Where are our tax dollars going?

Mr Harper September 2009, you promised to end tax breaks to big oil.

Since that point, you have given big oil more than $4 BILLION to big oil. Now, I appreciate supporting businesses that need a little help to keep them moving forward, that is part of being a socialist state. For the first quarter of 2011, Shell claimed a profit of $8 Billion. At that rate, for a year Shell would show a profit of $32B. Why are my tax dollars going to support a company that is obviously not in any financial distress?

 Over the 3 year period of the promise you have not honoured, $1.3B of our tax dollars could be going to do something helpful like, improving medical coverage or funding schools. Shell doesn't need my tax dollars, the over crowded school down the street does.

 Mr Harper, you made a promise to us, the people who elected you to office. When are you going to be a man and honour those promises?

 The counter that shows what we have given to big oil can be found here

How cool is this

If we all had religious leaders, political leaders or people we admire like this, I think we would all be a little bit better off

Blood Sport

With the NHL lockout, I thought this would be a good time to bring up my thoughts on what professional hockey looks like to me


"We who are about to die salute you" 
A long time ago in the coliseums of the Roman Empire, this call was heard. People stood up and cheered, howled for the kill and clapped when the next gladiator fell to the dirt with his life's blood spilling from a gash in his neck. This was family entertainment, that's right folks, bring your whole family to enjoy the sceptical: there will be lions and tigers and bears (okay, not too many bears), there will be dancers and jugglers and story telling, THERE WILL BE GLORY. And after the show, you can go back to your humdrum existence secure in the knowledge that the powers to be are providing for your every need.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please rise for the singing of the national anthem". 
People stand up and cheer, howl when the gloves come off and two men start swinging at each other and clap when another player gets knocked to the ice. This is family entertainment, that's right people, bring your whole family to enjoy the spectacle; we have panthers and sharks and penguins, watch this commercial and see a story wrapped around a juggling dancer. THERE WILL BE GLORY (yes, the Penguins won the Stanley Cup). And after the show, you can turn off your TV (today's blood sport comes to you, how convenient is that?) and go back to your humdrum existence, secure in the knowledge that the powers to be are providing for your every need. 

Okay, the parallels end right here. Anyone who is secure in the knowledge that the government is looking out for their best interest really need to take a good look at what happens in our nations capitol.

Now, I have heard that people say "Oh, this isn't about the fighting, this is about the sport". Yeah right, wake up and smell the blood on the ice. Here in our safe, comfortable, civilized world, hockey is about the fight. Proof? You want proof... Don Cherry, lets start with him and his "Rock em Sock em" hockey videos. Hours and hours of video footage devoted entirely to watching men slamming men into the boards, men punching each other, swinging sticks, poking ribs, and the resulting red flowing onto the ice.

Next up in the evidence locker - SLAP SHOT, a very cheezy, stupid and hilarious cult classic from the late 70's. Who can forget the Hansen brothers? Those lovable thugs. Heck, we don't have to forget them, today we have the likes of Todd Bertuzzi and Marty McSorley, and these are just two of the many in the NHL, we have such thugs on every time in every league and just about every age level.

And finally the old joke, "I went to a fight and a hockey game broke out"
So, there you have it. In the words of the ABC laundry soap commercial "I can't see a difference, can you see a difference?" Do we want a sport where we can be proud of the accomplishments of the people playing? Or do we be honest with ourselves and just have the opening line of each game change to "We who are about to die, salute you."

Until everyone stands up and says "Stop the fight and let me watch the game" and actually do something like... Kick everyone off the ice the moment they pull their gloves off, or a decent fine like $100k every time they draw a penalty for high sticking, we might as well just sit back and enjoy the that which we have created

Anyone for a beer before the season begins?

Brother, where art thou?

I can see you read

But where is it you hail from

I still wish to know

Courtesy

It costs so little

And yet the results are huge

Say thank you today

Dogs in my Taxi

Every once in a while I have a call come in and say "They have a dog - you OK with that?"

Now, technically I can say No, for any number of reasons but generally I don't mind having a canine in my car. Frequently they are better behaved than the person who brought them on board. I have never ever had one woof his cookies in my car.

One night I went to pick up some folks and was told about the dog. Great. I was having a lousy night and I figured it couldn't really get any worse. So I pull up and these 3 not to clean folks stagger up the the car and get in, followed by their doberman pincher. This dog crawled between the the two front seats and sat down on the passenger seat, tall and proud and just sat there. He was calm, cool and collected and absolutely the soul of decency. I decided that if the dog would vouch for his people, I would let them into my car.

As it turned out, I ended up picking these same people up and bringing them home about 2 hours later. They weren't any cleaner, nor any more sober but the dog vouched for them so I let them in. They paid up and life was good.

More stories for the front seat to follow.

Cheers

Pay Up, or be Kicked out of our club

Well, this is an interesting thing. There is a branch of a very large multinational company that operates in Germany that insists that you pay your dues or you will be barred from using the services of that company. Okay, pay to play. I can see the need for that to happen,

Except when it is your faith that demands it.

I thought that the catholic church was out there to be there for the people, to guide them towards salvation, to save their immortal souls. All over the world it seems that this is the over riding mandate of the catholic church. You go, you be with others who believe the same way you do, you get guidance and hope for the future. The only difference is that in Germany, if you don't pay the tax, the catholic church will shut you out.***

I appreciate that in their holy book, it says something about giving 10% of your wages but in theory, they hold Jesus of Nazareth as the Son of God. Every thing I have read in the bible, or seen depicted, or was preached to me by the catholic church, I do not recall the Jesus ever turned anyone away because they did not pay. In fact, I recall that Jesus frequently went to those who could not pay to give what comfort he could.

With all of the problems the catholic church is currently facing, adding this to the catholic population of Germany does not seem to be the best direction they could be taking

*** Taken from this source

Bill M-312

It appears that the Minister of  Status of Women Minister, Rona Ambrose, doesn't fully appreciate what she is supposed to be doing, or that she may have forgotten that she is a woman. Why else would she have proposed a bill that would effectively put the rights of every woman in Canada into the hands of a male dominated committee.

What is it with some people who want to open old wounds, or create new ones to play in. Is it not hard enough getting the respect you deserve without throwing this at every women in Canada.

The decision to have an abortion has got to be one of the hardest things any woman has got to go through, for what ever reason. The decision to do so or not must lie with her, not with some faceless committee in Ottawa, or Washington, or Rome. The woman must be able to access unbiased information, not whatever some special interest group deems proper to ram down her throat.

Mr Harper, the Minister of Status of Women is your responsibility. You voted against the bill, was it because you feel it was the right thing to do or were you using one of your colleagues to further your own agenda? What are you going to do about the problem that you created?

Republican women, please take note

Did you know this?

Do you want these people in power?

I am a man, and this shit is offensive to me, how can you still belong to this group? If not for you, think of  your daughters, your sisters daughters. Can you bring yourself to condemn them to the horror the the Republicans will create for women?

Think about it. Your body belongs to YOU

Murphys' Laws of Combat

An oldie but one worth repeating


Remember everyone, Murphy is an optimist

1. Incoming fire has right of way

2. Friendly fire, isn't

3. Never share a foxhole with someone braver than you

4. The easy way in is mined

5. If you are low on ammo, don't draw attention to yourself, they may be low on ammo too

6. A sucking chest wound is natures way of saying slow down

7. If the enemy can't get in, you can't get out

8. The enemy will attack on two occasions, when you are ready and when you aren't

9. The best combat plan will survive the first 30 seconds of combat

10. When in doubt, keep your head down

11. Those who make the plans are rarely, on the battlefield to see how bad they work