The Lasso of Truth

Weekend Pinup: Hypergeek Edition

Me and the boys are headed out for a matinee showing of the new Star Trek movie and I am SUPER excited.  I'm not really a fan of the original series (or it's various offshoots), but I am a gal who loves sci-fi butt-stomping action flicks, and this one promises to be all that and gravy!  With 95% on the Tomatometer, the only thing that could make this movie better, is Bruce Campbell.  You think I kid...

~ And speaking of needing a "boomstick" (for those who don't get the reference, buy a bag of Cherry Blasters, rent "Army of Darkness" and only then may you return to this blog!), it sounds like intrepid girl-blogger, Wendy, could have used one at the Convention Center, last week.  Either that, or a can of Raid.  Certainly some anti-biotics were in order.

~ io9, the home of pure, undiluted sci-fi awesomeness, asks the citizenry of geekdom, "Now that we've had some time to think about it, it's time to ask yourself which was worse: the Star Wars prequel trilogy, or the Matrix trilogy?"  Please.  Casting alone, can sink this one:  I'll give you Keanu Reeves, but Carrie Anne-Moss and Monica Bellucci to Hayden Christensen and Natalie Portman?  I know who I'd rather spend 6 hours of my life with...

~ On a more serious note, those nutty Saudis have finally come up with an idea that bears some closer consideration for our own beleaguered justice system:  Behead and publicly crucify those who sexually assault and murder children.  I can honestly say that I see no downside to this, other than the mess of course...which we could get other convicts to clean up for us, anyway.

~ And don't LOL...$2 million for a cheezburger-nomming furball, is serious business.

~ Finally...Hey Mikey!  Can I get that waffle iron, now?

And I'd be going...

...but I'm, um, getting married that day.  Not that it wouldn't be fun (and apt) to perform my nuptials amidst an anti-tax protest, but there's the deposit on the hall...the photographer...Liberal relatives...

h/t

Sonia Sotomayor

Are you sure this one belongs under the "Why She's Brilliant" heading..?

The case indicates Sotomayor's willingness to give labor the benefit of the doubt, to protect fair collective bargaining, to take on powerful, power-grabbing interests, yada yada yada. All good stuff. Here's what it really shows: She's got the stones to step up and be a national hero when duty calls. Which will come in handy when that Scalia scoundrel tries to lurch the country toward fascism.

And in light of the latest round of Obamanation-style shenanigans over at Government Motors, one would think Ms. "Anti-Corruption Crackdown" might be a poor choice for SCOTUS...

Judge Sotomayor found that the city could not transfer the contracts to other nonprofits without offering the agency a formal hearing, basing her decision on city rules. "This one troubles me," she said in the court hearing, raising questions "about whether the Mayor had inappropriately, or even unconstitutionally, injected himself into the contracting process," perhaps to divert attention from a city official's own alleged corruption.

Of course, all of this is from a magazine that has gone from having George Clooney, Sean Penn and Angelina Jolie to John Edwards, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama (twice) splashed across the cover.  Do you sense a theme here?

How do you like your eco-creds now?

Because the bio-fuel movement was never really about conserving resources.  It's always been about making cars less convenient...

At City Garage in Euless, Tex., for example, the first of numerous future customers brought in an automobile whose fuel pump was shot. A quick diagnosis determined that that particular car had close to 18% ethanol in the fuel. For that unlucky owner, the repairs came to nearly $900.

What is less convenient to your average car owner, than a $1000 repair bill?

How about getting one as payback for your ecological piety...?

Here's a tip

No matter what, NEVER click on an article that starts with...

"Heroes' Ando and 80s pop sensation Tiffany take on a bunch of flesh-eating ghosts"

But you won't listen.  You won't be able to help yourself.

Finally!

A bombing campaign your average lefty can really get behind...

Mission Seedbomb involves a bomber aircraft and charges full of the Seed Capsules. Essentially the project involves artificial dispersal of seeds over arid areas where natural vegetation has lapsed due to man-made follies like deforestation leading to desertification. Each capsule contains artificial soil and seeds, and are air-dropped over the selected regions.

