I was working as a scrutineer on election night in Edmonton Strathcona and who should show up to vote none other than Rona Ambrose, Conservative MP for Spruce Grove.
Now last time I checked Spruce Grove a small urban suburb outside of Edmonton was closer to West Edmonton Mall than Edmonton Strathcona.
And following in the footsteps of Edmonton Strathcona MP Rahim Jaffer she too missed election forums.Ambrose denies missing meetings
But unlike Jaffer she will probably be in cabinet.
Still funny that she lives in Edmonton Strathcona but represents Spruce Grove.
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Canada
Federal Election
Politics
Conservatives
Canadian Election
Rahim Jaffer
Edmonton Strathcona
Rona Ambrose
Spruce Grove
Wednesday, January 25, 2006
Rahim Jaffer Not In Cabinet
Well at least there is a silver lining to the ignomious victory for the right wings favorite drinking buddy and Muslim of convenience (he claimed to have missed his first election forum cause he was attending Muslim services) Rahim Jaffer.
He is the only Tory in Alberta who got less than 50% of the popular vote. Told ya. The guy does not have Edmonton Strathcona's support. He was touted as cabinet material at one point when the media speculated on a Harper victory, well not now.
The Calcutta Telegraph of India is speculating on which Indo-Canadians will be in Harpers cabinet and Jaffer ain't one of them.Brown tinge stays same in Canada. Funniest specualtion in this article which fails to name Jaffer at all, is the idea of Nina Grewal being in cabinet. Grewal the quietist backbencher versus Jaffer the laziest.
The excuse for Jaffer not being in cabinet is that Harper has enough high profile potential MP's from Alberta for cabinet. All good old white Albertans.
So if you live in Edmonton Strathcona and are a drinking buddy of Rahims or were thinking after three terms you would finally have a cabinet minister from the riding, well forget it. You get more of the same, the laziest self serving MP in the house.
More Jaffer stories
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Canada
Federal Election
Politics
Conservatives
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Rahim Jaffer
Edmonton Strathcona
Liberals
Jaffer's election-night party Monday at Mike Yasinski's Hudson's Pub on Calgary Trail morphed into the Conservative party's celebration headquarters.
From an eerie quiet earlier in the evening, the party hit a fevered pitch by 11 p.m. and was still going strong when Hicks on Six rolled out the door at 2 a.m. yesterday.
The next generation of political leaders - Jaffer, Rajotte, Lake and Ambrose - cracked an enormous bottle of champagne, saving a few drops for Laurie Hawn who arrived a short time later.
Celebrating with the members of Her Majesty's newest government of Canada were provincial cabinet ministers Lyle Oberg, Gene Zwozdesky; Leduc MLA George Rogers; Conservative campaign director Hal Danchilla and the political "godfather" of many of the younger members of Parliament, retired Conservative MP and MLA Ian McClelland.
He is the only Tory in Alberta who got less than 50% of the popular vote. Told ya. The guy does not have Edmonton Strathcona's support. He was touted as cabinet material at one point when the media speculated on a Harper victory, well not now.
The Calcutta Telegraph of India is speculating on which Indo-Canadians will be in Harpers cabinet and Jaffer ain't one of them.Brown tinge stays same in Canada. Funniest specualtion in this article which fails to name Jaffer at all, is the idea of Nina Grewal being in cabinet. Grewal the quietist backbencher versus Jaffer the laziest.
The excuse for Jaffer not being in cabinet is that Harper has enough high profile potential MP's from Alberta for cabinet. All good old white Albertans.
So if you live in Edmonton Strathcona and are a drinking buddy of Rahims or were thinking after three terms you would finally have a cabinet minister from the riding, well forget it. You get more of the same, the laziest self serving MP in the house.
More Jaffer stories
Tags
Canada
Federal Election
Politics
Conservatives
NDP
Rahim Jaffer
Edmonton Strathcona
Liberals
Blogspot down Today. But For How Long?
Yeah the last time they fixed something we were offline for a day.
We'll be taking Blogger down on Wednesday the 25th at 4pm PST to fix a bit of a switch that's gone wonky on us. The outage should last about 15 minutes. Blogger.com and Blog*Spot blogs will be inaccessible during this time. This repair will fix the problem that caused the brief outage last Friday night. We're also using this down time as an opportunity to tune our databases for more efficient spam catching and deletion.
