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Cordyceps Headache posted:Plus it's a great way to pretend we don't have huge systemic problems with racism too. "We Canadians are multicultural, unlike those racist Americans!"; well except for how we treat aboriginal peoples and our periodic bouts of xenophobic hatred for [insert minority here]. But whatever, at least we're not the US. Canada can call me when we have a First Nations Prime Minister. Or a person of Asian decent on a bill.
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Jun 14, 2013 20:53
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Blade_of_tyshalle posted:$300,000? One way across Canada? For one person? Are you considering getting a Concorde out of mothballs just for your personal use one time? The poster I quoted was saying that you could fly 300 people around the world, round trip, for $300,000 - i.e. for $1000 a person. I might have phrased it poorly, but I was pointing out that $1000 is only going to get you across the country one way.
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Jun 14, 2013 21:09
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eXXon posted:Are you loving serious? Your "Staff Reporter" is literally the head of a developer lobby? Apparently he writes regular opinion pieces, including this one extolling the virtues of ... his own association. What is the Star trying to pull here? They're trying to be the Vancouver Sun/Province apparently.
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Jun 14, 2013 21:10
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Baloogan posted:Canada can call me when we have a First Nations Prime Minister. Wellllll, technically the Innu are of asian descent, no?  But you mean on the obverse, I suspect.
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Jun 14, 2013 21:22
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Pinterest Mom posted:We argued about random alcohol and drug testing at work here at some point. The pulp and paper industry climate is one where any mill can potentially be the next one closed. They are all looking for any savings to avoid being the next one. A random alcohol and drug testing program could offer lower insurance premiums. It could also prevent that one serious/fatal accident that pushes the mill down the rung to be the next to close. I'm not sure "we are scared about potentially being closed" is a good legal argument, but I understand their reasons for trying.
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Jun 14, 2013 21:32
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THC posted:A ceremonial monarch, who enjoys no executive power whatsoever, is definitely preferable to an elected head of state with the ability to target citizens for assassination with zero accountability. Exactly. here here! quote:Nothing unites the rest of canada more than hating on Quebec. All petty regionalism goes out the window when there's a quebec to scoff at. Doesn't matter if you're a yaletown yuppie or an albertan oil worker, it's the one thing that can bring canadians together. Tim Hortons should use it in a disgustingly sentimental ad. Its hilarious how even Quebecers hate on other Quebecers, some are even self hating! 
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Jun 14, 2013 21:43
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Baloogan posted:I gotta say thats my least favorite bit of Canadian culture. Quite so. Because of this: Cordyceps Headache posted:Plus it's a great way to pretend we don't have huge systemic problems with racism too. "We Canadians are multicultural, unlike those racist Americans!"; well except for how we treat aboriginal peoples and our periodic bouts of xenophobic hatred for [insert minority here]. But whatever, at least we're not the US. Among other things. We love to talk healthcare like it has zero problems, which is absolutely does not. Similarly, we're going down the same neoliberalist corporatist road that the Americans are, and it's putting us in the exact same lovely place.
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Jun 14, 2013 21:51
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Yes, it's like a lava lamp.
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I find the same people who totally define them selves as "not american" and think we're so much better than the US are the same ones who will be totally politically apathetic and not at all enraged by what harper is doing because "Hey we're still way better than the US" It's like the canadian version of american exceptionalism. We will always be more progressive than the US so there's no need to fight for or defend said progress. Our health system is great, we're not racist, we don't have crime problems. Why? Not because of successful government and social programs that are now being dismantled, but just by the very nature of our not-americanness. So chill out, don't worry, it's canada, we'll always be the most progressive place in north america.
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Jun 14, 2013 21:55
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THC posted:A ceremonial monarch, who enjoys no executive power whatsoever, is definitely preferable to an elected head of state with the ability to target citizens for assassination with zero accountability. In all fairness, our prime minister is perhaps a few pieces of legislation away from that point, if not already with the power to do such things. I mean our government can hand you over to be tortured and killed, so I'd venture to say that the only reason we don't have the PMO signing executive murder orders is because we don't have attack drones or operatives around the globe with the same organisation the US has.
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Jun 14, 2013 22:37
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Ceciltron posted:In all fairness, our prime minister is perhaps a few pieces of legislation away from that point, if not already with the power to do such things. I mean our government can hand you over to be tortured and killed, so I'd venture to say that the only reason we don't have the PMO signing executive murder orders is because we don't have attack drones or operatives around the globe with the same organisation the US has. National impotence, not national unwillingness, is probably the reason for a lot of our reputation as peace-loving.
