“Demand will be generated by companies, not
generated by individuals living in other countries,”
that is fundamental. that is key. and, that is supposed to be at the heart of the pearsonian system that the liberal party created.
now, if we could democratize the workplace, that would be even better. but, if we had a democratized workplace, it would nonetheless fall upon those co-operatives to request workers. so, let's not get tangled up: this is the way this ought to work, regardless.
it is the most obvious thing in the world to state that immigration levels and targets should be determined by canadians in a way that utilizes a concept of centralized planning, not left to some abstraction of a "market" to figure out.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/canada-to-make-skilled-worker-permits-easier-to-get-in-wake-of-us-delays/article34246962/
Thursday, March 9, 2017
this is more along the lines of what one expects from the liberals on immigration. hopefully, they maintain this focus on bringing in skilled labour, and slow down on the refugees...
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/canada-to-make-skilled-worker-permits-easier-to-get-in-wake-of-us-delays/article34246962/
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/canada-to-make-skilled-worker-permits-easier-to-get-in-wake-of-us-delays/article34246962/
“It’s a terrible idea for so many reasons . . . we’re using legal
resources to try to shut down dispensaries when it’s going to be legal
soon,”
yeah. that seems crazy, doesn't it?
unless.....
https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2017/03/09/prince-and-princess-of-pot-reportedly-arrested-at-toronto-airport.html
yeah. that seems crazy, doesn't it?
unless.....
https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2017/03/09/prince-and-princess-of-pot-reportedly-arrested-at-toronto-airport.html
and, fwiw, i'd be lying if i told you i haven't had an erection in years, but i'd be honest if i told you i haven't wanted to have an erection in years - and i'd be honest if i told you that the only erections i've had in years are nrbs.
they come and go when i'm like washing the dishes or reading the news or something, and my only reaction almost all of the time is to curse it as an annoyance and go pop another cyproterone.
and, what is cyproterone? well, there's a few different testosterone suppressors that i could be using, but i use the cyproterone because it's covered on the disability drug plan. the reason it's covered is that it's sometimes prescribed as a way to chemically castrate sex offenders.
that's right - i take a drug that is covered by public drug insurance to reduce the sex drive of pedophiles and rapists. and, i do it by choice.
it works, too - i am almost impossible to arouse on purpose. they really only come randomly, and only in terms of an annoyance.
that said, i do still have sex dreams from time to time and this is the only circumstance where i may actually orgasm. but, here's the thing: i'm chemically castrated. so, i'm not producing sperm. so, when i orgasm, i don't ejaculate.
that's right: i cannot cum. it is not physically possible for me to do so, when i am taking heavy-duty testosterone suppressors. that's what the suppressors actually do: they make it almost impossible to arouse me, and literally impossible for me to ejaculate.
so, what was that that you were saying?
they come and go when i'm like washing the dishes or reading the news or something, and my only reaction almost all of the time is to curse it as an annoyance and go pop another cyproterone.
and, what is cyproterone? well, there's a few different testosterone suppressors that i could be using, but i use the cyproterone because it's covered on the disability drug plan. the reason it's covered is that it's sometimes prescribed as a way to chemically castrate sex offenders.
that's right - i take a drug that is covered by public drug insurance to reduce the sex drive of pedophiles and rapists. and, i do it by choice.
it works, too - i am almost impossible to arouse on purpose. they really only come randomly, and only in terms of an annoyance.
that said, i do still have sex dreams from time to time and this is the only circumstance where i may actually orgasm. but, here's the thing: i'm chemically castrated. so, i'm not producing sperm. so, when i orgasm, i don't ejaculate.
that's right: i cannot cum. it is not physically possible for me to do so, when i am taking heavy-duty testosterone suppressors. that's what the suppressors actually do: they make it almost impossible to arouse me, and literally impossible for me to ejaculate.
so, what was that that you were saying?
so, let's try to think this through carefully.
i've been arguing at various levels of intensity, in various fora, that the left should not be acting as apologists for patriarchy through the cover of "religious freedom" - that is, it should not be throwing gays and women under the bus in a rush to stand up for ethnic diversity, and should rather take an idealistic stand against patriarchy, in all it's forms.
so, therefore i'm pro-trump? opposing religious refugees on the grounds of feminism means i'm in favour of christian extremism? right. sure. if you think you can explain that to me somewhere, go for it...
you're lost in a contradiction. and, yes: i'm shit-disturbing. but, you're going to need to work this through...
you can't be pro-religion and pro-queer and pro-woman at the same time. and, i'll continue to call you out on it for as long as you need to figure it out.
what is the truth here?
the truth is that some of the pseudo-left are, at their core, traditionalists: some of them are really in favour of upholding patriarchy deep down, and will in the end side with religion over feminism. getting them to admit this is a first step forward in throwing them out of the left - and that is something that needs to happen.
others are just hopelessly naive and need to have the truth of it held up to them in the most brutal terms possible, and these are the ones i'm more interested in targeting through agit-prop: they need to be shocked into seeing things as they really are, and in dropping their hegemonically enforced burkean delusions.
once again: i am not a pc-worshipping millenial progressive democrat that wants peace and love, and i'm certainly not a white supremacist christian republican that wants to run the world out of the back of the bible. what i am is an atheistic anarcho-communist gen x punk that wants to agitate and irritate and shit-disturb people into fighting against religion, against patriarchy and against capital. and, it's up to you to determine whether we have common cause or not.
i've been arguing at various levels of intensity, in various fora, that the left should not be acting as apologists for patriarchy through the cover of "religious freedom" - that is, it should not be throwing gays and women under the bus in a rush to stand up for ethnic diversity, and should rather take an idealistic stand against patriarchy, in all it's forms.
so, therefore i'm pro-trump? opposing religious refugees on the grounds of feminism means i'm in favour of christian extremism? right. sure. if you think you can explain that to me somewhere, go for it...
you're lost in a contradiction. and, yes: i'm shit-disturbing. but, you're going to need to work this through...
you can't be pro-religion and pro-queer and pro-woman at the same time. and, i'll continue to call you out on it for as long as you need to figure it out.
what is the truth here?
the truth is that some of the pseudo-left are, at their core, traditionalists: some of them are really in favour of upholding patriarchy deep down, and will in the end side with religion over feminism. getting them to admit this is a first step forward in throwing them out of the left - and that is something that needs to happen.
others are just hopelessly naive and need to have the truth of it held up to them in the most brutal terms possible, and these are the ones i'm more interested in targeting through agit-prop: they need to be shocked into seeing things as they really are, and in dropping their hegemonically enforced burkean delusions.
once again: i am not a pc-worshipping millenial progressive democrat that wants peace and love, and i'm certainly not a white supremacist christian republican that wants to run the world out of the back of the bible. what i am is an atheistic anarcho-communist gen x punk that wants to agitate and irritate and shit-disturb people into fighting against religion, against patriarchy and against capital. and, it's up to you to determine whether we have common cause or not.
i haven't read the case, but the entire premise of a judge citing the
criminal code in a ruling is pretty weird, to begin with. that's
something they'd do in, like, france, or something. in the british
common law system, a judge is supposed to consult previous judicial
precedent. stare decisis.
about the only way a judge could have missed that a section has been struck down is if he never bothered to look up the precedent in the first place, and i don't even know what you do when a judge is refusing to consult precedent. it's probably without precedent. i mean, maybe there's an answer, i don't know. but, you'd think it's grounds for removal from the bench.
i mean, that is the job of a judge - to consult precedent and rule accordingly. if a judge is refusing to to do his job, he should be removed.
this is no doubt long overdue, as a clerical procedure. but, let us not believe that the problem here is that the code was not amended; the problem here is that the judge is not consulting precedent.
http://globalnews.ca/news/2945753/travis-vader-verdict-what-is-section-230-of-the-criminal-code/
about the only way a judge could have missed that a section has been struck down is if he never bothered to look up the precedent in the first place, and i don't even know what you do when a judge is refusing to consult precedent. it's probably without precedent. i mean, maybe there's an answer, i don't know. but, you'd think it's grounds for removal from the bench.
i mean, that is the job of a judge - to consult precedent and rule accordingly. if a judge is refusing to to do his job, he should be removed.
this is no doubt long overdue, as a clerical procedure. but, let us not believe that the problem here is that the code was not amended; the problem here is that the judge is not consulting precedent.
http://globalnews.ca/news/2945753/travis-vader-verdict-what-is-section-230-of-the-criminal-code/
no.
arabs can not say "nigger". ever. and, if you don't realize how uncontroversial my condemnation is, or how repulsive the premise is, you are simply ignorant of the history.
arabs ran a brutal african slave trade for roughly a thousand years. and, literal chattel slavery in the arabian peninsula was not abolished until the 1960s and 1970s - although everybody knows that it still continues.
if you ever see an arab utter the term, you should punch him in the fucking face.
arabs can not say "nigger". ever. and, if you don't realize how uncontroversial my condemnation is, or how repulsive the premise is, you are simply ignorant of the history.
arabs ran a brutal african slave trade for roughly a thousand years. and, literal chattel slavery in the arabian peninsula was not abolished until the 1960s and 1970s - although everybody knows that it still continues.
if you ever see an arab utter the term, you should punch him in the fucking face.
Wednesday, March 8, 2017
i actually think that this is missing the point.
let's take a step back and understand that obamacare was exactly what the insurance company wanted, which is why they gave obama so much money. more people have health insurance than ever before. insurance premiums are going up. ka-ching!!
the mandate may be unpopular among some buyers, but the sellers couldn't ask for a better system. it's a law that forces you to buy their product...
so, trump's promise to drop the mandate is an immediate threat to the insurance industry because it threatens to take away customers - and in fact threatens to take away the most profitable ones, the healthy ones.
the penalty is merely designed to stop people from dropping the insurance, that is to prevent the insurance companies from losing customers. this is how government actually works: the parties collude with capital to fuck people over. so, the democrats are just passing the baton, here. obama signed them up, and now trump is locking them in.
http://www.vox.com/2017/3/7/14841682/republican-replacement-individual-mandate-cartoon
let's take a step back and understand that obamacare was exactly what the insurance company wanted, which is why they gave obama so much money. more people have health insurance than ever before. insurance premiums are going up. ka-ching!!
the mandate may be unpopular among some buyers, but the sellers couldn't ask for a better system. it's a law that forces you to buy their product...
so, trump's promise to drop the mandate is an immediate threat to the insurance industry because it threatens to take away customers - and in fact threatens to take away the most profitable ones, the healthy ones.
the penalty is merely designed to stop people from dropping the insurance, that is to prevent the insurance companies from losing customers. this is how government actually works: the parties collude with capital to fuck people over. so, the democrats are just passing the baton, here. obama signed them up, and now trump is locking them in.
http://www.vox.com/2017/3/7/14841682/republican-replacement-individual-mandate-cartoon
somebody has to do the actual procedure, though.
i'm going to call the office back in the morning, explain to the secretary that the doctor may have been operating on old information and set up a second appointment to give him an opportunity to correct himself. i'll bring in the relevant documents.
i'm not infallible, either.
i'm going to call the office back in the morning, explain to the secretary that the doctor may have been operating on old information and set up a second appointment to give him an opportunity to correct himself. i'll bring in the relevant documents.
i'm not infallible, either.
ok. ok.
i'm probably not wrong.
but, the current funding/approval regime is only a year old, and the urologist could simply be working with out of date information in terms of understanding how this works. i should have done the research and brought that information with me, and should take a little bit of responsibility for being unprepared.
i still think it's gotta be up to the doctor to know this.
but the end result is that i don't think i need the specialist. i think i can just print the papers off and go from there.
i'm probably not wrong.
but, the current funding/approval regime is only a year old, and the urologist could simply be working with out of date information in terms of understanding how this works. i should have done the research and brought that information with me, and should take a little bit of responsibility for being unprepared.
i still think it's gotta be up to the doctor to know this.
but the end result is that i don't think i need the specialist. i think i can just print the papers off and go from there.
yeah.
it would require some paperwork, but the doctor was a liar that was clearly just trying to avoid the topic. and, i don't have the time or interest to push back: i'm just going to ask to see another urologist. and then another. and another. until i find one that will do it...
orchidectomy is clearly listed in the approved procedures. gender dysphoria is signed off by three doctors on my disability papers (2015), but i could just as easily get my gp and the specialist to do it - that's not a substantial hurdle. i suppose the ministry could be stupid about it, but that's a different issue altogether.
so: the doctor was lying. he's probably actually just a no good fucking christian, and operating on a basic concept of religious patriarchy. and, you wonder why i'm constantly pushing back against the so-called left's permissiveness towards religious backwardsness?
it's clearly listed. he's clearly full of shit. i should go after him. i have better things to do...
this is still happening, it just might be a little slower. and, i'll be sure to print that page off for future reference.
http://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/pro/programs/srs/
it would require some paperwork, but the doctor was a liar that was clearly just trying to avoid the topic. and, i don't have the time or interest to push back: i'm just going to ask to see another urologist. and then another. and another. until i find one that will do it...
orchidectomy is clearly listed in the approved procedures. gender dysphoria is signed off by three doctors on my disability papers (2015), but i could just as easily get my gp and the specialist to do it - that's not a substantial hurdle. i suppose the ministry could be stupid about it, but that's a different issue altogether.
so: the doctor was lying. he's probably actually just a no good fucking christian, and operating on a basic concept of religious patriarchy. and, you wonder why i'm constantly pushing back against the so-called left's permissiveness towards religious backwardsness?
it's clearly listed. he's clearly full of shit. i should go after him. i have better things to do...
this is still happening, it just might be a little slower. and, i'll be sure to print that page off for future reference.
http://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/pro/programs/srs/
yeah. i went for a walk today and while i didn't see any smashed cars, i did see a lot of shingles and a lot of branches.
it's weird because there's no rain. at all. it's just the cold wind coming in...
http://blackburnnews.com/windsor/windsor-news/2017/03/08/gallery-high-winds-causing-damage/
i was considering several shows this month, but none of them are particularly compelling and the turn towards colder weather is probably going to land me inside. i'm getting warm days when the schedule clears, and cold days when i want to do something...
maybe i'll end up buying some wood and building those shelves. or maybe the next few months will be that much more eventful.
my head is basically fixed, and i'm leaning strongly towards the aspirin thinning the blood out. just to follow up on that: i haven't taken any all week, and i'm not feeling any symptoms returning. but, i've passed a substantial amount of dried blood through my nose, which is upholding my narrative about what was happening. this isn't like dry air; it's thick, and clumpy. it's been a few days since that happened, now, even...
