China promised to the world that it would gaurantee full, free, and unobstructed access to the Olympic Games. In the West, this promise is essential to the foundation of the rights of freedom of assembly, freedom of speech, and a free press. In China, this is seen as dangerous.

No, it is seen as far worse – it is seen as criminal, seditious, a direct attack on everything that is ‘China’.

Today, it was revealed that China will not allow unfiltered access to the Games. Instead, it will decide what is ‘sufficient’ for the world, and hide the rest behind the Great Firewall. While this should come as no surprise, what is galling is the complicity of the IOC in allowing this, through direct negotiations, rather than insisting China honour its promises and obligations.

Much has been made within China of Chinese nationalism and pride being inextricably entwined in a successful Olympic Games. The Games have come to be seen as a means by which China can step out from beneath its sense of historical humiliation by outside powers (particularly the West), and that attempts by outside observers to illustrate China’s deliberate refusal to honour its promises are nothing more than insults to China and the Chinese people - in essence, nothing more than a continuation of the humiliation by foreigners. As guests of China, it is argued, others should be ‘respectful’ and follow Chinese law and custom.

That's complete bollox.

China was only awarded the Games, which in themselves are meant to represent the human spirit unfettered by politics, on its explicit guarantee to honour free speech and human rights. It is not disrespectful to point out, rightly, that China has refused to honour the obligations that it set for itself, and that any historical sense of inadequacy is completely irrelevant. China's current defence of its policies is, by its very nature, the antithesis of what it promised.

Moreover, it is laughable to suggest that it is ‘the Chinese government’ and not ‘the Chinese people’ who hold the attitude that past victimization and custom justifies current policies. Every poll taken by outside observers on this topic, something not censored by China, has support for Chinese crackdowns on human rights and the media running at between 85%-95%. Many independent and international journalists have been surprised at not just the intensity of support for the Games, but also the deep anger expressed by Chinese citizens at any perceived insult to China, who instead demand that all others conform to Chinese protocol regardless of the topic. While China may feel that its policies are correct, that in no way should abrogate the responsibility of the rest of the planet from explicitly and without any ambiguity deriding this literally murderous hypocrisy.

Those who know me are well aware of how much I enjoy sports. The Olympics, an event held only every four years as a showcase of the world’s elite athletic talent, is an event that I have long followed closely, longer than I can remember. That won’t happen this year.

Boycott the Olympic Games.

Shale Mary, full of fuel, the oil is with thee;
Blessed art though among rock,
And blessed is the fruit of they womb, Greed.

Oily Mary, Mother of Greed,
Pray for us sinners,
Now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

The Daily Coyote is a blog that I follow. Here's a vid that was posted last week:

So, the CBC didn't have enough money to retain the iconic theme to Hockey Night in Canada (thankfully saved by TSN in order to remain the hallmark intro to Canadian hockey telecasts), but the idiot executives feel blowing Canadian tax-dollars on 'reality' tripe like 'The Week the Women Went' is AOK. Fourty years of heritage-designated tradition versus a flash in the pan 'series' that's completed one year of a limited run. Yeah.

Sometimes, I reconsider my opposition to needed killin' as a justification for murder.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again - this planet needs an enema.

If I were to give my life a ‘report card’, based on how things stand at the moment, it would look something like this:

Academically – NA
- on hiatus for the summer.
- finishing this coming fall/winter after (annoyingly) being denied course equivalencies this past term.

Financially/Professionally – C
- making enough to get by, and pay down my debts, but only just.
- great, stress-free work environment, but completely unrelated to what I want to be doing.

Personally/Socially – F
- sucks putrid donkey’s balls
- serious problem here given that I can’t seem to improve my underlying mood even during the presence of close friends.

