Late Afternoon, Lougheed House, Calgary AB

My Smart and soon-to-be-famous friend, Steve Brewer in England says...

This gorgeous post is a response to comments that were made in response to my FaceBook status today.

Steve and I talk lots but live on opposite sides of the Atlantic. I think he's brilliant and I'm sure, someday, he's going to be famous and is months away from being discovered.

My FaceBook status is: "As long as we allow 'they' to let religion and skin colour divide us, there will be no getting along. Religion and 'race' are social constructs designed and manipulated to divide and conquer us. 'god' and 'race' are both myths. Rise above."

There are loads of comments on there and I'm sure some commenters are not so thrilled with my replies - or the links to Richard Dawkins I put in my replies - but that's life.

Either you are willing to know all sides of an issue in order to argue your point well or you're not. It's like being pregnant; you is or you ain't.

Someone said there's no difference between racisim and 'incomeism' meaning how we treat rich/poor people. Someone also said that all people are racist to some extent.... That's when Steve weighed in (and read my mind). Names have been removed because despite not always agreeing with everyone, I LOVE my friends and their minds - and that they use them and that they're willing to participate in the dialogue.

"...., I'm not even remotely racist and neither are most of my friends. Racism is the belief that all members of each race possess characteristics or abilities specific to that race, particularly so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or races. I believe 100% that all people are different. A little bit is down to genetics, most of it down to experiences, but a lot is just who they are. Even identical twins are often totally different, and they're genes and upbringing would mostly be the same. We can't explain everything, I wish humans would give up trying to do so without any conclusive evidence whatsoever.

"...., don't be so nice - the MO of religion IS to not accept others as they are, there's no escaping it because it won't survive if it just accepts that people are born atheist and leaves them alone.

The whole point of evangelism is to convert people to their side and make them followers. Pretty much every religion (except maybe Judaism, I don't know) has it's own version of conversion and some of us are getting really sick of being advertised at to come inside and be loved by an imaginary being.

It's not comforting - it's patronising - that they think we're dumb enough to buy it and it's a fat waste of time and the whole industry could be put to use doing something so much more productive than just 'praying things get better because we happened to be asking God for it right now', because, you know, he's not quite omniscient enough to see we need help until us 'clever' humans happen to ask him for it.

Which [requests] he doesn't respond to by the way (with actions, we all know he doesn't respond in words) have you seen the news lately? Or ever? Ask and you shall receive. Yeah. Right. Tell that to Africa, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, South America, China, India or Sri Lanka to name a few. Tell that to Europe when the Romans were invading it.

Tell that to the Native Americans when Europe was invading it. Tell it to the indigenous people of Australia when the British were invading them. Tell it to the Jews and gays in Nazi Germany, and then tell it to the rest of Europe when it proceeded to invade them. In fact, tell all the people at various stages in history that if they'd only asked, they would have received. That is assuming that they didn't already ask, and I'm fairly certain the Jews would have asked during World War II.

Was God on vacation throughout the 1940s?

Not to mention, these religious converts are kidding themselves if they think they're getting a second and eternal life after they die. Talk about false promises. If you're selling your car, would you trust the buyer to pay you AFTER you signed over the registration? BIGGEST SCAM EVER. No, you won't, cuz he'll be long gone, just as every religious preacher will be when you're all dead and non-existent. Non-existent like you were BEFORE you were born.

Worse still, laws are decided almost wholly based on this invented, 2000 year old 'logic'. Laws concerning abortion, gay marriage/adoption and euthanasia to name a few. It's total manipulation used to convince people of a set of opinions that just aren't the way the world thinks any more, thanks to science and technology.

We all know that being gay isn't a 'sin' that people are tempted into by a demon; we all know that gay couples are just as capable of raising children and we all know that a baby in such an early stage of life is not alive enough to know what is being taken away from it. It's religious beliefs, not atheist ones, that still dominate and oppress large parts of the world today as it always has done.

So yeah, it would be wonderful if everyone would just accept everyone else's beliefs; if religious people would stop indoctrinating children while they're still young enough to believe whatever whack an adult allowed near them has to say; if cults/religions (totally the same thing by the way, no matter how much Christians deny it) stopped preying on vulnerable/uncertain people, offering them love, comfort and 'answers' in exchange for buying the crap they're preaching at them and the odd donation to pay their wages and maintain that shiny, prestigious location they congregate at once a week.

These people could donate this time and money to helping sick people or educating poor people and get the same 'happy' feeling, while actually DOING something about the problems in the world.

Religion AND race are just bad, ignorant ideas invented by people who knew a vast amount less about the world than we do now and whose motives may have been driven by times that were a lot tougher and more competitive than life is today. It needs to stop.