Housed in biodegradable plastic, the artificial soil provides nourishment and moisture to the seed; till it grows out to be a strong enough plant to sustain itself. As the sapling matures, the plastic capsule melts away, leaving behind a brand new generation.

Maybe they just want it for "power generation"

hmmm...and how could this be bad for us..?

Venezuela and Bolivia are supplying Iran with uranium for its nuclear program, according to a secret Israeli government report obtained Monday by The Associated Press.

The two South American countries are known to have close ties with Iran, but this is the first allegation that they are involved in the development of Iran's nuclear program, considered a strategic threat by Israel.

Out of the loop

A handful of chores slapped me around this weekend.  Now I'm just trying to catch up.  North Korea did what?!

Bear with me...I'll be back later today.

Don't talk to the furniture

Modern day multiculturalism means even a fancy downtown condominium can be utterly transformed into an oppressive cave dwelling with little more than a tip 'o the hat...

When the landlady of my Toronto apartment building said an outraged neighbour had filed a complaint about me over an apparently inappropriate hallway interaction with his wife, my mind raced through the countless conversations I've had with fellow tenants, none of which seemed a possible source of offence.

It turns out, it wasn't a salacious transaction that had caused the complaint, but rather a neighbourly and -- to me -- entirely forgettable greeting, little more than a brief "good morning" as I passed my neighbours on the way to work.

Still, it was enough of an affront for the man -- once a doctor somewhere in the Middle East, my landlady clarified -- to feel I had broken a cultural taboo. The incident started an awkward feud which has involved warnings not to repeat my indiscretion and one face-to-face shouting match, which included allusions to my impending death.

I expect the battle will wage on, as we appear to be stuck at an impasse.

His Muslim upbringing has ingrained in him a sense of entitlement to demand I not speak directly to his wife; and my prairie upbringing has ingrained in me a duty to strive for polite cohesion with my neighbours.

Fundamentalist Muslims should really come with a warning label saying "not suitable for polite society".  Where is Premier Dad on this?

Tête-à-Tête with Bill & George

If I could afford it, it would be worth the price of the ticket to ask just one question of Dubya...

When you took office in 2001, did you immediately order the carpet and furniture in the Oval Office steam cleaned (or replaced)?  And if so, did you send the tab to Bill or Monica?

Inquiring minds want to know...

h/t

Who could have predicted this?

Well geniuses, anyone who has ever left a bag of potatoes in the cupboard for too long could have been able to tell ya...

Reusable shopping bags may help save the environment but they pose a public health risk, suggests new research.

The bags were found to contain unacceptably high levels of bacterial, yeast, mould and coliform counts, said the study, A Microbiological Study of Reusable Grocery Bags. Some bags contained fecal matter.

[..]

The warm, dark, folded interiors of bags exposed to food and liquid spills are breeding grounds for bacteria, yeast, mould and coliforms and can be transferred from bag to bag by supermarket staff, he warned.

I've been saying it for years now...the "green movement" has a lot more to do with cleansing the Earth of those pesky humans, than it does with "living in harmony" and all that rot.  Why not force everyone into recyclable shopping bags that contaminate our food?  That'll clear out the grocery lines pretty fast.  Of course, all that flushing...

Let it never be said...

...that the Toronto Star would resort to damning a Conservative candidate with faint praise.

Acidic condescension and sarcasm is more the standard formula...

Hudak, the member for Niagara West-Glanbrook, seemed by and large content to reiterate his well-worked talking points and evade comment on anything controversial.

He is, a breathless province will be relieved to know, "blessed" to have the wife he does, dotes on his 19-month-old daughter, is grateful for the sacrifices of his immigrant grandparents.

In short, Hudak demonstrated to the Star what PC party members by now know. He is a solid, engaging, increasingly disciplined professional politician.

Add in a generous sprinkling of associations with the presumed anti-christ of Ontario political history...

