Green Oil (and Ham)

A former columnist for The Edmonton Journal, Satya DAS has just finished a investigation that explores the challenges and implications of Alberta’s development of the oil sands, which is among the world’s single biggest hydrocarbon deposit. Green Oil says the oil sands can lead the transition to a clean-energy future. This will be welcome news to the Oil Industry who have become desperate for something to counteract the Stelmach Government's fumbled PR Battle on Oil and left them vulnerable to attack from the Obama Democrats. I understand that Ezra LEVANT is also attacking the subject.

Don MARTIN added this 2 part article last week about the Oil Industry. In "Our Oil, U.S Need" on Sept 26 he made this point.

The United States imports 60% of its daily fuel requirements. President Barack Obama has vowed to wean his country off Middle East oil within 10 years. The U.S.'s other nearby secondary suppliers are either hostile (Venezuela) or their production is dwindling so quickly that they could be a net importer of oil within five years (Mexico). For every five barrels of oil America consumes a day, one comes from Canada. One barrel of every 20 now consumed in the United States is pumped straight out of the oilsands, a number that could triple inside of 15 years.

Then I saw this admonishment from the U.S Energy Secretary, Dr. Steven Chu;

“The American public…just like your teenage kids, aren’t acting in a way that they should act,” Dr. Chu said.

The administration aims to teach them—literally. The Environmental Protection Agency is focusing on real children. Partnering with the Parent Teacher Organization, the agency earlier this month launched a cross-country tour of 6,000 schools to teach students about climate change and energy efficiency.

This kind of propaganda is not likely to put the Alberta Oilsands in a good light.

Nonverbal Communication = Paralanguage

I found this presentation that describes the other 70% of communication we convey NOT by mere words - and I found it fascinating.

Nonverbal Communication

View more presentations from aidenyeh.

Is Michael Ignatieff already a lame duck? So soon?!

An excellent analysis from Steve Janke regarding the recent dustup in Quebec surrounding the power-play between Coderre and Cauchon. Here are some of the key points.

• A lame duck is an elected official who is reaching the end of his run of office. He has little power, and others have no incentive to cooperate with him. Usually, the lame duck knows he's a lame duck, and so avoid potentially humiliating showdowns that he knows he can't win. On the other hand, if he doesn't realize he's a lame duck, he'll walk right into a fight and not realize he's already lost...

• But the trouble in Outremont points to labelling Ignatieff as a lame duck. Ignatieff's Quebec lieutenant Denis Coderre is blocking any attempt by former Liberal justice minister Martin Cauchon to run in Outremont. Cauchon represented that riding for over a decade, and the Liberals are desperate to take the riding back from the NDP in the next election. Instead of Cauchon, Coderre has picked his favourite, politically untested business woman Nathalie le Prohon, to go up against veteran Thomas Mulcair of the NDP. Coderre has already decided to have Michael Ignatieff appoint her to the role of candidate, no nomination contest required.Unseemly, perhaps, but the shocking thing is that we all know about this. Not a single person in this drama has shown the slightest bit of respect for Michael Ignatieff.
  

• Michael Ignatieff made the decision to do what Denis Coderre told him to do, but no one cares. And they're all complaining bitterly...in public!Does anyone care what Michael Ignatieff can do to them as punishment for speaking out in public against a firm decision he has made? Apparently not. To have no fear of contradicting the leader, after he has made his final decision on a subject, is a defining property of a lame duck.

UPDATE!

Former Liberal justice minister Martin Cauchon will get the chance to make a political comeback in his old riding after all.

Party insiders say Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff has decided to allow an open nomination contest in the prized Montreal riding of Outremont.

Globe & Mail, Friday Sept 25/09

I swear, sometimes I think Michael Ignatieff is his own worst enemy.

Michelle is gona be pissed

This was pretty funny.

Did anyone see this in the news? (I thought not)

Last week, News Corp head honco Rupert MURDOCK was quoted as saying that advertising sales appear to have bottomed out in the last few weeks of September (versus last year, at least) which triggered a bounce in a number of the remaining newspaper stocks (Tribune, New York Times) .

In Canada, Canwest was again given another reprieve, presumably based on the possibility for the upcoming CRTC hearings about CableTV "passthrough" to generate some revenue for Global, CTV and CBC broadcast operations.

