Time for change

How not to help International Relations

2006-03-04T12:23:00.000-05:00

A Sudanese man has been forced to take a goat as his "wife", after he was caught having sex with the animal.
"They said I should not take him to the police, but rather let him pay a dowry for my goat because he used it as his wife," Mr Alifi told the newspaper.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/4748292.stm

Canadian Election, 2006

2006-01-24T00:55:00.000-05:00

I have never felt closer to an election than I have with the one just finished. And I didn’t even vote. Before you go crazy and start spitting rhetoric about democratic rights, laziness, and political apathy, allow me to explain why.

The federal election system in Canada looks something like this: each representative citizen over the age of majority (18) is allowed to place a single mark signifying which of the three (cough, four) possible parties will represent the values of the country as a whole. Each person gets one attempt to make one choice. Everything else- all the intentionally ruined, accidentally spoiled, and formally declined ballots along with those dastardly non-voters- is not considered.

The process looks like this: voting for a candidate encompasses information the electoral system understands and everything else is just meaningless noise. But therein lays the problem. Since the system itself only recognizes positive support, no form of dissent, disagreement, or difference can be recognized. All you can do is pick your best-fit party. And this makes efforts at effecting systemic change very, very difficult; after all, that’s the point.

So I was there today, in my polling station, talking to a representative from Elections Canada. I had every intention of “declining my ballot” in order to indicate on record my dissatisfaction with the election process. But when I was told that my refusal gets grouped along with all the other pieces of electoral white-noise, I had to reconsider.

Imagine a restaurant. There are four chefs each touting the meal they’d like to prepare. The patrons individually vote on which meal they’d like served for both themselves and the rest of the room. Only one can be chosen: roast beef, pork chops, veal, or steak. If you really agree with one of the choices, fine. But what if you’re a vegetarian? What recourse do you have?

Currently there are no figures reported for declined ballots in a federal election (and only some provinces count them). But there does seem to be a great deal of concern with the lax levels of voter turnout. So I sided with them. Instead of choosing a candidate or party I support, instead of voicing my upset with the process itself, I added my name to the growing number of people who simply find themselves unrepresented.

I know I’ll get grouped as a “lazy” citizen- just like some semi-Conservatives will get grouped with abortion-hating cowboys from the West. It’s a sad reality. But since my position is not supported or recognized by the official system, I see no other choice.

Almost. There are a growing number of people who share my sentiment. If you find yourself among them and would like to see more than a simple rotation of so-called “lesser evils”, I urge you to petition the federal government and demand electoral change. A good place to start is here: www.fairvote.ca.

I have never felt closer to an election than with the one just finished. But make no mistake: this is because of personal investment, not return. Until voting practices in Canada change, I will forever count myself among the people who see an unwanted candidate rise to office. Perhaps you might now not be so quick to turn up your nose at the growing number of Canadians who fail to cast their ballot. Perhaps you may even choose to count yourself among them.

Damn Orwell

2005-12-22T23:37:00.000-05:00

Back in July, when the subways were getting bombed in Britain, I wrote an article about the use of closed circuit televisions (CCT) as tools for surveillance in cities. London had long been using cameras to watch its public spaces and the captured images of the transit bombers sealed their (supposed) effectiveness. Cameras are good, they’ll tell you, because they act as a deterrent for crime. People see the cameras, know they’re being watched, and magically behave like they’re not gun-toting maniacs. Easy as a piece of Big Brother’s pie.

More recently, from our neighbours to the south, we hear this: Bush vows to continue domestic surveillance without seeking court warrants. The trend is the same and Machiavelli’s words are once again echoed: people, when left to their own devices, are not to be trusted. They require external force. They require surveillance. They need to be watched.

But the example par excellence comes once again from Britain. It was announced today that Britain will become the first country to monitor and record the movement of all vehicles. Here’s the tag line: “The network will incorporate thousands of existing CCTV cameras which are being converted to read number plates automatically night and day to provide 24/7 coverage of all motorways and main roads, as well as towns, cities, ports and petrol-station forecourts.”

It’s a good thing that your license plate doesn’t link with your social insurance number, your birth date, your address, your sex, your occupation, your phone number, your height, your photo, and your signature. Because that’d be an invasion of privacy. And that’s just wrong.

We’re just a small step away from cameras in schools, cameras in homes, or cameras in restrooms. And why not? “It's part of public protection. If the security services did not have access to this, we'd be negligent."

Indeed.

http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/transport/article334686.ece

Survey says: You deserve to be raped

2005-12-11T17:03:00.000-05:00

On the 24th of November, I posted an article outlining a recent court ruling in Britain which stated that a woman under the influence of alcohol cannot legally determine whether or not she’s been raped. Since she’s too intoxicated to be in full control of her body, she really can’t blame somebody else for trying to take that control.

Like you, I thought that this ruling was an abnormality in Britain’s policy-making, a blip on the screen of justice and something to be made short work of in the English press. But it wasn’t. In fact, hearing the results of a 1,095-person survey about rape, it seems to be representative of the general population.

And that’s just scary.