i saw the urologist today, and he told me that my request is rational and he'd even like to help me but he'd lose his license if he did it. i'm not convinced that this is true, and think it's just a pc cover, so i'm going to have to follow up on his statements on my own and go from there. i have a checkup in april, and will have to ask for a rec to a different urologist. but, i'm actually considering challenging the college. i should have autonomy here, and the college should be pushing back at him for denying me access, not punishing him for facilitating it. i mean, what's the value in forcing me to keep the testicles if i don't want them? that's irrational...
i should be tired, but i'm not and i feel like i'm up for the night. i had a two hour nap this morning and a two hour nap this afternoon, but am otherwise running on about a 36 hour day with no real end in sight. i have actually been making progress on the concert page, i just keep adding components, and should have an update soon.
it's weird because there's no rain. at all. it's just the cold wind coming in...
http://blackburnnews.com/windsor/windsor-news/2017/03/08/gallery-high-winds-causing-damage/
i was considering several shows this month, but none of them are particularly compelling and the turn towards colder weather is probably going to land me inside. i'm getting warm days when the schedule clears, and cold days when i want to do something...
maybe i'll end up buying some wood and building those shelves. or maybe the next few months will be that much more eventful.
my head is basically fixed, and i'm leaning strongly towards the aspirin thinning the blood out. just to follow up on that: i haven't taken any all week, and i'm not feeling any symptoms returning. but, i've passed a substantial amount of dried blood through my nose, which is upholding my narrative about what was happening. this isn't like dry air; it's thick, and clumpy. it's been a few days since that happened, now, even...
i saw the urologist today, and he told me that my request is rational and he'd even like to help me but he'd lose his license if he did it. i'm not convinced that this is true, and think it's just a pc cover, so i'm going to have to follow up on his statements on my own and go from there. i have a checkup in april, and will have to ask for a rec to a different urologist. but, i'm actually considering challenging the college. i should have autonomy here, and the college should be pushing back at him for denying me access, not punishing him for facilitating it. i mean, what's the value in forcing me to keep the testicles if i don't want them? that's irrational...
i should be tired, but i'm not and i feel like i'm up for the night. i had a two hour nap this morning and a two hour nap this afternoon, but am otherwise running on about a 36 hour day with no real end in sight. i have actually been making progress on the concert page, i just keep adding components, and should have an update soon.
this comes up every once in a while here, and is a good example of the kind of demagoguery we routinely receive from the conservative party.
what's happening is that the province is opening new schools and then shutting down old ones that are half empty or falling apart. the conservatives then grasp on to the number of schools that are closing and say "look! they're closing schools!". they make it seem like the students are being trucked off to the gulag, or something, rather than being bussed into newer facilities with broader options.
consider something like a music class. the province can't afford to put a music class in every school, and can't staff it, either. but, if you have less schools then you can focus resources more effectively, allowing for greater access to more specialized topics.
but, that's not even what i wanted to say. what i wanted to say is this: when are we going to talk about abolishing the catholic schools? i'm willing to make today all about that. and tomorrow. and the next day...
https://www.thestar.com/news/queenspark/2017/03/07/pc-leader-patrick-brown-calls-for-halt-to-school-closures.html
what's happening is that the province is opening new schools and then shutting down old ones that are half empty or falling apart. the conservatives then grasp on to the number of schools that are closing and say "look! they're closing schools!". they make it seem like the students are being trucked off to the gulag, or something, rather than being bussed into newer facilities with broader options.
consider something like a music class. the province can't afford to put a music class in every school, and can't staff it, either. but, if you have less schools then you can focus resources more effectively, allowing for greater access to more specialized topics.
but, that's not even what i wanted to say. what i wanted to say is this: when are we going to talk about abolishing the catholic schools? i'm willing to make today all about that. and tomorrow. and the next day...
https://www.thestar.com/news/queenspark/2017/03/07/pc-leader-patrick-brown-calls-for-halt-to-school-closures.html
this is the debate you should be having, but won't have.
you could always scour it for points and tactically insert them in order to try and steer the debate towards the fundamental problem, which is that markets cannot deliver healthcare efficiently due to the nature of the product, itself. the rest of the world is aware of this....
i'm not going to get involved in a debate between trumpcare and obamacare. they both suck. and, i'm not going to lend rhetorical support to groups standing up for obamacare, either.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3210041/
at the end of the day, i don't expect that trump's healthcare plan will be much more than a glossy tweak over the existing one, because the existing one is basically what the republicans always wanted in the first place. the media narrative is going to seek to divide people along partisan lines, and exaggerate minor differences in order to do so. lots of people will fall for it. and, mainstream democrats will, in the end, push down the line that the party supports obamacare....
just get out. the party is actively attempting to manipulate you into supporting a policy you know is shit. you shouldn't fall for this. and you shouldn't settle for it...
if the democrats surprise me, so be it. but, if they keep pushing obamacare, then this ought to be where they meet their end.
you could always scour it for points and tactically insert them in order to try and steer the debate towards the fundamental problem, which is that markets cannot deliver healthcare efficiently due to the nature of the product, itself. the rest of the world is aware of this....
i'm not going to get involved in a debate between trumpcare and obamacare. they both suck. and, i'm not going to lend rhetorical support to groups standing up for obamacare, either.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3210041/
at the end of the day, i don't expect that trump's healthcare plan will be much more than a glossy tweak over the existing one, because the existing one is basically what the republicans always wanted in the first place. the media narrative is going to seek to divide people along partisan lines, and exaggerate minor differences in order to do so. lots of people will fall for it. and, mainstream democrats will, in the end, push down the line that the party supports obamacare....
just get out. the party is actively attempting to manipulate you into supporting a policy you know is shit. you shouldn't fall for this. and you shouldn't settle for it...
if the democrats surprise me, so be it. but, if they keep pushing obamacare, then this ought to be where they meet their end.
the day without women thing is a little bit different than the day without immigrants thing because at least the issue can be openly discussed without fear of deportation.
regardless, one has to realize that a day of action is not a strike. strikes are not effective because they appeal to a sense of morality or uphold a concept of righteousness, they're valuable because they deny productivity to capital, or, better, because they shut down production altogether.
if this day of action were a prelude to a general strike, i'd heartily endorse it and actively organize for it. but, that is not going to be what happens.
this is consequently at best a waste of time.
but the reality is that there are going to be ununionized women that are going to get fired, and they will have few legal options at their disposal, if they can afford them. you have to weigh a complex of things together, including long term pr issues and even the views of the employers. but, if anything, employers are going to have less incentives to not fire women that walk out because they don't have to worry about getting busted hiring illegals.
people that want to talk about free speech don't understand what free speech is.
co-ordinated strike action is necessary. but, that isn't what this is, and it's absurd to think it is.
my suspicion is that this is another government sponsored sting operation, and that it's being organized as an opportunity for capital to fire women that walk out. if you walk out and get fired, you've fallen into a trap that was set for you.
but, hey, weigh your own risks and come to your own conclusions.
regardless, one has to realize that a day of action is not a strike. strikes are not effective because they appeal to a sense of morality or uphold a concept of righteousness, they're valuable because they deny productivity to capital, or, better, because they shut down production altogether.
if this day of action were a prelude to a general strike, i'd heartily endorse it and actively organize for it. but, that is not going to be what happens.
this is consequently at best a waste of time.
but the reality is that there are going to be ununionized women that are going to get fired, and they will have few legal options at their disposal, if they can afford them. you have to weigh a complex of things together, including long term pr issues and even the views of the employers. but, if anything, employers are going to have less incentives to not fire women that walk out because they don't have to worry about getting busted hiring illegals.
people that want to talk about free speech don't understand what free speech is.
co-ordinated strike action is necessary. but, that isn't what this is, and it's absurd to think it is.
my suspicion is that this is another government sponsored sting operation, and that it's being organized as an opportunity for capital to fire women that walk out. if you walk out and get fired, you've fallen into a trap that was set for you.
but, hey, weigh your own risks and come to your own conclusions.
feminism is about abolishing the hetero-patriarchy and replacing it with a system that does not implement a systemic bias. but, you wouldn't expect a yoga teacher to promote abolishing patriarchy...you would expect a yoga teacher to uphold outdated concepts of the traditional family. this co-option of liberalism by forces that want a return to traditionalism (i.e. conservatives) has been sneaking up on us for years, you've just been in denial about it because you want liberals to be the anti-thesis of conservatives. yet, liberals have been looking you in the eye for years and telling you that they want bipartisan consensus with conservatives.
that said, it's often useful to take a step back and question motives. this post was probably meant as a divide and conquer tactic - it's probably meant to pit leftists against liberals, and then let the liberals come out as the champions of family values, in order to create a greater appeal to the right. this is consistent with everything else that the liberals are doing right now to try and take over the right by pushing the conservatives out of the spectrum by adopting conservative positions.
i would actually like to see this debate happen, but only on realistic terms - and the reality is that the liberals are trying to dump feminism on to the ndp in order to claim the mantle of family values from the conservatives, in line with their demographic strategy to shift the country to the right by bringing in more religious people. and, we need to collectively clue into this and reject it in the strongest possible terms.
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2017/03/07/sophie-gregoire-trudeau-men-international-womens-day_n_15213718.html
that said, it's often useful to take a step back and question motives. this post was probably meant as a divide and conquer tactic - it's probably meant to pit leftists against liberals, and then let the liberals come out as the champions of family values, in order to create a greater appeal to the right. this is consistent with everything else that the liberals are doing right now to try and take over the right by pushing the conservatives out of the spectrum by adopting conservative positions.
i would actually like to see this debate happen, but only on realistic terms - and the reality is that the liberals are trying to dump feminism on to the ndp in order to claim the mantle of family values from the conservatives, in line with their demographic strategy to shift the country to the right by bringing in more religious people. and, we need to collectively clue into this and reject it in the strongest possible terms.
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2017/03/07/sophie-gregoire-trudeau-men-international-womens-day_n_15213718.html
Tuesday, March 7, 2017
the narrative is losing the reality that the presidency has been stating
false claims for years, without releasing evidence.
consider the dossier tying al qaeda to 9/11: it was never released. there remains no real evidence that bin laden orchestrated 9/11. we just believe what they say. and about those weapons of mass destruction....
the error here is thinking that this is unprecedented; it isn't. it's absolutely normal, standard operating procedure for the white house to release false statements without evidence, and expect the press to run with them.
what you need is a little levity, here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0Pt5oGVR50
consider the dossier tying al qaeda to 9/11: it was never released. there remains no real evidence that bin laden orchestrated 9/11. we just believe what they say. and about those weapons of mass destruction....
the error here is thinking that this is unprecedented; it isn't. it's absolutely normal, standard operating procedure for the white house to release false statements without evidence, and expect the press to run with them.
what you need is a little levity, here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0Pt5oGVR50
Monday, March 6, 2017
and, should the americans in turn decide our immigration and border policies?
what a buffoon.
i get that he's trying to score cheap political points, but this is not described in any other terms: this is sheer idiocy.
http://globalnews.ca/video/3290983/mulcair-calls-on-trudeau-to-stand-up-for-canadians-being-turned-away-from-u-s/?utm_source=Article&utm_medium=MostPopularVideo&utm_campaign=2017
what a buffoon.
i get that he's trying to score cheap political points, but this is not described in any other terms: this is sheer idiocy.
http://globalnews.ca/video/3290983/mulcair-calls-on-trudeau-to-stand-up-for-canadians-being-turned-away-from-u-s/?utm_source=Article&utm_medium=MostPopularVideo&utm_campaign=2017
Sunday, March 5, 2017
Saturday, March 4, 2017
these people aren't communists, they're brainwashed automatons of the bourgeois status quo, and have been triggered by the language installed within them, as gramsci described.
if marx were alive, he'd be explaining how the bourgeois parliament - with the help of the conservative press - has brilliantly constructed a plan to divide workers by discussing the empty irrelevance of a motion on "islamophobia", without even defining what it even means, and that these idiots are falling all over themselves over it to fight each other in a pointless intra-class struggle. he'd further explain that workers needs to put aside these petty differences and unite against their common enemy, which is the bourgeoisie, in seizing the means of production.
while a less dramatic observer may be correct to point out that marx would essentially be constructing a conspiracy theory, and that the parliament is truly not so brilliant, marx would nonetheless be correct in his basic observation: this is divide and conquer, and these people are idiots, all around.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/far-right-groups-opponents-clash-at-montreal-protest-against-federal-islamophobia-motion-1.4010179
if marx were alive, he'd be explaining how the bourgeois parliament - with the help of the conservative press - has brilliantly constructed a plan to divide workers by discussing the empty irrelevance of a motion on "islamophobia", without even defining what it even means, and that these idiots are falling all over themselves over it to fight each other in a pointless intra-class struggle. he'd further explain that workers needs to put aside these petty differences and unite against their common enemy, which is the bourgeoisie, in seizing the means of production.
while a less dramatic observer may be correct to point out that marx would essentially be constructing a conspiracy theory, and that the parliament is truly not so brilliant, marx would nonetheless be correct in his basic observation: this is divide and conquer, and these people are idiots, all around.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/far-right-groups-opponents-clash-at-montreal-protest-against-federal-islamophobia-motion-1.4010179
i tried to do this during the last election, but i'd actually like to see the ndp pick up on this point - and if they won't, i guess the conservatives doing so would at least introduce it into the discourse.
forget about scarves. you'll never get anywhere in canada by demanding that the state introduce a fashion police - all you're ever going to get is a combination of ridicule and scorn. and, i'll be the first person to point out that the premise of a state-sanctioned fashion police is truly idiotic.
but, there are legitimate integration concerns that need to be addressed and that the liberals are going to be unwilling to address, through a combination of pressure from below, a fear of being seen as anti-immigrant and just flat out denial.
so, instead of focusing on what muslims wear, why don't you focus on actual concerns in the community that need to be addressed, such as:
1) female circumcision. i've seen reports. this is a thing that is actually happening in canada, and needs to be stopped.
2) honour killings. this is something that also happens and needs special attention to prevent.
3) arranged marriages. this is not something that we should turn a blind eye to, either. the autonomy of the individual forbids this as tyrannical. liberals should be particularly aghast at the premise of one's parents determining who they marry.
4) domestic abuse. this is a broader, wider problem that extends beyond the immigrant community.
