lol i'm older than you. I remember the last time the canadian dollar was at par..... it was 1976 and the US had just left a disaster in south east asia the year before....hmmmm history repeating itself?

Went up to Kelowna a few years back to play golf. I bought a sandwich and a beer with $20 US and got back $20+ Canadian. Those were the days.

That was funny.

So is Canada now considered cool because our dollar has reached par?

An Un-Aired Bill Maher Segment:

New Rule: If you want your party back, you have to promise to take care of it next time.

Chuck Hagel, Christie Whitman, Larry Wilkerson -- so many Republicans want their party back. It's understandable. The Republican Party has become the property now of fundamentalist wackos and dead-eyed neo-cons, two groups that have exactly two things in common: a need to live in a fantasy world; and George W. Bush.

But what gets me about this "wanting my party back" chorus is that the people who want it back didn't have to give it away in the first place. But they did. The political right made a Faustian bargain with religious conservatives way back in the 80s, and it finally came around to bite them in the ass. Ironically, they sold their soul to the Jesus freaks.

Year after year, election after election, the Republicans have been willing to mouth "family values" bullshit instead of policy, take convenient and irrelevant stands on things like the 10 Commandments and god and the pledge of allegiance, make nice with hair-brained creationists when they knew better, and generally reduce public discourse in this country to unbearable levels of ignorance and dumb-assery. And what did they get from all this? An ignorant dumb-ass of a president who actually believes all that crap. Nice work. I hope those extra votes were worth it.

And that ignorant dumb-ass, of course, was an easy target for the fringe think-tankers who call themselves neo-cons -- the guys with no military experience whose brilliant idea for creating a "new American century" involved kicking the snot out of other countries until they love us. What a surprise that it didn't pan out. It worked so well on the video game we all played at Bill Kristol's place.

And now, the people on the rational right want their party back. Well, you shouldn't have given it away in the first place.

Wow, does this mean that OPEC is going to trade in "Petroloonys?

Make the Gopers lament

Thought I'd send a kitten-related link everyone's way. Hope satirical samurai dismemberment isn't too much of a buzzkill on a Sunday night.

Pick your kitten and go at it.

http://www.samuraikittens.com/

We violated every single rule

Powell Doctrine

Is a vital national security interest threatened?
Do we have a clear attainable objective?
Have the risks and costs been fully and frankly analyzed?
Have all other non-violent policy means been fully exhausted?
Is there a plausible exit strategy to avoid endless entanglement?
Have the consequences of our action been fully considered?
Is the action supported by the American people?
Do we have genuine broad international support?

"I’m so old, I remember when the Loony was worth only $0.65…. my how times have changed."

LOL. Well, I believe it was around 63 cents back in 2001... that should make you about 6 or 7 years old. I'm impressed. Nice. :)

Is it just me or do others out there have a problem of not getting a picture on the open thread or the music thread?

Hey guys and girls, if you can, check out the video "Severence". See if you can relate it to as what todays world is like.

Kittens?

...really? So many places have crap like this, Crooks and Liars is special cause they don't. Politics, music, satire, analysis, give me something to work with.

This is such a condescending thread. I have been to Canada on more than one occasion and I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Canadians can speak English almost as well as some people from our southern states. I didn't even need a translator, which is why I want to return to Canada if I have the opportunity, rather than visiting, say, Ireland or eastern Tennessee.

Remember when the Euro was less than a buck? It's at $1.41.