Here are some of the typical responses as reported in today’s edition of the UK Daily Mail:

If the woman was wearing sexy or revealing clothing, 6pc said she was totally responsible and 20pc said she was partially responsible.

If it is known that the woman has many sexual partners, 8pc said she was totally responsible and 14pc said she was partially responsible.

If she is alone and walking in a dangerous or deserted area, 5pc said she was totally responsible and 17pc said she was partially responsible.

Totally responsible. Completely, absolutely, 100% at fault. She brought it on herself. Low-cut shirt? Sorry, you should have seen the rape coming. Too many sexual partners? Yeah, you probably want the rape. And don’t even get me started on that alley you walked into.

One third of those surveyed believe that a woman is either partially or fully responsible for being raped if she behaves in a flirtatious manner.

Something is horribly wrong with the world we live in. I can’t type any more.

Queso Fresco

2005-12-06T23:30:00.000-05:00

Today’s story comes to us from Memphis, TN and involves an aspiring model named Jessica Sandy Booth. She’s 18. Today, Jessica went over to her friends’ house and saw that they had a block of uncut cocaine on the counter.

Now, since Jessica needed about $7,900 to pay a modeling agency, she thought it best to hire a hit man, have her friends killed, and steal the cocaine; definitely the moral high-ground. Unfortunately for Jessica though, the hit man she hired happened to be an undercover cop and her plan was averted.

But here’s the best part: the cocaine on her friends’ counter was actually a block of queso fresco cheese. The rather unattractive model thus attempted to have four of her friends killed for a bag of milky white cheese. She even told her supposed hit man that “any children old enough to testify would have to be killed as well.”

For the love of whatever god you pray to, please put in a request to have a special division of purgatory laid out for those humans too moronic to deserve the luxury of eternal damnation. And be sure to add the name Jessica Sandy Booth to the list of reservations.

http://www.kthv.com/news/news.aspx?storyid=21696

Sleepy Hollow

2005-12-01T21:47:00.000-05:00

Automation is a term used to describe biological functions that are beyond the control of the conscious individual. This term is normally used for necessary functions like breathing, blood flow, and digestion. While I can attempt to stop breathing, eventually a feedback mechanism will knock me unconscious and allow my automated physiology to regain control of the task.

Complex motor phenomenon like walking, talking, and *having sex with other people* is, despite the possible lack of conscious control, not automation.

Meet Jan Leudecke, a 33-year old Toronto man recently acquitted of sexually assaulting a woman while he was asleep. A sleep expert testified that he suffered from "sexsomania," a condition that engages him in sexual behaviour during sleep. Because he was sleeping, the Montreal judge decided, Leudecke did not voluntary commit the act; Leudecke didn't have sex with the woman next to him, Sleepy Leudecke did. And that's different.

But here's the best part: nakedly rolling on top of someone is a fairly simple act. Nakedly rolling on top of someone and having sex with them is a bit much. But nakedly rolling on top of someone and putting a condom on before having sex with them, well that just seems a bit ridiculous.

Either way, Leudecke should be held accountable. He's a danger to those around him not because he maliciously assaulted a sleeping woman but because he has no control over his actions. A simple example will illustrate this.

Suppose I sleepwalk into somebody's house and butcher their dog. That it was an involuntary act a) doesn't bring the dog back to life; and b) doesn't- ever- excuse the fact that it happened because of me.

Killing animals is wrong. If your mind makes you the unwilling participant of such a crime, it sucks to be you. But it sucks even more to be the one with the dead dog.

http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/.../Sexsomnia_051130.html

How compatible are you with incest?

2005-11-25T17:53:00.000-05:00

Now, not too often does one come across a story that is made even worse by the very media that seeks to cover it. Today’s tidbit of crap comes from Pueblo, Colorado where a 54-year old man was accused of incest and child pornography. He was also charged with video-taping people going to the washroom in his house. Oh, and this:

“Investigators also found an inflatable sheep dressed in fishnet stockings on Wurster's bed, according to his arrest affidavit.”

Sure, it’s all horrible and Richard William Wurster deserves to be hung, tarred, feathered, and beaten with a squirrel. What’s ironically even more depressing, however, is how the message gets articulated to the public. Below is a screenshot of the exact moment I read the article.

Check out the advertisement I outlined in red. It’s for some sort of online, Does it not seem a little sketchy to talk of this “sexual pervert” while at the same time effectively selling sex at the bottom of the screen? Does ABC, the producer of this website (http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/5382261/detail.html), not find this inherently self-contradictory?

Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe that’s the line we’ve drawn in the sand of sexual deviance: sex with kids and relatives bad, objectified sex with strangers good.

Binge-drinking + rape = your fault

2005-11-24T09:07:00.000-05:00

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-1888035,00.html

In Britain yesterday, a funny thing happened with the law. The High Court there threw out a case involving the rape of an unconscious and drunk student. Her attacker- another student working as a security guard- admitted to having sex with the woman but claimed she gave consent.

The prosecution- her prosecution- stopped after she admitted to being drunk. "Drunken consent is still consent," they said.