On the one hand, Hudak say he's grateful for the support of former premier Mike Harris, and proud of his part in the Harris government.

On the other, Hudak appears to want a little distance put between himself and the past. He is less the second coming of Mike, he suggested, than he is sort of Mike-ish.

In temperament at least, that's hard to gainsay. Hudak appears to want people to like him. Harris seemed happy to collect enemies. Hudak maintains a scrupulous affability. Harris was an angry profanity looking for a place to happen.

Hudak also lacks – though may yet develop or luck into – a couple of useful things Harris had.

By the time of the Common Sense Revolution, Harris had a platform that fit him like a glove. Hudak still sounds as if delivering lines that seem neither visceral nor founded on an intellectual superstructure.

And for good measure, make some cryptic reference to an evil American, preferably one perceived as much-maligned by your buddies in the newsroom...

There was no mention of any book that had recently engaged him, or any lesson from other jurisdictions (other than a B.C. initiative to cut red tape), anything of what has happened in the United States or Ottawa, any guiding star more compelling than Ronald Reagan's 11th Commandment that "thou shall not speak ill of another conservative."

I can't think of a better sales pitch for the new leader of the provincial Conservative party, than to have the Toronto Star go into full-on Perez Hilton-style bitchy queen hate-spew, under the guise of professional interview...can you?

Can I have the warming now, please?!

In a country where snowfall can still be measured in inches, this far into May, the concept of painting our houses white to stave off heat waves is a little absurd.

Of course, it would make a great case as camouflage.

Being Canadian means always having to say you're sorry

Even though they have definitively lost the war and the leader of the terrorist group they so passionately cheer for is dead, they still refuse to go home.

Is it because the protesters (mostly Canadian-born adolescents who have never been to Sri Lanka) feel so passionately about the cause?

Or does it have more to do with them having nowhere better to go and nothing better to do with their time?

It's worth asking...

Like tips on celibacy from Jenna Jameson

Oprah's overwhelming influence over large swathes of weak-minded American fools is not the heart of this problem.  It would be fair to say that anyone who blindly follows a celebrity hypocrite like Oprah deserves the empty, shallow life that results from it.

After all, how many times has Oprah given dieting advice?  Why anyone still listens to this woman, I'll never know.

h/t

Victoria Day Pinup!

I have spent the entire weekend hauling rocks and digging, in the hopes that when I am done, I might have a suitable backyard refuge for whiling away some hot summer evenings with my sweetheart.  This is how a tough-as-nails do-it-yourself neocon girl blogger spends a long weekend!  Hence the neglect. 

I may not be able to stand up straight tomorrow but I will be back to blogging.

In the meantime, mine the Justice League for some entertainment...

* Halls of Macadamia

* Brass Balls Radio 1st Anniversary Edition w/Mark Steyn as guest host!

* The Other McCain

* Last of the Few

* The Politicasks for submissions to the Top 10 UnConservative things the Conservative Party of Canada has done -- talk about shooting fish in a barrel...

* Right Wing News

...Oh, and wish me luck!

An old fashioned blackballing

In the land of the Great Uniter, identity politics leads to revisionist geography...

Born and raised in Mozambique and now a naturalized U.S. citizen, Serodio, 45, has filed a lawsuit against a New Jersey medical school, claiming he was harassed and ultimately suspended for identifying himself during a class cultural exercise as a "white African-American."

[..]

Filed Monday in U.S. District Court in New Jersey, the lawsuit traces a series of events that Serodio maintains led to his 2007 suspension, starting with a March 2006 cultural exercise in a clinical skills course taught by Dr. Kathy Ann Duncan, where each student was asked to define themselves for a discussion on culture and medicine.

After Serodio labeled himself as a white African-American, another student said she was offended by his comments and that, because of his white skin, was not an African-American.

According to the lawsuit, Serodio was summoned to Duncan's office where he was instructed "never to define himself as an African-American … because it was offensive to others and to people of color for him to do so."

