I have a heavy week of work ahead of me, so blogging will likely slow up.
I’ll inviting readers to post the good stuff they find out there today in the comments. I’ve turned the html back on, so hopefully they’ll function properly as clickable links.
(If it’s not work safe, please indicate that too.)

Oil-For-Food investigative journalist Claudia Rosett has been nominated for a Pulitzer. And deservedly so.

“Rosett’s …dogged pursuit of the oil-for-food-for-dictators scandals at the United Nations pushed that story in all of its mind-numbing complexity into the media mainstream, where it has done more to set in motion long overdue oversight of the United Nations than all of the previous blue ribbon reports and congressional hearings combined…Whether or not the Pulitzer committee recognizes Rosett for her incredible contribution to freedom through her superb journalism over the past few years, those who follow the media know she is the standard setter.” – Hugh Hewitt, Weekly Standard

Kelowna Police are going soft on crime.
The “paradoxes and contradictions of life in post-9/11 Canada: two versions of reality that tacitly undermine one another, and by so-doing muddle and mock of our collective response to the terrorist threat.”

Well! If I had known this was so easy, I’d have stopped blogging a long time ago and just let the readers take over.
Spent today mostly resting up, a little shopping and getting very, very lost here in Raleigh, where the street system was designed by graduates of the Throw A Plate Of Spaghetti On the Floor School of Engineering.
News here seems to be wall to wall Terri Schiavo, (though my host just walked into the room and told me about the school shooting in Minnesota).
You folks know the drill by now – if you run across interesting links, post them in the comments. I’ll try to get online in the evenings, but it’s going to be 12 hour days at the shows for the next week, as I’m working for a handler friend to help offset the expenses and give myself something to do.
Unless I get fired, which is a distinct possibility.

Hey folks. Kate writing from sunny North Carolina. There are daffodils here. Considering the snowplows we had to wait clear the runway in the stop in Regina, it’s an improvement.
No time to surf or blog, (or watch the news) so again, I’ll invite my readers to post any links to good news items or blog posts in the comments. And keep beating up on poor old Joe Green. He’s resilient, if nothing else!
My lucky seminar attendees are starting to congregate and I’m getting ready for the powerpoint presentation. (Topic is breeding, evaluating, training and grooming Miniature Schnauzers.)
Let the indoctrination begin!
And Kathy K. … if you’re surfing through. I’ve been trying to get hold of you!

I’m the one who usually does most of the work here, so while I’m away, I’m going to invite readers to pick up the slack. Just submit links to any blog post or news item you find that you think others may be interested in, in the comments of this post. A simple cut and paste URL and brief description should do it.
(To keep things clean and easy to follow, try not to use this post for other comments.)

Posting here is about to slow down considerably. I leave tomorrow for North Carolina to give a seminar, followed by a week of dog shows. While I will have computer access, time to write will be limited. If I can get the page loading restored, I may ask a couple of friends to guest, but as it is, I’m reluctant to post much anyway, as there is a risk that I’ve been corrupting data. In the meanwhile, a few of the tips passed along in the past couple of days. I confess I haven’t had time to check them all out.
World Tribune is reporting secret video of public executions in North Korea is about to be released.
I haven’t seen this, but I trust the source, who says its a “rather thought provoking look at the possible future of media.” Takes about 10 minutes to view, so I imagine its a hefty download. Page is here.
Toronto Sun editorial on grow ops.
Gomery is getting to the meat of the matter. Sponsorship contract recipients were expected to funnel cash back to the Liberals! Who knew?
There’s been a lot of buzz lately about the lack of women in op-ed pages, and the blogosphere, where there has been considerable whining that “the boys won’t link to the girls”. As I head towards my 300,000 visits and over 400 incoming links (or so Technorati says) in just over a year, all I can offer is this one word observation – bullshit.
And over at the Shotgun, Kevin Steele discovers a familiar figure pops up in – of all places – the investigation of the 1985 Air India bombing, in a post titled Who Erased The Tapes?.

A few reader tips before I head to town.
Former CSIS agent is blunt. If you want to stay off Canada’s list of terrorist groups, vote Liberal.
An article from 1997 to disabuse you of any warm and fuzzy notions about UN peacekeepers.

The Middle East Earthquake. As usual, Publius has everything you need to follow events in Lebanon.

Joe Wood and family are going to lose their house due to a tax bill on virtual money.
The Airbus that lost its rudder over the Caribbean?It’s happened before.