5) acceptance of non-standard sexualities. this is again a broader problem, but it is primarily an issue in communities that lack education, and turn to religion to fill a void.
it's the old cliche: not all conservatives are uneducated, but most uneducated people are conservatives. and, while it may be fitting for the conservatives to go after their own, i'd really hope that it's actually the left that stands up and puts together the necessary task forces and integration programs.
forget about scarves. you'll never get anywhere in canada by demanding that the state introduce a fashion police - all you're ever going to get is a combination of ridicule and scorn. and, i'll be the first person to point out that the premise of a state-sanctioned fashion police is truly idiotic.
but, there are legitimate integration concerns that need to be addressed and that the liberals are going to be unwilling to address, through a combination of pressure from below, a fear of being seen as anti-immigrant and just flat out denial.
so, instead of focusing on what muslims wear, why don't you focus on actual concerns in the community that need to be addressed, such as:
1) female circumcision. i've seen reports. this is a thing that is actually happening in canada, and needs to be stopped.
2) honour killings. this is something that also happens and needs special attention to prevent.
3) arranged marriages. this is not something that we should turn a blind eye to, either. the autonomy of the individual forbids this as tyrannical. liberals should be particularly aghast at the premise of one's parents determining who they marry.
4) domestic abuse. this is a broader, wider problem that extends beyond the immigrant community.
5) acceptance of non-standard sexualities. this is again a broader problem, but it is primarily an issue in communities that lack education, and turn to religion to fill a void.
it's the old cliche: not all conservatives are uneducated, but most uneducated people are conservatives. and, while it may be fitting for the conservatives to go after their own, i'd really hope that it's actually the left that stands up and puts together the necessary task forces and integration programs.
this is presented as though i'm confused when i buy soy milk instead of cow's milk, rather than making a conscious decision to avoid cow's milk for various health reasons.
https://www.thestar.com/news/world/2017/03/03/fake-milk-dairy-industry-calling-for-a-crackdown-on-almond-soy-and-rice-milks.html
https://www.thestar.com/news/world/2017/03/03/fake-milk-dairy-industry-calling-for-a-crackdown-on-almond-soy-and-rice-milks.html
i did a bunch of research into this a few years ago, as i was writing an essay on the indian act for a course in indigenous law.
there are two groups indigenous to the island of newfoundland: the inuit and the beothuk. the beothuk were indeed eliminated from the island by a process of genocide that is largely unrecognized, so any claims that the island was free of indigenous groups is based on the premise that this genocide was "successful". and, you will not find any trace of the beothuk, no matter how hard you look. inuit groups remain, but they are transient over the pack ice. the mik'maq are indigenous to the atlantic mainland; any mik'maq claiming status in newfoundland have migrated there since contact, and making such a claim for indigenous status in an area migrated to post-contact essentially doesn't make sense under the judicial precedent, which requires groups to demonstrate a connection to the land that precedes contact, whenever it was (and this area, being the closest to western europe, had the earliest contact....).
but, all you need to do is look at the pictures to come to the obvious truth: these people are europeans, and that is blatantly obvious.
in fact, much testing has been done on this point. the harsh, difficult truth is that most of the indigenous groups in the eastern coast have r1* in the y-dna in proportions approaching or exceeding 50%, and there are even a few groups that are over 80% r1* in the y-dna. what this indicates is that not just many but most of these indigenous groups are actually of primarily european patrilineal ancestry, and that their indigenous component is strictly matrilineal. and, this is in fact a very common consequence of colonialism: the colonizing group takes the women from the colonized group, either through consent or more often by force, and then prioritizes the interests of it's own offspring over those of the purely indigenous pairings, which eventually asserts the colonizing dna as dominant, even when the indigenous culture prevails.
this creates a real problem for the state, which is now in the awkward position of handing out special rights to what are essentially european groups. they rarely speak the language, and the truth is that the only connection they have to their matrilineal ancestry is in the preservation of survivalist tactics. that is, the only remnants of the indigenous culture that have survived are those that were necessary for the colonizers to adopt in order to adapt.
that said, it really demonstrates that culture is a social construct and not a biological one. we don't pass down culture through genes, we teach it in social relationships. these people may not be genetically indigenous, but if they are carrying on the indigenous culture then who is to tell them they are not?
in terms of tangible realities, i'd argue that we should have a universal drug benefit to begin with, and that the truth is that few of these people are going to end up paying taxes, anyways. but, the reality on the ground is trickier than the article is letting on: the reality is that the overwhelming majority of status indians are totally white.
https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2017/03/04/families-divided-after-ottawa-tells-thousands-theyre-not-indigenous.html
there are two groups indigenous to the island of newfoundland: the inuit and the beothuk. the beothuk were indeed eliminated from the island by a process of genocide that is largely unrecognized, so any claims that the island was free of indigenous groups is based on the premise that this genocide was "successful". and, you will not find any trace of the beothuk, no matter how hard you look. inuit groups remain, but they are transient over the pack ice. the mik'maq are indigenous to the atlantic mainland; any mik'maq claiming status in newfoundland have migrated there since contact, and making such a claim for indigenous status in an area migrated to post-contact essentially doesn't make sense under the judicial precedent, which requires groups to demonstrate a connection to the land that precedes contact, whenever it was (and this area, being the closest to western europe, had the earliest contact....).
but, all you need to do is look at the pictures to come to the obvious truth: these people are europeans, and that is blatantly obvious.
in fact, much testing has been done on this point. the harsh, difficult truth is that most of the indigenous groups in the eastern coast have r1* in the y-dna in proportions approaching or exceeding 50%, and there are even a few groups that are over 80% r1* in the y-dna. what this indicates is that not just many but most of these indigenous groups are actually of primarily european patrilineal ancestry, and that their indigenous component is strictly matrilineal. and, this is in fact a very common consequence of colonialism: the colonizing group takes the women from the colonized group, either through consent or more often by force, and then prioritizes the interests of it's own offspring over those of the purely indigenous pairings, which eventually asserts the colonizing dna as dominant, even when the indigenous culture prevails.
this creates a real problem for the state, which is now in the awkward position of handing out special rights to what are essentially european groups. they rarely speak the language, and the truth is that the only connection they have to their matrilineal ancestry is in the preservation of survivalist tactics. that is, the only remnants of the indigenous culture that have survived are those that were necessary for the colonizers to adopt in order to adapt.
that said, it really demonstrates that culture is a social construct and not a biological one. we don't pass down culture through genes, we teach it in social relationships. these people may not be genetically indigenous, but if they are carrying on the indigenous culture then who is to tell them they are not?
in terms of tangible realities, i'd argue that we should have a universal drug benefit to begin with, and that the truth is that few of these people are going to end up paying taxes, anyways. but, the reality on the ground is trickier than the article is letting on: the reality is that the overwhelming majority of status indians are totally white.
https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2017/03/04/families-divided-after-ottawa-tells-thousands-theyre-not-indigenous.html
Friday, March 3, 2017
you ever had a headache for a month, solid?
the relief is the sweetest thing you can imagine, and while i'm aware that i'm under threat of relapse, i seem to at the least have developed a repeatably demonstrable solution to the problem.
so, did the aspirin fix the headache, or did the concussion just go away? i can't know. but, i think i'm going to be a little less apprehensive about taking aspirin going forwards, and a little less tied to some kind of hardcore notion of just toughing it out. i think i have reasons to periodically use it as a blood thinner...
or, maybe it was the blood work.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloodletting
the relief is the sweetest thing you can imagine, and while i'm aware that i'm under threat of relapse, i seem to at the least have developed a repeatably demonstrable solution to the problem.
so, did the aspirin fix the headache, or did the concussion just go away? i can't know. but, i think i'm going to be a little less apprehensive about taking aspirin going forwards, and a little less tied to some kind of hardcore notion of just toughing it out. i think i have reasons to periodically use it as a blood thinner...
or, maybe it was the blood work.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloodletting
so, i'm back from round two of the hospital visits (and i stopped to get a blood test, so it was about an hour and a half wait, if you're curious).
i want to be clear that i'm dealing with a serious head injury. whether my analyses turn out to be founded or not, i'm not wasting anybody's time in exploring the full range of possibilities regarding diagnoses, tests and treatment options. that said, i walked out of the hospital a little uneasy about the analysis, and without losing a feeling of needing to monitor myself closely.
after explaining the situation, he started by squashing the idea that i may have had any kind of stroke, mini-stroke or embolism on the night in question - he said there was no way i could have walked away from the situation after having a stroke (i'm not convinced that is true...), that i'm not showing symptoms of a stroke (i'm not sure this is true, either) and that the multitude of classic post-concussion symptoms should clarify the point: i was concussed.
so, it's official: i've been diagnosed with a concussion, and with post-concussion syndrome. that fact carries some weight with it. but, you'll take it for what it's worth, given that neither of us saw what happened.
i'm actually willing to go along with this, though. from this point on, we're going to assume the root cause of the situation was a concussion, and i'm going to have to invest some time into figuring out how that happened the next time that i'm in the vicinity of the club. again: the bouncer told me. but, i was just coming back into consciousness, and it's lost...
well, the next question is obvious: could i have developed clotting as a consequence of the concussion?
theoretically.
but?
but that would mean you'd be hemorrhaging badly, and you're just not showing those kinds of symptoms.
and that's solid? it's not possible that i could get clotting from mild bleeding?
what you're angling at is not impossible, but is extremely unlikely.
well, how do you explain the fact that the aspirin works after a long delay and for a long time, and the tylenol doesn't?
the truth is i can't. sometimes tylenol works, and sometimes aspirin works, and sometimes one works and the other doesn't, and sometimes they both work and sometimes neither do. there's no logic to it.
i suspect there's some logic to it...
there's no logic to it that anybody really understands. we're not even sure how they work.
hrmmmn. but, the absence of a systemic classification doesn't entirely rule out my deduction.
it doesn't. but, if you were dealing with clots, you'd be in far worse shape than you're in.
but, what i'm concerned about is the possibility that i'm developing clots. i obviously hadn't had a stroke yet. but, couldn't the aspirin be thinning the blood and preventing the clot from forming? and, if it is, and i'm on the brink...
there's no "on the brink". it's binary...
----
and, i'm going to stop here, because i know this is wrong. people take aspirin as blood thinners. it is clearly a thing. but, what do i do from this point? yell at him to take a blood test? demand anticoagulants? raise a workers revolt in the er room? demand him to present a source?
i did none of these things. i just sat quietly and waited for him to finish, aware that he had already decided i'm not under threat of anything, and was telling me lies in order to shuffle me out of the place.
i had already reasoned going in that i was unlikely to walk out of the place with anything more than an instruction to continue taking aspirin. what i wanted was a way to measure the concern, so i'd have some quantifiable measurement of the problem. if the situation persists, i'll have to try again.
for right now, i've actually avoided the aspirin up to this point for today. perhaps the pre-clot has been broken up by the aspirin, and that's the end of it. or, perhaps the effects of the concussion are subsiding.
but, i'll reiterate that i've been officially diagnosed with a concussion and post-concussion syndrome, that i need to continue to monitor this and that that might not be my last trip to the emergency room over this.
i want to be clear that i'm dealing with a serious head injury. whether my analyses turn out to be founded or not, i'm not wasting anybody's time in exploring the full range of possibilities regarding diagnoses, tests and treatment options. that said, i walked out of the hospital a little uneasy about the analysis, and without losing a feeling of needing to monitor myself closely.
after explaining the situation, he started by squashing the idea that i may have had any kind of stroke, mini-stroke or embolism on the night in question - he said there was no way i could have walked away from the situation after having a stroke (i'm not convinced that is true...), that i'm not showing symptoms of a stroke (i'm not sure this is true, either) and that the multitude of classic post-concussion symptoms should clarify the point: i was concussed.
so, it's official: i've been diagnosed with a concussion, and with post-concussion syndrome. that fact carries some weight with it. but, you'll take it for what it's worth, given that neither of us saw what happened.
i'm actually willing to go along with this, though. from this point on, we're going to assume the root cause of the situation was a concussion, and i'm going to have to invest some time into figuring out how that happened the next time that i'm in the vicinity of the club. again: the bouncer told me. but, i was just coming back into consciousness, and it's lost...
well, the next question is obvious: could i have developed clotting as a consequence of the concussion?
theoretically.
but?
but that would mean you'd be hemorrhaging badly, and you're just not showing those kinds of symptoms.
and that's solid? it's not possible that i could get clotting from mild bleeding?
what you're angling at is not impossible, but is extremely unlikely.
well, how do you explain the fact that the aspirin works after a long delay and for a long time, and the tylenol doesn't?
the truth is i can't. sometimes tylenol works, and sometimes aspirin works, and sometimes one works and the other doesn't, and sometimes they both work and sometimes neither do. there's no logic to it.
i suspect there's some logic to it...
there's no logic to it that anybody really understands. we're not even sure how they work.
hrmmmn. but, the absence of a systemic classification doesn't entirely rule out my deduction.
it doesn't. but, if you were dealing with clots, you'd be in far worse shape than you're in.
but, what i'm concerned about is the possibility that i'm developing clots. i obviously hadn't had a stroke yet. but, couldn't the aspirin be thinning the blood and preventing the clot from forming? and, if it is, and i'm on the brink...
there's no "on the brink". it's binary...
----
and, i'm going to stop here, because i know this is wrong. people take aspirin as blood thinners. it is clearly a thing. but, what do i do from this point? yell at him to take a blood test? demand anticoagulants? raise a workers revolt in the er room? demand him to present a source?
i did none of these things. i just sat quietly and waited for him to finish, aware that he had already decided i'm not under threat of anything, and was telling me lies in order to shuffle me out of the place.
i had already reasoned going in that i was unlikely to walk out of the place with anything more than an instruction to continue taking aspirin. what i wanted was a way to measure the concern, so i'd have some quantifiable measurement of the problem. if the situation persists, i'll have to try again.
for right now, i've actually avoided the aspirin up to this point for today. perhaps the pre-clot has been broken up by the aspirin, and that's the end of it. or, perhaps the effects of the concussion are subsiding.
but, i'll reiterate that i've been officially diagnosed with a concussion and post-concussion syndrome, that i need to continue to monitor this and that that might not be my last trip to the emergency room over this.
i should be transporting myself to the hospital right now, but the wind chill has picked up. take off, eh, right? the one night that i need to go for a walk...
my head has been clear enough since about 11:00 am. and, i've been chipping away at the list since around 5:00. but, i can feel it starting to come back, though. that's a clean 15 hours. aspirin just doesn't last 15 hours as an anti-inflammatory agent...
ugh. you can't blame me for not wanting to deal with this. but, no - i need to bundle up and get out the door.
i don't have an actual update to the html file, but the playlists have both update and i've got the first few months of 2012 done. i wanted more than this done, but, so be it...
i need to shave and go.
my head has been clear enough since about 11:00 am. and, i've been chipping away at the list since around 5:00. but, i can feel it starting to come back, though. that's a clean 15 hours. aspirin just doesn't last 15 hours as an anti-inflammatory agent...
ugh. you can't blame me for not wanting to deal with this. but, no - i need to bundle up and get out the door.
i don't have an actual update to the html file, but the playlists have both update and i've got the first few months of 2012 done. i wanted more than this done, but, so be it...
i need to shave and go.
