Winter follies countdown to Hawaii boast #4 · Sunday December 7, 2008 by colin newell
Just discovered a hidden benefit to getting away to Hawaii in a couple of weeks…
Getting away from Stephen Harper. And Stéphane Dion. And Gilles Duceppe. And Jack Layton.
Picture at right: Historic downtown Hilo, Hawaii – we will be staying there during our 12 day visit to the Big Island
We wasted 150 million on a Federal election that was hardly 1 and 1/2 months ago – on a whim direct from Stephen Harper’s starved ego. And the first chance he got to reach out to the opposition, he engaged in partisan politics and pissed everyone off.
In my opinion, Stephen Harper is a neo-con weasel underneath an expensive haircut. He does not appear to be particularly fond of women, or children or the Canadian fabric and infrastructure itself.
Stephen Harper would have made a great Roman leader; he is just nutty enough to squander every ounce of good will that the houses of Parliament have in Ottawa – and is more than ok with fiddling away our tax dollars while the Canadian electorate burns with rage. With indignation. With resolve.
A far cry from how a lot of us felt 60 days ago when this nimrod was trying to appeal to our sensibilities in a plaid sweater – pitching the image of the common man.
Those of us who voted in opposition did not buy it. Because we know that Stephen Harper holds nothing but waddle shaking contempt for women seeking wage parity in the work-place – for underprivileged children living in poverty – for the crumbling infrastructure of the Canadian mosaic.
This just in: Stéphane Dion will probably resign in a day or so. Stephen Harper would be wise to do the same thing. Put aside the bullshit partisan politics and get down to the serious business of saving the Canadian economy.
In the meantime, I am leaving the Country on the 19th of December. I will be taking my shortwave radios (primarily for Canadian news and views…) – but you know… the way I am feeling these days, I may point the antennas in THE OTHER DIRECTION!
Peace and Aloha friends!
Winter follies count down to Hawaii boast #1 · Monday November 17, 2008 by colin newell
Small changes coming to this blog. Done with ranting about the Olympics. There is some good local Government in Vancouver now – people voted for change and got it. In the next Provincial election, Gordon Campbell will probably have his ass kicked out of office and replaced with something equally bad leaning in the opposite direction.
It is up to the electorate (which I am a microscopic part of…)
Anyway – in about a month or so, heading off to Hawaii for a much needed vacation – some coffee research and a general get-away from the everyday of Victoria on Vancouver Island. Will be blogging from there via a small PC connected to the wireless network at our digs.
Vacation is pretty much paid for (in advance) – which is cool. Only thing to worry about is eating, drinking and not taking in too much Sun.
More changes. New years resolution in advance. No more negative crap and rants. Have been doing some writing for a food magazine in the Province of B.C. – have had some stuff printed and hope to do more. Coming off as a raving loonie tune will not be doing much for my cred – but I hope to stay a little funny.
Will be working with Bob Harris in the new year on a new look for his site and possible some face-lifts to CoffeeCrew.Com and DXer.ca (my telecom page). All good.
Anyway – stay tuned friendly reader.
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Fall Colors Canadian Style - Life on the streets of Vancouver 1986 · Sunday November 9, 2008 by colin newell
My wife and I are in our forties and although we do not have any children, I often get asked…
“Grandpa, what was life like in the eighties?”
This is where a parent realizes that their child has wandered from the McDonald’s play area only to be interrupting my moment of rapture with the brand new McDonald’s All-Beef Angus burger – available for a limited time only.
And they say: “I have no idea why little Joey asked you such a thing…”
Fair question though. So let me answer.
I had just finished a 4-year coop term and apprenticeship with the Federal Government of Canada in the sagging months of 1985. (And) With a fresh Expo 86 Season pass in my hands and the prospect of unlimited unemployment, I planned to do the bulk of my career development at this once-in-a-lifetime World technology Expo.
But let’s back up half a Back to the Future moment shall we?
In October 1985 I was finishing up the final stages of my education at B.C.I.T – I was on salary with the Federal Government of Canada on full expenses. Many of my classmates were on unemployment benefits while they were away from their employer so I was not too vocal about my situation.
During the day I studied hard and at night I frequented some of the many popular night clubs in Burnaby and downtown; Systems, Richards on Richards, Love Affair and Coconuts out in Burnaby on Kingsway. I lived near the current location of Metrotown (it was under construction at the time) and I would walk to many of the hot spots – often many miles along Kingsway towards New West, on week nights or weekends.
The difference was: The likelihood of being hassled, beaten or shot at was about as likely as winning a jackpot lottery or having a Steinway grand piano fall on my head from a Russian Soyuz space station… or both… on the same night… while wearing a thin leather tie, Ocean Pacific shirt, Emanuel un-constructed white sport coat, lime green cargo pants and deck shoes without socks.
