Segacs’s World I Know

My new theory is that Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi has been kidnapped, and a lookalike puppet controlled by the US government is replacing him. Yep, I sound like one of those wacky conspiracy theorists! But how else do you explain his recent 180s? First, voluntarily giving up Libya’s WMDs and allowing weapons inspectors free access. And now the announcement that Libya will be making peace with Israel (via LGF):

A high-ranking Israeli delegation is expected to visit Libya with the aim of reaching a mutual understanding on the signing of a peace agreement, Kuwaiti newspaper A-Siyasa, quoted on the Al Bawaba website, reported Tuesday.

Meanwhile, in comments published Tuesday, Libyan President Muammar Gaddafi was quoted as saying he is ready to compensate Libyan Jews whose properties were confiscated. He also said he is prepared to allow Libyans to travel to Israel, according to Arab press reports.

Call me cynical and jaded, but I’m having a hard time believing that there’s no catch to all of this. What’s next? Will the Islamic Jihad throw its suicide bomb manufacturing equipment into the sea? Will North Korea destroy its nuclear programs? Will Michael Moore wear a voluntary muzzle? (Ok, maybe that last one’s a bit too much to hope for…)

If the incident below is the first big overstatement of 2004, then here’s the biggest understatement of the year so far, about a man who rammed a truck into the Bell Centre during last night’s hockey game:

“He called me and said, ‘You wouldn’t believe what happened. A guy just backed into the (Bell) Centre with an old pick-up,’ ” Makarios said.

“You can’t be very brilliant to do that,” said Guy Bergeron, as he filed out of the Bell Centre.

No, I don’t suppose you can.

A Brazilian judge compared the new US fingerprinting program to the “worst horrors of the Nazis”:

The United States began fingerprinting and photographing visitors from most countries on Monday in a controversial program to try to prevent potential terrorists from slipping in through the borders.

[ . . . ]

But the Brazilian fingerprint program of U.S. visitors that began last Thursday came on the orders of a judge who angrily compared the new U.S. controls to Nazi horrors.

“I consider the act absolutely brutal, threatening human rights, violating human dignity, xenophobic and worthy of the worst horrors committed by the Nazis,” said Federal Judge Julier Sebastiao da Silva in a court order to authorize the program in Brazil.

Hmmmm, I bet if you asked a thousand Holocaust survivors whether they thought that comparison was justified, they’d say that fingerprinting is horrifying. /sarcasm

I also find it interesting that the judge was making the comparison in the process of implementing a similar program in Brazil, to fingerprint Americans. As far as I can tell, there is no security reason for that program, and it is being done purely out of childish spite. Talk about wasting public funds!

As for the US program, for the moment Canadians are exempt, but even if we weren’t, I’d have to agree with this guy:

“I think it’s good with everything that’s going on,” said Scott Murray, a Jamaican arriving at the airport. “If you have nothing to hide, it shouldn’t be a problem. I wasn’t offended.

When I got on a plane in the US last week, I was asked to remove my shoes to go through the metal detector, and place the shoes on the X-ray belt. Everyone else had to as well. Nobody cared. I’d rather take an extra five seconds to take off my sneakers than be on a plane hijacked by terrorists. And if a simple fingerprinting program could be helpful, then why not?

But if I have to travel to Brazil, remind me to protest the fingerprinting as barbaric and horrific.

Well, I’m back and I just wanted to sign off the year that was 2003. Here’s hoping 2004 will be a good one!

Yep, I’m officially ON VACATION and I’m heading out early tomorrow for a few days of fun and relaxation in the sun.

So to my readers, take care, enjoy, and I’ll be back soon. Do try to behave while I’m gone; I wouldn’t want to have to resort to banning anyone.

For those of you who celebrate Christmas, enjoy your presents, fruitcake, and annoying aunt with the moustache. For the rest of you, enjoy the day off.

Le’hitraot, au revoir.

Rachel Marsden has a good idea for the united Conservative Party’s campaign slogan for the next Federal election: “Vote Conservative, get HBO”.

Works for me.

Frankly, I think that would attract a LOT of votes. Here in big-brother-land, where the CRTC promotes endless “Canadian content” (read: crap) and allows licensing for Punjabi and Tamil stations and entertains applications from the likes of Al-Jazeera, it is illegal to get the latest episodes of the Sopranos or Six Feet Under. As well as a host of other programming, denied the right to air because of the horrible crime of being American.

I for one find it insulting that the government presumes to decide what’s “best” for us by denying us some of the most innovative, entertaining television to be created in recent history, but giving us all the Red Green we can watch. Whoopee.

News flash to the CRTC: We’re grownups. We don’t need you to set viewing guidelines for us. If we want our latest fix of Sex and the City, I don’t want to be told that it will rot my brain and that I should content myself with the latest Rita MacNeil special on CBC instead! That’s nightmare-inducing.

If you agree that the government should butt out and let us watch the programming we choose, then add your name to this online petition. Of course, it will accomplish absolutely nothing, but you’ll feel better. I know I did.

The CSU council decided to ban Operation SICK from ever having the right to become an official club at Concordia… but the SPHR-cronies who pushed the ban vote through on council can’t seem to decide on a consistent excuse.

-“We banned it cause it’s racist!”

That’s inconsistent to say the least.

-“No, I mean, we banned it cause it’s affiliated with Israeli Hasbara.”

So what?

-“We disagree with OpSICK’s political stance.”

But that doesn’t give you the right to ban them.

-“Whoops, I meant that my problem is really that it’s not honest about its affiliation with Hasbara.”

Well, you found out pretty easily; it can’t be THAT big a secret. Besides, how about a little honesty about who really funds SPHR?

-“Um, what I REALLY meant is that we banned it cause it’s redundant, there are already similar groups on campus.”

Again, so what?

-“I mean… I mean… hell, it’s run by pro-Israel people and we don’t like you and we’re not gonna let you become a club no matter what, so screw you and stop asking us for a legitimate reason cause we don’t actually have one!”

And that, of course, is the crux of the matter. Council had no legitimate reason to ban Operation SICK (which, by the way, does not focus only on Palestinians, but on groups from countries all over the world who use child soldiers or incitement of hatred among children). They just decided that it was a group run by their “enemies” (read: Jews, Zionists) so they would come up with some reason to ban it. Just like they came up with a ridiculous excuse to ban Concordia Hillel last year.

I’m very proud of myself. As a technical neophyte, I think that purchasing a new CD-RW drive and managing to install it – and get it working – in under an hour is a pretty good achievement, doncha think?

Maybe I should move to India and work for Dell tech support…

It’s a new record: I officially have not seen a single one of the Golden Globe-nominated movies for this year.

Frankly, I don’t think I’ve missed much.

Update: After seeing the full list of nominees, I realized I’ve seen more of them than I’d thought. None of the best drama nominees for picture, actor or actress, but I did see two of the best comedy nominees and one of the best actress in a comedy ones.

What really pisses me off is the constant nomination of films that haven’t even been released in theatres yet. Sorry, but can you say “marketing ploy” any louder?