Dispatches From The Beaches Of Norway
“Ambassador Williams is a man for whom I have the greatest respect”– Paul Martin
What remains unclear how he feels about US Ambassador Wilkins.
Sleeping With The Enemy
You all better sit down.
I’ve signed on for the duration of the election campaign with the CBC, writing at Election Roundtable, which isn’t so much a blog as it is a discussion page between five bloggers of varying background and ideology. I believe I’m there to represent the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy. That’s what they’re going to get, anyway.
Expect about a post a day at the forum – I’ll let you know when they appear for your reading convenience, but they won’t be crossposted because of the nature of the agreement. Otherwise, my other blogging should remain unaffected.
The first post is up now. Let me know what you think.
Update – The reviews begin to roll in, and it seems that some of those on the left have jumped to the conclusion that I’ll move to foreign shores if the Liberals win the election.
It reminds me that the largely confusing nature of leftist ideology may actually be rooted in poor reading comprehension. One would think that a line that refers to the tearing up of the country would tip off even the most stubbornly resistant remedial reader about what I meant.
Those CIA Guys Are Crafty
| Medienkritik; “Another highlight of Germany’s #1 investigative journalism magazine: the current edition of left-wing, fiercly anti-American SPIEGEL presents an article on “THE EMPIRE OF SHADOW – The worldwide operations of the U.S. Secret Intelligence Service”, and the picture on the cover shows … members of the Canadian military!” |
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It’s actually a few of fine men of Canada’s Joint Task Force Two. Heh.
Iraqi Elections
” Iraqi Voter: “Anybody who doesn�t appreciate what America has done and President Bush, let them go to hell”
(I’d link to the video, but traffic this morning from Drudge seems to have taken the site down.)
While Canadian media whine on behalf of “Canadians” about having to go to endure election campaigning over the Christmas season, Iraqi’s are braving bullets and bomgs to reach the polls for the third time in a year.
Due to the success of the previous elections in this emerging democratic state in which Bush McChimpyHitler and the Jews Neocons are losing the war for American Imperialism to steal their oil, I suspect we aren’t likely to hear a lot about the Dec.15 vote unless catastrophic attacks occur. As conditions on the ground have continued to improve over past months, I’d think that unlikely.
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The space above has been left blank for a reason. It’s a virtual “second chance” provided for my leftie readers to engage in a little soul-searching about that reflexive reaction they just had to my optimism – in hoping I’m proven wrong.
Jeff Goldstein;
On the cusp of nationwide elections in Iraq-as insurgent Sunni Arabs eager to join the political process “actively support the voting, reportedly promising to provide security at polling places, and informing Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and other terrorist elements that they oppose any effort to disrupt the elections” – it strikes me that those left arguing that the insurgency is really but a manifestation of Iraqi nationalism have placed themselves in the strange position of having to maintain that, well, the real Iraqis aren’t Iraqi at all, but are rather those non-Iraqi fighters who continue the insurgency, or at the very least, that these foreign fighters (and those who provide them with aid and support) are the only ones left who are really acting in the best interests of Iraq.
Captain Ed believes that the tipping point may have been reached in the American media (expect Canadian counterparts to lag behind for some time, as they generally do);
The Sunni participation puts the last of the building blocks in place for the establishment of a consensus democratic republic. The reporting of the Times indicates that the American media might finally start recognizing what will shortly become obvious to all whether they do so or not: that a free Iraq exists, thanks to an administration that steadfastly refused to listen to the Chicken Littles of the opposition and the whiners of the Exempt Media at home. The war may finally have turned the corner in the only place it could be lost — here in America.
Other places to follow developments on the blogosphere:
Iraq The Model (in Iraq)
Mesopotamian (in Iraq)
Gateway Pundit (USA)
You’re invited to add other Iraq election related links in the comments.
The Rockwood Farmers Santa Claus Parade
Of course, no parade would be complete without SANTA!! Santa and Mrs. Claus parade through the streets of Rockwood on their Case IH 1680 Combine!
(Hat tip to reader “Dorothy” from Guelph, ON who attended this year’s event.)
En Franglais!
Keeping Canada together, one post at a time!
The Parti lib�ral du Canada “campaign blog”;
A reader writes – “The CPC blog on the other hand is available in both English and French. The Tory blog may not be funny, but at least it’s bland in both languages. Come to think of it, if I were working in PMO’s communication shop, I wouldn’t want to speak French either, after all how many ways are there to say “nous sommes d�sol�s?”
Bad Santa
“I hate to see their display at Easter.”
The link at the bottom comes via Michelle Malkin, who also offers up an item titled “Notes On The (Tookie) Freak Show.
Ordinarily, I would consider mention of the California execution of a multiple murderer with worldwide childrens’ book sales nearing the 300 mark, made famous by his founding of the “Crips” (a short form of “cripples” to reflect their trademark practice of maiming or crippling their victims) a little out of place under a “Christmas themed” subject line.
Not this time.
Gifts Gratefully Declined
It was my bank teller who reminded me today that it’s my birthday.
In lieu of cake, presents and pink-toned girlie drinks, I would suggest birthday well-wishers head over to the Weblog awards to register a vote on behalf of myself, along with the fine commentors, tipsters and guest bloggers who contribute so much to SDA.
Belinda And Beer
Toronto Tory has been reading Stephen Taylor’s list and checking it twice;
One of these expense items stood out a little more for me, as I recognized the date. It was expensed (ie. paid for by Canadians) as a “Dinner meeting to discuss media briefing”, on May 19th of this year.
