Saturday, May 31, 2008


Once a week, whether you need it or not, you've got to run 10k (otherwise known as "just over 6 miles", if you live south of the border). It'd be helpful if you'd run some shorter distance at least once or twice during the week, but... Thank heaven for my bicycle.

David Byrne rides a bicycle. So does Calvin Trillin. Just a couple of location-specific examples. Otherwise known as not-so-subtle nagging.

Meanwhile, there is, as always, more news from Stupidsville. Florida and Michigan Democrats were told not to hold their primaries early. They went ahead anyway. Naturally, the party said, "Well, kids, we told you not to. You were just trying to show off, to look more important than you actually are. Well, your votes don't count. Everyone else was willing to play the game, but, ooooooh no, not you. No, no, no - you're too special. Wrong-o, kiddies." So, in what's really a gesture of conciliation, the Democratic party has said, "O.K., you made a mistake. You acted like a bunch of spoiled children, but - hey - we'll forgive you. But, you don't get full votes. You get half votes." The response? Well, some of these idiots promptly began chanting for McCain! Yep - just what the country needs - more tax breaks for the rich, another 4 years, minimum, in Iraq, an eagerness to tilt the Supreme Court just a little further toward the neo-Nazi right.... Oh, yeah, that's what America needs. Heaven forbid that people should behave like mature adults. "Oh? Hillary lost? Well then, we're gettin' behind Obama, our party's candidate, to get rid of the current right-wingnut and see to it he ain't replaced by another." Who are these people, and why, oh why, do they have any say whatsoever in who might run the country?

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Friday, May 30, 2008


White, white, and more white. Gees.

Thursday, May 29, 2008


Lordy, I hope the saying, "Only the good die young" isn't true. The signs, I have to admit, aren't looking good. How old is Henry Kissinger? How old was Augusto Pinochet when he died? Dick Cheney seems to be hanging in pretty nicely. Nevertheless, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that Tony Clement - our very own Health Mangler - will be the exception. Yep, science isn't good enough for him; the law isn't good enough for him - nope. Only God's will that these hideous addicts burn in hell is good enough for a staunch representative of the Refor...er....Canadian Allian.....er, um.......Cons.....no, um, er, um.......Christian Cretin Party.

On the other hand, his continued existence, and that of his compatriots in cretinism, is at least proof of the non-existence of god. Any god worth his/her/its salt would have "called" these pinheads "home" a long, long time ago.

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Wednesday, May 28, 2008


Need something amusing to read? Try "Boomsday" by Christopher Buckley. I, however, good boomer that I am, plan on pushing my "transition" date as far back as possible.

Tuesday, May 27, 2008


Being someone who teaches various courses in biology for a living, you can imagine how this little piece of news makes me feel. Wow, is there ever a lot of work to do. Not to mention hard drinking.

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Monday, May 26, 2008


Isn't it awful when everyone else seems to know what's going on, and where they're going, and you're just kind of clueless?

Sunday, May 25, 2008


Zipping by this little scene on the bus, it's comforting to think, "I'm zipping by this little scene on the bus, my expensive camera in my lap, heading back to my little apartment, a good meal and a glass of nice wine." "Comforting" in a discomforting kind of way.

Meanwhile, further data on the "Hillary's Gotta Go" front. Bary didn't say he'd agree to anything without preconditions. He just said he'd be willing to talk without preconditions. Provided, of course, preparatory talks had indicated that there'd be anything to actually talk about.

At this point, after suggesting that Bary might be up for a hit in L.A. (No, that wasn't actually what she was trying to say. But, the question remains, just what the hell was she trying to say?), a gaffe that Bary has declined to take advantage of, I'm thinkin' Hills isn't the quickest thinker in this race. Or, as she herself might say (it seems), not the brightest knife in the woodpile.

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Saturday, May 24, 2008


And then there's this story. Let's see....people sick and in need vs. religious fervor and stupidity (O.K. - they're synonymous, but...). Well, we know how this one's going to go.

