Blogger now supports threading commenting, which (mostly) alleviates the need to quote the person you’re responding to or use @soandso. It also helps distinguish between comments responding to other comments and those responding to the post itself. I’ve also upgraded to the new Blogger interface, which is similar to the
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wmtc: dear mr harper: stop the threats and intimidation. we will speak out against the enbridge pipeline.
I’ve been holding on to this email from Leadnow.ca, hoping to write a scathing post… but this is too important to wait until I have time. In case you haven’t seen it, I’ll re-run the email in its entirety. No one who has been following Canadian politics for the last
Continue readingwmtc: occupy the u.s. election, part 2: it doesn’t matter who wins if they don’t count the votes
There are two principal reasons why the U.S. presidential election doesn’t matter. Corporate money’s death grip on both parties is one. Election fraud is the other. Long-time readers of wmtc may recall a time when I was fairly obsessed with U.S. elections – not with the results, but with the
Continue readingwmtc: occupy the u.s. election, part 1: "we can vote for romney or obama, but goldman sachs and exxonmobil and bank of america and the defense contractors always win."
Occasionally a bit of slime seeps from the sewer of the Republican primaries into my oxygen, and I feel the need to share the smell. When a public figure says that a pregnancy from rape is a silver lining sent from god, as Rick Santorum did, and that person is
Continue readingwmtc: "capitalism, in its current form, no longer fits the world around us"
Capitalism, in its current form, no longer fits the world around us. When a high priest of Davos says this, I can’t help but wonder. Has the idea reached a tipping point? Harper may have “unveiled his grand plans to reshape Canada” – come on, Globe and Mail, he’s been
Continue readingwmtc: shit native new yorkers say
Ah, here’s the real New York. This one’s much closer to the mark. To be honest, these are not limited to native New Yorkers (except “I grew up in…”), but to anyone who lived in the City during the 1970s or 1980s. I would replace yoga studios with nail salons,
Continue readingwmtc: ode to a hero: attorney for the damned (with thanks to jill lepore)
Clarence Darrow was one of my earliest heroes. I first encountered Darrow in the guise of Spencer Tracy, who portrayed the lawyer in the 1960 movie “Inherit the Wind”. Darrow famously defended John Scopes, who tried to teach evolution in a Tennessee public school. His courtroom opponent was William Jennings
Continue readingwmtc: fightback works: peel parents win, for now
Community meetings, rallies, emergency mobilizations, and a five-hour Council meeting ended with the Peel Regional Council voting not to close 12 publicly-funded daycare centres – yet. The Council voted unanimously to stop the rush to closure and instead set up a task force to explore the options. According to this
Continue readingwmtc: we don’t care about facts, tarsands edition
Why you always have to ask, who is sponsoring this exhibit/ad/study/media. And why tax dollars should support the arts, humanities and sciences: because if we don’t, they will. (Emphasis added.) The Canada Science and Technology Museum faced pressure from a corporate sponsor to change its portrayal of the oilsands in
Continue readingwmtc: "we don’t care about facts", crime edition
If only the Harper GovernmentTM weren’t determined to waste our tax dollars on prison-building and useless mandatory sentencing, while telling us we can’t afford to maintain decent spending levels for universal health insurance. If only they cared about facts. New poll results show the public is abandoning a stubborn belief
Continue readingwmtc: save peel region public day care
Tomorrow, Peel Region Councillors will vote on whether to end publicly financed, union-staffed daycare services in Mississauga and Brampton. A report from an audit by KPMG – released only days ago – recommended closing five daycare centres in Brampton and seven in Mississauga. In less than a week, Councillors are
Continue readingwmtc: is m.p. lizon a bigot or just plain ignorant? you make the call
A few weeks ago, I learned that my new Conservative MP, Wladyslaw Lizon, brought to the attention of Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Jason Kenney the shock and horror of a woman wearing a veil during a citizenship ceremony. Mr. Kenney, equally horrified (and similarly Islamophobic), issued a directive that
Continue readingwmtc: belafonte on obama: "a dagger in our sense of justice"
On a recommendation from a friend, I watched Harry Belafonte interviewed by Charlie Rose in New York City. Belafonte – musician, actor, social-justice activist, radical – is a joy to hear, and his life story is a march through history. Here’s one terrific thing I learned. Belafonte was still searching
Continue readingwmtc: a call to obama: end detentions at guantánamo
Ten years, and still the concentration camp at Guantánamo Bay remains open. Ten years, and still 150 human beings remain imprisoned without charges, without trial. There have been deaths from torture, and cover-ups. There have been medical experiments. Child prisoners have come of age. Prisoners have been quietly released. And
Continue readingwmtc: bradley manning support network is asking for our help
If you’re interested in taking part in some activism against the US military and in support of Bradley Manning – without leaving the comfort of home – go here as soon as possible. The Bradley Manning Support Network is trying to get one of most egregious charges against Manning, “Aiding
Continue readingwmtc: matthis chiroux: urination video "synonymous with our experiences within a military at war"
Matthis Chiroux, veteran and war resister, on the “urination video” and similar war porn: To some, mostly the weavers and backers of war policy, it seems again that ‘a few bad apples’ have acted on their own within the military, and will be brought to justice in accordance with domestic
Continue readingwmtc: shit new yorkers say
I love this town!
Continue readingwmtc: @talabobala
This seems like a good time to mention: Tala is now on Twitter. She saw Pooh Bear was doing it and she wanted in. Because Tala’s mommy needs new ways to waste time.
Continue readingwmtc: another victory: historic reduction in unnecessary animal testing in europe
From HSI Canada: Humane Society International has just secured the biggest reduction in animal testing requirements in history! Our science team has been hard at work for more than two years, negotiating with companies, government authorities and elected officials in Brussels for major changes to European testing requirements for pesticides
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