I don’t suppose anyone visiting this blog knows where one can obtain a list of the people/organizations who didn’t pay their taxes? It would be interesting to see if any prominent lefties, the ones who are staunch advocates of more taxes, made the list.

OTTAWA (CP) – The Canada Revenue Agency has written off almost $2.4 billion in taxes owed but never paid after an internal audit found there was little likelihood of ever collecting the money.

The writeoff is the largest in Canadian tax history, and almost $1 billion higher than last year.

Much of the money struck from the books was for stale accounts, many older than four years, which an internal audit said have been piling up unpaid since 2000.

So the CBC has found a way to recycle their old archives. Not only that, but they’re going to do it in such a manner that they also get to poke right wingers in the eye with the pointy end of a stick.

Niiiiice.

Maybe it’s just me, but I figure that the best way to get Canadians interested in the CBC’s archival materials is to give Canucks the complete right to use them in their own projects in any way they see fit. After all, it was all bought and paid for by Canadians, right? Wouldn’t it be cool to see a new generation of Canadians going through the raw footage and interpreting our history for themselves, and others?

Except that ordinary Canadians can’t be trusted to tell a story that is in line with ‘Canadian values’ (Liberal values, that is). And giving the power to the people would take opportunities away from the CBC intelligentsia to insult those foot their bills.

Can’t have that.

Six o�clock – tv hour. don�t get caught in foreign
Towers. slash and burn, return, listen to yourself
Churn. locking in, uniforming, book burning, blood
Letting. every motive escalate. automotive incinerate
Light a candle, light a votive. step down, step down
Watch your heel crush, crushed, uh-oh, this means no
Fear cavalier. renegade steer clear! a tournament,
Tournament, a tournament of lies. offer me solutions,
Offer me alternatives and I decline

It’s the end of the world as we know it.
It’s the end of the world as we know it.
It’s the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine.
— It’s the End of the World As We Know It by R.E.M.

So is it time to sell your home, pack your bags, and head for the hills? A commenter in the Publication Ban thread, HappyDaze, dropped this bomb on his way through:

I just returned from a function with high level corporate individuals. A fund raising golf tourney to be precise.

Profound advice is to move all financial assets off shore; out of Canada. Paul Martin’s own company CSL has already done this but my friend is now taking most of his assets to Australia; plotting his own personal move there and advising anyone who will listen to get all of their assets out of canada now!

There are many complicated reasons – one is that the federal debt has been understated by the Liberals by many many billions; the revenues over stated and that it is not only the UIC 50 billion funds that have been plundered but the pension funds are suspect as well.

Personal debt is now the highest of the G8 and the impending and inevitable raise in interst rates partially because of Federal Overspending in non-priority areas is going to put interest rates over the sustainable rates and cause thousands of bancruptcys’.

The financial community is already preparing for Canada’s demotion to a Banana Republic and quietly moving assets.

The Liberal destruction of Canada is well underway. Apparently it is easier to move assets to another Commonwealth country so if you can my friend advises Australia in the short term.

There is so much more he and numerous high level financial advisors told me tonight that my head spins – the conspiracy theories some of you have been musing about no longer seem in the least bit far fetched – and yes, China does have a role in some of this.

Changing the government from Liberal will not change the behind the scenes power mongers, it is too late.

Paul Martin, Jack Layton et al have no choice but to play along. If Stephen Harper cannot be bought or comprimised he will be replaced.

Notice the last few weeks, the drive to “replace Harper” – that is the real powers spearheading it. The next Conservative leader will have to be more pliable.

That is what is happening now. We have no say, no choice and no power to stop this.

Alarmist? Maybe. But he’s not the only one thinking in this direction. Jay Currie has a few words on the topic as well, sagely pointing out that an economic crash could be helped along by external factors:

For Toronto in particular and Canada in general, SARS was a wake up call and we seemed to have learned a few things. In particular we saw how quickly our high tech medical system can be overwhelmed by 50 or 100 cases of a deadly infectious disease. In Toronto, if avian flu hits, the number of case will likely be in the hundreds of thousands unless very strict quarantine measures are put into effect instantly. The same is true across the country.

However, and here is where the brittleness of the West and its economic and social structures kicks in. Assuming for the moment that Canada, because of the planning which resulted from the SARS scare and the decision to stock up on anti-virals gets off relatively lightly. Say 100,000 cases and 20,000 deaths – because we live in an interdependent world our good luck will not protect us from the economic consequences of an epidemic.

The worst case projections are that up to a quarter of a given population will be infected and, of those infected, 10-20% will die. So, to take our neighbour to the south, that would be 75 million cases and 7.5 million to 15 million deaths.