Readers have been sending a steady stream of news links over the past couple of weeks. I’ve arbitrarily chosen a few – I’m sure I’ve overlooked some I shouldn’t have. In addition to doing a lot of posting, I’m also starting to come face to face with some work deadlines. A lot of the stuff sent demands blog posts of their own, but sometimes I’m preoccupied with other things, other times (Steyn columns come to mind), the links have propogated across the blogosphere already, and I figure that most of my blog-surfing readers will have or soon will, come across them somewhere else.
“He was a founding director of a Scarborough mosque and a doting father who brought his children to the park for picnics on weekends. Now he’s been named as a key commander of a terrorist group linked to Al Qaeda that’s fighting against the Americans in Iraq.”
(From August of 2004, background on terrorist groups in Canada.)
Pierre Pettigrew says the US State Department asked Canada not to add the Tamil Tigers to the list of terrorist organizations. Official US State Department response: “Say, what?”
Finally – Confounding the experts, scientists discover that ice melted before the invention of the internal combustion engine. Who knew?

Program note: Mark Steyn will be on C-Span’s Washington Journal tomorrow morning.

A quick and dirty roundup of reader tips, before I leave;
Another good article on the questionable actions of CNN in allowing Eason to “run wild” for so long, by Brent Bozell
DC Circuit Court recognizes bloggers as journalists.
Ezra Levant in the Calgary Sun;

“It is now clear that Canada could never have the kind of accountability first-rank countries demand of their leaders. We could never have a Watergate in this country, never an impeachment.
“Our leaders are above the law. The Gomery Commission would not have been born were it not for the permission of Martin, a witness and suspect himself. As Chretien demonstrated to the delight of our press corps, its an obviously powerless inquiry that exists to whitewash, not to get justice.“

Hydro-Quebec tries to block a broadcast that reveals they provide virtually no security for their major power installations. Somewhat surprisingly, a Quebec judge disagrees.
It doesn’t pay to be a whistleblower when you work for the federal government.

When I came forward and blew the whistle on the refugee board, a number of negative reactions occurred. They included an anonymous note that I received, calling me a troublemaker and telling me I should quit the refugee board. The executive director took a decision that my access to the office should be denied, and my access card was deactivated. The executive director then wrote me a letter and said, well, we told you that your access card was deactivated and we also told you how you could access the building. In fact, no such directions were given, and through the Access to Information Act, the Freedom of Information Act, and the Privacy Act, I received that information.
I was assaulted by the regional director in Toronto. I was subjected to a disciplinary hearing for seeking the advice and assistance of a lawyer. I was harassed by IRB managers when I was on sick leave. The IRB engaged in a cover-up sanctioned at the highest level of that organization. My health and dental benefits were cut off effective July 1, 2004, and I have not received any pay from the government since March 15, 2004.
I mention this to you because I thought about you committee members last night and about how important you are, because challenging unethical workplace conduct comes at a price. That price includes threats to one’s physical, psychological, and financial integrity. The current system and the proposed system for dealing with these matters are inadequate, and it is you, the committee here, who have an important role to play in terms of giving whistle-blowers who come forward meaningful protection.

A letter from a reader with experts from Hansard. Lengthy, so the rest is in the extended entry. Auditor Generals report on the Liberal government’s unaccountable foundations, recent gang violence and the fraudulent gun registry, and the lack of action on filling manpower gaps in the RCMP. The reader (who requests anonymity) comments;

The media don’t challenge the Minister on her veracity. It simply doesn’t add up.They only have aknee jerk, band aid approach to security for Canadians and she keeps pumping out the bilge. She claims that they are putting $8 billion into security and the media ,like sheep, buy it. How many RCMP and CSIS agents have been hired above those retiring with that $8 billion?
The Senate Report on National security pointed out all the gaps, yet the media sleep.The ports are undermanned, they are closing detachments in Quebec, every unit from white collar crime to drugs, to intelligence are undermanned ,yet she says all is well and the media believe her? The RCMP have 2500 fewer officers today than 12 years ago but everything is under control? The crooks and terrorists are laughing themselves silly.They keep reorganizing, redeploying,with fewer officers and she says that less is more? Where’s the media? or security of Canadians is not important.

Continue reading →

I’m a little behind on things today – spent the last several hours disassembling a Yamaha sportbike. Until my energy levels are somewhat back to normal, I’m taking the lazy way out tossing out a few links of interest – some of my own, some from readers.
Bruce Garvey has the quote of the day in the National Post, in a column that nails the ” The liberal intelligentsia ” for their silence in post-election Iraq;

Canadian Liberals these days like to claim that if Stephen Harper were prime minister Canadian boys would be getting blown up by car bombs in Iraq. It’s equally true that if Jean Chretien, the international statesman from Shawinigan, had prevailed, Saddam Hussein and his sons would still be running their murderous circus in Baghdad.