Friday, May 23, 2008


I took this photo a looooonnnnngggggg time ago (yep, gettin' to the bottom of the barrel here, too), but, wouldn't you know, it's suddenly relevant. Every day, in every way, it's just becoming more and more obvious that Hilly really, really, really needs to just go home and chill out. Let's face it, would you pick a person who'd commit a gaffe like this for a running mate? Someone who'd slip up this badly in charge of some delicate negotiation? I don't know about you, but I'm beginning to understand what sank the hopes of universal health care for American citizens during the Clinton administration.

And, on the lighter side of terminal (literally) stupidity, we have this story. Surely a nominee for the 2008 Darwin awards, don't you think?

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Thursday, May 22, 2008


Beginning on the "Good News" front, for those of us who are of advanced chronological status, there's this story. To which all I can say is, phew!

And, of course, there's always the age-old question, "Why do they never, ever learn?" Why do politicians insist on kissing up to the religious right? These are the dumbest of the dumb, the world champions of hypocrisy, and yet politicians (O.K., it's mainly an American phenomenon, but that's only because, for whatever reason, America has more religious loonies per square mile than any other country outside of Iran) keep trying to please them. And then the politician acts all surprised when the raving lunatic whose endorsement he or she was trying to get turns out to be...well.....a raving lunatic. Wow! Who'd'a thunk?

Lastly, on the "Let's Keep the Dream Alive" front, Bill seems to be thinking Bary might pick Hilly as his running mate. Well, maybe. But I wouldn't go puttin' a whole lot of money on the idea. Bary, so far, seems to actually have some class (you have no idea how big a concession that is for me to make regarding a politician). Hilly, on the other hand, has shown herself to be rather severely lacking in that quality. Me? I'd love it if he'd pick Al Franken. Which, I suppose, might be complicated by the fact that Mr. Franken is running for the Senate. Well, whichever - he's a smart, good guy. People in Minnesota ought to vote for him next fall.

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Wednesday, May 21, 2008


You can go up, or you can go down. Guess which way the administration at Virginia Commonwealth University chose? Evidently, as long as there's money to be had, they'll suck up to the scum of the Earth, no problem. I can't tell you how much it pisses me off when sleazy swine like these drag my profession into their scummy little pig sty.

Oops. Just before shutting down at the end of another long, hard day (well, O.K., not that hard), I came across this news item. Interesting result from a bunch of folks who elected (sort of) Smirkin' Stevie Harper. Of course, he was elected with the same sort of majority that his idol, Dumbya, was elected with. That is, a minority.

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Tuesday, May 20, 2008


Hillary! Quit it! Give up, already! It's got nothing to do with sexism or racism. People just like Bary better than you. Get over it. When you lost the first few times, it was because Barack was "black". Now, in a change of story, it's because you're female. Trust me - this sort of continuing stupidity is what's cost you the nomination. Nobody cares anymore about that kind of thing. Nobody under 40, anyway. Nobody under 40 with an I.Q. higher than that of the average small soil invertebrate. And, to tell you the truth, nobody of any age or race who's got at least the brains of a goose cares. In other words, the only people worrying about whether a woman or a man, a white person or a black person, wins the Democratic nomination are Republicans.

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Monday, May 19, 2008


I just finished watching the second half of "The Sorrow and the Pity". What an amazing film! It's mostly old coots (well, O.K., some of 'em probably weren't much older than I am now when the film was made, but.....uh-oh) remembering what they did in a small town in France during World War II, but, trust me, it's incredible. Why? Well, the self-delusion some of them indulge in, for one thing. The bravery of some of them, for another. And the "just plain folks" nature of all of them, good and bad, 24 years after the end of the war. Some of them continue to believe, despite the overwhelming evidence of the evil of their actions, that they were right, or, at the very least, innocent of wrong-doing. Others who realize their mistakes and, in trying to make some small amends, urge contemporary (in 1969, though, obviously, the same advice would apply now) young people to be careful of their enthusiasms. I'd bet that there are a lot of veterans of Bush's idiotic war in Iraq who would identify with these folks. They thought they were being patriots, but, instead, they were simply duped by leaders who exploited their youthful idealism for evil purposes. But, all of them - survivors of a terrible time - at the time of filming just "folks". Trust me, there's a lot to gain from seeing this movie.