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Jun 14, 2013 22:40
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Cordyceps Headache posted:National impotence, not national unwillingness, is probably the reason for a lot of our reputation as peace-loving. The perks of being a middle power.
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Jun 14, 2013 22:44
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THC posted:I think it's funny how National Post and Globe & Mail comment posters, who were previously all in favour of banning religious headwear on the pitch, have decided they hate Quebec even more than they hate Muslims and Sikhs.
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Jun 14, 2013 22:49
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Cordyceps Headache posted:Plus it's a great way to pretend we don't have huge systemic problems with racism too. "We Canadians are multicultural, unlike those racist Americans!"; well except for how we treat aboriginal peoples and our periodic bouts of xenophobic hatred for [insert minority here]. But whatever, at least we're not the US. As part of my job this week I was reading through some Ontario Attorney General policy development files from the early 90s and there was a lot of stuff about systemic racism in Canadian culture, society, the economy, and the judicial system that they were actively trying to combat. Things like studies being done that showed white people were three times more likely to be offered a job as a black person with an identical resume (as in, black person goes in to apply in the morning, gets told harshly that the position has already been filled and is made to leave without seeing a manager; white person goes in to apply in the afternoon, gets to see the manager, gets a brief interview on the spot, is told they'll get a call back for a second interview). Now sure, that was twenty years ago, but on the other hand how holy poo poo, that was only twenty years ago and things don't change that quickly. In Ontario government terms that's only two governments ago (McGuinty and Harris, Eves and Wynne don't count), and I don't remember either of them doing that much to combat systemic racism. I was too young to know anything about any of this stuff in the early 90s, but it gives me a new appreciation for the various progressive things Rae's NDP government was trying to accomplish outside the economic sphere before their electoral hopes were ruined for decades and Harris decided to undo everything.
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Jun 14, 2013 23:01
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I just got phone surveyed about the Ontario political landscape! They seemed pretty loving concerned about what my opinion of Dalton McGuinty is.
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Jun 15, 2013 01:15
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I just got reminded that the BC Liberals pledged to have a provincial referendum on transit funding next year.Christie Clark posted:I believe we need to keep life affordable for British Columbians, and I believe that British Columbians and people in the Lower Mainland...should have the chance to decide how much transit they want to pay for. So, Translink going into total failure by 2015?
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Jun 15, 2013 05:29
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Lead out in cuffs posted:I just got reminded that the BC Liberals pledged to have a provincial referendum on transit funding next year. I want to be optimistic, but I just can't see it. It depends if they let the entire province vote on TransLink's funding, or just TransLink's member municipalities. Also depends how they word the referendum. TransLink is also responsible for bridges in Metro Vancouver. Giving them alternative funding could give the suburbs the bridges they want with eliminated or reduced tolls. My predictions: (Yes being a vote for new revenue sources, no being against) Province Wide, only mentioning transit Yes: Vancouver/Burnaby/New West/Coquitlam - Wants UBC line Maybe: Richmond/Anmore Belcarra etc. - Depends how it's presented No: Surrey/SoF - Persecution complex about getting the short stick on transit spending despite getting more than Richmond and the tri-cities combined. No: Rest of province - "gently caress Vancouver, doesn't benefit me" Fail. Province Wide, transit and bridges Yes: Vancouver/Burnaby/New West/Coquitlam - Wants UBC line Maybe: Richmond/Anmore Belcarra etc. - Depends how it's presented Yes: Surrey/SoF - Could be swayed by promise of more transit, new bridges No: Rest of province - "gently caress Vancouver, doesn't benefit me" Fail. Metro Vancouver, only mentioning transit Yes: Vancouver/Burnaby/New West/Coquitlam - Wants UBC line Yes: Richmond/Anmore Belcarra etc. - Richmond and others have done well, cautiously optimistic No: Surrey/SoF - Persecution complex about getting the short stick on transit. If we can't have more service, nobody can. Probably close, maybe a municipality will again threaten to leave TransLink. Metro Vancouver, transit and bridges Yes: Vancouver/Burnaby/New West/Coquitlam - Wants UBC line Yes: Richmond/Anmore Belcarra etc. - Probably okay with it Yes: Surrey/SoF - Throw in a refurbished Patullo and a new crossing between Coquitlam-Surrey and they should go for it. Pass.