Because I Really MUST Know...

I was given the gift of a really great book this holiday. It's called "In My Humble Opinion; A Journal to Vent About Why People are Like That..." My mother gave it to me. Is it possible she has finally woken up to 1. I am super opinionated; 2. I'm the heathen's heathen?

You will surely be howling at the moment, thinking what an excellent book this is for me. It's a collection of quotes by famous people about how stupid other people are and why it is such shite to have to put up with 90% of the population. I could have written most of the quotes.

Fortunately, the book's editors have situated the quotes in colourful displays on the left page and have provided (me?) blank lines beckoning me to write on the right. Know know I'm gonna.

The publisher is KnockKnock in Venice CA if you're curious.

I've read most of the quotes in the book, but not all, so am not sure whether the issue of idiots who don't use their car's indicator - signal if you're in North America - may have been brought up (apologies to those who can't because they're missing both their arms or something). But it won't be discussed unless you contribute.

But I MUST know.

WHY don't you signal?

Why?

The indicator is right there, not 1/2 an inch from your left-hand pinky. The indicator provides such a simple, obvious solution to "How do I make sure people behind me know my intentions."

So this blog post is an open forum for all of you to tell me - and my readers - why you don't or won't signal.

Please contribute. It will be cathartic.

Of course, be anonymous. I don't need to know who you are. I just simply MUST understand why people don't signal. Seriously. This really, really, really bugs me so I figure if I can at least understand why people don't do it - and perhaps read the occasional rational reason one ignores such a simple, effective thing as signalling, the entire thing will bug me so much less. I hope.

The art on this page is from Local Girl's Day in Pictures, a hilarious blog with even more hilarious illustrations. It's a must read, so please do yourself - and Local Girl - the favour of visiting.

Also, please forward this blog to anyone you know is an 'infractor' of the non-signalling type. Tell 'em it's market research. Please.

Oh. And once you've posted, please consider that act as an act of contrition and of renewal and promise, from this day forth, to acknowledge that you are not, in any way even closely resembling a fact, alone on the road, more special than other drivers and that you will signal forever and ever, until death or age or bankruptcy separates you from your vehicle.

Merci.

Because this is still a big story... 'story' being the operative word...

Winter by the Bow River, Close up

'Kay, I don't know what these are. All I know is that they're small - very small; about 1cm in diameter or so. They grow all over the place beside the river and I'm sure they're green or something in summer. But now they're just dusted with very fine frost.


Same with these: They're prairie grasses of some distinction but, I'm a photographer, not a botanist so anyone who's reading this and knows what these grass are can please contribute names.

Thanks.

Les Pets de Soeurs

These are a very commonly eaten amuse gueule in Quebec. They can be made with puff pastry and other sweet, store-bought pastries but they're usually made with left over pie dough.

I had to laugh at the description on About.com for this photo; it's called 'Canadian Fart Recipe 1.'.... We have more than one fart recipe?? Who knew?

If you want a pie dough recipe, scroll down to the previous post for Tarte a l'onion.

These are the simplest things to make. Just roll out the pie dough to 1/4" thickness. Slather with BUTTER - yes, butter. Don't deprive yourself. Everyone knows French women don't get fat...

Sprinkle liberally with brown sugar, cinnamon and a couple pinches of ground cloves. I dust very, very gently with salt because it enhances the sweet.

Roll the dough tightly into a log. Seal the open end with a bit of water or egg white if you have some sitting around... Ok. water...

Slice into 1/2 inch wheels. Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet for 10 minutes at 350 F.

Eat when warm - careful, the sugar is HOT when it comes out of the oven. Yummy with milk. Or wine. Or beer. But, as they're nun's farts and all, maybe milk is the most pure...

Tarte a l'onion style Alsace

OK. I looked at a lot of recipes for this pie and I have come to the conclusion that this is a family recipe, meaning each family makes it their own way. This is MY way. There's no right/wrong, Gordon Ramsay be damned and yes, I WOULD win against him!

Here's what you'll need:

4 - 5 large onions - 2.5 lbs
1/2 package sliced, fatty bacon
Fresh Thyme leaves
18% cream or 33% if you want
2 large eggs
1 bottle of dark beer - any beer will do but dark is nice
Ground nutmeg
Ground cloves
1c grated Gruyère cheese
Pastry for pie shell
fluted pie plate - or your basic 12" pie plate.

Crust.
2 sifted cups unbleached flour
1/3 cup COLD lard or butter. NO, not margarine. It doesn't work.
1/8th tsp Creme of Tartar and NO do not skip this
1/8th tsp salt
1 egg yolk
1/4c ice water

Now do exactly what I say.

