Friday Fun: A picture is worth a thousand words...

story

And speaking of eye-popping pics...


 

Write Your Own Caption

I see Steve's in town for the Stampede...



I did not have sexual relations with that pancake.
 

Friday Fun: Senators Behaving Badly

Good thing there wasn't any food close at hand...although that would have been even more entertaining.



But wait! There's more...


 
Obviously, somebody's been studying the secret handbook.
 

Happy Bonne Birthday Fete Canada

Help me out here, eh?

So, I'm taking this hoser "quiz" and just as quick as you can get your double double at Timmy's, I'm pretty sure that I picked the right answer, but...?

4. Due to a shortage of coins in New France in the 17th century, which of the following was used as non-traditional forms of currency?

a) Playing cards

b) Birch bark

c) Muskets

d) Croissants

I'm going with d) Croissants. You know how wacky those Frenchies are. (I can say that - because I'm one of them. The rest of you watch it or we'll cut off your supply of poutine.)
 

The Very Definition of Obscenity

Via Willie Brown at the SFGate:

I went to an unbelievable dinner party at Charlotte and George Shultz's penthouse Monday night for retired Army Gen. Eric Shinseki, the new secretary of veterans affairs.

The party was a Stanlee Gatti tour de force, complete with fatigue-wearing servers, camouflage table cloths, extras dressed up as snipers and a full Marine color guard and band.

It was like being in Afghanistan.

All this for about a dozen guests. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger was there with his wife, Maria Shriver. Gavin Newsom was there with Jennifer, and boy is she showing.

I was seated next to Arnold, and he seemed to be holding up pretty well, considering the nightmare going on up in Sacramento.

The dessert: a chocolate replica of the Joint Chiefs of Staff seal, surrounded with vanilla ice cream and the Golden Gate Bridge in chocolate on each side.

h/t Marisacat

Abdelrazik is home - finally

Abdelrazik back in Montreal after six years

About 40 supporters carrying signs that read "We did it!" and "Oh Canada! Our home and Abdelrazik's" chanted "Welcome home," as he made his way towards them.

"I'm very glad to be here; I'm very tired," said Abdelrazik, 47, who has been labelled a terrorist by the United States. "Thank you so much for your support. Now I'm here," he said before being led to a vehicle waiting outside the airport to take him on the final leg of his journey - the six-hour drive to Montreal to see his family.

Quote du Jour: The Death of Michael Jackson

Today's quote du jour comes from Michael Lazzaro aka Hunter at Daily Kos:

I can imagine no worse curse to afflict someone, in America, than dying while famous.

And I can imagine no worse use of ridiculous hyperbole than that statement - one that minimizes any American afflicted with the agony of being tortured, maimed, murdered; affected by mental or physical illness, extreme poverty or so many other life circumstances that make the so-called "curse" of "dying while famous" the absolute least of all concerns.

I admit that there's no love lost between me and Michael Jackson. I appreciate his musical genius but stopped being a fan when he morphed (physically and emotionally) from being a cute little black boy to a crotch-grabbing, disco-loving (call it "pop" if you want to - I still found it nauseous), narcissistic, Peter Pan impersonating parody of himself.

Oh - but he was abused as a child - that's why he was so tortured. Well, guess what? So are millions of other people. At least he could afford therapy - a luxury many other sufferers don't have.

And don't get me wrong, I'm all for eccentricities, but when they include speculation (and a privately settled lawsuit) of child abuse on his part, the line from odd to unacceptable has been crossed.

Did he live a tough life? Sure. Could he have helped himself if he'd wanted to? Yes. The truth is that the cult of celebrity that he not only grew up with due to his parents' prodding but that he metamorphosed into an art form of its own with delusions of grandeur that led him to don epaulettes and a crown surely took on a life of its own. But wasn't he really above controlling it to some measurable extent? Was the roller coaster really as inevitable as some would have you believe? And how much does society demand those delusions that snowball so often into tragedy?

Some people online question if it's not too soon to "bash" the superstar. I'd respond that discussing the truth about his life is far more valuable for society than eulogizing him (as Lazarro did) as the ultimate tragic figure. When we do that, we minimize the suffering of those who have few or no options - unlike Jackson.

His death was certainly sudden and shocking but let's not dress up his life as he dressed himself - cloaked in images of royalty, pomp, and mega-importance. To do so only enables the blind star worship that elevates those who are famous as being more human than the rest of us.

As Bill Maher said of Barack Obama recently, "He's...not your boyfriend".

Neither was Michael Jackson.

And, for the record, I wasn't a big Elvis fan either. Make of that what you will.

“Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth.”

- Henry David Thoreau

Friday Fun: The Don Newman DVD Box Set

  Courtesy of The Rick Mercer Report



Your brooooaadcasts will be missed, Mr Newman!
 

Quote du Jour: Crazy stories

From Thursday's Hansard:

Hon. Anita Neville (Winnipeg South Centre, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, the Conservative government scrapped the national child care agreement. It scrapped the court challenges program. It scrapped the Kelowna accord. It made cuts to women's advocacy and literacy. It bargained away women's rights to pay equity. It took meaningful equality out of the mandate of Status of Women Canada and continued to defy international commitments. That does not sound like a government that stands up for the rights of women.

When are we going to see any real commitment from the government for the women of Canada?


Hon. Helena Guergis (Minister of State (Status of Women), CPC):

Mr. Speaker, it does not matter how many times the member makes up crazy stories, they are not believed by women across the country.

This quote brought to you by The Department of Irony.
 

Breaking: Abdelrazik is Coming Home

In response to a query by Lib MP Irwin Cotler during Thursday's Question Period about the fate of Abousfian Abdelrazik following the recent court decision that confirmed his constitutional rights have been violated by the government, so-called Conservative justice minister Rob Nicholson stated simply:

"The government will comply with the court order."

It's about damn time.

They only act when their backs are against the proverbial legal wall.

The message is clear: Don't leave Canada if you ever want to see your family and friends here again because your government has no interest in protecting your rights unless it's forced to by the courts.