What really gets me is that none of the above can really be addressed for at least a full calendar year – until I’m finished my certifications once and for all. With that complete, I think my life will take a new turn, though it remains to be seen if that means an improvement. I’m just really irritated by the slow, plodding pace of change that things are currently mired in. I know what I need to do in order to effect the changes I want, but that doesn’t in any way allow me to effect those changes now. Meanwhile, I just have to ‘hurry up and wait’, tolerating the seemingly interminable and dismal status quo.

The Pleistocene extinction was, in part, caused by a 15 degree rise in temperature over a period of 10 000 years. Current convservative IPCC estimates, now shown to be woefully behind reality, predict a 6 degree rise in just one century, and continuing on past that to approach a 10 degree rise within another century. Who needs gamma ray bursts, asteroid impacts, or basalt flows when you can just rely on Big Oil and human idiocy?

Here's an article from Treehugger about Dubai's Rotating Tower that I mentioned in my last post. Treehugger finds the idea questionable, and justifiably I think. There are a lot of unanswered questions about the building's feasability (like, how it's supposed to counter-act torque when it's based on sand, anchoring to bedrock?). Still, I like the forward thinking, and would love to see it realized.

I have a love-hate relationship with Dubai and the UAE. On the one hand, there's the Palm Islands, the man-made World 'archipelago', the Dubai Mall, and 'Dubailand', and that's completely ignoring all the human rights issues associated with the state. On the other hand, there's the Burj Al-Arab, the Burj Dubai, Masdar City (in Abu Dhabi, not Dubai), the Burj Al-Taqa, and now this building. It's great to see some of that phenomenal wealth being spent sustainably, certainly creatively, but sometimes ... man, people do some god-awfully stupid shit with their money.

God! I love this track. And the video? Drool...

That's one naughty little red riding hood that this coyote would follow all the way to grandma's house! (and then some) :D

It's been quite a while since I posted anything here, so here's an update of the past month.

First, I have a new job. I think some of you are aware of that already. I'm working at the University of Toronto, in the Rotman Commerce office, dealing with students in the Commerce program. It's probably one of the easiest and least stressful jobs that I've ever had. In many ways, it feels very similar to my time at the Marine Museum. It's close enough that I can walk to and from work, which is a nice way to start and end each workday. It's a bit of a step down in pay from my previous job, but a significantly better work environment (by an order of magnitude!), so I'll take the small drop in pay for a huge drop in aggravation.

I want to take at least one short, weekend long trip this summer. Saving up for that is going to be a bit difficult, but also a priority. Where am I going, you wonder? New York. However ... I am not currently able to leave my fair country, so step one here would be getting my ass in gear to get my passport updated.

I also have to save for school. This year is going to be my final year, but as with the trip, I have to make sure I save up for it. I've started already, and don't think it will be a problem. Everything else is second to this, so ... if there's a problem, I'm gonna kill someone.

OK, so those are the things going on in my life. In my head, my mood has not improved. 'Nuff said there.

( And lastly, a meme )

As I mentioned a while back, I'd been wanting to change the name of this journal. So, I did. The layout has also changed. The timing, given the events of the last few weeks, is just coincidental. Those that know me better than most will probably get the references in the new name, and there are several. Without trying to sound too arrogant, I'd guess that the better you understand the name, the better you understand me.

The last few days have been really busy. I'd been ignoring most of my assignments and readings for class until late last week, so I've had quite a bit to do. I'd been ahead of the curve, which helped, but I nonetheless had a week and a half of reading to catch up on, and still need to finish my final assignments for next week.

Last Monday, I worked for Elections Canada as a Poll Clerk for the by-election. It was a long day - 8:30AM to 11:30PM. I was disappointed at the low turn-out, but not at all surprised. Neither of the Toronto area ridings, as Liberal strongholds, were ever in any doubt, though I was happy to see the Green party make such a strong show - they beat out the ruling Conservatives in my own riding.