Sift the dry ingredients together
cut the lard/butter into smallish chunks, into the flour

Get your hands in there and start squishing the butter into the flour, rubbing the mixture with your fingers. Do this quickly so the butter doesn't warm up any more than it has to. It's right when it looks like really coarse oatmeal.

Mix the egg yolk into the water
Pour 1/2 the water into the dry ingredient

With a fork, stir the mixture up. Add 1/2 the remaining water and mix again with the fork. Scrumple the mix up with two hands. If it feels like it could be rolled out without breaking apart, it's done. If it needs a bit more water, add a BIT more. Once you can scrumple it into a ball, stick it in a plastic bag and put it in the fridge.

Now.
Heat a deep saucepan or dutch oven over medium high heat
Cut up that bacon across the strips into 1/2 inch pieces and then layer it into the bottom of your pan

Cut onions in half top to bottom and then into half rings. Doing it this way saves your fingers (because you're going to lay the flat side of the onions down before you slice 'em) and gives you nice rings.

Throw the onions in with the bacon, which should have begun to brown. Stir well to coat the onions with bacon fat; reduce the heat to just under medium. Stir occasionally as the onions cook down.

When the onions begin to be transparent, add a pinch of nutmeg and pinch of cloves; couple pinches salt and ground pepper. You can adjust these seasonings again later.

The onions will take almost an hour to caramelise over medium heat, so get a glass of wine and a book. Do not let the onions burn or stick. Turn the heat down if they begin to crisp. Meanwhile, open that beer, pour 1 cup into the onions and drink the rest. Turn the heat down a bit more, slap on a lid and drink 1/2 your glass of wine. Stir the pot occasionally.

The onions will turn a very gorgeous caramel colour. There will be liquid now, so take the lid off, turn the heat up slightly and let the liquid cook down.

While the liquid is cooking off, roll out your dough to a scant 1/4 inch thick circle (on a slightly floured board with a slightly floured rolling pin (an empty wine bottle works great too so get drinkin')

Place the pastry into the pie plate. The easy way is to roll the pastry over the rolling pin/wine bottle and then unroll it over the plate.

Pat the pastry nicely into the shell and then pinch the edges around the pie plate. Cut away the excess and save... you'll have lots of extra and I'm going to tell you next how to make Les Pettes de Soeur...

Now. Get a sieve over a large bowl and dump the onions into it - drain off the extra liquid.. just let it sit there for a spell. Pour the juices into a sealable container and then dump the onions into the bowl. Stick 'em in the fridge for 10 minutes to cool

Beat 1/2c cream with two eggs. Get the onions and mix the milk and eggs and 3/4c of the cheese into them. Then dump the whole lot into your nice pie shell. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top.

Bake at 375F for 40 minutes - and keep an eye on your pie crust... don't want it to burn. If it looks done in 35 minutes, take the pie out.

Serve with a salad. This serves six people easily.

Crazy Canucks Ice Fishing in Ontario

We are certifiable. We know. But we're hardy....

My town, downtown in winter...

First, a HUGE thanks to a very generous photographer, John Cornegge, for advice, graciously and willingly given.

You can find him at Think Orange Media John's work has appeared in a variety of very excellent publications and if you surf over to his site, you'll quickly see why.

These are photos shot in downtown in my city. They've been HDR'd. If you'd like to know what HDR is and how to do it, google it, or, better, got to any of:

David Nightengale (Chromasia) and Trey Ratcliff (Stuck in Customs), with John, are among the leading experts and users of this technique. I'll say it isn't difficult to do, exactly; however, it takes a lot of practice to make it excellent.

These photos were shot in this city's Plus15 system, which is the rabbit-warren-y conglomeration of interior walkways that link the majority of this city's down town buildings.

Some of our more vocal counsellors would prefer that we residents walk outside... but then, -30 with wind chill in the concrete wind tunnels outside make one very grateful for the above-ground maze. It's called Plus15 because it is 15 feet above the ground.

Christmas, or something like it...

Looking south from a Plus15 walkway that passes over a usually busy street. This was shot at about 3:30 p.m. December 5th 2009


Looking north from the same walkway. I love the clean, futuristic lines of this shot and also that a large trash bin is at the foot of the shot. Appeals to my skewed view of corporate life and what it does to humans....

My Really, For True, Award-Winning Cowboy Stew Recipe

Hi.

It's super snowy out and I'm having stew for breakfast. Really good stew because it is easy to make, delicious, low cal and very nutritious.

Now, before I give you this recipe, you must:
Promise to try it
Promise to pass it on
Promise not to give me any song and dance about how you don't like beans....

