Although I am not largely a proponent of the PC Party, I have to say, anything is better than a WR win.
I'd say a 62 to 17 seat defeat is quite the feat indeed.
I also screen-capped my parents' riding of Edmonton-Mill Woods. PC as usual, but I think more people were pulling for a Liberal win this time around. My mom also knows her. But I don't think that's any reason to vote for someone..
A day or mourning for Canada, at the loss of a great politician.
Rarely do I get teary eyed when someone in the media passes on, but this is something that really strikes a chord, even if you aren't an NDP.
The death of Jack Layton really was something like a dark ominous cloud in the sky. Since he announced he was temporarily stepping down to fight his 2nd battle with cancer, it really seemed like things were going to go downhill.
Dozens of articles and newspaper obits have hit the web on this particular topic and I don't doubt in my mind that this affects every Canadian.
At noon, the NDP released a letter written by Jack Layton just days before his death.
I feel like Canadians might be particularly sore losers. I really think it's disgusting how hockey fans act out when losing the Stanley Cup.
Yes. I know. It's heartbreaking. I was there, 2006 when the Oilers lost. It didn't mean I went out and started throwing rocks at windows, setting things on fire and endangering the lives of lots of innocent people who are out on the streets or working.
Hockey fans can be batshit crazy.
The complete lack of respect of other people's property. The utter loss of control over oneself. These people should be held accountable for their blatant vandalism.
I know it's not only in Vancouver, that this happens every year. Edmonton was no exception. Drunk tanks were out on Whyte Ave every game night during the playoff run. I'm not discriminating against Vancouver. I don't think this behaviour is acceptable anywhere, for any reason.
If a hockey team can set off this type of emotion, I'm worried about what other reactions can be elicited in these people.
I'm really glad I never applied to Medicine while going to school at home, but this is still very disappointing to see, coming from my home university.
This last Friday was the Medicine banquet for the new graduating class, and Dean Philip Baker plagiarized most (read:ALL) of his speech from Dr. Atul Gawande from Stanford University's School of Medicine.
I feel like this really ruins the reputation of the University of Alberta, as one of the Dean's at the University isn't responsible enough to know not to plagiarize something as important as a graduation speech. I am sorely disappointed in the way the Dean (and the University) has responded to this.
I really hope the University does something about this. If there's nothing done, this just opens the door for future students to plagiarize all they want. "If the Dean can, why can't I?"
I know everyone is raving about Kate's wedding dress choice (design: Sarah Burton), but I just didn't quite find it much to what I expect. It certainly let me down in how demure the style was. Despite it being an absolutely gorgeous dress, and very fitting for the occasion, I just felt like there was room for more.
Getting married at Westminster Abbey calls for a much more extravagant and lavish dress than that - price tag aside, that is.
Her second dress for the evening reception was simpler, again styled by Sarah Burton. It fit the theme of the reception, being a disco and all. I think she looked gorgeous in both, and congratulations to the now Duke and Duchess of Cambridge!
I should be proud. Of 33 chosen Canadian cities to analyze, my home town Edmonton and my new town Guelph were in the top 5 family friendly cities.
Grading criteria were:
community feel
education choice
cost of living
economic strength
family independence
Only 33 cities were analyzed, because the CMA takes cities with populations over 100,000.
Grades ranged from A to C, with exceptional cases warranting A+ and Fs. None of those were handed out. Only 5 cities received As, and they are shown above.
Curses to Calgary though, who was also placed in the top 5...
So I meant to blog about this when I first read it, but I've been ridiculously busy trying to get a lot of work done (and watching movies...) that I forgot.
It's been posted in a lot of places, because it's a pretty hot topic right now. As it is well known, the EU has the strictest rules on GM products. For those who are pro-GM, this comes as a revelation and with a sigh of relief that GM potatoes have been accepted in a number of European countries.
After a 13 year debate, BASF - the German chemical company giant - has finally received approval from the EU to grow Amflora potatoes in Germany, Sweden, Netherlands and the Czech Republic.
The approval of Amflora is strictly for industrial uses (ie. paper) and the leftover skins can be used as animal feed. The anti-GM crowd states concerns in leaching of antibiotic resistance genes into the food chain, which would ultimately result in an exponential rise in infections such as MDR-TB.
The Ontario legislature passed the HST bill Wedneday in its third and final reading, by a vote of 56 to 29.
The legislation will be applied beginning July 1, 2010. It blends the province's eight per cent provincial sales tax with the five per cent goods and services tax.
