From the CBC: Strange bear was grizzly-polar hybrid, tests show.
The DNA of a bear shot in the Northwest Territories in April shows it was a hybrid of polar bear and grizzly — perhaps the first ever seen in the wild.
Well, if it’s that rare an animal, thank goodness we shot it.
[tags]hunting, assholes[/tags]
SmartEconomist [free subscription required] estimates that the Iraq war has cost between $750 billion and $1.27 trillion, and could cost another $380 billion to $1.4 trillion…even if it stopped today. By their reckoning, $1.27 trillion would be the “moderate” estimate.
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From MSNBC: Even ringtones can be racist sometimes.
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From the Star: this pollster has a pretty skewed view of our prime minister:
“The Canadian and U.S. leaders could not be more different…Stephen Harper is a genuine intellectual, brilliant in his understanding of issues. I think I’ll leave it at that.”
Still…while few Canadians would consider Harper a high-grade intellectual, he’s right about Bush.
.:.
Farewell, Veronica Mars. [warning…if you haven’t seen the season (series?) finale and you care at all, don’t read that article. spoilers abound.]
[tags]economics, iraq war, racist ringtone, stephen harper, dubya, frank luntz, veronica mars[/tags]
Is there any more certain sign that you’re right than that you’ve pissed off Fox News and the National Review? This line, in particular, was a spectacular mix of racism and stupidity that must have Neil doing cartwheels:
“If it’s not Mexican fence-jumpers trying to dictate legislation to us, it’s fur trappers from the wilds of Ontario insulting our head of state.”
Zowie!
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[tags]Neil Young, impeach the president, ITMFA, fox news, national review[/tags]
Let it be known: if ever I see some fuckwit throw a puppy out of a moving car and into a river — like this mouth-breathing shitbag did — I’ll make it my life’s work to track him down, spit in his face and piss on his foot. If I were a more violent man I’d bring along a softball bat and break his dog-throwing arm.
I wonder if he did it because he’s so incredibly cruel that he doesn’t mind throwing a dog into a river to drown, or if he’s just so stupendously ignorant that he doesn’t know what else to do with an animal he doesn’t want or can’t care for. Either way, he deserves to wear some of my piss.
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[tags]assholes, puppies[/tags]
Do Americans know that it’s shit like this that make everyone sit back and laugh at them?
From The Guardian: Bible-bashing American football team must keep God off the pitch.
“The Birmingham Steeldogs, based in Alabama, had been planning to carry biblical texts on the back of their jerseys for their home game against Louisville Fire, a first in US sports history…The jerseys have been made by the Christian Throwback Jersey Company, which says it ‘specialises in outfitting today’s Christian with a wide array of religious sports and athletic attire’.”
So much awesomeness…can’t absorb it all…
We went to see United 93 (imdb | rotten tomatoes) this afternoon. I’ll write more later, but I need some time to let it all sink in. It was one of the most powerful, moving, masterfully crafted films I’ve ever seen. But I can’t imagine that I’ll ever want to watch it again.
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Speaking of important films, Cinematical pointed me to this Roger Ebert article about the 102 movies you must see in order “to have any sort of informed discussion about the movies.” To my embarassment I’ve seen only 40 of them.
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Let’s say Via and Amtrak announce a joint plan to introduce a new super-highspeed train. It would reach from Goose Bay to San Diego, from Anchorage to Miami. It could get someone from Halifax to Vancouver in 3 hours, and passengers would travel in private rooms with stereos, comfortable chairs and great views. The trains could also be used to transport goods at high speed, reducing inventory costs for companies and improving the flow of trade across the border.
However, the VIA and Amtrak consortium warn that based on their projections approximately 45,000 passengers would die every year in derailments and other accidents. They also warn that the combustion of the special fuel used in the trains and maintenance of the tracks would cause substantial environmental damage. Further, maintenance of the rail system (which would break down very easily) would cost taxpayers several billion dollars every year.
Would the government allow something like this to go ahead? Would the public be interested in riding such a destructive and unsafe vehicle? Of course not.
So why do we still have cars?
It amazes me sometimes, the compromises we will make for our own convenience.
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[tags] movies, united 93, ebert, cars [/tags]
…but no more so than any other religion. Any Christians (or what have you) snickering at Tom Cruise should have a glance in the mirror.
[inspired by last Friday’s Rocketboom]
Time to catch up on the news:
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I read Confused Of Calcutta primarily for my job, as it focuses on technology, but this post went beyond work topics. It’s about change, and the rate at which it happens nowadays; people have been fearfully lamenting change ever since the loom or the printing press, but CoC’s not complaining. He’s pointing out that the era when you could take your time adjusting to market demand is gone. I like the term he uses: fossilisation. “Accelerated fossilisation”…I may have a t-shirt made. I’ll be the guy jumping up and down when I can consume media on my own schedule, in a format of my choosing. I’ll be the guy throwing a party when everyone has free internet access. I’ll be the guy doing a jig when politicians actually make decisions based on socioeconomics and not politics. I’ll toast the new world when my own company talks to me like I’m an intelligent adult (which, I’d have to think, is at least part of the reason why they hired me) and not an agitated child who needs to be soothed.
Remember this: We be many and they be few. They need us more than we need them. Another world is not only possible, she is on her way. On a quiet day, I can hear her breathing.  .:Arundhati Roy
Let’s get on with it.
Oh, hot dog. From the Globe: Gay marriage vote coming, Harper says.
“We intend to have a free vote of all MPs on this question during the life of this Parliament,” Mr. Harper told Radio-Canada. “My preference is to do this sooner rather than later, but not this spring.”
Yes, because history shows us that society often benefits from civil rights being repealed.
Reading Toronto taunts us with the idea of a high-speed Toronto-Montreal train link that could do the trip in an hour. I’d go for that, especially since we’re facing a half-hour taxi ride and an hour wait in the airport this coming weekend for a flight that only last 75 minutes. If you get it down to an hour, or even two hours, it’d be worth people’s while to take the train, especially if they made wi-fi access free.
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Varsity.co.nz lists the best and worst album titles of all time. My basketball-numbed brain can’t come up with anything worse (and it’s pretty hard to argue with “J to the LO” or “Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavoured Water”) but I think Those Who Tell The Truth Shall Die, Those Who Tell The Truth Shall Live by Explosions In The Sky should be on the ten best list. As should Lift Yr Skinny Fists Like Antennas To Heaven by Godspeed You! Black Emperor. Basically, anything by a post-rock instrumental band.
[via Largehearted Boy]
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If there’s one phrase I’d like to see stricken from common use, it’s “rap mogul“.
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Barry Bonds, Barry Bonds…I don’t know. MLB must really be shitting their pants right now; if Bonds goes on a tear this year, or sticks around (and avoids suspension) for a few more years and breaks the home run record, how big an asterisk would they have to put next to that? I mean, if they put one on Roger Maris’ record ’cause he played a few extra games, how could they not put one next to a guy who’s provoked such controversy and outrage?
Skirl | Dan Dickinson 