Mind The Net

Friday, March 04, 2005

Go Lloyd!

Lloyd Axworthy's open letter to Condi Rice!

link via metafilter

School of Assassins

The School of the Americas (SOA), in 2001 renamed the “Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation,” is a combat training school for Latin American soldiers, located at Fort Benning, Georgia.

From its beginning, the mission of the SOA has been to train soldiers to protect the interests of multinational corporations and maintain the economic status quo for the few rich and powerful in the US and their cohorts in Latin America. Labor leaders and union organizers have always been among the primary targets of SOA violence.


link

Thursday, March 03, 2005

Thursdays

What is it about Thursday? I used to love it, because it was named after the Norse God of Thunder, and that dude was cool.
But two Thursdays ago, my sister was in the hospital with gallstones. Now my father's heart condition is acting up again and my mother has taken him to emergency. I'm home with my little sister.

My mother called me at around 7:30 to tell me that he wasn't feeling well, his thing was acting up, I can't even pronounce it, it think it boils down to irregular heartbeat and palpitations. It leaves him short of breath and pretty much unable to do anything. She wanted me closer than farther, I don't know about my grammar here, so I'm here now. In case something happens at least I won't have to take a cab? Or maybe she just feels better having me here. Well, I feel better being closer anyway. It's still shitty to have to sit and wait and then when it's over, when they give him the meds to feel better and check him out and send him home, he'll still have that look in his eye. That terrified look I've grown to hate. I don't like to see him terrified. It's not supposed to be this way. He's my father.

I was at a friends' place for dinner last Saturday, one of our friends was there and his wife said something like, "We're at that age, I guess." We could all count a slew of people who's familiars were with Cancer. My friend who had us over for dinner, lost his father last year. I was at a funeral for a friend's mother two Sundays ago. I guess we are at that age, where we'll all start losing our parents. Shit have we already inherited the world? What a mess. . .

Ma just called. He's in with the doc, they're looking him up and down. There sure is a lot of anxiety in this family.

Million Bucks

Saw "Million Dollar Baby" tonight. Fantastic. What a beautiful movie. Acting awesome, Directing awesome, writing awesome. Morgan Freeman and Clint and Hilary all were just incredibly powerful to watch and experience. Can't stop thinking about it. Thought I was okay, cried a little in it but then as I was telling my family to go and see it, it really hit me how powerful an impact it had. Walk don't run.

Except I would avoid the Varsity, cinema 1. Was there a hole in the roof? The wall?! It was freezing in there! We told the manager and he said the heat was on but it would take a while for a room that size. BS, they knew something was up, because halfway through the film, it was colder. Well, the film is worth it and also, afterwards you can go to the management and say, "it's bloody freezing in there! Give me passes to another film!". Like come on! I paid $13.95 for the damned movie.

Wednesday, March 02, 2005

BMD

Whatever, we don't care if Condi Rice is upset or Bush is peeved. Fuck him. Fuck her. Fuck them both at the same time, with broken bottles. Assholes.

But let's be careful too. Remember that the last time we said 'No!'. (it was Chretien). After that, didn't we have a friendly fire 'accident'?
We said 'no' right? Right? Wonder how true the Ballistic Missile Defense 'no' is.

Sunday, February 27, 2005

Justice For Chileans

Well, well. It's something. Money for victims and a tyrant found fit for trial! It's so bloody long overdue. I don't know what else to say, it's too hard, these are my people. The country I was born in. May the old bastard burn in hell for an eternity.

When I was a little boy, I would fantasize about growing strong here in North America and returning home one fine day, for vengeance. I was ten, I wanted to kill the man. Decades later, this man, made sure Pinochet's crimes would not go unnoticed.

These three links, came via metafilter

Invisible! Hobbits!

This is kinda crazy, but scientists have discovered a completely invisible galaxy. . . No Joke. It's all explained here

Oh and the hobbits are finally home. With the drama concluded, the excitement can begin! Following is the body of an article from Friday.

Science Editor February 25, 2005 The finders of the "hobbit" bones are once again their keepers. An elderly Indonesian scientist who took possession of the fragile remains of the species of tiny humans three months ago and refused to hand them back to the Australian and Indonesian scientists who discovered them has capitulated. Teuku Jacob, of Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta, returned the bones of Homo floresiensis to the Indonesian Centre for Archaeology late on Wednesday. The hobbits, who stood only a metre tall, lived on the Indonesian island of Flores until at least 13,000 years ago. The discovery team, led by Mike Morwood of the University of New England, believe they evolved from taller, archaic humans, Homo erectus. Professor Jacob argues they are just modern humans with a brain-shrinking deformity called microcephaly. He was asked to study the remains of the seven hobbits by the most senior Indonesian in the team, his friend Radien Soejono, who had excavated the Flores cave for 11 years without finding the hobbits. The request was opposed by all other team members, including Professor Morwood. Professor Soejono prevailed. Professor Jacob reneged on a signed promise to return the bones by January 1. There was further outrage last week, when Professor Jacob let two Australian scientists who agree with him, study the "stolen" bones.