Thursday, March 2, 2017
this should maybe get the point across a little, in terms of the left's broad rejection of "religious freedom", which was always a bourgeois idea.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anarchism_and_religion
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anarchism_and_religion
listen: i'm obviously not a conservative, and you're a buffoon if that's your take-away from this blog.
i'm a communist. ok?
if you're looking for an alt-right hero, i'm not going to be of much use to you in the long run. trust me on this point. it just happens to be that we're in a moment where the spectrum is flipped on immigration, and the so-called "left" is taking traditionally "tory" positions that benefit capital over workers under a veneer of faux humanitarianism, while the right is taking traditionally "left" positions that put the interests of workers ahead of those of capital.
i've deconstructed this already in this space.
further, the left has never supported "religious freedom"; it has always seen religion as a tool of control by capital. the fundamentally irreformable and intrinsically oppressive nature of religion was maybe the strongest point of agreement between marx and bakunin. "religious freedom" is always an oxymoron because all religion is always oppression. it is one of the points where liberals really expose themselves as nincompoops...
"i support the freedom to abide by a set of arbitrary rules and give away 30% of my income to a corrupt hierarchy that oppresses others based on identifiable characteristics!" - said no leftist, ever.
so, i mean, don't like what i'm saying if you want. that's fine. but, place me on the spectrum correctly, please: i exist on the extreme left, and in a culture where "liberal" means "tory" and "conservative" means "idiot". and, i've been clear to point out the genealogy, as well, so that you can look up where i'm coming from.
i'm a communist. ok?
if you're looking for an alt-right hero, i'm not going to be of much use to you in the long run. trust me on this point. it just happens to be that we're in a moment where the spectrum is flipped on immigration, and the so-called "left" is taking traditionally "tory" positions that benefit capital over workers under a veneer of faux humanitarianism, while the right is taking traditionally "left" positions that put the interests of workers ahead of those of capital.
i've deconstructed this already in this space.
further, the left has never supported "religious freedom"; it has always seen religion as a tool of control by capital. the fundamentally irreformable and intrinsically oppressive nature of religion was maybe the strongest point of agreement between marx and bakunin. "religious freedom" is always an oxymoron because all religion is always oppression. it is one of the points where liberals really expose themselves as nincompoops...
"i support the freedom to abide by a set of arbitrary rules and give away 30% of my income to a corrupt hierarchy that oppresses others based on identifiable characteristics!" - said no leftist, ever.
so, i mean, don't like what i'm saying if you want. that's fine. but, place me on the spectrum correctly, please: i exist on the extreme left, and in a culture where "liberal" means "tory" and "conservative" means "idiot". and, i've been clear to point out the genealogy, as well, so that you can look up where i'm coming from.
i think a part of the reason that i'm more attracted to allowing "illegal" immigrants to stay, and interested in stopping the government from facilitating the flow of "legal" refugees, is that there's a bit of a darwinian basis to it.
i've very loudly trumpeted the benefits of a merit-based immigration system, and been lukewarm about accepting refugees precisely because it's not merit-based. we only take the strongest immigrants we can find, but then we ruin all of this good work by literally absorbing the weakest refugees we can scour the world for. then, we applaud ourselves (like the good tories that we are) for our noblesse oblige in "protecting the most vulnerable".
that's gotta stop. we're a fraction of the world's population. we should protect our own most vulnerable. but, we need to let the other peoples of the world protect their own, and fight their own battles - and do what we can to help from a distance through multi-lateral institutions, like the united nations.
there are exceptions...
but, broadly speaking, i want to accept the strongest refugees, not the weakest ones. and, you do that by picking the ones that survived tremendous odds in finding their way here, not the ones that sat in a un refugee camp with a grade two education for ten years and are going to end up wards of the state for life when they get here, as they insist that they be allowed to follow their customs, even when they contradict our laws.
i've very loudly trumpeted the benefits of a merit-based immigration system, and been lukewarm about accepting refugees precisely because it's not merit-based. we only take the strongest immigrants we can find, but then we ruin all of this good work by literally absorbing the weakest refugees we can scour the world for. then, we applaud ourselves (like the good tories that we are) for our noblesse oblige in "protecting the most vulnerable".
that's gotta stop. we're a fraction of the world's population. we should protect our own most vulnerable. but, we need to let the other peoples of the world protect their own, and fight their own battles - and do what we can to help from a distance through multi-lateral institutions, like the united nations.
there are exceptions...
but, broadly speaking, i want to accept the strongest refugees, not the weakest ones. and, you do that by picking the ones that survived tremendous odds in finding their way here, not the ones that sat in a un refugee camp with a grade two education for ten years and are going to end up wards of the state for life when they get here, as they insist that they be allowed to follow their customs, even when they contradict our laws.
see, i'd like to see them buy out the *generation*. it's not the hydro one sale that's boosting the prices, and the sad truth is that the ndp *does* know that - they're just not willing to actually take on the electricity generators.
as frustrating as this truth is, the liberals are going to remain the better option, here, until i see a serious proposal from the ndp about taking public control of the actual generation.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-hydro-price-plan-kathleen-wynne-1.4006021
as frustrating as this truth is, the liberals are going to remain the better option, here, until i see a serious proposal from the ndp about taking public control of the actual generation.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-hydro-price-plan-kathleen-wynne-1.4006021
but, it's disingenuous. i mean, what's your prerogative, here?
i've been clear, repeatedly: it's the organized refugee intake systems that i'm opposed to. putting people on planes and flying them in is something that we should basically never do. but, if you can manage to transport yourself from iraq to canada in order to claim asylum, i'm in full favour of giving you a fair hearing - and taking a very wide interpretation of the laws.
again: we don't need more low skill labour. but, we could use the kind of character that allows a person to make that kind of journey undetected. that kind of determination should generate a lot of respect...
http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/manley-border-thrid-country-deal-1.4005895
i've been clear, repeatedly: it's the organized refugee intake systems that i'm opposed to. putting people on planes and flying them in is something that we should basically never do. but, if you can manage to transport yourself from iraq to canada in order to claim asylum, i'm in full favour of giving you a fair hearing - and taking a very wide interpretation of the laws.
again: we don't need more low skill labour. but, we could use the kind of character that allows a person to make that kind of journey undetected. that kind of determination should generate a lot of respect...
http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/manley-border-thrid-country-deal-1.4005895
so, it's consistent - it takes the aspirin about an hour and a half to take effect, and over two hours to really work. when the aspirin is working, i can feel the headache as a dull stab in the back of my sinuses, if that makes sense, but it doesn't overtake me - it allows me to function. the aspirin then works in keeping the headache manageable for roughly 20 hours, before it gets debilitating again.
the last several times i took tylenol, it did not work at all.
i am neither a chemist nor a doctor, but the evidence in front of me suggests that the aspirin is functioning as an anti-coagulant, rather than as an anti-inflammatory drug. the reasons for this are due to the ineffectiveness of tylenol and both the delay in aspirin working, and the length of time it lasts for.
i am going to bring myself back to the hospital over night under the premises of concerns about clotting, and hope they can advise on immediate steps in a way that avoids a catscan.
i am probably not at risk for a heart attack, but i may be at risk for a stroke. and, i may have actually had a stroke on that night, due to the interaction of nicotine with estrogen.
the last several times i took tylenol, it did not work at all.
i am neither a chemist nor a doctor, but the evidence in front of me suggests that the aspirin is functioning as an anti-coagulant, rather than as an anti-inflammatory drug. the reasons for this are due to the ineffectiveness of tylenol and both the delay in aspirin working, and the length of time it lasts for.
i am going to bring myself back to the hospital over night under the premises of concerns about clotting, and hope they can advise on immediate steps in a way that avoids a catscan.
i am probably not at risk for a heart attack, but i may be at risk for a stroke. and, i may have actually had a stroke on that night, due to the interaction of nicotine with estrogen.
it's true, dammit.
if you know, you know. if you don't....try it, man....then you'll know...
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/psychology-masala/201204/cannabis-and-creativity
if you know, you know. if you don't....try it, man....then you'll know...
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/psychology-masala/201204/cannabis-and-creativity
ok.
i ain't dead yet...put the champagne away for at least another day...
the windows are closed. and, my headache is back, albeit not as bad as it was two days ago.
it's been long enough for me to take some more aspirin, and we will see in two-three hours from now if the relief is in the form of aspirin or fresh air, which will answer a more fundamental question: do i have a blood clot in my head?
if the aspirin resolves the pain, i am going to conclude that i do actually have a blood cot, and i'm going back to the hospital with this new evidence, which i believe eliminates the need for a cat scan in moving forwards.
hey. i'm a math nerd. this is what i do: i solve problems. and, i'm right. and, if you're a doctor, you know it, too.
i ain't dead yet...put the champagne away for at least another day...
the windows are closed. and, my headache is back, albeit not as bad as it was two days ago.
it's been long enough for me to take some more aspirin, and we will see in two-three hours from now if the relief is in the form of aspirin or fresh air, which will answer a more fundamental question: do i have a blood clot in my head?
if the aspirin resolves the pain, i am going to conclude that i do actually have a blood cot, and i'm going back to the hospital with this new evidence, which i believe eliminates the need for a cat scan in moving forwards.
hey. i'm a math nerd. this is what i do: i solve problems. and, i'm right. and, if you're a doctor, you know it, too.
what is an "innovation budget"?
and, why do we have an "innovation minister", anyways?
again: these are just buzzwords. this government doesn't care about governing, it's just focused on constant campaigning. they are at best contradictions in terms and at worst incoherent drivel. and, it's the same kind of absurd language you heard coming from harper.
i still don't know if harper's "economic action plan" was a four-year plan for the economy, or a five-year plan for the economy. nobody ever answered that question for me...
i'll state the obvious: innovation is something that happens by accident. you don't plan for it. you don't budget around it. rather, you adjust to it when you see it. and, if there's a way for a government to create an "innovation budget", it is by funding research blindly, and not trying to micromanage where it ends up.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/morneau-us-canada-budget-1.4005543
and, why do we have an "innovation minister", anyways?
again: these are just buzzwords. this government doesn't care about governing, it's just focused on constant campaigning. they are at best contradictions in terms and at worst incoherent drivel. and, it's the same kind of absurd language you heard coming from harper.
i still don't know if harper's "economic action plan" was a four-year plan for the economy, or a five-year plan for the economy. nobody ever answered that question for me...
i'll state the obvious: innovation is something that happens by accident. you don't plan for it. you don't budget around it. rather, you adjust to it when you see it. and, if there's a way for a government to create an "innovation budget", it is by funding research blindly, and not trying to micromanage where it ends up.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/morneau-us-canada-budget-1.4005543
Wednesday, March 1, 2017
i have this playlist updated, now, which is actually a big step forwards.
and i'm going to stop to sleep...i've been awake since a little after midnight...
so, i have some good news in the sense that i got a full day in without serious headaches.
but, the real test is as to whether i wake up in the morning or not as i allow the aspirin's effects to wear off.
the windows have been closed for a few hours, and they have to be with the turn in the weather. the headache has actually stayed away, but it's like i'm walking a high wire act and prepared to fall off: i can feel the tension underneath, just waiting to reassert itself
i'm going to keep the windows closed for at least a few days, and we'll see what happens. do i wake up with a headache? does the aspirin work without opening the windows after all, and in such a way that suggests it's working as a blood thinner rather than an anti-inflammatory? and, if so what next...
i'm a little uneasy about this, actually. hopefully i'm still alive in a few hours and can get back to the more formal concert build-up.
and i'm going to stop to sleep...i've been awake since a little after midnight...
so, i have some good news in the sense that i got a full day in without serious headaches.
but, the real test is as to whether i wake up in the morning or not as i allow the aspirin's effects to wear off.
the windows have been closed for a few hours, and they have to be with the turn in the weather. the headache has actually stayed away, but it's like i'm walking a high wire act and prepared to fall off: i can feel the tension underneath, just waiting to reassert itself
i'm going to keep the windows closed for at least a few days, and we'll see what happens. do i wake up with a headache? does the aspirin work without opening the windows after all, and in such a way that suggests it's working as a blood thinner rather than an anti-inflammatory? and, if so what next...
i'm a little uneasy about this, actually. hopefully i'm still alive in a few hours and can get back to the more formal concert build-up.
in all seriousness, it would no doubt be a dramatic improvement if trump were to adopt something that is like our immigration system.
and, i'm not going to pretend like i'm shifting gears on the point, either. in fact, i've advocated the point for....i'm not old enough to say decades. not yet. but more than ten years, anyways.
so, sure: trump is right to look to our system as a model. it works.
now, if we could only get trudeau to hold closer to it....:\
and, i'm not going to pretend like i'm shifting gears on the point, either. in fact, i've advocated the point for....i'm not old enough to say decades. not yet. but more than ten years, anyways.
so, sure: trump is right to look to our system as a model. it works.
now, if we could only get trudeau to hold closer to it....:\
but, if it takes hours for the aspirin to relieve the pain, and it lasts hours longer than the aspirin itself does, does that imply that i'm actually dealing with a blood clot and the effectiveness of the aspirin is in it's blood-thinning qualities?
is that why the tylenol is now ineffective?
is it why i experienced bruising after a two week delay?
does that suggest i'm in risk of a stroke? and, if so, is aspirin actually the preferred treatment, anyways?
hrmmn.
is that why the tylenol is now ineffective?
is it why i experienced bruising after a two week delay?
does that suggest i'm in risk of a stroke? and, if so, is aspirin actually the preferred treatment, anyways?
hrmmn.
ok.
for the first time, the issue has resolved. and, of course the moment the words are typed....
solution: fresh air. & maybe a little aspirin, too.
i was expecting the aspirin to work within an hour, and then expecting to need to take more a few hours later. i can't isolate a single variable, but it may be the case that it takes closer to two hours to work and lasts for a good twelve hours - or at least does in the presence of fresh air. i dunno. i'm winging it...
for the first time, the issue has resolved. and, of course the moment the words are typed....
solution: fresh air. & maybe a little aspirin, too.
i was expecting the aspirin to work within an hour, and then expecting to need to take more a few hours later. i can't isolate a single variable, but it may be the case that it takes closer to two hours to work and lasts for a good twelve hours - or at least does in the presence of fresh air. i dunno. i'm winging it...
do i have a mold issue?
if i do, i can't see it. it would have to be behind the walls. and, i've been here long enough to doubt that, as there's no growth anywhere at all....
the only possible exception would be underneath the paneling in the bathroom...
it's an easy answer. i keep coming back to it. but i just don't see the evidence.
i'm not done eating yet, and the headache is in fact almost back. it's currently pouring rain out. but, i'm not wasting another night. i have enough evidence to deduce that it's likely that i'd be able to get around the problem by leaving the windows open and sitting in the tim horton's for a few hours. and, if leaving the basement works two days in a row, i'm going to have to call the landlord directly and confront him on it.
we might have to rip some walls open.
http://www.poison.org/articles/2011-oct/mold-101-effects-on-human-health
if i do, i can't see it. it would have to be behind the walls. and, i've been here long enough to doubt that, as there's no growth anywhere at all....
the only possible exception would be underneath the paneling in the bathroom...
it's an easy answer. i keep coming back to it. but i just don't see the evidence.
i'm not done eating yet, and the headache is in fact almost back. it's currently pouring rain out. but, i'm not wasting another night. i have enough evidence to deduce that it's likely that i'd be able to get around the problem by leaving the windows open and sitting in the tim horton's for a few hours. and, if leaving the basement works two days in a row, i'm going to have to call the landlord directly and confront him on it.
we might have to rip some walls open.
http://www.poison.org/articles/2011-oct/mold-101-effects-on-human-health
don't be confused.
it's not really that trump wants the united states to be more like canada, although i'd vote for that outcome. it's really more that trump wants to be as popular as he thinks justin trudeau is.
and, this is the same thinking underlying his relationship with nigel farage: what he wants is the adulation. the praise. the positive op-eds. the fawning pre-teens.
it's not really that trump wants the united states to be more like canada, although i'd vote for that outcome. it's really more that trump wants to be as popular as he thinks justin trudeau is.
and, this is the same thinking underlying his relationship with nigel farage: what he wants is the adulation. the praise. the positive op-eds. the fawning pre-teens.
i may have to invest in something like this to moisten the air up:
https://www.walmart.ca/en/ip/sunbeam-34-l-warm-mist-humidifier-swm6000-cn/6000001838371?rrid=richrelevance
i just want to make sure i get a hot one, and not a cold one.
https://www.walmart.ca/en/ip/sunbeam-34-l-warm-mist-humidifier-swm6000-cn/6000001838371?rrid=richrelevance
i just want to make sure i get a hot one, and not a cold one.
i had to get some "real sleep" this evening. i think i'm up...
i had to close the windows for the sleep because i let the temperature fall too far to keep them open. they're back open now.
while the headache hasn't come back in full, yet, i can feel the beginnings of the tension. more importantly, i can smell the gas...
i'm about to make some eggs. i'll check back when i'm done eating. but, the experiment is this: can i resolve the headache, should it come back, by getting some fresh air into the space?
i had to close the windows for the sleep because i let the temperature fall too far to keep them open. they're back open now.
while the headache hasn't come back in full, yet, i can feel the beginnings of the tension. more importantly, i can smell the gas...
i'm about to make some eggs. i'll check back when i'm done eating. but, the experiment is this: can i resolve the headache, should it come back, by getting some fresh air into the space?
Tuesday, February 28, 2017
you can have your mad cow disease if you insist.
i'll take the steak well done, myself, too.
and i'll generally take functionality over class, that is substance over style, any day.
it's a strange thing to criticize a man as vapid as trump for, to have the good sense to cook his meat before eating it; it might be the most sensible thing he ever does.
i'll take the steak well done, myself, too.
and i'll generally take functionality over class, that is substance over style, any day.
it's a strange thing to criticize a man as vapid as trump for, to have the good sense to cook his meat before eating it; it might be the most sensible thing he ever does.
the walk to the hospital was truly brutal - i was legitimately in some brutal pain, and rather concerned about it.
but, a funny thing happened when i got to the hospital: the headache slowly lifted. note that my experiences over the last several days has been that i get an hour or two when i wake up, and then a headache i can't deal with until i fall back asleep, when the pattern reverses.
it became clear while i was waiting in the waiting room that what's causing the headache is the gas leak, or the air quality down here, in general. and, that itself was remarkably relieving.
i'm not yet ruling out the possibility of head trauma - you'll recall that i lost my sense of smell for days - but i've got a strong cause and effect on the immediate cause of the headaches being environmental.
i waited to see the doctor, anyways. she actually offered me a catscan as a precautionary measure. i would have taken an mri, it's what i was there for after all, but i didn't see the need to put myself through the radiation risk of a catscan....
let's say i take the cat scan. what next?
you'll come back in a week for another cat scan.
so, how about i just wait a week, then?
it's up to you...
indeed, it is. pro-tip: never trust a doctor.
but i at least got a better grasp on what they can do, based on what it could be.
1) if it's a concussion, there's nothing i can do except wait.
2) if there's bruising or bleeding, they'll have to do scans and go from there.
i've only been back inside for a few moments and i'm already feeling queasy. we'll see how things change when i drop my cart back off and come back in.
it's clear enough, though: the air quality in this basement is toxic and the windows basically need to be open at all times until it's dealt with.
but, a funny thing happened when i got to the hospital: the headache slowly lifted. note that my experiences over the last several days has been that i get an hour or two when i wake up, and then a headache i can't deal with until i fall back asleep, when the pattern reverses.
it became clear while i was waiting in the waiting room that what's causing the headache is the gas leak, or the air quality down here, in general. and, that itself was remarkably relieving.
i'm not yet ruling out the possibility of head trauma - you'll recall that i lost my sense of smell for days - but i've got a strong cause and effect on the immediate cause of the headaches being environmental.
i waited to see the doctor, anyways. she actually offered me a catscan as a precautionary measure. i would have taken an mri, it's what i was there for after all, but i didn't see the need to put myself through the radiation risk of a catscan....
let's say i take the cat scan. what next?
you'll come back in a week for another cat scan.
so, how about i just wait a week, then?
it's up to you...
indeed, it is. pro-tip: never trust a doctor.
but i at least got a better grasp on what they can do, based on what it could be.
1) if it's a concussion, there's nothing i can do except wait.
2) if there's bruising or bleeding, they'll have to do scans and go from there.
i've only been back inside for a few moments and i'm already feeling queasy. we'll see how things change when i drop my cart back off and come back in.
it's clear enough, though: the air quality in this basement is toxic and the windows basically need to be open at all times until it's dealt with.
the tylenol stopped working a few days ago.
i tried aspirin this morning with no effect.
i am unable to do anything except stare at the wall. so, i am taking myself to the hospital.
yes: the hospital. a clinic could not do anything except give me drugs (which i don't want, and won't take, unless i get a clear diagnosis first) and send me to the hospital. i want some tests done regarding potential bruising or burst vessels, along with being checked for stroke symptoms....
i'm not walking out of there with a codeine prescription, either. that's how they get you. i'd take a gram of the green, but you have to fucking mail order it....
i tried aspirin this morning with no effect.
i am unable to do anything except stare at the wall. so, i am taking myself to the hospital.
yes: the hospital. a clinic could not do anything except give me drugs (which i don't want, and won't take, unless i get a clear diagnosis first) and send me to the hospital. i want some tests done regarding potential bruising or burst vessels, along with being checked for stroke symptoms....
i'm not walking out of there with a codeine prescription, either. that's how they get you. i'd take a gram of the green, but you have to fucking mail order it....
Monday, February 27, 2017
what it does is cast doubt on the honesty of the investigation.
so, the feds have taken this company down by manufacturing charges against it (and note that the globe was complicit in this). are they doing this to pave the way for larger distributors (molson?) or are they backtracking on the policy altogether?
i will repeat what i stated a few weeks ago: at this time, i do not expect the government to carry through with it's campaign promise to legalize. rather, they seem to be in the process of shutting down the medical use of the drug, as well.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/company-caught-selling-tainted-marijuana-cant-trace-source-of-contamination/article34144902/
so, the feds have taken this company down by manufacturing charges against it (and note that the globe was complicit in this). are they doing this to pave the way for larger distributors (molson?) or are they backtracking on the policy altogether?
i will repeat what i stated a few weeks ago: at this time, i do not expect the government to carry through with it's campaign promise to legalize. rather, they seem to be in the process of shutting down the medical use of the drug, as well.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/company-caught-selling-tainted-marijuana-cant-trace-source-of-contamination/article34144902/
see, this is what i feared and predicted: they've managed to manipulate working class people into mobilizing to save obamacare......which is the republican healthcare plan designed to prevent a single payer universal health care system.
once again: a formal gramscian analysis on how we got to the point where self-identified leftists are standing up for the heritage institute's healthcare proposals would be an enticing read and an important contribution to the literature on the actual left.
https://www.thestar.com/news/world/2017/02/26/if-theyre-going-to-pass-trumps-agenda-republicans-first-have-to-weather-the-indivisible-movement.html
once again: a formal gramscian analysis on how we got to the point where self-identified leftists are standing up for the heritage institute's healthcare proposals would be an enticing read and an important contribution to the literature on the actual left.
https://www.thestar.com/news/world/2017/02/26/if-theyre-going-to-pass-trumps-agenda-republicans-first-have-to-weather-the-indivisible-movement.html
this is a bait and switch from electoral reform.
so, you should not just ignore it as paranoid idiocy, but should actively attempt to steer the topic back to electoral reform whenever it's brought up.
https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2017/02/27/cyberspy-agency-eyes-political-blackmail-as-risk-to-canadas-electoral-system.html
so, you should not just ignore it as paranoid idiocy, but should actively attempt to steer the topic back to electoral reform whenever it's brought up.
https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2017/02/27/cyberspy-agency-eyes-political-blackmail-as-risk-to-canadas-electoral-system.html
they should just let the seat sit vacant...
https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2017/02/27/york-school-board-grapples-with-filling-elgies-seat.html
https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2017/02/27/york-school-board-grapples-with-filling-elgies-seat.html
well, the good news is that my throat doesn't hurt anymore. but, that inflection point didn't go through: my head didn't fully clear yesterday, and took me out several times, including at the end of the night.
i woke up with a mild background headache: it's workable, but a reminder that i'm not over it, yet.
i just finished up the last few shows from 2011 this morning, so i'm making progress. slowly, through a difficult wrench, but surely. i'm going to eat now, and hopefully i'm able to be productive after lunch. but, i could end up waiting for the headache to pass, too.
is this all the result of whatever happened the other night at the festival? i've been noticing a symptom of very bloodshot eyes. but, you'll recall that i was complaining about that weeks ago, and that i thought it was connected to the hep b (which i don't actually have). and, you'll recall that i've been complaining about headaches connected to the gas leak in here...
my nose has not been working recently, but i'll point out that i woke up to that same nasty smell, this morning, that i've been associating with the leaks, which i've been associating with the headaches. how much of this is due to concussion, how much of it is due to gas leaks, how much of it is due to allergies and how much of it is due to the virus are things i'll probably never be able to disentangle.
what i really want is for the temperature to stay above ten degrees so that i can keep the windows open and get some fresh air in here without cranking the heat up.
http://dghjdfsghkrdghdgja.appspot.com/categories/shows/index.html
i woke up with a mild background headache: it's workable, but a reminder that i'm not over it, yet.
i just finished up the last few shows from 2011 this morning, so i'm making progress. slowly, through a difficult wrench, but surely. i'm going to eat now, and hopefully i'm able to be productive after lunch. but, i could end up waiting for the headache to pass, too.
is this all the result of whatever happened the other night at the festival? i've been noticing a symptom of very bloodshot eyes. but, you'll recall that i was complaining about that weeks ago, and that i thought it was connected to the hep b (which i don't actually have). and, you'll recall that i've been complaining about headaches connected to the gas leak in here...
my nose has not been working recently, but i'll point out that i woke up to that same nasty smell, this morning, that i've been associating with the leaks, which i've been associating with the headaches. how much of this is due to concussion, how much of it is due to gas leaks, how much of it is due to allergies and how much of it is due to the virus are things i'll probably never be able to disentangle.
what i really want is for the temperature to stay above ten degrees so that i can keep the windows open and get some fresh air in here without cranking the heat up.
http://dghjdfsghkrdghdgja.appspot.com/categories/shows/index.html
so, let's understand what happened with the dapl.
1) obama cancelled it, which was not an honest order but merely intended to clear the camp.
2) the new administration created a distraction around refugee policy to coerce the lifers into a different direction.
3) once the camp was cleared, and the cold of winter had set in, the new administration reversed obama's order to cancel it.
4) various factors (including the distraction around refugee policy, the weather, the fashionable nature of protest in the 21st century (#dapl is so last year) and what could be called 'protest fatigue') prevented re-mobilization from being powerful enough to cause a serious disincentive towards the use of force.
5) the camp was shut down, and the pipeline was finished.
so, what can we learn from this?
i suppose the immediate thing to analyze is what could have been done differently. the obvious point is that the new administration would have had a harder time ramming through the new policy if the camp hadn't cleared on it's own. but, we cannot blame activists for being tricked by obama, can we?
well, we can, actually: i saw this coming, and i'm sure many other people did, too.
so, the immediate lesson is that protest spaces should never be cleared in a transfer of power, especially not one from a more friendly government to a less friendly one. but, did people really not know that? and, why didn't they come back?
i've been over this with other protest movements. the essential root problem is that activists have adopted the language and tactics of viral marketing campaigns. now, i need to be clear: these tactics can be potentially effective if you need large numbers of people for a short amount of time. but, people are trained to understand the substance of viral marketing as inherently limited in temporal scope.
when you assemble people with a viral marketing campaign, you need to expect that the group will be disassembled by the next viral marketing campaign. what you've done is reduce the resistance to a type of fashion, a fad to discard for the next fad.
the next fad is in fighting "islamophobia". and, that's where everybody went.
on the other hand, this realization merely serves to amplify the importance of ensuring that activists do not allow camps to clear until objectives are confirmed. realizing the short attention span of #hashtag protestors is in some ways just a pre-requisite to developing tactics to neutralize that short attention span. but, the deeper lesson needs to be that viral marketing, as useful as it may be in some ways, is not a replacement for movement building - and can in fact act against it.
so,
1) the immediate lesson is not to disperse until you've won.
