Saturday digest

- David Frum says the way out of the Iran crisis is for Europe - particularly France, Germany and Italy - to choke out their economy, while Ralph Peters says that Ahmedinejad is so emboldened only because of political posturing in the US Congress right now. Rich Lowry weighs in with an analysis of the folly of expecting the irrational to act rationally, here.

- Speaking of Germany, a scathing commentary on a recent survey of the German public on issues relating to international security, here.

- Must read #1: VDH.

- Must read #2: Charles Krauthammer.

- When Steve Forbes talks, those who are in favour of economic growth listen. The policy entrepreneur, Arizona primary winner and rock-ribbed free-marketeer has endorsed Rudy for President.

- Bill Kristol suggests that what activists in both the Republicans and the Democrats are looking for are the second coming of Reagan and RFK, respectively.

- Why can't the province of Quebec treat its minorities with more than a fraction of the generosity the rest of Canada gives to Quebec?

- This past week, a group of Canadian parliamentarians recommended amending the country's anti-terror laws to make "glorifying" terrorism an offence. Does that mean that when some radical lefty insinuates that the US deserved 9/11, they would be at risk of jail time? I sure hope not, because if so, writing this blog would be a lot less fun if the Islamosocialists were scared into submissive silence.

More seriously, I find that proposal troubling because you should be able to say pretty much whatever you want, even if it means coarsely suggesting that the mass murder of 3,000 people is understandable because the American government was asking for it, not to mention rationalizations concerning pizza-munching Israeli families getting blown to bits by suicide bombers in Tel Aviv. By that twisted logic, the sexual assault of a drunken sorority girl in a miniskirt is understandable as well, no?

In any case, people should be allowed to express themselves freely and let the court of public opinion be the judge - not the state.

- What a class act that Toronto Maple Leafs icon Tie Domi is.

- I don't give a damn about collegiate sports, especially the Final Four basketball tournament. Neither does Atlanta radio host Neal Boortz. Scroll down about a quarter of the page here for a bang-on rant concerning the charade that is "student" athletics.

- Finally, speaking of sports, the National Hockey League's New Jersey Devils last night made it 9 out of 10 seasons with 100 points or more, a record of excellence that even the Four Horsemen would envy.

Book Review: "A Long Way Gone - Memoirs of a Boy Soldier" by Ishmael Beah (2007)

This is the story of a child soldier who got caught in the crossfire of the Sierra Leone civil war of the mid-1990s. Along with his brother and some of their pals, twelve-year old Ishmael Beah was on his way to a talent show in a neighbouring village one day when rebels overtook his home, separating himself and his brother from the rest of their family. For weeks, he and his friends wandered through the jungles trying to survive before illness started taking its lethal toll. Before long, he found himself rounded up by government forces, fueled with cocaine, pills and pot and brainwashed into becoming a lethal killing machine as an early teen. He did this for two years before being rescued by an NGO and rehabilitated to the point where he's now able to tell his story.

This book reads so well that it's hard to believe that Beah actually wrote it. With all due respect, this effort had to have the assistance of a ghost writer since Beah's first language isn't English, and his descriptive ability as well as the detail with which he remembers things is intricate. I'd also say that to communicate about these horrors so lucidly, he must have had very good doctors after being taken out of the conflict. He does spend a little too much time (100 pages out of a 230-page book) describing how he wandered through the jungles before being recruited into the child militia, and although things do get pretty grisly at times, he doesn't beat you over the head with violent imagery.

Well worth a read, if only to remind you how low fascist organizations will stoop to advance their positions, and consequently, that Westerners shouldn't look at evil with only one eye open.

(Ottawa readers take note: Ishmael Beah will be speaking at the Bronson Centre on Tuesday, April 17.)

Overall rating: 7.5/10

Thursday digest

- Well, after screwing up Rwanda and doing nothing on Darfur, the "international community" now has another chance to demonstrate its value as Tony Blair has asked the UN to tut-tut Iran's capture of 15 British soldiers and using them for propaganda.

Does anyone seriously think Iran, emboldened as it is thanks to months of Western inaction in response to the erection of nuclear facilities, actually cares about what happens at the United Nations?

- Despite a 2004 UN report which issued warnings about capacity, a sewage treatment center in the northern Gaza Strip has collapsed, leaving a village of 3,000 swimming in 56,000 cubic meters of brown stuff.

Perhaps instead of spending their limited resources on munitions for use in terrorist attacks against Israelis in discos and pizza parlors, Hamas should have paid better attention to sustaining basic infrastructure.

- All-around good guy Tony Snow has cancer again. Here's a more disgusting sampling of some of the comments from the website of the Washington Post. I suspect that there were a few completely tasteless remarks made by right-wingers when Elizabeth Edwards revealed her condition last week, too. Those who confuse political disagreement with personal hatred do not deserve to be taken seriously and should be ignored at all times.

- Here's an open letter to al-Qaeda, written after this week's vote in the US Senate and brought to us courtesy of Neal Boortz:

Dear Al Qaeda:

We know that things in Iraq have been a bit tough for you lately. President Bush's determination to bring stability to Iraq through an increase in the number of troops has been showing results .. and even more troops are on the way. Because of the troop surge you have seen a decline in the number of American troops you and your Islamic fascist buddies have been able to kill. Because of the increased level of security in Baghdad the Iraqi people were starting to feel better about their future. You know this, even though the American people may not. You're close to the situation so you can readily see the changing conditions. The American people are insulated from this reality by a media apparatus that is more concerned with the destruction of President Bush than to the success of our efforts in Iraq.

All in all, it was getting to be a pretty depressing picture for you and your terrorist pals.

Well ... cheer up. Things are about to change. After a rather close vote in the U.S. Senate today you are one step closer to knowing an exact date upon which all U.S. troops will be withdrawn from Iraq. We're sure you realize that you cannot commit yourself to victory and to a date-specific withdrawal at the same time. You select one course of action, or the other.

Take heart, too, in the fact that other nations and regimes in the Middle East have now seen further evidence that the United States does not have the political will to commit itself to victory. Your tactic of waging a war of attrition against American troops has been validated. The American people, having heard a preponderance of negative news from their media, are calling for capitulation. They've become complacent after five years have passed since 9/11 with no terrorists attacks in our country. Oh, there have been some isolated incidents of mad Muslims shooting up shopping malls and mowing innocents down with their cars ... but nothing major to rekindle their determination. Was this your plan all along? Somehow we think that you are that clever ... and if that's the case, this element of your grand plan has also worked very well.

You now realize that you can advance your radical Islamist goals throughout the Middle East, and perhaps into Europe, without any fear of retaliation or interference from the United States. The will to fight is lost. The desire for victory has died. The American people have become fat, lazy and complacent. They no longer see either their freedom or their culture as something they are willing to fight for. It must be heady days indeed in your caves and tents. Hard to imagine, isn't it? Al Qaeda actually has more determination to see their cause through than the great United States of America! Perhaps that's because you're dedicated to the cause of the spread of Islam, while the American people have lost their dedication to the cause of liberty. Complacency will do that to you.

We do have one word of caution for you. You and your Islamic terrorist buddies have been the beneficiaries of the aftermath of the 2000 presidential election in the United States. That election, and the close vote in our State of Florida, created a sense of hatred and resentment in Democrats against our president such as has never been seen before in our history. From that moment on Democrats and liberals in the U.S. were steadfastly dedicated to the idea of the destruction of the Bush presidency. Oh, to be sure, there were a few weeks of solidarity following your attacks of 9/11, but it didn't last. When the panic subsided Democrats suddenly realized that any measure of success in the war against you might actually strengthen the Republican hold on power. It didn't take Democrats long to decide that their hatred of George Bush, and their desire to see his presidency destroyed, absolutely outweighed any concerns they had about protecting our people from another one of your vicious attacks. Democrats have convinced themselves that, once they have gained full control of our government, a few "we feel your pain" comments directed at your murdering Islamic followers will be all that is needed to put the Western world and the wonderful, peaceful, serene religion of Islam around a desert campfire singing rousing renditions of Kumbaya. You just need to be aware that there is a chance, though slight, that the Democrats might actually decide that our culture is worth fighting for ... if they can first rid our country of the Bush pestilence.

At any rate .. the Senate has now set a deadline. If the bill makes it to the president's desk he says he will veto it. Some feel, however, that when the president realizes that the legislation merely sets a date certain for our capitulation to you in Iraq, and doesn't open the doors to any additional stem cell research, he will decide that a veto is not warranted. So ... just sit tight. Save your energy. Catch your breath. Cool it. You may soon know the exact date that you one day commemorate as the date you chased the infidels out of Iraq. This could well be the date you will remember as the beginning of the final steps toward your 12th Caliphate and the cause of world domination under Islamic law.

You are small but determined to see your dreams of domination come true. America is strong but complacent and unwilling to fight for the cause of liberty. Time to ferment some goat's milk for a toast!

Yours truly

America the Timid

- Words of advice to those who are thrilled about the rise of Mario Dumont and the "thanks, but no thanks message" sent to the Parti Quebecois this week: be careful what you wish for, because you just might get it.

Live Review: Black Sabbath Heaven and Hell/Megadeth/Down, Ottawa Civic Centre, March 28, 2007

Wednesday night, this tour wrapped in Ottawa, playing the Civic Centre to a not-quite-sold-out but considerably well-attended house. Not calling themselves Black Sabbath, for reasons that remain unclear, this lineup focused on material from the "Heaven and Hell", "Mob Rules" and "Dehumanizer" albums, with a couple of lumbering new tracks from next week's "Black Sabbath: The Dio Years" thrown in to keep things fresh, as Ronnie James Dio, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Vinny Appice delivered the goods for an hour and fifty minutes.

The good about this show? Well, it was Sabbath. The sound was unbelievable, as Geezer's bass knocked your ribs together, Iommi's playing was spot on, Appice's beats were powerful, and Dio's 64-year old voice showed no wear and tear - at all. Things started off with "E5150" and then went into "After All", which was an odd choice because it's not a very quick-paced track with which to lead off a show. ("Turn Up the Night" would have been a much better choice.) Perhaps the slow pace of "After All" explains why the next track, "Children of the Sea", dragged a little. By the end of that tune, it sounded like they had lost almost a full beats' worth in comparison to the studio version, but from the beginning of fourth track - "Mob Rules" - onward, it was full-on Sabbath. Highlights of the set for me were "I", "Falling Off the Edge of the World" (after which someone threw a bra up on stage at the very perplexed, 5'4" Gollumized, Rhea Perlman look-alike Ronnie), "Die Young" and encore "Neon Knights". Even the floors underneath us were jouncing from all of the headbanging going on.

The stage was very cool, with the fellas playing in front of what looked like a castle or a dungeon with moving lighting trusses and background graphics. Certainly, they did not skimp on laying out the cash to do things professionally. Unfortunately, that included the piping in of keyboard backing tracks on some numbers, but alas.

I have one overarching quibble about this affair, that needs to be mentioned. Fans of math rock like Yes and Emerson Lake and Palmer may disagree with me, but there's no doubt that in metal circles at least, this is a supergroup. The problem with that is that there was zero interaction between the band members. They didn't look at each other for the whole show. While the musical chemistry was there, I got no overall vibe from these guys as a collective unit, which, I suppose, isn't that suprising considering how this lineup dissolved in acrimony after the 1992 "Dehumanizer" tour. That's not to say it sounded forced or that they were going through the motions - not at all - but it's clear that these guys are certainly not going out for beers after work together.

As for Megadave Megadeth, they put in a solid 50-minute set with "Hangar 18", "Countdown to Extinction" and "A Tout le Monde" all sounding good. As I have written before, I'm not that much of a fan, nor will I be after seeing them last night, but you gotta give credit where credit is due.

Openers Down were nothing special. Of the six tunes my buddy and I saw, there was one guitar solo among them. I'm not a fan of nu-metal, but this band has their devotees as the kids up front were violently moshing. So was the 16-year old behind me with the punishing body odor.

To summarize, this show was good, very good - but I have a couple of "buts".

I suppose you can't please everyone all the time.

Overall ratings:

Heaven and Hell: 8.25/10
Megadeth: 7.75/10
Down: 5/10

Overall rating: 7/10

Tuesday digest

- First up, how to interpret the Quebec elections results last night? I would resist the urge to say that this sounds the death knell for separatism. Instead, I would boil it down to one conclusion: Andre Boisclair was not seen as materiel prime ministeriel by Quebecers. That's it. The nationalist "blueneck" vote couldn't bring themselves to support neither a gay cokehead nor a federalist - consider what would have happened if Gilles Duceppe was leading the PQ, for example.