The harsh economic fact is that while those deaths will be concentrated in groups of already compromised people, children and the elderly, the already ill and, of course, the poor, enough highly productive people will be killed for there to be a real effect on the economy. An effect which a robust economy could absorb fairly easily over a couple of years; but an economy which is in budget and trade deficit and facing increasing competition for energy supplies? Much more difficult.

Worse, the loss of several million people is not without consequence for the booming housing markets which, in their turn, are underwriting the stacks of private debt Americans have been racking up. When five people on your cul de sac all die in the same week and that pattern is repeated throughout your suburb it is a pretty good bet that housing prices are going to fall – fast.

I’ve been picking up similar hints from numerous sources, many of them well placed enough to understand what happens when an immovable mass of ignoramuses collides with an unserviceable debtload.

My house is up for sale, and hopefully we’ll have a deal signed in the next couple of weeks. After that I’m heading for high ground and living the no rent, no mortgage lifestyle out in the country with a garden full of fresh vegetables.

Twenty-somethings are turning to beers their grandparents drank in an effort to be “cool.”
Old Brews Become Cool to Young Drinkers (AP)

A line of taps pouring elegant brews from Bass to Blue Moon beckon twentysomethings packed into Bomber’s bar. But 21-year-old Elliot Cunniff orders something homier for himself and a friend. “Two Yuenglings,” he tells the bartender, explaining the attraction after a sip from his pint glass. “Price. Color. Flavor,” he says. “And the name alone, ‘ying-ling.'”
Cunniff doesn’t come out and say it, but it becomes apparent as other Yuengling orders roll in: Old school brews are cool. Just as young consumers might wear `70s-look sneakers, sip `50s cocktails or download `80s hair band tunes, many are bellying up to the bar for the beers Grandpa drank � maybe a Rheingold, a Leinenkugel’s, or a Utica Club. They’re sometimes called “retro beers,” brands that might bring to mind old men in ribbed undershirts, and which are now finding a new audience with the young. It worked for Pabst Blue Ribbon and now others are playing the same nostalgic chords.
Getting new life from an old brand is a great deal for brewers because they avoid the cost of launching a new product. The trick is doing it right. Heavy-handed advertising can backfire. Word of mouth seems to work. Television commercials with the Swedish bikini team are a big no-no. “That’s the whole point of the retro thing, I think,” said Eric Shepard of Beer Marketer’s Insights. “The harder you try to push it, the more skeptical people are going to get.”
These are not the happiest days for brewers. Sales are growing slowly and beer is losing ground to spirits as consumers turn more to mixed drinks. Beer’s market share dropped from 56 percent in 1999 to 52.9 percent last year, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States.
Among the recent bright spots was the quirky story of Pabst, which caught on early this decade with young hipsters in Portland, Ore., and its popularity spread out. Without initial prompting, “PBR” became a symbol of authenticity and cool. It has been enjoying double-digit growth every year since 2003, said Pabst brand manager Neal Stewart.

Interesting. Things definitely go in cycles. I’d never heard of Yuengling until a visit to Philadelphia a couple years back. It’s one of my staples these days. This is the first I’ve heard of it being “hip,” however.
via OTB

Welcome to the latest BSE crisis. You just had to know that Canadian farmers were going to find a replacement product to export in place of beef at some point.

For the record, I would like to head off the flame fest and point out that I am not responsible for the contents of this t-shirt (so don’t shoot the messenger, dammit). The responsible party can be found here. Go call him names instead.

A killer openly carried a bloody chain saw and various other weapons into the U.S. across the Canadian border.
Man With Bloody Chain Saw Let in to U.S. (AP)

On April 25, Gregory Despres arrived at the U.S.-Canadian border crossing at Calais, Maine, carrying a homemade sword, a hatchet, a knife, brass knuckles and a chain saw stained with what appeared to be blood. U.S. customs agents confiscated the weapons and fingerprinted Despres. Then they let him into the United States.
The following day, a gruesome scene was discovered in Despres’ hometown of Minto, New Brunswick: The decapitated body of a 74-year-old country musician named Frederick Fulton was found on Fulton’s kitchen floor. His head was in a pillowcase under a kitchen table. His common-law wife was discovered stabbed to death in a bedroom.
Despres, 22, immediately became a suspect because of a history of violence between him and his neighbors, and he was arrested April 27 after police in Massachusetts saw him wandering down a highway in a sweat shirt with red and brown stains. He is now in jail in Massachusetts on murder charges, awaiting an extradition hearing next month.
At a time when the United States is tightening its borders, how could a man toting what appeared to be a bloody chain saw be allowed into the country? Bill Anthony, a spokesman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, said the Canada-born Despres could not be detained because he is a naturalized U.S. citizen and was not wanted on any criminal charges on the day in question.
Anthony said Despres was questioned for two hours before he was released. During that time, he said, customs agents employed “every conceivable method” to check for warrants or see if Despres had broken any laws in trying to re-enter the country. “Nobody asked us to detain him,” Anthony said. “Being bizarre is not a reason to keep somebody out of this country or lock them up. … We are governed by laws and regulations, and he did not violate any regulations.”
Anthony conceded it “sounds stupid” that a man wielding what appeared to be a bloody chain saw could not be detained. But he added: “Our people don’t have a crime lab up there. They can’t look at a chain saw and decide if it’s blood or rust or red paint.”