You think we've have a problem with kittens? Look what Kikkoman does if you don't use soy sauce on your omelet!

um.. Satan Himself... maybe if you watched the clip, you would have seen that it, in fact, is political humor. You could have saved yourself the embarassing "I'm better than you, cuz I only have interest in important things" post. Just sayin'

i'm happy.
i booked a 6 week tour of all the yuk yuk's comedy clubs in western canada and negotiated my price based on the looony's value at the time.
now i'm making out much better like the greedy little american capitalist that i am.
hahahahahahahahahahahaha.

btw - does canada not believe in rest stops or any attractions along the trans-canada highway? drive almost the whole of BC this week and saw very few places set aside to even get out of the car and snap a picture.
how about the occasional water-slide or spa?

have to say that drive was breathtaking though.
the canadian rockies are sublimely beautiful and almost shocking in their grandeur and lushness.
peace,
sean

WHY DO THEY SPEAK?
Some Ridiculous Quotes and the Contexts That Make Them Delicious

___________________________________________________________________________________

Bill O'Reilly:

I couldn't get over the fact that there was no difference between Sylvia's restaurant and any other restaurant in New York City. I mean, it was exactly the same, even though it's run by blacks, primarily black patronship. . . . There wasn't one person in Sylvia's who was screaming, 'M-Fer, I want more iced tea. . . . [I]t was like going into an Italian restaurant in an all-white suburb in the sense of people were sitting there, and they were ordering and having fun. And there wasn't any kind of craziness at all.

Oh, yes. He said it. On the air. And he was genuinely surprised. And the context that makes this racist garbage even better?.......He was telling it to Juan Williams!! Oh, and, Sylvia's is a restaurant in Harlem, and although he's surprised that the black people there can run a restaurant, he's pretty sure they all watch his TV show.

___________________________________________________________________________________

President George W. Bush:

I'm jealous of you guys on the front lines in Iraq. I wish I could be out there with you, but (1) I'm too old to be out there, and (2), they would notice me.

Uh-huh. Now, I'll admit that I can't guarantee that that's a verbatim quote. Why not? Well, because of the context that makes this dumb-ass, insensitive, clueless-about-the-nature-of-war comment oh so delicious: It's contained in an article that's supposed to flatter the president, written by someone who got to talk to him, someone who just came away so impressed by him, but who didn't want to make an exact transcript.

___________________________________________________________________________________

Rudy Giuliani:

I'm probably one of the four or five best known Americans in the world.

No, you're one of the four or five biggest assholes in the world. But this really is quite funny. The context that makes this so delicious?..........He made this statement to some reporters when he saw a crowd of people gather nearby to see if they could get a look at Dustin Hoffman!

Why? Do? They? Speak?

Subway Serenade @ 11:

I once heard that in the days of Thomas Jefferson, part of the entrance exam to apply to William and Mary, was that you had to translate a chapter of the Dante Trilogy from Greek to Latin.

I doubt if anyone in the three branches of da Guminit, are capable of such high states of reason.

If they were, we would not have a Guminit with such high rates of treason.

Knowing and translating foreign languages don't require a high state of reason. I'd rather politicians be proficient in the languages of science and math which does require reasoning skills. Hell, being computer savvy unlike Ted Stevens would be a great start. Knowing relevant world languages such as Arabic and Chinese would also help them appreciate foreign cultures and be less likely to invade, (although wouldn't necessarily improve their reasoning skills). Knowing dead languages like Latin or ancient Greek is on the very bottom of things I wish my politicians knew and I personally wouldn't bother spending the time learning those languages even if I was given free lessons.

I have a theory:

If progressive bloggers and commenters write Democrats in Congress about an issue, they have actually learned to go the other way reflexively.

Think about it: since the Conventional Wisdumb has become that left-leaning bloggers are shrill, divisive characters whose shenanigans inevitably get the Democrats painted as liberal extremists ready to fellate al Qaeda, the weak-kneed political weasels known as the Congressional Democrats are now actually taking liberal blogger feedback as "what NOT to do".

For example, on the matter of telecom immunity, telecom lobbyists nowadays probably literally use printouts of Kos and C&L and FDL comments and emails to say "These are the lunatics that will get you branded as a "liberal" -- if you just do what we lobbyists want, you'll be recognized here in Washington as 'bipartisan' and 'willing to work across the aisle'. You'll guarantee yourself a long, productive, lucrative career... whereas, if you vote the way these bloggers want, you'll immediately start getting branded as extreme and partisan... by us if no one else... and you won't accomplish anything, anyway!" And people like Tester and Webb, on whom we pinned our fragile hopes, will crumble like sandstone crutches.

