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December 30, 2004

Canada finally comes through

Yesterday Ottawa either bowed to public pressure or finally came to its sense. The federal government announced an increase to its Asian Tsunami aid package making it a credible, if not yet creditable, $40-million. Today, several provinces including Ontario and... More...

Posted by maxthecat at 08:48 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack | Printer-friendly version
Filed in: Politics / Canada

December 29, 2004

What is Canada waiting for?

With the death toll from the weekend's massive earthquake and tsunami now surpassing 60,000, the focus of the relief effort is now to ensure the effected areas have safe drinking water and medical facilities. Canada has a special military unit... More...

Posted by maxthecat at 08:44 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack | Printer-friendly version
Filed in: Politics / Canada

December 28, 2004

Oops!

Okay, I got taken in... It turns out the the home computer in 2004 (as seen from 1954) was a hoax. It's funny, now that I know what to look for I can't believe I fell for it. Many thanks... More...

Posted by maxthecat at 11:06 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack | Printer-friendly version
Filed in: Science and Technology

December 25, 2004

Even I am in the Christmas Spirit . . .

... well, sort of. Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!... More...

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December 23, 2004

Google's top ten for 2004

What do Britney Spears, Paris Hilton, Christina Aguilera, and Pamela Anderson have in common? Well they were the top 4 search queries on Google this year. Google has published its top searches for each of the last four years and... More...

Posted by maxthecat at 10:46 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack | Printer-friendly version
Filed in: Science and Technology

December 22, 2004

I couldn't agree with you more, Howie

Ontario's NDP Leader, Howard Hampton, says Ontarians are fed up with Dalton McGuinty's attempts to impose a "nanny state." In today's National Post, Mr. Hampton says, "People do not want [Premier] Dalton McGuinty or [Health Minister] George Smitherman telling them... More...

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Filed in: Politics / Ontario

I've shut down the forum

I've been considering closing the forum on this site for a few weeks now because it never really caught on the way I hoped it would. The last straw, however was the Santy worm which is using a programming exploit... More...

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Filed in: Site Updates

December 19, 2004

And the Idiot of the Day Award goes to...

An Italian man on a flight Sydney, Australia to Vienna caused a major security panic when he sent his wife a text message telling her his plane had been hijacked. The man's wife contacted authorities who eventually got in touch... More...

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Filed in: Strange Stuff

Santa's Approval Rating still strong in BC

77% of British Columbians approve of Santa Claus' job performance according to an Ipsos-Reid Poll released this morning. That rating puts St. Nick ahead of Prime Minister Paul Martin and BC Premier Gordon Campbell who enjoy approval ratings of 64%... More...

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December 17, 2004

More trouble for Sgro

Immigration Minister Judy Sgro was probably thanking her lucky stars. The Fall Session of Parliament had ended and MPs, the media and the general public were turning their attention away from her woes and onto more important things. What she... More...

Posted by maxthecat at 10:03 AM | TrackBack | Printer-friendly version
Filed in: Politics / Canada

A place to debate the language

Perhaps you are an English teacher concerned by the incredibly poor use of the language displayed by your students and the increasing creep of slang into serious writing. Maybe you think the gatekeepers of the language (the dictionary publishers) have... More...

Posted by maxthecat at 09:40 AM | TrackBack | Printer-friendly version
Filed in: Science and Technology

December 16, 2004

Blunkett resignation should be a lesson to Sgro

Yesterday, Britain's Home Secretary David Blunkett resigned because he may have fast-tracked an immigration matter. The British media have been all over the Blunkett Affair for months now. First it was about how he had an affair and fathered a... More...

Posted by maxthecat at 09:53 AM | TrackBack | Printer-friendly version
Filed in: Politics / World

December 15, 2004

There is something seriously wrong with the economics of the NHL.

For years, the National Hockey League Players Union was able run the table against the team owners and the league in the course of collective bargaining. They successfully made the economic argument in favour of their demands with a simple... More...

Posted by maxthecat at 10:51 AM | TrackBack | Printer-friendly version
Filed in: Sports

From across the pond...

Here are a few items from Britain that caught my eye. Wonderbra recalls bra after cleavage plunger pops LONDON (AFP) - The creator of cleavage-making Wonderbra said it was recalling its latest invention after women complained their bras were snapping... More...

Posted by maxthecat at 10:37 AM | TrackBack | Printer-friendly version
Filed in: Strange Stuff

December 10, 2004

Desktop search war begins next week

You may remember the First Browser War in the mid-1990s (Microsoft won that one), the Search Engine War has subsided (Google came out ahead) despite the periodic sabre rattling from the various factions, and the Second Browser War is underway... More...

Posted by maxthecat at 10:08 AM | TrackBack | Printer-friendly version
Filed in: Science and Technology

December 8, 2004

The home computer in 2004 (as seen from 1954)

This clipping from a 1954 issue of Popular Mechanics shows how RAND Corporation scientists thought the "home computer" would look in 2004. So they were a little off... Take a closer look and read the caption. Hmmm, teletype and... More...

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Filed in: Science and Technology

Pity your local Publican

Pub owners in Canada are feeling the pinch. With the National Hockey League lockout continuing without any end in sight, there is now clear evidence it is having a detrimental effect on the bottom lines of business across the country.... More...

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Filed in: Sports

"Yes Men" say "No"

On Saturday I asked the Yes Men to apologize for their hurtful hoax on the people of Bhopal, India. This was the response from Yes Man Mike Bonnano: Hi Max! People are stil (sic) dying still from the effects of... More...

Posted by maxthecat at 09:34 AM | TrackBack | Printer-friendly version
Filed in: The Media

December 4, 2004

"Yes Men" without remorse for hurtful hoax

The Yes Men think they are clever. They think they are combating the evils of "Corporate America" and world financial institutions with hoaxes designed to embarrass them. Oh, and did I mention they think they are clever? A quick read... More...

Posted by maxthecat at 09:54 AM | TrackBack | Printer-friendly version
Filed in: The Media

December 2, 2004

Sushi Ban to come to an end

Finally, common sense has prevailed in Dalton McGuinty's government. After a more than a month of consultation about a policy the government should have consulted on in the first place, the McGuinty government and its hand picked Chief Medical Officer... More...

Posted by maxthecat at 08:47 AM | TrackBack | Printer-friendly version
Filed in: Politics / Ontario

December 1, 2004

A waste of air time

With the American President visiting Canada, I suppose it was inevitable that newsrooms here would waste their resources covering the American networks' coverage of the meeting. The whole annoys me nevertheless. One Toronto TV station ran footage at noon showing... More...

Posted by maxthecat at 09:04 AM | TrackBack | Printer-friendly version
Filed in: The Media