Views from Around Vanier Park

Flowers & Bees

New Jersey is the Canary in the Financial Mineshaft

This morning on the Corus radio stations, Michael Campbell spoke at length (beginning at 34:00) about this story. Here's a key segment:

Eileen Norcross, a George Mason University researcher who issued a report on the New Jersey pension system last month, is succinct: "It's mathematically impossible to pay this out. It's too large."

How New Jersey arrived at this moment in time is not a mystery. The decisions by governors, state legislators and union leaders have been chronicled by newspapers and in policy reports for two decades.

Experts and leaders by and large agree on what happened and why. In short, politicians looking to win elections, or just balance the state budget, either promised richer benefits or failed to find a way to make the necessary contributions each year for the benefits that would someday come due.

New Jersey may very well be the first to raise the white flag but it certainly won't be the last. California and New York seem to be in the same boat. Perhaps every U.S. state is? And I suspect that more than a few Canadian provinces are as well. So is the same with every country in Europe.

One thing is for sure: The coming decade will be an "interesting one" to say the least!

A Few Thoughts About Religion vs. Atheism

I recently observed an online argument about the age-old question of whether God exists. I never get involved in such "debates" any more for one simple reason: It's pointless!

The Atheism vs. Religion debate is because it has heretofore been impossible to DEFINITELY PROVE one's beliefs either way.

With that said, I fully respect every religious person's view, as long as their religion is not forcefully violating other people's human rights. (Note: I rarely use those last two words without quotes but it's most appropriate here.)

I have no respect for Atheism for one simple reason: The belief system is completely flawed by one simple question - "If there is no higher power out there then how did we get everything we see around us today?"  The instant response to this most of the time is, "The Big Bang".  But that's insufficient, for what existed before this grand event?  It all comes down to the simple fact that you can't get matter and/or energy from nothing.  But yet we all exist.  So there's clearly something more going on that none of us are capable of understanding.  The fact that atheists refuse to deal with this salient point not only illustrates their lack of intellectual curiosity but also completely disqualifies their belief system.

As for me, I was raised as a Roman Catholic but long ago fell away from the church.  I fully respect and appreciate the beliefs of my many Christian friends but I have to be true to myself.  And in my heart & in my head I can't honestly say that I'm convinced that God is an older gentleman with a white beard, that we only have one life on Earth, and that after this life we either go to Heaven or Hell.  God Bless those who truly believe all of this - and they may very well be 100% correct - but it just doesn't sit quite right with me at this juncture in my life.

Dear Canadians, Here's What the Federal Liberal Party Thinks of You

This is actually a mock poll created by the Liberal Party of Canada purportedly to show what a future poll from Stephen Harper's party would entail.  In truth though, it clearly reveals the disdain that Liberals have for Canadians who aren't in lockstep with them.  If you haven't voted for the Liberals in some time then realize that the next time you speak with one of their representatives that they think the following of you:

1. You are not capable of independent thought.
2. If you don't watch the CBC then you are a lesser Canadian.
3. You probably don't own any books and likely haven't read one in some time.
4. If you've ever voted for Stephen Harper then you view him as a King (ie. "dictator").
5. If you dare to question the Climate Change fear mongering perpetrated by Stephane Dion, David Suzuki, Al Gore, Michael Mann, and a host of others then you are an idiot and a "denier" (akin to a Holocaust Denier).
6. You are a misogynist.
7. Any questions you have about how governments spend your money shows you to be an unloyal Canadian.

Make no mistake, that's the how "brain trust" in the Liberal Party of Canada (and their comrades in the mainstream media) view you if you don't support them.  Please remember that the next time you're heading into a Canadian Federal Election.

hat tip Louise

A Salute to Hirsi Ali

On the same day, two completely different blogs I read posted two different videos of Hirsi Ali, the very brave Somali woman who is speaking out against the terrible aspects of Islam as well as the Left's de facto support of the religion's horrific practices.

