test blog 3

By now I'm sure you all know that the Obama administration is attempting to block the release of additional evidence of torture perpetrated by the US, making itself complicit in the cover-up of war crimes committed by its predecessors. The release of the photos, which had been set for May 28, was hard won by the ACLU and other rights groups, and those organizations are vigorously fighting this latest setback . During the Abu Ghraib investigation, several US senators and congresspeople saw many of the photos that had not been released to the public. These are said to document sexual assault and abuse of both women and child prisoners, among other stomach-churning horrors. By now you should also know that Obama has revived the use of military commissions to "try" the remaining Guantanamo prisoners. The administration is tweaking the rules a bit, such as supposedly barring "evidence" obtained by torture. But when you're holding a kangaroo court, visible to no ...

There's a long story in last month's issue of Harper's about a disturbing, but little noted, trend: US Christian evangelicals using the war in Afghanistan as a platform for missionary work - and as a crusade. You can't read that for free online, but it relates to this. US soldiers have been encouraged to spread the message of their Christian faith among Afghanistan's predominantly Muslim population, video footage obtained by Al Jazeera appears to show. Military chaplains stationed in the US air base at Bagram were also filmed with bibles printed in the country's main Pashto and Dari languages. In one recorded sermon, Lieutenant-Colonel Gary Hensley, the chief of the US military chaplains in Afghanistan, is seen telling soldiers that as followers of Jesus Christ, they all have a responsibility "to be witnesses for him". "The special forces guys - they hunt men basically. We do the same things as Christians, we hunt people for Jesus. We do, we hun...

Search string of the day: can your male next door neighbor turn out to be gay Is he calling a moving van, or hoping for a date?

Many people are very resistant to taking any sort of medication, be it over-the-counter, prescription, or herbal remedy. People will, for example, suffer for hours with a headache before finally taking ibuprofen or acetaminophen. They'll sneeze, cough and rub their eyes raw before trying an allergy medication. And when it comes to prescription drugs, many people are loathe to take anything at all, for any reason. Some people will try anything called "herbal" or "natural," but will resist taking any prescription drugs. These people, I have observed, are not necessarily health-conscious. They will drink soda (pop) full of artificial colours, flavours and processed sugar; they'll eat processed food and junk food. They don't necessarily exercise. Some even smoke. Many have taken drugs recreationally at least at some point in their lives. But when it comes to prescription drugs: no way. I'm not talking about people who are suffering from AIDS or other ser...

What's wrong with this picture? Condoleezza Rice: coming to Canada May 13, 2009 . To be introduced by introduced by Mr. George Russell, Executive Editor of Fox News New York. George W. Bush: coming to Canada May 29, 2009 . Michael Chertoff (former Secretary of Homeland Security; co-author of "Patriot Act"), John Bolton (former Bush UN ambassador), and John Howard (former Prime Minister of Australia and constant supporter of the invasion of Iraq): coming to Canada May 31, 2009. George Galloway, MP, peace activist: barred from entering Canada . Ann Wright, retired US Army colonel, peace activist: barred from entering Canada . Medea Benjamin, peace activist: barred from entering Canada . Reza Alijani, dissident journalist, and Shadi Sadr, women's rights activist, both Iranian, barred from entering Canada . Robin Long , Cliff Cornell , Chris Teske, Daniel Sandate, US war resisters: deported from Canada. Jeremy Hinzman, Kimberly Rivera, Dale Landry, Dean Walcott, Patrick ...

Part one here. There's a lot to freak out about. I'm not going to let my fear and anxiety stop me from doing what I want to do. But I need to acknowledge the feelings and talk about them before pushing past them. Age. My friend told me I'm looking at four to five years of library school, assuming I go part-time, then another three to four years of working at various inconvenient locations until I land my dream library job. The first thing I thought was, I turn 48 next month. How old do I want to be when I start a new career path? Isn't mid-50s too old? Well, no. After living with those negative feelings for a while, I started to think of it this way. If I start now, by the time I'm, say, 55, I'll be (hopefully) earning more money and living a life closer to what I want. If I don't, where will I be? I'll be that age anyway, and I'll be doing the same thing I'm doing now - that much more sick of it, that much more frustrated, that much more unhap...

I'm considering going to graduate school to change my day job. I never thought I'd do this - I thought if I undertook more education, it would be for the creative side of my life, or for my own enrichment. But right now I'm seriously exploring getting a Masters degree to become a part-time librarian. The starting point, unsurprisingly, is my lousy work situation. I've been earning the bulk of my income as a document production specialist in corporate law firms for almost 20 years. In New York City, this worked beautifully, but in Toronto, it really hasn't gone well for me. I had a good job with one firm that ended up going out of business. I took another job that was badly misrepresented to me; I loathed it and quit. And my current job doesn't provide me with enough hours, so I'm under constant pressure to earn additional income through other means. I've been looking for a job nearly continuously for two years. The few promising leads I had - firms that ...