here.

With a declining birthrate, an aging population and spineless political leadership, we're in for a hell of a time, no?

Monday digest

- Prime Minister of Oz John Howard and early contender for Road Hammer Man of the Year 2007 has come under fire for suggesting that al-Qaeda would prefer that Barack Obama and the Democrats take the White House in 2008. Now before you lefties get all bent out of shape over foreign interference in domestic politics, he's simply following in the footsteps of Gerhard Schroeder, who won Germany on a platform of Bush bashing not too long ago. (Don't forget here at home about how Michael Moore waded in prior to the 2004 election and warned everyone about our current Prime Minister.) You may think that Howard's kind of rhetoric is extreme, but John Kerry seems to think that Iran needs to be accomodated, because according to the Senator, the government there wants a stable Iraq, too. (I'll take some of what he's smoking, thanks.) This type of wrongheaded thinking demonstrates that for all of their foibles, and there are many, the Republicans are still the only ones who can be trusted with the levers of command.

- Couldn't help but notice that the Dixie Chicks' bratty Natalie Maines borrowed a putdown from the Simpsons last night when accepting the award for "Best Country Album" at the Grammies, much to the chagrin of a tight-lipped Reba as the Chicks themselves have said that they don't want to be called "country" anymore because it lumps them in with people like Ms. McEntire. Wasn't it fitting that Maines gloatingly quoted from every 14-year old smart aleck's favourite show? For someone who claims that "I don't have time to go round and round and round", she's been at it for four years and I for one am getting sick of her, but then again, I'm a fan of the genre they formerly belonged to. (They've made it clear that they would prefer it if folks like me just let them move on, despite the fact that I own their first three discs.) Perhaps if I was an LA entertainment industry type who thought that calling showbiz know-it-alls on the carpet when they start mouthing off about Dubya is the equivalent of authoritarian censorship, I'd feel differently.

A must read on that, here.

- Now this is just gold. Even if you believe that human activity is to blame, and there are several credible voices who don't, there's still not a whole lot we can do to stop it - so why not expend our resources on adaptation instead of on the futility of trying to reverse it?

- Yesterday, I reviewed a book called "White Guilt" (scroll down). Here's a very practical example of what the author of that book, Shelby Steele, was talking about.

- Speaking of books, this sounds like a must-read.

- The harmful effects of the increase to the minimum wage are already being felt across the United States as it's becoming too expensive to hire unskilled, inexperienced labor, thereby robbing young people of that crucial first step into the employment market where they gain valuable life skills before moving on to bigger and better things. See here. Then, we have people with six kids from three different fathers. Anybody think that even a $10 minimum wage would begin to address her core issues?

Book Review: "The Anti-capitalistic Mentality" by Ludwig von Mises (originally published in 1956; reprinted 2006)

In this tidy little volume, godfather of libertarianism Ludwig von Mises argues that those who are against capitalism don't endorse the free market economy for primarily one reason, and that's because it forces them have to stare their own shortcomings right in the eye. Von Mises states that it's far easier to blame "the system" than it is to admit that you're not smart enough, strong enough or hard working enough to succeed in life, as the emotions of envy and resentment are powerful ones.

In addition to this central thesis, which I found quite amusing, actually, there are several little nuggets of thought-provoking insight. For instance, here's an observation on the meaning of the word "progressive":

The fundamental dogma of this creed declares that poverty is an outcome of iniquitous social institutions. The original sin that deprived mankind of the blissful life in the Garden of Eden was the establishment of private property and enterprise. Capitalism serves only the selfish interests of rugged exploiters. It dooms the masses of righteous men to progressing impoverishment and degradation. What is needed to make all people prosperous is the taming of the greedy exploiters by the great god called State. The “service” motive must be substituted for the “profit” motive. Fortunately, they say, no intrigues and no brutality on the part of the infernal “economic royalists” can quell the reform movement. The coming of an age of central planning is inevitable. Then there will be plenty and abundance for all. Those eager to accelerate this great transformation call themselves progressives precisely because they pretend that they are working for the realization of what is both desirable and in accordance with the inexorable laws of historical evolution. They disparage as reactionaries all those who are committed to the vain effort of stopping what they call progress.