In fact, walking down Kingsway in Burnaby in 1985, I was more likely to encounter an elderly black labrador dog gnawing on a bone by the side of the road than see a gangster or a drug deal.
It was that safe. So what happened in 20 years? Permissive laws? Higher stakes in a profitable drug market? Not enough prisons? Prisons that are too comfortable? A court system that is more revolving door than rehabilitative? You tell me. Vancouver is very quickly becoming a War zone – and as of yet, there have not been too many civilian casualties.
In my next chapter on the life and times of Vancouver in the 1980’s, I will drone on and on about my Ray Ban Wayfarers and my Season Pass to Expo 86…
And I wear my sunglasses at night So I can, so I can Keep track of the visions in my eyes
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Fall Colors Canadian Style - among the living legends · Thursday October 16, 2008 by colin newell
It is the summer of 1943. You are in Burma. As a POW (Prisoner of War). You are being held captive by the Japanese Empire. You are working on a railway. You work in unthinkable conditions working harder than you will ever work in your life – for no salary and hardly enough food to get through the day. Your brothers in this task are Australians, Brits, Dutch, Americans, fellow Canadians, and ethnic Asians enslaved by the empire for the express purpose of building a railway. You are 19. Your name is Peter.
In 1942, Japanese forces invaded Burma from Thailand and took it from Britain rule. To maintain their forces in Burma, the Japanese had to bring supplies and troops to Burma by sea, through the Strait of Malacca and the Andaman Sea. This route was vulnerable to attack by Allied submarines, and a different means of transport was needed. The obvious alternative was a railway. In June 1942, the empire of Japan set out to do the impossible. They needed labor and they got it from almost 300,000 slaves and POW’s. You survive because you are young and strong. Your American buddies who survive call you Pete. The Australians call you sir.
The estimated total number of civilian laborers and POWs who died during construction is about 160,000. About 25% of the POW workers died because of overwork, malnutrition, and diseases like cholera, malaria, and dysentery. You celebrate your 20th birthday with a bowl of rice in one hand and a pick axe in the other.
In the year 2008, I look at a flat-screen monitor struggling to boot Windows XP. I wonder if the OS is corrupt of whether or not the hard-drive is on its last legs. I unplug USB devices and switch off unneeded ports in BIOS to free up resources in memory. There seems to be little that I can do to unfurl this mess.
Over my shoulder, a very encouraging Peter B. gives me the odd clue as to the demise of his cherished PC. He enjoys his e-mail, his web browser and the photos of his grand-children and great-grand children. Peter and his wife are in remarkable health and embrace this modern technology. And yet I cannot wrap my mind around the visual… a teenage boy slashing his way through a tropical jungle, warding off disease and tolerating hunger while older men fall around him.
There is something about helping a veteran from another era that is sobering and humbling – when men and women fought for the very survival of freedom and democracy and paid the ultimate price.
Words escape me. They really do. On November 11, 2008 (Remembrance Day in Canada) – think about Peter, the survivors. And those that did not survive.
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Fall Colors Canadian Style - Last minute election attack ads · Friday October 10, 2008 by colin newell
I am not a big fan of Stephen Harper – but I am not so much against the man to think that he would make a terrible Prime Minister – fact is, he will probably do way better than anything I could come up with.
And Stéphane Dion? Same thing. Or Jack Layton… and Elizabeth May… or Gilles Duceppe… all the same.
So what is with these increasingly absurd attack ads in the last week leading up to the election?
“Vote for Stephen Harper and be prepared to lose all your money… and your hair. Are you prepared to risk it?
“A Jack Layton majority is… bad. Really bad. You know what will happen if you vote for Jack Layton? You might as well raise the Red flag over Ottawa. Your children will come home stoned and pregnant… or worse. Is that what you really want?“
“Stéphane Dion is bad for Canada. And your blood pressure. A vote for the Liberals is a lethal pill that will put to you sleep. A sleep that you will not wake up from. And while you sleep, your home will be broken into… by monkeys. Monkeys with mischief on their minds. Mischief and chaos. Is that what you want?
Alright. A vote for Elizabeth May and her Green party will cause your skin to peel off, your children will rebel and ultimately kill you… and while they are dancing on your grave they will quickly become crack addicts – but you will not care, because you will be frozen in a dozen pieces in a freezer next to 15 pounds of ribs from M&M Meats. Is that what you want?
Finally. A vote for Gilles Duceppe is a vote for New France. And that is just plain Crazy!
Anyway. Get out there and vote. For something. And someone.