We need to hear more of this, and we need to hear it from Canadian Conservatives. How about this for starters – a statement from Stephen Harper congratulating the “Coalition of the Willing” and the Iraqi people, and expressing regret that Canada did not play a significant role in the success … that ought to launch a right lovely Martin stammering fit.
Only in Canada, would a few Chinese made lapel pins emerge as a national “scandal” demanding wall-to-wall coverage… while the communist Chinese are quietly buying up the goddamn Alberta tar sands under a virtual media blackout.
And today’s new feature – a POP QUIZ!

Yup, your first instinct was correct.

I’ve been lax in keeping abreast of the tips readers have sent – partly because of an erratic schedule lately and there being only so much time to follow up on them all. And mood, frankly. Some days I’m not in the mood (or energy) to do hard news.
That said, these items are worth looking at;
I’ve said it before – Halliburton is a mere lemonade stand compared to the unbelievable network of poltiical/business associations of a host of characters that include Jean Chretien, Power Corporation and Maurice Strong. Now it’s the burial of the findings of “Operation Sidewinder” – Chinese infiltration into Canadian resources and technology. The usual players make an appearance. It’s too interesting to exerpt. Go read it all. Then send a copy to your MP.
Speaking of Power Corp, here’s an item on the Lead Fox in the UN Henhouse Investigation
Today’s twofer: Jesse Jackson’s darkest hour – plus! Feminist heads explode!
There’s been considerable buzz on the blogosphere about this report from the Center for Religious Freedom, about Saudi funded hate propoganda that has been gathered from mosques in the US. Damien Penny has a useful summary and link to the pdf, plus this update on Islamic criticism of certain Dutch politicians.

“He is an enemy of Islam and he should be beheaded,” the narrator of one video clip posted on the Internet says in Arabic, against the crackle of gunfire. Behead him, “and you will earn a place in paradise.”

As always, the Canadian media is following the Dutch situation closely. Stay tuned for breaking news on tulips.

The letter from one LTC Tim Ryan that got wide distribution on the blogosphere, was published by the World Tribune. They got letters.
While everyone else is counting the “freedom” appearances, Rich Richman is more interested in the fire in George Bush’s inauguration speech.
The Intifada continues, complete with baby martyrs.
A documentary about Iraq without the input of a fat socialist weasel.
The National Post editorial could have saved someone a lot of typing by just cutting to the money quote: “Mr. Cotler must do all in his power to convince his colleagues that this is one instance in which there are bigger issues at play than a few ethnic votes. If they don’t agree, perhaps he should rethink whether this is a Cabinet he belongs in.”
A little sympathy for the devil at Rolling Stone Magazine – he’s on the payroll in the advertising department.

Catching up on a few of the links sent my way that I haven’t had time to do justice to:
How much longer will it be, before the critical mass of Middle East immigrants tips the electoral scales just enough to have the Government of Canada delist al-Qa’ida as a terrorist organization? It’s certainly worked for the Tamil Tigers. Why let a few unfortunate mistakes (like the invention of the suicide bomb, 60,000 dead and assassination of two heads of state) get between you and a quarter million Liberal-voting constituents?
In an attempt to fact check my post about the new and yet-to-become-airborne A380, J.M. Heinrichs does not offer how many lawnchairs will fit in the hold of this Russian taxi.
You can’t keep a good blogger down. Welcome back, Rasky.
And now for something completely different. First, turn up the volume.

Crime may not always pay, but it’s probably less risky than mutual funds…

“Now in Canada you have to consider conditional sentences to be a jail sentence,” she said in an interview, It’s the same thing.”

Well, except for the part where you get to be the new bitch of a lonely tattoed biker type. Rest assured, things are different for those who take a life. Well, not much – a day really isn’t long enough to get to know someone.
Something you won’t hear on the news today – a US federal budget surplus of $1 billion, for the month of December.
Ralph Goodale, on the federal budget surplus in Canada; “Wolf!”
The Emergency Bandage – simple technology that is saving lives on the battlefield.
More questions are being asked of the UN, this time regarding overpayments of around $5B in compensation to Kuwait for the 1992 invasion and occupation. Say it isn’t so!
Good question – why is it left up to inquiries to probe into scandal and misconduct in the federal government when we have a few hundred MP’s on the payroll?
Thanks to all who sent tips.

National Post: “[I[t is somewhat galling to hear Paul Martin and other Canadians brag about how our tsunami response serves to showcase “the Canadian way.” While the United States and other Western nations were using their helicopters, planes, navies and other “hard power” assets to save lives, our cash-starved troops were cooling their heels in the departure lounge.”
Surprisingly, the Coalition of the Actually-Own-Military-Stuff seem to be getting their due;

Mr. Annan praised the efforts of the so-called core group, the United States, Australia, India and Japan, as “absolutely crucial.”
“They have the logistical capability to be able to come in and ensure that, despite the lack of infrastructure and logistics, we will be able to get things [done],” he said. “And they helped with heavy equipment, they helped with the airport and now, of course with the helicopters and all other [things], they’re also helping with distribution, getting the food to the needy. And they are working with the UN team and others, and the government.”