Ok here's how:

• 4 medium potatoes - russets/goldens, whatever. Just maybe not bakers. Thou shalt not peel...
  
• 4 large carrots, scrubbed and cut into 1/2 inch sections. Thou shalt NOT peel...
  
• 1 Large onion. LARGE I said. Softball size at least. Red or Vidalias are perfect. Ok peel...
  
• 4 stalks celery (washed, ok?)
• 2 - 3 cloves garlic, smashed (more if you like garlic or are married to a vampire and you want the night off....)
• 8 Honey Garlic or Mild Italian sausages. I use the Costco brand because they are delicious and come in flats of 10 or 11, which means you can have two just to munch on.Cook first, yeah? They're kinda chewy when raw....
  
• 2 Cans of chopped, stewed/spiced tomatoes - no-name brand is perfect
• 2 cans of Maple Beans - no pork, ok? The pork in those cans is disgusting.
• 2 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
• 1 TBSP sugar (balances the acid in the tomats)

Salt and pepper aren't super necessary due to the tomatos and the sausages being already seasoned.

Heat a LARGE pot - 4 litre size - to medium high; add 3 tbsp olive and/or canola oil

Chop the potatoes, celery and onions into bite-sized pieces (1/2"x1/2" or so); add to pot. Stir so the veggies brown but don't let them burn, ok?

Cut the sausages into 1" sections. Don't worry if the meat pops out. Add to veg and cook until the sausage is about 1/2 cooked... takes about 5 minutes.

Add in the canned tomatoes, beans, Worcestershire, sugar and any other seasonings you like... smoked paprika is really nice...

Bring pot to the boil and then turn the heat down to very low. On low, the mixture should be steaming but not doing much more than looking like it might think about bubbling.

Let the pot simmer for 1/2 and hour or so to let the flavours blend. While that's going on, cook up some rice - brown is best, especially if you cook it with some barley and spelt and wild rice (all those types take about 45 minutes to cook and that's no problem: your stew can simmer away for an hour and will be super scrumptious).

This makes enough stew for six hungry people. It freezes perfectly too. It will be fine refrigerated for three to four days, so you can have some for breakfast all week!

Given the weather in our city, you can leave your stew pot outside, where it will certainly stay cold and will probably freeze... ok.. no, don't do that. You wanna eat this stuff now, not in April...

No cowboys were injured or cooked in the making of this stew.....

The Debate - and the panet - heats up

With the release of thousands of revealing and damaging-to-the-cause emails out of Britain last week, the climate change debate is heating up big time.

Thanks to revelations that a whole bunch of 'scientists' who had lot (of money) to gain had greatly manipulated data - created 'data' in some cases - Gore and Family's machine is finally falling to pieces.

I spoke last week to Christopher Monckton (by email) about the ousting of the so-called scientists involved in this 10 year long scandal. "Good, clean fun," he called it, quite tongue in cheek, I'm sure, adding "I've reported them to the UK Information Commissioner."

In 2000, about four months before G.W. Bush took office for his first 'term' or whatever they called that monstrosity of an administration, author and long-time journalist, Jim Marrs' book, Rule by Secrecy, hit the book stores.

In that book, which came out several months before the US election that year, Marrs makes several predictions based on his extensive - and we're talking 40 years here - research.
1. That, amazingly, G.W. Bush would win the Election, despite Gore's viability
2. That Gore would go on to establish a world-wide 'event'.

That event is this ridiculous manipulation of certain realities - one being that the planet's temperature does fluctuate, all by itself with very little help either way from humans.

Al Gore's very lifestyle belies his postulations. IF he's so bloody sure sea levels are going to rise by 20 feet by 2012, why on earth did he last year buy a condo not six blocks from the ocean? Hm?

That website among MANY others takes a long, hard, SCIENTIFIC look at the realities of planetary climate fluctuations and establishes in reasonably simple language that the World According to Gore is an accounting closer to that of Alice in Wonderland.

By the way, humans account for only Zero POINT 6% (.60%) of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere, which is statistically insignificant.

Animals - those raised for food production are a FAR greater contributor to Co2 gasses, but still not in any significant or damaging way. Water vapours, due to the fact that water covers over 80% of this planet, are a far more significant factor in planetary warming and cooling.

This planet is currently exiting a short (in terms of the planet's overall age) cold spell, just as it did back in about 1700 or so.

Global warming has been a very, very effective way of diverting human attention away from other, much more serious issues - like how the global financial markets have been so manipulated and how incidents and wars are planned and executed and why.

Humans suck for their willingness to buy into any scary thing even when it is so obviously made up. Hence the popularity of The Blair Witch Project....

