January 26, 2007

Canada’s net neutrality failure

Last month I posted about the net neutrality fight in the U.S., and noted in an update that Canadians couldn’t sign the petition set up by the Save The Internet campaign urging the U.S. Congress to legislate against a two-tiered Internet. Since then The Tyee has picked up on this blind spot north of the border, writing recently that the fight is just as relevant in Canada, and that we may... [More >>]

January 25, 2007

Panhandling bans don’t make sense

Good editorial in the Toronto Star today about a proposal to ban panhandling in Toronto. It calls the proposal “ill-conceived…on several fronts.” Which it is, really. Personally, I don’t get the logic behind such a ban. Yes, panhandlers make tourists uncomfortable and citizens feel guilty. But what’s the point of fining people who have no means to pay? Will meaningless... [More >>]

January 17, 2007

Scotiabank takin’ on the US Treasury

CBC.ca is reporting that Scotiabank will not be following the lead of the apparently powerless Royal Bank in denying US dollar bank accounts to dual citizens of Canada and a bunch of nations the US does not like. Canadian citizens who also hold passports for Iran, Iraq, North Korea, Myanmar, Sudan and Cuba may not save US dollars at the Royal Bank, because of its compliance with a US Treasury directive... [More >>]

January 12, 2007

Birds Who Rap and Other Stories

I’m a little late getting to this, but a BBC blog called Magazine Monitor released a fascinating list at the end of last year: 100 things we didn’t know last year. Among my favourite tidbits, all of which are certainly worthy of their own entry: 3. Urban birds have developed a short, fast “rap style” of singing, different from their rural counterparts. [Link] 5. Standard-sized... [More >>]

January 9, 2007

If Sarah Harmer tells me to not like gravel, should I not like it?

Judging by my own and my friends’ reaction to every new album, I am Sarah Harmer’s core audience demographic. I pay to download her music. I buy her CDs as gifts for friends. I have attempted to fit one of her rare live TO performances into my very busy life. I quote her lyrics in my writing. Way back when, I used to go see the Saddletramps, and even put together an arts benefit with them... [More >>]

January 8, 2007

One Laptop per Child

After years of planning and much anticipation, 2007 looks to be the year the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) project begins distributing its ground-breaking, $100 portable computers to children in developing countries. A spinoff of MIT labs founded by Nicholas Negroponte, OLPC aims to give the world’s poorest children access to a valuable learning tool at a low cost. Unlike other laptops, the... [More >>]

January 2, 2007

what if the awesome power of WalMart were used for good?

From today’s New York Times — what if WalMart forced Americans to drastically reduce their energy consumption? Would we like the megacorp a little bit more than we currently do? Even just a little bit? WalMart Pushes Energy Efficient Light Bulbs on a Reluctant Population  [More >>]