2) but, the broader lesson is that #hashtag activism is fleeting, and cannot replace deeper movement building. to the contrary, the shorter attention spans of young people (as brought on by viral marketing...) is an obstacle to deal with in deeper movement building.
1) obama cancelled it, which was not an honest order but merely intended to clear the camp.
2) the new administration created a distraction around refugee policy to coerce the lifers into a different direction.
3) once the camp was cleared, and the cold of winter had set in, the new administration reversed obama's order to cancel it.
4) various factors (including the distraction around refugee policy, the weather, the fashionable nature of protest in the 21st century (#dapl is so last year) and what could be called 'protest fatigue') prevented re-mobilization from being powerful enough to cause a serious disincentive towards the use of force.
5) the camp was shut down, and the pipeline was finished.
so, what can we learn from this?
i suppose the immediate thing to analyze is what could have been done differently. the obvious point is that the new administration would have had a harder time ramming through the new policy if the camp hadn't cleared on it's own. but, we cannot blame activists for being tricked by obama, can we?
well, we can, actually: i saw this coming, and i'm sure many other people did, too.
so, the immediate lesson is that protest spaces should never be cleared in a transfer of power, especially not one from a more friendly government to a less friendly one. but, did people really not know that? and, why didn't they come back?
i've been over this with other protest movements. the essential root problem is that activists have adopted the language and tactics of viral marketing campaigns. now, i need to be clear: these tactics can be potentially effective if you need large numbers of people for a short amount of time. but, people are trained to understand the substance of viral marketing as inherently limited in temporal scope.
when you assemble people with a viral marketing campaign, you need to expect that the group will be disassembled by the next viral marketing campaign. what you've done is reduce the resistance to a type of fashion, a fad to discard for the next fad.
the next fad is in fighting "islamophobia". and, that's where everybody went.
on the other hand, this realization merely serves to amplify the importance of ensuring that activists do not allow camps to clear until objectives are confirmed. realizing the short attention span of #hashtag protestors is in some ways just a pre-requisite to developing tactics to neutralize that short attention span. but, the deeper lesson needs to be that viral marketing, as useful as it may be in some ways, is not a replacement for movement building - and can in fact act against it.
so,
1) the immediate lesson is not to disperse until you've won.
2) but, the broader lesson is that #hashtag activism is fleeting, and cannot replace deeper movement building. to the contrary, the shorter attention spans of young people (as brought on by viral marketing...) is an obstacle to deal with in deeper movement building.
reality check: forcing constituents to accept senior staffers with almost no connection to their ridings as candidates is called nepotism and is a type of corruption. the fact that it is relatively common in our system does not make it ok. and, everybody should support the local candidates in their aim to ensure that the riding maintains local representation. mccallum was a good mp with strong ties to the riding, and he should not be replaced by a staffer that is being flown in on the pmo's direction.
seats in the house of commons are not perks to be handed out to political cronies in exchange for political favours, or as rewards for good behaviour. and, this comes just weeks after the government rejected electoral reform under concerns that a proportional system would minimize local representation...?
the hypocrisy is stunning.
this should be a very big deal. and, it should cost them the seat, out of principle.
and, they should stop fucking doing this, already.
seats in the house of commons are not perks to be handed out to political cronies in exchange for political favours, or as rewards for good behaviour. and, this comes just weeks after the government rejected electoral reform under concerns that a proportional system would minimize local representation...?
the hypocrisy is stunning.
this should be a very big deal. and, it should cost them the seat, out of principle.
and, they should stop fucking doing this, already.
i've seen this happen about a dozen times, now, and the candidate that the party tries to push down never survives. the party has blown safe seats this way. it has sen leaders lose their seats this way. and, why wouldn't it expect blowback from what is quite obviously the subversion of a basic democratic principle of self-determination?
so, this is the question we're going to be asking ourselves over the next couple of years: why is the liberal party of canada incapable of learning simple lessons from simple errors?
http://www.hilltimes.com/2017/02/27/markham-thornhill-liberals-open-revolt-alleging-party-rigging-nomination-process-get-pm-trudeaus-top-adviser-ng-elected-candidate/97556
so, this is the question we're going to be asking ourselves over the next couple of years: why is the liberal party of canada incapable of learning simple lessons from simple errors?
http://www.hilltimes.com/2017/02/27/markham-thornhill-liberals-open-revolt-alleging-party-rigging-nomination-process-get-pm-trudeaus-top-adviser-ng-elected-candidate/97556
you know, i'd like to see a formal gramscian analysis of working class support for increasing immigration of unskilled workers. it might be hard for a lot of people to read. it would no doubt create the expected reactionary responses of accusations of privilege and racial bias. but, it would be tough medicine, in the end, because it's the harsh reality of it: they've got you supporting policies that are going to minimize your bargaining power. they've got you working in their interests...
so, do you have a thesis to write? do you understand what i'm getting at? then, write it up and get it circling around online.
so, do you have a thesis to write? do you understand what i'm getting at? then, write it up and get it circling around online.
Sunday, February 26, 2017
i have to point out that some people may be missing the point.
as an anarchist, i reject the concept of hierarchy. and, trust me: i don't want to hang out with you, if you're still stuck in hierarchical thinking. that's where the whole voluntaryism thing comes in.
so, i'll loudly trumpet myself as a nerd, but it's not even ironic: it's a type of reverse marketing, designed to tell the "cool kids" that i don't want anything to fucking do with them. they can take their hierarchy and shove it up their asses - i'm going to do what i want, and i'm not going to react to anybody's attempts to put people in a total ordering.
it's the kind of thing you used to expect people to grow out of. unfortunately, those expectations of eventual maturation are not what they used to be. but, i'm not about to let it change how i live my life.
there's no irony. i'm not secretly cool. we're all the fucking same. and, if you honestly think otherwise, i think you're a fucking idiot, and i'm not going to want to talk to you, anyways.
i have no fucking patience for "cool people" at all, whatsoever.
as an anarchist, i reject the concept of hierarchy. and, trust me: i don't want to hang out with you, if you're still stuck in hierarchical thinking. that's where the whole voluntaryism thing comes in.
so, i'll loudly trumpet myself as a nerd, but it's not even ironic: it's a type of reverse marketing, designed to tell the "cool kids" that i don't want anything to fucking do with them. they can take their hierarchy and shove it up their asses - i'm going to do what i want, and i'm not going to react to anybody's attempts to put people in a total ordering.
it's the kind of thing you used to expect people to grow out of. unfortunately, those expectations of eventual maturation are not what they used to be. but, i'm not about to let it change how i live my life.
there's no irony. i'm not secretly cool. we're all the fucking same. and, if you honestly think otherwise, i think you're a fucking idiot, and i'm not going to want to talk to you, anyways.
i have no fucking patience for "cool people" at all, whatsoever.
this is another historical set from 2011.
i caught them a few months later in a 50 person bar in ottawa.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDs4-l5RkvM
i caught them a few months later in a 50 person bar in ottawa.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDs4-l5RkvM
this band was always obscure even amongst obscurantists, so this reunion set might be the best i'll ever find. i was able to confirm, at the show, that they are all cardiacs fans, though.
i'll again put out a request for a full set from 2010 or 2011....if you've got it, get it up and find a way to let me know....
i got nailed by my head this morning and was forced to take a nap. the tylenol just decided to stop working, and left me entirely debilitated. i woke up to a much more normal high pressure, sunny february day - and suspect that the dramatic shift in atmospheric pressure and 25 degree celsius drop over night at least didn't help.
but, it may actually be an inflection point, as it's come down to a mild annoyance. hopefully, i can get a good dent into this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0ixf6eME28
i'll again put out a request for a full set from 2010 or 2011....if you've got it, get it up and find a way to let me know....
i got nailed by my head this morning and was forced to take a nap. the tylenol just decided to stop working, and left me entirely debilitated. i woke up to a much more normal high pressure, sunny february day - and suspect that the dramatic shift in atmospheric pressure and 25 degree celsius drop over night at least didn't help.
but, it may actually be an inflection point, as it's come down to a mild annoyance. hopefully, i can get a good dent into this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0ixf6eME28
i still can't find a good set of this band playing on the 2011, tour, though. if somebody has footage...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03_9pD-5K2c
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03_9pD-5K2c
the not-particularly-inspiring outcome of perez being elected aside, democrats should breathe a collective sigh of relief in avoiding putting a practicing muslim at the top of the party, as that would have had a possibly irreversibly catastrophic set of consequences for the party. hopefully, democrats will now focus in moving away from ideas of religious pluralism and work towards building a secular vision of a post-religious society.
they dodged a potentially fatal bullet, here.
they dodged a potentially fatal bullet, here.
this is actually a serious question: are wrestlers even allowed to take this much testosterone?
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-texas-lgbt-wrestler-idUSKBN165052
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-texas-lgbt-wrestler-idUSKBN165052
we had a talk about this, and while it's not my preferred approach, i wouldn't fight it, either.
something has to give. it's not fair that i'm dealing with smoke from upstairs, even if it's only a few months a year. it gets better in the summer when they turn the a/c on, so maybe there could be regulations involving air filtration systems....
http://www.ctvnews.ca/health/health-canada-proposing-smoking-ban-in-apartments-raising-legal-age-to-21-1.3301124
something has to give. it's not fair that i'm dealing with smoke from upstairs, even if it's only a few months a year. it gets better in the summer when they turn the a/c on, so maybe there could be regulations involving air filtration systems....
http://www.ctvnews.ca/health/health-canada-proposing-smoking-ban-in-apartments-raising-legal-age-to-21-1.3301124
Saturday, February 25, 2017
i'm up to mid-2011, now. about to crash....
i will be very productive tomorrow.
http://dghjdfsghkrdghdgja.appspot.com/categories/shows/index.html
i will be very productive tomorrow.
http://dghjdfsghkrdghdgja.appspot.com/categories/shows/index.html
this is something else i've been looking for for a while. the set at the ottawa jazzfest in 2011 was incredible.
i spent the last few days sorting through march shows (a lot of iffy shows, nothing solid - i'll update as is relevant) but i'm back to making progress on the show review page, now.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HZ_kKYvNZE
i spent the last few days sorting through march shows (a lot of iffy shows, nothing solid - i'll update as is relevant) but i'm back to making progress on the show review page, now.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HZ_kKYvNZE
this is an angle i haven't heard, previously, but it makes sense.
there's been this kind of befuddlement over how to react to sunni civilians accepting or facilitating isis rule. you don't want to carpet bomb villages, of course. but, you also have to come to terms with the reality that if the citizens are aligning with isis then they are designating themselves as valid targets. you can run off root cause analyses all day, but none of them justify facilitating this kind of regime. if the civilians support isis then they are isis, and must be treated like isis. the consequences of this are very grim, but inescapable.
that said, it leads to an inevitable escalation because if you start bombing villages then you create tribal enmities. europeans discarded the tribal order many centuries ago, but it is still the reality in the middle east. what that means is that if nato kills members of tribe x then tribe x will need to fight against nato as revenge. it's the code they live in; there is no cheek-turning, but plucked eyes exchanged for plucked eyes.
so, you can't avoid fighting the civilians. but fighting the civilians means you're fighting the culture. it's an algorithm for disaster - but one that seems necessary. so, we need to dig deep and draw analogies to the dresdens of the world as we justify our inevitable war crimes - which i'm willing to do.
but, by the same logic, the longer isis operates, the more enemies it makes. even as it claims it is enforcing some kind of warped justice, it is nonetheless producing tribal reactions. and, with every victim it strengthens the uprising against it and seals it's own fate.
maybe we're best to sit on our thumbs with this, focus on containment and wait it out.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-iraq-revenge-idUSKBN15Y0ET
there's been this kind of befuddlement over how to react to sunni civilians accepting or facilitating isis rule. you don't want to carpet bomb villages, of course. but, you also have to come to terms with the reality that if the citizens are aligning with isis then they are designating themselves as valid targets. you can run off root cause analyses all day, but none of them justify facilitating this kind of regime. if the civilians support isis then they are isis, and must be treated like isis. the consequences of this are very grim, but inescapable.
that said, it leads to an inevitable escalation because if you start bombing villages then you create tribal enmities. europeans discarded the tribal order many centuries ago, but it is still the reality in the middle east. what that means is that if nato kills members of tribe x then tribe x will need to fight against nato as revenge. it's the code they live in; there is no cheek-turning, but plucked eyes exchanged for plucked eyes.
so, you can't avoid fighting the civilians. but fighting the civilians means you're fighting the culture. it's an algorithm for disaster - but one that seems necessary. so, we need to dig deep and draw analogies to the dresdens of the world as we justify our inevitable war crimes - which i'm willing to do.
but, by the same logic, the longer isis operates, the more enemies it makes. even as it claims it is enforcing some kind of warped justice, it is nonetheless producing tribal reactions. and, with every victim it strengthens the uprising against it and seals it's own fate.
maybe we're best to sit on our thumbs with this, focus on containment and wait it out.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-iraq-revenge-idUSKBN15Y0ET
it's two weeks, and my head is still throbbing.
it also turns out that a loss of smell is a common concussion side-effect.
it's pretty clear that i had a concussion, at this point. but, how?
i wish i could remember exactly what happened before i lost consciousness. but, that's a part of having a concussion: you don't remember how it happened.
i remember putting my sweater on to go outside after the ritual howls set, and i remember that adult was playing when i went back in, after i came to. i caught the bulk of their set, even. so, i'm really only missing ten-twenty minutes of the night. so, like....i could have even been hit by the door. you know?
i didn't have any bumps on my head or visible marks. but, i'm clearly dealing with a post-concussion syndrome. and, i don't have any real reason to think it's going to clear by tonight.
it goes away fairly quickly with some tylenol; i'm not writhing in agony, or anything. but, it would be nice if it would go away, now.
it also turns out that a loss of smell is a common concussion side-effect.
it's pretty clear that i had a concussion, at this point. but, how?
i wish i could remember exactly what happened before i lost consciousness. but, that's a part of having a concussion: you don't remember how it happened.
i remember putting my sweater on to go outside after the ritual howls set, and i remember that adult was playing when i went back in, after i came to. i caught the bulk of their set, even. so, i'm really only missing ten-twenty minutes of the night. so, like....i could have even been hit by the door. you know?
i didn't have any bumps on my head or visible marks. but, i'm clearly dealing with a post-concussion syndrome. and, i don't have any real reason to think it's going to clear by tonight.
it goes away fairly quickly with some tylenol; i'm not writhing in agony, or anything. but, it would be nice if it would go away, now.
