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I just finished reading Collapse . It took a while, because a novel I had requested at the library came in, and I put down one book to read the other. But I went back to finish Collapse , and here's my three-word review: Read this book. Make that five words: Read this book, right away. It scared the hell out of me, and made me glad I don't have children. (I'm always glad I don't have children; this was an extra boost.) But I have many people I love, and I care about the world around me, so not being a parent is not much compensation. It's not that I doubt humans' ability to change the world, and to make bold choices for our own survival. What I don't see is the political will. Too many people who control resources and can make decisions that affect whole nations are mired in short-term thinking, concerned only with their own power and profit, and . That's what scares me. Jared Diamond is now two-for-two with me, and I still recommend Guns, Germs and Stee

Finally! I've got photos of Peru to share. After coming home from Peru, I was very busy with writing deadlines, the wmtc party, a visit from my mother, blah blah blah. Then our scanner and printer both died - a murder-suicide pact, I believe - and then the weather was just too nice to bother. Last week we tackled the somewhat daunting task of choosing a representative sample from the approximately 1200 photos we shot in Peru (19 rolls of film and about 700 digital pictures). Once that was done, it was smooth sailing. Yesterday I spent the day scanning, uploading, and organizing on Flickr. And now I have a tremendous sense of accomplishment. You can go here to see the photos. If you have more time and want more context, I've gone back to the Peru posts and added links to the corresponding photo sets. They begin April 24 and end May 17: here are the April archives and the May archives . Enjoy!

This is an exciting weekend for baseball fans, as the July 31 trade deadline approaches. Contending teams may look very different on August 1, and overly optimistic fans will know their management has given up. Sox fans are waiting to see what Theo will bring us for Christmas . (I'm still wishing for Dontrelle Willis.) I stay away from trade rumours all season - until now. This is when it gets really fun. I'm cooking up a little present for wmtc fans, or at least for myself. More later, much later.

Many Canadians believe it's virtually guaranteed that the Harper government will come back with a majority in the next election. Although I understand that's the Conservative strategy and intentions, I believe it's premature to predict the outcome. A lot can happen between now and the next election, whenever that might be, and Harper's looking none too popular right now. Of course I don't know any more than anyone making these bold predictions, but I've come to realize I don't know that much less, either. For those of us who dread the idea of a Conservative majority, here's a little hope from Globe And Mail columnist John Ibbitson. The federal Conservatives insist otherwise, but they may have done irreparable harm to their dreams of winning a majority government. Unfortunately for the three opposition parties, there is little chance they will be able to exploit the situation. The Tories would not gain as many seats as they would like if an election were

If this law holds up in court, how long until other towns and cities follow suit? Las Vegas Makes It Illegal to Feed Homeless in Parks By Randal C. Archibold Las Vegas, July 21 — Gail Sacco pulled green grapes, bread, lunch meat and, of course in this blazing heat, bottles of water from a cardboard box. A dozen homeless people rose from shady spots in the surrounding city park and snatched the handouts from her. Ms. Sacco, an advocate for the homeless, scoffed at a city ordinance that goes into effect Friday making it illegal to offer so much as a biscuit to a poor person in a city park. Las Vegas, whose homeless population has doubled in the past decade to about 12,000 people in and around the city, joins several other cities across the country that have adopted or considered ordinances limiting the distribution of charitable meals in parks. Most have restricted the time and place of such handouts, hoping to discourage homeless people from congregating and, in the view of officials, r

Reign of Error By Paul Krugman Amid everything else that's going wrong in the world, here's one more piece of depressing news : a few days ago the Harris Poll reported that 50 percent of Americans now believe that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction when we invaded, up from 36 percent in February 2005. Meanwhile, 64 percent still believe that Saddam had strong links with Al Qaeda. At one level, this shouldn't be all that surprising. The people now running America never accept inconvenient truths. Long after facts they don't like have been established, whether it's the absence of any wrongdoing by the Clintons in the Whitewater affair or the absence of W.M.D. in Iraq, the propaganda machine that supports the current administration is still at work, seeking to flush those facts down the memory hole. But it's dismaying to realize that the machine remains so effective. Here's how the process works. First, if the facts fail to support the administration position