Now does that explain Joe Clark or what? (Non-Canadian readers, be thankful you don't understand that reference.)

I tend to think that most central planners are that way because they think that they know what's best for everyone and refuse to entertain the option that the great unwashed masses can be trusted to make their own individual choices with their own hard-earned money. In other words, I think most socialists tend to be driven by snobbery and elitism rather than bitterness, which is what von Mises would argue. This is an interesting look at how instead, it might be more about man's inability to live by the 10th Commandment.

Now naturally, von Mises' observations are dated, but it's still an interesting read that goes well as a companion piece alongside works by other libertarian philosophers like Hayek, who happened to be a student of von Mises before writing the essential "The Road to Serfdom" in 1944, a reflection on the rise of National Socialism (or Nazism) in Germany.

Download a copy of "The Anti-capitalistic Mentality" for yourself and tell everyone that socialism is for losers.

Overall rating: 8.25/10

DVD Review: "Alice In Chains - MTV Unplugged" (1999)

I was never a huge fan of the grunge phase that dominated rock radio in the early to mid 1990s, but I absolutely loved Alice in Chains, in my opinion, one of the three best bands to ever come out of Seattle, Washington (along with Heart and Queensryche). By the time this DVD was filmed in 1996, their best work (1992's "Dirt" and 1994's "Jar of Flies") was behind them, largely because lead singer, the late Layne Staley, was in the depths of heroin addiction by that point, a situation foreshadowed by the lyrics to the song "Junkhead", from "Dirt".

On this recording, a greying Staley (and I'm talking skin, not hair) looks like death warmed over and rides guitarist Jerry Cantrell's coattails, barely enunciating the words. However, the strength of the songs themselves make up for Staley's strung-out squeegee-kid impression. Listen for the fat sound of Mike Inez' acoustic bass, especially on gems like "Nutshell".

This is a good DVD to have in your collection to represent the alternative music era, as well as the whole MTV Unplugged phenomenon, not to mention that it's one hell of a good "say no to drugs" infomercial to show the kids.

Overall rating: 7.25/10

Book Review: "White Guilt: How Blacks and Whites Together Destroyed the Promise of the Civil Rights Era" by Shelby Steele (2006)

In this 181-page essay, award-winning author and former 1960s liberal Shelby Steele argues that the major issue dominating race relations in the United States is that of white guilt. Steele defines white guilt as the overwhelming drive for individuals who live and work in white-dominated institutions such as universities, media and government to not appear racist by championing paternalistic measures such as racial quotas, something Steele is firmly against.

White guilt is also characterized by the silencing of anyone who would speak out against such schemes as well as those would urge black society to look in the mirror - Bill Cosby, for example - as being intolerant if they are white and not authentically black if they are black. The end result is that the victim mentality is affirmed, legitimized and perpetuated, with the burden of proof lying squarely on the shoulders of American society at large, whereby appearances, good intentions and claiming the moral high ground all matter far more than outcomes or, for that matter, frank discussion and any mention, implied or articulated, of the lack of an ethic of individual responsibility in some parts of urban America.

As a white male who grew up in middle-class, small town North America, the fact that I was reluctant to even review this book on a forum as innocuous as this speaks to how far the concept of white guilt has permeated society when it comes to race - and I'm not even from the US. These are tremendously important observations that need to be made. However, I have two negative comments on "White Guilt". First, Steele doesn't write for a popular audience. I may be a little thick, but it took me about half of the book to get my head around what he meant by the term itself and how he explains it in terms of the loss of "white moral authority". This concept didn't come easily to me. Secondly, the fact that he has a doctorate in English is evident throughout as his prose is a little overly cerebral for my liking. In any case, this is a challenging read for all who are interested in social cohesion in a society that sadly, is as far from being colour-blind as it was during the civil rights era.

Interview with Shelby Steele here.

Overall rating: 8/10

DVD Review: "Flags Of Our Fathers" (2006)

This overly ambitious film from Clint Eastwood tells the story of the raising of the Stars and Stripes at Iwo Jima in 1945. This event, captured in an iconic photograph, forms the basis for the disjointed and unclear offering that follows. Themes like the inhumanity of war itself, the manipulation of the media for the purposes of propaganda, poor treatment of non-white veterans by society and the relationships among the soldiers are explored in this obvious exercise in anti-war proselytizing.

Too much is crammed in here, and this is what makes "Flags" a good if not great film especially in contrast to companion piece "Letters from Iwo Jima", which explores the same battle from the Japanese perspective, albeit with more economy.

Decent, but keep your expectations in check.

Overall rating: 7/10

Weekend digest

- Although figures show that the President's tax cuts have indeed resulted in more revenue coming into IRS coffers, the budget he has submitted to Congress is one which should appall fiscal hawks. Predictably, the New York Times plays class warrior, complaining that there isn't enough 1970's-style tax and spend liberalism in the budget while paying the obligatory lip service to fiscal prudence, but the heartland knows better. Oh, and the next time you hear someone insist that "the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer" or "the middle class is getting squeezed", you can tell them that's nonsense because in point of fact, everyone is getting richer.

- On that note, here's a lengthy yet very interesting piece on how the three front-runners for the GOP nomination don't easily fit the typical Republican profile.

- I'm quite frankly disappointed that no wacky Democrats have suggested that the death of Anna Nicole Smith was engineered by the White House to take attention away from the Libby trial.

The Angry Left is starting to slip!

- As if covert support for Iran's nuke program wasn't bad enough, Vladimir Putin is starting to mouth off. Shouldn't he focus on his own problems instead of bashing America? Not that he really belongs there in the first place, but I hope that someone has a stern word with him at the next G-8 summit.

- As for Iran, tempting as it might be to apply economic pressure, Ian Bremmer, author of the excellent "The J Curve" argues that sanctions are ineffective when trying to induce certain types of behaviour from rogue states.

- Steyn comments on global warming hysteria the way only he can, here.

- I am very disappointed that Stephane Dion's Liberal party has decided to render Canada's Anti-Terrorism Act toothless. Laws like this need to be on the books so security agencies don't have to wait until an attack happens before they can react. No less an internationally-decorated legal scholar than Irwin Cotler championed this legislation, even while he was giving counsel to Maher Arar.

This is political to the core. Less than a month after Stephane Dion loses Wajid Khan, a high-profile GTA-area Muslim Member of Parliament to the Tories, they water down the laws in Canada to the point where we are going to be having to answer hard questions on the international stage about our commitment to fighting terrorism even as troubling and hateful individuals like this set up shop here in Canada amid the predictable damnation of racism hurled towards anyone who dares express concern.

Liberal MP and former president of the not-exactly-moderate Canadian Arab Federation, Omar Alghabra, must be thrilled, but I am willing to bet that serious thinkers inside the Liberal caucus like Michael Ignatieff certainly are not.

It's shameful that Canada's Official Opposition has chosen to embrace political expediency over making a tough choice in favour of what's right.

Friday digest

- It has been revealed that the Quebec City bureau chief of Radio-Canada, CBC's French language network, is running for the separatist Parti Quebecois in their upcoming provincial election. As if that wasn't bad enough, he taped a feature interview with his future party leader last Saturday under the pretense of impartiality.

This is a total outrage and an affront to anyone who values ethics and professionalism.

- Interesting debate going on here about Canada's Department of National Defence apparently loosening requirements for French fluency among high-ranking officers in our Armed Forces.

- Those who deny global warming (like this environmental scientist, for example) are now akin to those who deny the mass murder of six million Jews during World War II, according to this columnist.

Oh, puh-leeze.

- What you won't hear on Canada's state broadcaster - some Muslims see "Little Mosque on the Prairie" as farcical. See here for an example. Money quote:

While the Muslim characters are fake, fellow non-Muslim Canadians, who have shown tremendous generosity in embracing peoples of different cultures are continually and unfairly portrayed as bigots. What has raised eyebrows about the show among Muslims is that such distortion may be deliberate in order to exaggerate the incidence of racism and bigotry against Muslims in Canada to foster the culture of victimhood and accentuate the chasm between Muslims and non-Muslims in Canada.