Here's the funny part. Why can't you have sex with a child? You may have heard recently about a teacher in Florida (25-years old) who had sex with one of her students (14-years). If convicted, she faces up to 30 years in prison, a lifetime banned from teaching, registration on a sex offenders list, and a whole bunch of other things. But why? I have no doubt in my mind that the teenage student gave his wilful (very wilful) consent. So what's the problem?

Because consent from a 14-year old or anybody else under the age of majority isn't really considered consent. These people are deemed unable to fully determine, to the best of their ability, right from wrong, good from bad, yes from no. That's something that comes with maturity. And so they are legally incapable of ever giving their full consent. For anything.

In the law, they use the term "mens rae" to describe this: the mental accountability and understanding of the act committed. Only when someone is of 'sound' mind and of sufficient intellectual ability (roughly equated to 16 years of age) can this be possessed. It's the only reason why the insanity plea ever works.

So how does an unconscious and inebriated woman- who obviously is unable to adequately determine right from wrong, good from bad, yes from no- how is she ever able to give consent for sex?

If you drug a woman, knock her out, and rape her, does her inability to speak mean that no crime was committed?

Tomorrow is White Ribbon Day, the international day to speak out against violence against women. If you or anyone else you know is currently in a situation of mental or physical abuse, contact your local authorities immediately. There are thousands of alternatives; none need involve any form of violence.

For a list of available women's shelters in Toronto and across Canada, visit: http://www.nellies.org/resources/shelters.html

http://www.whiteribbonday.org.au/advertising

My Gay Wife

2005-11-24T09:05:00.000-05:00

Man sues ABC over gay "Wife Swap"

From the cbc.ca website, "Jeffrey D. Bedford of Haileyville filed his $10,225,000 suit in Muskogee's U.S. District Court, claiming that ABC Television misled him by not sending a woman from a heterosexual family to his home."

Let me get this straight: Jeffery agrees to have his wife live with another man. In exchange for this, Jeff expects the other man's wife to come and live with him. This exchange, moreover, will be televised. When the other man's "wife" happens to be a man, Jeff gets his panties in a knot and sues for over $10 million.

You've really got to ask yourself here, what the hell was Jeff expecting? He agreed to go on television and swap spouses. He didn't like the one he received. Would he have complained if he thought his ‘new’ wife was overweight? Ugly? All this points, unfortunately, to one of two things: 1) Jeffrey Bedford agrees to humorously disrupt his marriage for the purposes of televised fun or; 2) he actually wanted to swap wives.

You see his predicament. He's seeking $10 million in part for public humiliation; does this not give the impression that he didn't quite think the televised swapping of wives was inherently funny in the first place? Did he think ABC was producing a documentary on polygamy?

Here’s the best part: “Bedford claims that when he conducted a Bible study for the Haileyville Baptist Church in his home, his gay ‘wife’ invited a gay group as well.” Wow.

If you're keeping track of an Idiot List, make sure you add Jeffery D. Bedford's name to it.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/po/20051122/co_po/mansuesabcovergaywifeswap

M-I-C-K-E-Y, Suicide is painless?

2005-11-11T22:51:00.000-05:00

Hey, you ever see the comic strip of Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy going to the park to pick daisies? Yeah it sure was great! They frolicked in the tall grass, played tag, and had a well-deserved nap under a big sycamore tree. Those sure were great times.

What's that? Where was the rest of the gang? See, you are familiar with the Walt Disney bunch! Well Pluto was back guarding Mickey's house, Snow White was helping the Drawfs with dinner, and Minnie... well, no one quite knew where Minnie was.

Anyway, back to the story. After Mickey and the gang woke up from their nap, they decided to head home for dinner. Donald had to get up early the next day for a job interview and Goofy wanted to finish that model plane he was working on. Mickey just couldn't wait to go home to see his girl, Minnie.

You can imagine his surprise when he caught her cheating on him with some musician-type. Yeah, I know- you don't believe it. You're probably running through a hundred stories, each one giving justification for Minnie hanging out with another man behind Mickey's back. And who knows, that may have actually been true.

But let me tell you kiddies, it sure didn't stop Mickey from trying to kill himself. In print. Across a month’s worth of comics. All penned by Mickey's loving (?) creator, Walt Disney himself.

Seriously, check it out.
www.barnaclepress.com/comics/.../mickey_mouse/index.html

It seems even Mickey Mouse visited the Unhappiest Place on Earth.

"These are the people in yoru neighbourhood"

2005-11-04T11:36:00.000-05:00

Montreal pedophile dad sentenced to 15 years

Somehow I don't think Mr. Rogers was thinking about pedophiles during his oft-quoted rhyme about the people that live in our neighbourhoods. Maybe he had never been to Montreal then.

Today's story of crack-pot justice and the need for harsher social penalties comes from the province of Quebec. A Montreal man is convicted of sexually assaulting his *two-year-old daughter* and posting the pictures on the internet. His sentence? 15 years in prison.

But don't worry kids, after he's free (assuming he doesn't get out earlier for 'good' behaviour) he'll be under "strict" surveillance because he's been also declared a long-term offender who's shown no remorse or empathy.