We'll be taking Blogger down on Wednesday the 25th at 4pm PST to fix a bit of a switch that's gone wonky on us. The outage should last about 15 minutes. Blogger.com and Blog*Spot blogs will be inaccessible during this time. This repair will fix the problem that caused the brief outage last Friday night. We're also using this down time as an opportunity to tune our databases for more efficient spam catching and deletion.
Canada Changes Course
Winds of Change was the slogan of the old Unite the Right post Mulroney Conservative movement in Western Canada attempting to realign the Reform Party of the time with the remainder of the Mulroney Tories they had just decimated in the 1988 election.
After Monday night the headlines in the papers in Canada and around the world were a Deja Vu. Canada Changes Course.
I just can't come to say it. Nope just can't. Can't say Prime Minister Harper. But apparently I don't have to. Cause the first thing the Harper did was wrap himself up with the old Mulroney Team.
24 January 2006
OTTAWA – Statement by Prime Minister elect Stephen Harper:
“The Conservative transition team will be led by Derek H. Burney, who served previously as Canada's Ambassador to the United States and as Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Brian Mulroney. Mr. Burney will be assisted by a group with extensive experience in government. Their main objective will be to ensure a smooth transition from the outgoing to the incoming administration.”
Welcome Back Prime Minister Mulroney.
My Blahg has more on the nasty Mr. Burney and the transition he promises.
Canada Moves to Join the Great Club of Relevance: Amity Shlaes
White House looks for closer ties with Canada
Press Briefing by Scott McClellan
In terms of the softwood lumber issue, this is something that we've had a disagreement over. The President has discussed it on a number of occasions when he's met with the Prime Minister there. And we are continuing to work to try to bring it to a resolution and that's what we will -- that's what we are committed to doing.
Q Scott, this morning you said that President Bush would call the Prime Minister from Canada, Stephen Harper. Can you give us an update --
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Federal Election
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The Last Poll
There was lots of speculation in the penultimate days before the Canadian election about which polls were the most accurate, and subsequently whose polling companies would be toast. Much speculation went on with the Blogging Tories that SES which did not give their party the big lead was out to lunch. Progressive Bloggers on the otherhand took heart over the SES polls. As it was SES faired the best being the closest to the actual vote count. Damn close. But for you poll junkies who need one more hit here is an interesting American site with an analysis of the polls. Political Arithmetik
And while we are speaking of polls the UBC Election Stockmarket Poll did amazingly well showing that a real marketplace in votes could replace Bay Street. Or was it Bay Street could marketize voting. If so you would not lose money betting on SES.
And while we are speaking of polls the UBC Election Stockmarket Poll did amazingly well showing that a real marketplace in votes could replace Bay Street. Or was it Bay Street could marketize voting. If so you would not lose money betting on SES.
| How well did we do? ESM vs. Pollsters (Popular Vote Predictions) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LIB | CPC | NDP | BLQ | OTR | Absolute Error | |
| 1. SES Research (Jan. 22) | 30.1 | 36.4 | 17.4 | 10.6 | 5.6 | 0.4 |
| 2. UBC ESM (Jan. 22) | 28.1 | 37.6 | 17.8 | 10.5 | 6.0 | 4.2 |
| 3. Strategic Counsel (Jan. 22) | 27 | 37 | 19 | 11 | 6 | 6.3 |
| 4. Ekos (Jan. 20) | 26.9 | 37.1 | 19.5 | 11.5 | 4.6 | 8.1 |
| 5. Ipsos-Reid (Jan. 22) | 27 | 38 | 19 | 12 | 4 | 9.6 |
| How well did we do? ESM vs. Other Seat Projections | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LIB | CPC | NDP | BLQ | OTR | Absolute Error | |
| 1. Milton Chan (electionprediction.org) | 104 | 118 | 29 | 56 | 1 | 12.0 |
| 2. UBC ESM | 95.5 | 125.2 | 32.6 | 53.4 | 1.2 | 15.0 |
| 3. Gregory Morrow (democraticspace.com) | 94 | 128 | 29 | 56 | 1 | 18.0 |
| 4. SES Research | 84 | 134 | 34 | 55 | 1 | 36.0 |
| 5. Laurier Institute (LISPOP) | 78 | 140 | 33 | 56 | 1 | 50.0 |
| 6. Jordan O'Brien (jord.ca) | 72 | 135 | 38 | 62 | 1 | 62.0 |
| 7. Strategic Counsel | 56 | 149 | 41 | 61 | 1 | 94.0 |
| 8. EKOS (Jan 20) | 53 | 151 | 41 | 62 | 1 | 100.0 |
| 9. Ipsos-Reid (Jan 21) | 46 | 157 | 42 | 62 | 1 | 114.0 |
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Federal Election
Politics
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Canadian Election
Eight Years Old Hunting In Day Cares
Let us compare these two stories and ask ourselves what does this really say about gun crazy America.