Thoughts? Too cynical? Or not cynical enough at this point?

Clavis @ 38:

I have a theory:

If progressive bloggers and commenters write Democrats in Congress about an issue, they have actually learned to go the other way reflexively.

Think about it: since the Conventional Wisdumb has become that left-leaning bloggers are shrill, divisive characters whose shenanigans inevitably get the Democrats painted as liberal extremists ready to fellate al Qaeda, the weak-kneed political weasels known as the Congressional Democrats are now actually taking liberal blogger feedback as "what NOT to do".

For example, on the matter of telecom immunity, telecom lobbyists nowadays probably literally use printouts of Kos and C&L and FDL comments and emails to say "These are the lunatics that will get you branded as a "liberal" -- if you just do what we lobbyists want, you'll be recognized here in Washington as 'bipartisan' and 'willing to work across the aisle'. You'll guarantee yourself a long, productive, lucrative career... whereas, if you vote the way these bloggers want, you'll immediately start getting branded as extreme and partisan... by us if no one else... and you won't accomplish anything, anyway!" And people like Tester and Webb, on whom we pinned our fragile hopes, will crumble like sandstone crutches.

Thoughts? Too cynical? Or not cynical enough at this point?

Not too cynical. (Cynicism is a good thing, by the way. ;) ) It's a very plausible hypothesis. Though, I doubt that it's the lobbyists making the argument to the elected officials. The lobbyists don't necessarily dole out political advice. I do find it plausible, however, that professional beltway consultants dole out such ridiculous advice.

Somehow, Democrats in D.C. still listen to consultants like Susan Estrich (get in the tank, Gov. Dukakis, it'll make for a great photo op) and Donna Brazille (America thinks your stiff, Mr. Vice President, and they hate Bill Clinton, so you need to distance yourself from both him and you). I've worked with some consultants with D.C. credentials on local campaigns, and their advice typically made me want to tear my hair out. John Edwards recently said that the one thing he'll do differently from 2004 is ignore the consultants' advice, and just speak his mind.

The Democrats' conventional wisdumb on campaigning truly bewilders me. It appears to be a lot like the war on drugs. Somehow our justice system thinks that if we want drugs to go away, we'll dole out tough sentences for using them. If a few years in prison for pot doesn't deter people, well, we'll just make it 10 years! And if that doesn't work after a while, then we'll just make it 15 years! And if that doesn't work we'll make it 20 years! At no point do we seem to wake up to the fact that punishment simply doesn't work. Doing more of what doesn't work doesn't make it work. And yet, we see the Democrats campaigning that way. I think we reached the height of this lunacy when some consultant DLC twit said that Harold Ford ran the best Senate campaign because he was the one reaching out to the religious values voters, and was the most in touch with rural, conservative America. Harold Ford was the one who lost, damn it! The ones who ran the "unconventional" campaigns -- those are the guys who won.

So, your hypothesis does indeed strike me as plausible. As to whether we've forlornly pinned our hopes on folks like Webb and Tester, the questions become, I think, how quickly are the "outsiders" insulated from the folks who elected them, and by what forces does the conventional wisdumb against which they fought so valiantly permeate their brains once they're in office?

nsr @ 26:

Remember when the Euro was less than a buck? It's at $1.41.

Yes but the Euro was also over 2 bucks. That's when the ARAB world was trading the oil for the Euro. Hmmmm. The USA sure fixed that by gaining control of the oil.