Here's the first video I learned of from a Saskatchewan blogger named Louise. She provided some interesting insight into the mindset of the interviewer, Jian Ghomeshi: "... a Muslim by birth, a Canadian by birth, an Iranian by ancestry. He's as quintessentially Canadian as they come. Perhaps the most influential force in his life, as evidenced by his radio and TV roles, may be the Torontonians' uber-liberal apologist mindset that makes him a natural for the CBC. As usual, Hirsi Ali is brilliant and handles his asinine questions with finesse. Around the 40 minute mark I'd be more inclined to loose my cool and start shouting at him, if I hadn't done already, but Hirsi Ali adeptly, calmly skewers him."


A good follow-up is this pair of videos from an interview in Australia, which I learned of from Amy Alkon:



What Hirsi Ali is saying is of course true for anyone with any semblance of Common Sense. But her views are diametrically opposed to the Left's "great" narrative that all cultures are absolutely equal. But dare question why cultures that support honour killing and female genital mutilation are equal to ours and you are deemed a bigot by the Left.

Which, by the way, raises an interesting side point: I fully agree with Dennis Prager's theory that most people who identify themselves to be "on the Left" or "liberals" actually are NOT. For if you were to discuss individual issues like this one with them, they would adamantly disagree with the official Leftist position.

Therefore, what percentage of our population are actually truly Leftists? If it's more than 2 - 3% I'd be shocked. Will historians 100 Years from now look back and wonder how such a tiny minority of the population was able to seize control of the reins of power (political, academic, media) and steer it in such a destructive direction?

A Great Profile of Amy Alkon

Amy Alkon is an internationally syndicated writer based in Los Angeles. I love reading her blog every day because she writes directly & frankly and never from the perspective of a victim.  A comprehensive profile of her has just been published in the Illinois Times.

Watch Michael Mann Run & Hide

Most every day I listen to an excellent 4-hour podcast (minus commercials) from John Batchelor at WABC in New York City.  I just heard him talking with Bob Zimmerman about this story.  The actual segment can be found here beginning at 18:45.  It's an absolutely beautiful thing to learn about Michael Mann squirming - what a fraud!

Governor Chris Christie Talks with Devout Democrat Matt Lauer

The Obama Volt: Another Expected Failure

The Obama Volt is going to be a huge sales disaster. No reasonable person is going to spend US$41K on a car that only goes 64km before the gasoline engine has to kick in.

Full story here

Morgan Freeman on America's So-Called Racial Divide

Morgan Freeman has some interesting comments that tie directly in with those so casually & frequently throwing around the "R-word" these days.

Two Views of Liberal Journalists

Serious: Mark Judge

Not So Serious: Matt LaBash

Beautiful Vancouver in the Summer

I hosted my 2nd Annual Beach BBQ down at the juncture of Locarno & Jericho beaches. Though I was busy much of the day hosting guests ranging in age from 4 to 78, I was able to capture a few shots during the slow times.  Vancouver sure is a beautiful place when it's sunny!!!

Question: What do you get when you put 400 Leftists in a Room?

Be that room physical or virtual, Tucker Carlson has the answer.

The Best Definition of "Elites" You Will Ever Read

A must read from Victor Davis Hanson.  Here's a sampling:

There is little logic among the cultural elite, maybe because there is little omnipresent fear of job losses or the absence of money, and so arises a rather comfortable margin to indulge in nonsense. The idea that taxes cause scarcity, and subsidy abundance is a foreign concept. The notion that entitlements create dependency is considered Neanderthal. Tough penalties supposedly do not deter crime. Abroad, military preparedness or deterrence pales in comparison to “soft” diplomatic power and clever talking. Borrowing trillions is “stimulus” and need not quite be paid back. In other words, take a deep breath and imagine the opposite of everything you know by experience to be true, and you have mostly the worldview of the sheltered cultural elite, who navigate in rather protected channels and not in the open seas of the real world.