Here's where our judicial system once again drops the ball: The judge said there was sufficient evidence against the man to declare him a dangerous sexual offender, but she noted that the Crown didn't ask for that, so she declared him a long-term offender.

Riiiiiight.

The timing is quite impeccable. When the 32-year-old man is released, his daughter will be just old enough to truly hate him for what he's done. Teen angst has a funny way of playing these things out.

Good thing they'll have two more weeks to rethink the decision: the man will be back in court for pre-sentencing arguments in another case, this time involving the sexual touching of his neighbour's daughter.

Against capital punishment? Fine. You can be the one who explains to the children why this waste of skin was able to perpetually re-offend. I just hope it's not a little girl you know that he meets the next time he's freely walking down the street.

http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/11/02/pedophile051102.html

What The Crap Is Wrong With Our Legal System?

2005-10-31T20:24:00.000-05:00

(NB: This post appears also on my new home at www.tostudent.com)

There truly isn't a shortage of idiots out there in the world. So if you happen to be keeping a list, please add the name of Albert George Muckle. He's a 25-year old "drifter" who pleaded guilty- and that's important- to the beating and sexual assault of a girl just out of her teens in Banff.

(Incidentally, the press has a way of making the crime seem far less horrible than it actually is. Their "beating and sexual assault" actually equates to strangling, attempting to kill, molesting, and leaving the woman unconscious and partially clothed in a park.)

He's in the news because he doesn't think he'll survive prison. Apparently Albert thinks the public should care that the rival gang members he's in prison with aren't going to invite him to their basketball games and tea parties.

Let's go over the facts again: Moron does terrible, terrible things to woman; woman is left in coma and is not expected to recover; moron gets caught (because remember, he didn't give himself in) and pleads guilty to the crime; moron refuses to be represented by a lawyer.

Now, I know what you're thinking. Bing, bang, boom; a quick win for the prosecution and a dangerous criminal off the streets, right? Right? Nope. On Thursday, the Crowne attorney asked for more time to examine documents from Albert's youth. Apparently they don't think a confessed maniac without legal representation isn't a sure-fire win so they're delaying the proceedings to find more evidence.

Albert's even willing to allow unlimited access because he's already been told by previous psychiatrists that the information isn't enough to declare him a dangerous offender.

What the crap is wrong with our legal system? This guy a) has previous psychiatric evaluation regarding dangerous offences; b) committed and pleaded guilty to the brutal attack and sexual assault of a woman; and c) refused legal defence. All that and they're still not sure he's a dangerous offender? They'll still delaying his trial? They'll still waiting for search warrants in order to get more documentation? All that and he'll still undergo a(nother) 60-day psychiatric evaluation?

The fact that Albert George Muckle committed this most awful crime is enough to make me sick. But the fact that our current legal system idly pushes paper while a 20-year old woman dies in a coma, well that's enough to make me cry.

There truly isn’t a shortage of idiots out there in the world. I just hate thinking that our legal system does more to keep them in operation than it does to put them away. To piss yourself off, read the story here.

Poor, poor horses.

2005-10-19T10:36:00.000-04:00

"Charge filed in connection with man who died having horse sex"

Investigators first learned of the farm after the man died at Enumclaw Community Hospital July 2. The county Medical Examiner's Office ruled that the death was accidental and the result of having sex with a horse. Deputies don't believe a crime occurred because bestiality is not illegal in Washington state and the horse was uninjured, said Urquhart.

But because investigators found chickens, goats and sheep on the property, they are looking into whether animal cruelty — which is a crime — was committed by having sex with these smaller, weaker animals, he said.

The farm was talked about in Internet chat rooms as a destination for people looking to have sex with livestock, he said.

"A significant number of people, we believe, have likely visited this farm," said Urquhart.

No evidence of injury? Maybe that's because horses don't have a word for "man-sex" and were thus unable to get the proper point across to Washington investigators. Either way it's ok because, apparently, horses are big enough to take it. But please don't have sex with our smaller, weaker livestock. We sometimes like to eat those.

Please direct all comments, questions, and ridicule to the City of Enumclaw at City@ci.enumclaw.wa.us

Astronomy is for losers

2005-10-02T20:47:00.000-04:00

Neptune, Pluto... Xena and Gabrielle?
The above story chronicles the possibility of a moon orbiting around a newly discovered planet in our solar system. Now, I was under the impression that astronomy and all things to do with space exploration were pretty intense fields of research. I thought that the people doing such research were of a particularly intelligent sort. Yeah, I was wrong. Astronomy is filled with losers.
Here's what one affection-deprived member of the California Institute of Technology said regarding the find:

"Having a moon is just inherently cool -- and it is something that most self-respecting planets have, so it is good to see that this one does too."

First question: why are moons "cool"? Second question: how is a planet "self-respecting"?

Let's just forget those and continue. Let's pretend that the person they interviewed was an anomoly, a loser among geniuses; a rough among diamonds. What's this? They named the moon "Gabrielle"? I wonder how smart science-folk decided on a name like that? The Greeks named the remaining planets in honour of the gods they worshipped. Gabrielle and Xena must be important astronomical phenomena, crazy-cool mathematical formulations, or the names of ground-breaking scientists, right? Right?

