The Trump Campaign (and now Administration) has been and continues to be a street called Crazy with a shop called Crazy that serves a menu full of Crazy with a specialty of Crazy with Crazy on top.
The latest?
Donald Trump Jr. tweets out evidence that he willingly met with Russian agents in an attempt to influence the recent American election.
The Federal NDP is in the midst of a leadership race and there is a debate in Saskatoon tonight.
I didn’t watch it.
I haven’t been following the race super closely.
I briefly thought about writing a post where I ranked the four candidates but instead, I thought I’d give a quick review from my somewhat uninformed perspective (which I suspect is similar to many NDP members who are sorta kinda paying attention but not following it like the hardcore politicos):
Charlie Angus – “Got Your Back”
Greatest Strength: I think he’s got the best connection to working class, blue collar voters. It’s also cool that he was in a punk band which speaks to a certain authenticity as well.
Greatest Weakness: Some have said his French is the weakest of the four but given that I dropped out of French in grade eight, I wouldn’t know about that. 😉
Bernie Sanders Influence: Most resembles a dishevelled old activist that kids will find cool.
Niki Ashton – “Building A Movement, Together”
Greatest Strength: Her campaign is focusing on bringing together various activist groups into a single movement. She also likely has a strong appeal to members who would like to see a female leader.
Greatest Weakness: She’s been perceived as overwrought with how she dealt with elbow-gate and giving in too easy when challenged by a random chapter of Black Lives Matter about her use of a Beyonce lyric.
Bernie Sanders Influence: Candidate who is most clearly trying to model their campaign on Bernie Sanders’ insurgent campaign in the US.
Guy Caron – “Let’s Build a Progressive and Sustainable Economy”
Greatest Strength: I’m really intrigued by his Basic Income proposal. Is only candidate from Quebec if you believe that’s crucial to electoral success.
Greatest Weakness: Possibly the most generic of the four candidates with no unique “hook” to set him apart?
Bernie Sanders Influence: Candidate most focused on economic inequality as an overriding issue in society.
Jagmeet Singh – “With Love and Courage”
Greatest Strength: Easily the most intriguing serious leadership candidate for any political party in recent memory. The only candidate who could out-flank Justin Trudeau’s hip, metrosexual persona.
Greatest Weakness: Perhaps lack of experience in federal politics (although that didn’t hurt Jack Layton when he became leader) or perception that his campaign has made some unforced errors and not been as professional as you’d expect at this level?
Bernie Sanders Influence: Candidate who is part of a minority group (Sanders is Jewish, Singh is Sikh) but trying not to make a big deal about it.
Blake Berglund is my unofficial campground theme music this summer.
This past weekend, his “Coyote” album was the first one I played when we arrived and the last one I played when we left!
And here’s the lead-off song from that album which is such a great way to draw you into the album…
“Come Back Around” – Blake Berglund
This article is from the US and talks about libraries in Philadelphia, Denver and San Francisco but I know firsthand that librarians and library workers across Canada and right here in Regina regularly deal with people who are drunk, on drugs, or occasionally even actively using on library premises in washrooms or elsewhere.
It presents a lot of interesting questions – how far does the library’s commitment to equity of access go? How should libraries respond to people who commit crimes such as using illegal drugs on library property? What about less serious crimes like public intoxication or uttering threats? What sort of training do staff receive about identifying/responding to people with addictions issues and/or de-escalating serious situations? What sort of training should they receive? Where is the line between allowing people who may be intoxicated or otherwise under the influence into the library versus other people’s right to use and enjoy the library? What sort of security measures are in place to protect library patrons and staff? Is there a role for other professionals or authority figures such as social workers, addictions councillors, or Indigenous elders in responding to these issues when they do occur?
Is there any musician that defines Canada more than Stompin’ Tom? And is there a better song to post on this long weekend of Canada’s 150th Anniversary?
“Canada Day Up Canada Way” – Stompin’ Tom Connors
Trump continues to do things that no President has ever done before.
As a lifelong fan of wrestling, I agree with much of what this commentator says (and have said it myself as well – scroll down to “American Idol” in this post from right after he won the Presidency.)
Basically, in my view, Trump is doing a lot of stuff that he learned from watching/being involved in wrestling, and a lot of people who aren’t wrestling fans are taking it straight instead of seeing it through the scripted, exaggerated lens of the world of pro wrestling.
Ten Things Donald Trump Learned From Watching/Being Involved In Pro Wrestling
Bonus: How to make the audience part of the show by allowing them to chant for their heroes, boo the villains, provide real-time feedback of what is being said, and hold up homemade signs with messages for the person on the stage/in the ring.
Today is the tenth anniversary of the iPhone being released, perhaps the single most revolutionary product of my lifetime.
There has been numerous models of iPhone in that time of course, each offering incremental and often transformative improvements.
I got my first iPhone 3GS around 2009 – I was too cheap to buy one even though I really wanted one. So Shea’s parents gave me money for my birthday to put towards a phone which turned out to be a great gift – when you think of what you pay for a smartphone (which is expensive) but also the amount of use and value you get, it’s a no brainer. That phone’s battery is shot now but I still use it sometimes to listen to music on an iPod clock-radio.
After the battery on my original iPhone stopped holding a charge for any length of time, I think my next one was an iPhone 4 about three years later in 2012. That one I managed to fry in the ocean when I used a waterproof case that turned out not to be waterproof as advertised. Luckily I’d just upgraded my phone recently and was able to get it replaced via my credit card’s insurance.
That wasn’t an upgrade but that replacement iPhone 4 lasted for about four years until I got my next one – an iPhone 6 in early 2016 after the iPhone’s battery stopped holding a charge (a recurring theme for my devices and smartphones in general.)
That’s the phone I still use today. I’m nervous about upgrading again knowing they continue to “innovate” but I’m sure we’ll get to that point soon – either because this battery gives up (which is why I’ve upgraded twice before), I damage it (as was the cause of one unintentional replacement) or for some other reason – perhaps a cool new feature I simply can’t be without?
