China: A village fights back

The story, courtesy of the UK Telegraph:

For the first time on record, the Chinese Communist party has lost all control, with the population of 20,000 in this southern fishing village now in open revolt.

The last of Wukan’s dozen party officials fled on Monday after thousands of people blocked armed police from retaking the village, standing firm against tear gas and water cannons.

Since then, the police have retreated to a roadblock, some three miles away, in order to prevent food and water from entering, and villagers from leaving. Wukan’s fishing fleet, its main source of income, has also been stopped from leaving harbour.

The plan appears to be to lay siege to Wukan and choke a rebellion which began three months ago when an angry mob, incensed at having the village’s land sold off, rampaged through the streets and overturned cars.

Although China suffers an estimated 180,000 “mass incidents” a year, it is unheard of for the Party to sound a retreat.

Ahem.

As you can see, the Torygraph likes to frame this as some kind of anticommunist uprising. Actually, it’s an antiCAPITALIST one.

The corrupt officials of Wukan are Communist in name only, and according to this blog, the villagers have appealed to higher authorities — which, in pre-Maoist times, would have meant the Emperor, or the regional governor. Nowadays, it means Communist Party federal authorities in Beijing. Meaning, they still have faith in the national party, if not the local authorities!

The corrupt local officials are feudal landlords to the core…the very same that Chairman Mao once swore to eradicate. (And very nearly succeeded, too.) They are seizing village lands to sell them to corporate developers…now, how communistic is THAT?

If you said “not at all”, pat yourself on the back.

And the fact that the villagers are taking action collectively, not as “rugged individuals”, should be seen as proof that socialism — REAL socialism — is not dead in China by a long shot. Whether or not the villagers of Wukan call it that, that is in fact what they are doing. To save their village, they must act as a village, and overthrow corrupt feudalist officials. It’s a commandment that dates back to Mao himself. And as long as they act together, and do not let themselves be divided and conquered, they will win.

It’s a lesson sure not to be lost on the Chinese people, whose discontent with the increasing capitalization of their country is rising, along with human rights abuses, pollution — and protests against it all.

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Posted in All the Tea in China, Crapagandarati, Economics for Dummies, Filthy Stinking Rich, Isn't It Ironic?, Newspeak is Nospeak | 1 Comment

Music for a Sunday: Garlic in your soul

And arsenic sauce!

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Quotable: William Gladstone on liberalism and conservatism

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Wankers of the Week: Third Badvent, and all is hell

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Crappy weekend, everyone! Well, it’s that time again, the Most Wonderful Time of the Week…the time we shit-list all the worthiest and most deserving shits who crossed our radars this week. And, in no particular order, they are…

1. Margaret Fucking Wente. If, as she claims, the poor are doing so much better than we think (just because they’re no longer dying of starvation here, and some of them even manage to have cellphones? Whoopdeefuckingdoo!), then I’d like to see this overpaid idiot get down off her flag-bedecked fainting couch, unclutch her pearls — in fact, just lose them already, literally — give up her cushy sinecure at the Grope and Flail, stop defending obscene wealth gaps as somehow acceptable, and actually try living as an honest-to-God poor person. On welfare. In a cockroach-ridden dump that eats up more than half the pittance you still have to work long, demeaning, underpaid hours for. Or better still, just go live in Attawapiskat, Maggie. Live by your wits, such as they are. And be sure to report back on how YOU feel after a month of cold, mold, and oh yeah, BEING BLAMED FOR YOUR OWN POVERTY.

2. David Fucking Warren. According to this other overpaid idiot (who writes his pompous ‘winger drivel for the Ottawa Citizen), LGBT kids aren’t the real victims of bullying…the poor, oppwessed Cwistians who can no longer freely express/institutionalize their homophobia and sexual repression are! Maybe he should get together with Christie Fucking Blatchford, who made this list last week for her sly, veiled digs at “fey” (nudge nudge, wink wink) guys who hug, cry, and express themselves with something other than violence (either straight-up or kinkily, creepily sexualized). They both seem pretty lonely to me, the poor dears. They could enjoy a nice night out watching the Brothers Frod get homophobically homoerotic with Hulk Fucking Hogan, or something; might help them both to unclench their butts for a change. PS: Ha, ha.