Gabrielle was the name of the sidekick and pal in the former television series, Xena: Warrior Princess.

If there's any intelligent life in this great cosmos, it certainly isn't found on the planet Earth.

Racism = Idiocy: The WIlliam Bennett Story

2005-10-01T09:59:00.000-04:00

Why do people insist on saying really stupid things pubically? Stop me if you've heard about this: William Bennett is a radio talk-show host in the grand ol' US of A. In response to a question about the legitimacy of abortion, he responds with this gem:

if you wanted to reduce crime, you could, if that were your sole purpose, you could abort every black baby in this country and your crime rate would go down.

The problem with Bennett's comment isn't necessarily with its overtly racist tones. Sure he's linking a specific "race" with crime rates, a practice that implies his association of a particular people with a particular social ill, but that's not the heart of the issue. Or at least it shouldn't be.

William Bennett is simply just a moron. If we can assume that crime is committed by people regardless of their ethnic or cultural origins, then crime is committed equally and judged only on the basis of person-hood. People who commit crimes fall under the more representative category "people". If this is true across the board, with no more emphasis on 'black' people, 'white' people, or 'poorly-dressed' people, then one can equally assume that all walks of people are capable of committing crime.

Then his statement is a truism, an over-stated and unnecessary fact of life. Getting rid of any category of person, then, would necessarily lower the crime rate because all people are equally capable of committing all crimes. A reduction in possibilities would necessarily hold a reduction in instances.

But why stop there? I say abort all babies with less than six toes on each foot. When was the last time you heard of a six-toed person committing a crime? I rest my case: being racist relies on being an idiot first. Just ask William Bennett.

Bloggers getting sued

2005-09-22T10:59:00.000-04:00

Blogger Faces Lawsuit Over Comments Posted by Readers

There have been few lawsuits involving blogs so far, but lawyers have said the area is fertile ground for legal actions because blogging is both increasingly popular and rife with opinions about companies and individuals. Earlier this year, Apple Computer Inc. sued a Harvard student in a California court, accusing him of publishing trade secrets on his blog, ThinkSecret.com, in violation of state law. That case is pending in Superior Court in Santa Clara, Calif.

...

2005-09-19T22:27:00.000-04:00

Brits use tanks to blow apart Basra jail, rescue pair
So, British soldiers stormed an Iraq prison with tanks in order to rescue two Brits charged with shooting an Iraqi policeman. In the process, they broke down the prison's walls. Seems rational, right?

About 150 Iraqi prisoners fled as British commandos stormed inside and rescued the pair, said to be undercover commandos.

That's right. I'll give you the breakdown:
Brits in Iraq (allegedly) shoot a cop. Iraqis get mad, arrest Brits. More Brits, mad at the thought of their own getting jailed for (again, allegedly) killing a foreign police officer, blow to pieces the jail where their citizens- and 150 criminals- are being held. All escape.

...
[Applause]

Get yourself raped

2005-09-17T17:57:00.000-04:00

Does anybody know how to say "Go fuck yourself" in Urdu, the official language of Pakistan? It should be moved to the forefront of common knowledge, I think, simply because of the Pakistan Prime Minister's most recent remarks concerning the gang-rape of a woman in 2002.

I wrote a piece on this very topic in June, in fact. I had hoped that the Canadian coverage of such a heinous crime across the globe would send messages rippling to the proper "authorities" [cough, cough] in Pakistan.

I was, of course, wrong.

The most recent article can be found here.

Apparently he thinks the whole thing was a sham to gain quicker passage to Canada. Apparently, also, we here away from the Land That Reason Forgot don't understand the situation in a strange and magical place like Pakistan.

"You must understand the environment in Pakistan. This has become a moneymaking concern. A lot of people say if you want to go abroad and get a visa for Canada or citizenship and be a millionaire, get yourself raped."

Seriously!? "Getting yourself raped" is the ideological kin to saying "Hey, you want sympathy for crimes committed against your people? Go through a holocaust." Amnesty International is asking for a public apology but obviously that won't cut it. Public apologies do nothing to remove private sentiment.

Hang the bastard. No, better yet, order him to be gang-raped. He deserves nothing less.

Yes, this is for you.

2005-09-13T12:23:00.000-04:00

Botox being used for children with excessive drooling

Hahaha, I couldn't resist. Sorry I haven't written in a little while, I wasn't even sure anyone was looking at this.

But hey, I've been wrong about much worse things.

"Thanks"?

2005-08-18T13:37:00.000-04:00

So, this worthless bag of skin decides to sexually assault his daughter 10 - 12 times and keep graphic child pornography. Her step-brother thankfully called the police and had the man arrested, thus ending what would have no doubt been a long career of traumatic abuse for the poor girl.

(Don't get me started on his drop-in-the-bucket sentence of 4 years, 10 months....)

Still, in the kindness of her heart, the girl loves her Dad. She pleads with the judge not to sentence him to jail but- thankfully- the scales of justice are held by a grown woman and not a teenage girl. How does the father respond to the words of the daughter he sexually assaulted?

