I Am Canadian?

Interesting piece.

Why, you might ask, was he compelled to write now about this issue? Is it in fact even an “issue”?

For him, I can testify, it was. He deeply despised those Conservative “Just Visiting” ads, and my sense was that they wounded him on a personal level.

At the time, I recall thinking that the little political tableau was replete with irony: one leader was a Canadian who had lived in the United States, and desperately wanted to prove he was Canadian.

The other leader was a Canadian who lived here, but who desperately wanted to be an American.

The self-hater won. Happens a lot, in my experience.


Dog-related question

Roxy Roller, Canada’s favourite political dog.

Roxoid, seen above, is always hungry. She’s part lab, so that comes with the territory.

She eats Fromm’s. The place where she has been getting her food, Tails in the Beach, makes us both really, really unhappy for a host of reasons. We wouldn’t recommend it.

So: anyone know where you can get Fromm’s in the East End?  We need an alternative.

Look at Roxy. She’s counting on you to come through with an answer.


In today’s Sun: postal strike winners, losers

“Brian Topp says the NDP won by being “muscular” and standing up to the Tories. In reality, the Dippers lost – big time. Shortly after the May 2 election, the New Dems were in a hurry to convince the rest of us they were moving towards the centre. They talked about ditching socialism, and reaching out to unhappy Liberal voters.

But then along came the postal labour dispute. With their obstructionism in the House of Commons, the NDP lurched left, and gave us every reason to believe they still favour union power over people power. The New Democrats may remain popular in Quebec – but I guarantee their one-sided filibuster tactics did them no favours in the rest of Canada.”


New Rise of the Planet of the Apes trailer!

My sons and I saw Super 8 on the weekend (me twice), and the best part of both screenings was this – the new Rise of the Planet of the Apes trailer! Woot!

As a boy my sons’ ages in Texas, I told them, I saw the very first Planet of the Apes movie, and have been cheering for the ape side ever since. Moreover, in the intervening decades, and without warning, I will regularly quote key lines from Ape movies. (Best ever found here: “God damn you all to Hell!”)

Anyway, here’s the newest trailer for Rise. I’ll be camped out on the sidewalk on day one, quoting Charleton Heston to passerby.


In today’s Sun: the mayor of some of the people, not all of them

In 1971, a Canadian politician could probably get away with snubbing the gay community.

In 1981? Probably then, too.

1991? Getting tougher. 2001? Getting a lot tougher.

2011? Pretty much impossible.

That’s why the decision of Toronto Mayor Rob Ford to skip the city’s annual Pride parade attracted a lot of attention last week. It’s the first time in a long time a Toronto mayor has snubbed the powerful gay community. Among other things, it’s kind of bizarre.

Ford’s excuse — he’s continuing a 30-year family tradition of gathering at the cottage in Huntsville.