As for Mario Dumont, he's only stated that he's not in favour of holding a referendum in the foreseeable future - not that he's opposed to the traditional "what have you done for me lately?" position of the elites in both of the traditional Quebec parties vis-a-vis the federal government, so don't expect the bribery to stop any time soon just because the separatists are in third place.

Looking at things on the small government vs. state intervention axis, considering any tax cuts that formed part of Charest's or Dumont's programs would have been paid for by the rest of Canada out of necessity, I'll reserve judgment on that until after we see what happens in the next provincial budget.

- Phrase of the day: climate porn.

- Are you a fan of high school football in Washington State? If so, you might not be allowed to boo this fall.

- Rosie O'Donnell has accused the US government of setting up the capture of the British soldiers in the Persian Gulf as a pretext to going to war with Iran.

The woman is clearly ill.

Album Review: "The Definitive Collection" - Thin Lizzy (2006)

Coming out of 1970s Ireland, Thin Lizzy is a band that isn't known widely except for their anthem "The Boys Are Back In Town", but for a thin sliver of rock n' roll aficionados, they are considered legendary. While I'm not among that group, I figured I needed this band in my collection and bought this 16-track best of, which is frankly nothing to write home about.

They could have cut the number of tracks in half and sold it for $5.99.

Things open with "Whiskey In the Jar", a very mediocre offering which proves that there are times when a cover can be better than the original (see Metallica's ripping version of this tune. Worthwhile tracks include the soft-porn stylings of "Showdown", the low-down "Jailbreak" (Thin Lizzy's "Back In the Saddle"), and the rollicking "Bad Reputation", as well as a couple others that stand out more for the soloing than their rhythm tracks.

With such a spotty record on a so-called definitive collection, it's clear why this band's profile is as underwhelming as it is within classic rock circles.

Overall rating: 5/10

Sunday digest

- I recently posted pictures of some far-left antics at "peace" protests across the West Coast of the United States which took place last weekend. In Portland, they not only burned a soldier in effigy, chanting "Bye, bye, GI, in Iraq you're gonna die" and "It's not just Bush, it's the soldiers too - fascist war is nothing new" (see here for footage), they pinched a loaf on the Stars and Stripes as dozens of people stood around to watch.

Let me guess ... Rove and his buddies in the Jewish neo-con cabal must have put some college Republicans up to this in order to discredit the anti-war movement, right?

- Suggesting that American society is on the verge of propogating a second Holocaust against Muslims (even as scarved grocery store workers in Minnesota are refusing to scan pork products), Jimmy Carter's national security advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski demonstrates here why we should all hope that he has no place in an incoming Democratic White House, especially with Mahmoud Ahmedinejad of Iran taking liberties once again. (Interestingly, by some accounts , Ahmedinejad is reported to have participated in the hostage crisis of 1979-80, which led in part to the ouster of Brzezinski's boss from the Oval Office and the ushering in of the Reagan era.)

- From the "with friends like this" file we have Tarek Fatah, communications director of the Muslim Canadian Congress. As I alluded to in yesterday's Digest, Fatah recently received death threats for speaking out against Islamic extremism. However, with comments like this - "It is ironic that Muslim extremists are portraying themselves as anti-imperialist, when in fact Al-Qaeda and the Taliban are nothing more but a creation of the CIA" - issued by Fatah after the arrest of the Toronto 17 last summer - one has to wonder just how level-headed he really is.

- The Quebec election campaign is coming to a close, and Liberal party leader Jean Charest is pleading for a majority because, as he said yesterday, "(a) minority government would limit our bargaining power with the rest of Canada".

So we have a separatist party in the PQ, a quasi-separatist party in the ADQ, and a federalist party in the Liberals who sees Canada as something to be bargained with? Comments like this especially sting after this week's open bribe of Quebec by Stephen Harper, which followed this winter's "nation within a nation" debate, which followed over a generation's worth of pandering by Ottawa ... I could go on. My point is, it would be refreshing if, for once, the electorate in la belle province could be appealed to on the basis of something more than how much cash they can wring out of the federal government.

- As capitalism spreads, quality of life increases as well. See here for some statistical proof.

- Dog owners who treat their pets like human beings have long amused me, so I found this story of a silly woman in Ottawa who ate tainted dog food for two weeks in an effort to convince Rover that it was "people food" quite funny.

What an idiot.

Book Review: "The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't" by Robert I. Sutton (2007)

We've all had to deal with them, and sometimes, we've been them - the workplace asshole. Stanford professor Robert I. Sutton has written a 200-page guide on to how to deal with these jerks that is realistic, honest and useful.

How do you know an asshole when you see one? Sutton says there are two main traits that define the asshole: first, the asshole's target feels worse about him or herself after encountering the asshole than before; and second, the asshole kisses up and kicks down. This type of behaviour, if left unchecked, is costly both in terms of money and morale, as the author illustrates.

So what do you do when you're confronted with an asshole at work? Instead of trying to pretend that you can change the situation on your own, Sutton gives a very practical piece of advice: let it ride. Don't let it bother you and just shrug it off. If this is easier said than done, he says that you need to look for small victories against the asshole, limit your exposure to them as much as you can, and look for places where you can go to vent - but be careful with this last one, because it can become self-perpetuating.

All that said, Sutton recognizes that there are some assholes who are very successful - for instance, Steve Jobs, Michael Eisner and Harvey Weinstein, but overall, the costs of being an asshole outweigh the benefits for the long-term success of organizations.

As a relatively young person in the white-collar world, I often find that people who are in positions of authority over me are more easily able to follow Sutton's advice of "shrug it off" more easily because they are much closer to retirement than I am. I'd be interested in hearing how Sutton would advise those in the 40-and-under-crowd who have a hard time squaring that circle - wanting to be part of something that is worthy of their time and talent, yet struggling to achieve a state of indifference towards workplace cultures that tolerate assholes. After all, if the asshole kisses up and kicks down, as Sutton says, it's often those of us who are establishing ourselves in our careers who have to deal with them most frequently. (What are we going to do, just get up and unilaterally leave a meeting when someone starts acting up?)

In any case, everyone who works with people ought to read this book, or at least, take this exam to determine whether or not others in the workplace may see you as an asshole.