More Calgary Photowalk

As usual, these are absolutely copyright so don't steal 'em or copy 'em or anything, OK? If you want to buy copies, just simply let me know and I will get in touch and let you know how that can happen.

Otherwise, be a nice, honourable person or I'll have to go on a big 'ol rant and y'know how that goes, right? Not pretty....

These were all shot in Calgary in the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary area. Excellent fun except for the part where we were required, by a very grumpy, rule-huggin' guy, to leave the group's mascot - a gorgeous, quiet white dog - in the car. We asked... the dog says he doesn't eat birds and just wanted to go for a walk.... Oh well. No harm done.

Calgary Photowalk

Well well....

Hm...

Hide the decline? WHAT?

Yeah. Decline.

If you note the date of this email - 1999 - it will perhaps strike you, hard, that we've been lied to for 10 years so far.

ANYONE HAD ENOUGH?

From: Phil Jones
To: ray bradley ,mann@xxxxx.xxx, mhughes@xxxx.xxx
Subject: Diagram for WMO Statement
Date: Tue, 16 Nov 1999 13:31:15 +0000
Cc: k.briffa@xxx.xx.xx,t.osborn@xxxx.xxx

Dear Ray, Mike and Malcolm,
Once Tim’s got a diagram here we’ll send that either later today or
first thing tomorrow.

I’ve just completed Mike’s nature trick of adding in the real temps to each series for the last 20 years (ie from 1981 onwards) and from 1961 for Keith’s to hide the decline.

Mike’s series got the annual land and marine values while the other two got April-Sept for NH land N of 20N. The latter two are real for 1999, while the estimate for 1999 for NH combined is +0.44C wrt 61-90. The Global estimate for 1999 with data through Oct is +0.35C cf. 0.57 for 1998.

Thanks for the comments, Ray.

Cheers
Phil

Prof. Phil Jones
Climatic Research Unit Telephone +44 (0) xxxxx
School of Environmental Sciences Fax +44 (0) xxxx
University of East Anglia
Norwich Email p.jones@xxxx.xxx
NR4 7TJ
UK

The Death Blow to Climate Science

I am reposting this from another link - The Canada Free Press site - because it is critical information.

WE are being lied to and our Canadian PM is overseas, posed to give away critical parts of Canada's autonomy and right to governance without interference from an overseas board.

I don't know how else to say it other than please, people, stand up. "Someone else will fix this," is NOT a good plan.

Further information and extensive, supported research HERE.


Hacked files of the Climatic Research Unit, Global Warming a deliberate fraud

Dr. Tim Ball Bio Print friendly E-mail a friend Contact Us

By Dr. Tim Ball Saturday, November 21, 2009

Global Warming is often called a hoax. I disagree because a hoax has a humorous intent to puncture pomposity. In science, such as with the Piltdown Man hoax, it was done to expose those with fervent but blind belief. The argument that global warming is due to humans, known as the anthropogenic global warming theory (AGW) is a deliberate fraud.

I can now make that statement without fear of contradiction because of a remarkable hacking of files that provided not just a smoking gun, but an entire battery of machine guns.

Someone hacked in to the files of the Climatic Research Unit (CRU) based at the University of East Anglia. A very large file (61 mb) was downloaded and posted to the web. Phil Jones Director of the CRU has acknowledged the files are theirs. They contain papers, documents letters and emails. The latter are the most damaging and contain blunt information about the degree of manipulation of climate science in general and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in particular.

Climate science hijacked and corrupted by this small group of scientists

Dominant names involved are ones I have followed throughout my career including, Phil Jones, Benjamin Santer, Michael Mann, Kevin Trenberth, Jonathan Overpeck, Ken Briffa and Tom Wigley. I have watched climate science hijacked and corrupted by this small group of scientists. This small, elite, community was named by Professor Wegman in his report to the National Academy of Science (NAS).

I had the pleasure of meeting the founder of CRU Professor Hubert Lamb, considered the Father of Modern Climatology, on a couple of occasions. He also peer reviewed one of my early publications. I know he would be mortified with what was disclosed in the last couple of days.

Jones claims the files were obtained illegally as if that absolves the content. It doesn’t and it is enough to destroy all their careers. Jones gave a foretaste of his behavior in 2005. Warwick Hughes asked for the data and method he used for his claim of a 0.6°C temperature rise since the end of the nineteenth century. Jones responded, “We have 25 years or so invested in the work. Why should I make the data available to you when your aim is to try and find something wrong with it?” He has stonewalled ever since. The main reason was because it was used as a key argument in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Reports to convince the world humans caused rapid warming in the 20th century. The emails obtained are a frightening record of arrogance, and deception far beyond his 2005 effort.