Analyzing the results for a moment, I can't see how Stephane Dion sees these results in a positive light. While the addition of Bob Rae and Martha Hall-Findley will bring strong voices to the front bench during Question Period, both of them were opponents to Dion during the race for Liberal leadership. It will be that much harder for the abysmally weak-willed Opposition leader to maintain control of caucus with two more strong voices offering differing viewpoints. While the Tories should conclude that Toronto is a write-off, now falling to 4th place in the minds of Toronto-Center voters, they can take quite a bit in the knowledge that they have gained momentum in the west. The Liberals barely retained their riding in Vancouver, and lost their riding in Saskatchewan to the Tories. The Liberals went in as the incumbent in all four races, two of which were a lock, and still came out down one riding. That's hardly an encouraging result, no matter how solid the victory in Toronto was. But that shouldn't come as any surprise - the Liberals are being led by a man who refuses to make any decision, instead willingly and continually betraying principle just so he doesn't have to face the electorate.

Anyway, in completely unrelated news, here's a link to an Australian comedy duo and their summary of the current global credit crisis.

So much for 2008 being a better year than 2007.

Em and I broke up yesterday. If you ever had any idea of how deeply I love her, you know how utterly shattered I am right now. I am going to take some time for myself, and basically disappear. I don't want to deal with anything right now.

Ontario is that last place in Canada that one would invest, or start a new business? Why, sir! I wholeheartedly agree! This assertion should not even need be made, for the evidence to support it is all around, and obvious by simple inspection.

I mean, nearly all the largest companies in Canada, and all the most successful investment companies are headquartered in Ontario's capital. Why, the very street on which they conduct businesses, which has become synonymous with investment and growth, and the byword for Canadian businesses as a whole - Bay Street - is surely a testament to Ontario's abysmal ability to translate investment into prosperity.

Who can argue with such solid and profound logic that Ontario, being synonymous with investment and economic growth for over a century, is the worst place at investment and business? No one! Ontarians, by their strong history of success and current growth against a tide of recession, have no stomach for business. Their minds are weak, and have no acumen for success. It is a miracle of biblical proportions that Ontario has always been the economic engine that drives Canada.

Surely, nearly half the population of the country are imbeciles, and flock to this province as a testament to their ignorance of business and success. Nay! They flock to this province to run from success!

And Toronto, that vile heart of investment ineptitude, has no place questioning the forthright business policies of a government that subsidizes healthy oil companies with already inflated profit margins. Why should a government not fund those who pay for their election? Who else should a government invest in? It's people? Pah! The idiocy!

So, please, Mr Minister, stick true to your word. Ontario is the last place to invest. Remember that when you decide where next to invest your campaign spending. Do not ever invest in Ontario!

Here's a CBC report on the aftermath of yesterday's fire.

A six alarm fire (CityTV, CBC) has been raging for over 4 hours this morning, downtown, gutting 2 buildings, and affecting up to 14 addresses. If you live in or near the Financial, Textile, or Entertainment Districts, you know how big this fire has been - smoke spread over most of that area until recently, with traffic rerouted between Spadina and Bathurst, and a power outage in the surrounding area. Fire crews believe most of an entire city block will be destroyed when all is said and done. Fortunately, the quick efforts of fire crews ensured no one was even injured as a result of the blaze.

Among several of the businesses caught in the center of the fire is Suspect Video. While they recently expanded to a second location, the iconic storefront on Queen West is gone. To add insult to injury, its likely the whole area, which until today consisted of century-old brick buildings housing independent businesses in that unique Queen-West way, will be replaced by condos and franchise stores.

Em is away visiting her parents for the long weekend, so I’m home alone. It’s been a productive and relaxing few days. Between mundane chores, I’ve been working on a drawing that will probably be the largest and most complex I’ve ever done (more on that in a bit). I’ve also been reading Snow Crash.

