Taliban Credited With Bringing Down Rahim Jaffer!

Or at least "the Islamists". Apparently, they teamed up with Michael Geist and the folks at AnyoneButHarper.

So says Raheel Raza , at any rate:

In two districts (ridings as they are called in Canada) the Muslim candidates who lost were openly hostile to the Islamist agenda. Wajid Khan in Toronto and Rahim Jaffer in Edmonton. It is rumored that the full force of the Islamist establishment and the mosque structure came out to defeat these two Muslims because they were seen, in the words of one cynic 'too good looking to be considered authentic Muslims'.

I'm not buying it. Wajid Khan is plenty ugly.

A Second Stripper Emerges

November 7, 2008 09:25 AM - A second adult dancer has come forward to file a human rights complaint against the owner of a Mississauga strip club, alleging she too was fired because of her age.

[...]

Sanderson, who used the stage name Bridgette, has been dancing since 2001. She worked at Locomotion for seven months. But, on June 13, she claims she was terminated because she received some bad reviews from customers who called her "old and ugly."

Ouch!

Luckily, there are men's-club aficionados somewhere along the air-port strip with a little more class. Bridgette has found other work.

And, as for me, it looks like I've found a new cause. If Nazis were involved somehow, I'd be in heaven.

Denier On Denier Action! Lorne Gunter Burned By Climate Change Crazy!

For a climate change denier, the most important thing is getting your case "out there"--floating around the blogosphere, linked to by Drudge, unattached to a particular source and, therefore, irrefutable. Graphs get re-purposed, flawed arguments get re-hashed long after their shortcomings have been painfully exposed.

Perhaps, then, the National Post's Lorne' Gunter will be thrilled to know that his Feb. 25th, 2008 column "Welcome to the new ice age" was given a 2nd life by one F. William Engdahl of the Centre For Research on Globalization.

From Lorne Gunter's "Welcome...":

China is surviving its most brutal winter in a century. Temperatures in the normally balmy south were so low for so long that some middle-sized cities went days and even weeks without electricity because once power lines had toppled it was too cold or too icy to repair them.

From F. William Engdahl's "Global Warming gets the Cold Freeze ":

China is surviving its most brutal winter in one hundred years. Temperatures in the normally mild south were low for so long that some middle-sized cities went weeks without electricity because once power lines had toppled it was too cold or too icy to repair them.

From Lorne Gunter:

There have been so many snow and ice storms in Ontario and Quebec in the past two months that the real estate market has felt the pinch as home buyers have stayed home rather than venturing out looking for new houses.

From F. William:

There have been so many snow and ice storms in Ontario and Quebec in the past two months that the real estate market has been hurt as home buyers have stayed home. In just the first two weeks of February, Toronto received 70 cm of snow, breaking the record of 66.6 cm for the entire month set back in 1950.

From Lorne:

The ice is back.

Gilles Langis, a senior forecaster with the Canadian Ice Service in Ottawa, says the Arctic winter has been so severe the ice has not only recovered, it is actually 10 to 20 cm thicker in many places than at this time last year.

From F. William:

Now, as a result of the recent record cold weather, the ice is back. According to Gilles Langis, a senior forecaster with the Canadian Ice Service in Ottawa, the Arctic winter has been so severe the ice has not only recovered, it is actually 10 to 20 cm thicker in many places than at this time last year.

Lorne (a long one this time):

According to Robert Toggweiler of the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory at Princeton University and Joellen Russell, assistant professor of biogeochemical dynamics at the University of Arizona -- two prominent climate modellers -- the computer models that show polar ice-melt cooling the oceans, stopping the circulation of warm equatorial water to northern latitudes and triggering another Ice Age (a la the movie The Day After Tomorrow) are all wrong.

"We missed what was right in front of our eyes," says Prof. Russell. It's not ice melt but rather wind circulation that drives ocean currents northward from the tropics. Climate models until now have not properly accounted for the wind's effects on ocean circulation, so researchers have compensated by over-emphasizing the role of manmade warming on polar ice melt.

