Manitoba's Mysterious Gun sale to Saudi Arabia

Please do provide more information feds.

Why are we exporting such items to country's whose human rights are described as dire?

According to international-trade data available on the Industry Canada website, Manitoba exported a total of $3.1 million in "arms and ammunition" to foreign countries last year. That could include anything from flame-throwers to shotgun cartridges to rocket-launchers, and it's double what the province exported in 2004.

...The data baffled Manitoba peace groups and raised more questions than Ottawa was willing to answer.

To export weapons — even one gun to a private hunter in the United States — requires an export permit from the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. Getting a permit is a process one vendor called such a "humungous hassle" that virtually no Manitoba retailers bother.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade wouldn't reveal any information about the permit issued to export 110 guns to Saudi Arabia, saying the buyer and seller are confidential.

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So you JUST noticed it Bev. Really?

Oh please like you have any right to talk about guns appearing anywhere.

Bev Oda says she noticed Tamil Tiger flags being flown at the protests, including one in Toronto that shut down a major highway Sunday.

This coming from a representative of the government trying to make it easier to get machine guns and get rid of the gun registry.

Also from the same MP, a hand gun raffle. Don't all conservatives say that hand guns are already banned?

At least they are consistent in their inconsistency. Recommend this Post

Here's an idea that will get the Neo-Cons paying attention to the Tamils.

We all know that Neo-Cons don't care much for anyone once they leave the womb so why not get some stats on unborn fetus's that have died in the latest fighting in Sri Lanka.

Trust me, they will at least pretend to care after that and feign outrage. Its about "looking" concerned with these bunch of a-holes, as they can't care about living people because it means they have to do something.

After looking at comments on various news sites about the Tamils here in Toronto I have arrived at the conclusion that Conservatives are cheap heartless bastards and most definitely not Canadian in the least. Recommend this Post

Neo-con MPs less experienced, and stupid.

And boy, does it show.

It took Flaherty 4 months to realize we are in a recession and he is still scratching his head about how swine flu will affect the pork industry.

Jim, this ones on me. Swine = pork. I know, I know. Its shocking but true Jim. Also bacon and ham. I know it sounds magical but trust me on this. I hope you can make the next connection on your own. (Hint: flu makes people and swine sick and people don't like that).

Then there is Harper whose only policies come from red necks or when it looks like he's about to get the boot, stolen from other political parties.

The dumbing down will continue and the decorum will continue to be childish. That is the only way the neo-con MP's can act and the only way their supporters can understand them.

Sad really as we are all paying the price at this very moment. Recommend this Post

Harper and the Neo-cons spent $1M on phantom appointments commission

So, the question is if this commission has never really fulfilled any mandate , why should we be expected to pay the bill as taxpayers? Sounds like rewarding friends with non existent jobs. You know, money for nothing. None of the 18 recently appointed senators were vetted by this group nor were any other appointed officials by The Harper government which must be in the 200-300 person range.

The Conservatives have a big war chest. How about paying us back that $1 Million? Recommend this Post

Religious gatherings trigger neighbourhood feud

Simple solution would be to start hosting nude events within eye shot.

No one should have to deal with that much crazy in their neighborhood. Especially on a regular basis. Recommend this Post

Not surprising

Flaherty unsure if swine flu will impact economy. Not surprising. It took 4 months for him to realize we were in recession.

He'll catch on sometime by September. Recommend this Post

Tea bagging

I have been in stitches for over a week now over republicans and their embracement of teabagging. Which loser failed to google to find out what it means these days? Actually its only ever meant one thing because what else would you tea bag someone for?

I present tea bagging in all its glory!

Imagine in this video that the bartender is Ann Coulter.



I still haven't figured out how this will reduce taxes. Recommend this Post

We get it.

Your standing up for Canada.

Albeit it happens all the time and apparently the Russians have a right to train according to NORAD, But what would they know.

So whats up Steve? Deflection or scaring up your base? A little of both? Embellishing Pete's resume to get him out of the way?

Does all of us a favour and buy a fucking XBox the next time you wanna start up some war games.

You don't have the ability to lead us out of an escalation of tensions.

PS: Steve this little game is oh so transparent. Reporters are asking the proper questions and it doesn't look so good. Recommend this Post

Fireman Ross

LOL. Hope he never shows up to save me, especially with my tablecloth. Recommend this Post

Why Children should be protected from religious indoctrination

Catholic Church in St. John's found liable for abuse of 8 altar boys

The boys, who were the altar boys in these parishes, generally came from the more devout Catholic homes. The more devout, the more religious parents that pushed their children to become altar boys, and these were the boys who were victimized by their parish priest.