If CBC was sincerely trying to be inclusive in bringing Canada's Muslims into the picture, we suggest they include Muslim characters in their regular sitcoms or shows, not make a farce of our community and present it as an act of generosity.

Hear, hear.

- Today's looney left play of the day comes to us from Maryland where legislators, including a Republican, want to implement a bill which would add the homeless to those groups protected under hate crime laws.

Tulian Ozdeger, a civil rights staff attorney with the National Law Center, says, "Unfortunately hate crimes against homeless people are on the rise and it has become an epidemic in this country". (Add another rampant, uncontrollable social virus to the long list, I suppose.)

Let me get this straight. If I beat you up because I don't like, say, the way you looked at my wife, it would be even worse if I beat you up you're homeless and I thought it would be fun, according to these lawmakers. What would happen if I beat you up because I didn't like the way you looked at my wife, and you happen to be homeless? Could you claim that I was engaging in a hate crime?

This is getting out of hand.

- Exxon Mobil recently announced the biggest profit in American corporate history. Now before you give in to the instincts of envy, resentment, and misguided fair play, and want to go penalizing them, remember this:

The bottom line here is that our economic system is all about free-market capitalism, and at the core of that system is profit. Profit isn’t a dirty word. From profits spring the abundance of this great country. Profits are the mother’s milk of stocks and the economy. Expanding profits provide businesses the resources to enlarge production operations and hire additional workers. This, in turn, is how incomes are created, wages that are then spent by American families.

Why can’t liberals grasp this?

When the government meddles in the market and taxes companies more -- when it sticks its nose where it doesn’t belong -- it ends up hurting not just businesses, but all individuals. Taxing profits more means taxing families more. Taxing profits more leads to smaller wage gains for middle-income workers. When you tax American companies more, the American workforce is paid less. And when you tax American energy companies more, they produce less energy. That means higher prices for gas at the pump and heating fuel at home. This may enrich Uncle Sam, but it comes at the expense of ordinary folks.

Washington economist Kevin Hassett has shown that the U.S. workforce bears a full 70 percent of the cost of corporate taxes. So, if folks are indeed worried about wage inequality, they should be lobbying their congressional representatives to cut corporate taxes in order to increase worker wages.

The truth is, when you tax profits more you undermine the American work ethic and the incentive structure that goes along with it. In fact, you demoralize the very system that has made this country great. It’s the people who ultimately pay the corporate profits tax -- and that includes shareholders, pensioners, and other retirees. Business taxes should be headed down, not up.

Punish ExxonMobil for turning a healthy profit? Take those profits? Do that and you punish the American worker and the entire economy, too.

Thursday digest

- Anna Nicole Smith has died. Tragic, but in the media frenzy that is going to ensue, let's remember that it's not like this woman did anything of particular note in her life besides appearing in skin mags and commercials for blue jeans in addition to setting a new standard when it comes to blatant gold-digging. What's the over/under on the made-for-TV movie to air? I give it 8 months, tops.

- I have to admit that my dedication and enthusiasm for blogging has been waning over the past couple of weeks. Partly, it's because I've got other things on the go, and also, because it seems that what's going on in the world these days mostly involves around topics that I've already discussed at length or don't really interest me that much, like Obama and Clinton, radical Islamism, global warming, Iraq and Iran. I apologize if quality has been a little wanting as of late, but fear not, loyal reader, as I have faith that it will be only a matter of time before I get my mojo back.

- Chrysler is cutting two thousand jobs in Canada, while more successful companies in the same industry like Toyota are expanding production here. Wouldn't it be nice - if just for once - union leaders like Buzz Hargrove would acknowledge that maybe - just maybe - their own militancy had a little something to do with their members losing their jobs?

- Although he's a more grounded in reality than most celebs with their pet causes, this article demonstrates that anti-poverty crusader Bono of U2 fame is very shrewd when it comes to ensuring that he doesn't get caught in the government's web of income redistribution.

