Abandoned Stuff by Saskboy

This light is just too cool. Or not, if I were to mean ‘temperature’ instead of super-awesome. I don’t think we’ll see plasma light for home use, but if bulbs last long enough, I expect they’ll go into street lighting. Hopefully not so much as to increase light pollution in our cities, however. The problem with a light that gives off sun-like spectrum light, is that it’s hard for astronomers to filter out the offending streetlights for city based observations of space. When it comes down to energy efficiency, or solar observation from cities, I’m afraid light efficiency is going to have to win out over astronomers if a limited spectrum efficient bulb can’t be devised.

Giving the light measurement in lumens (lm), the Luxim bulb gives off 140 lm/Watt, high end LED 70 lm/W, and an incandescent about 15 lm/W.

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Hat tip to Slashdot.org

Troop exchanges have been routine, and are a good idea. But this kind of limp leadership from Harper is just another reason he borders on being a traitor. It’s one thing to send emergency aid. Yet this smacks of giving the USA a head start if they ever wanted to claim our resources for their own.

America of the future might say - Oh, what’s that? An emergency in the north? We’d better send our military to help out…

I’m pretty sure it’s Harper who is French and not Dion. Who seems more ready to run up the white flag (as the stupid French slur goes, right)?

If the States wanted to invade Canada, legislating their entry isn’t going to make it possible, because it already is possible. If Americans were starving, dehydrating, or freezing/cooking to death, it wouldn’t take long for Fox News and CNN to turn them against Canada anyway. They know next to nothing about us, and a good foundation for demonizing a country’s people is abject ignorance. The part about Canada having the resources required to NOT DIE, would be ample motivation for America to go to war, seeing as that was the motivation for Iraq, and at the time Americans were not dying by the 10s of thousands like would happen with a famine or widespread drought.

This is all unlikely to happen, thank goodness. Yet it’s still a disturbing trend to see the Canadian government making significant encroachments upon our sovereignty, while the vast majority of Canadians hear nothing of it, and its possible implications. If Harper really is sincere about boosting the strength of our army, and don’t intend to use them to defend us against natural disaster, and keep us independent of invading armies, then what’s the real purpose of his spending money on a military force? Is he going to sign away our rights to the North next, behind closed doors?

A portion of the canada.com article is here:

The left-leaning Council of Canadians, which is campaigning against what it calls the increasing integration of the U.S. and Canadian militaries, is raising concerns about the deal.

“It’s kind of a trend when it comes to issues of Canada-U.S. relations and contentious issues like military integration. We see that this government is reluctant to disclose information to Canadians that is readily available on American and Mexican websites,” said Stuart Trew, a researcher with the Council of Canadians.

Trew said there is potential for the agreement to militarize civilian responses to emergency incidents. He noted that work is also underway for the two nations to put in place a joint plan to protect common infrastructure such as roadways and oil pipelines.

“Are we going to see (U.S.) troops on our soil for minor potential threats to a pipeline or a road?” he asked.

Trew also noted the U.S. military does not allow its soldiers to operate under foreign command so there are questions about who controls American forces if they are requested for service in Canada. “We don’t know the answers because the government doesn’t want to even announce the plan,” he said.

But Canada Command spokesman Commander David Scanlon said it will be up to civilian authorities in both countries on whether military assistance is requested or even used.

He said the agreement is “benign” and simply sets the stage for military-to-military co-operation if the governments approve.

“But there’s no agreement to allow troops to come in,” he said. “It facilitates planning and co-ordination between the two militaries. The ‘allow’ piece is entirely up to the two governments.”

If U.S. forces were to come into Canada they would be under tactical control of the Canadian Forces but still under the command of the U.S. military, Scanlon added.

News of the deal, and the allegation it was kept secret in Canada, is already making the rounds on left-wing blogs and Internet sites as an example of the dangers of the growing integration between the two militaries.

On right-wing blogs in the U.S. it is being used as evidence of a plan for a “North American union” where foreign troops, not bound by U.S. laws, could be used by the American federal government to override local authorities.

“Co-operative militaries on Home Soil!” notes one website. “The next time your town has a ‘national emergency,’ don’t be surprised if Canadian soldiers respond. And remember - Canadian military aren’t bound by posse comitatus.”