Harassed by fellow students and subjected to disciplinary action and a psychological evaluation from the administration of the University, all because he was taught -- as were we all -- that Africa isa place you can be from, not a skin colour.

So much for higher learning.

Tales from the Statcounter

What kind of world do we live in where Google searches for Muslim pussy and Obama vs. Aliens, significantly outnumber searches for boobs and bondage?

THE INTERWEBS:  YER DOIN IT RONG!

Protect Canada. Stop the Tamil Tigers.

Thousands of hyphenated-Canadians disrupt traffic and movement throughout the city for weeks, cart their own children onto a major highway to shield them from police action, and promise more and more of the same if their demands for government intervention into a regional conflict thousands of miles away are not met, but I'm a racist because I'm sick to death of having my city held hostage by these Canadians of convenience?

Just making sure I've got that straight.

I can't sleep tonight

I've been a mom for 15 years but I haven't always been a good one.  At first I didn't know how.  Then, after a while of flailing through it aimlessly, I got so wrapped up in my own problems that I didn't have the energy or the will to prioritize motherhood over more frivolous concerns.  I made some bad choices and I failed on a lot of counts.  Thankfully, none of those failures were catastrophic enough to cause irreparable harm to the ones who should have always been my first priority.

But things are different now.  I have come to a point where I've realized what holds true value and importance in my life -- that is the joy and success of my children.  And I think I'm pretty good at doing what is necessary to secure that for them, or guide them toward securing it for themselves. 

In the last few years, I have earned the love and trust of my own children, and I have earned the love and trust of Mikey's children.  I have done so by dedicating as much of my energy as I am able to muster, to the goal of never giving them cause to question their places as my highest priority above all else.  It has not been easy and I have spent more days veritably bent over with exhaustion, than I could ever count, but it is worth every ounce of effort.

I am still not a perfect mother -- and I don't think anyone ever could be.  But I aspire to be the best I know how and I am frequently rewarded with the trust and respect of the children I care for.  Despite what many say, such a gift is never given lightly by someone so fragile.  I am privileged to have it from so many.  I try very hard to never take it for granted.

But tonight I feel so very defeated.

The man who my eldest son has considered his father for the last 11 years, banished him from his home tonight and promptly announced he never wanted him to call him "dad" again.  To add insult to this already sickeningly egregious injury, my son had to suffer through a car ride of humiliating beratement and viciously spiteful criticism of my every flaw, from the man who claimed to be his grandfather for those same 11 years -- all for the crime of being unhappy that he and his siblings suffered a miserable pattern of neglect from a man who was too wrapped up in his own concerns, to pay any heed to the needs of his children.

So the man who strenuously fought for 3 years, to seize custody of him away from me (and lost), told him to pack his things and dumped him on my doorstep without so much as a goodbye.

Who does this?

And what on Earth do I tell my son to convince him that he is worth more than yesterday's trash?

It's a hell of a way to repay the love and loyalty of a boy who has never done anything worse than be a typical, trying, willful teenager.

He's a good boy and he deserves better.  All of my children do.

My heart is breaking for him.

Teetering on the edge

When the most basic instinct of your very survival is on the line...

Do you really trust the same government that can’t oversee AIG, run a hurricane recovery effort, or balance its budget to decide which drugs, procedures, or operations are cost-effective for the American people?

The flaming stinkbomb, being foisted on the American public is universally known in Canada (where it is currently practiced in all it's socialized glory), by a term once coined by Mark Steyn: "equality of crap"...

What's the defining characteristic of a government health service? It's one word, a word that, in its medical context, doesn't exist south of the border--"waiting," as in "waiting list," "waiting times," waiting, waiting, waiting.

[..]