We're hardly seeing any movies right now, even less than we usually do during baseball season. In New York, since we hid in the air-conditioning all summer, we'd watch movies on off-nights or before west-coast games. Here, with less oppressive temperatures and a backyard, we're more likely to sit outside, drinking wine and talking, or to go out in the neighbourhood. Last night, however, we finally did watch one of the DVDs from Zip that have been sitting around for months: David Cronenberg's "A History Of Violence". Thumbs down! It won the Palm D'Or at Cannes, and a truckload of film festival awards, including the Toronto Film Critics Association Awards for Best Director, Best Picture and Best Canadian Film. Incredibly to me, William Hurt was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Canadian critics raved about this movie, which forces to me wonder if Cronenberg gets a pass because he's Canadian. Allan and I both thought "A Hist

Search strings of the day: can a US citizen vanish if they move to canada laws canada nude backyard illegal what are your chances of getting through customs into canada if you are a felon traveling with only a passport Hmm.

The Toronto Star has a long interview with Benamar Benatta today. Benatta, who I blogged about here , was "detained" (translation: abducted and imprisoned) on September 12, 2001. Despite being cleared of all suspicions of terrorism, he was freed only last week. Benatta is believed to be the last "domestic detainee" to be released from custody. He is now seeking refugee status in Canada. From the interview: What transpired during those days is a blur for Benatta , but court filings say he was "spirited off" to Brooklyn's Metropolitan Detention Center, a facility normally used to house crime suspects, not immigration detainees. Even though Benatta was cleared of terror links in November 2001, he was left to languish at the Brooklyn jail until the following April. "There was constant abuse at that time. For instance, they hit your head, every half hour they came, they wake you," he said. "During the first month I wasn't allowed to shav

A Middle East correspondent for the Globe And Mail writes: It's not as easy as it once was to be a Canadian abroad. There was a time when being a Canadian would instantly bring smiles to the faces of whoever you were speaking to, whether you were travelling in Western Europe or in the Middle East. We were the peacemakers, the good guys. In recent months though, as Canadian troops have grown more involved in Afghanistan and our foreign policy has become more aligned with that of the United States, our happy maple-leaf passport is not always as welcome as it once was. And if you happen to be a holder of that passport, often those you meet want to let their feelings known, immediately and passionately, whether they're positive or negative: as if you personally are responsible for every foreign policy decision of the last decade or so. Take one conversation with an Israeli military analyst, a former intelligence officer who spoke with me at length about Israel's intentions in

Last week we met Lone Primate , an absolutely lovely evening. LP's (extremely flattering) description of that event is here , with some nice pictures. Today it's dim sum with M@ . I'm looking forward to getting a copy of his new book. (M@, is there a link?). Last night we had dinner with Ellen The Amazing Dogsitter and her partner Paul. Although Ellen doesn't blog, we connected through Craigslist. I am incredibly happy and appreciative to be meeting friends here in our still-new home. I feel myself putting down roots, and it's a good feeling. Long-time readers will forgive my repetition of a constant theme: without the internet, this would have been a far more difficult and lonelier experience. I think I will steal the title of Lone Primate's post for this one. Sometimes it's so hard to think of one word!

Katha Pollitt , one of my writing heroes - and a colleague through the Haven Coalition - has just published another collection of essays, called Virginity Or Death! . In a predictably snark-filled review for the New York Times , Ana Marie Cox (The Wonkette), doesn't see what all the fuss is about. Strident feminism can seem out of place — even tacky — in a world where women have come so demonstrably far. With Katie Couric at the anchor desk, Condoleezza Rice leading the State Department and Hillary Clinton aiming for the top of the ticket, many of the young, educated and otherwise liberal women who might, in another era, have found themselves burning bras and raising their consciousness would rather be fitted for the right bra (like on "Oprah") and raising their credit limit. Katha Pollitt is the skunk at this "Desperate Housewives" watching party. Her new collection of essays, "Virginity or Death!," culled from her columns for The Nation over the pas

Hundreds of thousands of people around the world demonstrated on Saturday to protest Israel's bombing of Lebanon. In Toronto, thousands of people gathered , also condemnng Stephen Harper's endorsement of Israel's actions. Hundreds of red and white Lebanese flags waved on Toronto's downtown streets as thousands of protestors called for an end to the violence in Lebanon. To the beat of drums, the demonstrators yesterday gathered first at the Israeli consulate on Bloor St. W. before marching to the United States consulate on University Ave. The horde chanted slogans condemning Israel for the deaths of Lebanese civilians and slammed Prime Minister Stephen Harper's comments calling Israel's response "measured." Many also called for sanctions and a boycott of Israeli goods and businesses. The chants that rang out included "Shame, Shame, Shame," "The people united will never be defeated," "Shame on you Mr. Harper" and "Arab