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Jun 15, 2013 06:30
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In case anyone was wondering what the next Conservative attack angle on JT would be: http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/story/2013/06/14/pol-justin-trudeau-asked-to-reimburse-charity.htmlquote:The Conservatives have accused Justin Trudeau of "lacking any decency," saying he refused to reimburse a charity that lost money after it paid him to speak at a fundraising event. quote:Last June 27, he was hired by the Grace Foundation to speak about empowerment and youth at the Imperial Theatre in Saint John. The story seems a little suspicious to me (and I'm not even all that inclined to be charitable to JT). In addition to the 9 month gap between the event and asking for a refund, it's not really the speaker's job to ensure that the event is adequately promoted. Then again, charging $20K to speak at a small charity event doesn't have great optics either.
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Jun 15, 2013 11:58
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Yeah I doubt there's much there there with the specific charity asking for a refund a year later but Trudeau's speaking fees themselves are sketchy as hell. You do that poo poo after your retired to make a few bucks, a sitting MP is already paid to make speeches, it's called their salary. It was also pretty easy for Trudeau not to use up his MP points for the travel when he was invoicing cross country limo rides to charities and school boards, not paying out of pocket.
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Jun 15, 2013 13:40
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I say this as someone who personally dislikes Justin Trudeau as a useless prettyboy millionaire coasting on his name, but this really doesn't seem all that shocking or scandalous to me. I operate on the axiom that anyone who gets far enough in politics to have household name recognition has to be at least a little narcissistic, and Trudeau has given me plenty of reasons to believe he's more than just a little. I fail to see how this will gain any traction, it's just not that big a deal, especially not compared to the Senate scandal.
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Jun 15, 2013 16:04
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Retired general Walt Natynczyk has been appointed as the new director of the Canadian Space Agency.quote:Jim Quick, the CEO of the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada, welcomed the appointment, noting that Natynczyk had a long record of distinguished service in Canada's military. Okay, well the CSA does do a good deal of its work in collaboration with industry, so maybe that's not too bad - although I don't think its management was ever really a problem as much as its tiny budget. On the other hand, I'm not really sure what use a retired general's perspective would be on the science aspect of the CSA... quote:Chuck Black, the treasurer of the Canadian Space Commerce Association, said Friday that he was a bit surprised by the announcement. 
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Jun 15, 2013 18:06
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eXXon posted:Retired general Walt Natynczyk has been appointed as the new director of the Canadian Space Agency. Now that the F35s have been revealed to be useless, we'll definitively need a Star-Wars style space-based missile system to defend against all those Russians coming over the pole.
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Jun 15, 2013 18:24
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The Royal Canadian Orbital Bombardment Force will ensure all threats are shot down before they can even be threats!
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Jun 15, 2013 19:12
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Ceciltron posted:The Royal Canadian Orbital Bombardment Force will ensure all threats are shot down before they can even be threats! Hey, maybe that's what we can use the F-35's for. Load them onto a satellite and drop them from orbit! We'd probably get the same yield from two $500 used cars welded together though.
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Jun 15, 2013 20:21
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But an F-35 hurtling into the atmosphere surrounded in a curtain of plasma would be stealthier.
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Jun 15, 2013 20:52
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We have lots of uranium, why not just orbital-drop big rods of it from space like in GI Joe: Retaliation? It would work, clearly, that was a very grounded and reasonable film. It would help the economy, too!
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Jun 15, 2013 22:12
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Blade_of_tyshalle posted:We have lots of uranium, why not just orbital-drop big rods of it from space like in GI Joe: Retaliation? It would work, clearly, that was a very grounded and reasonable film. It would help the economy, too! Did you see what country they used it on? Quebec would have a poo poo fit.
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Jun 15, 2013 22:21
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colonel_korn posted:In case anyone was wondering what the next Conservative attack angle on JT would be: http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/story/2013/06/14/pol-justin-trudeau-asked-to-reimburse-charity.html Honestly to me this comes off as a bit much. It's as if they realized that they might be able to get some money back if they made a stink out of it just because he's the party leader now, and decided to run with it. On the other hand, Trudeau taking paid speaking arrangements while an MP pisses me off to no end. When you retire and are no longer employed as a public servant, that's the time for paid speaking arrangements. When you're an MP those are just part of your job description. Still doesn't mean he should repay the money just because the event flopped though, that bit really isn't on him.