Lord of Karma @ 36:

Knowing and translating foreign languages don't require a high state of reason. I'd rather politicians be proficient in the languages of science and math which does require reasoning skills. Hell, being computer savvy unlike Ted Stevens would be a great start. Knowing relevant world languages such as Arabic and Chinese would also help them appreciate foreign cultures and be less likely to invade, (although wouldn't necessarily improve their reasoning skills). Knowing dead languages like Latin or ancient Greek is on the very bottom of things I wish my politicians knew and I personally wouldn't bother spending the time learning those languages even if I was given free lessons.

While I would also like a higher degree of basic proficiencies in math and science among our elected officials, I disagree on the value of 'dead' languages. Law and science both draw heavily on Latin for terminology, and English itself has words derived from Latin, French, Arabic, and German (among others).

Schools used to emphasize Latin as the foundation for the very rational mindset that you want to encourage.

Though I will point out it's possible to know Chinese and not know the Chinese. Ask any reporter on the China beat.

hareli @ 39:

rob in toronto @ 37:

hareli @ 33:

My parents remember when CAN$1.00 was worth US$1.25. They found Canada incredibly expensive as a result. Just after we moved here. That was around 1977-78.

Then your parents need to re-examine their memories because that never actually was the case. The highest that the Canadian dollar has been in my lifetime (I am 45) is about $1.04 US and according to our friends at the Bank of Canada the all time high was about $1.06 in 1957. Just as an added bonus, there wasn't a time between January 1, 1977 and Dec 31, 1978 that the Canadian dollar actually reached par with the US dollar.

I don't say this just to be a jerk but being the reality based community that we are, it is nice to keep these conversations grounded in something like reality.

I dont consider you a jerk. Glad for the correction. just tells me that the people they dealt with cheated them. :-) Because that's what they were told and their english was bad.

I was going to say something similar. What the banks charge to each other for exchange is in fractions of a percent, but as for the poor schmucks who have to exchange at the teller window is at the very least, a 4-5% markup on the currency... eg: if the rate was 1.04USD = 1.00CAD, then they would charge you at least 1.10USD = 1.00 CAD.

Good stuff, CwC.

Canadians are in control while Americans are controlled.

Daily Reading pt 1...

Thom Hartmann on the Destructive Effect of Neo-Liberal Economic Policy (Globalization) on Vulnerable Nations: Read His Review of A Brief History of Neoliberalism, By David Harvey
- http://www.buzzflash.com/store/items/780
No right wingnut morons...its not 'liberal' you should be focusing on..it refers to your leaders' greedy evil driven stupidity
Neoliberlism - a radical economic/political theory that everything will work out optimally if only the power of democratic governments are reduced to virtually nothing and the power of economic elites (known as "the free market") hold most power in society - in Iraq and Chile.
Iraq was going to be the Great Example for the neoliberals - they were so convinced of their theory that they didn't have a Plan B for any time after the invasion - and it utterly failed. Which is why you only read about the Iraq experiment in neoliberalism in books written by the few people, like Harvey and Naomi Klein, who have noticed it.
In Chile it was forced on the people, through the dictatorship of Pinochet. In The United States it came into being through subterfuge, through an alliance of big business and inherited wealth funding think tanks and media to change the minds and thinking of Americans to accept the notions of the "free market" and the idea that "big government" is a bad thing.

War Costing $720 Million Each Day, $500,000 Each Minute, $8,333 Each Second - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/21/AR200709...
Or reason 2,789,342,276,001 (projected cost of this republican disaster) why I hate republicans & right wingnut morons
"But when you talk about $720 million a day, even people who work on this issue are shocked by the number and shocked by what could have been done with that money. War has no return -- you're not producing a product."

Bush to seek nearly $200 billion more for wars - http://www.swamppolitics.com/news/politics/blog/2007/09/bush_to_seek_nea...

