So, it’s the Festival of Joy. What better use of it could there be than debating the Id, the Ego and the Superego on the 401 with Lala? Here is my dilemma: the Id is demanding, selfish, ravenous, irresponsible, and so on. The Ego, theoretically, holds the Id in check. That is, it continually seeks to moderate the impulsive nature of the Id. The Superego, meanwhile, is supposedly the moral centre. In essence, it provides values, ethics, morays, and the like. The Superego is our conscience, and provides a set of rules by which the Ego can moderate the impulses of the Id.

So, the dilemma. Is the Ego simply an automaton? A robotic control mechanism for the Id, which lacks moral structure but for the value-laden Superego? I don’t understand how the Ego is without conscience of its own. Therefore, if it is capable of values-based decision making, who the fuck needs the Superego in the first place?

This is the sort of discussion that we are having as we head East on this sunless Festival of Joy. Don’t take any wooden nickels.

Comments (6)

…like most conservatives, say they believe in “the dignity of human life.”

Unless, as someone observed this morning, you are a human who is poor or sick.

Comments (14)

Comments (8)

Pussy Riot?

Admittedly, it’s a bit of a controversial name.
But in the global punk scene — which has produced countless bands with unseemly handles like the Sex Pistols, Dead Kennedys, Bad Religion and The Circle Jerks — having a shocking name is standard fare. So, too, offensive lyrics, offensive messages and offensive behaviour.

Punks are generally young, and usually angry. They’re angry about the government, about society, about war, about racism, about the state of the environment, about their parents or teachers or whatever.

Being young and angry is central to the punk rock ethos. (I should know, I’ve been involved in the punk scene in Canada since I was 15 years old.)

Punk, in the main, is all about stirring up s—. Punks believe that, when you wake people up from their torpor — with a shocking song, or performance — you have a better shot at motivating them. You have a chance to mobilize people and make the planet a better place.

Punks, while mostly on the Left, also distrust governments and other big institutions. They don’t seek government or corporate handouts, and the central tenet of the punk faith is DIY — Do It Yourself. Don’t wait for someone else to do it for you.

Vladimir Putin doesn’t get, or doesn’t care, about any of that. He oversees Russia like a czar, after all. He’s a big man, with lots of power. He’s also a smirking, pompous, corrupt, kickboxing thug who runs his country like Tony Soprano runs a racket. And he doesn’t mind beating up on girls.

Pussy Riot is a Russian all-girl punk band. They, like most sensible people inside and outside Russia, think Putin is an anti-democratic gangster. When Putin announced he was running for yet another term as Russian president, Pussy Riot were pissed off.

Comments (5)

May not be a massively big deal to anyone else, but the geriatric punks in SFH are delighted: we’ve hit the big time, baby! Groupies, drug habits and garishly expensive world tours await!

Or, not.  Anyway.  Buy our songs.  We have lawyers to pay.

Comments (3)

Suits my mood.  Epic song of this part of this Summer.  ‘The House That Heaven Built,’ Japandroids:

When the soul of the city was laid to rest, and the nights forgotten and left for dead
I happened on a house built of living light, where everything evil dissapears and dies

When they love you, and they will: tell ’em all they’ll love in my shadow
And if they try to slow you down, tell ’em all to go to Hell.

Comments (1)

After a weekend where the province experienced a huge number of drunk-driving arrests – and drunkness-related deaths – what is the response of Hudak’s Tea Party North?

They want to make booze easier to get.  For kids, too.

These guys have just made a huge, huge miscalculation.  Just watch.

Comments (41)

Ban assault weapons: that’s one of our leading conservatives saying that, folks.

Comments (15)

…looks like I should start packing my bags!

Comments (4)

I was very sad to learn of his passing only this morning. I don’t think there was anyone I’ve ever met who was so enthusiastic about my books. With him, I always knew I had one keen reader.

My deepest condolences to his amazing family. A great loss to the arts and reading.

Comments (1)