Monte Solberg for Defense Minister

Aaron Lee Wudrick is, sadly, probably right:

But the sad fact is that Mr.O’Connor, whatever his other merits, has been a failure in the communications department on such an important file. If he is not replaced now, when it will matter little more than to give the opposition something to crow over for a few days, he may make a graver mistake later on. And by that time, it may be more damaging: both to the prisoners in question, and to the electoral prospects of Harper’s government.

As for replacements, I have a suggestion. Monte Solberg has always been an excellent communicator and has been a competant minister. Unfortunately, he has been stuck in portfolios that are inevitably low-profile in a Conservative government. Harper could do much worse than have a mini-shuffle that sees Solberg switch portfolios with O’Connor.

Update: O’Connor may indeed be on his way out.

Carbon Credit Fraud - FT.com Reports Environmental Benefits Minimal

A Financial Times investigation has discovered widespread fraud associated with carbon trading markets:

Widespread instances of people and organisations buying worthless credits that do not yield any reductions in carbon emissions.

■ Industrial companies profiting from doing very little – or from gaining carbon credits on the basis of efficiency gains from which they have already benefited substantially.

â–  Brokers providing services of questionable or no value.

â–  A shortage of verification, making it difficult for buyers to assess the true value of carbon credits.

â–  Companies and individuals being charged over the odds for the private purchase of European Union carbon permits that have plummeted in value because they do not result in emissions cuts.

When Stats and Morality Collide - The Economic Case for Promiscuity

As any statistician will tell you, statistics can be a dangerous thing. Here is a perfect example:

In fact, according to Professor Michael Kremer of MIT’s economics department, the spread of AIDS in England could plausibly be retarded if everyone with fewer than about 2.25 partners per year were to take additional partners more frequently. That covers three-quarters of British heterosexuals between the ages of 18 and 45. (Much of this column is inspired by Professor Kremer’s research.

NEP 2: Designed by Albertans?

I haven’t figured out the details of the Conservatives Green plan, and I doubt the Conservatives have either. The oil industry now claims their plans would be the “choke point” and prevent future growth and their general economic viability. Of course they’ll say that, you suggest. It’s in their interest to oppose emissions cuts. Even so, execs at EnCana and Suncor have previously sent signals they’re willing to work with Kyoto targets. They’re not the only people blowing smoke out both sides of their mouth. Baird’s speech on the environment comes only days after he prophesied economic collapse if Canada were to follow Kyoto.

But however you slice it, Alberta and Ottawa are heading toward a constitutional dogfight over the Conservatives’ environmental plan. The stakes are very high because if it ends up in court, it could determine the ability of provinces - not just Alberta, but Newfoundland (maitre chez Newfie) and others as well - to regulate their natural resources.

Depending on how far the Conservatives court the bobo suburbanites of Toronto, their green plan to could do a fair bit of harm to the Alberta economy. At its worst, their plan could be as bad for the Alberta economy as the NEP.

Except this version of the NEP would be created, or at least initiated, by a government with a significant number of Albertans in it.

What would Alberta’s options then be?

On a related issue, I agree with this writer: I HATE fluorescent lights.

What’s next? Shared drinking fountains?

April 21, 2007: Ashburn, Georgia decides it’ll try this newfangled “integration” fad:

Students of Turner County High School started what they hope will become a new tradition: Black and white students attended the prom together for the first time on Saturday.

In previous years, parents had organized private, segregated dances for students of the school in rural Ashburn, Georgia, 160 miles south of Atlanta.

…

Mindy Bryan, attended a segregated prom in 2001.

“There was not anybody that I can remember that was black,” she said. “The white people have theirs, and the black people have theirs. It’s nothing racial at all.”

Obviously not. Damn Yankee liberals always reading race into every little thing.

But not everyone in the town of 4,400, famous for its peanuts and Fire Ant Festival, was breaking with the past.

The “white prom” still went on last week.

…Nichole Royal, 18, said black students could have gone to the prom, but didn’t.

“I guess they feel like they’re not welcome,” she said.

I can’t imagine why.

[Cheryl] Nichols said while her parents were in support of the integrated prom, some of her friends weren’t allowed to go.

…

“I’ve asked, ‘Why can’t you come?’ and they’re like, ‘My mommy and daddy — they don’t agree with being with the colored people,’”

Stephane Dion: New Communications Technologies

*

Hello my Facebook friends! I am pleased to have time with you to answer some questions that you my friends sent to me!

Liviu Librescu: A Hero’s Death

William Kristol pays tribute to Liviu Librescu:

A healthy society will recognize such deeds. It will remember and honor the doers of those deeds. It will turn its gaze away from the killer at Virginia Tech. A hero of that sad tale, by contrast, received only passing mention in many stories. So let’s take a minute to recall the life and death of Professor Liviu Librescu….

One often wonders: Who and what will really define our times? The Holocaust or the creation of the state of Israel? Hitler or Churchill? Stalin or John Paul II? The Virginia Tech murderer, or Liviu Librescu?

Sweden’s Nutty and Invasive Taxman

A Swedish couple has named their baby Metallica, named after the heavy metal band.

Swedish tax authorities won’t let them do it:

Although little Metallica has already been baptized, the Swedish National Tax Board refused to register the name, saying it was associated with both the rock group and the word “metal.”

In Sweden, parents must get the names of their children approved by the tax authority, which is in charge of the population registry and issues personal identification numbers, similar to Social Security numbers in the United States.

Tomaro, who has appealed the decision, said the official handling the case also called the name ugly.

Well, yes, it’s an ugly name. But wouldn’t be nice to adopt the Stockholm model of having tax bureaucrats judge the suitability of the names people give their children? At least my twins, Guns n Roses, won’t be moving to Sweden anytime soon.

YouTube and Politics - Protecting Copyright or Censorship?

First it was a Liberal Party activist filing bogus DMCA copyright infringement notices with YouTube, now it appears the House of Commons and the Board of Internal Economy have filed notices to have certain videos of House of Commons Question Period removed:

A month ago, I also received a DMCA notice from YouTube, but instead of YouTube user liberalvideo being listed as the rights-holder, my notice cited the Canadian House of Commons and the Board of Internal Economy as the party who made the request.

The video in question has been reposted (but not on YouTube) by CanuckPolitics.

Personally, I don’t think this is an issue of censorship, but rather CPAC trying to restrict the rebroadcasting of their copyrighted materials. However, it appears, as CanuckAdmin mentions in the comments, that Google/Youtube does NOT “arbitrate fair use issues” but rather removes any video that is reported as a copyright infringement.

Professors. With guns. In our schools.

In the comments, Grumpy Old Man makes a solid case for gun-totin’ academics:

Schools are “gun free zones”. Gun shows are not. Mass murders with guns are usually at school, not gun shows.

On the question of 1% of the VT population being armed, do not exclude the teachers from your thoughts. Teachers are the logical people to be allowed to carry concealed firearms. In the past decade armed teachers were involved in “school shootings” where they stopped armed aggressors. With minimal deaths… but very little coverage by mainstream media.

Indeed:

As I walked down the hall toward that office the sound of a large caliber rifle thundered from that open doorway followed by two men talking. After all the bizarre events of the last few minutes it didn’t seem strange to me when I peeked around the office doorway to see one professor shooting a deer rifle at the top of tower while the other fed him ammunition. It never entered my mind to question why an English professor would have his deer rifle in his office complete with boxes of ammunition.

I can think of some Canadians professors who might like the idea.

« Previous Page — Next Page »