So this is half on me, and half on my father. (I inherited my “stupid idea” gene.

When I was 16 my dad was building a greenhouse on our small acreage. Frame was up, everything was ready and it became time to lay down the heavy clear plastic sheeting that would form the surface.

As he was up in the top nailing down each corner, it was my job to hold each corner down as tight as I could from the ground by using a rope attached to the corner of the sheet. (I don’t know if i’m describing this properly).

Any way, my father’s fault in the story is this: The only “rope” we could find was baler twine. It’s thin, coarse, and can easily slice like a saw. We secured a long piece of it to the corner of the sheeting and my job was to basically “tug of war” the corner in order to keep it taut for my father to secure.

Anyone raised in the country already sees exactly where I’m going with this…

MY stupid part in this story is this…

In an attempt to get a better purchase on the baler twine, I wrapped it a few times around my hand, through my fingers, etc…

Did I mention it was a bit windy that day? So a guest of wind took the corner and ripped it out of my hands, with the twine literally zipping through my fingers, slicing them nearly to the bone because friction + baler twine = weirdly effective saw.

Four fingers on my right hand were left with ring scars from where the twine zipped through them and my right hand was out of action for about a week

There’s a kink for everything. It may not be a large base, but I’ll bet it’s there.

What pisses me off the most about Conservative politics is two-fold:

Their use of simplified three-word demagoguery specifically with the goal of making their base hoot and holler at some perceived enemy, but not actually have any policy to back up what is in truth a very complicated issue. (ie. axe the tax)

And second, their constant banging on about “Corporate handouts” to businesses that they blame the liberals for doing, when everyone (except their cultists) know that they do it ten times more. And yet media never calls them out on it.

Sorry. I know this is all well trodden territory by now. But every time I see that smug puncheable face, he repeats the bullshit behind that idiotic sign.

Three minutes before. No more. No less.

Trump’s entire business sense amounts to “slap my name on everything so I look rich and powerful”.

Dollars to Donuts says that his first thought was to call it “The Gulf of Trump” and some quick thinking aide changed the post before it could be released.

The Thirteenth Floor is a truly under appreciated gem of a movie, FYI

I’ve always believed deeply that the European Union was a model for how we, as a species, have to evolve in order to reach that next step. Not in a Star Trek ideal of “one planet”, but at least in a “cooperation” that allows us to stop fighting each other.

Hell…I’m even a believer IN a North American version of the same thing. Just not in the way that Trump is wanting it and NOT with Trump anywhere near the decision making process. A North American federation on good terms with the EU federation would be great as long as adults were in charge and sovereignty was respected rather an a man-child shouting out bullshit all the time.

I think he already has. The U.S. is still militarily influential of course, but no one…NO ONE…takes their political leaders as anything more than unhinged toddlers anymore.

conventionally, the US is the world hegemon as far as naval and air power goes, they are unbeatable.

I see what you’re saying. But that Hegemony is based entirely on military bases spread on foreign soil in countries who would immediately upon the start of hostilities annex them. No one “individual” American military base could possibly win a battle surrounded by a suddenly hostile foreign country that they now find themselves an enclave in. Just like that…within days, American’s global reach would vanish (with the exception of naval power of course)

We’re going to have to agree to disagree on this one. It’s a great discussion to have, though I’d never like to see it proven one way or another.

“Racist” is probably too strong a word, you’re right.

I think “Tasteless” is more fitting. Racist would imply that they “satirise” some groups while protecting others, while Charlie Hebdo paints everyone with the same tasteless brush.

However, if America’s attempt at Annexation began because Canada began pursuing greater economic ties with Europe in an attempt to distance themselves from the United States, then it changes Europe’s reaction.

Canada spent the last few years building their own refineries so as to not be dependent on the United States, allowing them more freedom as to who and where they sell their oil. They’ve fortified their power grid and increased their military spending. They’ve even made some overtures towards ratifying a more formal relationship with the EU because their vast resource wealth gives them bargaining power, which opens up the possibility of EU nukes on Canada’s southern border.

America feeling threatened by that is what ignites the attempt at annexation. EU’s response wouldn’t be so fractured in that case because their very existence relies on having Canada’s resources.

(This is all alternative history of course. But it’s a fun game to play)

And no, America wouldn’t be “The winning side” in a war against every other developed nation. They are the largest single military, yes. But put enough countries together in what we’ll call a “coalition of the anti-dickhead-president”, who are both fighting physically AND embargoing them financially, they wouldn’t have a chance in the long run. Canada’s first move is to flip a switch in Quebec and cut the power to the entire eastern seaboard. They’re second move is to shut the pipelines to the American refineries.

Even the largest military runs on oil. The U.S. is far more dependent on the rest of the world than it thinks. It essentially maintains it’s military supremacy at the whim of the rest of the world, not despite it.

“annex” implies they actually have a claim on Canada. It would be an invasion.

And in such an invasion, you’d best believe that the European nations would love to come to Canada’s aid because a) They will also be needing the resources, and b) They like us a hell of a lot more than they like the U.S.

So no…a U.S invasion wouldn’t be an annexation, it would be the U.S. getting it’s shit kicked in by virtually every country in the world coming to Canada’s defence.

As in everything in life, your right to swing your fist ends where my nose begins.

If you don’t like the satire of Charlie Hebdo, your right is to not read it. If you don’t like a comedian who makes pedo jokes, your right is to not buy their tickets. If you don’t like a TV show that shows drug use, your right is to not watch it.

That’s it. That’s the end of your personal rights on that issue. You do NOT have the right to tell other people what they personally view, watch, read, etc…

If enough people share your view, that publication/comedian/show will either change or go out of business naturally because of lack of subscribers. That’s how it works.

I personally find Charlie Hebdo to be racist twits. But that doesn’t give me any right to kill them. I have the right to just ignore them.

President Freedom Fries can call it whatever the fuck he wants. That doesn’t make it internationally recognized.

There’s still a lot of bad blood between the Danes and the Canadians. A lot of good young men watched booze being spilled in front of them. It was horrific. I just don’t know if there’s any coming back from the kind of horrors both countries saw in the Whiskey War.

The irony of all of it is that technically I can become a dual citizen anytime I wanted to file the paperwork since my parents are Portuguese citizens. But up until recently I’ve never felt the need for that particular escape valve.

I’ve always known I would have to get it eventually in order to handle my now ageing father’s finances over there when he passes. And I always regretted not doing it when I was young and free to travel before life gets one bogged down in trivialities.

Meh. My real world would know what my digital world already knows, that I’m much more of a nerd than I portray myself as.

It’s not because I purposefully hide it. It’s because it’s not a topic that is interesting to anyone in my real world circle of friends. I don’t have real world friends who want to talk about Linux, and Open Source, and retro-video games, and all of the other stuff that I ramble on about online in forums where the peeps who understand me all hang out.

There’s probably some very surprising porn habits in there as well that my real world friends and family would have NO CLUE about, but c’est la vie.

“China’s Tibet”

Go fuck yourself.

Is there some kind of loophole where Canada can join the EU? I mean we’re not really that far away if you fly over the North Pole and down again.

Pretty please? Think of the better costs for Poutine and Maple Syrup!

That is essentially the vibe I got from that argument. We didn’t last much longer after that.