London Times: Secret US air force team to perfect plan for Iran strike - http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article2512097.ece

GOP Staffer Shoves Reporter Down Flight Of Stairs - http://cbs2chicago.com/video/?id=35806@wbbm.dayport.com
A Chicago CBS affiliate reporter was pushed down a flight of stairs by a staffer (i.e. body guard) of Rethug congressman Jerry Weller. I did a quick wikipedia on Weller. His wife's name is ZURY RIOS MONTT!! Daughter of the BUTCHER OF GUATEMALA! What a coincidence that he was being questioned about land deals in central america.
Reagan backed Guatemala’s General Rios Montt ( a born again Christian, AKA: the butcher of Guatemala), who seized power in a military coup in 1982 and unleashed a reign of terror that killed 70,000, 90% Mayan Indians, in 18 months. On Dec. 4, 1982, Reagan met with the dictator and declared, "President Rios Montt is a man of great personal integrity…. I know he wants to improve the quality of life for all Guatemalans and to promote social justice."

"Any misstep by Democrats or the Left is amplified through the Right’s giant echo chamber, resonating to all corners of the country and whipping up public outrage. In contrast, mistakes or abuses by Republicans and the Right get far less attention and often are ignored entirely (assuming the offense isn’t tapping for gay sex in a men’s bathroom)."
- http://www.consortiumnews.com/2007/092207.html

Daily Reading pt 3...

Report: Independent voters tilt toward Democrats - http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070923/ap_on_el_ge/irked_independents;_ylt=...
Of course, after they vote Republican...screwing up the country they realize...they have vote Democratic to fix the country again
Democratic party...always cleaning up after the republicans

Glenn Greenwald: Dianne Feinstein, symbol of the worthless Beltway Democrat - http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2007/09/23/feinstein/index.html

Katrina Vanden Heuvel: "To bomb or not to bomb Iran, that's the question the Bush Administration appears to be debating these days, once again revealing the extraordinary disconnect between the White House and the American people."
- http://www.thenation.com/blogs/edcut?bid=7&pid=236043

Bob Herbert: The Republicans Will Try to Steal Another Election, As They Did in 2000, Through Apportioning the California Electoral Votes
- http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/22/opinion/22herbert.html?_r=2&n=Top%2fOp...
Come on California voters...don't be stupid...

"The Democrats who are running for president are flush with policy proposals, position papers and fact sheets. The leading Republican contenders, not so much."
- http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070922/ap_on_el_pr/stay_tuned_for_details;_ylt=AifofuBPBLonMMS4aCGGecis0NUE

Newsweek: "Vice President Dick Cheney had at one point considered asking Israel to launch limited missile strikes at an Iranian nuclear site to provoke a retaliation, Newsweek magazine reported on Sunday."
- http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSN2323126720070923
Waste of existence....absolute waste...

The upside is that with a stronger CAN$, there will be fewer US Americans coming up here to shoot our wildlife and tell us how irrelevant we are.
*Bliss*

I can't believe they killed Pat Tillman and destroyed his personal writings, his journal, diary etc. What a disaster and what a loss.

Canada is what the U.S. will be if it ever grows up.

When has the Euro ever been over $2? Oil has been traded exclusevily in dollars since the end of WWII; in fact, that is why we have been "the wealthiest nation on Earth." Everyone else has to make things of value and sell them at a profit to get richer. We, on the other hand, have been able to just print more money. The world economy has been one big petrodollar recycling system, and we have been the consumer of last resort. And this is why a slipping, sliding, plummeting US dollar is so scary. At some point, people decide that maybe it isn't such a good idea to use the dollar as a the reserve currency, and hence to purchase the goo that makes the world go round.

Shortly before we invaded, Saddam had switched his oil for food dealings to Euros. Iran has been trying for several years to build an oil bourse that uses Euros. From our leaders' perspective, this cannot be allowed to happen. And it can't, because if the dollar was actually treated like any other currency on the market then we'd be tanked. The supply is astronomical...if the demand falls we'll be buying bread with wheelbarrows rather than wallets. It is already happening, slowly and queitly. Saudia Arabia is pulling away from its dollar peg as Kuwait already has. The Asian tigers are swamped in dollars, but so far they've been trying to spend, rather than, dump them because they rely on exports which would bottom out after a dollar crash. This administration's abandonment of the strong dollar policy--in order to borrow like mad to fight the war--may be even more damaging to the country in the long-term than the war itself. The last five years have been like the emperor doing a pole-dance strip show.