Posse comitatus is a U.S. law that prohibits the use of federal troops from conducting law enforcement duties on domestic soil unless approved by Congress.

Tibet is going to be the downfall of the 2008 Olympics. It’s a shame, the athletes (who aren’t doping that is) don’t deserve to be caught in the middle of the controversy.

The list of bloggers boycotting the Olympic sponsors/partners is growing.

Just talking with a friend, I learned that to see a Lakers basketball game, you can shell out $2300 for a courtside seat. What a nice way to waste a month’s salary for someone on minimum wage?

$8.25 X 40 hours/week X 4 weeks = $1320 / month (before taxes!)

OK, a nice way to waste two month’s wage for someone working 40 hours a week, in what is probably a physically demanding job! How can there be any debate about minimum wage being too high when that kind of disparity of reality exists within North America? Are we much more classist than people admit?

… it’s a good idea to observe the recommended operating directions on those Compact Fluorescent Lights.

For the bulbs that don’t burst into flames when they fail, like this one…

You can take them to a local Home Depot in Canada for a recycling box. In Regina there is even a recycler for these bulbs.

It was a bulb I got for free from SaskPower for a giveaway promotion they had last Summer. So it didn’t even last a year. The exact “precautions” listed on the box say, “Do not use in luminaires controlled by a dimmer, electronic timers or photocells, totally enclosed recessed luninaires, or where directly exposed to weather.” I think they need an OR between enclosed and recessed. My bulb overheated simply because it was totally enclosed, even though it was not recessed into the ceiling.

I have a replacement CFLight bulb there now, and did not put the glass fixture over it.

Draw to the button for $1Million? It’s not out of the question, especially after the fantastic field goal a few years back cost Wendy’s $1M in a contest.

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Barack Obama made an important speech the other day. It’s all the more unusual because it’s during an election campaign. It’s beginning to make me wonder if he isn’t sincere about enough things that he would make a good President, despite his ignorance of many international issues. Too bad Hillary is going to win.

I watched the whole thing while doing some situps. It’s a video that while long, is like an antidote to the sound bites we usually expect from CNN, and it makes the crawling text on the bottom seem petty and useless.

I did not see the Reverend he spoke of, but you don’t need to, to be moved by this speech.

UPDATE: Digby has more thoughts on the scripted nature of the campaign. (Heck, it’s so scripted, I predicted the next president over 2 years ago!) I liked how Obama got a shot in at the corporations that are shipping jobs overseas solely in the name of profit. It feeds racism in America, because it lends people to believe that jobs are so scarce that when a less educated African American finds a nice job, that some better (ivy league) educated white American has been shorted a career opportunity. That kind of negative, and wrong thinking has to be changed in the States (and here in Canada I might add).

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Hat tip to Cathie

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This is also a “must see” by 22 Minutes… Conservative Life Insurance:

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Hat tip

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What a waste of air travel this Windsor plan would be. Cut it back to a flight every month, and maybe there’d be something to think about. This kind of ‘extreme commuting’ is a sickness in our society.

I think I’ll go to this. Haverstock is a very inspiring person to listen to.

March 20 at 7:30 p.m. in the Education Auditorium at the University of Regina.

Dr. Lynda Haverstock to present the 2008 Stapleford Lecture

The Honourable Dr. Lynda Haverstock will present a talk entitled “Citizenship, Governance and Duty” for the 2008 Stapleford Lecture.

“As Canadians, we enjoy rights, freedoms and a quality of life unimaginable to billions of people the world over. Still, we take for granted our enormous bounty and we do so at our own peril,” says Haverstock. She will deliver the annual Stapleford lecture on Thursday, March 20 at 7:30 p.m. in the Education Auditorium at the University of Regina.
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Jason Cherniak - Liblogs President, or liBorgs King?

- Jason Cherniak may not be exactly as shown

Comment from Jason Cherniak (to Chris Tindal of the Green Party of Canada)
Time: March 18, 2008, 10:21 am

Join us…

The election results from last night aren’t even cold yet! I like Chris’s response.

What is Chris doing for the Liberal Party? He’s building its competition. It’s not easy being different, but it sure feels good to know that you’re unique and stick to doing what people need.