Monday, August 27, 2007

Friday, August 24, 2007

SQ Protest Infiltrators: We're Horrified

So, the SQ comes clean and admits undercover officers infiltrated the protests at the SPP summit in Montebello.

We at TDPC are horrifed and dismayed by these events. Not horrified that the SQ had officers in the crowd; it seems to only make sense that when a large crowd is expected to gather at an event and it can reasonably be expected that some of that crowd will start throwing missiles at police, having undercover officers in the crowd only makes sense. No, we're horrified at the complete ineptitude displayed on the now infamous YouTube video.

Watching that clip, could it be any more obvious? Even without the boots, the body language and the way the cops float uneasily around the crowd makes it clear who they are.

So, a word of friendly advice: if you're a would-be 'john' in Montreal, watch out for a burly streetwalker, about 6'1", 230 lbs, wearing police issue steel toed boots under her miniskirt. Chances are it's an SQ undercover officer.

Cool Britannia: My Home Town

A scan of the headlines from my old stomping grounds today (an unremarkable English county as close to 'typical' as you can get):

Woman and toddler robbed in alley
Today, August 24, 2007, 3 hours ago
A robber escapes with a pushchair, watch and mobile phone after threatening a woman and child.

Man in court for 1996 girl rape
Yesterday, August 23, 2007, 7:41:10 AM
A man from Northampton appears in court charged with the 1996 rape of a 17-year-old girl in Leeds.

Woman threatened in armed robbery
Yesterday, August 23, 2007, 6:07:18 AM
A man armed with a knife threatens a shop worker in a robbery at a Northamptonshire store.

Robbery police seek phone user
Yesterday, August 23, 2007, 4:46:52 AM
Police appeal to the man who answered a seriously injured robbery victim's mobile phone to come forward.

TDPC Confesses To Infiltrating Protest Crowd

SMITHS FALLS, ONT, 24 August 2007

For Immediate Release

THE DOGGEREL PARTY ADMITS INFILTRATING PROTEST MEETING

The Doggerel Party of Canada is today confirming that two of its operatives infiltrated a protest meeting at the Hershey plant in Smiths Falls.

Photographs of the two operatives have been published on the Internet that appear to show that they are not members of the crowd, but are in fact corgis.

However, TDPC emphatically denies that its operatives were at the protest to cause violence. Rather, they were there to keep an eye on the crowd and look for any signs of dropped food or petting.


All Aboard The GLBTQueerO - Train!

Yesterday evening the Ottawa CBC Radio drive-time show All In A Day featured an interview with a leader from Ottawa's gay community discussing the town-hall meeting that was to take place that evening with Mayor Larry O'Brien.

The young man seemed anxious that Mayor O'Brien be 'educated' about the issues of the GLBTQueer community. When asked to identify specific issues, he struggled a little, but eventually came up with the idea of turning Bank Street into a gay village (like it's not already). At this point he also said something else that struck me as truly bizarre.

I'm paraphrasing, but his point was that when planning something such as the new LRT system in Ottawa, council and the Mayor need to consult with all groups, and especially groups such as his, to make sure their needs are addressed.

Can anyone explain to me exactly how the GLBTQueer community rides transit in a way that is different from the rest of us? What 'needs'? Perhaps we should have one rainbow car on each O-Train. Why stop there? Why not a Conservative car, a Liberal car, and a Green car (we could equip that one with pedals.)

The religion of group rights in Canada is a cancer at the heart of our society that will eventually kill individual freedom. If you don't belong to some special-interest community you'd better start looking for one, because if you don't, pretty soon there'll be nothing left for you in this country.

Monday, August 20, 2007

Google: A Candidate's Best Friend?

In these days of interwebnet connectedness, it's probably a good idea for anyone standing in an election to check out their Google profile.

This weekend I was at a local event where the Ontario Liberal candidate for Leeds-Grenville, Lori Bryden was also present. I didn't get to speak to Ms. Bryden, so she escaped questions about the health-tax that has yielded no improvement in rural healthcare, the slush fund for liberal friendly groups or the sudden and miraculous appearance of a $2 billion surplus just prior to the election (isn't that what the health-tax raises??)

Anyway, realising I didn't know anything about Ms. Bryden, I naturally turned to Google. You'd expect a candidate's official website, or the party site, to come out top - certainly I'm sure that's what Ms. Bryden would want to happen. Sadly, however, the top link concerns a dispute between Ms. Bryden and her husband Rick and Tarion, Ontario's provider of new home warranties.



Reading the decision at the link in question, it seems that the Brydens are in some dispute with the builder of their new Westport home; obviously the ins and outs are their business, but the decision does reveal that the Brydens had paid the builder only $75,000 for $100,000 of work and yet were still claiming some form of loss. This is an example of Liberal math at its finest, and is a definite sign that Ms. Bryden should have a place in cabinet if McShifty and his crew do retain power come October.

Even so, someone at Lib HQ might want to fix the Google situation.