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Jun 15, 2013 23:31
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less than three posted:No: Surrey/SoF - Persecution complex about getting the short stick on transit spending despite getting more than Richmond and the tri-cities combined. I would hope so, considering Surrey has a larger population than Richmond and the Tri-Cities combined... ~60,000 2 years ago, and probably more now. (468k vs 406k) I'm voting pro to any and all amendments transit-related.
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Jun 15, 2013 23:40
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DynamicSloth posted:Yeah I doubt there's much there there with the specific charity asking for a refund a year later but Trudeau's speaking fees themselves are sketchy as hell. You do that poo poo after your retired to make a few bucks, a sitting MP is already paid to make speeches, it's called their salary. If you want someone and come and speak at your event, you pay for that privilege. In high school David Suzuki came and told us how we're all hosed, and got paid a  amount to do so.
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Jun 16, 2013 06:40
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ocrumsprug posted:If you want someone and come and speak at your event, you pay for that privilege. In high school David Suzuki came and told us how we're all hosed, and got paid a David Suzuki isn't a Member of Parliament given a yearly salary to publicly represent Canadians and afforded a generous travel budget.
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Jun 16, 2013 15:31
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You would think an MP with leadership ambitions would need to be paid to shut up.
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Jun 16, 2013 15:50
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Raenir Salazar posted:Exactly. here here! Honestly, the only people we like to poo poo on even more than Canadians or Americans are Quebecers ourselves.
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Jun 16, 2013 16:11
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ocrumsprug posted:If you want someone and come and speak at your event, you pay for that privilege. In high school David Suzuki came and told us how we're all hosed, and got paid a They probably turned off the heating for three months, sold off the IT department for scrap metal, rented out the grade 9 classrooms as Hotel lodgings... ... And yet, still you guys came out on Top. David Suzuki is just that good. Seriously - someone needs to pay him to come to our school, just to yell "FUS ROH DAH" - then walk out silently.
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Jun 16, 2013 16:41
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Baronjutter posted:That's a good move, I know quite a few permanent residents that would love to vote in their civic elections but can't due to silly old rules. I sent my very first angry letter to a minister as a result of this, suggesting to Jason Kenney that maybe he should resign if this is the kind of babytown frolics his department is pulling. I just got a boilerplate "your letter has been acknowledged" note  fuckheads at immigration posted:The Department is conducting a review of citizenship operations and a number of initiatives have been identified to improve efficiency and enhance program integrity. It is actively reviewing citizenship delivery systems to identify more efficient processes in order to improve processing times while cracking down on residency and citizenship fraud to protect the value of citizenship. When new changes to the citizenship process are implemented, they will published on the CIC Web site. The best part is that my friend happens to be an English-speaking, British-born university graduate who's married to a Canadian and has a kid with him, in addition to being gainfully employed and a volunteer. She *would* vote NDP if she were able to, so I suppose that's possibly part of it...
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Jun 17, 2013 02:10
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eXXon posted:Oh hey, here's the Star with some shoddy journalism again: Every Star real estate article is garbage and their only references ever are from real estate agents or developers.
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Jun 17, 2013 03:10
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I finally watched that interview with Pamela Wallin and it made me really loving mad. Isn't there an equivalent to an HR/finance dept for the senate to help them fill out expense forms? I've flown a lot of places for work and I've never managed to defraud my companies thousands of dollars "accidentally". YOU'RE EITHER A loving CROOK OR TOO STUPID TO BE IN THE SENATE. PICK ONE.
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Jun 17, 2013 03:22
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priznat posted:I finally watched that interview with Pamela Wallin and it made me really loving mad. There must be - they have staffers and a central administration right? It's not as if you're thrown into the Senate with mountains of paperwork and cruelly told to fill out your primary residence and declare travel expenses.
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Jun 17, 2013 05:10
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priznat posted:
Welcome to the loophole of politics lately. I either don't remember or I am completely ignorant. By the way vote for me because I am the best for the job.
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Jun 17, 2013 05:12
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Whiteycar posted:Welcome to the loophole of politics lately. Or in the Senate, "gently caress you John Q. Public I get appointed"  is also appropriate.
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Jun 17, 2013 05:15
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Pamela Wallin is an expert spinmaster, what do you expect? Her answers were clearly were carefully prepared and rehearsed. Unfortunately for her, there's only so much you can do to cover up such obviously stinking bullshit. I mean her answer was essentially that she's sorry for what she Precambrian Video Games fucked around with this message at 05:19 on Jun 17, 2013 |
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Jun 17, 2013 05:17
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