Friday, February 24, 2017
yes - i'm in full support of bringing back the NEP.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Energy_Program
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Energy_Program
yeah, we solved this problem for a while in the 70s, but alberta threw a hissy fit about it, and now everybody's afraid to reassert the obvious, logical solution. it's a national embarrassment.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/canada-without-the-nafta-straightjacket-free-at-last/5575266
http://www.globalresearch.ca/canada-without-the-nafta-straightjacket-free-at-last/5575266
i'm going to repeat a reality check i put down a few weeks ago: the united states is now a net exporter of oil.
so, you need to check your models on oil prices and the dollar. oil is still a commodity, of course. but, given that it is now being exported, you need to flip the model: they should move in the same direction.
that's right, kids: higher oil prices should bring the dollar up, now.
it won't last forever. but, don't be confused: it's entirely predictable.
so, you need to check your models on oil prices and the dollar. oil is still a commodity, of course. but, given that it is now being exported, you need to flip the model: they should move in the same direction.
that's right, kids: higher oil prices should bring the dollar up, now.
it won't last forever. but, don't be confused: it's entirely predictable.
yup.
i just want to add that the unemployment rate cited in the article is bollocks. it's not an entirely minor point. but, the solution remains the ubi.
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/ryan-browne/the-robot-economy-a-cauti_b_13481798.html
i just want to add that the unemployment rate cited in the article is bollocks. it's not an entirely minor point. but, the solution remains the ubi.
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/ryan-browne/the-robot-economy-a-cauti_b_13481798.html
Instead of taking productivity and growth as the
be-all-and-end-all purpose of social activity, a Left
transition redistributes energy along socially equitable lines, along
with the economic wealth that usually comes with the flow of energy.
absolutely. but, with the possible exception of ontario and maybe quebec, we're not even at the pre-requisite stage, yet. it's one thing to state this abstractly, and it's another thing to propose tactics to get there.
this is why the green infrastructure bank in the liberal party platform (which isn't even being discussed enough to be considered a broken promise.....i'll admit that i based my vote on the fine print, but it just demonstrates the paucity of forward-thinking options in a fairly large spectrum) was such an exciting tease: it discarded with the usual talk of "free markets" and "green capitalism" and got to the dirty business of just fucking doing it. i was so tired of hearing about incentives and tax breaks that finding somebody willing to talk about direct investment was legitimately exciting. after all, you can't talk about equitable distributions of green energy until you have an infrastructure in place to distribute it....
it's the classic paradox on the left: you want to get rid of the influence of capital and return control to the people, but you need the...capital....from capital to build the infrastructure. we're going to be running up against a lot of these same problems with the coming ubiquity of automation, in trying to democratize the distribution of resources in the oncoming robot economy. you no longer have to be an anarchist to reject marx' algorithm. but, perhaps the way out of this paradox is closer than we realize.
https://canadiandimension.com/articles/view/beyond-petroculture-strategies-for-a-left-energy-transition
absolutely. but, with the possible exception of ontario and maybe quebec, we're not even at the pre-requisite stage, yet. it's one thing to state this abstractly, and it's another thing to propose tactics to get there.
this is why the green infrastructure bank in the liberal party platform (which isn't even being discussed enough to be considered a broken promise.....i'll admit that i based my vote on the fine print, but it just demonstrates the paucity of forward-thinking options in a fairly large spectrum) was such an exciting tease: it discarded with the usual talk of "free markets" and "green capitalism" and got to the dirty business of just fucking doing it. i was so tired of hearing about incentives and tax breaks that finding somebody willing to talk about direct investment was legitimately exciting. after all, you can't talk about equitable distributions of green energy until you have an infrastructure in place to distribute it....
it's the classic paradox on the left: you want to get rid of the influence of capital and return control to the people, but you need the...capital....from capital to build the infrastructure. we're going to be running up against a lot of these same problems with the coming ubiquity of automation, in trying to democratize the distribution of resources in the oncoming robot economy. you no longer have to be an anarchist to reject marx' algorithm. but, perhaps the way out of this paradox is closer than we realize.
https://canadiandimension.com/articles/view/beyond-petroculture-strategies-for-a-left-energy-transition
this gets the right point: nafta was classic class warfare from the investor class, and the problems that need to be resolved have less to do with free trade and more to do with reasserting sovereignty over the interests of foreign investment, who are using the "free trade" regime to knock down borders for their own interests, while strengthening them against the interests of workers.
but, i just want to add that the reason this was able to work was that capital was able to manipulate american workers (and canadian workers, as well) into seeing mexican workers as competitors. this leveraged bargaining position wouldn't have been effective had american and canadian workers stood together with mexican workers, and demanded equal treatment, rather than cower in fear at the prospect of job losses. but, capital was able to exploit a complex and fatal cocktail of nationalism and racism in the working class and forcefully exert an "otherness" on the mexican worker which resulted in an incremental lowering of wages and labour standards.
the solution is the same today as it was in 1994: workers need to shed their nationalist and racialist prejudices and form a common front against capital that transcends boundaries. american and canadian unions need to get active in organizing mexican workers, and then integrate with them in such a way that takes away the leverage that capital has constructed. it is in the interests of american and canadian workers to help raise living standards in mexico, but it is also in the interests of mexican workers to help explain the totality of factors going into why production in mexico is so much cheaper there (which includes the existence of a state-run oil monopoly). we can learn from each other, and we can help each other - but we have to begin with the realization that we are not in competition, but aligned together within and against the same class interests.
i also want to point out that in a lot of ways canada is not so dissimilar from mexico. the liberals are not the canadian left. and, there is plenty of potential for a left-wing anti-nafta uprising here, too, should the negotiations play out in a certain way - and should our nominally socialist party (or perhaps our green party....) pull it's head out of it's ass and get with it.
https://qz.com/917175/trump-is-right-to-criticize-nafta-but-hes-totally-wrong-about-why-its-bad-for-american-workers/
but, i just want to add that the reason this was able to work was that capital was able to manipulate american workers (and canadian workers, as well) into seeing mexican workers as competitors. this leveraged bargaining position wouldn't have been effective had american and canadian workers stood together with mexican workers, and demanded equal treatment, rather than cower in fear at the prospect of job losses. but, capital was able to exploit a complex and fatal cocktail of nationalism and racism in the working class and forcefully exert an "otherness" on the mexican worker which resulted in an incremental lowering of wages and labour standards.
the solution is the same today as it was in 1994: workers need to shed their nationalist and racialist prejudices and form a common front against capital that transcends boundaries. american and canadian unions need to get active in organizing mexican workers, and then integrate with them in such a way that takes away the leverage that capital has constructed. it is in the interests of american and canadian workers to help raise living standards in mexico, but it is also in the interests of mexican workers to help explain the totality of factors going into why production in mexico is so much cheaper there (which includes the existence of a state-run oil monopoly). we can learn from each other, and we can help each other - but we have to begin with the realization that we are not in competition, but aligned together within and against the same class interests.
i also want to point out that in a lot of ways canada is not so dissimilar from mexico. the liberals are not the canadian left. and, there is plenty of potential for a left-wing anti-nafta uprising here, too, should the negotiations play out in a certain way - and should our nominally socialist party (or perhaps our green party....) pull it's head out of it's ass and get with it.
https://qz.com/917175/trump-is-right-to-criticize-nafta-but-hes-totally-wrong-about-why-its-bad-for-american-workers/
Thursday, February 23, 2017
the reality is that a lot of the people that voted for him don't know the difference between marijuana and heroin. drugs are drugs.
marijuana is, of course, more like alcohol than heroin - and according to most studies actually far less dangerous than alcohol. one of the reasons i support marijuana legalization is that it will hopefully reduce alcoholism, and all of the social and health problems associated with alcohol use.
but, you'll never get that across to the christian right - and that's who spicer is talking to, here.
http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-trump-marijuana-20170223-story.html
marijuana is, of course, more like alcohol than heroin - and according to most studies actually far less dangerous than alcohol. one of the reasons i support marijuana legalization is that it will hopefully reduce alcoholism, and all of the social and health problems associated with alcohol use.
but, you'll never get that across to the christian right - and that's who spicer is talking to, here.
http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-trump-marijuana-20170223-story.html
what about states' rights, guys?
that argument is always disingenuous.
http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/23/politics/white-house-marijuana-donald-trump-pot/?iid=ob_lockedrail_bottomlist
that argument is always disingenuous.
http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/23/politics/white-house-marijuana-donald-trump-pot/?iid=ob_lockedrail_bottomlist
i guess i slept all day.
the truth is that the headache never really went away. but, the sinuses haven't cleared, either. so, i still can't say whether i'm dealing solely with a virus, or with a virus + a concussion or even with a virus + allergies + a concussion.
if the virus doesn't go away soon, it might last so long that the concussion symptoms disappear, too - in which case, i'll never know if i had one. shrug.
as with last month, the editing process (i have to write up the blurbs...) is being slowed down by externalities, but i should be able to get it all down after i eat and back to finishing the concert listings. it's easy to blame the slow down on the detour, but we can all see that it isn't the problem....
as of right now, it does not seem likely that i will go out anywhere on the weekend. the weather is also set to turn. but these sicknesses tend to rapidly reverse themselves, and the timing of the fronts is hard to say, as well.
the truth is that the headache never really went away. but, the sinuses haven't cleared, either. so, i still can't say whether i'm dealing solely with a virus, or with a virus + a concussion or even with a virus + allergies + a concussion.
if the virus doesn't go away soon, it might last so long that the concussion symptoms disappear, too - in which case, i'll never know if i had one. shrug.
as with last month, the editing process (i have to write up the blurbs...) is being slowed down by externalities, but i should be able to get it all down after i eat and back to finishing the concert listings. it's easy to blame the slow down on the detour, but we can all see that it isn't the problem....
as of right now, it does not seem likely that i will go out anywhere on the weekend. the weather is also set to turn. but these sicknesses tend to rapidly reverse themselves, and the timing of the fronts is hard to say, as well.
btw, my reaction to hate groups supporting me would be that i'd be happy for them to allow me to use them as useful idiots to promote a far left ideology through. i'll gladly co-opt them. and, if people can't figure out the reality of things, i don't really care what they think.
i mean, if they want to read my criticisms of property or my takedowns of racism, great - maybe i'll convince a few of them. that's ultimately what everybody wants, right?
i mean, if they want to read my criticisms of property or my takedowns of racism, great - maybe i'll convince a few of them. that's ultimately what everybody wants, right?
and, of course, the tory wells misses the point that the crux of the problem is centering the economy on albertan oil, in the first place.
they need to invest in diversification. if that isn't obvious, yet...
https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2017/02/23/prime-minister-justin-trudeau-has-run-out-of-money-so-more-help-for-the-middle-class-will-have-to-wait-paul-wells.html
they need to invest in diversification. if that isn't obvious, yet...
https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2017/02/23/prime-minister-justin-trudeau-has-run-out-of-money-so-more-help-for-the-middle-class-will-have-to-wait-paul-wells.html
Wednesday, February 22, 2017
using the yazidi calendar as a reference in print is no less absurd than claiming that the world is 6000 years old, or whatever is, by calculating dates in the bible. if you would consider it irresponsible journalism to calculate the age of the earth in the bible, you should consider it just irresponsible to cite yazidi religious texts (which are actually mostly oral) in describing their origins.
the key is consistency. you should reject all religious references, not just the christian ones. you are not respecting a foreign culture, you are just engaging in irresponsible journalistic practices.
i'm not going to react to the decision to take a few thousand yazidis in. they're in perpetual threat, there. they don't have the numbers or the resources to stand their ground. so, this is an exception to my general rule of preferring to fund revolutionaries than accepting refugees.
but, can we be scientific in describing them rather than deferring to their superstitions, please?
their ethnogenesis, like that of other kurds, likely dates to the islamic invasion c. 650. the kurds are essentially iranian refugees of the islamic conquest. there were no "kurds" or "yazidis" a thousand years ago, there were just iranian refugees. those iranian refugees had a complex history of cultural syncretism from indigenous and introduced sources. the genetics suggest a strong indigenous matrilineal component, with large amounts of introduced variation (from iranians, greeks, turks, arabs) in the y-dna.
and, if you can't work that out, you shouldn't be given the responsibility of writing and publishing articles.
the key is consistency. you should reject all religious references, not just the christian ones. you are not respecting a foreign culture, you are just engaging in irresponsible journalistic practices.
i'm not going to react to the decision to take a few thousand yazidis in. they're in perpetual threat, there. they don't have the numbers or the resources to stand their ground. so, this is an exception to my general rule of preferring to fund revolutionaries than accepting refugees.
but, can we be scientific in describing them rather than deferring to their superstitions, please?
their ethnogenesis, like that of other kurds, likely dates to the islamic invasion c. 650. the kurds are essentially iranian refugees of the islamic conquest. there were no "kurds" or "yazidis" a thousand years ago, there were just iranian refugees. those iranian refugees had a complex history of cultural syncretism from indigenous and introduced sources. the genetics suggest a strong indigenous matrilineal component, with large amounts of introduced variation (from iranians, greeks, turks, arabs) in the y-dna.
and, if you can't work that out, you shouldn't be given the responsibility of writing and publishing articles.
when obama signed the executive order on trans bathroom use, i argued that it was unnecessary (trans people never followed the existing laws in the first place) and would create a backlash. trans people do not need executive orders and rights that only exist on paper, so long as the society remains unwilling to accept. what trans people need is to continue to agitate for changes in social attitudes.
so, my only real reaction to trump cancelling the order is that obama set it up for him to cancel and that it really wasn't meaningful in the first place...
so, my only real reaction to trump cancelling the order is that obama set it up for him to cancel and that it really wasn't meaningful in the first place...
chantal's era - which ended quite a while ago - was a lot different in terms of the way that parties analyze data.
the liberals are going to want to measure things like turnout by ward, the size of the re-opening swing on the left and the ethnic composition of the vote. and, yes - it will provide plenty of valuable information for them to use to determine how they're doing with voters - even if none of the seats are actually in play.
https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2017/02/22/five-by-elections-wont-test-trudeau-but-they-do-mark-the-end-of-an-era-hbert.html
the liberals are going to want to measure things like turnout by ward, the size of the re-opening swing on the left and the ethnic composition of the vote. and, yes - it will provide plenty of valuable information for them to use to determine how they're doing with voters - even if none of the seats are actually in play.
https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2017/02/22/five-by-elections-wont-test-trudeau-but-they-do-mark-the-end-of-an-era-hbert.html
the actual reality with the pre-clearance agreement is that canada doesn't turn down extradition requests from the united states very often, anyways.
for most people, it's going to be hugely convenient. others may want to avoid us customs altogether. people need to know what they're getting themselves into and weigh the risks....
for most people, it's going to be hugely convenient. others may want to avoid us customs altogether. people need to know what they're getting themselves into and weigh the risks....
he's actually completely wrong, though.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/charter-will-protect-canadians-at-us-border-prescreening-trudeau-says/article34110849/
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/charter-will-protect-canadians-at-us-border-prescreening-trudeau-says/article34110849/
i did get some major cleaning over the last ten hours or so, but it hasn't really resolved the smell.
the truth is that my nose remains unable to discern between different smells, or even the existence of one. the coffee, the toast and the hallway all smell the same to me. but, i'm worried that the background smell of dank smoke has taken over the entire unit.
