Nuclear Power: Not green but not that scary
By Gregg Beever
It’s winter, isn’t it? Kind of tough to tell these days.
Winter brings shorter days and shorter days mean the lights stay on longer. Our winter heating bills double as we jack the thermostat in an effort to combat hypothermia. It’s the time of year our already rabid consumption of energy becomes insanely intense.
Edmonton, like many other city around the globe, is growing along with its insatiable energy needs. So how is Edmonton and the rest of Alberta going to fuel the future?
Before you answer, remember, we have to do it cleanly and greenly. You know, that whole global warming thing.
A few months back I was at the Greyhound Bus Station on a delivery errand. As my package was being processed a young woman cycled up to the door carrying several large, bound stacks of paper. Dressed in earthy tones she had natural, mid-length hair, wore no obvious make-up and was equipped with the kind of proper cycling gear that suggested her bike was her main mode of transport. In short, she was the type of girl that makes my hippy heart flutter.
It came as no surprise, then, that the stacks she placed on the conveyor belt beside me were posters for an environmental advocacy group. The poster read “A Truly Green Future…Does Not Include Nuclear Power,” a slogan belonging to the Coalition for a Nuclear Free Alberta (CNFA).
It occurred to me, as I was driving home, that I should have picked her brain about it. Why should Alberta be nuclear free? What makes nuclear power not “truly green?” Would that girl have given me her phone number?
These were all questions that demanded answers. Since I’ll never get the answer for that last one, I’ll have settle for answering the first two. (more…)
seinfeil – Can I park here?
I know I need athorization but can I just park for like 5 minutes?
-
Do spelling errors ever stop being funny?
Remembrance Day 2009: Remember Harder
Before I get into the meat of this Internet sandwich, let me use the bread to say that Remembrance Day is important and I value the sacrifice of those who would lay their lives on the line for others. (Let me also note I’m terrible at sandwich metaphors.)
That said, I wonder if having a day off each November 11th really lets people think about what the day means.
Yes, there are plenty of events around the city where people can pay their respects to veterans of Canada’s wars. Having covered a few as a reporter I know they will all be well attended.
But what of those who just sleep in today? How about if your parents aren’t dragging you off to such a ceremony; what are you learning about Canada’s military and peacekeeping role (other than it earned you a day off in the middle of the week)?
Lifelong Albertans always give me a look of shock when I tell them I didn’t grow up with Remembrance Day being a stat holiday. I was in school (in Ontario), always in assemblies and ceremonies for November 11. You lucky buggers also landed the first February holiday.
Now, I’m not saying I know any more about Canada’s military or peacekeeping missions than the next guy. I wouldn’t put my respect of the day up against anyone else’s. But I think about whether, growing up in a province with a stat, I would have paid as much attention not being forced to in school.
Of course, my point about being exposed to Remembrance Day, through school, loses its effectiveness when you look at adults in a province that treats today like a normal day. They’re at work, also not participating in any Remembrance Day events.
Though, I would argue, they may pay more attention, or pay some smaller respect, because school made today something to note.
If you didn’t work today, what, if anything, did you do to recognize the day? Did/does your family all head to a ceremony?
Am I right to wonder if a full day off is the way to go? Could a half-day be the answer that allows the ceremonies to co-exist with our love of not working?
seinfeil – The Oilers are good, on paper
This one actually made me laugh out loud.
Thanks to Kristi Shmyr’s eagle eye for catching this.
It's not even a sign where you could argue they ran out of the proper letters.
seinfeil – That’s one hot tan
Continuing our Hallowe’en theme today, here’s a place that will really set your soul on fire. Or tan you.
What Janine didn't know, was that the price of her tanning session was eternal damnation.
Why I’m going to ChangeCamp
A change will do you good.
We were going to do a story about this weekend’s ChangeCamp, but it’s been pretty well covered by outlets such as Vue Weekly and the Journal.
Instead, I decided, I will write about my own reasons for wanting to go. Perhaps it will convince someone who didn’t know about it, or know what it was about, to come out Saturday and talk about change.
First of all, I like the idea of a bunch of people who don’t really know each other getting together to try and figure out ways of engaging citizens.
Voter turnout at all three levels of government is terrible, people don’t tend to remember a lot from high school politics and civics classes, and the news can become a series of stories about boys in balloons instead of what your governments are up to. So, there’s clearly room to improve the level of debate.
Second, unlike most conferences and symposiums, you (yes, YOU) can show up Saturday morning and pitch an idea you want to talk about. You could be leading a discussion on that very topic within minutes.