Another glimpse into what the files and emails reveal was the report by Professor Deming. He wrote, “ With publication of an article in Science (in 1995) I gained sufficient credibility in the community of scientists working on climate change. They thought I was one of them someone who would pervert science in the service of social and political causes. So one of them let his guard down. A major person working in the area of climate change and global warming sent me an astonishing email that said. “We must get rid of the Medieval Warm Period.” The person in question was Jonathan Overpeck and his even more revealing emails are part of those exposed by the hacker. It is now very clear that Deming’s charge was precise. They have perverted science in the service of social and political causes.

Professor Wegman showed how this “community of scientists” published together and peer reviewed each other’s work. I was always suspicious about why peer review was such a big deal. Now all my suspicions are confirmed. The emails reveal how they controlled the process, including manipulating some of the major journals like Science and Nature. We know the editor of the Journal of Climate, Andrew Weaver, was one of the “community”. They organized lists of reviewers when required making sure they gave the editor only favorable names. They threatened to isolate and marginalize one editor who they believed was recalcitrant.

Total Control

These people controlled the global weather data used by the IPCC through the joint Hadley and CRU and produced the HadCRUT data. They controlled the IPCC, especially crucial chapters and especially preparation of the Summary for PolicyMakers (SPM). Stephen Schneider was a prime mover there from the earliest reports to the most influential in 2001. They also had a left wing conduit to the New York Times. The emails between Andy Revkin and the community are very revealing and must place his journalistic integrity in serious jeopardy. Of course the IPCC Reports and especially the SPM Reports are the basis for Kyoto and the Copenhagen Accord, but now we know they are based on completely falsified and manipulated data and science. It is no longer a suspicion. Surely this is the death knell for the CRU, the IPCC, Kyoto and Copenhagen and the Carbon Credits shell game.

CO2 never was a problem and all the machinations and deceptions exposed by these files prove that it was the greatest deception in history, but nobody is laughing. It is a very sad day for science and especially my chosen area of climate science. As I expected now it is all exposed I find there is no pleasure in “I told you so.”

---

You can download the climate change fraud documents from the link below:
http://www.filedropper.com/foi2009 or http://www.megaupload.com/?d=003LKN94

Today, CBC Radio Calgary ran an item from New York on the 1:00 Calgary news (radio). Colleen Underwood's newscast ran a piece wherein the speaker reported that C02 is the highest ever and rising rapidly.

This is patently false.

MANY reliable research sources show extensive information on periods in history (we're talking in the last 1000 years) when geological and ice research shows points when C02 concentrations were some 20 times the levels they are now.

Notably, the last time atmospheric C02 was at high levels corresponded with a period of sustained economic and intellectual growth - evidence of which is cathedrals (and other buildings of course) throughout Europe and the UK.

This planet is currently coming out of a short, mini-ice age, in reality.

If CBC is going to continue reporting on global 'warming' will it PLEASE insert some balance in the form of alternative but as important research.

In particular, perhaps CBC could consult with any of Christopher Moncton, who spoke at the Calgary Chamber last month and who was instrumental for four years in Margaret Thatcher's government; or CBC might consult with Dr. Ian Clark, University of Ottawa. His reply to my email question is HERE. I note that little ol' me was able to contact him, ask a question and get a coherent answer, so CBC must also be able to, armed with resources as they are.

There are many, many other resources. ALL MUST be considered if we are to have a non-corporate/politic-driven comprehension of when, why and how the planet warms and cools.

Humans are responsible for approximately POINT 61 percent of C02 in the atmosphere. Also to note, unless China and India are on board in a SIGNIFICANT way, the entire rest of the world can live naked in unheated shacks and spear their own food and it will make absolutely NO difference at all to atmospheric C02 concentrations.

Even if we in the 'first' world ceased driving all together, if we continue to eat animals at the rate we do, whatever atmospheric issues we have will not be even remotely affected - the way the 'first' world manages livestock for food is dirty, polluting, unsustainable and far worse than whatever vehicles are.

CO2 is NOT the big baddie it's been made out to be.

Water vapour is a FAR more interesting question and unless we intend to drain the oceans, which cover 80% of the earth's surface, we cannot, cannot, rhetoric and scare tactics aside, alter anything to do with planetary warming or cooling.

Who Put The Swine in Swine Flu?

I spoke today to a VERY reliable source regarding the current national push to have everyone vaccinated against H1N1.


