Wednesday WTF
WTF Wednesday: Manitoba’s worst case of animal abuse and other horror stories
The Victoria Day sun beckoned my five-year-old daughter and I to the park. While playing near the slide she was pushed over by a tongue-waging canine; looks like Bella was beckoned too. The kiddo laughed it off and the six-month-old puppy kept running with her owners, a family of three. The mother told me how… More »
WTF Wednesday: Woman vs. woman, that’s entertainment!
If you didn’t hear, the Toronto Maple Leafs made the playoffs, a first since 2004. The last time they won the Stanley Cup was in 1967. This is all newsworthy stuff, history made with the youngest team in the playoffs. But it was a look between two women that made the news for days. “DRAMA!… More »
WTF Wednesday: CBC under attack…again
The Conservatives are at it again with another sneak-attack on democracy. This time one of the targets is an old favourite—the CBC. If you search hard enough, tucked away in the 111 pages of unrelated motions, you’ll piece together the government’s plan to tighten control over crown corporations. Via Rail and Canada Post are among… More »
WTF Wednesday: Crest’s sexist toothpaste commercial
He could be the one, soul mate, husband, loving father to your children. But first, you’ve got to get him to say hello. These are actual words from an actual Crest 3D White Arctic Fresh Toothpaste commercial that started airing last November (and is still on air). Naturally, the commercial suggests the only way to… More »
WTF Wednesday: Tech giants help pass cyber surveillance bill
Remember that day Wikipedia didn’t have all the answers? That day you turned to the world’s trustiest encyclopedia but all it said was, “Imagine a world without free knowledge”? Last year on January 18, thousands of websites protested against the major U.S. internet censorship bills, Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protest IP Act (PIPA)…. More »
WTF Wednesday: Gender role reversals in sexual assault
Canadian women made headlines this week for some (gender) inappropriate behaviour. On Monday, three girls pleaded not guilty to pimping out other teenage girls in an Ontario based court. Together, they’re accused of using a Facebook and Twitter party ruse to first lure and then force young women into a sex trafficking ring. The Crown… More »
WTF Wednesday: A modest proposal for sexual liberation by Barbara Amiel
Barbara Amiel would have aced my Grade 10 English class. One of our first assignments was to come up with a modest proposal—a satirical essay suggesting a ridiculous way to deal with a real issue, like gay rights, poverty or disease. In a Maclean’s column this week, Amiel proposed how to create an “anything goes… More »
WTF Wednesday: Science reduced to Facebook personality tests
The National Academy of Science just published a study that shows what your Facebook ‘Likes’ reveal about your behaviours and personal life. The study released March 11 explains: “We show that easily accessible digital records of behavior, Facebook Likes, can be used to automatically and accurately predict a range of highly sensitive personal attributes including:… More »
WTF Wednesday: 2013 Belongs to Target
Forget St Patrick’s Day and Easter, March 2013 is Target month. The American big box store opened its first three Canadian stores yesterday, with one each in Guelph, Milton, and Fergus, Ont. These are the first of 24 set to open this month. By the end of this year, up to 135 Targets will cover… More »
WTF Wednesday: University says rape victim violated school’s honour code by reporting assault
What undermines human rights more than sexual abuse? Having no consolation that, if violated, those rights will be defended. Last spring, Landen Gambill, a student at the University of North Carolina, reported to the university’s “Honor Court” (a board of students and faculty) that she was sexually assaulted. Gambill’s alleged rapist, her ex-boyfriend, was found… More »