After all, admitting you are one is the first step to recovery.

Overall rating: 7/10

Album Review: "Sacrament" - Lamb of God (2006)

This metal band is receiving quite a lot of buzz as of late, recently playing on the Conan O'Brien show and also tapped as a main stage headliner on this summer's Ozzfest tour, so I decided to snap up a copy of "Sacrament" when I was at the used CD store during my lunch hour the other day.

This is a perplexing album. It combines the best aspects of the genre with elements of the absolute worst, often in the same song. Rapid fire drumming, lightning leads and melodic solos abound throughout "Sacrament", but the growling of the lead singer grows tiresome into about the third track. And, despite the obvious talent of this band, they're dangerously close to descending into self-parody. As if their deliberately provocative yet ultimately harmless name and album cover weren't bad enough, the aforementioned "vocals" are nearly laughable. With song titles like "Walk With Me In Hell", "Foot to the Throat", "Blacken the Cursed Sun", "More Time to Kill" and "Beating on Death's Door", the considerable power of the music itself is also forced to compete with the too-metal-for-its-own-good imagery of this band, coming out on the losing end.

A waste.

Overall rating: 5.25/10

Saturday digest

- It's encouraging to see that even some Eurocrats are realizing the negative effects of political correctness in the media and on university campuses. Hopefully, they'll soon realize the same about cultural relativism.

- Honest thinkers will agree that global warming remains debatable on a number of levels.

- Every time I'm about to completely write off John McCain, something happens that makes me re-consider him. In this case, McCain's captured of the support of a guy I've always liked, Tom Ridge.

- Increasingly, when it comes to kids, feelings matter more than achievement. We're doing them no favours with this approach.

- I know that everyone hates a whiner, so I'll quit complaining about the appalling Conformatory budget from the so-called free-marketeer Stephen Harper this week, right after linking to these two articles from husband and wife John Robson and Brigitte Pellerin. One of the biggest barriers to achieving less government intrusion in our lives is that those who are on that side of the debate have to teach at the same time as they attempt to win, and apparently, Harper just doesn't have the stomach for that job.

- Despite progress in Iraq, where the enemy has resorted to blowing up their own children, violent Islam remains a potent force in places like Iran, "Talibanistan" and here in Canada.

As ugly as the war is, it would be immoral to betray those who need us most any more than we already have.

- Gold: William Shatner is going to induct Jerry "The King" Lawler into the WWE Hall of Fame later this month, while Wade Boggs is going to do the same for Mr. Perfect.

- By the way, does anyone else think the Conrad Black trial is more about him being punished for years and years of assholian behaviour than some convoluted business transaction?

Movie Review: "Shooter" (2007)

This not-particularly-intelligent thriller stars Mark Wahlberg alongside Ned Beatty and Danny Glover. Wahlberg plays a disaffected war vet who is recruited to assist in a counter-assassination operation against the President of the United States, but his skills as a long-distance sniper are soon turned against him as he is framed for the crime, leaving the protagonist on the run. Essentially, this is a poor man's version of "The Fugitive" with Oliver Stone directing - the good guys even wear Che Guevara T-shirts.

Given Wahlberg's laugh-out-loud performance in "The Departed", I was hoping for wittier, more humourous dialogue from "Shooter", but what it lacks in that regard is made up for by a decent car-chase scene, impressive explosions throughout, and a high body count. Predictably, there's a lot of US-bashing here, and the "BUSH LIED!! THOUSANDS DIED!!" crowd will find much to like, especially since according to this facile script, senators from Montana, acting alone, are able to dictate US foreign policy in the Horn of Africa.

"Shooter" is really an episode of "24" for the blame-America-first set, and even if that's your cup of tea, it deserves no more than a rental at best.

Overall rating: 5/10

Wednesday digest

- Over the weekend, there were a number of protests to commemorate the fourth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. Let's have a look at just how angry the Angry Left is these days.

First, we have two pictures from San Francisco. Not quite sure what the second feller is trying to say here, but he's pissed off about something, while you can be sure the first guy went to Berkeley (and not just because he knows how to spell).


Next, we have a conspiracy theorist from LA, holding a sign which may have been inspired by the observations of one Rosie O'Donnell who recently suggested that 9/11 was a plot launched by American authorities to cover up, among other things, the Enron scandal.

And finally, from Portland, Oregon, we have a US soldier being burned in effigy. I'd be willing to bet that the person who lit the match is also a proud owner of the collected works of Noam Chomsky.

Meanwhile, although I'm generally dubious about polls, having worked in the public opinion research industry for a couple of years, a survey with a sample size of 5,000 can't be ignored. While there's a lot of negatives in this recent poll of Iraqis, a total of two-thirds of those questioned say that life for them is the same or better as it was before the invasion despite the lack of basic infrastructure throughout the country.

That's an important yardstick, by any means, and demonstrates that even though the doom-and-gloom crowd is winning the PR battle hands down, the jury may still be out on the coalition effort to oust Saddam Hussein, protests like those above aside.

- Here's another indie film that you probably won't hear about at your local art house or campus movie night: Indoctrinate U.

- You've heard of Islamofascism? Here's a new term: Islamosocialism.

- Lost in the media coverage on Monday's budget from the Conformatory party (more on that pathetic disgrace here, here, here and here) was this story about how not even the time-honoured tradition of the springtime jaunt to the sugar shack remains sacred. I'm convinced that there is more intolerance in Quebec than there is in pretty much any other Canadian province - the "blueneck" phenomenon - but things are getting out of hand. If your religion forbids you from eating pork, why is it so difficult to simply decline it when it's offered to you instead of making it some kind of human rights issue?!?

- The Government of Ontario is apparently going to raise the minimum wage by over 25% by the year 2010. Watch youth unemployment increase by a similar amount.

Movie Review: "300" (2007)

This Lord-of-the-Rings-meets-Gladiator flick tells the tale of a Spartan king who is threatened with invasion by neighbouring Persia unless Sparta hands over their natural resources. He goes around the bureaucracy of the Spartan council to wage pre-emptive war against the enemy with his best 300 men while his loyal queen, attempting to sell the philosopher kings on the merits of sending a bigger force to support him, works against the underhanded machinations of her husband's rival who, of course, has interests of his own.