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3. Newt Fucking Gingrich. Yo, Newty? Unemployment insurance doesn’t mean it’s YOU paying people not to work for an absurd length of time. They paid for it themselves, out of their own taxes, WHILE WORKING. A concept YOU apparently can’t be bothered with, any more than the concept that child labor is SLAVERY, or that supreme court rulings are legally binding. PS: Yeah, sure, Newty, we believe you. PPS: Ha, ha.

4. John Fucking McLaughlin. Why is anyone still listening to this grumpy old has-been, anyway — especially when his style now consists sadly of trying to out-FUX FUX Snooze on public TV? Frankly, I think most US citizens, if properly informed (and that’s a big if, nowadays), would agree that it would be great if Barack Obama sounded like Hugo Chávez…a democratically elected, socialist leader who fights poverty without killing poor folks, does what the people tell him to do, and doesn’t mistake corporations for people, because he’s not in anyone’s pocket. Why you say Chavecito’s name like it’s a bad thing is beyond me; he’s a way better president than any of yours, Roosevelt(s) included.

5. Thomas Fucking Hymer. Learn the definition of satire, you fucking teabag. Calling someone a skunk because he’s “half black, half white, and stinks” is NOT “politically incorrect satire”, it is a racist insult. (And that goes double for you, Chuck Fucking Sankey. Ever consider that if something doesn’t “smell right”, maybe it’s YOU?)

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6. Bill Fucking Johnson. Quite aside from the weird hypocrisy of a blatantly homophobic lawmaker secretly (and selfishly) donating his sperm to lesbian couples trying to conceive, there is the lingering, distasteful question: WHO IN HER RIGHT MIND WOULD WANT THAT NASTY SPLOODGE ANYWHERE NEAR HER VAGINA???

7. Sarah Fucking Palin. What? YOU again? Shut the fuck up and go the hell away, and take Tawd with you. PS: Ha, ha.

8. The Fucking NYPD. “Heartless” just about sums it up.

9. Stephen Fucking Harper. Stop pretending to like hockey when you can’t even skate because it would mess up your carefully shellacked hair. Stop pretending to like Tim Horton’s when everyone knows you don’t drink anything but dirty oil. And stop pretending to care about the military when you can’t be bothered not to put them in harm’s fucking way, you hypocritical, un-Canadian bastard.

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10. Malcolm Fucking Harris. How very clever of you, pretending that Radiohead was going to play an Occupy Wall Street event! You really had a few people going for all of a minute there, with your pretentious little stunt that most of us never even heard about (nor would we have given a single ounce of fuck). So what was your fucking point? Was this all just the obscure lit-zine equivalent of a middle school prank? Smells like it. (Also, an awful lot like canned-fart spray in a lonely elevator.)

11. Paul Fucking Derengowski. Y’know, if you live by faith, rather than by sight, you’re bound to keep bumping into the furniture. Or viewpoints that don’t match your own. But why so hypersensitive about it? Does constantly stubbing your toe on other people’s beliefs really hurt THAT much?

12. Ricky Fucking Line. Don’t believe in evolution? That’s fine. But if that’s how you feel, then you really need to get out of the schoolin’ business.

13. Mitt Fucking Romney. Mittens is keeping up his wank-a-week habit, that’s for sure. And it doesn’t get any more wankish than berating a couple of married, gay military veterans about the wrongness of their relationship. Whatever happened to supporting the troops?

14. The Fucking Fratboys of Sigma Phi Epsilon, UVM chapter. I’m sure the whole world is just dying to know who you all would rape if you could. And I’m sure it’s also ready and willing to bash your collective heads in, the moment it catches you doing just that. But hey! Thanks for reminding me, yet again, why I picked universities that don’t allow frats. PS: Ha, ha.

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15. Trent Fucking Arsenault. Maybe he and #6 should get together and start a sperm bank…and recruit donors OTHER than themselves, for a change.

16. Scott Fucking Baio. Such a humorless asshole that he actually SHOULD die of diaper rash, for realz.

17. Jamie Fucking Hein. A “white only” swimming pool isn’t actually public. But a sign reading as such IS actually racist.

18. Peter Fucking Kent. Demanding an “abject” apology from Justin Trudeau, who only stated fact when he called you a piece of shit? Thanks for proving him right, dude. PS: And Justin? If you MUST apologize, please do so…to turds, for comparing them to him. That’s just nasty.

19. Courtney Fucking Stodden. Creepy grandpa fetish just got creepier. Self-promoting stupidity just got stupider. Sickening look-at-me-ness just got…well, you get the picture. There is just so much wrong with this one, and the more she tries to convince us all that she’s “rill”, the worse it seems to get.

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Yes, that’s one of Courtney’s “rill” bons mots. Try to keep your retching down to a dull roar, you in the Peanut Gallery!

20. Joe Fucking Amendola. Speaking of creepy, stupid and sickening, this one just keeps getting worse, too. But that gay-phone-sex-line thing is destined to become a classic Internet meme in 5…4…3…2…

PS: And please give a warm welcome to Karl Fucking Rominger, who just joined the Fucking Sandusky Defence Team, and who has, shall we say, strange ideas about how to teach underage boys that cleanliness is next to godliness.

21. The Fucking Duggars. Clearly nothing is sacred anymore, unless by “sacred” you mean “exploitable for commercial and propagandistic purposes”. This isn’t about grieving the loss of a half-gestated child; it’s about the hideous insanity of the Quiverfull “movement” — and, of course, the Fucking Duggars, who just can’t bear to get out of the goddamn sanctimonious spotlight for an instant, even when that is the most dignified (and restful) way to deal with a miscarriage.

22. Henry Fucking Greene. Funny how it’s always “he says, she says” when it comes to rape and legal inaction thereupon, eh? And as per usual, she says he raped her, and he says to “let God be the judge”. Well, Henry, Her Honor has spoken, and She says this is a matter best left to human tribunals. Where She hopes to see your ass, and SOON.

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23. Mark Fucking Meckler. Another dumb fucking paranoiac teabag who thinks laws are for OTHER people, but the US constitution was written by and for HIS people. Watch him try to weasel his way out of weapons charges by claiming the Second Amendment gives him the right to travel on airplanes with a handgun in his checked luggage, and that state laws and permits are therefore null and void. Given that it was written in an age of muskets and flintlocks, and the fastest way to travel was by clipper ship, what do YOU think it guarantees him?

24. Adam Fucking Hall. If you’re gonna go around calling your ex-girlfriend a slut, shouldn’t you at least learn to spell it correctly before you key-scratch it all over her car? Or is this a case of “Dyslexics of the World, UNTIE!”? Either way, it’s a wank for the stalkerish vandalism. Just GET OVER HER, already.

25. Rick Fucking Perry. Well, well, well, well, WELL. Looks like Crotch IS hiding a number of nasty little pink skeletons in his closet! This comes as no surprise to me, but it might shock those who were discomfited by his tight jeans back in the day. He wasn’t actually packing much; well-endowed guys don’t usually have to advertise. (Or stuff their pants with socks.) And yeah, surprise, Guvnor Goodhair likes him some gay guys. This all might not be such a big deal if he weren’t busy denying it in all the usual horrid ways, like marrying a poor unsuspecting woman so he can hide behind her skirts, or whipping out the guns and whooping like a macho idiot. But since he still thinks he has a shot at the White House, even with all that, maybe it’s just time to break down that closet door (Christ, where’s Geraldo Rivera when you need him?) and let those poor skeletons OUT, already.

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26. Marcus Fucking Bachmann. He’s only being so bitchy about Michelle Obama because he’ll never get to be a FLOTUS himself. Much less such a statuesque and beautiful one.