Sunday, May 18, 2008


As at least 2 people who read this little blog regularly know, I'm a big Woody Allen fan. I've seen "Annie Hall" probably a few more times than is actually healthy, which means that I remember one of the final scenes pretty well. In it, Alvy is talking about running into Annie, months after their break-up, taking her new guy to see "The Sorrow and the Pity". Well, guess what film I stumbled across in my local library. Yep - "The Sorrow and the Pity". If you think I wasn't going to check it out, you're crazy. First, if you're ever in need of a relationship-tester, this is it. It's a great movie (so far), but it's 5+ hours long! Can you imagine sitting through that in a theater?!? In addition, contained within its 5+ hours is a lot of the worst that humanity has to offer - cowardice, greed, cruelty, self-delusion - you name it. It's not a pretty picture. On the up side, there are a lot of examples of human bravery, loyalty, and courage, so the news isn't all bad. Still, if you've somehow managed to get this far in life with an optimistic view of the essential goodness of your fellow human beings, well, if you want to preserve that little fantasy, don't watch the movie. For everyone else, watch the movie. It's very, very good.

Saturday, May 17, 2008


Just another sunny day in Vancouver. Not that I took this shot today, mind you, but that's beside the point. It was, indeed, a sunny day. And hot! Up to 30 degrees (for you Fahrenheit folks to the south, that's hot, trust me). Fear not, though. By Monday it'll be back down to half that. Not so hot.

Friday, May 16, 2008


Well, as if anyone in the U.S. needed another reason to not vote Republican in the fall, there's this story about John McStupid sucking up to Murder Incorporated. Just once I'd like to hear someone come up with a justifiable reason for this group of idiots. How is it that they run so much of American politics? This is a mystery to those of us who live elsewhere.

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Thursday, May 15, 2008


Somehow, I don't think so. On the other hand, evidently the Republican party's nominee for President (not to mention the current Bonehead in Chief) disagree. This is a vision?!? A nightmare, maybe, but - a vision? In who's version of hell? How many more Iraqis will die in the 4 years McStupid is willing to wait after he gets elected president? (I'd also wonder about how many more young Americans will die, but, get a grip, Iraqi deaths are in the tens of thousands. American deaths total a piddly (unless you're their parents, of course) 4,000.) Yep, leadership is what the Republican party is all about.

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Wednesday, May 14, 2008


Hmmmm, at first I was thinking that this picture didn't have any connection to this little news item. But then I remembered the tobacco industry's furious attempts to bury the evidence on tobacco's detrimental effects on health. The really terrible thing is, at least the tobacco folks are just scum who don't care how many people suffer as long as they get their dough. Here, it's a bunch of incompetent goons - the RCMP - killing innocent people because the officers are too stupid to do their jobs properly. Where's Sgt. Preston and King when you really need them? Mr. Webster seems to be trying, but I'm not going to hold my breath waiting for things to change.

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Tuesday, May 13, 2008


Here in Vancouver, some folks are suffering under the delusion that hosting the winter Olympics will be a wonderful thing. Of course, for a very few, a few who are already rich, it will be. For the rest of us, and especially for those at the extreme end of the "less fortunate" category, they're most likely to be a disaster. Oh, well.

In the States, another potential disaster is unfolding. Hillary Clinton, obsessed with being "THE" candidate for the Democrats, continues to fight a losing battle for that party's nomination for Presidential candidate. Evidently, she wants to win so badly she's willing to scuttle the Party's (and the nation's) chances for a Democrat win in November. Very sad, but not unexpected. She is, after all, a politician. Oh, well.