Last month, Oleg Sorokhtin, a fellow of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences, shrugged off manmade climate change as "a drop in the bucket." Showing that solar activity has entered an inactive phase, Prof. Sorokhtin advised people to "stock up on fur coats."

He is not alone. Kenneth Tapping of our own National Research Council, who oversees a giant radio telescope focused on the sun, is convinced we are in for a long period of severely cold weather if sunspot activity does not pick up soon.

The last time the sun was this inactive, Earth suffered the Little Ice Age that lasted about five centuries and ended in 1850. Crops failed through killer frosts and drought. Famine, plague and war were widespread. Harbours froze, so did rivers, and trade ceased.

F. William:

There is also admission by several intellectually honest climatologists that their predictive models are flawed. Robert Toggweiler of the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory at Princeton University and Joellen Russell, assistant professor of biogeochemical dynamics at the University of Arizona, two very prominent climate modellers, recently admitted that the computer models that show polar ice-melt cooling the oceans, stopping the circulation of warm equatorial water to northern latitudes and triggering another Ice Age (as in the fictional movie The Day After Tomorrow) are wrong.

In a recent interview Russell said, “It's not ice melt, but rather wind circulation that drives ocean currents northward from the tropics. Climate models until now have not properly accounted for the wind's effects on ocean circulation, so researchers have compensated by over-emphasizing the role of man-made warming on polar ice melt.” Now that’s very interesting.

When professors Toggweiler and Russell reprogrammed their model to include the 40-year cycle of winds away from the equator, then back towards it again, the role of ocean currents bringing warm southern waters to the north was obvious in the recent Arctic warming.

Russian climatologists believe recent weather changes around the globe are results of solar activity and not man-made emissions. Oleg Sorokhtin, a fellow of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences, calls the argument for man-made climate change "a drop in the bucket." His research shows that now the recent very active solar activity has entered an inactive phase. He advised people to "stock up on fur coats."

Kenneth Tapping of Canada’s National Research Council, who oversees a giant radio telescope focused on the sun, is convinced we are in for a long period of severely cold weather if sunspot activity does not pick up soon. The last time the sun was this inactive, Earth suffered the Little Ice Age that lasted about five centuries and ended in 1850. Crops failed through killer frosts and drought. Famine, plague and war were widespread. Harbours froze, so did rivers, and trade ceased.

Now, the stuff in this last paragraph is a load of baloney, and only demonstrates the maxim that a lie can get all the way around the world before the Truth gets its boots on. What Kenneth Tapping actually said can be found here. The original source of the bullshit version was the Feb. 9, 2008, Investors Business Daily, retailed uncritically by Gunter later in February, and then by Engdahl in April.

As for F. William Engdahl, he is known for (among other things) his theories re the Abiogenic origin of petroleum. An ex-peak oiler, he now believes that oil and gas supplies will never run out.

H/T CW, who did most of the legwork.

Just To Get It Off The Table

I'm beginning to think Winnipeg may become the most hilarious city in Canada next week.

Skeptics Jump Gun On Hurricane Activity

Perhaps discussions of the 2008 hurricane season should wait until the end of the 2008 hurricane season? That is how they do it in Science, isn't it?

Or was a bunged-up headline on Drudge more important?

Your Daily Nazi: CPoC Will Debate Freeing The Neo-Nazis!

Whoopsie! Looks like I spoke too soon! The Speechy Wars are back on!

Mind you, resolutions made by the grass-roots are usually ignored by the party, and in any case I imagine the delgates won't frame the issue as being how the CPoC should make it easier for Neo-Nazis to organize in Canada. They will probably refer to it as a "resolution to keep Ezra Levant in pay-pal donations". Or something of that nature.

h/t NN and FD.