You might want to catch up on comments in this thread . Franc has posted a terrific link to the International Dialects of English Archives (IDEA) where you can hear all kinds of dialects for yourself. Great stuff, Franc, thank you! Another reader pointed out that if my reference to nude beaches drew traffic, the post called "tongues" is sure to drive the Statcounter wild. * * * * Do any of you know anything about Americans stealing Canadian health care cards in order to get health care? This is another question from Egalia at Tennessee Guerilla Women , part of her never-ending quest to drive neocons insane. I found various links about health care fraud, but nothing specifically about this. I know the Ontario cards were recently re-designed with more security measures. Is this why?

The truth is, most of the good things about this country have been fought for by liberals. If conservatives had carried the day, blacks would still be in the back of the bus, women would be barefoot and pregnant, medical care would be on a cash-only basis, there'd be mouse feet in your breakfast cereal and workers would still be sleeping next to their machines. -- Katha Pollitt

Recently a co-worker asked me what I thought of the "fiasco going on in New York City". She was referring to the alleged plot to blow up the tunnels connecting New York to New Jersey. I brushed it off, saying I don't pay attention to that type of news, and that I assume most of it is false. To which she replied, "But they arrested someone for this one!" I noted that arrests aren't proof of anything. Case in point. From the Guardian : An Algerian man believed to be the last domestic detainee still in custody from a national dragnet after Sept. 11 - and who was cleared of links to terrorism in November 2001 - was set free this week, his lawyer said Friday. Benemar Benatta, 32, went to Ontario, Canada, where he is seeking political asylum, after being released from a Buffalo immigration lockup Thursday, attorney Catherine Amirfar said. "After five years, he had become all but hopeless," she said. "Now he's cautiously optimistic." Benatt

I recently had the opportunity to see a reviewer's copy of Edge Of Outside , a documentary about independent film, directed by Shannon Davis. It premiered on Turner Classic Movies earlier this month, but the filmmakers are trying to get a wider release. Many people think the expression "independent film" is synonymous with "low budget," or imagine independent filmmaking to be a very recent phenomenon. Edge Of Outside dispels both those myths. Independent filmmakers and actors who have worked with them are asked to define independent cinema, and to talk about their influences. How many of us would immediately recognize Charlie Chaplin as one of the great independents? In the context of this documentary, his inclusion makes perfect sense. Edge Of Outside uses interviews with directors, writers, actors and technicians, intercut with movie clips. There's no narrator, and the effect is one of great immediacy, which is very appropriate to the material. There are

GaryStJ: Are you incredibly rude or just plain stupid? You are not welcome here - not because I disagree with your opinions, but because you were unwilling or unable to engage in civil discourse. Only a fool would let a stranger speak to her the way you spoke to me, and I am not a fool. There's no squirreling out of it, claiming I'm being too sensitive or flying off the handle (as if your judgment of that matters): I have the written proof. Everything you post will always be deleted. Make it easier on both of us and go away. Permanently. * * * * Everyone else: When Lone Primate was over for dinner the other night, the three of us imagined the conversation as it might have happened, if GaryStJ had behaved normally. How he might have phrased his initial questions, and then his later responses, and what an interesting discussion might have then ensued. Indeed, it could have been classic wmtc material - different viewpoints, discussed by intelligent, literate people, fleshing out

News from the Old Country. An estimated 100,000 people or more remained without power in western Queens last night , as Con Edison conceded that the blackout that began Monday affected more than 10 times as many customers as it had said previously, and that it still had no explanation for the failure. It will take at least until Sunday - six days after the blackout began - to restore power to everyone, Con Edison said. A chorus of elected officials demanded investigation and punishment of the utility, and more help for the area's sweltering, dispirited residents. They voiced particular concern for thousands of elderly residents with no electricity, no working elevators and, in some cases, no water. Utility officials and others said this power failure was perplexing, unlike previous blackouts that darkened large swaths of the city and were corrected in a day or two. This time, new problems have cropped up day after day: dozens of manhole fires, transformer fires and, most seriously,

Americans parody Canadians by saying "aboot" (real clever) and some Canadians claim they don't say it. But they do. It's not really the hard oo sound of "boot," but it's not the ow sound of "towel," either. It's a sound somewhere between ow and oo that I can't pronounce, but wish I could. It's distinctively Canadian. Even Canadians who have lived and worked in the US most of their lives will have just the slightest hint of "aboot" in their speech. I always smile when I hear it. Many Americans don't know that other, everyday words are pronounced differently north of the 49th parallel. In the US, "again" and "against" have a vowel sound like "fence". In Canada, in those words, you hear the word "gain". In the US, "been" - as in, I've been working on the railroad - rhymes with gin. In Canada, "been" has the same sound as "bean". There's proj

How to increase your blog traffic: mention a nude beach in one of your posts. Welcome new readers. Sorry to disappoint you.

