No one can accuse Parks Canada of not pulling out all the stops to celebrate its 100th birthday in style. The Parks Canada website has been overhauled to reflect this important milestone; the establishment of the first urban new national park has been announced for Rouge Valley in Toronto; free parks passes have been granted … Continue reading »
Tag: United States
Dead Wild Roses: Afghanistan: Graveyard of Empire
Afghanistan destroys Empires. Ask Great Britain, ask the Russians. The US is well along the same course, but rather than being blinded by nationalism, or ideology the American poison of choice is the continued mismanagement of priorities by the corporate elite. The corporate elite are running the foreign policy bus off a cliff […]
gay persons of color: Out Magazine salutes five athlete allies
Ben Cohen, Hudson Taylor, Michael Irvin, Mike Chabala, and Nick YoungquestSource: Out MagazineIn its July 2011 issue, Out Magazine salutes five top sportsmen “who have stood up for fairness and tolerance, shoulder-to-shoulder with their LGBT peers.” Th…
Continue readinggay persons of color: Oakland A’s suspend minor league prospect for gay slur
Photo from Checkoutmycards.comThe Oakland A’s nipped team homophobia in the bud Sunday by indefinitely suspending top minor league pitching prospect, Ian Krol, for tweeting what was reported by the San Francisco Chronicle’s Susan Slusser as a “gay slur…
Continue readingthe reeves report: Thinking about the universe in a post-shuttle world
Coming fast on the heels of Canada’s withdrawal from Afghanistan and the official handing over control from Canadian to US armed forces is another milestone ending in Canadian – actually, world – history: the closing of the space shuttle program. Canada has played a significant role in outer space for a country of our small … Continue reading »
gay persons of color: Watch: Boston Red Sox "It Gets Better" video
Released last week, the Boston Red Sox contribution to the It Gets Better project features manager Terry Francona, captain and catcher Jason Varitek, and first/third baseman Kevin Youkilis, whose words are woven together with those of “real” people to …
Continue readinggay persons of color: Rhode Island Lawmakers Approve Civil Unions
Well, it’s not equality, but it’s a big step, nonetheless, in Rhode Island, where Senate lawmakers Wednesday evening approved civil unions for gay couples. The bill, which already passed in the House of Representatives and which the state governor, Lin…
Continue readingSaskboy's Abandoned Stuff: WikiLeaks: Banking Blockade
You’ll probably want to watch this short ad about WikiLeaks. It’s “priceless”.
What Does it Cost to Change the World? from WikiLeaks on Vimeo.
Continue readingPakistanis really don’t like the U.S. They really don’t
That the United States is unpopular in Pakistan is common knowledge. But just how unpopular is surprising. According to the Pew Global Attitudes Project, 73 per cent of Pakistanis hold an unfavourable opinion of the U.S., 68 per cent have little or no …
Continue readinggay persons of color: New York Senate ok’s marriage equality
In a landmark moment in American history, the New York State Senate voted 33-29 Friday night to pass a state bill (Bill 5045) legalizing marriage equality. Thirty-two votes were needed for the passage of the law, which contains critical protections for…
Continue readingAmericans tire of war spending
Americans have for some time seemed to have an insatiable appetite for military spending. Defence was the sacred cow of their federal budget. Now it seems they are losing that appetite for at least one form of military expense—waging war.The Afghan w…
Continue readinggay persons of color: Watch: Chicago Cubs "It Gets Better" video
Following the lead taken by the San Francisco Giants, the Chicago Cubs on Monday became the second professional sports team to join the “It Gets Better” campaign, a project intended to raise awareness of and call for an end to anti-LGBT bullying and h…
Continue readinggay persons of color: New York Giants owner Steve Tisch joins marriage equality campaign
New York Giants co-owner Steve Tisch has joined the campaign for marriage equality in New York State in a new video released Monday (below) in which he states: “As an owner of the New York Giants, I am proud to join the chorus of professionals in sport…
Continue readingGood news—Gates says NATO faces dismal future
U.S. Defence Secretary Robert Gates is not amused by the lack of military esprit de corp among America’s NATO allies. “The blunt reality,” he lectured, “is that there will be dwindling appetite and patience in the U.S. Congress—and in the American b…
Continue readinggay persons of color: Michael Strahan, Bret Lockett join US marriage equality movements
Michael Strahan, the former National Football League defensive end who played his entire career for the New York Giants, last week became the third professional athlete, after New York Rangers winger Sean Avery and Phoenix Suns point guard Steve Nash, …
Continue readingthe reeves report: New study indicates dramatic reduction in Rocky Mountain snowpack
A report released this past week from the U.S. Geological Survey found that over an 800 year period, the past 30 years indicate a dramatic break from the typical snowpack patterns in the Rocky Mountains. The report stated that “over the past millennium, late-20th-century snowpack reductions are almost unprecedented in magnitude across the northern Rocky Mountains,” … Continue reading »
gay persons of color: Seattle Mariners next to produce "It Gets Better Video"
The activism wave continues through baseball stadiums in the United states as the Seattle Mariners announced Thursday that they will join the San Francisco Giants, Chicago Cubs, and Boston Red Sox by making an “It Gets Better” video to fight homophobia…
Continue readingU.S. follows lead of Taliban Jack
Googling the history of our Afghanistan adventure the other day, I encountered a snide Vancouver Sun article written in 2008 mocking “Taliban Jack” for his position on the war, sarcastically summarizing his views as, “Bring in the UN, facilitate disc…
Continue readingArt Threat: A left-leaning take on political portraits – Michael Caines’ depictions of US leaders are sincere yet ridiculous
Caines’ work succeeds because it comes across as both sincere and ridiculous. It’s a grotesque, and yet an accurate portrayal of political pomposity.
Continue readingthe reeves report: US Dept. of Transportation orders TransCanada to halt activity on Keystone I
Effective immediately, the US Department of Transportation has ordered TransCanada to suspend all activity on the Keystone I pipeline. According to the New York Times, the order was issued by the Transportation department’s Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. “Effective immediately,” the PHMSA claims, “this order prevents TransCanada from restarting operations on their Keystone crude … Continue reading »