And how did the Catholic Church respond to this abuse?

There were also allegations that previous investigations, beginning in 1975, had been covered up, and the offenders whisked away to other provinces, where they received treatment and soon took on new religious postings.

Irresponsibility, denial, and law evasion.

Apologists will say its isolated, blah blah, blah, but this kind of recurring news has brought the catholic church to its knees.

Pardon the pun.

We don't send children into any high risk areas and its about time people view the church as one of those places. Recommend this Post

Tree of Life

Now contrast this with Abrahamic beliefs. 6 days to get to life and they forgot women. Women were an afterthought and made out of a rib bone which if we actually could make anyone from it would be another man since its got XY not XX. Plus we know stem cells are a no no with reluded people. Its never mentioned but did females animals get left out also? Humans supposedly have no connection to animals, and on and on with the complete ignorance of the world around them.

Little did they know and still today they deny the existence of junk DNA, that little bit of info carried forward from the previous species to the newly adapted one, providing a link back to all life's ancestors. It is completely backed up by evidence and requires no faith at all.

Whereas, religious folk, like Stockwell Day, has some sort of dinosaur rodeo envisioned with humans and dinos frolicking together. The only dinosaur in that imagery is Stockwell himself.

MUST SEE COMPANION WEBSITE www.welcometreeoflife.org

PS: Sorry about the video size not cooperating with my blog layout. I need to update so I can post widescreen video. Recommend this Post

Sir David Attenborough's Creationist Hate Mail

Sir David Attenborough has revealed that he receives hate mail from viewers for failing to credit God in his documentaries...

...Telling the magazine that he was asked why he did not give "credit" to God, Attenborough added: "They always mean beautiful things like hummingbirds. I always reply by saying that I think of a little child in east Africa with a worm burrowing through his eyeball. The worm cannot live in any other way, except by burrowing through eyeballs. I find that hard to reconcile with the notion of a divine and benevolent creator.

Nor can I reconcile that either. I also cannot reconcile the entire human race being attributed to a single inbreeding family with identical DNA. Yet it is the basis of all the Abrahamic Religions. Recommend this Post

Balls in Micheal's Court.

I see the Conservatives are maintaining a denial of women to fight for equal pay, a carryover from the poisonous December fiscal update. On top of that the budget completely fails those who have lost jobs and about to lose them.

An extension of five weeks for EI is useless because there is a group of people who decide what you get. I was given only 20 weeks after paying into EI for the past 9 years. So should I expect to now get 25 weeks? Of course not that's up to the group to decide. All they have now is an extension of the max a person can receive when considering their application. Nothing more.

As a Liberal, I cannot support this budget because of the women's pay equity issue. As a recently unemployed person I can no longer support my party if they choose to support this budget for political reasons instead of doing whats right.

Balls in your court Micheal, am I still a Liberal or just a liberal?

Shit or get off the pot. Recommend this Post

What I need in this budget

In the last 12 month period I have lost two jobs. The first position was one which I held for 7 years. After 2006, with a Conservative government, EcoAction funding was slashed. I lost two co-workers immediately, Over the course of the next two years funding continually dwindled to the point that I was notified I would also have to go in order for the organization to stay belly up. To avoid lay-off I managed to get another job and avoided having to apply for Employment Insurance. Failure on the Conservatives part to be truthful and actually do something to head of the worst of the recession resulted in a second job loss.

After 6 weeks I finally was approved for EI for only 20 weeks. A coworker with less hours than I and after only working 6 months received 30 weeks. Make sense? Not to me. After 8 years of paying EI I get diddly squat after 6 weeks of surviving on my own. EI covers my rent and student loans only. Yet I hear Harper is extending benefits to self employed women, a group who don't even qualify. Buying votes again, I see.

I know I will be recalled back to my previous job in March/April but the problem is that the EI program will not get me that far. All gains I have made since graduating will be wiped at that point. I will have exhausted my savings and may have to default on student loans.

What I expect to see from the government is that they treat the program as it should be, not as if it is being administered by Manulife Insurance. I paid in, so pay out. Give me the max coverage or from here on in stop deducting it from payroll. I'll bank it myself. Give an actual 55% of wages and do not cap it. Get rid of the waiting period and stop clawing back money should someone unfortunately luck into a part time service job. I don't want free money, I want to get from point A to point B without losing everything I have. I paid premiums for a reason. Its the least I am owed after the mess the current government has allowed to happen. I don't care about tax cuts because currently I and other unemployed people have NO INCOME!

I expect nothing from the current government, a continuation of what they haven't been doing is no surprise. My expectations fall squarely on Michael Ignatieff. He's talked a great deal about what he wants in the budget but hasn't said exactly what he will do if it doesn't contain what he wants. I expect Mr. Ignatieff to vote it down and go to an election or a coalition. I expect nothing else. This, to me, is a test of his leadership and whether I can support him as a leader of the Liberal Party. This time my party leader's choice will definitely affect my life immediately.

I hope I am not let down but I'm not holding my breath. Recommend this Post

Conservative Policy 2009: 20 minute fresh

In case you missed it. Mercer nails it again!

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"There is probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life."

This may be a slogan you see very soon in Toronto. The ad campaign spawned in England is spreading, surprisingly this is occuring because of the large amounts of donations coming in. I donated myself this morning.

I cannot wait for the outrage. There should be none. Religious conservatives have been saying what they want about others beliefs, lives, ethnic groups etc under the guise of "free speech. Lets see if they have a double standard. Actually I will bet they do. Recommend this Post

I hope this is not true.

Human rights groups say Israel is indiscriminately using white phosphorus in Gaza's densely populated areas. When ignited, the chemical can burn the flesh off of a person, down to the bone.



If this is true I guess we can through out the notion that we learn from our mistakes. Seems no one learned anything from WWII. Especially those who were treated most horrifically. Recommend this Post

We have a Winner...

...for the most idiotic opinion piece ever. Tom Flanagan says Canada is NOT a constitutional monarchy.

Here's a tidbit:

Canada changed from a constitutional monarchy to a constitutional democracy as the franchise was extended to all adults and political parties became national in scope. That evolution was recognized in 1982 in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Whats concerning is the revisionism seen in this piece, he completely reinvents Canada and its institutions. Not to mention the contradictions such as Harper using the means provided by our constitutional monarchy to prorogue parliament yet Flanagan would have us believe that we are not even a constitutional monarchy. Even worse, he doesn't even understand/refuses to acknowledge how our system even works.

I would say that the attempt to whitewash our understanding of our own government borders on treason in its attempt to change how our system works without actually changing it and trying to make us believe we have a system similar to the US. Misinform and take advantage of it to suit your needs.

We don't need any Anti-Canadian neo-con trash telling us what our country is or how it works.

I took democracy in high school Mr. Flanagan, you might want to try the course because your American super expensive education misleads you. Where did you go anyway, Liberty College?

Sheesh. Recommend this Post

8 months in...

My blogging duties have obviously fallen by the wayside. I haven't posted anything substantial since April, and I guess some will say I never have.

To the same sex marriage detractors who say its not really marriage if its two men let me say this, you know not what you speak about. 8 months into my separation I am just getting over the turmoil in my life. Losing a spouse is awful to put it mildly. It is said it takes 6 months to get over a death, well this is harder. That part of my life is dead but I see his zombie almost daily. A constant reminder, like salt in a wound.

The worst aspect is I have come to a realization that I no longer have an identity. After years who of conceding little bits of myself to placate another I find myself only with my man bits intact, nothing of an individuality left. Where is that sk8er boi gone? Where is my snowboard?

Where has the fun in my life gone? Once upon a time I couldn't choose between the daily options. Now I find myself always at home. A tired man getting older and now with gray hairs.

Half of the person I was for the last 7 years is gone and the other half is unable to stand on its own. No longer twenty something, I'm nearing the midway of my 30's. The biggest shock was accepting I wasn't that young guy with everyone's eyes fixed on me. Now I'm just background noise. When did that happen?

Being from out of the province, and meeting my future ex husband upon arrival, the only friends I had were friends of his. Did I mention his intense jealousy and my inability to even speak with a stranger? I shouldn't blame him, It's my fault for placating. No one to blame but myself. So not only am I husbandless, I find myself here nearly completely alone except for a few friends with extremely busy lives. All of them couples.

Who am I? How do I go up from here? How do I reclaim me and carve out a new separate future?

I'm sure I'll figure it out but I really hate this shit.

But I do know one thing, when I am back, no man will ever dismantle me piece by piece again.

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Oh and on the subject of politics:

Stevie Harper still sucks. Glad to see him running tail between his legs to have the Queen to save his demagogue ass. Nothing better than see a republican run to the monarchy. LOL. At this point does Harper even stand for anything at all? 30 billion dollar deficit. He's conceded on almost all fronts. Whats next? Will Stevie legalize marijuana? OMG What a loser.

Iggy rules. Period.

About the coalition. It was useful but like jumping in bed with people you don't know, the Liberals should be wary of what they might get. Recommend this Post