Can Self-Assembly LTE Equipment Be Far Behind?

Sweden's Ericsson makes one good deal:

Ericsson (NASDAQ:ERIC) has today entered into an asset purchase agreement to acquire the parts of the Carrier Networks division of Nortel relating to CDMA and LTE technology in North America.

and one lousy one:

and Richard Lowe, Nortel, is appointed Chief Operating Officer.

Porky Pies

USDA officials should be a little red-faced today, after it was disclosed that they paid almost twice the going rate for packaged ham that is supposedly a part of the administration's economic stimulus package.

Rumours that the supplier, Clougherty Packaging, was recommended as the Obama Administration's principal pork supplier by a Mr. Warren Kinsella are wholly unfounded.

Belatedly: Cymry's Little Minister (Deacon) - December 1999 - April 28, 2009

[This post somehow didn't make it to TDPC at the time; we were a little fogged by losing two dogs just a month apart, as well as the Nortel layoff without notice or severance. Here's what should have been published back in April.]

Just a month ago we sent Angie to the Rainbow Bridge. We still miss her daily and so it seems doubly hard that today I have the sad news that another of our corgis has gone to join her. Cymry’s Little Minister (Deacon) was put to sleep yesterday. Two days ago he seemed to be his normal self, and then he suddenly stopped eating or showing interest in life. The vet found an enormous tumor in his abdomen and with no prospect of recovery we had to make the hardest decision of a dog’s life, again.

Deacon was nine years old, our only Pembroke corgi, and had been with us for about four years. We’d dropped Angie at a boarding kennel and clearly appeared to be such a corgi-crazed couple that the breeder there suggested we might like to help her re-home Deacon, now retired from the show ring. We said we would talk it over during our vacation – but Erika decided we should call from the road about an hour later to say yes, we’d take him.

In the show ring Deacon excelled – he won multiple Best In Show titles, and he loved to show – or even just be in among the tents and trailers and ex-pens at a show. But although he loved that life, he adjusted to life in a family home (with a young child) very quickly and became a wonderful family dog.

Deacon had luxuriant golden hair, with a mass of colours – more golds, yellows and browns than you knew existed. In sunshine he was radiant. In the rain... well, he wouldn’t go out in the rain. His was a coat you could bury your hands and face in – he loved hugs and especially loved it when the children would put their arms around his neck and snuggle into him. He did have a distinctive aroma of old couch, which could be very comforting when we were feeling down.

Always friendly, he would occasionally growl at younger dogs to let them know who was boss – but he never went to the trouble of actually getting up to do anything about it. While younger Cardis ran around him imitating whirlwinds, Deacon preferred to imitate a hearthrug and did so with dedication, skill and great dignity.

At one time we had a younger male Pembroke, Madoc, staying with us. Deacon tolerated him for a while, but then suddenly became incredibly protective of Erika and wouldn’t let Madoc near her. This culminated in a great fight one night and we had to send Madoc back home. Two weeks later, ClearBlue confirmed what Deacon had obviously detected that night – that Erika was pregnant and our son was on his way.

Deacon was terrified of chickens, so we hope that there is a separate area reserved for fowl at the Bridge. He loved to roll in fresh grass clippings, and always looked forward to the first mowing of springtime. It will be hard to roll out the tractor without him there.

Faithful friend, old soul, glorious show victor, comforter, food vacuum and perennial fake-grumpy old man: we all love you always, and you leave a hole here that can never be filled. Be happy, stay dry and find a nice warm fire up there – and take care of Angie when she comes in from her stick fetching.

This WTF Moment Brought To You By

the global warming alarmist collective:

Jerome Glenn, director of the Millennium Project and one of the report's authors, said: "There are answers to our global challenges, but decisions are still not being made on the scale necessary to address them. Three great transitions would help both the world economy and its natural environment – to shift as much as possible from freshwater agriculture to saltwater agriculture; produce healthier meat without the need to grow animals; and replace gasoline cars with electric cars." (Emphasis mine).

And we're going to be setting global economic policy based on words from moonbats like this?

The corgis are anxiously awaiting their first non-animal meat sausages.

A Guide To Catholic Etiquette

The recent non-scandal involving PM Stephen Harper and a communion wafer has triggered a veritable firestorm of discussion surrounding appropriate behaviour for non-Catholics attending Mass.

Here then, as a public service, is a short instructional video:

King'f Adviforf: Tide Will Not Rife

Winchefter, July 9th, 1026. A Dark Agef Timef Exclufive: Meeting in a two day feffion, His Majefty King Cnut The Great'f Knightf Of The Figure Eight have today iffued a ftatement on the movement of the tidef. Ye Knightf have determined that from henceforth the tidef fhall no longer be permitted to rife by more than two inchef daily. Hif Majefty haf been advifed to command thif and therefore it fhall be, by hif royal decree.

Hif Majefty if expected to begin hif tide reduction program immediately, by the placement of hif throne by the fhore, when hif fupreme and regal greatneff will caufe the tide to be ftayed.

The Catholic Church: An Apology

In recent years we may have given readers the impression that the Catholic Church is nothing but a massively wealthy, quasi-criminal organization that is responsible for AIDS, earthquakes, famine, the oppression of women and global warming. We may further have described the Church as a haven for pedophiles and an object worthy of ridicule by all right thinking people.

We now realise that the Catholic Church is in fact a noble institution, whose sacred symbols are worthy of the utmost respect, and we call for the miserable Prime Minister of Canada to be brought before the Church's Inquisitors without delay.

We apologise for any confusion. (C) All Canadian Media Outlets, 2009.

Today's CBC Lexicon

When the US fires a drone at militants in Pakistan, the CBC reports that a "US Missile Strike Kills 28". When 156 people are murdered by a mob of Uighur muslims in China, that's a "clash between Han Chinese and Uighurs".

Must be hard to live with that anti-muslim bias in the media, eh?

Pope Benedict Must Have Missed The Memo

... Gene Robinson, the openly gay Episcopal Bishop of New Hampshire, says that a church that does not ordain women or openly gay people can have no future.

Way to go, Gene. Will you tell Benedict XVI or shall I?

I'm not a betting man, but if I had to lay odds between the future of the Catholic church and that of ECUSA, I wouldn't be favoring the latter.

Election Fever Pandemic

The Canadian Press today declared the recent outbreak of Election Fever a pandemic. A spokesman said that the outbreak, which initially began with a handful of election threats from particularly virulent Liberal bloggers, has now become widespread and begun to infect even mainstream media.

The spread has begun to grow exponentially, as Liberals issue threats of more threats of more threats. Today, in a much awaited announcement, Liberal/NDP/BQ Coalition leader Michael Ignatieff threatened that if the government did not cave into previously threatened threats, he would threaten them again - not definitely, but he was certainly threatening to.

However, some experts believe that Election Fever is not particularly dangerous and is unlikely, despite its name, to result in any actual Elections. A leading expert told TDPC, "No Liberal threat has actually triggered an election for years. Canadians should simply observe sensible precautions, avoid Warren Kinsella - or wash thoroughly if contact is unavoidable - and go back to their barbecues until hockey starts again.