One doesn’t have to be Quincy, M.E. to spot blood on a chain saw, especially when the guy is also carrying a sword, a hatchet, a knife, and brass knuckles. And looks like the guy in the photo.
via OTB
Update (2219): Making a horrific tale even worse, Michael Demmons passes on word that Mr. Fulton, whom Despres murdered, was related to him.

Bidding is currently stalled at C $0.01��

To kick things off, a new Liberal Party of Canada membership pin has been released.

This reminds me of the only time I’ve ever had my vehicle (thoroughly) searched while crossing the border into the US.
It was about 5 years ago. I had been to a dog show in Winnipeg that weekend, and was on my way to Minnesota, when they pulled my truck aside. The agents showed me to a waiting room, where I watched through a window as they combed my pickup truck from one end to the other. Behind the seats, under the hood, the undercarriage, and of course, the cargo. As the agent went into the grooming equipment, he discovered a small, round, metal canister buried at the back of my tack box.
As he pried at the lid, it suddenly popped off and a big white *poof* of white powder erupted and settled on the front of his uniform.
Heh.
Chalk.

Heh.

A lawyer’s worst nightmare….

Leading a parade of celebrity witnesses who claimed they were stiffed by a speakers bureau, Andy Rooney began his testimony Monday by questioning the wording of the oath to tell the truth. […] “No, no, no, Mr. Rooney,” said federal Judge Colleen McMahon, her head in her hands. “The first rule is the witness never gets to ask any questions … even if he’s a journalist.”

Rooney and others are witnesses in a fraud trial of Alan Walker. Rooney claims he’s owed $10K.

When defense lawyer Kerry Lawrence asked Rooney how he found Walker’s address, Rooney said he didn’t remember, but, “As an old reporter, we have a few secrets, and the first thing is we try the phone book.”

Hat tip to Wizbang

A five-member justice subcommittee has delayed plans for a fact finding tour of Britain, the Netherlands, Sweden and Nevada cities to study various aspects of legalized prostitution.
A spokesman stated that the team may be able to save the federal treasury the expense of the tour, by interviewing Canadian experts.

For the past few days, Drudge, Neale News and Bourque have been featuring a paparazzi photo of a shirtless Arnold Schwarzenegger, alerting an unsuspecting citizenry to the shocking news that men nearing 60 years tend to become a little flabby.

Who knew?
Maybe this comparison is a little more relevant.

Bogging the moon landing…
(Hat tip Kathy K)

Late Breaking

Michael Jackson arrived late to the courtroom today, dressed in blue designer pajamas with a kangaroo pouch front pocket bulging with tasty animal crackers and pop rocks and little red toy cars that go whiiiiiirrrrrrrrrirr when you run their wheels back and forth along his supple, eager groin.

(Related: “Dickens This Week” special report.)

I don’t think Matt Drudge has much use for the Jackson trial.

PAPER: JACKO’S CHIMP TO TESTIFY… DEVELOPING…

He’s positioned it higher on the page than the NYT coverage. What a card.

For only $20,835 a month you too, can sponsor an NHL hockey player in need.

Boston Globe:

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) Iraqi militants claimed in a Web statement Tuesday to have taken an American soldier hostage and threatened to behead him in 72 hours unless the Americans release Iraqi prisoners. The U.S. military said it was investigating, but the claim’s authenticity could not be immediately confirmed.
The posting, on a Web site that frequently carried militants’ statements, included a photo of what that statement said was an American soldier, wearing desert fatigues and seated on a concrete floor with his hands tied behind his back. The figure in the photo appeared stiff and expressionless, and the photo’s authenticity could not be confirmed.
A gun barrel was pointed at his head, and behind him on the wall is a black banner emblazoned with the Islamic profession of faith, ”There is no god but God and Muhammad is His prophet.”

A U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad, Marine Sgt. Salju K. Thomas, said he had no information on the claim but ”we are currently looking into it.”

hat tip – Stephen Taylor
More at OTB.
UPDATE – Girlfriend pleads for soldier’s release
MORE UPDATES – Bin Laden captured, Zarqawi renounces and the reaction pours in…
UPDATED: AP and Reuters to edit headline:
“Gigantic Terrorists Threaten to Behead…”.
Heh.

Linda McQuaig says today’s charade is simply about Iraq’s oil. And Barbie dolls.
*