Drawing and reading were two of my favourite pastimes in years past, but in the past few years I haven’t really done much of either. Well, that’s not entirely true – most of my ‘reading for pleasure’ has been in some way related to school, I just haven’t read much fiction. As far as drawing goes, I was either unmotivated or lacked the time – usually both. A full-time work schedule with a part-time school schedule on top doesn’t leave a lot of extra time for anything else, and what free time I did have I tended to use on mindless activity.

I have more free time right now though, so I’ve started to fill some of it by working on a drawing based on an Exalted game that I started this past fall. It originally started as a small sketch, then turned into a big sketch, then started turning into a detailed drawing. When all is said and done, it will end up as a 14x17 picture, with about a half-dozen figures, and complete background. It’s like my brain is making up for all that lack of inspiration with a giant eruption.

As for reading …

Snow Crash is an example of why I don’t really read fiction. Yes, I know there are many out there that think this is a great book, but … I disagree. See, a good writer immerses the reader in their world, making it believable within its own context. Few writers are able to do that to me, and I don’t find that this has happened in Snow Crash at all. Don’t get me wrong, there are some really intriguing elements, I just find the way in which the tale is told to undermine my desire to finish reading it. While I disagree with the interpretation of language and culture as code, I still like the exploration of the idea using the cyberpunk genre. It is Neal Stephenson as a writer that I dislike, which bothers me immensely because this is the first book of his that I’ve read, and I really wanted to enjoy it. I am now finishing it just because I promised myself I would not put down another book that I’d started before it was finished.

Snow Crash would have been much better as a graphic novel, where Stephenson’s story and ideas could have been carried through just as easily, perhaps more so. What a graphic novel would have been able to sidestep is Neal Stephenson’s actually writing, which is terrible.

A lot of bad writers write in SF or Fantasy, parroting better writers and archetypes of the genre, and this book is a great example of that. Stephenson’s obvious attempts to copy William Gibson’s pacing and flow fall flat because Gibson is a master of language whereas Stephenson has great ideas but tries to explain them by sounding like what he thinks Gibson might have written. Stephenson should instead have gotten a good artist, and collaborated on a graphic novel, so the artist could show what Stephenson was trying to tell. Stephenson tries to tell a story using visual cues, so this would have been a far better approach than the one he chose.

Good God! My neighbour just turned on her music, again. One can only take so much Cher and Celine Dion before one goes insane. I must counter this auditory onslaught. NIN it is!

And now, back to drawing.

A study published this month in the Journal of Glaciology, which you can read about here, indicates that the effect on sea level rise from climate change could be twice as significant as previously thought. Given that the IPCC's conservative estimate, published in the Third Assessment Report (TAR), was already up to one meter, with a general consensus of one-half meter, the updated study brings those figures to one and two meters respectively.

So, what does that mean?

CReSIS, the Center for Remote Sensing of Ice Sheets, an organization similar in focus to the University of Buffalo researchers, maintains a webpage that highlights the impact of sea level rise on various locales around the globe. You'll notice that even a one meter increase in the Caribbean has a similar yet permanent effect to the impact of a hurricane sea surge, while a two meter rise virtually submerges southern Louisana, the Florida Keys, the Bahamas, and most coastal areas. Europe, particularly Britain and the Low Countries, would fair far worse with just a one meter rise. A two meter rise inundates the entire North Sea coast. No Less significant would be the effect on South America and the Amazon Basin (1m, 2m), Southeast Asia (1m, 2m), and of course South Asia (1m, 2m), all of which have significant populations and sensitive, vital ecosystems in threatened areas.

Keep in mind also that these projections are the conservative ones. Some projections are significantly higher, though with far less certainty. These are just the projections that are seen as likely to happen, given current trends.

Remember this next time you vote, get gas, go shopping, toss your trash, or whatever. Impacts on climate change, while small at an individual level, add up when taken en masse. Be part of the solution.

Rules:

Me - I shall post a quote or two from my fav flicks, taken from IMDB.
You - Guess! And no cheating.

( OK, go! )