Blog:

• Jan 13: Over the holidays I ordered a few compact discs from Henry Rollins' online store: A Clockwork Orange Stage, Yellow Blues, and A Nicer Shade of Red. They were on sale for just five bucks each (American funds, plus shipping and handling, no taxes). Amazingly, if bought from a downtown store, the three discs would cost about $120 Canadian! I was charged only six dollars to "import" them into the country, yet retailers routinely charge exorbitant prices for these specialty items. Worse, everyone connected to the music industry takes their piece of the pie, forcing prices up, and consumers to pick up the tab. Makes you wonder who profits from this scheme, and why used compact disc stores aren't more popular.
• Jan 1: She was my first love. We met in high school. I took her everywhere and showered her with affection. For over twelve years we stayed together, but this week I let her go. I'm really going to miss my Honda Civic. Essentially, she was a city car, only twice travelling outside Toronto: Bancroft and the Tri-state area of the US. On the trip home from New Jersey, I drove almost seven hundred kilometres on a forty-five litre tank of gas. Now that's fuel efficiency! There were two accidents and a minor product recall, and except for some rust, the "little red engine" stayed in good shape. My model had no safety features that today's cars have, but she had lots of pep, could do circles around much larger and more expensive cars, and was fun to drive. A thief even stole her for the factory-installed stereo, and parking enforcement officers ticketed her a few times. However, age caught up with her eventually, and after 154,966 kilometres it was time to say goodbye. Civic heaven just got a little more crowded.

Web Design:

• HTML coding 101: never write more code than necessary and keep it simple so that future web designers understand and time is not wasted. Unfortunately, the designer for Progressive Radio turned a two-column layout into a bad case of Divitis. I'm not poking fun at anyone; instead, pointing out that an experienced person, with the correct tools, can turn a site into an efficient source of information.
  • Web Page Speed Report
  • lines of code: 2101
  • number of divs: 1038
  • font tags: 19
  • embedded tables: 7
  • links with title attributes: 0/52
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• Digital Proof

Politics:

• Our prime minister is in south-east Asia touring the devastated areas caused by the tsunami. After, he plans to visit China to discuss trade and human rights issues. Maybe, if he grows a backbone, he'll ask them to explain why they continually block the UN from intervening more forcefully in Darfur, Sudan. Oil, it seems, makes people do stupid things. Just ask the Iraqis, Sudanese and Newfoundlanders about their valuable resource, and how easily it gets exploited by others far away.
• The Hermit Nuclear Kingdom
• Tsunami - Kalutara Beach, Sri Lanka
• Stone Age tribes shun tsunami aid
• Don't forget Africa in tsunami's wake
• Clinton Kept Hotel Rwanda Open
• Fair Deal For Newfoundland
• Anti-Semitism & Holocaust Remembrance:

  The Jewish witness that I am speaks of my people's suffering as a warning. He sounds the alarm to prevent these tragedies from being done to others. And yes, I am convinced if the world had listened to those of us who tried to speak we may have prevented Darfur, Cambodia, Bosnia, and naturally Rwanda.
  Elie Wiesel, Holocaust Survivor.

  • Permanent Mission of Israel to the United Nations
  • CBC News Indepth: Auschwitz
  • Genocide Under the Nazis
  • Claims Resolution Tribunal of the Holocaust Victim Assets Litigation against Swiss Banks
  • Saving Jewish Children, But at What Cost?
  • Goodbye to All That?

Of Interest:

• Attention Deficit Disorder: A Personal Investigation
• Canada For Asia
• Ten Worst Corporations of 2004
• A Healthy Choice
• Wal-Mart 'Duped' Locals to Build on Holy Site
• Info for Wal-Mart Workers
• Murphy Laws
• 2004 Canadian Blog Awards

Projects:

• Compressed Data could be redesigned using this Ruthsarian Layout. Stay tuned!