Pundits Weigh in on the Journolist Scandal

Radio commentator Dennis Prager, writing on the NAACP's attack on "racist elements" of the tea party at RealClearPolitics.com:
The charge of racism leveled by liberal organizations, whether black or white, is now regarded as the politically motivated falsehood that it is. It is rightly seen, along with its six siblings—sexism, xenophobia, intolerance, bigotry, homophobia and 'Islamophobia'—as the Left's way of avoiding argument by demeaning its opponents. . . . One day, the charge loses all its moral power. That happened this past year as a result of the liberal attacks on conservative opposition to Obama as racially based. Every conservative knows that opposition to the Obama and Democratic agenda has nothing to do with the president's color. Does any liberal honestly believe that if Nancy Pelosi or Harry Reid were president and pursued the same Leftist agenda Obama has, there would be less conservative opposition because Pelosi and Reid are white? So, something good has come of this: the de-fanging of the 'racist' label. It no longer intimidates conservatives as it once did.

Byron York, writing yesterday in the Washington Examiner:
This morning I asked Rush Limbaugh what he thought of references to him on the private left-wing journalist discussion group JournoList. As reported in the Daily Caller, Sarah Spitz, producer of the KCRW public radio program "Left, Right and Center," which is heard on a number of NPR stations across the country, wrote on JournoList that if she witnessed Limbaugh dying of a heart attack, she would "laugh loudly like a maniac and watch his eyes bug out." . . . "Not having wished anyone dead, nor having fantasized about watching someone die, I cannot possibly relate to this," Limbaugh responded.

"I can only surmise. I think most people on the left live in a world where merit is irrelevant. Theirs is a world in which connections, networking, kissing ass and obedient sameness are rewarded. I am the antithesis of all that. I am a legitimate, achieved and accomplished Number One and I've made it on my own and without them and without having followed their proscriptions. . . .

"Funny thing . . . a number of my friends sent me the Daily Caller piece and the most shocking thing to them in the story was the advocacy of having government shut down Fox News. That the left wants me dead was not a big deal to them because it was nothing new to them. I think that's hilarious. And about that: how about the LAW professor, Jonathan Zasloff, who thinks the FCC can pull Fox's license? Fox does not have a license. The FCC does not grant Fox its right to exist."

How many times can "Right Wing" be uttered in a scary way in one interview segment?

You can listen to CKNW's Bill Not So Good discuss the new "right wing" Canadian TV station with Monty Paulson and Norman Spector. The fun begins at 19:00.

Ron Harwell for Congress

Do you think the NAACP will be supporting Ron Harwell???

July 20, 1969

Birds at Lost Lagoon

Not bad for an iPhone 3GS photo, I think.  Touched up a bit with my photo editor.

The Hypocrites of Earth Day

Pat Condell: The Enemy Within

Faux Human Rights in Canada

Vancouver - A Day in the Life

Birds-eye View of Downtown Vancouver

The Olympic Rings at Cypress Mountain

The View from Eagle Bluffs

I went on a terrific hike to Eagle Bluffs. The views overlooking West Vancouver are spectacular!

The Insight of Dennis Miller

Paraphrasing: "How is it that on Star Trek, hundreds of years in the future, when spaceships can fly across the galaxy and matter can literally be transported through space, that we still see bald guys on the Enterprise? I mean, don't you think they'd have solved the male cue-ball problem by then?!"

Example #42,879 of the CBC's Biased Reporting

No editorializing in this news story, eh?! Wither journalism.

CBC News and the Liberal War Room are back to their dual purposing. And your tax dollars and mine are paying for it. :-(

Miniature Vancouver

I don't entirely understand how this time-lapse video was shot but apparently it involves the use of a tilt-shift lens.

Should the Mainstream Media Be Bailed Out?

Scratch a Liberal, Find a Bigot

Here's a discussion I had online with a typical Canadian Leftist hypocrite over this article: