Category Archives: politics

Scrutiny on the count, eh?

(Long post alert! Sorry!) Regular readers will know all about my passion for politics, a passion that was dampened only slightly by seven years of voteless pre-citizenship residence in Canada and that has ramped up again recently thanks to a … Continue reading

Posted in Canada, current affairs, environment, personal, politics, technology, Uncategorized, Vancouver | 19 Comments

A week in grant wrangling

Following Frank’s excellent example, it seemed like a good week to present a week’s worth of daily bulletins about what I actually do for a living. As I alluded to in my last post it’s the busiest time of year … Continue reading

Posted in Canada, career, current affairs, English language, furry friends, grant wrangling, personal, photos, politics, science, silliness, travel, Uncategorized, whining | 15 Comments

This.

(“Federal scientist unfairly silenced, union says” – CBC News) I wonder how long this whole social media experiment of direct communication with The People will last… (My favourite comment on the cat photo album: “Please don’t eat this one, Prime … Continue reading

Posted in bad people, Canada, communication, current affairs, environment, furry friends, politics, science | 13 Comments

No con/census consensus

Dilemmas, dilemmas… life is full of them. However, there are two in particular that are causing me much internal debate at the moment: The census It’s census time in Canada! Every household in the country is obliged to fill in … Continue reading

Posted in activism, bad people, Canada, current affairs, personal, politics, rants | 17 Comments

Let there be lights!

I’ll take even the smallest of victories in this benighted week… Way back in December 2007, I wrote to the city to request a stop light at a dangerous intersection on my bike route; the Ontario Street bike route crosses … Continue reading

Posted in activism, cycling, politics, Vancouver | 23 Comments

Get out and VOTE, CANADA!

Later today I will vote for the first time in Canada, and for the first time anywhere since a Glasgow by-election almost 11 years ago. Anyone who knows me even a little bit knows that voting means an awful lot … Continue reading

Posted in Canada, current affairs, personal, politics, rants | 52 Comments

Are left-wingers more creative? Are multi-party systems superior to two-party systems? Do provocative titles attract more readers and comments?

Let’s see: a Canadian federal election, an electoral reform referendum in the UK, a new opposition leader and talk of an early provincial election in British Columbia, and lots of coverage of the likely US Republican party presidential candidates, all … Continue reading

Posted in blog buddies, Canada, current affairs, politics, silliness, UK | 48 Comments

Weekend fun: my next tweet

Many, many thanks to Kimli for alerting me to “That Can Be My Next Tweet!“, a tool that creates mash-ups of bits and pieces of your most recent tweets to create much hilarity. My twitter stream is kinda schizophrenic at … Continue reading

Posted in Canada, communication, current affairs, cycling, English language, politics, science, silliness, technology | 35 Comments

It’s Friday, Friday!

Yesterday was Thursday! Tomorrow is Saturday! And Sunday comes afterwards! (Lyrics courtesy of a strong contender for The Worst Song Of All Time: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CD2LRROpph0 I’m so happy about today’s events (more on that later) that I no longer feel depressed … Continue reading

Posted in current affairs, drunkenness, food glorious food, music, photos, politics, silliness, videos | 27 Comments

Crashing through the block

I’ve had a bad case of blogger’s block lately, brought on by a double whammy of: 1) the worst cold I’ve had in years (which is also my third cold in 2011, ugh), and 2) News Paralysis – the state … Continue reading

Posted in current affairs, meta, personal, politics, sport, videos, whining | 15 Comments