- Speaking of activist Hollywood types, Charlize Theron has equated life under the communist dictator Fidel Castro to the climate in the United States today. Anyone who sat through her exaggerated morality tale "North Country", where every character with a penis was portrayed as having a major shortage of either backbone or decency, will not be surprised by Theron's latest flight of hyperbolic fancy.

Wednesday digest

- If all goes according to the Prime Minister's plan, and quite frankly, I don't think it's going to, tax cuts will soon be incorporated into law in Canada. Could my much-hoped-for constitutional amendment limiting government spending at all levels to no more than a cumulative 20% of GDP be next?!? More seriously, perhaps the bloated US government could learn some lessons from its neighbour to the north.

- Some University of Ottawa law prof determines that some members of the Taliban "may" have been roughed up a bit by Canadian soliders while detained. Although there's no paper trail, it's front page news in the Globe and Mail.

Why?

- A reader of this blog recently contended that the show "24" was for conservatives. Perhaps it's for realists.

- I'm about to officially start referring to last week's UN "Summary for Policymakers" report on global warming as bogus. You may ask if I've even read it, and that's a fair question (I haven't), but why waste my time on this when the real thing comes out in two month?

- Excellent column right here which argues that this past weekend's Super Bowl marks the dawn of a new era.

Tuesday digest

- While I still haven't read the UN-sanctioned summary of scientific research that was released on Friday, when it comes to claims of human-driven global warming, I still believe that skepticism is prudent. Here's yet another non-believer. Fred says that instead of trying to claim the moral high ground, those who are really worked up about it ought to focus their energies where they would really be useful.

I wholeheartedly agree.

Meanwhile, Anne Applebaum reminds readers that if you really want to get serious about global warming, there's only one way to do it: pay.

- When you hear about imams like this one in north Toronto, sentiments like this and this start making a little more sense, despite the protests of beacons of tolerance and understanding like Mohamed Elmasry.

- Does pointing out that the federal government in Canada spends nearly 50K per year on every Aboriginal kid in foster care make Jim Prentice a racist, mean-spirited, or both?

- Here's hoping that Harper's Mulroney routine as it relates to Quebec comes to an end.

I'm not holding my breath, though.

- Saudi Arabia arrests and beats foreigners for dancing and drinking, while Iran is claiming "nuclear rights" and bragging about their newly-developed herbal cure for AIDS ... but this is the real madman on the word stage, right?

Film Review: "The Departed" (2006)

This could, quite seriously, be the best movie I've ever seen.

If I could have returned to the theatre immediately upon exiting in order to see it all over again, I would have.

Without question, "The Departed" is a cinematic masterpiece which left me absolutely speechless and totally blown away.

Go see it.

Overall rating: 10/10

Film Review: "The Queen" (2006)

"The Queen" takes place during the week immediately following the death of Princess Diana almost ten years ago, and portrays the stoicism of Buckingham Palace against the populism of newly-minted Prime Minister Tony Blair as the United Kingdom was reeling from the tragedy. The hapless Prince Charles is left to stand idly by as a grumpy Prince Phillip and boozy Queen Mother pile on the late Princess' memory, while Elizabeth herself must come to grips with the realization that Diana's passing provides a lightning rod for vocal Brits who believe that the institution she holds so dear is outdated and unnecessary.

Helen Mirren was born for this role, and it's a textbook example of how NOT to handle crisis communications. Bonus points to the writers for characterizing Lizzy as a bit of a redneck with her penchant for off-roading through the Scotland countryside.

Entertaining.

Overall rating: 7.5/10

Friday digest

- I never thought I would detest a politician more than I detest Montreal MP Denis Coderre, but Toronto Liberal punk Mark Holland is really starting to annoy. Look at that smug face and tell me you wouldn't love to smack the cocky, know-it-all grin right off of it.

- In case you haven't heard by now, a number of computer models run by scientists the world over and endorsed by the UN have demonstrated the following conclusion: that it's very likely that humans are causing global warming.

I haven't read the report myself, but it sounds like this is going to pretty much end the debate about whether or not man-made greenhouse gas emissions are contributing to global warming. However, I'm still not totally sold, and look forward to seeing what dissenters like this will have to say.

