Got game? Not anymore!

And now, the moment you have all been waiting for... for six years now? It's truly a sad day in Canada if you care anything about sports, but in a way it's almost a relief. The Expos franchise has been living on a few years of borrowed time anyway and it's almost a relief to see them go. No more anxious waiting and hoping to see if its fortunes will get any better. But look at where they're going. Washington D.C.! Out of the frying pan... Here's a modest proposal for Canadian cinema. From A & L, an inspirational portrait of a Russian writer, and a long post of the beginning of modernism as we know it, according to one man, another long post, which doesn't matter if you can't read it anyway, and the American government's report. One review of one person's explanation of the decline of journalistic standards (strangely no mention of Geraldo Rivera), and what was so great about Che Guevera anyway? One detractor's view. Any memories you would like to share about the Expos? Feel free to say so.

Still in the pits

The school paper forgot to include the right link. Small details, I guess, so apparantly it's just me reading this for now. So I got to meet retired amateur boxer Rickey Anderson on Sunday at the Word On The Street Festival, where he was reading from a book he had written. Plenty of inspirational stuff in there. Also, I bought a bunch of things, like a new bag and T-shirt and a bunch of magazines. I don't know if I'll ever get around to reading them. Afterward, I walked up to Park Lane, where I saw some short documentaries. A couple of them affected me in a sort of personal way, one nearly put me to sleep. It was the one on bluegrass music here on the east coast. I don't wish to disrespect it in any way as an art form, it's just a little slow for my taste. The first two docs involved people with whom I am acquainted with. One was by someone who documented her grandmother's recovery from a fall, which showed her brothers who are local musicians, and the other one was about the "Jest In Time" troupe. One of them is a cousin of a cousin, and I saw one of their shows, but I must confess that I didn't get it. Tuesday, I went to some other short films. This time, they were not docs, well, a couple of mock-docs, one of which goofed on a certain Mr. MacIsaac, the other was an admittedly lame, cliche ridden short about a boy born with one eye in the centre. As for the others, one was a disturbing and surrealistic portrait of a family tragedy, ... and one which I can't really comment on because it involved some people I know personally. As to what's going online at the moment, first, an excerpt from Jon Stewart's new book. It's LOL without compromising history (not too badly anyway). John Kerry is taking a position and sticking to it, but the day is not over yet, George W. Bush's apparently pure intent, not compromised by facts, and just how bad of a waffler is Kerry anyway? Here is a back and forth memo between two scribes, one on either side. The speech W gave the other day was not as bad as last years'. On the other hand, a ray of hope, and an example hopefully others will follow.

No title today

I must respectfully disagree with Mr. Annan. While the Gulf War may have been a lot of things, one thing it wasn't was illegal. Even though it is increasingly clear that Saddam had only intended to restart his weapons programme, but wasn't able to. So what am I to make of Harper's Magazine?Apparently it's getting too extreme. Here's a book review of someone who seems a little too sure of himself, a tract of someone who believes in social safety nets, much to the consternation of free market purists; a view of Michael Moore from a truly egalitarian source, and what does Islam really need anyway?

What I learned in school today

Dr. Peter March asked why anybody bothers to get married, because as an institution, it doesn't really work. I often think that myself. People change too much over time, and ultimately grow apart. Actually, I've often thought about settling down and having some children myself, just not anytime in the near future. I would need to be totally self-dependant and be able to provide a stable home like I had. In the meantime, I'm happy being single and there seems to be no stigma attached to it these days. Changing gears, this is a review about a book on Abu Ghraib, which apparantly does not answer one important question, but does the reviewer condone torture? What do you think?

OOPS! Classes start tomorrow (for me, the day after)

Apparently, I read something wrong, again. I was worried that I was getting late for class even though I was sure that I was in the right place. So I had to go to the info desk to ask where my class was, but it was she who told me that classes actually begin tomorrow. Ah well. Today's menu consists of: a positive review on a book on the Holocaust which tries to explain how it happened as opposed to why, second, what I consider to be a very important history lesson, a really independant voice, sometimes so independant he feels defensive and alienated from everyone, and another independant with his counter-point. This is a convincing argument for American hegemony by Niall Ferguson, even though the U.S. tends not to learn even from her own history, and an interview of Peter Singer. On Newsweek, some other dissenting views on what I believe to be a guerilla type of war, where the rules of engagement do not apply, and an apparently empty vision by Dubya, the cause of the spike in oil prices that has nothing to do with the Saudis, and where did the occupation of Iraq go right anyway?