There’s also lots of talk about data. The City (and provincial and federal governments) has lots of information. Everything from where buses are coming and going to where police officers are responding to calls. Data junkies, and people far better at computers than I, would love to have this made widely and freely available so they could build phone apps, wikis, maps, and all kinds of other helpful tools for you and me. Government just has to be willing to hand it over.
I suspect there will be talk about small pilot projects involving such data, what could be done if some other information was just made available and the best way to ask nicely to get it.
I’m also looking to meet people who are really excited to be a part of something here in Edmonton. They are going to be at ChangeCamp to try and engage with the wider community and I look forward to talking with them.
Maybe I’ll see you there.
Save Local TV. No, Save Local Cable. Or the CRTC?
This really has nothing to do with the story.
By Gregg Beever
Fall is upon Edmonton and with it the onset of a brand new season of television. What a great time of year to plunk yourself down in front of your TV! The days are getting short, it’s cold outside, your couch is warm and inviting, it’s the perfect occasion for a little escapism.
Every time I turn to bask in TV’s warming glow, however, I get caught in a shouting match between Canadian broadcasters and the cable and satellite TV providers. You’ve probably witnessed yourself the Local TV Matters spots where a little wormy guy talks to people (read: actors) on the street about the state of local television programming.
The conversation goes something like this:
“Did you know that cable and satellite providers hate local television and want to drive it out of business?”
“No, that’s horseshit!”
“They also said they slept with your Grandmother.”
“Gram gram?”
You get more of the same when the cable providers step up to the soap box, wailing about an unforgivable tax on TV.
I decided that neither ad campaign was helping me, in any way, understand the issue. If the Canadian broadcasters and cable providers ran dueling campaigns comprised entirely of wet fart noises I would be just as informed. That being the case, I thought I’d try and figure it out with the best investigative journalism Google could provide. (more…)
seinfeil – CityTV screenfail
It seems that a couple of our regular contributors/friends/enemies were watching CityTV this morning and saw the same mistake.
Thanks to Janine and Derjis for sending this on over. Spelling errors are always fun.
-
-
-
Bonus points to Janine for the second error.
seinfeil – one of these things is not like the other
Walking in the fantastic Mill Creek Ravine area, my eye was caught by something green.
ENHANCE!
Oops. (Or is this dastardly vandalism?)
Who cares about health care?
If you haven’t been paying attention, you might not have noticed that there’s a lot of stuff going down in Alberta health care.
Well, fear not (?) as the Alberta NDP is “on your side.”
The little party that could is zipping around Alberta over the next six weeks, talking to people in seven cities about health care. Rather, talking about what should or should not be cut by the governing Conservatives.
They’ve got details on Facebook.
The tour coincides with the next sitting of the Alberta Legislature, which begins October 26.
As the NDP states: “The goals of the public hearings are to gather information and provide solutions to some key questions by calling on stakeholders from various fields such health and wellness, seniors and family supports, business and municipalities and other groups. Some of these questions are:
- What difficulties has your family had accessing the health care that you need?
- How have growing wait lists impacted your health?
- How important is a fully-funded public health system to you?
- What are your highest priorities for health care in the future?
Edmonton is the site of today’s meeting. It’s at the Stanley Milner Library (the big one downtown), 3-5:30pm.
Go. Be heard. I don’t think the Alberta government is going to be holding any such meetings asking for input on where to make cuts to balance the budget. (Man, that would be inclusive governing…)
The Great Unknown
I don’t want to make this seem like the greatest thing since sliced bread, but I think there’s an Edmonton podcast you should check out.
It’s called The Unknown Studio and it’s good.
Hosted by Edmontonians Adam Rozenhart and Scott C. Bourgeois, it’s an informative and entertaining hour. (The boys are also on Facebook.)
The podcast comes out every two weeks and has already amassed an array of topics.
On the Edmonton side, they’ve talked about bugs and insects in the city (this podcast is definitely worth listening to), the Fringe, the Oilers, the growing city and planning issues, and the latest installment hits up the Pure Speculation Science Fiction Festival, happening this weekend.
They’ve also touched upon topics that have little to do with Edmonton, aside from the hosts and guests residing in our fair city. But that still makes it a good percentage local.
Plus, it’s funny. Have I mentioned that? It is.
