Back in the day when we gave a shit about things, the wreckage and subsequent spillage from the Exxon Valdez in 1989 really got under our skin.

At the time, 11 million gallons (about 42 million litres) really felt like things couldn’t possibly get worse.

Welcome to the world of today, where the Tar Sands rule this country.

Today, a subset of Environment Canada released a report stating matter of factly that about 6.5 million litres of waste escape from ONE tailings pond in the Tar Sands region into the Athabaska River.

THAT’S ONE EXXON VALDEZ PER WEEK.

PER WEEK.

From ONE tailings pond.

I did a quick search to see just how many more there were 77 square kilometres of tailings ponds, although there didn’t seem to be a lot of ‘shouting from the rooftops’ about the actual number in existence.

Wake up people.  We should be horrified by this atrocity, but we just don’t seem to care.

PS Don’t be surprised to find this department to be closed damn soon, the authors begging for tuna sandwiches in downtown Vancouver in a few months and the report to vaporize in the book kilns of our Fascist leaders.

I’ve always admired the journalistic integrity of Bill Moyers.

He’s been a professional over several decades and it doesn’t look like he’s going to stop any time soon.

For all the narrators out their pretending their journalists (in Canada and elsewhere), you could easily learn a thing or two about truth in reporting from Bill Moyers.

And so, we come to this page where a series of ongoing articles report on the Keystone XL pipeline, along with many other stories about oil politics.

For example, did anyone in Canada report that there were nationwide protests in the US against Keystone … just this past week?

Or that Keystone might create a whopping 35 jobs in North America?

Or that the US State Department’s Inspector General’s office has launched an investigation into potential conflicts of interest among the contractors that conducted the study?

Our narrators are lying to us because they don’t think about the finely tuned PR that’s shoved under their noses every day.

There’s a LOT of dislike, protest and upset about Keystone XL and it’s time Canadians dig a little deeper to understand that it’s not the good news story that the Cons are ramming down our throats.

I’m so saddened, frustrated, angered and annoyed at hearing corporate Canada (and America) running around begging for handouts from our various levels of government.

The latest two examples:

• Chrysler, begging for billions from the feds and provincial governments for a plant in Windsor
• The Canadian Media Production Association asking for tighter rules and restrictions on Internet use

To both, I say ‘stuff it’.  Get a job.  Raise the funds on your own dime.  Stop begging for protection when you don’t need it.

The use of public funds and regulations should have a single purpose:  increase public good or protect the public from harm.

Do more cars on the road or tighter rules on our digital use increase public good?  Do proposed rules protect us from harm?

No.

Let’s look at Canadian Media Production Association ‘issue’.

Netflix – hobbled as it already is by existing regulations and restrictions – has opened up incredible worlds of access, content, control and enjoyment for millions of Canadian households.

The Canadian Media Production Association wants our joy to end.

They want endless subsidies and grants for more mediocre content and control over what we view.

I honestly don’t hear Canadians asking for more ill-conceived rules and regulations to control our digital lives.

I say F. U.

Your usefulness, questionable from the get-go, has passed.

F.U.

You’re a public company.  You have shareholders.  Raise funds on the market.

If you can’t, close your doors and give someone a kick at the can.

Stop coming to weak-willed governments with your cap in hand looking for handouts.

The Government of Ontario should focus on taking cars OFF the road, not putting more cars ON the road.

$400 million would make a pretty nice deposit on a public transit system for any medium to large city in Ontario, so FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT’S GOOD, please do not throw it away on a bunch of corporate stooges that can’t run their business.

There.  You’ve got my thoughts on what to do with the situation in Windsor.

Always
Beware
Conservative
Doublespeak (or Deception)

The Conservative Doublespeak has been ratcheted up beyond any level I can recall.

The Bullying Bill, where all citizens will be monitored, regardless of what their activities are.

The ‘Fair Election Act’, where our Electoral Officers will no longer be able to question activities designed to manipulate elections.

The ‘Budget’, where money and balance sheets aren’t calculated, but the political implications of altering relationships of trustworthy institutions that oppose the filth running our government, like environmental groups, are.

And our MSM isn’t calling them on it, mainly because of the absurd and sad distraction of and obsession with the Olympics (am I the only one that saw ‘Gladiator’?  I know it ends poorly for the bad guy, but I know Harper won’t get drawn into any battles with his adversaries.  He’s too clever for that.).

They just keep narrating the bullet points delivered by the PMO.

All of these bills create broader powers of control for the PMO downwards and all of them make more and more Canadian citizens criminals, simply because of their beliefs and their interests.

Under Stephen Harper, Canada has become a fascist, petro-state run by corporations, with criminals acting as the political mouthpiece.

In other words, Canada’s f’ed, folks.

In the last year, I’ve added a lot of 400 time to my driving and I’ve come to one universal observation:  trucks suck.

I’m talking about the big, massive, non-stop rigs that come steam-rolling down your neck when you’re trying to enjoy a nice drive between KW and London or Guelph and Toronto.

And at no time do they seem more out of control, more absurd with their behaviour than a day like today when everyone needs to ease up.

A lot.

