Welcome to my blog.
This is my creative outlet that could include my thoughts on anything from current affairs, my weight loss quest and things that just make me need to voice an opinion.
As most Canadians know, Prime Minister Stephen Harper is a big time hockey fan.
OK, any Member of Parliament that isn't should be force to resign as it's mandatory to be a fan of our National Sport to hold office.
Any way, a friend of mine snapped this photo outside of the PM's home at 24 Sussex Drive in Ottawa last night. It clearly shows Prime Minister Harper and the U.S. Ambassador to Canada David Jacobson bringing in the brewskies from the trunk of the limo. They were getting ready to cheer on the Montreal Canadiens as they looked to clinch a playoff spot (which they did) against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Nothing more Canadian than watching Hockey Night In Canada on a Saturday night with some cold pops and a good neighbour.
I came across this short six minute feature that is narrated by Tom Brokaw and aired on NBC prior to the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics beginning.
Like most Canadians, I was watching the CTV coverage that night and missed this but thankfully it has found its way to YouTube and I'm happy to share it with you.
Quite simply it is a mini history lesson for our American neighbours south of the border and while many Americans will likely know most of what is conveyed, I'm sure others will have their eyes opened. I thought it was well done.
I've seen what happens to people as they get older and start to lose their memories and other faculties. Sadly it isn't pretty and for U.S. Senator John McCain it appears as though his age is starting to catch up to him.
The poor man was quoted on Friday as saying "Well, some of the 9/11 hijackers did come through Canada, as you know." No John...I'm afraid I don't know that. In fact, the 9/11 commission doesn't think so either. The 9/11 Commission reported in July 2004, all of the 9/11 terrorists arrived in the U.S. from outside North America. They flew to major U.S. airports. They entered the U.S. with documents issued to them by the U.S. government. No 9/11 terrorists came from Canada.
So where does McCain come up with this hogwash. Oh wait, now I see. With his own mind slipping he just repeated what Janet Napolitano, the U.S. homeland security secretary said a few days prior. Unfortunately for Mr. McCain he must have missed Ms. Napolitano's correction when she said she was well aware there had been no Canadian 9/11 connection. She then added that the Canada-U.S. border had, in the past, posed a security risk to Americans.
Well sure there's always a risk that someone could sneak into the United States from Canada but you could hardly blame Canada for that. After all, don't you have to go through American Customs before entering the U.S.? If anything, they'd have themselves to blame for that as well.
I can forgive John McCain for his senile ramblings but I think Ms. Napolitano might just be proof that even a moron can get a high ranking government job. You see, she went on to dig her hole deeper at the recent border conference when she suggested Canada was more lax in its immigration policies than the U.S., alleging Canadian authorities allow people into the country that would not pass muster south of the border.
Hello!!! Does she have any idea how many illegals she has living in the United States?
Is she even aware of the fact the U.S.-Mexican boundary has a drug war raging and countless illegal immigrants flooding into America every year? As the secretary of homeland security that might be something you'd expect her to have extensive knowledge about. If she thinks the U.S. and Canadian border is the same as the U.S. and Mexico border then they may want to get her to briefing and study session ASAP.
Why do American politicians have such a hard time accepting responsibility for their own problems? They never seem to be able to see their own faults because they're so damn busy waving their flag in the faces of the rest of the world.
Don't get me wrong...I love the U.S. and am proud to have it as a friend and one of our best allies on all fronts. The majority of Americans, much like a vast number of Canadians, are smart, hardworking people just trying to survive and pay our bills. They know the truth but just like when your next door neighbour sweeps his leaves into your yard it can strain relations at times.
This myth about the 9/11 hijackers entering the United States from Canada will be around forever. Enough people are misinformed and brain dead politicians don't read their own memos and this will continue to linger on likely forever.
Just one day prior to the repatriation of four more brave members of the Canadian military in Trenton, Ontario I was left shaking my head in disbelief with my mouth hanging open in shock after viewing something unbelievable.
Please have a look at this video before reading any further.
Now Fox News has never been considered a "real source" for reliable news or insight by anyone with half a brain. They are the 'Animal House' of the real news Fraternities. While the real frats are out researching and gathering reliable information, Fox News is holding a toga party and hoping nobody will notice just what a mess they really are.
As you saw, the segment in question comes from a late night program called "Red Eye with Greg Gutfeld". Now I'll be the first to admit I've never seen the program before so I can't comment on whether it's a comedy show or if these morons are actually serious with their views. No matter what the premise of the show is, perhaps they should have thought about how a grieving family of a Canadian soldier killed in Afghanistan might view this discussion.
Fox News would have been better served by just showing a test pattern rather then airing something like this which blatantly shows the ignorance of their employees. With the four bodies returning to Trenton on Monday, the total number of Canadians killed in Afghanistan now stands at 116. How many have been injured is unknown but the sacrifice made by Canadians is not something that should be laughed at or made light of.
The most recent four deaths and eight more injuries occurred as the Canadians were working with U.S. troops to attack and disrupt Taliban command centres and supply lines. If these Fox commentators think it's a laughing matter then perhaps they should pick up a weapon and hop on the next flight into the warzone and see what is really going on. I'm guessing it wouldn't take long for the smiles to be erased.
