Memorial Day Tribute 2010

Political Changes Are Afoot

A trio of brilliant columns have just been published, all of which are worth a careful read:

• Mark Steyn: We're too broke to be this stupid
• Daniel Henninger: A New Age of Reform
• Peggy Noonan: He Was Supposed to Be Competent

Preview of the NEW Hawaii Five-O

Two Classes of Citizens

I frequently read an L.A. columnist named Amy Alkon.  Here's a particularly interesting recent post of hers.
I believe the comment I left is worth repeating here:

What I think some commenting on here fail to realize is that it's not about what's fair (for public sector employees) but what's economically feasible for those of us in the private sector who pay their wages & benefits.  News Flash: The sweetheart deals worked out for all too many public sector employees are no longer possible. 

Much like Black Americans rose up in the 1960's, sick & tired of being treated like 2nd Class citizens, soon will private sector citizens rise up as well.  The newer cause clearly isn't as righteous as the old one but the dual classes of citizenship that has arisen between the public & private sector is wrong and absolutely unjust.

Anyone interested can watch a preview of what's to come by observing the public sector employees violently protesting in Greece.  Watch them cry out at how wrong it is to stop paying them 14 months salary for 12 months of work!  Watch them cry out at how wrong it is to stop allowing them to retire at age 53 with a full pension!

Perhaps it's human nature in most people to quickly think of privileges as rights.  But in those working in the public sector, the time frame seems to have shrunk down to mere minutes.

Europe, the Lifestyle Superpower

In a recent piece, Gideon Rachman of the Financial Times writes an eloquent piece about the imminent problems the countries of Europe are about to face.  Their downfall should be a wake-up call to all North Americans!

Les Canadiens!

Here's a little tribute celebrating the Montreal Canadiens' determination to win their 25th Stanley Cup.

ELO: Don't Bring Me Down

How Much Storage Space Will You Have By 2020?

Barbara Kay: Extreme Brilliance!

The New Ugly Face of Canada's Left: Marci McDonald

I was absolutely incredulous listening to the thoughts (starting at 6:10) of one Marci McDonald, the newest poster girl for Canada's Left.  While listening to her, substitute the word "Christian" for "Black" or "Asian" or "Muslim" and her extreme prejudice will jump out at you like a grasshopper on steroids.

The textbook definition of "bigot" accurately describes this hateful woman:

A bigot is a person obstinately or intolerantly devoted to his or her own opinions and prejudices. The correct use of the term requires the elements of obstinacy, irrationality, and animosity toward those of differing opinion.

The term is also used to refer to persons hostile to people of differing race, ethnicity, nationality, sexual orientation, religion etc.

---

P.S. Watch for similar tactics to be used by the Liberal Party of Canada in the lead-up to the next federal election.  Liberal friendly pollster Frank Graves already hinted at this as a "winning play":

A Beautiful Video About the Place that I call "Home"

Selective Condemnation from the Mainstream Media

Dennis Miller discusses with a caller how the mainstream media's condemnation has "miraculously" changed now that Barack Obama is President.



It would an interesting Psychology Research study to figure out how members of the journalism profession spent all the time and money to earn their degrees and build their careers yet are voluntarily choosing to erect a huge blind spot when it comes to fighting power with truth. Rather sad, don't you think?

Historic Developments in the UK

Cameron Faces a Massive Challenge Ahead   [Nile Gardiner]

Most people in Britain will be glad to see the back of the New Labour era after 13 years of socialist rule. Gordon Brown was a disastrous prime minister, whose list of achievements is nonexistent. He leaves behind a broken Britain, heavily in debt, fearful of its future, and in a state of decline. It will be up to the new PM, David Cameron, to get Britain back on its feet, both at home and abroad, heading an unprecedented Conservative–Liberal Democrat coalition, in curious tandem with Nick Clegg, the most left-wing party leader of this generation.

One thing’s for certain — this is going to be a rollercoaster ride and a huge leap into the unknown. The last coalition government, in 1974, collapsed within a few months. In contrast to most of the rest of Europe, Britain doesn’t generally go for coalitions, except in wartime.

How long this marriage of convenience between the center-right and center-left will last is anyone’s guess, and another general election could well be held within a few months if the coalition fails to make progress. The Liberals are expected to get up to six cabinet posts out of a possible 22, giving them a staggering degree of power out of all proportion to their 57 seats in Parliament (less than 10 percent of the total), despite their having far more in common with the opposition Labour Party than with the Tories. Keeping this highly unusual coalition together will be a massive challenge for Cameron, and could prove to be a bridge too far.

The new coalition will face formidable challenges, chief among them addressing the huge budget deficit and cutting spiraling public spending. If he is to bring Britain’s finances under control, Cameron will have to implement the kind of Thatcher-style reforms anathema to the Lib-Dems. He will also have to address the major issue of illegal immigration, a huge matter for British voters and another area where there are major differences with the Liberals; Cameron believes in tighter controls, while Clegg has called for a deeply unpopular amnesty. The gulf is also vast between the parties on Europe, national security, defense, and foreign policy, and it is hard to see how the two sides can bridge the divide in these areas.

The main dangers of this arrangement are early paralysis within the new government or the watering down of key policies needed to enable an economic recovery. There is also the threat of the Liberals being part of the cabinet while actively working with the Labour opposition to undermine the Conservative agenda. The omens certainly don’t look good on the coalition front, and Cameron will need all his skills as the youngest prime minister in 200 years to steer his new government and his country through some very rough waters. In doing so, he should stick to core conservative principles and avoid making concessions to the Left. He must also look to Margaret Thatcher and Winston Churchill as his role models, great figures in British history who rescued their nation at times of great peril.

— Nile Gardiner is the director of the Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom at the Heritage Foundation.

05/11 06:13 PM

Modern Clock

Here's a very different, but interesting, way to present the current time:

More clocks here

BC Place: Before, During, & After the 2010 Olympics

Vancouver Today

I walked across the Granville Street Bridge this afternoon. Did see False Creek's new famous visitor but did capture some other colourful scenes.

Dennis Miller Fighting Back the Tide of Political Correctness

Behind the Scenes Tour of the Vancouver Planetarium

Tax Breakdown of a Recent Flight from Vancouver to Mexico City

Here's an example of all the taxes added to your flight costs these days - aka how various government agencies dip their beaks into your hard earned money. :-(

Vancouver Today