Unfortunately, there’s no indication that these guys give a shit about the general public, especially during inclement weather.  They plow down and breathe down your back like a bull on acid.

Which makes me wonder:  how many accidents on our highways are directly or indirectly related to commercial rigs and the bad habits of their drivers?

I’ve also heard a rumour that truckers use Canada, particularly southern Ontario’s 400 network of highways, due to regulatory constraints.  The rumour is that they are allowed a maximum number of driving hours when driving in the United States.  However, if they enter Canada, they’re allowed to track that time ‘separately’.  In effect, they have two sets of books of drive time, ensuring that most of the drivers that are using our highways have been driving for too long.

And NONE of their efforts result in benefits to us.

It’s time.

We need a new set of rules for truckers in Canada.

I remember when I was in Germany a few years back and was struck by the treatment of commercial traffic there.

When weather turns sour, traffic rules change.

On immediate demand, based on LED and flashing lights stands along the side of the highway, announcements are made that ‘inclement weather’ rules are in effect.

This means:

• Trucks can only drive in the far right lane
• They must slow to half the posted rate, usually 50km / hour
• They must slow to allow merging traffic to get on the highway

It was brilliant and inspirational to see.

And we desperately need it here.

How many people have to die and how many cars have to get crushed by people who don’t care about our well-being?

When is it enough?

Today was the limit for me.

We know the music industry is getting desperate and spiraling into massive fail mode when they throw their artists under the bus.

Justin Bieber’s staged arrest seems to be the only way the kid can get attention – and his makers ensure they get some much needed publicity from their big star.

He’s just one of many music artists that are being forced by their managers and handlers to take more risks, get more free publicity and – hopefully – sales.

As Bieber was arrested, what did he do?  Did he lament the crimes he committed?  Did he show shame for the embarrassment that he’s become?  Did he even say ‘hey kids, don’t do what I did’?

Nope.

He promoted his new video that was released last night as he did his so-called walk of shame.

What kind of icon is that for our kids?

I’d like to call Bieber a douche, but I really don’t think he knows what he’s doing.  He’s just being used by higher-ups who staged the whole thing so that they could get endless airplay.

And the CBC for making all of this noise their headline story when so much more important news surrounds us?

Shame on you.  You fell right into the trap.

Recently, the CBC reported that the CFIA has found significant issues with organic food.  In particular, they have reported to the CBC that many foods labeled as ‘organic’ may have been tainted with pesticides.

However, today it seems as though the CFIA has NOT properly investigated their own claims and the CBC is now running around trying to get to the bottom of this story (apparently).

Which begs the questions:  WTF is going on with the CFIA and WTF is going on with the CBC?

There are many issues with this:

1. Why is the CBC simply narrating the story from the CFIA without adequately researching the issues?
2. Why is the CFIA reporting potentially misleading results concerning organic food when their research on the issue appears to be incomplete?

I would suggest it’s safe to say that the combined actions of these two organizations have jeopardized the credibility of the still emerging ‘organic’ market.  What appears like disrespect for the public has raised many questions about the intelligence of those who insist on buying organic (including myself).

As a consumer, I honestly don’t know what to do, but it’s imperative that the CFIA get its act together and truthfully report what’s actually happening in the organic business, particularly as it relates to produce, dairy and meat.

If they don’t, a multi-billion ‘industry’ and certainly a lifestyle will be put at risk.

And if they don’t, I come back to asking what this all means?  Is the CFIA acting against the better interests of those Canadians who want to find and purchase unadulterated foods?  Why a little more outlandish, is the petro-chem industry complaining to the CFIA that pesticides are on the wain because of the significant growth of organic farming in Canada and this is how they respond?  Or is the corporate food industry finding that local and independent food producers are putting a ding in their profits?

The whole thing is a mystery, but unfortunately, the damage has been done.  Recovery will be a steep climb.

News is emerging slowly about a very important decision that was made yesterday in the US Federal Court of Appeals.

In the ruling this week of the case Verizon vs. FCC, the US Court of Appeals has declared that net neutrality is a basic tenet of the Internet that no longer needs to be adhered to.

THIS IS HUGE.

The open Internet has effectively been closed.

What this means is that companies like AT&T no longer have to provide universal access to all online content, regardless of origin, quality, source and so on.

What this means is that we have just entered a new age for the Internet, where corporate-sponsored content will crush independent content with a tsunami wave of binary code.

Many sites will simply be blocked by their Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in the United States.

YouTube, Skype, Netflix and other services that compete with traditional distribution services will suffer, as larger telecom companies strangle the Internet or charge for access.

While an appeal is likely, this is a bad sign that the Internet as we know it is dead.

What does this mean for Canada?  Expect the same here.  It’s just  a matter of time before we have a two-tiered system emerges in Canada.

The solution?  My position and belief is that at the moment, policy makers are not motivated to change rules in favour of the public, despite promises of the Conservatives to do so (much like their promises of accountability and transparency).  However, those of us who are interested in an open Internet need to get together ASAP to organize lobbying, political pressure and public awareness about the benefits of the Internet as a public utility that has a mandate of keeping the Internet ‘open’.  In the interim, be sure to sign up with those committed to Net Neutrality, like TekSavvy.