As I am becoming more and more disgusted with many other newspapers (Mindy JACBOBS at Edmonton Sun, Antonia ZERBISIAS at Torstar plus many others at Globe&Mail and CBC) it struck me that "the rubber may finally be hitting the road" in regards to such upsetting fringe journalists, who only survive on the basis of being granted tenure by publishers who wish to seem "balanced" or are content to stir the pot by having such deranged individuals writing for them. The only reason for this has been the monopoly power of the major news media to finance such vanities by ad revenue. That revenue base is eroding - rapidly. With the growth and popularization of the web blogger, much of this power is transferred back to individuals. There is no need to support newspapers that do not provide a serive of value - like independently providing a "news service" rather than filtered ideology.

In this spirit, I fell across this story in the Daily Mail (2009Sep14 - A million march to US Capitol to protest against 'Obama the socialist') newspaper that I seriously DO NOT recall at all.

Here was another blogger comment on the event, referencing other blog sources.

Here is another blogger who feels the same.

Peace Crime!

George JONAS in the National Post has presented what I consider the final word on these outrageous charges made by the left against Israel. Among his main points:

• Judge GOLDSTONE's report was prepared by UN Human Rights Council - who's sterling members include Libya, Zimbabwe, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia!
• GOLDSTONE parrots the Arab allegations that Israel's defensive actions against Gaza in January 2009 was “a deliberately disproportionate attack designed to punish, humiliate and terrorize a civilian population, radically diminish its local economic capacity both to work and to provide for itself and to force upon it an ever-increasing sense of dependency and vulnerability.”
• No mention of what constitutes "a proportionate response" when one is being terrorized by "a belligerent intent on your destruction".
• where the international doctrine of "proportionality" existed before being brought up in his report (it didn't).
  
• failure to distinguish between aggressor and self-defense, ignoring the right and obligation of a state to stop rocket and mortar fire from reaching it's citizens and their children.
  
• if stopping rocket-launchers that target civilians is a war-crime, then criminalizing self-defense is a "peace crime".
• GOLDSTONE threatens to refer Israel's leaders to the International Criminal Court unless they investigate and punish some scapegoats. JONAS reminds us that Canada is a signatory to this UN legislation.
  

How disgusting.

[Update: This continues with the nattering opponents commentary are graciously given the space to hang themselves. Towit: Judy REBICK, Naomi KLEIN and Johanathon KAY]

The Onion News Network

These reports seem appropriate.


Facebook, Twitter Revolutionizing How Parents Stalk Their College-Aged Kids


Precocious Youngster Sells Cookies To Buy Attack Ad


Police Slog Through 40,000 Insipid Party Pics To Find Cause Of Dorm Fire


Advocacy Group Decries PETA's Inhumane Treatment Of Women

I'd like to teach the world Sharia

If you remember the 1970's this will strike a chord. (It is sung the the old Coke a cola tune "I'd like to teach the world to sing"). These guys are hilarious.



Here are the lyrics:

I'd like to teach the world Sharia

Music by Coca-Cola, Lyrics by Laika the space Dog

I'd like to build the Jews a bomb And furnish it with nails Grow jihadis and martyrees And wake the Twelfth Imam Chorus: I'd like to teach the world Sharia In perfect harmony I'd like to crush it in my arms And show no sympathy (That's the song I hear) I'd like to see the world for once (Let the world sing today) All Muslim land to land And hear them fatwa through the hills For fear throughout the land That's the song I hear (That's the song I hear) Let the world sing today (Let the whole wide world keep singing) An Ayatollah ruling us And never goes away (Repeat 1st stanza and Chorus) Put your jiziya in my hand Let's begin today Put your jiziya in my hand Or we’ll chop your head away. (Repeat Chorus 'til fade)

Fearless Forcasts - held to account?

From "The Monkey Cage" blog I found this entertaining site, Wrong Tomorrow which is a semi-humorous website dedicated to ensuring those who are courageous enough to make "fearless forecasts" will be hopefully be held to account for their calls.

From a politicians view, this could be good or bad. Certainly for a market strategist/economist it will be death.

I will be make a point of being more careful in the future.