Meanwhile, I understand from press reports that a passage in the study makes it clear that reductions in greenhouse gas emissions will not halt global warming, and moreover, according to the study, warming and its effects (like rising sea levels) will continue for centuries. That means that instead of spending money and effort on making costly yet ultimately useless adjustments, we should look at adaptation instead, especially given that mass polluters China and India are probably going to just pretend this report never existed.

I hope that North American politicians can see beyond the knee-jerk response that mass public opinion is now going to demand and instead, focus the efforts of collective action in a more sensible direction - but I doubt it.

- Speaking of the politically palatable winning out over the correct thing to do, the minimum wage jumped from $5.15 to $7.25 per hour in the US yesterday while Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty says that the minimum wage in his province will eventually reach $10 per hour.

My question is, why stop there?

Let's go with $15 and shoot for $20 and $25 per hour after that.

Oh, what's that, you say?

It would cost jobs?

Exactly.

- Don Martin perfectly sums up my thoughts on the Herouxville controversy.

- Another bang-on piece right here, this time about that senior citizen in Spain who decided she wanted to be a mom at 67.

- Finally, here's a French politician worth listening to.

Film Review: "Obsession: Radical Islam's War Against the West" (2005)

On Monday night, over 125 concerned Ottawans damned both political correctness and the freezing cold weather to come out to see "Obsession", the first offering in what my pal Fred hopes will become a thriving, bi-monthly film society where, because of either their pro-Western or pro-capitalist orientation, documentaries that you won't see at either the local art house cinema or on Canada's state broadcaster, the CBC, can be taken in.

I half-expected some fireworks at this screening, but surprisingly, there weren't. Perhaps it's because anyone who is familiar with this movie knows that after seeing it, you cannot possibly argue that Dick Cheney is a bigger threat than Osama bin Laden, kooks like this and more reasonable yet wrong-headed observers like this aside.

The message of "Obsession" is clear and is drilled home by the footage, some of which you can see here in a twelve-minute trailer: there is a strain of radical Islam that will stop at nothing to completely destroy North America, Europe and Israel. Moreover, this is not a rational ideology but one rooted very deeply in a certain interpretation of Koranic teachings. Moreover, while the number of Muslims worldwide who adhere to these beliefs are at most, approximately fifteen percent of the entire Islamic world, with over 1 billion Muslims on Earth, that equates to an army of 150 million who will go so far as to kill themselves to advance their version of jihad, many of whom already live here, as demonstrated by the examples of the London, Madrid and 9/11 bombings, not to mention the Toronto 17 who were thankfully prevented from carrying out their plan this past summer in Canada's largest city.

As commentators featured in the film from Harvard law prof Alan Dershowitz to former PLO member Walid Shoebat attest, the refusal of some living in liberal, pluralist democracies to realize the seriousness of this threat equates to a situation quite similar to Europe in the 1930s as warnings about the menace of Hitler went unheeded before over six million Jews perished in the Holocaust.

Don't take my word for it. Click on the link to the short trailer above and see what I'm talking about for yourself. It shouldn't be news to you, but if you weren't sure about how serious an issue we're dealing with here before watching this film, you certainly will be afterwards. Newt Gingrich had it right last July when he said that this is indeed World War III.

Official site here.

Overall rating: 9/10

Album Review: "Living with War" by Neil Young (2006)

I used to be quite a fan of Neil Young until I tired of his regular routine of putting out one of two albums every year for about the last twenty: either a regurgitated "Harvest Moon" for the aging boomer crowd or a half-assed, feedback-laden effort that is so self-indulgent it makes David Bowie look as obvious as Shania Twain.

Actually, that's not too far off at times, is it?

In any case, Young bridges the gap between the two with his protest record "Living With War", recorded in about a week-and-a-half and released last summer, just in time for a tour with old pals Crosby, Stills and Nash which charged those who wanted a piece of the dissent a top price of $275 per ticket.

Ahh, the good ol' rebel sell, huh?