Peace In Our Time!!! Speechy War Finally Over!!! Speechys Lose!

Conservative draft policy resolutions here. Run the terms "free speech", "HRC", and so forth and you come up with doodly!! Nothing, you hear me, Ezra and Connie? You hear me, Mark (and Marc)? Bupkiss! Sweet FA!

And if the Tories won't touch that stuff, nobody will!!

Big h/t to National Newswatch!

Tories Hiding Convention Policy Resolutions

From a Tory insider, courtesy Kadey's comments:

I was just on the phone with the CPC Convention office, and the policy resolutions will only be handed out to delegates on their registration in Winnipeg. I guess this will be part of the convention package, or whatever we will be given when we register.

The resolutions are supposed to be very similar to what was discussed at this summer's regional convention in Que. Anyone know what happened there? Any resolutions to please the Speechy Warrier?

This is an update to this post.

Its Tough All Over For Polar Bears

One objection climate change skeptics raise in regards to the attention paid the Polar Bear--for example, attempts to have them designated an endangered species-- is that, for many sub-populations, there is too little data available to determine the status of the animal. For example:

2) the Chukchi/Bering Sea population (CB, shared with Russia, half in US territory) is tentatively estimated at 2,000 ─ no population survey has yet been done (Aars et al. 2006).

Well, perhaps there has been no survery, but it seems the Chukchi population is indeed threatened:

Polar bears are dying out in the remote Arctic region of Chukotka because of melting ice and increased killing by humans, an expert with the International Fund for Animal Welfare warned on Friday.

The guy doing the warning here is Nikita Ovsyanikov, whose spent a couple of decades studying the bears around Wrangle Island, off the Coast of Russia. Here are a few of his articles on the subject.

So Far, A Whole Lotta Nuthin'

There's been some disgruntlement from rank and file Tories lately over next week's policy convention in Ottawa. For one thing, nobody knows what policies are up for discussion. There are those who feel this is amounts to a deliberate:

...some party members say it's an attempt to muzzle grassroots supporters who might espouse views that could embarrass the Harper government.

"They want to control the message. They don't want people talking about things that aren't scripted," said party member Connie Fournier, co-founder of the popular conservative blog, freedominion.com.

And, as Kady O'Malley noted yesterday, November 5th was the last day for posting the package of constitutional resolutions to go forward for consideration at Convention 2008. Well, those have finally appeared, and dull stuff they appear to be.

Nothing on policy yet, but there doesn't seem a required posting date for the CPoC policy document.

Important news in that, depending on what appears in the Tory policy document, it may well be possible to declare an end to the Speechy Wars. That is, if the Conservatives don't want to propose some kind of "Free The Nazis" amendment to their policy document, the chances of Ezra and Connie and the gang actually accomplishing something on the political level fall to pretty much zero. Here's hoping.

Obama's Election Pays Off Immediately For Canada

OTTAWA — Canada hopes to achieve a North American climate-change deal with U.S. president-elect Barack Obama and will begin working on the file within weeks, Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon said Wednesday.

Meantime, officials told The Canadian Press the Harper government has been waiting for the departure of President George W. Bush to work with his successor on an integrated carbon market.

I believe that Ed Stelmach has come out against even a national, let alone international carbon trading regime as being against Alberta interests. Certainly, Alberta companies will have to buy the lion's share carbon credits if anything like this goes through. Tory on Tory violence?

Good-bye Bradley Effect, or: BCL Admits Error

I am one of the Liberals bobvis calls out:

During the primaries and shortly after, I heard a number of people (liberals) say that Barack Obama would not be elected because when it comes down to it, the Americans are just racist. People will say that they like his ideas and will vote for him, but once they go to the voting booth and ask themselves whether they want the old, white guy or the black dude, they just aren't going to vote for the black man. Some said 'Obama must build a substantially large lead' to hope to avoid the Bradley Effect in November.

These are falsifiable predictions.