Hygiene is the number one issue in Canadian hospitals, and a problem with hygiene is the logical consequence of a system built on "waiting." On March 7 last year, Tse Chi Kwai went to Scarborough Grace Hospital and, as is traditional, was left on a gurney in emergency for 12 hours, exposed to hundreds of people. Two days earlier, his mother had died of SARS but, despite displaying to her doctor all the symptoms detailed in the several health alerts on the subject, had cause of death listed as "heart attack." And at Scarborough Grace, even after discovering that Tse's mother had recently died after returning from Hong Kong, Dr. Sandy Finkelstein concluded that, even if Tse was infectious, it was only with TB. Lying next to Tse on that ER gurney hour after hour was Joe Pollack, who was being treated for an irregular heartbeat. He was subsequently sent home but returned on March 16 with symptoms of SARS. He was admitted and isolated, but apparently it never occurred to the hospital to isolate Mrs. Pollack. So she wandered around the wards and infected an 82-year-old man from a Catholic Charismatic group.

Mr. Pollack, Mrs. Pollack, the 82-year-old Catholic Charismatic and his wife all died. None of these people went anywhere near Southeast Asia. They were exposed to SARS by the Toronto health care system, as was the 82-year-old's son, who was also unknowingly infected at Scarborough Grace and went on to expose another 500 to SARS at a religious retreat. As I wrote in the National Post at the time, "Only in Canada does the virus owe its grip on the population to the active co-operation of the medical profession. In Toronto, the system that's supposed to protect us from infection instead infected us. They breached the most basic medical principle: first do no harm."

h/t

Don't stop me if you've heard this one

You might be Taliban if...

You refine heroin for a living, but have a "moral objection" to beer.

I invite you to make up your own in the comments...

City of Grievances (rinse & repeat)

With the rumblings of another, more disruptive protest in the hopper for tomorrow, Freddie P weighs in on the Liberal leader's pandering to the Tamil thuggery...

Unfortunately, when people like Michael Ignatieff want to play politics and give-in to selfish bastards it makes the situation that much worse.

He should have stayed out of it, like the Prime Minister has. It's a Toronto issue until the Mayor asks for help.

But therein lies the problem. If Toronto had a Mayor with balls, the protestors would have been given a short deadline and then if they didn't move, the snowplows should have been brought out of storage.

That would have moved them.

But the Mayor doesn't even bring out the snowplows for, you know, snow...

Skippy is also on board with the hectoring, though if there is derisive mockery to be done he's what we'd call a high quality "first responder", so I guess I shouldn't be surprised...

I fully support the right to non-violent protest, even if it involves scaring the shit out of me when I'm just trying to get to work. If you get gorgeous women involved, I understand even more. On the other hand, flags with guns on them sort of contradicts the idea of calling for a cease-fire, doesn't it? Or is it just me? Could I be the one missing something?

Having said all of that, that shit you pulled on the Gardiner Expressway yesterday was a little much. Did you know that 2,000 people running out in the middle of a highway is 2,000% dumber than one person doing it? Google it.

The law of unintended consequences

And what can happen when the societal push to be "eco-pious" causes a mad rush to implement untested and poorly-thought-out green technologies...

Faults with the underfloor heating at the 108-bed hospital mean it is almost a year behind its official opening as the temperatures hit 104F (40C)

Some of the tiles on the floor of the Rhondda Valley Hospital have even buckled in the heat.

Leighton Andrews, the Welsh Assembly member for the Rhondda Valleys, said: "This was meant to be one of the most environmentally-friendly hospitals because of the nature of the heating system.

"But the underfloor heating has made the floor too hot to walk on - I understand that temperatures have reached 40C.

"It was meant to be state of the art but we are now well behind the scheduled opening date."

Man of the people

“a light will shine down from somewhere…. You will experience an epiphany. And you will say to yourself, ‘I have to vote for Barack.’” 

Not since Narcissus, have we seen such humility...

The 65th Anniversary of D-Day is fast approaching.  Barack Obama will attend the events on June 6th as George Bush did in 2004 for the sixtieth memorial service.  Here is the rub, as of now Obama’s State Department has asked (read demanded) the French government not allow tour guide services to operate that day. It is a big day for Normandy tourism. Yet, the king will not allow those not connected with government to enjoy the day.  Obama is very important you know.  This is an unprecedented request.  I hope the French come to their senses and deny it.