?
the reason is that the smell is closest to the ceiling, and in every direction. it's even in the farthest rooms, where smoke from two floors up and on the other side can't possibly be seeping in to. i'm almost willing to conclude that the direct upstairs neighbour (the obese one...) started smoking.
but, then again, i always thought he was a secret bathroom smoker.
the reality is that i can't react until my sense of smell returns. i can't even tell toast, coffee and smoke apart. i could be imagining the whole thing.
but, the other possibility is that the ceiling upstairs is still out, or is out in a different place. that would allow the smoke two floors up to invade the upstairs, and then seep down here.
for right now, all i can really say is that i'm not experiencing the turnover in the air that i was hoping i'd experience. the air feels like it's stuck in here, and the open windows aren't really helping much. i'm going to make it a point to turn the heat right off this afternoon.
i need to do some shopping today. it's going to be gorgeous out. i'm only at midday, but i'm a little sleepy, so i'm going to get a nap in, and go from there.
the truth is that my nose remains unable to discern between different smells, or even the existence of one. the coffee, the toast and the hallway all smell the same to me. but, i'm worried that the background smell of dank smoke has taken over the entire unit.
?
the reason is that the smell is closest to the ceiling, and in every direction. it's even in the farthest rooms, where smoke from two floors up and on the other side can't possibly be seeping in to. i'm almost willing to conclude that the direct upstairs neighbour (the obese one...) started smoking.
but, then again, i always thought he was a secret bathroom smoker.
the reality is that i can't react until my sense of smell returns. i can't even tell toast, coffee and smoke apart. i could be imagining the whole thing.
but, the other possibility is that the ceiling upstairs is still out, or is out in a different place. that would allow the smoke two floors up to invade the upstairs, and then seep down here.
for right now, all i can really say is that i'm not experiencing the turnover in the air that i was hoping i'd experience. the air feels like it's stuck in here, and the open windows aren't really helping much. i'm going to make it a point to turn the heat right off this afternoon.
i need to do some shopping today. it's going to be gorgeous out. i'm only at midday, but i'm a little sleepy, so i'm going to get a nap in, and go from there.
yeah, sure, lyin' brian.
what were you singing for, then?
those unmarked brown bags on the table?
http://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/former-pm-mulroney-i-wasn-t-singing-for-trump-1.3295333
what were you singing for, then?
those unmarked brown bags on the table?
http://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/former-pm-mulroney-i-wasn-t-singing-for-trump-1.3295333
i'm actually on her side, and think that it demonstrates the misogyny inherent in the religion.
the discussion here should not be about her refusal to wear a scarf, it should be about the insistence that she wear one. he has no right to tell her what to wear.
http://www.ctvnews.ca/world/france-s-le-pen-refuses-headscarf-to-meet-lebanon-s-mufti-1.3294372
the discussion here should not be about her refusal to wear a scarf, it should be about the insistence that she wear one. he has no right to tell her what to wear.
http://www.ctvnews.ca/world/france-s-le-pen-refuses-headscarf-to-meet-lebanon-s-mufti-1.3294372
Tuesday, February 21, 2017
see, this is a typically bizarre story by the tory media in canada, who seem to have no concept of the national interest at all.
it is falling all over itself to ensure that the government of ontario cede it's sovereignty to a nafta kangaroo court and pay out $30 million of taxpayer money to a consortium of foreign investors for the crime of cancelling an unnecessary project. it even goes so far as to suggest this is not the right time to challenge whether nafta is working "as it should".
it's absurd.
i will agree that this is, in fact, nafta working "as it should" - and that it is a catastrophe. if the tory media had any concept of a canadian national interest, it would cite the case as an example of what is wrong with nafta and what needs to be removed from the agreement. i would like to see ontario take a stand, here, and demand that the federal government revisit chapter 11 in any upcoming renegotiations. these parasites don't deserve a fucking dime.
but, apparently, it's more interested in writing blank cheques to wall street bankers, at the expense of our treasury.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/us-company-windstream-energy-sues-canada-for-28-million-in-nafta-case/article34104737/
it is falling all over itself to ensure that the government of ontario cede it's sovereignty to a nafta kangaroo court and pay out $30 million of taxpayer money to a consortium of foreign investors for the crime of cancelling an unnecessary project. it even goes so far as to suggest this is not the right time to challenge whether nafta is working "as it should".
it's absurd.
i will agree that this is, in fact, nafta working "as it should" - and that it is a catastrophe. if the tory media had any concept of a canadian national interest, it would cite the case as an example of what is wrong with nafta and what needs to be removed from the agreement. i would like to see ontario take a stand, here, and demand that the federal government revisit chapter 11 in any upcoming renegotiations. these parasites don't deserve a fucking dime.
but, apparently, it's more interested in writing blank cheques to wall street bankers, at the expense of our treasury.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/us-company-windstream-energy-sues-canada-for-28-million-in-nafta-case/article34104737/
i just want to clarify that i'm not exactly arguing against hiring illegals. i'm not taking a nativist or nationalist position here, i'm taking a socialist position that puts the rights of workers ahead of everything else..
so, what i'm saying is that if you're going to hire an illegal then you should pay them the same wages (relative to existing laws), give them the same benefits, etc.
but, when you assert the hiring pre-requisite of treating illegals and citizens equally, what happens is that the illegals lose their competitive advantage and things like language skills make the citizens more appealing.
if you actually put this equal playing field down, and stopped paying migrants less, you would see the demand for illegal labour dry up very quickly and the flow of migrants would essentially stop. but, the thing is that nobody actually wants this except the subclass of workers that is getting priced out - it doesn't fit the aims of capital (who always want to lower wages), and it doesn't fit the aim of the consumer class (who always want lower prices).
but, my position is not about building walls or shutting out the outside world. it's about enforcing labour regulations, and stopping the exploitation of migrant labour.
so, what i'm saying is that if you're going to hire an illegal then you should pay them the same wages (relative to existing laws), give them the same benefits, etc.
but, when you assert the hiring pre-requisite of treating illegals and citizens equally, what happens is that the illegals lose their competitive advantage and things like language skills make the citizens more appealing.
if you actually put this equal playing field down, and stopped paying migrants less, you would see the demand for illegal labour dry up very quickly and the flow of migrants would essentially stop. but, the thing is that nobody actually wants this except the subclass of workers that is getting priced out - it doesn't fit the aims of capital (who always want to lower wages), and it doesn't fit the aim of the consumer class (who always want lower prices).
but, my position is not about building walls or shutting out the outside world. it's about enforcing labour regulations, and stopping the exploitation of migrant labour.
i was in general support of the refugee ban, but i oppose the deportation of illegal migrants.
the republicans tend to frequently make this error, because they focus so much on supply-side economics. a lot of what's wrong with how they think reduces to this simple error: you don't solve a problem by reducing the supply of a good, you solve it by attacking the demand for it.
consider the war on drugs. a massive failure, by any analysis. why? because they focused on reducing supply, rather than putting together social programs that restricted demand. and how fucking hard can it be to reduce demand for fucking heroin, anyways?
if this actually goes through, one of the effects is going to be an increase in human trafficking - because he's not doing anything to reduce the demand for cheap labour, which is what keeps them coming in.
i've been clear that i think they need to crack down on businesses that carry out illegal hiring practices and better enforce labour regulations. it's a very standard left-wing position.
but, i don't think anybody should get deported (unless they're a criminal). it doesn't accomplish anything, it's just empty draconianism.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/21/us/politics/dhs-immigration-trump.html
the republicans tend to frequently make this error, because they focus so much on supply-side economics. a lot of what's wrong with how they think reduces to this simple error: you don't solve a problem by reducing the supply of a good, you solve it by attacking the demand for it.
consider the war on drugs. a massive failure, by any analysis. why? because they focused on reducing supply, rather than putting together social programs that restricted demand. and how fucking hard can it be to reduce demand for fucking heroin, anyways?
if this actually goes through, one of the effects is going to be an increase in human trafficking - because he's not doing anything to reduce the demand for cheap labour, which is what keeps them coming in.
i've been clear that i think they need to crack down on businesses that carry out illegal hiring practices and better enforce labour regulations. it's a very standard left-wing position.
but, i don't think anybody should get deported (unless they're a criminal). it doesn't accomplish anything, it's just empty draconianism.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/21/us/politics/dhs-immigration-trump.html
yeah. this is the moronic position that they're taking:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/nafta-mulroney-guajardo-freeland-1.3992043
(and, it's rich to hear mulroney call somebody else a loser - that's hypocrisy at it's finest)
you could see this coming from a thousand miles away: they're going to prioritize the public relations face on solidarity with mexicans on deportation orders (and the essentially non-existent relationship that canada has with mexico) over the economic bedrock of trade with the united states.
then, they'll attack opponents as racists.
...because, apparently, trudeau thinks he's running for re-election as the governor of california.
this government is stupid. it's not even ideological at this point. it's just a lack of basic intelligence.
they are actually, seriously, forfeiting the entire economy on a bet that they can get re-elected by standing up for migrant workers in california.
yes: they should throw mexico under the bus.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/nafta-mulroney-guajardo-freeland-1.3992043
(and, it's rich to hear mulroney call somebody else a loser - that's hypocrisy at it's finest)
you could see this coming from a thousand miles away: they're going to prioritize the public relations face on solidarity with mexicans on deportation orders (and the essentially non-existent relationship that canada has with mexico) over the economic bedrock of trade with the united states.
then, they'll attack opponents as racists.
...because, apparently, trudeau thinks he's running for re-election as the governor of california.
this government is stupid. it's not even ideological at this point. it's just a lack of basic intelligence.
they are actually, seriously, forfeiting the entire economy on a bet that they can get re-elected by standing up for migrant workers in california.
yes: they should throw mexico under the bus.
actually, i'd love to focus more on canadian topics, but our parliament tends to just waste all of it's time with symbolism and obstructionism. canadian politics doesn't really happen between elections, which are short, except around the week of the budget - and the reason is that the parties don't want to stimulate a discussion, they just want to obfuscate or deflect. maybe they could drop the debate on a symbolic motion on "islamophobia" and pick up something substantive?
anyways.
how am i doing?
i'm feeling a whole hell of a lot better. really.
i'm skipping this show tonight:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMueDWG86JU
it's an experiential thing, solely. apparently, they follow the same algorithm every set, so once you've heard it once you've heard it all. and, while i'm sure i'd enjoy it, i'd rather stay in and nurse my remaining sickness.
the headache is gone. but, i've also had the windows open all day and will probably leave them open for the next several days. when my nose cleared enough this morning to regain a sense of smell, the first thing i noticed was that my apartment smells like stale smoke and that it may have been a part of the cause of my coughing fits.
i'm focusing right now on cycling the air out, which is going to mean an early spring cleaning. i want to focus on finding hidden sources of dust. i forgot to clean at all this month....
i've spent the last several days editing and watching vlogs, which are now being uploaded. i'm happy with this algorithm: a few hours to edit for the month, a few days to render, about six hours to watch them and then a few days to upload. then i'm not thinking about it for another month...
i've made some progress with the show reviews, but it's been slow due to distractions. i'm not particularly upset about this. but, i'd like to get over the hump tonight, too.
so, that's the last few days: necessary editing shit while nursing a cold, and being less productive than i could be due to distraction. hey, i read a few things. i'm not wasting time, i'm stretching it out.
anyways.
how am i doing?
i'm feeling a whole hell of a lot better. really.
i'm skipping this show tonight:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMueDWG86JU
it's an experiential thing, solely. apparently, they follow the same algorithm every set, so once you've heard it once you've heard it all. and, while i'm sure i'd enjoy it, i'd rather stay in and nurse my remaining sickness.
the headache is gone. but, i've also had the windows open all day and will probably leave them open for the next several days. when my nose cleared enough this morning to regain a sense of smell, the first thing i noticed was that my apartment smells like stale smoke and that it may have been a part of the cause of my coughing fits.
i'm focusing right now on cycling the air out, which is going to mean an early spring cleaning. i want to focus on finding hidden sources of dust. i forgot to clean at all this month....
i've spent the last several days editing and watching vlogs, which are now being uploaded. i'm happy with this algorithm: a few hours to edit for the month, a few days to render, about six hours to watch them and then a few days to upload. then i'm not thinking about it for another month...
i've made some progress with the show reviews, but it's been slow due to distractions. i'm not particularly upset about this. but, i'd like to get over the hump tonight, too.
so, that's the last few days: necessary editing shit while nursing a cold, and being less productive than i could be due to distraction. hey, i read a few things. i'm not wasting time, i'm stretching it out.
a little reality check on where trudeau sits on the spectrum, eh?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2017/02/21/pruitt-to-epa-employees-we-dont-have-to-choose-between-jobs-and-the-environment/?tid=pm_business_pop
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2017/02/21/pruitt-to-epa-employees-we-dont-have-to-choose-between-jobs-and-the-environment/?tid=pm_business_pop
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