Is "300" as buzz-worthy as water cooler talk has made it out to be? I'd say so. Graphically, it's extremely impressive, and although there is the odd beheading and severed limb, the violence isn't pointlessly gratuitous like other abominations such as the ridiculous "Kill Bill" films of a few years back. I also have to give it points for clocking in at an economical two hours as the director and producer kept their egos in check and didn't tack on a completely unnecessary 45 minutes, as seems to the common practice these days for any film that can possibly be construed as "epic". Oh ... and if you don't get a chance to see it on the big screen, I wouldn't bother, because your home theatre can't possibly do it justice. Besides, if you're going to annoy the Iranian government by viewing "300", why not go all out?

Overall rating: 8/10

Monday mini-digest

- First, the good news. The Carleton Ravens mens basketball team won its fifth consecutive Canadian national championship this past weekend.

- Now, for the bad. This so-called Conservative government liberally spread around the cash in its second budget today. Highlights:

* No broad-based tax relief, but instead a tax credit of up to 2K per child under the age of 18 - but be careful what kind of minivan you buy to haul the little buggers around because you could get dinged to the tune of four grand if you don't buy the government-approved model. We're to blame for global warming, ya know.
* $39 billion over seven years to the provinces, with Quebec to take one-third of this year's total despite having just over 20% of Canada's population.
* $300 million for aboriginal housing - I guess throwing money at people and expanding government is this government's answer to social problems?
* A quarter of a billion dollars ($250 million) on government babysitting programs.
* Refunding the completely unrepresentative Status of Women agency.

All told, this is now the biggest spending government in Canadian history.

Despite a not-altogether-shabby amount of debt repayment ($9.2 billion this year), it's pretty disappointing for those who expected sound public policy, not to mention basic fairness, from this government. And we're still waiting for that 1% extra cut in GST, too.

- I almost forgot: thanks again to everybody who stops by here. I hit 25,000 hits over the weekend and I have my small but loyal readership to thank for that. Cheers.

DVD Review: "The Prestige" (2007)

Featuring a cast that includes not only the big names mentioned on the poster above but also David Bowie and the guy who played Robin Colcord on "Cheers", "The Prestige" is a far-fetched yet gripping tale about revenge. Former colleagues and magicians Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale try to one-up each other in late 1800's London after a stunt in which they were both key players goes awry. The plot twists and turns, requiring the near complete suspension of belief towards the end in particular, and the script is at times difficult to follow, but this is certainly more thought-provoking and engaging than your average popcorn flick. Just don't expect to check your brain at the door because this one demands your attention.

Overall rating: 7.25/10

Book Review: "The Central Liberal Truth: How Politics Can Change A Culture And Save It From Itself" by Lawrence E. Harrison (2007)

Based on a research project which stems from the landmark Culture Matters (co-edited with Samuel Huntington), Lawrence Harrison takes a look the role that certain attitudes, values and traditions play in the success, or lack thereof, of various societies around the world.

To take three examples, he demonstrates that the lack of respect for punctuality in certain Latin American and Caribbean countries, the predominance of voodoo as a belief system in Haiti and some parts of Africa, and the suspicion of wealth as promoted by the Roman Catholic church have hampered the development of certain peoples. Conversely, he takes a look at more dynamic places like Japan, the Nordic countries and Botswana and explores the factors which have contributed to their progress.

There are two central underlying arguments which inform Harrison's work: first, some cultures are superior to others when viewed through the lens of economic progress. Second, marking a ballot is much simpler than is changing long-held attitudes about the role of women, literacy, and community relations. In so doing, Harrison condemns both neo-conservatives and cultural relativists along with their cousins in the international development community, concluding that harmful cultural practices need to be identified and frankly discussed if either project is to be successful.

A word of criticism, however, for the title. Harrison's argument implies that changing cultures is a long, arduous process that takes at least one generation. Outside of a couple of examples - for instance, the case of Nelson Mandela in South Africa - he seems highly skeptical of the ability of politicians to change deep-seated practices, and so I think that the second half of the title of "The Central Liberal Truth" is a misnomer. He does insist, though, that successful cultural shifts towards education, property ownership, and a Judeo-Protestant-Confucianist ethic as it concerns democratic capitalism must be from the bottom up if it is to work. Personally, I don't think that the elites in both Western and non-Western societies are politically mature enough for this debate, but it's refreshing to find an academic who isn't worried about offending but rather, tells the truth - many aspects of progress-impeding cultures simply aren't deserving of affirmation and instead, should be denounced outright.

Overall rating: 7.75/10

DVD Review: "That One Night - Live in Buenos Aires" - Megadeth (2007)

Controversial, resilient, and currently on tour across Canada with Black Sabbath Heaven and Hell, Megadeth turns in a solid, workmanlike set in this just-released October 2005 show. Nothing fancy here - just a stack of Marshalls, quasi-melodic speed metal and Dave Mustaine's unique vocal delivery, which can only be likened to what the constipated, mutant child of Geddy Lee and Nelly Furtado would sound like - an acquired taste, to be sure, but you wouldn't know it from the thousands of rabid Argentinians who sing the riffs for tunes like "Symphony of Destruction" and "Hangar 18" right back at the band. Also cool are the scenes of band members pullin' up a piece of grass outside of their hotel and going acoustic on the spot.

Definitely worth a look if you can find it at a reasonable price like I did - $12 at Future Shop.

Overall rating: 7.5/10

Saturday digest

- If you find yourself about to take a flight, and you see six imams are praying, shouting "Allah!" upon hearing the boarding call, angrily discussing US foreign policy as it relates to Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein, followed by not taking their assigned seats upon entering the cabin, sitting in a pattern reminiscent of the 9/11 hijackers and asking for unecessary seatbelt extensions, know this: raising a red flag and notifying the authorities will get the Council of American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) right on your ass with a lawsuit.

More on that here.

- Meanwhile, Rosie O'Donnell, never one to disappoint, is coming to the defense of the guy who conceived of the 9/11 attacks - independently confirmed by Lawrence Wright, author of "The Looming Tower", reviewed below - implying that he's just another victim in the Bush-led war on terror because he was "robbed of his humanity" at Guantanamo Bay.

- At least common sense has won the day in England, where do-gooders at a children's music festival decided to change "The Three Little Pigs" to "The Three Little Puppies" for fear it might offend Muslims. Thankfully, saner heads have prevailed, but the effort to water down innocuous Western cultural traditions continues. We can expect similar episodes if this article is any indication of the accepted world view of influential media elites in the UK.

- Leaving unserious persons like the aforementioned Rosie aside, shouldn't human rights activists worry more about heavy-handedness like this instead of whether or not al-Qaeda operatives get roughed up a bit at Guantanamo Bay?

- Looks like you can take the Soviet out of the KGB, but you can't take the KGB out of the Soviet.

- It's so easy to pile on Al Gore and friends that I almost feel guilty taking advantage of such a blatant target.

- By all accounts, if you like more and bigger government, bribing people with their own money, and having politicians pick winners and losers, it sounds like this Monday's so-called Conservative budget is going to be right up your alley.

Liberal, Tory, same old story.

- Quiz time: Which politician recently said that he joined his party because of both his "own religious upbringing and trying to find a way of being political in the world in a way I thought was most consistent with biblical tradition"?

A) Mitt Romney
B) Pat Robertson
C) Stockwell Day
D) Bill Blaikie

Answer here.

No doubt civil libertarians from Vancouver and Toronto are celebrating the retirement of this regular violator of the principle of separation of church and state.

- Insult of the year heard at Thurday night's Ottawa Senators-New York Islanders game: Alexei "Yash-hole" Yashin.

- DVD release of the year: "The Life and Times of Mr. Perfect".

Wednesday digest

- Over four in five respondents to a recent Canadian survey seem to think that "the rich" should shoulder more of the tax burden, but this little story below demonstrates why envy of the wealthy and taking punitive action is, in the long run, destructive to everyone:

Sometimes politicians, journalists and others exclaim; "It's just a tax cut for the rich" and it is just accepted to be fact. But what does that really mean?

Just in case you are not completely clear on this issue, I hope the following will help. Please read it carefully. Let's put tax cuts in terms everyone can understand.

Suppose that every day, ten men go out for dinner and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:

The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.

The fifth would pay $1.

The sixth would pay $3.

The seventh would pay $7.

The eighth would pay $12.

The ninth would pay $18.

The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.

So, that's what they decided to do.

The ten men ate dinner in the restaurant every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day the owner threw them a curve.

"Since you are all such good customers," he said, "I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily meal by $20." Dinner for the ten now cost just $80.

The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes, so the first four men were unaffected. They would still eat for free. But what about the other six men - the paying customers?

How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his "fair share?'" They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody's share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to eat their meal.

So, the restaurant owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay.

And so: The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings).

The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33% savings).

The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28% savings).

The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).

The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings).

The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).

Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to eat for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings.

"I only got a dollar out of the $20," declared the sixth man.

He pointed to the tenth man," but he got $10!" "Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man. "I only saved a dollar too. It's unfair that he got ten times more than me!"

"That's true!!" shouted the seventh man. "Why should he get $10 back when I got only two. The wealthy get all the breaks!"

"Wait a minute," yelled the first four men in unison. "We didn't get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!"

The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up. The next night, the tenth man didn't show up for dinner, so the nine sat down and ate without him.

But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important.

They didn't have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!

And that, boys and girls, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works.

The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start eating overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.

- I like Chris Rock and always have, ever since he turned in a scorching 45-minute set live on campus during my frosh week back in September 1993 and promptly caused all of the angry feminists on student council to register their offense at his observations about relationships. However, I gotta register my discontent with him on this. He says:

“Maybe Barack will win, but I probably won’t see a black president. There’s real equality when you don’t notice [race], you don’t even talk about it. I probably won’t live to see that.”

Chris Rock could arguably be more responsible than any entertainer going for promoting racial differences. In fact, he's built his whole career on commenting on them, and so isn't it a little rich for him to lament the fact that (elite) culture in America is still race-obsessed almost 50 years after the Civil Rights Act?

- I find the picture which accompanies this article about Michaelle Jean, Canada's Governor General, taken in Afghanistan on International Women's Day last week to be absolutely heartbreaking, but thankfully, there is a slim glimmer of hope thanks to the courage of some Muslim women as recognized by Condoleeza Rice last week.

Tuesday digest II

- Significant progress towards the sharing of oil revenues is being made in Iraq.

Don't tell anyone.

- The New York Times is reporting that some scientists are questioning Al Gore's claims about global warming. Read all about it for yourself here and also be sure to check out this interview with author Gregg Easterbrook where he discusses the key role of the profit motive when it comes to combatting climate change.

- Take a look at this article which outlines how odious regimes like China, Venezuela and Saudi Arabia are leveraging influence around the world under the guise of aid.

- A prominent member of Canada's socialist New Democratic party says that it may soon be rendered pointless at the federal level. And this is news because ... ?

- On that note, time for the loony left play of the day, where an Idaho college professor recently suggested that Republican voters be executed during an English lecture. Can anyone point me to where either the educational value or the humour is to be found in that statement?

Tuesday digest

Are you certain that the human race is causing climate change? If so, here are some handy dandy tips that you can use next time you're looking for new ways to think globally and act locally.

Album Review: "A Matter of Life and Death" - Iron Maiden (2006)

Despite owning a few of their discs, I've never been a massive Iron Maiden fan, much preferring their contemporaries Judas Priest, but I saw this at Future Shop on Saturday for $9.99, took a flyer on it, and oh my, what a steal it has turned out to be. This album is simply amazing. One-hundred-note-a-minute guitar solos, complex time changes that don't compromise melody, and a punchy, aggressive drum sound all combined with near-symphonic writing. The only negative is that Bruce Dickinson's vocals sound a little strained at times and are somewhat lower in the mix than they should be, but this is still one of the best rock albums, top to bottom, that I've heard in quite a long time. Even though these guys have been at it for thirty years, as long as their creative juices are flowing deeply enough to release quality like this, they'll still be around for a while yet, and properly so, proving the timelessness of one of the great loves of my life - heavy metal music.

Overall rating: 9/10

Book Review: "The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11" by Lawrence Wright (2006)

This much-acclaimed title tells the story of how al-Qaeda was formed. Beginning with the voyage of Sayyid Qutb to America in the late 1940s, where he was appalled by the licentiousness of the era (!), and his later attempts to establish a purely Islamic state in Egypt (which resulted in imprisonment, torture, and his eventual hanging in 1966), it moves forward to detail how Qutb's movement became the inspiration for Ayman al-Zawahiri, a surgeon who later married up with Osama bin Laden in the mid-1990s to establish al-Qaeda. Other now-familiar elements to the story such as the House of Saud and various counter-terrorism officials in the United States such as John O'Neill of the FBI and the White House's Richard Clarke also figure prominently.

Those who have immersed themselves in analyses of the how and why of the September 11 attacks will find recognizable themes here, but "The Looming Tower" still gleans new insights in addition to the expected bureaucratic infighting, Sunni theology, and duplicity all around. For instance, Zawahiri and Bin Laden are portrayed as hardly brothers in arms but suspicious allies who seem to view each other along the lines of "the enemy of my enemy is my friend". Moreover, Wright suggests quite clearly that the warriors who shamed Russia in the Afghanistan war of the 1980s are quite a different group from the modern-day Taliban, in addition to the flirtations between al-Qaeda and Saddam Hussein's Iraq throughout the 1990s.

The prose of "The Looming Tower" is lucid and lively, and while the depth of the analysis is unquestionable, it doesn't collapse under its own weight. You're not flipping back and forth between the appendix, glossary and main text a la "Shake Hands with the Devil" to keep track of who's who, something which also handicaps the otherwise excellent "Guests of the Ayatollah" at times.

Here's a sample passage from the beginning of Chapter Ten, titled "Paradise Lost":

Young men from many countries came to the dusty and obscure Soba Farm, ten kilometers south of Khartoum. Bin Laden would greet them, and then al-Qaeda trainees would begin their courses in terrorism. Their motivations varied, but they had in common a belief that Islam - pure and primitive, unmitigated by modernity and uncompromised by politics - would cure the wounds that socialism or Arab nationalism had failed to heal. They were angry but powerless in their own countries. They did not see themselves as terrorists but as revolutionaries who, like all such men throughout history, had been pushed into action by the simple human need for justice. Some had experienced brutal repression; some were simply drawn to bloody chaos. From the beginning of al-Qaeda, there were reformers and there were nihilists. The dynamic between them was irreconcilable and self-destructive, but events were moving so quickly that it was almost impossible to tell the philosophers from the sociopaths. They were glued together by the charismatic personality of Osama bin Laden, which contained both strands, idealism and nihilism, in a potent mix.

Given the diversity of the trainees and their causes, bin Laden's main task was to direct them toward a common enemy. He had developed a fixed idea about America, which he explaned to each new class of al-Qaeda recruits. America appeared so mighty, he told them, but it was actually weak and cowardly. Look at Vietnam, look at Lebanon. Whenever soldiers start coming home in body bags, Americans panic and retreat. Such a country needs only to be confronted with two or three sharp blows, then it will flee in panic, as it always has. For all its wealth and resources, America lacks conviction. It cannot stand against warriors of faith who do not fear death. The warships in the Gulf will retreat to the oceans, the bombers will disappear from the Arabian bases, the troops in the Horn of Africa will race back to their homeland.

The author of these sentiments had never been America, but he liked to have people around him ... who had lived there. They reinforced the bloated and degenerate American of his imagination. Bin Laden could scarcely wait to drive a spear into the heart of the last superpower. He saw his first opportunity in Somalia.

Fast-paced, clear-eyed and complete, "The Looming Tower" is the thinking person's history of al-Qaeda and is very deserving of the accolades it has received. Quite rightly, it's becoming the gold standard of the genre.

At a time when sound argumentation, logic, and detailed knowledge of the subject takes a back seat to emotionalism, personal attacks and hyper-partisanship, this book is definitely deserving of a spot on the bookshelf of any credible observer of the war on terror.

Overall rating: 9.5/10

Sunday digest

- I realize it's hard to compete with a Vice-Presidential pile-on, but shouldn't this be getting a little more attention than it is?

- Robert Kagan asks when the positive developments arising from the troop surge are going to be reported.

- Sounds like CBS now stands for Clinton Broadcasting Service.

- The spin cycle is working overtime in Latin America these days.

- An interesting look here at the attitudes of American youth towards hot-button social issues.

- Finally, anyone who considers themselves to be an informed, thinking individual about global issues owes it to themselves to set aside an hour and fifteen minutes and watch this documentary from the BBC on the hoax that is man-made climate change. However, be forewarned: it features insights from solar physicists, oceanographers and earth scientists rather than ideologically-driven, capitalism-loathing environmentalists and their apologists in the mainstream media, neatly packaged and presented by failed Presidential candidates and given further credibility publicity by Hollywood golden boys, so it may not be as easily digestible as some other alarmist documentaries you may have seen recently.

DVD Reviews: "The Last Supper" - Black Sabbath (2000); "Live and Loud" - Ozzy Osbourne (1992)

I bought these two DVDs on the same day about a month and a half ago as Best Buy was having a massive sale, and just recently got around to watching them. Since they both feature the Prince of Darkness himself, I figured a double review would be in order.

First, "The Last Supper" was filmed on a 1999 Sabbath reunion tour with the original line-up intact. After watching this, I'd have to put Tony Iommi right up there for sheer coolness in rock n' roll. Ozzy? Well, he's shuffling around and looking at the teleprompter, but he still hits the notes and has a hell of a lot of energy, something Mrs. H and I saw for ourselves in June 2003 when he played for two hours and forty-five minutes here in Ottawa (the same amount of time that the massively over-rated and over-hyped Bruce Springsteen played when I saw him two months prior). The set list isn't bad, as lesser-known tracks like "Dirty Women" are offered up alongside classics like "War Pigs", and although I don't particularly care for that tune, the opening riff is chill-inducing on this DVD when played at a suitable volume. The only complaint one might have about "The Last Supper" is that the tunes are interspersed with commentary from the guys in the band, offering up stories how massive drug ingestion led to lyrics to tunes like "Black Sabbath" and "N.I.B.". They also sit around making unfunny jokes with each other in a spirit of forced and uncomfortable faux-cameraderie. It would have been far better to just leave that out instead of pretending that this reunion was about anything more than a cash grab.

Next, we have the train wreck that is "Live and Loud". Filmed on the "No More Tours" jaunt circa 1991 (uh, not quite, Ozz), the lineup of baby-faced Zakk Wyle, Mike Inez and the late Randy Castillo are superimposed over top of poorly-edited concert scenes. Lips aren't moving during vocals, guitars are not picked during solos, and things are generally a mess, but it's fun because it's a picture-perfect glimpse into the excesses of the heavy metal culture from the late 80s and early 90s before we had to deal with Eddie Vedder and Kurt Cobain whining about how much it sucks to be successful. Lots of boobs, rowdy audience members and foul language complete things. I am a tad forgiving of the whole affair because it was filmed before concert DVD technology reached the standards of latter years, but if you're not a fan of the Ozzman, you'll find much to hate. As it stands, I am, so I give this one the thumbs up - taking it for what it is, of course.

Overall ratings:

The Last Supper: 8.25/10
Live and Loud: 8.25/10

Saturday digest

- The professional wrestling world has lost yet another member of the fraternity.

Bad News Brown, who won the battle royal at Wrestlemania IV after he double-crossed fellow heel Bret "Hit Man" Hart, passed away this week in a Calgary hospital after suffering a heart attack. He was 63.

Click here for some footage of Bad News from the late '80s as he beats the crap out of some ham n' egg jobber named Steve Reese, complete with vintage commentary from Vince McMahon and Jesse "The Body" Ventura.

- The number of polar bears in Canada's North has almost tripled over the last twenty years due to temperature change.

I thought global warming meant that they were drowning en masse and floating away stranded on ice floes.

Maybe the media isn't doing their homework.

Nah, couldn't be.

- Speaking of half-assed journalism, closer to home we have ourselves a story here about the CBC hardly calling things down the middle. No one should be surprised.

- Those who are looking for straight-shooting press coverage can take heart in the re-emergence of Maclean's, which has done a complete 180-degree turnaround from the days when it was a wishy-washy Trudeaupian establishment rag. Case in point: a former national affairs reporter at the magazine, a mature student with whom I took a course titled "Politics and the Media" as an undergrad about 10 years ago, once referred to Kim Campbell as a "neo-conservative". Now we have articles like this one which takes the gloves off concerning issues like the lethargy of the distinct society. To summarize:

* Every Quebecer owes $17,000 in provincial government debt.
* The GDP of the province ranks 54th out of all the provinces and states in English North America, behind such juggernauts as Montana and Arkansas and just slightly ahead of Mississippi;
* GDP is regularly 20% behind Ontario and household wealth for a family of four is $21,028 less than that of residents of neighbouring Maine.

This comes despite Quebec already getting $2.2 billion more net annually than it contributes to Confederation. For those who would point to the much-loved daycare program as an achievement in Quebecois public policy, consider this: a child care spot in the province costs $11,600, nearly double the national average, and in the last 5 years, the cost of the system has increased by 140%. Perhaps this can be explained by the fact that the number of civil servants in Quebec is approximately twice that on a per-capita basis than Ontario. Not only that but civil servants in Quebec missed an average of 14.14 days of work in 2005, also double the national average while the 44% of Quebecers holding a full-time job (compared to 57% in Ontario) missed 11.2 days compared with Ontario's workers who averaged 8.6 days off.

And do you think for a minute that despite all this, combined with the fact that Quebec's share of the Canadian population has now declined to 24.1% (down from 27.9% thirty years ago) is going to mean a much-needed tough love budget from the feds later this month? Gimme a break. With announcements like this, Stephen Harper continues to prove that he's just another politician masquerading as a conservative.

At least Maclean's will be on the case.

- Another loss as one of the greatest voices in melodic rock, Brad Delp of the band Boston, has passed away. Take a look here at the video for "Don't Look Back".

Friday mini-digest

- This is the most ridiculous thing I've heard in quite some time.

- A look at bias in academia, here.

- We're almost 10 grand behind our neighbour to the south in per capita income.

Just sayin'.

Wednesday digest

- Even the ultra-liberal California senator, Barbara Boxer, has withdrawn her support from the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) for reasons which include CAIR having members with proven links to Hamas. The organization, which recently tried to thwart a Florida conference on the potential for Islam to co-exist with pluralist, democratic values, is nevertheless crying racism in between championing Jimmy Carter's latest tome.

- The city of Montreal is warning pregnant women and children to not drink tap water unless it's filtered.

This must be Mike Harris' fault.

- A couple in Germany has four seemingly normal kids and are protesting a law which renders their relationship illegal.

The problem?

They're brother and sister.

Hey, as long as they love each other, right? After all, that's what we neanderthals on the losing side of the same-sex marriage debate in Canada have been told for the last ten years.

Or is it that being discriminatory and judgmental is OK some of the time?

Let's just admit that in our society, we'd rather pick and choose what's acceptable instead of wrapping ourselves in the cloak of never-ending virtue while looking down our noses at those who disagree with our point of view.

- Brigitte Pellerin argues that a large part of the economic success of the West can be directly explained by our religious heritage. I think there's something to that. One of my favourite Commandments is the one which says that you shouldn't covet your neighbour's goods - in other words, get out there and get your own stuff instead of whining about how the guy down the street has more than you do. Contrast that with this nonsense whereby some Seattle teachers took it upon themselves to ban Legos in order to teach kids about the evils of owning things. I doubt they ever mention the Golden Rule in that classroom.

- John Stossel takes a look at the follies of homeland security spending, here.

Tuesday digest

- As Colin Powell's hatchet man, confirmed leaker Richard Armitage, sits idly by, Dick Cheney's Chief of Staff Scooter Libby faces up to 25 years in the slammer in charges related to a breach of national security that never was, as far as the Vice-President's office was concerned.

I have three questions:

1. Who among us remembers the intricate details of conversations we had this morning, much less from months ago?

2. Why didn't Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald add the words "unless you're a Democratic President" when he stated today that "lying under oath must never be tolerated"?

3. Does anyone outside of the Beltway besides geeks like me care about this?

The entire affair is a farcical and petty sideshow.

- Bounce Vladimir Putin from the G-8. Now.

- February was the coldest month in Toronto since disco, and data captured from Mars between 2002-2005 shows that icecaps have been melting rapidly at the planet's South Pole. Could it be that Mother Nature is still boss?

- Memo to American readers: this is what government-run, socialist health care looks like.

- A finer example of academic naiveté you will not find: this commentator suggests that the US should offer to leave Iraq in exchange for a Sunni/Shi'ite buddy hug. It's the same line of thinking which foolishly contends that only if there was only a nicer guy in the White House, terrorists would lay down their weapons.

- More on last week's odious Democratic legislation to ban secret ballots when unionizing, here.