Now, by looking at the title of this record, you could be forgiven for thinking that this album was perhaps about the troops in Iraq, or maybe those individuals and families in places like Baghdad who are trying to avoid getting caught in the crossfire between Sunni and Shi'ite militias who have no respect for life, but alas, you'd be wrong. As the title track unequivocally states, it's Neil himself who's "living with war every day". And not only is the guitar out of tune, but the horns are too.

Probably the three most catchy tracks on the disc are "After the Garden", "Let's Impeach the President" (where Neil finds common cause with this Massachusetts 12-year old - say it with me - "BUSH LIED, THOUSANDS DIED!") and "Roger and Out" where he laments the loss of a Vietnam buddy.

If you can't get past Neil's egomania, you probably won't like this album because the music itself is just a petard on which he hoists his Northern Californian anger while pleading for a return to peace in Iraq, as if that ever existed before the US arrived there anyways. Even if you can, it's certainly not even close to his best work. Throw on "Rust Never Sleeps", "Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere" or "Freedom" instead of "Living With War".

Overall rating: 4/10

Album Review: "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not" by Arctic Monkeys (2006)

OK, so this album was at or near the #1 spot on most best-of lists for the year 2006, which automatically made me suspicious right from the get go because most other critical darlings from years' past like Metric and Jack Johnson utterly sucked in my opinion. Therefore, I really wanted to not like this record, but in actual truth, I don't mind it. Imagine if the Sex Pistols really knew how to play their instruments, and you'd have Arctic Monkeys. What it sounds like is Johnny Rotten on top of a band like Franz Ferdinand or the Killers. Certainly something that we won't be looking back on in 20 years and comparing with other debuts like "Appetite for Destruction" or "Boston", but certainly half-decent - and I'm well over the age of 30.

Overall rating: 6.5/10

Thursday digest

- Failed businessman, painfully unfunny "comedian" and insufferably far-left liberal Al Franken is going to run for one of Minnesota's seats in the US Senate as a Democrat.

Does he look qualified to you?

- A nuclear Iran? No big deal, according to Jacques Chirac.

- With Al Gore touted as a potential Nobel Prize winner, has anyone asked Hillary what her thoughts are on the issue given that her husband refused to send the treaty for ratification to the US Senate back in 1997?

Inquiring minds want to know.

- Recent events in the socialist utopia of Venezuela proves Hayek's theory correct.

- The US economy? As Borat would say, "great success"!

- Looking for a place where you can engage in free and respectful debate on these and other issues affecting the very heart of our society? Don't head down to the local university because you certainly won't find it there.

- Here's a great example of why I hate monopolies, especially government-owned monopolies.

Yesterday at 2:30 PM, Ottawa's transit service, OC Transpo, sent out a news release saying that over 100 routes were going to be scaled down effective this morning because they had to take buses off the roads in order to perform maintenance over the next couple of weeks, with off-peak hours such as evenings and weekends are not going to be affected. So, during the coldest week of the year, they've given riders way south of 24 hours notice that they may be waiting an extra 15-20 minutes in the morning for the next bus to show up. This is expected to impact over 100 routes across the city this morning.

No doubt they could have organized this public information campaign a little better, and also no doubt they could have spread out the schedule for the required maintenance so as to not massively inconvenience everyone within a two-week period in the middle of winter.

This snafu, on top of a proposed fare increase to $3.25 a ride this week, isn't going to do a thing to get people out of their cars and on to public transit, which, as we're told ad nauseum, is supposed to be the way of the future if our cities are to remain "livable" - whatever that means.

Unreliable, unaccountable and unapologetic - that's a monopoly for you.

- Speaking of buses, I've been taking them more frequently lately and one thing I've noticed is that when someone is trying to get past someone else on the way to the exit, often, the person who needs to leave will just stand there impatiently and wait for the other daydreaming, Ipod-listening rider in their way to just notice that someone needs to pass by them.

What I'd like to know is what's so difficult about uttering the phrase "excuse me"?

- I'd also like to know why, whenever one of the teams goes on a power play during an Ottawa Senators hockey game, they play that little sound effect that sounds like many a doorbell I rang as a pre-teen when collecting subscription fees for my paper route.

I don't get it.