If Obama is elected, will they revise their beliefs to account for the evidence that disconfirms their prior beliefs?

I will happily admit to being wrong about Obama back in January of this year. I honestly didn't think he had a hope of beating the Republican nominee. However, a well run campaign, a tanking economy, and many, many Republican mis-steps put him over the top. In fact, I am not even sure about the Bradley Effect holding true in this election. RealClearPolitics gave Obama a 7.5% edge over McCain on November 4th, and the actual spread according to Fox--52.35% Obama vs. 46.35% McCain--came in a bit below that (5.99%). Can this be attributed to anything in particular? I don't know. Certainly, if there is was a Bradley Effect in play, it was a very small one.

Human Rights Battle Moves To The Strip Club, Part II

I'm a bubbly blond with a good personality. The boobs and the blond hair, usually you can't go wrong in a strip club with those two things.

The link contains additional information, including remarks from Ms. Ouwroulis on her case (in the comments) and this new picture.

Meanwhile, commentary from the Ottawa Citizen.

Ujjal Wins By 20

First word of the result here.

Looks like the judge was right: spending all that money, opening all those boxes, didn't get Wai Young the votes. A waste, then?

Update: Its, been a long day and I'm not sure I'm coherent enough to explain why this case bugs me. But if our judge made his initial decision on the basis of some kind of probabilistic metric (this many boxes, this many total rejected ballots= no chance to make up 22 votes), then we are not seeing a triumph of democracy. We are seeing a cyber mob that had to have it proved to them that math actually works, and who eventually nudged the Tory candidate into un-conceding in their attempt to challenge the foundation of statistical reasoning in the name of democracy.

Naturally, math won out.

Flaherty: Quebec Dumped, Ontario Now Cutest Province

Ottawa - Faced with public finances are deteriorating rapidly, the Harper government announced yesterday that it changed the formula to slow the rising cost of this program for the provinces. Résultat: le Québec est légèrement désavantagé. Result: Quebec is slightly disadvantaged. Par contre, l'Ontario touchera pour la première fois de la péréquation, faisant ainsi son entrée dans le club des provinces pauvres au pays. As against, Ontario will receive the first of Equalization, making his entry into the club of poor provinces in the country.

Don't worry, Quebec. We'll take their money and still not vote for them.

HOLY FUCKING SHIT!!! Obama THE ANTICHRIST??

Canadian Catholic novelist Michael O'Brien, best known for his apocalyptic novel Father Elijah, think's he's got our ultra swarthy Spawn O' Satan pegged:

...now that I have seen the video of the Berlin speech I think there is more here than meets the eye. He is indeed a powerful manipulator of crowds, even as he appears ever so humble and wholesomely charming. I doubt that he is the long-prophesied ruler of the world, but I also believe that he is a carrier of a deadly moral virus, indeed a kind of anti-apostle spreading concepts and agendas that are not only anti-Christ but anti-human as well. In this sense he is of the spirit of Antichrist (perhaps without knowing it), and probably is one of several key figures in the world who (knowingly or unknowingly) will be instrumental in ushering in the time of great trial for the Church under its last and worst persecution ...

In fact, not only is Obama the Anti-Christ, or at least the Anti-Christ's cousin, Ghost of a Flea has even more alarming news:

Barack Obama's first job out of Columbia was for a firm called Business International, a Scientology front name if I have ever heard one.

Does this mean John Travolta will be in the Obama cabinet--maybe as Under Secretary for Partying Down? That might good. Stars and Stripes is boring. Maybe he could drop it for something by the Bee-Gees.

Anyway, GoF isn't finished yet:

Barack Obama is a Manchurian Candidate. He has been groomed for this mission since before he set foot in the United States. He cannot become President of the United States.

So Barack's down with both L. Ron Hubbard and the Chinese? I'm a little confused, frankly. Were the Chinese at all into Disco? Maybe Obama should just keep S&S, thrown in a guitar solo and have someone rap the middle verse.