Sunday, August 19, 2007

Why Stop Here

While we at TDPC always sympathize with any parent whose child is injured or killed, I was struck (no pun intended) by a news item at cbc.ca (where else?) today about the Alberta boy injured while trying to hop a freight train recently.

The mother has suggested moving the railroad tracks out of the neighborhood:

Piche said access to the tracks should be permanently blocked or, better yet, the tracks should be moved out of the residential neighbourhood.

Elsewhere in the article, however, we find some further insight into what may be responsible for this accident:

People in the neighbourhood said children are constantly trying to hop trains, and both adults and children use a hole in a fence to cross the CN Rail tracks.

While the fence was repaired Thursday, city worker Ted Gillman said he expected that by Friday morning, someone will have cut the wires.

...

CN Rail says there is a proper crossing 500 metres away and anyone caught trespassing could be fined.

However, notwithstanding what may seem to be the irresponsible practice of locals cutting their way through fences onto train tracks, let's look at the suggestion of moving the tracks away from a residential neighborhood. No doubt this would make things a lot safer. But why stop there?

Wouldn't the 401 be a lot safer, with far fewer accidents, if we moved it to the Yukon? There'd be much less likelihood of a mid-air or near miss, if we moved Heathrow airport to Iceland. And for goodness sakes, why did they build Windsor Castle so close to the airport in the first place?

Submit your own suggestions for safety relocations in the comments.

Friday, August 17, 2007

Will Benny Hinn Succeed...

... in emptying Torontonians pockets, where David Miller failed? I'm cynical enough to believe that while God moves in a mysterious way, He probably does not do so by limousine or private jet and He probably doesn't wear gold decorated suits.

So while Benny is slaying demons this weekend, why not stay home and play Benny Hinn: The Video Game?

So It Begins...

The Canadian left's favorite poster boy introduces good ol' banana republic democracy.

Will those who complain so vocally that Stephen Harper is 'authoritarian' be similarly bleating caterwauling about Chavez becoming president for life? Or is it different for communists?

Thursday, August 16, 2007

We Don't Need An Excuse For This

... in our house right now, since daughter has reached the 'I want those songs on the CD player' 24/7 stage, but cue Raffi.

How's That Working For Ya?

If only we gave First Nations more money and greater independence; if only they had more self-government, none of this would have happened:

Discouraging Demographics

A 2006 community profile prepared for the department of Indian and Northern Affairs by the community's tribal council, South East Resource Development Corp., lists the demographics of life in Pauingassi:
  • 98 per cent of adults are alcoholics. That includes 99 per cent of the community's residential school survivors.
  • 80 per cent of youth up to age 18 are solvent abuse addicts. There are youth suicides.
    Half of the kids under age 18 are child welfare wards, the result of parental neglect and abuse related to alcoholism. Dozens live off reserve in group homes in Winnipeg.
  • 20 per cent of all youth under age 20 are suspected of suffering from varying degrees of fetal alcohol syndrome.
  • Kids as young as 13 and under have sexually transmitted diseases and there are high rates of domestic violence, sexual abuse, promiscuity, family break-ups and sexual practices euphemistically described as "deviant" by residents.
  • $100 will buy a bottle of bootleg whisky on this dry reserve.
    Deaths from violence and drinking, despair, poverty and isolation go back 30 years. One woman disappeared 15 years ago; her body was never found.
  • This year, two girls aged 13 and 15 were charged in May with the beating death of a 22-year-old woman.
  • One 15-year-old youth and two adults were charged in the death of Jeremy Crow, who died last year after being hit in the head with an axe.
  • In 1999, the band went into receivership. One former chief was convicted of fraud.

[Ottawa Citizen]

Cool Britannia

A new, occasional series taking a look at life in modern Britain - and reminding us why we would never go back.
Agence France-Presse
Published: Thursday, August 16, 2007
LONDON - A British company is offering to provide stab-proof school uniforms, lined with the same material used by soldiers, to parents worried about knife crime among youngsters.
h/t: Doggerelle.

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Lookalike

Sharp eyed readers will have noticed the resemblance between new Defence minister Peter MacKay, as pictured on the front page of today's Ottawa Citizen, and Agent Smith, of Matrix fame.


Sharper still readers will note that while Agent Smith was duplicated, MacKay has on occasion been accused of being duplicitous, after not honouring an agreement with David Orchard on merging the former Progressive Conservative Party with the Canadian Alliance.

Sharpest readers will not need photographic evidence to realise the resemblance of David Orchard and his followers to a gang of blithering idiots.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

A Makeover

Courtesy of Neo, who very kindly contributed the new header image above. Thanks!

Tuesday, August 07, 2007

Move Along....

... nothing to see here. Muslim men carry pipe bombs in their cars near US Naval Bases all the time.

Monday, August 06, 2007

Angie The Corgi

... contemplating the extra kibble prospects arising from Toronto's Global Warming induced cat problem and the consequential success of her cat sequestration business.


h/t Neo.