The Unknown Studio is a great example of how topics that might not seem interesting (say, bugs) can end up being a compelling hour of listening because the hosts ask questions you would ask, the guests are real people and you can actually learn stuff while being entertained. It’s actual infotainment. Without water-skiing squirrels.
And you can be lazy like me and just subscribe to the podcast in iTunes so you get it automatically. Hilarious and informative podcast every two weeks? Yes, please!
(Bias note: We have been invited on the show. But I was listening to the podcast before they asked to go steady.)
seinfeil – those darn kids
You think you’re so funny, changing around letters on signs to spell out funny things, don’t you?
We do too.
Hey, we never claimed to be classy.
seinfeil: You must remenber this
Is this extra disappointing because it’s at a school? Maybe just a little.
Saturday’s seinfeil
We are grammar nerds, sometimes.
It was only a matter of time before poor use of an apostrophe made its way into a seinfeil.
This would lead me to believe it's Saturday's only...something...
What exactly is a Byelection?
This is Paul Hinman's new house. Or something.
We know that not everyone has time to pay attention to politics.
We know that a lot of political information is forgotten after high school.
We know.
And we want to break things down so everybody can be an engaged citizen.
Part 1 of “Muddling Through: The Strange World of Provincial Politics”
By Dustin McNichol
Yesterday, Albertans got a chance to vote. But not all of us. Only those in the constituency of Calgary-Glenmore, where Wildrose Alliance candidate Paul Hinman won the provincial byelection.
A byelection occurs when an elected member of the provincial legislature vacates his or her seat at the legislature. Remember, every electoral constituency in the province gets one seat, and one member in each seat represents one constituency. Still with me? Good. (more…)
Most important item of the day*
This is Lucy, on the way to art class.
The City of Edmonton (rather, the Valley Zoo) is providing an update on the health of Lucy the elephant.
Not because Bob Barker is coming to town or anything…
Does it feel, to anyone else, that the two sides of this debate aren’t connecting?
It’s like the Bob Barker/Zoocheck side is arguing that elephants get lonely and need to be in warmer climates, while the City side is arguing that Lucy is loved and people should stay out of our business.
Sigh…at least there’s not a recession to deal with right now.
Health update on Lucy, the Asian elephant living at the Edmonton Valley Zoo Edmonton, September 14, 2009 - Community Services General Manager Linda Cochrane and Valley Zoo veterinarian Dr. Milton Ness will provide an update on Lucy's health, including the results of a recent examination of Lucy and the opinions of a third-party specialist. Date: Monday, September 14, 2009 Time: Noon Location: Valley Zoo, 13315 Buena Vista Road Media representatives should sign-in at the Zoo's administration building.
* It’s not really the most important thing happening today.
Opinion: Why is there no money for healthcare in Alberta?
By A. Sumaru, C.F. Crozier and L. Richards
“In the analysis of social and political issues it is sufficient to face the facts and to be willing to follow a rational line of argument. Only [sic] common sense, which is quite evenly distributed, is needed… if by that you understand the willingness to look at the facts with an open mind, to put simple assumptions to the test, and to pursue an argument to its conclusion.”
- Noam Chomsky (1978) Language and Responsibility
We are going to preface our comments with Chomsky’s remarks because everything being written about is based on information that is easily accessible to any citizen who pays attention and/or has access to the Internet.
With the government of Alberta delisting services to cut costs, in order to eliminate the deficit in the health care budget, our analysis of this problem will focus on a simple line of reasoning that asks; “Why is there no money for health care in Alberta?” (more…)
Gimme (a reason for) Sympathy
Letter to the editor: By Janine Edwards
Where's the strike?
Alright Edmonton, I’ll admit it. I went to get groceries yesterday. And do you know where I went? Safeway.
Why Safeway? Because they don’t need me to buy cloth hipster grocery bags. They don’t charge me for the plastic ones either. And it’s about 2 blocks from my house. (See? I’m eating local.)
When I trudged home with my arms laden with groceries, a thought came into my head. Sure, there are a bunch of distribution centre workers on strike. (I think some make ice cream?) But how are they going to rally my support?
All of them are picketing in front of some warehouse I didn’t even know existed until this strike. Sure, if they were blocking the Yellowhead I’d notice. But where are they? I don’t see them, therefore they don’t want me to care.
However, I heard this morning that Safeway hired up some Scabs. Great! Now, you can picket those Scabs… OR you can rally the city by picketing rotating Safeway locations.