Compare that with 2004.  Security was tight as President Bush and other world leaders were in attendance, but the event was still open to all.  A friend relayed the story of waiting in line to use a port-a-potty (a French port-a-potty no doubt, yuck, believe me.)  She looks to her left and who he is in the next line waiting patiently?  President Bush.  Sure he had Secret Service nearby, but he waited like everyone else.

Contrast that with Team Obama not even allowing regular people near Colleville-Sur-Mer that day.   A shame indeed.  Especially as the last of our WW II vets are expiring.

Don't be surprised if the lead up to the event includes fawning press coverage of the Great Obammessiah's walk across the Atlantic, to get there.

Get a thicker skin

For all the vicious partisanship of it, at least Wanda Sykes told some jokes that were actually funny.

Which is more than can be said about Streisand's attempt at "comedy".

And that's all I've got to say about that.

h/t

Time for a riot!

A few more jihadis equipped this way and we'd have a few less jihadis, I think...

The City of Grievances

Not wanting to be left out of the supposed genocide in their homeland, thousands of Tamil-Canadians seem eager to spark one in their adopted home...

Tamil protesters last night shut down the Gardiner Expressway for hours and occupied College St. and University Ave., crippling downtown traffic and sparking what was sure to be a backlash against the increasingly brazen and controversial tactics of the demonstrators.

[..]

The protesters occupied the Gardiner until midnight, when they peacefully walked off the highway.

Not a single charge or arrest for shutting down a major artery in and out of the country's largest city on Mother's Day weekend...no one forced off by a riot squad...

Nice leadership we have in this city.

Monday Morning Pinup

Well, the keyhole initiative was not as popular as the last time we did this (though my readership is significantly larger now), and I'm not sure if this is a consequence of people just not caring to know or my having been around so long there's just not enough mystery there anymore.  For the sake of my fragile ego, I won't ponder which for too long ;)

Many thanks to the two loyal readers who pitched in this weekend...

"Do you have a sister?" -- proof

~ No.  I have a brother, but Im not sure he'd be interested ;)

"Since you have left your dancing days behind you (dancing for Mikey doesn't count), would you consider doing some modeling? Not pron, of course. And why or why not?" -- Texas Canuck

~ Like just about any girl, I had always fantasized about being a model.  But, without getting into the laundry list of physical faults that play cruel havoc with even the gentlest camera, I recognize that I am not conventionally model material -- and I certainly don't have the aptitude for tolerating the self-absorbed, artsy-fartsy types that populate the industry.  I love pictures though, and I love posing so I'll have to just keep it as a hobby.  Luckily, Mikey likes those things, too.

"I get strange looks when I tell the wife or others that they still look sexy. Some women can't see how men can be attracted to ladies of the cougar age. How do you feel about your body?" -- Texas Canuck

~ Leaving aside the prospect of being considered "cougar age", I still feel fairly confident about my body.  I certainly wouldn't take to the stage again, for the sake of all the paying customers ;) but I can still pull off a bikini in the summer, which is more than a lot of gals my age.

I don't think age matters as much as it used to.  Between diet and exercise, a lot of women have the opportunity to extend the life of their more youthful bodies.

Thank you for taking an interest and thank you for the Mother's Day greetings.  I spent the day being pampered and appreciated -- just like every day!

Through the keyhole

A couple of years ago I invited my readers to take a peek through the keyhole and offer up questions on anything and everything they ever wanted to know about their favorite saucy neo-con girl-blogger (me, right?!)  It was a popular initiative then and since it is long gone now – and my life and I are both significantly different now – I thought it might be a nice time to once again, offer myself up for dissection (in a manner).

Have at it…I am not shy and no question is off limits.  Drop them in the comments or (if you’re shy) email.  I will post all questions and my answers with the Pinup this Sunday.

So, what do you want to know..?