She asked provincial court Judge Cheryl Daniel to sentence her father to house arrest. "Just please don't put him in jail. It's hurting my mom, my sister and I."

The girl's father was also present. After listening to her, he nodded, wiped away tears and said, "Thanks."

Thanks!? How about, "Honey, the things I did to you are so terrible that jail time is a walk in the park compared with the treatment I should have received."

He could have also followed it off with, "Good thing I live in Canada, the land where rapists and sex offenders get slaps on their wrists rather than lashes on their backs."

To infuriate yourself even more, read the full story here.

Terrified

2005-08-12T13:27:00.000-04:00

I posted a reply recently to R. Christopher Edey's blog about the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It seems my position on the matter of terrorism was misunderstood, thus prompting the writing of this post.

First and foremost, nowhere in my reply does it state that I do not support the bombing of other countries. I merely asked a question to the author and compared his later remarks to US president GW Bush. Truth be told, I rather strongly support the use of armed force.

And despite what my remarks were taken to represent, we are always in a position to judge. I can't do everything at once so I necessarily have to decide which action I will take, under what circumstances I will take it in, and how I will go about the enaction. In all instances, we judge.

Let's use a recent story as our example. There is a story today in cbc.ca about a Muslim cleric being banned entry back into Britain on the basis of past associations with 'terrorist' thoughts, words, actions, and teachings. The Brits think he's harmful to their nation because of his beliefs and so seek to remove him from their land. Is this not a more peaceful act than, say, putting him in jail?

From your interpretation of my words, you believe I would be angered with the Brit's decision because we are unfit to judge his opinion, his stance, or his beliefs. "We should make conversation, not bombs," I'd supposedly say (while hugging a tree and a baby seal). Not at all.

As with the Japanese military efforts in the Second World War, the so-called 'terrorist' attempts today conflict with the societal goals and standards of life that we come to value in the West. No more, no less. Did innocent civilians deserve to have their lives taken because the members of the Manhattan Project deemed it to be a calculated risk associated with ending the war? No. Did the texture of the globe- on both an environmental and a societal level- deserve to be forever changed because of the Bomb? No. But was it necessary? Now, that's different.

The unleashed bomb was so unquestionably powerful that it terrified the enemy forces into (almost) immediate submission. Two conflicting groups of people could not come to a peaceful resolution of problems and so entered into global warfare. When one side- it doesn't matter which- decides first to engage in violence, the other must necessarily follow suit. And in a physical battle, one side must always win at the cost of the other; it is a zero-sum game.

Vile aggression, barbarity and ruin? In our standards, yes. It is our right to make that judgement. Does our judgement supersede theirs (who, it can be assumed, do not think themselves vilely aggressive, barbarous, and ruining civilization)? Not in the slightest.

But still the fact remains: violence or the threat of violence is a reality both sides are accustomed to. And in that race there can be only one victor.

The Muslim cleric, if judged as he has been, should be sentenced to death under British law. Not because we believe he's wrong but because he conflicts with and seeks to supplant what we believe is right. If the two sides could co-exist, either peacefully or through distance, this wouldn't be a problem. That sadly isn't the case.

So now, as R. Christopher Edey rightly suggests, we must decide only if we want to keep or lost our current system of values. Thankfully the history of Hiroshima and Nagasaki has reduced the limits both sides are willing to take in order to achieve their mutually separate and conflicting goals.

Do the math

2005-08-08T10:26:00.000-04:00

From this morning's cbc.ca article on Canada's involvement in the war overseas, straight from the mouth of Maj.-Gen. Andrew Leslie:

Every time you kill an angry young man overseas, you're creating 15 more who will come after you," he said.

Um, I'm no mathmatician or anything but doesn't that sound a bit counter-productive? One step forward fifteen steps back?

But I suppose killing continuously is still a lot easier than understanding continuously....

"Honey, I tried to throw you out once. Sorry."

2005-08-05T13:47:00.000-04:00

*Probation for girl who left newborn in trash*

Can you imagine the child's surprise when he grows up, picks up a newspaper (or reads a blog...), and finds out that his mother tried to throw him out with the trash once? Me thinks he'd not be buying any more Mother's day cards....

Call me crazy but that's attempted murder. Sure she's young, sure she's dumb (she put her crying newborn into a garbage can), and sure she comes from a not-so-wonderful home of domestic abuse. But none of those reasons can excuse her from the attempted killing of her newborn son.

I'm shocked- no appauled- they let her keep the baby. As far as I'm concerned all she got was a slap on the wrist. She requires home-schooling because, let's face it, the community at large would love to give her a slap in the face.

Sabine H.

2005-08-03T10:43:00.000-04:00

So, there's this 39-year old woman being referred to as "Sabine H." in Germany who's accused of killing her 9 babies. This story abounds with idiocies, so bear with me. First of all, the babies are believed to have been killed between 1988 and 1999, an eleven year period. Using some quick math, that's a child every 1.1 years, or about four months between pregnancies.