And free trade, as practiced by the USofA, is actually labor arbitage...see, there isn't any trade. Unless you count Americans trading their jobs for slightly cheaper, crappier goods from other countries. But don't forget, Bill Clinton was a huge free trader...he did a lot of this.

Did y'all hear that some scam operation has sold the idea for illegals to hoof it to Canada to avoid deportation from the Estados?

The Canadians don't know what hit them.

But when was the Euro ever at USD 2?

One thing to remember is if the USD keeps weakening relative to the loony, buying things from/in the U.S. will be more attractive (well, cheaper, anyway) than buying things from/in Canada (all other things being equal, and not counting the Sasketoon Roughriders ineffible allure). So, it's another big sucking sound in the making. Maybe Canada needs to build a fence.

ysbaddaden @ 65:

coleshack @ 63:

I have no problem with kittens. As any self-respecting demon knows, kittens are delicious and a necessary part of any poker game.

Like this game?

http://www.kerovisuals.com/timer/dog-poker-background-1024x768.jpg

AWWWW "Not Found
The requested URL /timer/dog-poker-background-1024×768.jpg was not found on this server."

Good thing there isn't any inflation or the dollar would be as devalued as....what a minute...I think...Canadian dollars are the same as US Dollars? But no inflation? And the house I bought in 1993 for $87,000 is now worth $350,000 and I haven't done much to it other than maintenance? But no inflation? I'm paying more then 157% more for medical insurance then in 1999, but no inflation?

Just what is inflation, and am I still suppose to be worried about it?

claude @ 64:

But when was the Euro ever at USD 2?

One thing to remember is if the USD keeps weakening relative to the loony, buying things from/in the U.S. will be more attractive (well, cheaper, anyway) than buying things from/in Canada (all other things being equal, and not counting the Sasketoon Roughriders ineffible allure). So, it's another big sucking sound in the making. Maybe Canada needs to build a fence.

I'd agree - actually already suggested a fence to my local MP - no reply.
But please, it's the Saskatchewan Roughriders!

GonzoD @ 67:

Bob @ 58:

Canada is what the U.S. will be if it ever grows up.

Don't hold your breath waiting for that to happen.

Just after you inhale.

Thomas Paine, in "The Age of Reason", has this interesting aside where he criticizes the practices of the time wherein students where taught ancient languages, *instead* of being taught logic and reason. He thought it worthless and counterproductive to force students to learn ancient Greek and Latin. Check it out: he makes an interesting point (and much better than I could)!

You know what's next, dontcha? I'm gonna come to the states and I'm gonna buy all your politicians with my Canadian currency. Then they'll HAVE to be liberal! MUWAHAHAHAHA!

I'm so old..... I remember when the Canadian dollar was $1.07 to the US dollar (back in the 70's). We crossed the river (Niagara) to shop all the time, back then. (I grew up in a border city, with a clear view of Niagara Falls N.Y. every day.)

Guess that means your price for B.C. hydroponic will go up. Bummer.

I certainly appreciate the bump to my blog, fella-- thank you!

I had written Mike earlier this week, in hopes of getting more attention to http://shutitdown101707.blogspot.com/

We are asking all Americans to call in sick/ take a day of leave or vacation, and simply stay home with their families/friends/pets on October 17th. It must start somewhere, and we feel that it should start on one excellent day for a strike-- the anniversary of the beginning of Poland's Solidarity Strikes.

They simply will not listen any other way. It MUST start somewhere.

My sincerest thanks, and best wishes,

--Monkeyfister