If you like movies about pre-historic folks battling saber-tooth tigres and wooly mammoths, you should see 10,000 B.C. I’m not endorsing the film as a realistic account of life 12,000 years ago, but it’s a cool tale of a young guy who’s girlfriend gets kidnapped by a rival tribe of horsemen who are collecting slaves to build pyramids. They walk for a few days through several different regions – mountains, jungle and desert – and then end up a place that looks a little like Egypt probably would have about 3,000 B.C.
SPOILER WARNING: IF YOU JUST READ THE ABOVE SENTENCE, THEN I RUINED ONE OF THE SURPRISES OF THIS MOVIE.
Anyone know whether this film is legal in Missouri? I wasn’t sure if any film depicting life before 4,000 B.C. is legal there.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Not funding porn is censorship?
Mark Steyn is the funniest writer of all time. In the March 24 issue of Maclean’s magazine, he writes about Bill C-10, which basically put an end to federal funding of adult films, such as “Young People F---ing.” Some opponents accuse the government of censorship, and Steyn says he got an e-mail with the subject line “Will Steyn Stand By Young People F---ing?”
Steyn’s response is “Er, well, thanks awfully, but I’d rather not. I’ve reached the state in life where I prefer to turn in with a mug of cocoa and “The Queen Mum: A Life in Pictures.”
Steyn’s response is “Er, well, thanks awfully, but I’d rather not. I’ve reached the state in life where I prefer to turn in with a mug of cocoa and “The Queen Mum: A Life in Pictures.”
Hitchens hits the nail on the head
If you don’t like liberal pundits who are circumspect and critical of liberal idiots, you’re going to hate Christopher Hitchens’ collection of essays, Love, Poverty and War. Hitchens, a contributing editor to Vanity Fair magazine, has published some of his best essays, and if you hate magazines that have about 12 pages of fashion ads for every page of editorial content, this book is probably the best way of getting insight from Hitchens.
My favourites chapter was “Unfahrenheit 9/11: The Lies of Michael Moore,” which was originally published in Slate magazine in 2004. Hitchens refers to Moore’s depiction of Iraq before the U.S. invaded in March, 2003: “In this peaceable kingdom, according to Moore’s flabbergasting choice of film shots, children are flying little kites, shoppers are smiling in the sunshine, and the gentle rythms of life are undisturbed.” Hitchens essays reminds me of George Orwell’s essays criticizing pro-Soviet socialists in Britain during the 1930s.
My favourites chapter was “Unfahrenheit 9/11: The Lies of Michael Moore,” which was originally published in Slate magazine in 2004. Hitchens refers to Moore’s depiction of Iraq before the U.S. invaded in March, 2003: “In this peaceable kingdom, according to Moore’s flabbergasting choice of film shots, children are flying little kites, shoppers are smiling in the sunshine, and the gentle rythms of life are undisturbed.” Hitchens essays reminds me of George Orwell’s essays criticizing pro-Soviet socialists in Britain during the 1930s.
Friday, March 14, 2008
Canada extends Afghan mission
The Canadian House of Commons has voted in favour of extending the mission in Afghanistan to 2011.
The Canadian Forces plays a critical role in the mission to Afghanistan, which is not focussed entirely on fighting the Taliban. Some opponents would say Canada should focus on reconstruction and training. This is an excellent idea. In fact, it’s such a good idea, the government is already helping the Afghan government with development and training its security forces.
Canadian civilian police - plus civil servants from the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade and the Canadian International Development Agency -are already involved in helping the Afghans with reconstruction and security.
But southern Afghanistan is a dangerous place. If the Government of Canada continues to keep people in southern Afghanistan, it will need the army to protect them.
The Canadian Forces plays a critical role in the mission to Afghanistan, which is not focussed entirely on fighting the Taliban. Some opponents would say Canada should focus on reconstruction and training. This is an excellent idea. In fact, it’s such a good idea, the government is already helping the Afghan government with development and training its security forces.
Canadian civilian police - plus civil servants from the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade and the Canadian International Development Agency -are already involved in helping the Afghans with reconstruction and security.
But southern Afghanistan is a dangerous place. If the Government of Canada continues to keep people in southern Afghanistan, it will need the army to protect them.
Poor Eliot
New York governor Eliot Spitzer resigned, not because he cheated on his wife, but because he paid an escort to keep him company. Hopefully, he had a mind-blowing experience, given that it cost him $4,000 plus. Spitzer made a career of going after white collar miscreants, and some have accused him of hypocrisy for insisting in public that investment bankers act in good faith, while consorting with hookers in private.
I’m not sure where the inconsistency is. If you’re in investment research, and you publish a report advising people to buy a stock that you wouldn’t buy yourself, you’re actually harming someone. If you spend $80,000 on prostitutes, that’s exploitation. But doesn’t Eliot have the right to allow hookers to exploit him?
I’m not sure where the inconsistency is. If you’re in investment research, and you publish a report advising people to buy a stock that you wouldn’t buy yourself, you’re actually harming someone. If you spend $80,000 on prostitutes, that’s exploitation. But doesn’t Eliot have the right to allow hookers to exploit him?
Why blame GO when commuters take a back seat to freight trains?
In Ontario, 10,600 people have signed a petition asking Go Transit to refund their fares 50 per cent when trains are late or if they don’t show up.
On the surface, this seems to make sense. After all, if you pay Go Transit to get you to work on time and you’re late, then you didn’t get what you paid for.
But Go Transit doesn’t operate its trains, or its tracks. CN Rail employees drive the trains that operate on CN tracks, and freight trains are often allowed to go first, forcing commuters to wait. Shouldn’t the federal government step in and give transit riders first priority over freight shipments?
On the surface, this seems to make sense. After all, if you pay Go Transit to get you to work on time and you’re late, then you didn’t get what you paid for.
But Go Transit doesn’t operate its trains, or its tracks. CN Rail employees drive the trains that operate on CN tracks, and freight trains are often allowed to go first, forcing commuters to wait. Shouldn’t the federal government step in and give transit riders first priority over freight shipments?
Toronto Transit union rejects offer
The Toronto Transit’s unionized employees, members of the Amalgamated Transit Union, was nearly unanimous in rejecting the City of Toronto’s offer.
They will be in a legal strike position April 1.
The last legal strike was in 1999, though maintenance workers walked out illegally in May, 2006, resulting in a surprise one-day transit shutdown.
Transit workers should be well paid. Unlike many public workers, they actually provide a useful service, they take a lot of abuse from the public – both verbal and physical – and you need skills to drive a bus or subway train. Hell, I have a hard enough time manoeuvring a Cavalier down Toronto’s streets, let alone a big bus.
But should they be allowed to shut the city down if they don’t like their pay? Hmmm
They will be in a legal strike position April 1.
The last legal strike was in 1999, though maintenance workers walked out illegally in May, 2006, resulting in a surprise one-day transit shutdown.
Transit workers should be well paid. Unlike many public workers, they actually provide a useful service, they take a lot of abuse from the public – both verbal and physical – and you need skills to drive a bus or subway train. Hell, I have a hard enough time manoeuvring a Cavalier down Toronto’s streets, let alone a big bus.
But should they be allowed to shut the city down if they don’t like their pay? Hmmm
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