But get this: she was unable to tell investigators anything about either the births or the deaths of the children.

"Regarding the dead children three to nine, she said she couldn't remember how the killings took place because when the birth contractions began, she had drunk a considerable amount of alcohol," Bargenda said.

But the saddest part is yet to come. Of the four children Sabine has decided not yet to kill, one is only 18 months old. This is quite obviously a case of a woman who desperately needed some reproductive education. Since she failed to receive it, the responsibility of her children fall on the shoulders of the community.

One can only hope that the three living children between the ages of 18 and 20 will do more than complete the cycle started by their parents.

I hate the news.

NB: What should happen to the mother? See the post below....

Capital "P" for Punishment

2005-07-29T10:33:00.000-04:00

I really shouldn't read the newspaper. There are just too many instances where our society gets kicked and our laws are too lax to kick back. One such incident comes to us from Amsterdam and the other from >France.

Mohammed Bouyeri, a Muslim extremist, was offended by a movie made by Theo van Gogh which showcased the inequalities faced by Muslim women. So what did he do? He shot (8 times), stabbed, and attempted to decapitate the film-maker in broad daylight. Then he used a hunting knife to pin on his body a 5-page note threatening congresswoman Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a woman who was involved with the film's production. In court, the accused denied himself a defense and even said he'd do it all over again if he could. To top the fiasco off, he begged for the death penalty, a feat that would have helped him become the religious martyr he hoped. So what did they do? They jailed him for life.

But even worse are our friends in France. (I'm shaking as I write this, I'm so angry.) 62 people were "convicted of raping, abusing or prostituting dozens of children following the discovery of a vast paedophile network in France." The worst part: most of those convicted were family members of the children they assaulted. The kids were abused in exchange for money, cigarettes, and even food in the poor French community, a fact that their defence tried to use to reduce the sentences. The age of the children ranged from six months to fourteen years. So what did they do? They jailed them.

If you didn't figure out where I was going with this when you read the title, you've probably figured it out now.

The incidences may not have happened in the merry ol' land of Canada but you can bet your last dollar it could. And what would we have done?

More importantly, what should we be doing?

I think you know where I stand.

All idiots are created equal

2005-07-27T08:10:00.000-04:00

Kudos to the recent ordaining of nine women into the Roman Catholic Church. For too long have men held supreme entitlement to the rank of Idiot Templar in the Judeo-Christian religions and it's a breath of fresh air to hear indoctrinated babble come from a female's mouth.

Ah, it's a fine day indeed. The end of gender segregation in the Roma... pardon? What's that?

Four of the women became "priests" and five became "deacons," although the Vatican doesn't recognize such ordinations and could kick them out of the Church.

Oh, it was a 'secret' ceremony? I see.

It seems they can't do much of anything until they're recognized by the Vatican (the DeVry Institute of Idoltry) and it doesn't look like that's happening any time soon. Thanks for the token though.

I for one am glad to hear the silenced voices of women finally approaching the surface. I just wish they were fighting against, rather than adding to, the already deafening choir of false hope.

Tale of Two Nations

2005-07-26T11:18:00.000-04:00

Canada vs. Britain. Remember my last post? Pull the blanket over your heads kiddies, it's all about control.

The world as suspect

2005-07-22T14:50:00.000-04:00

Now that the transit cameras in London have captured photos of the people believed to be responsible for the recent bombings, it's only a matter of time before we have cameras lining every street, subway, and park here in Toronto.

One small step towards chasing ghosts, one giant leap for manufacturers of closed-circut television systems. Who needs privacy anyway? If everybody's in the open, no evil can happen. Right? Right?....

Because, let's face it. Why examine the issue at the heart of the matter when you can simply hard-wire cities to resemble maximum security prisons? Oh, I suppose that would make us inmates. Small price to pay though for the war against terrorism.

Remember when you were young and you'd pull the sheets over your head and pretend it protected you from harm? Yeah, same thing.

Racism = high blood sugar

2005-07-08T14:51:00.000-04:00

Don't even get me started. This story reeks of idiocy, right down to its treatment by the Canadian judicial system.

Please don't promote hate. You're a mean person and for that you must give us, the Canadian government who was in no way affected by the crime, $1,000.

When citing why he received such a ridiculous fine (approximately one dollar for every brain cell inactive in Mr. Ahenakew's head), Judge Marty Irwin said it was to prevent him from becoming a "martyr." So instead, he remains an ignorant waste of space.

He even attempted to play his own race card and cited the personal oppression he faces as an aboriginal. "I am of course disappointed and at the same time very confused at what is justice and freedom in this country," he said. To understand the sheer ridiculousness of this, you'll need to see some of the things he actually said. They're too moronic to print here, so you'll have to read the article yourself.

But the best moment in the fiasco may have come at the native chief's attempt to blame his comments on- I kid you not- high blood sugar and feelings of illness from medication.

Take away his Order of Canada medal and beat him with it. He deserves nothing less.

Tom Cruise is an alien.

2005-07-06T09:01:00.000-04:00

More precisely, he's a Thetan. He's an immortal being trapped on this world in a prison of MEST (Matter, Energy, Space, and Time). Seriously.