School's in, next Tuesday

I'm registered for two courses this coming semester, and the next semester as well, and my mind is more ready than ever. It already feels like fall outside, and it wasn't even that good a summer. Oh well, 'tis time to begin anew. From Arts and Leters Daily, a roofing contractor in Brooklyn, NY makes a case against the gun lobby, not that he intended to, it's just that he was suprised with the ease with which he was able to acquire high-powered weapons and ship them to the former Yugoslavia, the appearance of impotence or indifference of world powers of Iran's quest to get the Bomb, and the often quotable Winston Churchill, a man whom I admire greatly, but with serious reservations. One of which is quite relevant at the present time, his opinion on Arabs and Iraq. So who the hell is Leo Strauss, and why does he have such a devout and powerful following? This is one man's unflattering opinion, and an ongoing saga of a tale of two countries, which increasingly seem to have more similarities than differences.

Hopefully, a detente between Left and Right

First, an interview by MotherJones magazine of Niall Ferguson (!) I may have been loathe to admit it a year or so ago, but much of what he says makes sense. A nuanced view of feminism, Superwoman v/ Supermom, an informed POV on 3/11 in Madrid, somewhat convoluted beliefs on Islam, a long philosophical treatise on mind and body, and reviews on books critical of the current Bush regime, which I have not had a chance to finish as of this writing, because it's a really looong piece.

Waiting for Jason

First, a long piece on literary criticism, second; some healthy skepticism about the environmental movement, and finally today, a sort of re-emergence of the Left.

Rainy Days and Mondays...

Spent last night at Mom and Dad's. Did a little socializing (probably too good a word for it) at Boston Pizza. Just drank a large mug of beer and played video games (not VLTs, haven't touched those in 5 years.

Today, I delivered a couple of letters, had some coffee and a samosa at a new fair trade place on Barrington Street. It's a good day to be indoors. Have more business to take care of in the city. I just learned today that I can be as bold as I want, as long as I'm not disappointed or crumble like a card castle. It's not enough I have to pretend, I have to and can not look let down. Be stoic and indifferent. Whatever, big deal!

What's still there right now, some book reviews, beginning with: a bit of left-wing sanctimony, a normally cool-headed right winger loses it, a review by Terry Eagleton on the seeming compatibility of fascism and capitalism, a mostly good book about how "The war to end all wars" still affects us today, and a bad polemic from someone whom you can't tell which side he's on anyway.

Here's a convincing argument as to why the continent of Africa is still going south. And some optimism, or is it manicness?

This n' that

Been having some trouble lately with my palm pilot. It should have backup power or something in case I don't replace my batteries fast enough. I was sure that I had recently backed up my information on Dad's computer, and that the files were synchronized, but I had forgotten to check my date book. Anyway, I found this fascinating link (or at least, fascinating to me) about whether Shakespeare was really a racist and anti-Semite. I was taught that he was, but according to this article, both Shylock and Othello were fully fleshed out characters and not full blown, one-dimensional stereotypes. Others wrote that way at that time, but those beliefs did not really have a chance to develop until much later. Shakespeare was, well, I hate to use the word 'liberal' here, but he was not a bigot. At best, he believed in racial and sexual equality (Taming of the Shrew). Othello was painted as a gentleman whose main flaw was gullibility, and that was also the main fault of Marcus Brutus. Shylock was partly a stereotype, being a Jewish moneylender, and overall he was not a nice person, but he was no less than human, and there were earthly reasons he was the way he was.

And here's Woody Guthrie, with all his human failings. I've grown to like Pete Seeger better.

Mocking the Holocaust, from a Jewish perspective.

Lastly, I went to my childhood home where they were having a yard sale. I didn't bother to tell them that I used to live there, I just bought a CD off them. And it was on that day I went over to Mom and Dad's current abode and did what I thought was a complete updating of my Palm in case of emergency.