Once the legislation is proclaimed, it becomes law. But it will do so amid howls of protest from the opposition parties, who are accusing the majority Liberal government of ramming the legislation through as quickly as possible, with little debate.
Finance Minister Dwight Duncan maintains the single tax will help create 600,000 jobs over the next decade. He said the HST will effectively lower costs for businesses, allowing them to lower prices and hire more staff.
The opposition Progressive Conservatives, however, call the HST a greedy tax grab. They say it will apply to many items exempt from the PST, including gasoline, home heating fuel and cable TV bills.
Largest-ever deficit in province - $24.7B - means difficult choices ahead, says Finance Minister Duncan Published in the last hour on thestar.com, our fantastic Financial Minister Dwight Duncan has graciously informed us the shortfall has increased to $24.7 billion. TWENTY-FOUR BILLION! How does something like that even happen?
The largest shortfall in Ontario history (aside from just now) was in 1992 when the shortfall was $12 billion. We've more than doubled that, absolutely shattering the record.
These are my favourite parts of the article:
"Despite the gloomy picture, Duncan emphasized that the Liberals would continue their focus on the big-ticket priorities of health-care and education."
"While he was vague Thursday, in a speech on Tuesday, the finance minister said a sweeping review of government programs would be coming in the next few months to determine where cuts can be made."
"They're heading for a $20 billion deficit and it doesn't look like they're ready to raise taxes and it's pretty clear that the economy is not going to grow so there's not going to generate extra money there," said Samuelson."
Awesome.
I can't say much else since I haven't really been keeping up with Ontario politics. But at a simple glance, this article is a real downer on the Ontario political system.
Statistics Canada is reporting that there was an increase of job availability in April of 2009.
35,900 new jobs were reported for the month of April, mainly due to self-employment. However, even with the large spike, our employment rates still display a significant drop in the last 6 months.
Some economists are saying that this information on its own is misleading, because job spikes within a deepening recession can occur. Unemployment rates in Canada currently sit at 8%.
Statistics like this make you wonder how dispensible you are in your own job. Despite the fact that contract extensions are granted (as in my case), I know for a fact my job is only a nice-to-have for the government. I would hope that I am not relieved from duty early, but one can only assume that that can happen. Budget 2009 does not discuss any job losses, but does not promise this to be the case either. Despite all that, I assume I am safe because the first fiscal quarterly report won't be generated and made publicly available until my contract has expired. By then, hopefully I will be back in school again, or have found a job in my suitable field.
If all the economists were laid end to end, they would not reach a conclusion. - George Bernard Shaw
Yesterday marked US President Barack Obama's first 100 days in office. The transcript for his press conference can be found on Scribd [Click Here]. I originally missed the first half of it because I was making dinner, but managed to catch the tail end of his speech before question period.
Beginning by addressing the swine flu pandemic, Obama moves on to mention the passing of the budget resolution through the House and Senate. Clearly outlining again, his intents for his term in office, Obama brings up Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay. He talks about the economic recession and the job losses in America as well as the "clean energy revolution".
Barack and his wife Michelle are an exemplary models for the "change that we seek". In all my recollection I have never seen such a down to earth President to hold office in America, nor a Primer Minister in Canada. His casual tones and non-domineering appearance are in direct contrast to that of former President Bush. The movie "Love Actually" paints a good picture of the differences between the two. The American President portrayed in the movie (by Billy Bob Thorton) is representative of the past American Presidents of our time, whereas the British Prime Minister (played by Hugh Grant) displays the mentality of the current President Obama. The stark contrasts symbolize the transformations we need in order to pick ourselves up again and trudge through the difficult times. The past eight years are more than enough proof that traditional political strategies are no longer working. The fresh attitude that Obama brings to the table are slowly but surely bringing in results. The transition will take time. There will undoubtedly be skyrocketing rates of unemployment, deflating housing prices and high levels of consumer uncertainty, but the times will change, and the light at the end of the tunnel is in view.
I think it's important to take a look into how President Obama portrays himself. His eternal optimism is something we should all strive towards, and is something that is very readily attainable for all of us. To ensure the world is peaceful and pleasant for all is what Barack is aiming for, and we can all take this into consideration when we live our lives. How can we make the world better for those around us?
So I think we're off to a good start, but it's just a start. I'm proud of what we've achieved, but I'm not content. I'm pleased with our progress, but I'm not satisfied. - Barack Obama, Press Conference April 29, 2009