8-Year-Old Brings Father's Gun to Day Care, Shoots Classmate
MADISON, Wis. -- Legislators who fear young people are losing interest in Wisconsin's hunting tradition want to allow children as young as 8 to shoot deer.
Rep. Scott Gunderson's proposal would lower the hunting age from 12 to eight.The Republican from Waterford said it's important to get kids hunting at a younger age.
But the idea of a lower hunting age horrifies Joe Slattery, whose 14-year-old son was accidentally shot and killed by a 12-year-old while deer hunting in Marinette County last year. He said 8-year-olds don't have the ability to handle guns.
The state Assembly already approved Gunderson's bill. The measure still needs approval from the state Senate and governor to become law.
Now Conservatives in Canada exhort us that Gun Control Laws here should be like America. At the same time they want to raise the age of consent laws from 14 to 16. And they want to lower the age that a teenager can be tried as an adult for violent crime to 14. Go figure.
Tags
USA
guns
day care
hunting
eight years old
gun control
Canada
Conservatives
8-Year-Old Brings Father's Gun to Day Care, Shoots Classmate
8-Year-Olds May Be Allowed To Hunt In Wis.
Current Limit Is 12
POSTED: 3:09 pm EST January 23, 2006
MADISON, Wis. -- Legislators who fear young people are losing interest in Wisconsin's hunting tradition want to allow children as young as 8 to shoot deer.
Rep. Scott Gunderson's proposal would lower the hunting age from 12 to eight.The Republican from Waterford said it's important to get kids hunting at a younger age.
But the idea of a lower hunting age horrifies Joe Slattery, whose 14-year-old son was accidentally shot and killed by a 12-year-old while deer hunting in Marinette County last year. He said 8-year-olds don't have the ability to handle guns.
The state Assembly already approved Gunderson's bill. The measure still needs approval from the state Senate and governor to become law.
Now Conservatives in Canada exhort us that Gun Control Laws here should be like America. At the same time they want to raise the age of consent laws from 14 to 16. And they want to lower the age that a teenager can be tried as an adult for violent crime to 14. Go figure.
Tags
USA
guns
day care
hunting
eight years old
gun control
Canada
Conservatives
When AI commits suicide
When Artificial Intelligence (AI) gets too smart, that is begins to reach the capactiy of 'human conciousness' will it have the urge to self destruct due to its self realization that it exists in an existential paradigm?
Well the Canadian creator of Mindpixel an internet based AI system commited suicide in Chile recently and left his online note for his AI to learn from.Including references to Camus, the stranger. Very strange indeed and not the least disturbing. Why? Because it shows the very real 'alienation' that we all suffer under capitalism, which divorces us from our very real humaness. In this case this individual who lived for his machine, his fantasy, which was also his reality, ended his own corporeal existance to live in his machine. Dues ex machina.
His individualist exhortation that society does not have the right to interfere in his final decision, is true, and a pathetic testiment to the joys of embracing ones alienation as liberation. Alone in his room away from society, had he not blogged would anyone have known. No.
So his appeal on his blog was his cry of angst and desperation, that he wanted society to know. And if he wanted society to know then he wanted us to do something or say something. Had he not, he would not have blogged a suicdide note. He would have simply put rocks in his pockets and walked silently and alone into the ocean humming the theme to MASH.
His self destruction was nihilism. Nihilists one more step to be revolutionary to recongnize your self alienation as class struggle.
The propertied class and the class of the proletariat present the same human self-alienation. But the formerclass feels happy and confirmed in this self-alientation, it recognises alienation as its own power, and has in it the semblance of human existence. The class of the proletariat feels annihilated in its self-alienation; it sees in it its own powerlessness and the reality of an inhuman existnece. To use an expression of Hegel's, the class of the proletariat is in abasement indignation at this abasement, an indignation to which it is necessarily driven by the contrdiction between its human nature and its conditions of life, which are the outright, decisive and comprehensive negation of that nature.
"Within this antithesis the private property-owner is therefore the conservative side, the proletarian, the destructive side. From the former arises the action of preserving the antithesis, from the latter, that of annihilating it.