Finally, how does this mere negro hold sway over good, upstanding, red-state, corn-fed Christians the way he do? Answer: he's working some kind of Black Bullshit, some voodoo whammy....He's using hypnosis, gawdammnit!!! There's 60 pages of evidence!!! Can you not see, you pathetic clowns?

Obama’s techniques are the height of deception and psychological manipulation, remaining hidden because one must understand the science behind the language patterns in order to spot them. This document examines Obama’s speeches word by word, hand gesture by hand gesture, tone, pauses, body language, and proves his use of covert hypnosis intended only for licensed therapists on consenting patients. Obama’s mesmerized, cult-like, grade-school-crush-like worship by millions is not because “Obama is the greatest leader of a generation” who simply hasn’t accomplished anything, who magically “inspires” by giving speeches. Obama is committing perhaps the biggest fraud and deception in American history.

Read the whole thing! Obama can't become President! If he wins he's gonna go on TV and make America act like a chicken!

H/t dawg.

Ujjal Dosanjh Hanging On!

"Mr. Dosanjh is still leading by 21 votes," explained Dosanjh's lawyer, Ravi Hira.

A change of one vote since all the kerfuffle broke out. Has democracy been served, or Conservative Conspiracy theories indulged because one their candidates was too dumb to know they had thrown in the towel already?

With 80% if the polls counted, Dumb is looking like a good bet.

Please Let Her Win At The OHRT

It would give people a reason to visit Mississauga.

Anyway, you should never be judged on your age, only your talents and work ethic.

There Goes The Neighborhood

The owners of Parkway Mall, a shopping centre on Victoria Park Avenue for a half-century, want to completely redevelop the site and add 2,200 residences, a Scarborough councillor says.

That's where I shop. If you know this part of Toronto, Parkway Mall and Parkway Plaza are now slated to go condo, and rumours have Eglinton Square next up for re-development.

Both [concepts for the property], he said, call for 2,200 residences - some in townhouses but most in nine buildings of eight to 21 storeys - on the 18-acre Ellesmere Road property.

The mall itself, including a grocery store Thompson said has significance as a heritage building, would largely be removed and replaced by 100,000 square feet of new retail and about the same amount of office space, he said.

Ugliest heritage building you've ever seen, if true. That line won't convince anyone to leave the place standing. Still, they want to add 2,000 people and replace almost 300,000 feet of retail with about a third of that. Slowly, they're trying to herd everyone to the new Walmart on Eglinton.

Global Warming And The U.S. Election: The People Vs. The MSM

Austin, Texas-based, Global Language Monitor (GLM) documents, analyzes and tracks trends in language the world over, with a particular emphasis upon Global English.

During the 2008 U.S. Presidential Election cycle, GLM has tracked the "Top Political Buzzwords of the 2008 Presidential Campaign" in an effort to determine what concepts are driving the vote. For example, during the 2004 elect, GLM was the only source to predict that the

...electorate voting with their moral compasses rather than their pocketbooks.

This year's result is particularly interesting when it comes to the concept of global warming or climate change:

The second-most discussed term of the campaign barely surfaces in most media reports, and this is the combination of ‘Climate Change’ and/or ‘Global Warming’....Global warming within 1/2 of 1% for the overall lead.

The overall lead word, incidentally, is "change".

What's interesting about this is the brief gloss provided by GLM: The second-most discussed term of the campaign barely surfaces in most media reports. Since the GLM covers a combination of what the campaigns are saying and what the media are saying about the campaigns, what we see here is a disconnect between what the campaign senses the people want to hear discussed, and what the MSM is willing to tell them.

The situation is reversed with the concept of race. The media is obsessed; the folk, not so much

Everyone is talking about race (No. 16) except, apparently, the electorate.

The people smarter than the press? The campaigns (both of them, apparently) more responsible than the press? Seems to be. Once again we are let down by our informational "gate keepers".