Egyptian Revival

If I was Brendan Fraser right now, I'd be afraid. Very afraid. (MSN)

Canwest Death Watch Continues

The Globe and Mail's business blog may not be the most unbiased source of information on Canwest's troubles, but I doubt Canwest would be just as forthcoming.

Read this blog, and if you work for Global Regina or the Leader Post, be worried. Very worried.

Tip of the cap to Ottawa Watch

Puppy In The Dog House! Awwwwww!

Meet Sasha, a one and half year-old shepherd-malamute who dropped by prairie dog today. Sasha, whose person is PD advertising consultant Blaine Masse, likes cheese and running on her treadmill but hates the editor's rolling chair (which makes scary noises).

So cute!

(edited, repeatedly, for spelling because I'm an idiot.)

For All You Watchman (And 80s Cartoons) Fans

I tried to post this apparently fan-made slice of hilarity last night but had trouble with the stupid "embed" function. Seems to be working now, so here you go. Truly a spectacular parody not of Watchman but of just how awful adaptations can be after they're extruded through focus groups and producer's tiny little pea brains. Enjoy.



(Originally found on Aint It Cool News)

Six in the (Still Just Barely) Morning

1. What's that Clucking in your Yard? Vancouver city council voted unanimously to direct staff to examine the feasibility of allowing backyard chicken coops in the city. (CBC)

2. Tory Tory's Sorry Story: Ontario Conservative Party leader, John Tory, is expected to step down after failing to win his riding in a by election. (CBC)

3. He's Been Slimed! Scotland Yard is investigating the sliming by environmental activists of UK business secretary, Peter Mandelson. (Guardian)

4. We Can't Handle the Truth! Another Republican has come out against the idea of investigating the Bush administration. (Huffington Post)

5. Galileo Gives History the Finger: One of Galileo's fingers is going to be on display in Italy. It's the only remaining piece of his body, and yes, it's the middle one. (Telegraph)

6. Who Watches the Watchmen? Soon, It'll Be Me! Watchmen is finally out, and here are the showtimes in Regina. (Warner Bros.)

More On The Socialist Scourge

The 13 people who bravely follow this under-promoted and half-assed blog might recall this post of mine, where I talked about American conservatives' recent obsession with the word "socialism". The Rush Coulters and Ann Limbaughs and Mike Yuckabees keep invoking the term with horror in reference to Obama's attempts (which might not work anyway) to prop up their failing little country's deflated economy.

But while conservatives lurk by their cauldrons and chant "socialism!" "socialism!" like a coven of senile witches trying to remember how to cast a curse, reasonable people understand what the wildly-popular U.S. president's actions actually are: disaster relief for an economy that was derailed by the delusional behaviour of its leading investors, CEOs, politicians and apologists.

Enough of these socialist slurs (Salon). Barack Obama isn't a socialist and his administration's massive investment in the U.S. economy isn't socialism. But don't take my word for it. Here's a Washington Post article by Harold Meyerson that lays out the isms and schisms of socialism, and explains why Obama isn't anyone's comrade. A sample:

"But in the United States, conservatives have never bashed socialism because its specter was actually stalking America. Rather, they've wielded the cudgel against such progressive reforms as free universal education, the minimum wage or tighter financial regulations. Their signal success is to have kept the United States free from the taint of universal health care. The result: We have the world's highest health-care costs, borne by businesses and employees that cannot afford them; nearly 50 million Americans have no coverage; infant mortality rates are higher than those in 41 nations -- but at least (phew!) we don't have socialized medicine."

It's smart, fun stuff!

Oscar Shorts

It's hard to care for the Best Animated Short Oscar nominees when barely anybody has access to them. This year, for the first time, I was able to watch them before the Academy Awards and mostly they are a hoot. Funny enough, the Oscar winner, "La Maison en Petits Cubes", is the one downer. My favorite is a kinetic riot that feels like a Michael Bay flick concentrated in two minutes. The stars are two octopi in love, and they are willing to go REALLY far for each other.

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)