Well, not so surprisingly. Translation: “Please don’t fire me.”

Iraqi officials have recently implicated more U.N. staffers in bribe taking during the oil-for-food program in a development that could dramatically escalate pressure on the world body.
[…]
Investigators from the House International Relations Committee said several current and former officials in Iraq’s Oil, Health and Transportation ministries have told them that U.N. staffers assigned to the “661 Committee” — the U.N. Security Council group that oversaw sanctions and approved oil-for-food contracts — regularly took bribes and kickbacks from suppliers of aid to Iraq during the program.

After all, where does one go after serving at the highest levels in the UN?
Well, if you’re Maurice Strong, architect of Kyoto, one goes to China, one does – to save the environment through cheaper SUV’s.
And the circle is unbroken;

Long before he found fame as a Canadian politician, Paul Martin went out and borrowed tens of millions of dollars to buy a company called Canada Steamship Lines (CSL). This was circa 1981, and there is no doubt that he already knew the influential Maurice Strong, of United Nations fame. It was Strong who hired Martin to be his personal assistant at Montreal’s Power Corporation-even before he had left university and it was Strong, who later helped Martin get his stake in CSL.
As the public record shows, Martin is still getting boosts for CSL from the scandal-ridden Canadian government.

Some CSL employees make as little as $2.20 an hour. Of course, they’re Ukranians, sailing under foreign flags.
(Thanks to all who sent tips.)

B Raman, in the Asia Times;

It is not without significance that almost all countries – even those which were critical of the US-led intervention in Iraq – have been in favor of going ahead with the elections as planned, however unsatisfactory they may turn out to be. The holding of the elections will not turn out to be the end of – or even the beginning of the end – of jihadi activities, but it will demonstrate to the jihadis the determination of the international community not to let jihadi terrorism succeed.
Such a demonstration is necessary, whatever the cost of it. It needs to be recalled how India’s determination to hold periodic elections in Jammu & Kashmir in the face of an escalation of terrorist violence by Pakistan-supported jihadi terrorist organizations ultimately broke their morale and made Pakistan amenable to reason.

An open letter from The American Thinker to those campaigning for the enemy on this side of the Atlantic.
Also, in Iraq, Ali has moved from Iraq The Model, to set up his own blog titled “Free Iraq”.
More on failed European policy and the growth of radical Islam in the Netherlands.
Canada’s Paper Airplane , DART – a concept, not a capability.

More blog awards – these for Islamic and Jewish/Israeli blogs.
It was tribalism that finished Rome, and it will finish Brussels, too.
More studies reveal that there are genetic differences between races, that render some medical tests and treatments inaccurate or inappropriate.
ABC NEWs has named bloggers “People Of The Year” – managing somehow to ignore Rathergate.
The CBC and plush toys. Warm and fuzzy.
Thanks to readers Charles MacDonald, JM Heinrichs, and Craig Brett and others.

Police admit defeat in the battle to control marijuana grow operations. (Really?? I wonder… other cities seem to have the legal capacity and manpower to demand entry to homes to search for unlicensed pets. )
“China uses visiting students, scientists, business people and delegations to obtain industrial secrets and high-technology that will benefit Chinese companies and its military-industrial complex, said the source, who asked not to be identified for national security reasons.”
Well, look on the bright side – at least they’re not going to spirit away any new military technology.
Muslims are winning the war against free speech and Zionists in Britain, according to Hani Mohammad at Islam Online – a must read article.
Naivette this profound must be painful. Memo to Salim Mansur – try doing a little google searching. You’ll figure out why the Canadian government has been mute on UN corruption – they’re in it up to their Desmarais.

Go over to Proud To Be Canadian and nominate your pick for Canada’s Most Annoying Liberal of 2004. (You’ll have to register, at which point you can vote for Most Annoying Nominating Process of 2004).
My choice is Tommy Douglas, for crawling back from the grave to remind us all that he is not dead enough – first, by being selected by viewers of the CBC as the “Greatest Canadian”, then (adding insult to insult) by getting a day named after him in Calvert’s Cuba.
Bush, democracy and the Middle East – the wind at their backs.
Lefty bloggers who saw a right wing conspiracy in the persons of two Iraq bloggers – the wind between their ears
More on Sharia Law. Why let a little thing like subjugation of women stand in the way of cultural equivalence?
Victor Davis Hanson delivers a reality bitchslap. (Tip for trivia buffs – it is a well known fact that if Gwynne Dyer ever looks into the face of Victor Davis Hanson, he will burst into flame.)