If I rolled up to a Safeway and there were tons of people standing with signs, perhaps chanting… my instincts to avoid conflict would kick in, and I’d immediately consider my options for other grocery stores. I don’t want to risk walking up and getting pummeled with produce, which is what I hear usually happens when distribution workers go on strike.
Even better – they could hand out hand-drawn maps to locations of other grocery stores! That would sure show Safeway! And, because they’re out where the people are, we could see them.
Who knows? Maybe that would make us start to care about the fate of these workers.
seinfeil: Advertising mistakes
I had to snap this photo because it reminded me how tumultuous a life in radio, dependent on ratings, can be. So many people get fired so many times.
Interior: Edmonton’s EZ Rock 104.9. Early morning. The office of the boss. A nervous looking promotions staffer enters.
Promotions guy: Hey boss. You remember those bus ads we ordered for fall ratings?
Boss: Yup.
Promo: They’re on Edmonton Transit buses today… (a look of dread is on his face)
Boss: Great!
Two of those three people have been fired.
Headlines: The Intervention
I am so crabby this morning, you guys, it’s ridiculous. On a normal day, I would just let things slide. But not today. Today, I’m staging an intervention.
First: I AM BEGGING someone at 630 CHED to send Ed Mason to pun rehab. I am a card carrying member of the “report news in new and interesting ways” fan club – but seriously, this is like getting your news from Wayne & Shuster. Or my dad. If you don’t get this under control, I’m calling Jeff VanVonderen.
Second: Global TV, your website makes me want to murder my eyes. Too many links! Not enough information! Though, if I’m looking for all the headlines from the Edmonton Journal, it’s very helpful.
Third: CBC, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE update your website early in the morning or in the overnight. There’s nothing worse than hearing you guys discuss something interesting in the morning that I can’t find any additional information on.
:(
Okay, I’m done getting my grump on. It’s now time to read the news and be happy! Oh, and while you’re being happy, be happy for us – because we’re just a stone’s throw from hitting post #300!
Gerard Butler is happy for us.
from the Edmonton Journal:
Stony Plain Road chosen for LRT route
Filthy conditions force closure of tattoo shop
MacEwan waits for university status
Push on to keep teachers happy and employed
from the Edmonton Sun:
Future of Jamboree looking brighter
Sex offender agrees to monitoring
Drunk-driving numbers constant
from Metro Edmonton:
from 630 CHED/iNews880:
from CTV Edmonton:
Violent jewelry store robbery caught on tape in south Edmonton
Edmonton police target drivers in school zones
from CBC Edmonton:
Edmonton Public Library’s new catalogue
Enhance.
I am the worst library patron of all time. I go through phases where I don’t go to the library for months, and then suddenly, I wake up with a burning desire to learn CSS, botany and the complete history of the tugboat, all at once. And just like that, I turn into the jerk who takes out 30 items at a time, keeping them all for weeks longer than I should, even though they’re on hold for other people.
So when I heard that the EPL (Edmonton Public Library) was revamping their catalogue, there was a moment where I dared to dream that some glitch in the matrix would cause whatever fines I had accrued (and despite my best intentions, there are ALWAYS fines accrued) to somehow magically be swept away.
Enhance.
But as you see here, no dice. There’s a better chance of us returning to the old card and stamp days than that happening. Now I’ll stop being a cheapskate and just pay the $3.50.
But I digress. I e-mailed Tina Thomas, media relations person for Edmonton Public Libraries, for some more information about the new catalogue.
The website, which has been developed in association with Ontario company BiblioCommons – who’ve also help pimp out the Oakville and Ottawa Public Library systems – is supposed to launch sometime this week to the general public. But, as all you twitter-folk already know, EPL has been tweeting the URL for people to try out, pre-launch.
The new catalogue will have “improved search capabilities,” according to Tina, who adds that it should also help users find whatever they’re looking for with a lot more ease. There’s also some new social networking elements, so users can comment, review and link to library materials.
“As a community-centered organization, we recognize that our customers have great input and opinions on our materials that they want to share,” Tina said in an e-mail. “They also want to access opinions and recommendations from users who share common interests. A social networking inspired catalogue helps achieve this.”
In the interest of science (SCIENCE!) I’ve been test-driving the catalogue myself, and in my opinion, it’s pretty sweet. The FAQ is very clear, and I found the whole site to be very intuitive. I also found it surprising, yet brilliant that you can follow people who like the same kind of stuff as you and see what they recommend..
seinfeil – Meanwhile, Back at Casino…
Lightbulbs are expensive. Don't you know there's a recession on?