For those who don't know, "the islands" - officially Toronto Island Park - are a group of islands in Lake Ontario , a very short ferry ride from downtown Toronto. Toronto's other airport is there, a children's amusement park, some beautiful piers and parkland, Hanlan's Point (a baseball landmark), and a nude beach. There are lots of picnic tables, bike paths (and bike rentals) and even day lockers, a nice touch. Allan knew about Hanlan's Point from his own work , but had always imagined it to be in Toronto proper, not a boat ride away. It's the site of Babe Ruth's first professional home run. We walked around Centre Island, which is a beautifully landscaped park - huge shade trees, thick lawns, gorgeous flowers. I can see it as a quick country getaway, a breath of fresh air and space, a perfect spot for a picnic and a relaxing day out, if you live in a dense, urban area. After wandering around Centre Island, we walked towards Ward's Island, bec

Comments are back, since I'll be able to monitor properly today. More soon.

It seems Gary can't control himself, so I'm turning off comments for the day. See you all later.

I'm a wee fuzzy this morning from grilling and swilling with Redsock and Lone Primate last night. Today, "the other anniversary" , we're off to check out the islands . I don't have much to say today. I'm just hoping the big storm has passed and I can sound the all-clear.

Today is wmtc party, part 2, featuring our sole guest, Lone Primate . We're really looking forward to observing the Primate in his natural habitat, suburban Mississauga. No sneaking into our neighbours' yard with your paparazzi lens!

A vaccine to prevent the human papilloma virus, or HPV - the virus responsible for most cervical cancers - has been approved by Health Canada . HPV is said to infect half of all sexually active women between ages 18 and 22 in North America. In most women, the virus clears up on its own, but if the infection persists, it can lead to cervical cancer. "Until now, we have only been able to react to the effects of HPV in women," said Dr. Guylaine Lefebvre, president-elect of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada. "Now we are talking about preventing most of the serious diseases caused by HPV." This year in Canada, nearly 1,400 new cases of cervical cancer are expected and approximately 390 women will die from the disease. Montreal-based Merck Frosst Canada Ltd. said its vaccine, called Gardasil, is approved for females between nine and 26 years of age to prevent: Cervical cancer. Vulvar cancer. Vaginal cancer. Precancerous lesions. Genital warts cause

Well, wasn't that fun. Perhaps we should thank GaryStJ for giving wmtc readers a chance to strut their stuff. (Or not.) Once again I am grateful for the intelligent, engaged, caring community that has formed here. Here are some particularly irritating scenes from the dustup. (Some of the best words for heated clashes are antiques, preserved by baseball: dustup, brouhaha, and my favourite, donnybrook . Great etymology for that one.) Gary: Question, question, question, question, question. Laura: Answer, answer, answer, answer, answer. Gary: Why won't you answer my questions? Laura: Please see above. Gary: Why won't you answer my questions? Laura: See above. Gary: Why won't you answer my questions? Laura: See above, $%*&@! Gary: There she goes, flying off the handle. But she still won't answer my questions. My other fave is this. Gary: Canada and the US are the same. Commenters: Here are some specific ways in which they are different. Gary: Stop speaking in general

GaryStJ is back , and he says: "Unfortunately, however, L-girl (and I mean no offence), the burden of proof is on you." Burden of proof? No offence Gary, but fuck you! I've explained all I'm going to explain, in recent posts, and throughout my blog. Wmtc readers have expanded and emphasized my basic points. You're not paying attention, and you're not worth it. Y'all are free to argue with him, of course. I'll enjoy it from the sidelines.