"In any case, in its economic movement private property drives towards its own dissolution, but only through a development which does not depend on it, of which it is unconscious and which takes place against its will, through the very nature of things, only inasmuch as it produces the proletariat as proletariat, misery conscious of its spiritual and physical misery, dehumnaisation conscious of its dehumanisation and therefore self-abolishing. The proletariat executes the sentence that private property pronounced on itself by begetting the proletariat, just as it executes the sentence that wage-labour pronounced on itself by begetting wealth for others and misery for itself. When the proletariat is victorious, it by no means becomes the absolute side of society, for it is victorious only by abolishing itself and its opposite. Then the proletariat disappears as well as the opposite which determines it, private property. Conspectus of the Book The Holy Family by Marx and Engels
Well the Canadian creator of Mindpixel an internet based AI system commited suicide in Chile recently and left his online note for his AI to learn from.Including references to Camus, the stranger.
Chile: Canadian Blogger Commits Suicide in Santiago
Roberto Arancibia meditates (ES) on the suicide of Canadian blogger, Chris McKinstry in his Santiago apartment. McKinstry was the founder of Mindpixel, a digital mind modeling project. His final blog post, entitled “Very Serious Thoughts on Suicide” quotes, among others, Charles Caleb Colton: “Suicide is a fundamental human right. This does not mean that it is morally desirable. It only means that society does not have the moral right to interfere.”
His individualist exhortation that society does not have the right to interfere in his final decision, is true, and a pathetic testiment to the joys of embracing ones alienation as liberation. Alone in his room away from society, had he not blogged would anyone have known. No.
So his appeal on his blog was his cry of angst and desperation, that he wanted society to know. And if he wanted society to know then he wanted us to do something or say something. Had he not, he would not have blogged a suicdide note. He would have simply put rocks in his pockets and walked silently and alone into the ocean humming the theme to MASH.
His self destruction was nihilism. Nihilists one more step to be revolutionary to recongnize your self alienation as class struggle.
The propertied class and the class of the proletariat present the same human self-alienation. But the formerclass feels happy and confirmed in this self-alientation, it recognises alienation as its own power, and has in it the semblance of human existence. The class of the proletariat feels annihilated in its self-alienation; it sees in it its own powerlessness and the reality of an inhuman existnece. To use an expression of Hegel's, the class of the proletariat is in abasement indignation at this abasement, an indignation to which it is necessarily driven by the contrdiction between its human nature and its conditions of life, which are the outright, decisive and comprehensive negation of that nature.
"Within this antithesis the private property-owner is therefore the conservative side, the proletarian, the destructive side. From the former arises the action of preserving the antithesis, from the latter, that of annihilating it.
"In any case, in its economic movement private property drives towards its own dissolution, but only through a development which does not depend on it, of which it is unconscious and which takes place against its will, through the very nature of things, only inasmuch as it produces the proletariat as proletariat, misery conscious of its spiritual and physical misery, dehumnaisation conscious of its dehumanisation and therefore self-abolishing. The proletariat executes the sentence that private property pronounced on itself by begetting the proletariat, just as it executes the sentence that wage-labour pronounced on itself by begetting wealth for others and misery for itself. When the proletariat is victorious, it by no means becomes the absolute side of society, for it is victorious only by abolishing itself and its opposite. Then the proletariat disappears as well as the opposite which determines it, private property. Conspectus of the Book The Holy Family by Marx and Engels
Two Fake Brains Better Than One
Wired
A few weeks ago, computer scientist Chris McKinstry announced a plan to harness the brain power of Internet users to fuel an artificially intelligent thinking machine.
Web surfers flocked to his Mindpixel Digital Mind Modeling Project website, and McKinstry's database of mindpixels -- "one-bit" pieces of knowledge -- swelled so quickly that his system became temporarily overloaded.
But even though AI laymen took to McKinstry's
Now, it seems that the academy is changing its tune, as no less venerable an institution than MIT's Media Lab has decided to collaborate with McKinstry.
"We think that the future of AI is to get the public involved," said Push Singh, an MIT graduate student in AI who runs a Media Lab project called OpenMind.
Singh said that the public involvement that McKinstry has been able to spur so far -- Mindpixel already has almost 20,000 registered users -- would be an asset to OpenMind.
Like Mindpixel, OpenMind is an AI machine that learns from user input. At the OpenMind website, users are presented with a series of stimuli -- photographs, phrases, or diagrams. Singh said that the computer learns "common sense" from users' aggregate response to a certain stimulus.
For example, if the computer shows you a picture of a family at a picnic, you might type in, "Families like to spend time together."