He's lucky he found the teachings of Scientology though, otherwise he'd never even realize he was immortal. And that would just suck. With the help of auditors around the world, Cruise is able to gradually unlock the painful memories trapped inside his "reactive" mind (called engrams). He needs to use an E-Meter to do it though, a highly-sophisticated lie-detector that measures changes in the body's state.

As he progresses, he will leave behind the reactive mind characteristic of trapped Thetans and begin to see the wisdom of ages contained within his "analytical" mind. When he is fully free, he'll be 'clear' of MEST and fully enlightened.

But Tom Cruise isn't alone. Besides all the normal folk out there realizing their true form through Scientology, celebrities like John Travolta, Kirstie Alley, Priscilla Presley, and a host of others have hopped on too.

Good thing they're celebrities though, 'cause Scientology don't come cheap. That's because you have to pay to be audited, pay to take courses, and pay to be enlightened. I suppose that's a small price to pay for leaving the prison of humanity and realizing you're an immortal Thetan. Here's a list I obtained from a pamphlet on Scientology and Dianetics (the 'science' behind it):

FLAG SPIRITUAL COUNSELLING SERVICES
12 1/2 hours Regular and Confessional Auditing 8,000
Purification Rundown 2,662
5 hours Clear Certainty Rundown 3,200
12 1/2 hours Clear Certainty Rundown 8,000
Sunshine Rundown 1,300
New Hubbard Solo Auditor Course, Part I 2,900
New Hubbard Solo Auditor Course, Part II 1,900
New Operating Thetan I 2,000
Operating Thetan II 3,900
Operating Thetan III 6,500
New OT IV OT Drug Rundown (per 12 1/2 hours) 9,000
New OT Audited NOTs (per 12 1/2 hours) 10,200
New OT VI Hubbard Solo NOTs Auditing Course 11,000
New OT VII Solo NOTs Auditing 3,000
plus 6 month segments for Case/Supervising 1,400
Power (Grades V and VA) Processing 15,300
Grade VI 3,700
Clearing Course 5,300
Introspection Rundown 16,000
New Vitality Rundown 13,800
Case Cracker Review 10,000
Student Booster Rundown 10,000
Doctorate Series Course for OTs 6,800
End of Endless OT III Rundown 3,980
L 10, L 11, L 12 Rundowns 12,500

(Note: Each L requires a minimum of 25 hours.)

I don't even know what half of it means, the pamphlet doesn't explain anything. What I do know, however, is that Tom Cruise is definitely nuts.

Stephen Harper? Steven Schmarper

2005-06-28T08:37:00.000-04:00

I really can't stand Stephen Harper. If you take out all the crap about secret plans, rigid traditionalism, and hurricane-proof hair, he's still the second worst candidate for Prime Minister (the first, obviously, being Monsieur Duceppe*).

The irony in his most recent statement about the Liberal's 'unholy' alliance with the Bloc is a little too much to bear. What really bothers me about Mr. Harper though, above all else, is his complete and utter lack of hug-a-bility. I want a charismatic leader that stands up for what s/he believes in and isn't afraid to walk the walk. Someone that mothers will pass their babies to, children will idolize, and other national leaders will envy for the attachment s/he has with the public body.

Is it too much to ask for our Prime Minister to be a person you'd both want to govern the country and have over for dinner?

I had meant to talk here about the issue of non-heterosexual marriage but got too side-tracked. If you're interested, let me know.

*NB. If you take away the fact that Duceppe's national politics don't really include Canada as a whole nation, there's not much else I don't like. At least he's direct with his ideas, I just don't agree with them.

Dear God?

2005-06-27T10:49:00.000-04:00

My utter distaste for religious pursuits were confirmed once again today when I read this horrible story: http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/06/27/pakistani-raped050627.html

Honestly, what the crap is wrong with these people?

In June 2002, a council of elders ordered Mai to be gang-raped as punishment because her 12-year-old brother had allegedly been involved in an affair with a woman, offending members of her powerful clan.

I cannot begin to explain the anger I'm feeling right now. When are we going to stop asking for support and start demanding action? This is completely unacceptable.

Ladies, do me a favour. The next time you're harassed by some over-ambitious machismo, kindly take a pen out of your purse and imbed it in his abdomen. As he writhes on the ground, tell him to pass the lesson on to the rest of his like-minded friends.

It's time we stopped making excuses for the behaviour of others.
It's time we took the law into our own hands.

Good morning

2005-06-27T08:51:00.000-04:00

Welcome.

I can take it no longer. For too long have I sat and watched the postings of this and many other sites of 'discussion' and passively engaged in the forums of modern democracy. On my journey, I have come across many parcels of wisdom sporadically littered across this great e-void and marvelled at the forms of resistance they encountered. I think it's time we gave them a home, a sanctuary of sorts against the proliferation of sheer ridiculousness that marks the landscape of society.

This blog won't change the world, of that I am certain. But perhaps the discussion- true discussion- that we engage in will. It always comes down to people and so to people I now turn.

Regards,

A.Wrind