I'm not so naïve to believe that the comments made by a group of imbeciles on a wannabe American news network speaks for all of our neighbours to the south, but it's scary to think that some people actually might believe the nonsense these mouth breathers are actually spewing.
I invite Mr. Gutfeld and his fellow manure throwers to have a look at this photo below that I took following the return of three of our Canadian heroes from Afghanistan and tell me what's so funny about that?
I want to apologize to my loyal readers who make it a point to stop by a few times a week just to see what I've been thinking.
I haven't had an update in a while and there's two reasons for that.
1. I have been busy with other stuff in my life. 2. I just haven't had anything to complain or talk about lately.
I could talk about the historic election results south of the border in the United States but if you're like me, you were sick of all the election talk long before Obama was announced as the winner. It's not that I don't recognize the significance of the event. I've just moved beyond it already.
I spent more time on Tuesday night watching the American election coverage than I did the night of our own Canadian election. Honestly...our election is incredibly boring compared to the U.S. election. The Canadian government could learn a lot from the Americans when it comes to getting the people excited about politics.
Lets be honest, our leaders are about as charismatic as a pile of manure. They're like some of the Dwarfs from Snow White.
Lets see...Prime Minister Harper (Conservatives) would be "Borey" for his monotone voice and ability to kill the enthusiasm in all who come in conatact with him.
I'd call Stéphane Dion (Liberals)"Whiney" as his skill and ability to blame everyone else but himself for his parties failures is quite impressive.
Jack Layton (NDP)could only be named "Dorky" because lets face it...he's a dorky looking guy who does a great job of picking on everyone else but can't produce any good problem solving ideas of his own.
Gilles Duceppe (Bloc Québécois) is an easy one..."Snotty". It must be tough trying to run the party for Quebec Nationalists with a 2X4 jammed up your anus all the time. However you can bet that René Lévesque would be proud of the Canada hating jackass. I'd tell him the same thing that I'd tell any immigrants to Canada...if you don't like the way things are done here and you don't want to live by our rules and beliefs...then don't let the airplane door hit you in the butt as you leave to find another country to live in. Actually...I probably wouldn't be that polite.
Finally there's Elizabeth May (Green Party). I won't give her a name since her party is a complete joke any way.
For some reason I just find the American political system more interesting. I realize the Canadian system is all about history as well as it is based on the British system. However, nobody said that was any good either.
Although I didn't support Barrack Obama and his party I don't have anything against the man and I think he'll likely do about as good a job as McCain would have. Lets face it, neither one of them would have had a tough act to follow.
If you're like me at all then you've probably been sick and tired of all of the campaigning, mudslinging, hype and news coverage of the United States election this year. And the real campaigning is only just beginning!
I hate to say it, but I'm at the point where I'm almost hoping for a disaster somewhere in the world just so CNN will cover something other than politics for five minutes. Some days I'd like to sick the wolves on Wolf Blitzer and the rest of his politics covering counterparts.
Of course after the years of hype and anticipation, in the end they're just going to elect one of these two guys that everyone will eventually hate any way. They can either elect McCain who many feel is another George Dubya with a "kill 'em all" attitude or Obama who has no experience and will prove how over his head he's gotten himself in no time.
In the meantime, the folks at Jib Jab have come out with another fun political cartoon and song for us all to enjoy. Have a look at it below.
Well slap my fanny and call me Horace, would you look at that Canadian dollar!
What is going on?
Who would have thought we'd see the Loonie approaching par with the American dollar when it was as recent as January 2002 when the Canuck Buck reached an all-time low of US$0.6192. How many of you, like myself, were left muttering and cursing under our breath as we went to the bank to get some US cash for a trip south?
When I think of how much money I lost just so I could enjoy some time away from the winter cold and snow in Canada, I almost shed tears.
The last time the Canadian loonie was actually worth more than the dollar of our southern neighbours was 1976 and the highest it reached was US$1.0614 in 1957. The Canadian dollar fell considerably after 1960, and this contributed to Prime Minister John Diefenbaker's defeat in the 1963 election.
The question now is will we actually get back to even par or better? Depending on who you talk or listen to, the answer is "yes" and it could happen as early as late summer. I guess we'll just have to wait to see.
Of course this is happy news for those of us who vacation south of the border but for certain industries and business folks I'm sure it could pose a problem. And lets not forget tourism. I'm sure there will be fewer Americans making the trip north this summer to holiday.
Now my brother, although born Canadian, is now a U.S. Citizen and after several conversations with him regarding his impending trip back home this summer is none too pleased with this turn of events. He can't...no wait..., he refuses to see my logic and the upside from my point. He would love to still be getting 40-cents on every U.S. dollar when he comes north but he doesn't like the idea of it working the other way for me for a change.
As of the time that I'm writing this, instead of 40 cents he'll be getting 4 cents on every dollar and I don't think that makes him happy. All I can say is wait until the dollar really takes off and he starts losing money. I can't wait to tell him about that!