Monday, May 12, 2008


It's just a pond, folks. It'd be pretty nifty if it were part of some river system, some quiet backwater that those so inclined could float along in their kayaks or canoes, but it's not. It's just a fairly tiny pond. Still, in the middle of a big city, it ain't bad.

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Sunday, May 11, 2008


A beach, blossoming trees, a sunny day - what more could anyone ask? Really.

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Saturday, May 10, 2008


You know, you can have all the ingredients - nice park, picnic tables, beach, mountain views - and still be missing that one, vital component. Don't you hate that? I sure do.

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Friday, May 09, 2008


Open? Closed? How hard can it be to choose? Or is this just another case of Signs in Rebellion?

Thursday, May 08, 2008


Not that anyone in America needs it, but, what the heck, one more reason to vote Democrat in November. Not that the guy's crooked or anything. Heck, no.

Wednesday, May 07, 2008


I was on my way to buy coffee, honest. I was not thinking of Hillary Clinton's campaign when I took this picture of the loose lid of a dumpster. I promise. Still...

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Tuesday, May 06, 2008


By accident, this is sort of a photograph for Hillary Clinton. The sign by the door on the left is the entrance to "The Crying Room", and Hilly ought to just - for the love of god! - give it up, and go have a good cry. The Democrats need to win in November and the sooner they can focus on that instead of flogging the dead horse of the Clinton campaign into the ground, the better their chances will be. So, Hilly, what's it gonna be - you and Bary fighting tooth and nail into, what?, October, thereby sinking the hopes of not just the Democrats but those of a lot of us out here in the rest of the world, or will you stop this nonsense, get behind Bary, and send the Republicans packing off into the hinterlands where they belong?

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Monday, May 05, 2008


Ah, a photo to warm the cockles of the average Ref...er...Conservative Party hack's heart - big money being made by folks who already have lots of big money. Yes, this is a shot of the construction site for the Olympic Village in downtown Vancouver. Who's paying for the fabulous Winter Olympics? Me. And any other tax payer in B.C. or Canada. Not, definitely not, the guys who'll make money from it.

Now, on the other hand, the Ref...er...Conservative Party hates things like this. Tax payer money going to help people who have none. People who are sick and helpless. People who are, yes, immoral dope fiends! Oh, how the Ref...er...Conservative Party would love to shut this place down. It's soooo offensive to their good Christian moral sensibilities. Let's not forget, after all, god helps those who help themselves.

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Sunday, May 04, 2008


Yeah, well, I've got some winter shots left, and I haven't gotten out to get any new spring shots lately (hey - I've gotta run 5k next Saturday, and I don't want to go into cardiac arrest after a measly 2, O.K.?), so.....

Not that these weighty obligations (did I mention I have to actually work again, starting tomorrow?) kept me from seeing "Iron Man" yesterday. Much as I like Robert Downey Jr.'s acting, I probably should have trained yesterday and gone shooting today, but..... Not that it's a bad movie, really. It was just kind of, well, boring.

Saturday, May 03, 2008


Bring in your old clunker today!

Friday, May 02, 2008


In an otherwise drab alley...

Meanwhile, south of the border, civilisation takes another great leap forward. Kill 'em while you got 'em, folks. As long as the Supreme Court says it's O.K., it ain't murder, right? Of course! What the heck - it's not like there ain't a bunch of 'em. And, the fact that more black people than white are judicially murdered every year shouldn't give anyone pause, should it? Heck, no. Everyone knows black people have both rhythm and a greater inclination towards murder than white people, right? Riiiiiight.

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Thursday, May 01, 2008


Dragon boats waiting for some action. Kinda like me - waiting for Monday, and a new term of teaching action.

And, for all you biology fans out there, look what my pal, the great Johnny El-Rady's done! Folks, this is the hardest working man in the biology teaching biz, bar none. Like his students say at the end of Pt. 2 of the video: "El..Ra...Dee! El...Ra...Dee!"

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