Some points to consider: if you've done even the most rudimentary research, you will know

• that a vaccination this year protects you against whatever you've just been stuck for - but not until next year.
• That a vaccination got while you're already sick or if you've been exposed is moot: your body is going to develop antibodies due to exposure/sickness; the vaccine isn't going to do a thing
• Any vaccination is a possible prevention, NOT a cure.
  

What you may not know - and this is from my source and corroborated by a media hack who spoke off the record - is that the media has been pushing this 'issue' for eyes - meaning it's been an excellent way to get readers, viewers and listeners.

You may not also know that the current batch of Tamiflu that's been shilled via media-created panic has a best before date of 2010. Yes, folks you read that right. Best Before.

What that means is that the makers of Tamiflu must get rid of their stocks before the vaccine passes that date or they lose money. Profit.They'll have to chuck it all in the bin and Big Pharma does not like to waste (...their money. The shareholders hate that.Yours? Yeah, they're all over that).

So, if you're Big Pharma with a lot of profit to potentially lose, what better way to make sure that doesn't happen than to take advantage of a very in-trouble media by encouraging them to incite panic, leading you, Joe and Josephine Canada and you, Joe the Plumber, to tear off to the nearest long lineup of potentially ill people, where you wait for a nearly expired dose of vaccine that won't protect you from anything this year.

The other thing you must do is make sure you have the governments on side - because they're who's paying for us Canadians to partake - and to make sure said government takes all responsibility for any outfall a la 1976.

History: in 1976, the makers of Tamiflu had done their 15 - 20 years of lab testing and now needed mass human trials of a vaccine they were pretty sure was safe. Usher in scary new term - Swine Flu - and yes, media-induced panic and voila, sheep, disguised as people rushing off to get stuck. In the US about 300 people died from the flu - pretty average and something that happens every year. But in 1976, over 4000 people in the US launched lawsuits on their own behalf because they'd become debilitatingly ill from the vaccine, or on behalf of their family members, who couldn't do it themselves - because they had died from the vaccine.

Speed forward to 2006 and the makers of Tamiflu are stockpiling in anticipation of an outbreak, which didn't happen.... speed forward to early 2009 and Big Pharma's becoming desperate to get rid of their soon-to-expire stocks. Losing money is NOT Big Pharma's gig and certainly not in the midst of a recession....

Today at about 10:00 a.m., CBC Radio Calgary ran an interview with a doc who stated that "H1N1 is not even as virulent as the regular seasonal flu.".... Really. Hmmm...

Getting the picture?

Both Health Canada and Alberta Health Region have some suggestions for keeping yourself healthy: wash your hands often and use sanitiser; keep your hands away from your nose, eyes and mouth; cough into your sleeve to prevent the spread of airborne particles; stay away from large crowds; stay home if you're not feeling well. And last on the list? "CONSIDER" vaccination.

If, after reading this, you realise that you are one of those sheep disguised as people, you may be cured by passing this article on.

Many thanks to SodaHead.com for their great photo. Please have a look at the video on their site: it's called "Doctor Admits the Vaccine is More Dangerous than Swine Flu

Wanna Know What I've Been Up To???

Writing. For MONEY! And shooting too.

I've spent the last six months honing my craft. I've writing for The Reflector, The Calgary Journal and The Strathmore Standard. I've had a proper lashing from a well-known editor of a major city daily - and by the way, I heard via the very juicy grapevine that I won that round, despite what she said to/about me in her blog...

Anyway, here's the link to the Calgary Journal Archives. Anything with Julie in the headline is me. Now you know.

Oh yeah, I've been Twittering a BUNCH. It is absolutely the fault of all my interesting 'tweeps' that I've neglected this blog... ok, that and writing for three papers...

Follow me on twitter if you want. I still say all sorts of provocative things, just in 140 characters...

Vaccinating Mount Royal

Vaccinating Mount Royal

The 'pigs' who are really benefiting from H1N1

Check this LINK for more via www.snopes.com

SWINE FLU is a conspiracy. Do NOT go running off all freaked out about it. People are making money, as usual, from you being terrified.

I was cringing...

Lately I've been watching TV, which is to say paying more attention to the advertising. What strikes me, as 'civilized' countries are crawling out of a recession, is the amount of advertising that would encourage us to buy completely unnecessary crap.

Certain items stick out particularly: skin creams for women; creams that scream they'll make us younger when they plainly will not and cannot and will simply deprive us of money. Second is the cleaning product and scent market. WHY do we need these? Seriously. Why? They are costly items, they don't smell good and they put chemicals into the air and onto every surface we touch. And we wonder how we're getting cancer....

But over riding all of that is the utter blindness we have, certainly in Canada, the US and Britain to what constitutes real poverty. That $40 pot of cream - that 1 ounce jar - costs what amounts to 20 days' work for many, many people.

