Roll up the rim... to pollute! · Thursday March 8, 2007 by colin newell
An Ottawa inventor has created a “labour-saving device” to help Canadians effortlessly “Roll Up the Rim to Win” at Tim Hortons.
Paul Kind, 62, spent three years developing the Rimroller — a plastic device the size of a bottle opener that cleanly slices open and unrolls a rim in one fluid motion.
“Do you know that Tim Hortons (sells) close to 300 million cups every year?” Mr. Kind said yesterday. “When you think of all the effort expended by these different people rolling up their rim, you realize what a labour-saving device this is.”
Uhm. Hello!?
300 million empty cups that get thrown in the trash… the land-fill… the sidewalk…
The trees!
I have been in Tim’s and I steadfastly refuse this stupid and polluting practice. Hello! Does anyone else get this? The waste? The blight on our landscape?
Mr. Kind said he purchased “hundreds” of Tim Hortons coffees over the last three years to conduct rim-rolling experiments.
“I always asked them for a double cup every time,” he said. “They probably wondered why, but there certainly was a good reason.”
Tim Hortons Coffee is a Bad corporate citizen.
Bad. Bad. Bad.
Enough of this freaking pollution already…
and as you know… Tim Horton’s Coffee sucks.
Supplemental reading — The Story of Stuff
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ATM - Banks: they get you with the fees · Tuesday March 6, 2007 by colin newell
At a time when the federal finance minister is asking Canada’s big banks to justify a raft of ATM banking fees, Canada’s second-largest bank is reporting its first quarterly profit of more than $1 billion.
Bank of Nova Scotia reported Tuesday morning a first quarter profit that smashed all expectations at $1.01 billion, or $1.01 a share, up almost 20 per cent from $844 million, or 84 cents a share, a year ago.
Ok. On a more personal note, I do not generally pay ATM fees.
How!? Why!?
Well. I never use ATMs other than the ones my native financial institution offers. Ever. Never, ever, ever.
I speak up for the millions of Canadians that are getting reamed up the wazoo by Canadian banks.
Make no mistake about it. Canadian (and American) banks are evil as Satan. They profit from you. They profit from your misery (read – hold your mortgages…)
Your money? It aint your money according to the banks.
The banks feel they are doing you a favor by handling your money.
It is more theirs than yours.
Or so the story goes. And ATM fees. Well. While they have you bent over the Maytag, it is just an extra reminder of who is in charge.
So like oil companies, banks rule. They always will.
They screw you today. And they will tomorrow.
How can you fight back? Stop using non-native ATMs.
Sun to set on post 9/11 police powers. · Saturday February 10, 2007 by colin newell
Canada is set to roll-back some of the police powers the Canadian government and courts granted post 9/11.
The Canadian Liberal party, currently in partnership with the NDP and Conservatives in a minority government, have withdrawn support for the controversial laws set to expire at the end of next week.
The former Liberal majority government, under then prime minister Jean Chretien, rushed the sweeping changes in the stressful weeks following 9/11, arguing law-enforcement needed better tools for dealing with the palpable threat of terror.
In response to concerns the new laws would trample civil liberties, the government of the day placed a sunset clause on the far-reaching legislation. Well, the day is almost upon us.
The current Conservative government (in minority) have tabled a motion to extend the provisions of the law for three years. Lacking Liberal, NDP and Bloc(French) support the bill will die on the vine.
This shift of thinking from the Liberal left has shocked many in the security industry, not surprisngly.
This claw-back of police powers puts Canada on a substantially more moderate track than World security partners, the U.S., Britain and Australia.
Canada’s security laws function thusly: A preventive arrest clause allows police to arrest suspects without warrant and detain them for upwards of 48 hours or more, without charge — if they (the police) suspect that the subjects of interest may do something or are thinking of doing something unlawful.
In the 5 years since the act has come into force, it has never been used. Yes neighbor, we Canadian’s are that law abiding. Although I have to admit, there have been times where I have had unlawful thoughts. You know: Will I pass the car ahead of me over a double-solid line?
Anyway, I think we are on the right track – but I can only speak for Canadians… not meaning to set any examples for anyone else, begging your pardon and all `eh.
Oh Damn, not another hobby... · Wednesday January 24, 2007 by colin newell
There aren’t too many Christmas gifts that make me light up like a…
well, you know.
My sister-in-law and brother-in-law bought me one of these for the holidays.
And I curse their names every hour of every day…
that I am playing with it.
I mean, if you know me, you know that I have one too many hobbies.
One too many.
This one actually takes the cake though. It looks simple enough but it demands 100% of your attention to keep it in the air and out of your hair.
The Micro-Mosquito coaxial helicopter is a lot of fun. There are online forums dedicated to the discussion and dissection of this toy.
Alas, I have almost moved on to this website
located in Canada no less.
I have my eye on a tricked out Nitro Raptor with a Futaba radio, tight damping and all metal swash-plate…
whatever the heck that is…
Gift givers – I curse your name!
Rankin Family live in Victoria - a short concert review · Wednesday January 17, 2007 by colin newell
Ok. I love the Rankin Family. From the moment I saw them on stage in Victoria in the mid-nineties, I knew that the Rankin Family were the real deal.
I bought all the albums. Still play them.
It was with much rejoicing that I had the chance to see them on the first leg of their reunion tour.
Apparently I was not the first in line to buy tickets. I think I waited a week.
As a result, our seats were up in the ceiling somewhere.
No problem. The Royal Theatre in Victoria is designed in such a way that there are no bad seats. It is true. There are none.
This concert was to be stop 3 for the Rankins – Nanaimo was the first. I think they had two gigs up there.
Because of the loss of a sister in Calgary, they attended the funeral and cancelled the first 2 of the concert dates.
Victoria B.C. was stop one for the Rankin’s 22-city tour.
Some details:
Tragedy struck their family a week ago when one of the Rankins died in Calgary. The Rankins are a large family – Raylene, John Morris, Jimmy, Cookie and Heather, began touring together professionally in 1989. But they are 4 of 12 kids. On September 17, 1999, the band officially broke up to pursue their separate careers and lives. One of the anchors of the band, John Morris Rankin, died in a car accident on January 16, 2000.
Anyway – back to the show.
With our luck (of 1500 seats in the Royal Theatre) we were seated directly in front of a row of young, ex-Pat Cape Breton trailer trash – they were pumped, half-drunk and ready to party.
Now, do not get me wrong. I like to party. Really. At concerts, I get crazy.
But correct me if I am wrong, but I think you have to sing and scream when the band is actually playing.
I did turn around and glare a couple of times at Trailer Park Boy behind me after he yelled: “I lav youa Jammmy!” one too many times. These are the worse kinds of concert goers.
Anyway. The Rankins kicked ass. After a slow start (they seemed road weary or grief weary and this was stop #1!) they wound the audience and themselves into a Celtic-Breton frenzy.
They played the new stuff. They played the old stuff. They trotted out some new Rankin talent; John Morris Rankins surviving teenage daughter – a crack step dance and fiddle player. She sang once. It was rough, but the Rankin magic is in her voice and blood. Ah. Just like old times.
Welcome back Rankins!
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