Here's a perfect example of the perverse logic of nationalism: Israel apologized to Canada for killing eight Canadian citizens . They didn't apologize for killing Lebanese or Palestinians, nor cease their murders. But oops, we're sorry we killed your people, they were innocent bystanders. Unlike everyone else they've killed? Once again, western lives are more valuable. Here, too, is a reason to seriously dislike Stephen Harper : unqualified support for the Israel terrorists while condemning the Palestinian terrorists. Disgusting. I read a good piece in the The Progressive about what readers of the supposedly liberal New York Times have read about the current Middle East crisis: lies. New York Times Tells a Whopper About Legality and Morality of Israel's Actions by Matthew Rothschild The lead editorial for The New York Times on July 15 was entitled "Playing Hamas's Game," and it told a whopper. It exonerated Israel for any responsibility in the cu

I see our new friend GaryStJ - who doesn't mean to attack, of course, he's just inquiring - hasn't returned to respond to our questions and answers . Perhaps he was busy last night. I'm still cracking up over "jingoism" and "imperialism". Jingoism! Canadians! The people who are always apologizing for themselves, and saying things like, "We're a young country, doomed to fail, but we do the best we can..." And imperialism? Canada was founded, in part, by British and French imperialism, but it wasn't Canada then. We don't say India has a history of imperialism, because it was part of the British empire. We're talking imperialism, and we're weighing the US against Canada, and we find them indistinguishable? Maybe I'm the idiot for taking these questions seriously!

In comments here , a reader criticizes me for... well, I'm not sure for what. I need some help interpreting this one. I should mention that you (L-Girl) are sounding more like a Canadian apologist than the radical progressive you claim to be. In fact, you sound an awful lot like the American "right wing, wing-nuts" you rail against regularly - only the Canadian version of them. Nothing personal, but I say this (coming from the Left) because Canada doesn't need anymore of these types of people. We've become complacent, and self-congratulatory attitudes such as yours only complicates the matter. Yes I realize that its "better than the US" (even though in some respects it isn't), but you live in Canada now and unless you want to live life playing the comparison game, you're not serving anyone. In fact, its a slap in the face to people like me who see real injustices here faced by real, living people. I'm looking at this observation seriously, no

Do you know what I hate? I hate when I help people and they don't say thank you. Don't even bother to reply. I fucking hate it. I wish there was some way to know in advance who was going to say thank you, then only help those people.

Now here's something I could listen to on the radio ! (Our most recent radio discussion is in comments here .) I used to love creative musical programming, long ago on commercial radio, then on college broadcasts. When I met Allan, he was doing college radio at University of Vermont, and he re-introduced me to its joys. I'd love to get XM radio to hear things like this. If I spent large amounts of time driving, I'd do it. From the essay linked above: And now Bob Dylan breaks our hearts. How? By his weekly Theme Time Radio broadcasts on XM satellite radio, warm evocations of old-timey radio. In each hour, Mr. Dylan covers a chosen theme: Mothers, Fathers, Baseball, Coffee, Weddings, Divorce, showing how the common musical traditions of the United States shaped our lives in song and lyric. The broadcasts are one-hour lessons in the history of who we were and are. Mr. Dylan's succinct commentary makes the music shine. He is witty, gently humorous, erudite and always rever

One of the five Major Holidays of Kaminker-Wood-land is fast approaching. In keeping with an old theme of taking boat rides on July 20 - on the actual day, in 1985, we cruised around Manhattan - we are going out to the Islands . I've got the ferry information, and read the basic info online. Beyond that, anything we should know? Hints, tricks, tips? Please note, we're totally not going to the nude beach at Hanlan's Point. Everything about it is unappealing - the heat, the beach, the nudity. We're shade people. We go to the beach in November. And we prefer our nudity by special invitation only. Other than that, fire away. * * * * Search string of the day: email contact and gust book of all watch manufacturers in Switzerland 2006

The excellent people of Tennessee Guerilla Women have honoured me (and some other Canadian bloggers) with a visit. They have a question, which I am turning over to you. Back before I moved, when this blog was a lightning rod for wingnuts, friends of wmtc heard a lot of myths and misperceptions lies about Canada. I'm not talking igloos and dogsleds here. You may recall the nut-bar who said it's illegal to disparage the Queen - and if you do, the Mounties will knock on your door in the middle of the night and haul your ass to the prison. ( Projection, anyone? ) I was told my children would be forced to speak French ( poor Cody , she barely speaks English!), and I'd be forced to submit to sharia law - that is, if I didn't die first, while waiting for medical treatment. The Tennessee feminists have unearthed another claim, and I can't say whether or not it's true. When the events that eventually came to be known as the Sponsorship Scandal first occurred, was there