TWENTY DAYS' WORK.

Can you comprehend? That means many, many of us are spending 20 days' work on a pot of chemicals that will do nothing other than put poison into our bloodstream.

Those little pots of room freshener that cost $6? That is three days' work for some people. For what? So we can breathe in what cannot in any way be considered a safe to breathe product.

We are stupid. We consume anything in our path no matter the cost to ourselves, our planet and to the 95% of the rest of the human race that has nothing. That part of humanness that knows poverty - the kind that doesn't allow you to play bingo twice a week because you can get food at the foodbank. The kind that doesn't allow you to smoke a pack a day. The kind that means you watch your children die from lack of food rather than making them eat Kraft Dinner so you can go to the casino.

We're fat because we, like cattle, consume until there is no more - except in this country there is never going to be 'no more.'

We suck.

I'm embarrassed by our abundance and horrified at how cavalierly we waste the immensity of our fortune.

Goodbye my loyal friend

Christopher Monckton of Brenchley: Trudging intrepidly Through a Sea of Corporate Lies.

I had the great pleasure of hearing Christopher Monckton of Brenchley speak at the Westin on Thursday.

Monckton is a polarizing figure in climate 'science' fields due to his excellent research and presentations regarding the lies and manipulations that make up the climate debate.

There is no debate and, to quote, there is no apocalypse. There are those who benefit from the utter misrepresentation of figures and facts - Al Gore being one - and many, the entire planet otherwise, who stand to lose a great deal.

Already, the baseless science and changes related to it have caused widespread starvation in some areas of the planet; places you probably haven't heard of and places the media (probably hasn't heard of either) won't talk about. People who live in those places are disposable.

I have posted links to a variety of articles on Monckton's site. Look in Archives in the right side menu of this blog for the top three items.

I encourage you - no, IMPLORE you to educate yourself about how science and figures and facts have been criminally manipulated by a select few, Al Gore being a significant player.

Just sayin'

It is much the measure of a person's character when they cannot rise above their personal issues with another to speak a comforting word when that other is suffering.

Requiem

Our very loved dog, Charlie, was badly injured tonight, while doing what he loved to do - chasing a ball in his own back yard. The vet says he exploded a disk in his mid back, which essentially paralysed his hindquarters. There was the option of surgery but no clear guarantee of success - not enough of a guaranteed to warrant Charlie being in pain and unable to walk.

Charlie was a happy accident in many ways. He was born on a farm north of Calgary, the result of a farm accident between dogs living on neighbouring farms. We found him at Petland in Westhills on a trip to buy cat food. Charlie made us love him the second he put his little snout under my chin when I picked him up at the pet shop 10 years ago.

Charlie loved all humans. He was, I think, convinced humans were there to serve him, service being throwing a ball. He never met a human he didn't like, given that there was always that ball tossing possibility.

Charlie logged many, many kilometres with me on my runs. We haven't calculated but he certainly ran hundreds of Kilometres as our intrepid and focused training partner.

Tonight was no different than any other night. Charlie blasted out the back door like a runner off the block, headed for the middle of the back yard hoping I'd toss his ball, which I did. Seconds later, he was on the ground, paralysed and screaming in pain due to an exploded disk in his mid-back.

There was a possibility of repair but that required serious surgery and many months recovery and physiotherapy. For a dog who was only still when he was asleep - and sleep was not a priority when the humans were awake - to be still and unable to run was not going to be an optimal situation. Nor was the reasonable possibility Charlie would not walk again, so we made the terrible, terrible decision to let him go.

He was just a dog. I know. But those of you who knew him will know that he was utterly unique; a dog who's major frustration was that he could not speak.

My heart is so broken tonight.

Origin of Stupidity

Kirk Cameron and his banana friend are adding - UNLAWFULLY, I might add - 50 pages of utter crap to Origin of Species.

The upshot is they're giving away 50,000 copies free.

If you are anywhere you can get a few, PLEASE get as many as you can comfortably handle, rip out the 50 pages (and yeah read them if you must...) and donate them to anyone who needs ass wipe or fire starter...

Old Hairy Rock
Named for Mr. Hairy, not because the rocks are hairy on top...
Mrs. Hairy has fallen into the sea.

Poole Harbour

Under the Magdalen Bridge, Oxford, UK

Found on the street...

Photos from Enlgand.

Just in case you're wondering, these are copyright and you can't use them unless you ask me - and pay me in most cases - first. So don't, ok?

Thanks.

The Millar, Wokingham.

The ubiquitous bike. Found everywhere in Oxford, it being a university city full of starving (car-less) students - and professors.

Typical student housing in Oxford.