Amid the deluge of fundraising appeals that arrive via email and paper mail this time of year, the letter from the Canadian Peace Alliance stood out for me. Under the “Canada First Defence Strategy,” Harper plans to spend $480 billion on the military, open up eight new Canadian military bases,
Continue readingAuthor: laura k
wmtc: five of eight: another semester bites the dust
And I do mean bites. This was a grueling term, boring beyond belief, but I’ve just completed my last assignment, and am now gloriously free of school for a full month. I have a long list of things to do, and of course I still have work, but I am
Continue readingwmtc: soliciting quebec travel information
Last time I asked for Canadian travel advice was 2008 – too long ago! That ended up as 16 days exploring Newfoundland. This trip is more modest, but I am very excited. We haven’t had a good holiday in so long. In 2007, we spent our 20th anniversary at the
Continue readingwmtc: naomi wolf: violent crackdowns on occupy are orchestrated at federal level
Naomi Wolf in The Guardian: US citizens of all political persuasions are still reeling from images of unparallelled police brutality in a coordinated crackdown against peaceful OWS protesters in cities across the nation this past week. An elderly woman was pepper-sprayed in the face; the scene of unresisting, supine students
Continue readingwmtc: polygamy ruling: why are the courts still trying to protect marriage?
The recent BC Supreme Court decision upholding Canadian laws criminalizing polygamy is disappointing and dangerous. The much-quoted summary paragraph of Chief Justice Robert Bauman’s decision contained a surprising clause: the protection of marriage as an institution. I have concluded that this case is essentially about harm; more specifically, Parliament’s reasoned
Continue readingwmtc: new from wmtc: fibromyalgia info page
I decided to write about my experience with fibromyalgia, just to put it out there on the internet. I’ve met many people with fibromyalgia who don’t actively try to reduce their symptoms, believing that there are no good treatments. While I have no idea if my experience is typical or
Continue readingwmtc: my first days in the library
I love it. I love being in the library. I love being part of the public library, helping to make it work. I’ve been placed in the children’s department of Mississauga’s Central Library. It’s a huge department, and there’s a surprising amount to learn. Unlike the general library, where materials
Continue readingwmtc: in which i begin my first library job
It’s finally happened: I’ve been placed as a page! I begin my training this Thursday at the Central Library in Mississauga. This is a huge, beautiful library, a five-minute drive from our house, and right next door to YMCA that Allan and I belong to. I’ve been waiting for this
Continue readingwmtc: beyond occupy: out of the parks, into our lives
Shortly after the Occupy Movement began to make headlines, my friend and comrade Dr. J wrote this on his blog your heart’s on the left: Is occupation a tactic or a principle? Should the focus be on the internal procedures of those actively occupying, or outreach to broader communities and
Continue readingwmtc: men of the stacks: busting stereotypes one hunk at a time
If you like men, and you like libraries, you’re sure to love Men of the Stacks. Proceeds from calendar sales support It Gets Better. Here’s a good story on Men of the Stacks in The Guardian. Plus I’m pretty sure Mr. June was my TA in Intro to Reference last
Continue readingwmtc: emergency rally to defend occupy toronto: 5:00 today
Message from Occupy Toronto: OCCUPY TORONTO IS BEING EVICTED. Mayor Rob Ford has angrily taken to television, even gritting his teeth, to say he wants protesters “gone NOW”. City Manager says by midnight force will be used, but mayor is pressing for even faster. Ford and the judge point to
Continue readingwmtc: library in a phone booth
I meant to include this in my recent library-related post, but I misplaced the link. So now this lovely little library has a post of its own. Please go here to see a beautiful old UK “phone box” recycled into a tiny lending library. More and better photos of it
Continue readingwmtc: who would name a baseball team after a serial killer?
London, Ontario, that’s who! Team president and general manager David Martin says the name “The London Rippers”, this logo, and cute marketing phrases like “Lurking in Labatt Park…” have nothing to do with Jack the Ripper. “Everybody has to be a little less sensitive,” says Martin. Yes, everyone has to
Continue readingwmtc: constitution? never heard of it.
This and many others courtesy of BoingBoing, via the OWS Library blog.
Continue readingwmtc: freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, as long as you don’t mind being beaten and abused
Further to an older post “the definition of a police state depends on where you live – what country, and what postal code “, I present these without comment, because what is there to say? Police drag OWS protester by her hair Police officer calmly and methodically uses chemical agent
Continue readingwmtc: how not to ask a question: how q&a websites contribute to denialism
A little slice of the internet that irks me are Q&A websites like Wiki Answers and Yahoo! Answers, where people ask questions and any registered user can post an answer. A list of such sites is here. (That list includes Ask MetaFilter, which seems different, in that it encourages lengthy
Continue readingwmtc: libraries abound
Please enjoy these library-related thoughts and links. I love these Little Free Libraries, which I discovered thanks to M@. These birdhouse-like structures sheltering books are like the domesticated version of Book Crossing, which wants books released “into the wild”. Here are some libraries changing lives on a scale Andrew Carnegie
Continue readingwmtc: saturday, november 19: evict ford: occupy toronto
EVICT FORD. OCCUPY TORONTO! Rally and marchSaturday, November 19 at 2:00 p.m.Assemble at St. James Park, King Street east between Church and Jarvis In just a few weeks, the Occupy movement has become a global phenomenon, with over 1,400 protests worldwide. In Toronto, a peaceful occupation has been underway at
Continue readingwmtc: today: occupy everywhere
Today, if you can, join an Occupy site for however long you are able. Today, if you cannot physically join an Occupy site, do something to stand in solidarity with the Occupy Movement: blog, Tweet*, Facebook, write a letter to a media outlet, put a sign in your window, put
Continue readingwmtc: cindy blackstock, another victim of harper’s "speak against us and we will hurt you" govt
Our tax dollars at work. The head of an agency that provides services to First Nations children and families accuses the government of discrminating against that community. The agency head is then the subject of a spy campaign, as the Harper government monitors her Facebook page, digs up data on
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