3.04.2009

Rush to Judgment




Looks like George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Karl Rove and the rest of that gang aren't the only standard bearers of reactionary conservative thought in America who have worn out their welcome. (Newsweek)

Update Central



Further to my Tuesday post on The Bachelor debacle which, if I understand correctly from my brief perusal of media reports, having never seen a millisecond of this or virtually any other reality show ever, the bachelor in question, Ryan somebody I think -- no, Jason -- first picked Melissa upon whom to bestow his final red rose (no phallic symbolism there), and then publicly reneged on his commitment on network TV, devastating Melissa and shocking millions of loyal viewers at home, not an insignificant number of whom, I imagine, were reduced to tears at Jason's duplicity. Instead, Jason went with first runner up Molly. As the linked interview with the show's producer demonstrates, the finale generated considerable controversy, But it was also a public relations coup for the show, setting the table nicely for the next installment of The Bachelorette which is set to start soon, and will star Jillian (after both Molly and Melissa turned the invite down).

Mangled Details

I don't know if you want to know this, but if you're curious about the extent of the damage inflicted on the poor woman by that beserk chimpanzee awhile back, click here. Warning: it's awful. Dig up the evil monkey and shoot it again, please. (AP/Columbus Dispatch)

Missed Us By *That* Much (plus, bikinis!)

So it turns out we Earthians had a near miss with an asteroid this week. National Geographic, which has what is becoming my new favourite Web site, reports that a space rock the size of the one that schmucked Tungusta about a hundred years ago swooped by our planet Monday at 20 km/second. Vooosh!!

And did I say "becoming my new favourite web site? How about this story I found while looking up the asteroid link, about the effects bikinis have on the (heterosexual) male mind? Favourite quote: "Brain scans revealed that when men are shown pictures of scantily clad women, the region of the brain associated with tool use lights up." "Tool use". Uh huh.

There's also fun stories on prehistoric undersea sex, sloppy kissing and, of course the previously blogged-about fish with a see-through head. I could waste hours here.

National Geographic, you rawk.

Canwest wants out of local television?

Canadian Media Guild president Lise Lareau has her own blog, and has taken the time to take a look at what CTV Globemedia and Canwest Global want to do with their networks during the latest round of CRTC hearings. In short, local programming and Canadian content will be toast if they have their way.

Which leads to the inevitable question: If Canwest Global or CTV Globemedia doesn't care about our community, then why should we care about what happens to Canwest Global?

Six In The Morning

Here's your a.m.'s what's-what:

1 ARREST THAT MAN Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir's name is on a shiny new arrest warrent this morning. The International Criminal Court wants al-Bashir in the Hague to answer for war crimes including ordering mass rapes and torture and murder. (The Guardian)

2 FINAL ARGUMENTS Final arguments for the sentencing for convicted unintentional-daughter-killer Christopher Pauchay are today. It's not likely anyone in this province has been able to avoid this awful story but to recap: on the night of Jan. 29-30, 2008 a drunk Pauchay left his home on the Yellowquill reserve with his daughters, who were only wearing shirts and diapers, and ventured into -50-degree weather. Both daughters were found frozen to death on Jan. 30. (Leader-Post)

3 SOLDIERS KILLED Three Canadians die in Afghanistan when their vehicle drives over a bomb. Best line in Gloria Galloway's story: "Full fighting season doesn't generally start until May." Is this a tasteless time to remind readers that our prime minister recently said this war is unwinnable? (Globe And Mail)

4 NO SYMPATHY FOR THE DEVIL? A mentally ill man might or might not stand trial for the murder (and decapitation, mutilation and cannibalization) of Greyhound bus passenger Timothy McLean. The defence asks the court to hate the mania, not the maniac. McLean's family understandably has trouble accepting that. (Winnipeg Free Press)

5 YET MORE GOOD NEWS FOR HEAVY TEENAGERS Today, social pressures and peer cruelty; tomorrow: DEATH. (New York Times)

6 LET'S MAKE A DEAL It's the NHL trade deadline, and my team, the Columbus Blue Jackets, has already shipped oft-injured goaltender Pascal LeClaire to Ottawa for third-line centre Antoine Vermette, whom I have a photo of but it's on the home laptop so I'll add it to this post later. Also, Tim Connelly, who really needs to be centering Rick Nash, just got resigned by Buffalo. Crap. Anyway, no one call or e-mail today, okay? Thanks. I have live streaming to listen to. (Columbus Dispatch, Sportsnet)