Let’s look at this item a little more closely…
“Discuss media briefing” at Suite 34? I don’t think so. Let’s investigate what the Liberals were really doing at Suite 34 on May 19th:.
OTTAWA�Partying Liberals were treated Thursday night to the incredible sight of Belinda Stronach, Canada’s new human resources minister, and Tim Murphy, the Prime Minister’s chief of staff, dancing atop a speaker at an Ottawa bar.
The tune? “Material Girl,” by Madonna.”
Read the whole thing
SDA Flashback: Belinderella, Up After Midnight.
What Liberal Media?
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Jim Pankiw
This tip just in: Jim Pankiw, the controversial former MP for Saskatoon-Humboldt has registered to run as an Independant against Conservative MP Gerry Ritz in Battlefords-Lloydminster.
Paul Martin’s Investment Holdings
As Stephen Taylor and MK Braaten examine links between “friends” of the Martin government and Income Trust insider trading allegations (Martin linked Medisys Income Trust stock volume increased 3400% the day before Goodale announcement) , Toronto Tory is providing Paul Martin’s Investment Holding Disclosure to enable further exploration of the issue – a blog project of sorts. See if you can help out.
The Invisible Five
Rusty Shackleford wonders why there is so much media attention focused on the four “peace activists” being held hostage in Iraq – and none at all for others;
Where were all of these Muslim clerics, ‘Christians’, & Left-wing activists when the Islamic Army in Iraq was threatening to murder Ronald Schulz? The American civilian hostage was murdered in Iraq yesterday [Dec.8 – Ed] without even so much as a blink from those so urgently calling for the release of the four peace activists taken hostage in Iraq: Norman Kember, Thomas Fox, James Loney and Harmeet Singh Sooden. Where is their outrage?
The duplicity of these groups reveals their inhumanity and gross sense of justice. An American’s life is not worth fighting for when he is in Iraq to help rebuild that country. Not a word from Sunni Muslim clerics begging the Islamic Army in Iraq to release him. Not a word from a single Arab leader wishing for the release of a man who was engaged to a Jordanian woman. Not a word from a single ‘Christian’ group worried about the welfare of a presumably Christian man. Not a word from the Left.
No, these groups sympathies are not with the four peace activists because they are innocent civilians caught by a group of ruthless terrorist thugs. No, the Left– including the ‘Christian’ Left — and Muslim clerics reserve their efforts only to freeing those who they deem ‘worthy’. The four peace activists are worthy of their efforts only because they were in Iraq to document abuses by American soldiers and were against the war. Sunnic clerics call for their release not because hostage-taking and murder is wrong, but because they had “condemned the war in Iraq.” Had they been four American Halliburton employees, we would hear nothing from them.
Exactly so.
They are:
German archaeologist Susanne Osthoff
French engineer Bernard Planche
American businessman Jeffrey Ake
American civilian Dean Sadek
American soldier Keith Maupin (listed as MIA).
“Refreshments For Meeting”
As it turns out, Scott “beer and popcorn*” Reid is actually quite the expert on government subsidized programs of this type.
Cruisin’
Check out Colby Cosh’s take on the WS Cruise, to which I will add “what he said”. It was a tremendous amount of fun, and I know we’ll be adding a few new readers to the blogosphere. As you folks stop by, be sure to send me an email to say hi, or should you want advice on how to best circumnavigate this new world of “citizen media”.
At some point near the end of the cruise, I came to the realization that I had lost my designation as non-smoker, by virtue of exposure to an uninterrupted and intense concentration of tobacco fumes. Apparently, one is not allowed into the journalistic fraternity without first passing a nicotine means test. (When I remarked on this, I was informed that this fact had been noted and it was time I chipped in for cigarettes.)
A few other observations – Ezra Levant should be bottled and sold. Both he and Kevin Libin need to sue whatever photographer was responsible for the creepy portraits they use in the magazine (Libin actually bears more than a passing resemblance to Nicholas Cage), David Warren’s frequent references to 17th century poets/philosophers/x-ray technicians are almost certainly a complete fiction and Lorne Gunter should be running for office.
I don’t have a lot of pics, though I’m sure I can count on a few compromising shots by anonymous email. There are a few more in this directory and I’ll try to add others as I find them.
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Mr. McBride, a pioneer in Alberta politics, shows off his Libranos tshirt. |
Though, I confess to one regret about the experience – that I did not capture for posterity the image of Colby Cosh sunbathing on the “tops optional” beach in St. Maartin, during an hour long stop on our “Wild and Mild” Pinzagauer excursion – (“Ladies and gentlemen, over to your right is a KFC”).
Picture, if you can, a glimmering white ribbon of sand stretching into a rolling turquoise sea, human forms bobbing in the surf, scantily clad tanned figures strolling the edge of the waves – and Batman stretched out in head to toe black on a lounge chair under the blazing midday Caribbean sun.
On The Matter Of The German Built Yossarian Electro Diesel Engine
A number of MP’s in India have resigned after a sting operation by bloggers who offered bribes to ask questions in parliament. Among them;
“Is the Union Government of India planning to make automatic the long procedure of permission for SSIs to import new technologies such as Trackbacks, Pingbacks, Blogrolls, Splogs and Hitcounters?”
Average Canadians Embrace Liberals
Apparently, they were a little short on random volunteers.
The Political Beatitudes
“Blessed are the reporters: for they shall be called the children of Mob.”
Shetips
Stronach Family Values.
See Angry for the dirtier details.
(NSFW)