27. John Fucking Nienstedt. Is anyone besides me amused that a man who prances around in purple gowns for a living, and who isn’t allowed to marry, is leading an entire state in homophobic “marriage prayers”? Mary, Mary, how very contrary!

28. Joe Fucking Arpaio. How much longer before the World’s Worst Fucking Sheriff EVER is removed forcibly from office by the feds? Even if it were done today, it couldn’t come soon enough. His racist thugs just killed a Latino and LIED about it. And we all know who’s behind those orders, don’t we?

29. Greg Fucking Davis. Funny how it’s always the homophobic right-wing “family values” wankers who get caught with their pants down…or, in this case, buying sex toys at a VERY gay-friendly shop-o-fun. This in addition to charging the taxpayers of Mississippi $170,000 for food and booze. Eat, drink and be Mary, eh?

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And finally, to one who will go forever unmourned, at least in this little corner of the Internets. Yes, folks, Christopher Fucking Hitchens has finally gone to wherever it is that booze-addled, sold-out, disingenuous, ex-Trotskyite neo-con wankers who arrogantly declare antitheist jihads go when they shuffle off their mortal coils. He’s been wank-listed here plenty of times, and it was with pleasure unalloyed that I laughed every time I saw somebody, be it Juan Cole, George Galloway, or some random Arab, kick the plentiful self-righteous shit out of him. So this week, it is with no particular sadness that I hereby retire his number, and state for the record that my opinion of him has not budged an inch, even though you’re technically not supposed to speak ill of the dead. (What, not even Adolf Fucking Hitler? Please.) His would-be hagiographers, however, will be pilloried mercilessly in this space, as will his dumber detractors. A pox on both their houses, say I. He was neither a great intellect nor the Great Satan Incarnate. He was simply a toad even Cthulhu wouldn’t want to lick*.

I do, however, thank him for a couple of things. One, for proving to the world that it’s not just simplistic fundamentalist believers who cheerlead for imperialist wars; sometimes, simplistic fundamentalist unbelievers do, too. Which kind of knocks his own vaunted antitheism down a peg (or several). And two, that a plummy accent and a formal education do not a great thinker, or writer, make. Hitchens was a hack, plain and simple. At times he was the stopped clock that told proper time precisely two seconds out of every day, such as when he was waterboarded and finally had to admit that yes indeed, that DID constitute torture. And frankly, George Orwell would be shocked to learn that this neo-cretin was a self-professed admirer of his, since he apparently forgot what Orwell himself wrote about political speech, and couldn’t see it in his own:

“Political language — and with variations this is true of all political parties, from Conservatives to Anarchists — is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind.”

Hitchens certainly spouted more than his share of that. And that is to his permanent discredit.

Good night forever, Hitch, you windy old war-mongering sot…and get fucked!

*Apologies to any toads I have offended with that odious comparison.

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Festive Left Friday Blogging: Fidel’s Guinness record

Courtesy of Cubadebate, we have the following amusing little item to celebrate today:

The historic leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, is the person subject to the greatest number of assassination attempts, according to the Guinness Book of World Records and, surely, the archives of the US Central Intelligence Agency, the principal promoter of these frustrated homicide attempts.

According to the data reiterated on Tuesday by the Yahoo portal blog, as of 2006, the count of assassination attempts against him stands at 638, almost all of them perpetrated by the CIA.

The methods aimed at killing him were many, though all of them failed: from snipers, explosives hidden in his shoes, poison injected in a cigar, to a small explosive charge inside a baseball, among others.

From the very moment in which he headed the triumphant Cuban Revolution in 1959, enemies began to plot his physical demise. Among those most interested in killing the former prime minister of Cuba were the North American agencies of espionage and subversion.

Translation mine.

I couldn’t help snickering the entire time I was translating that. Either Fidel is incredibly clever and preternaturally good at outwitting his enemies, or (and personally, I suspect this latter is more the case) they are just that fucking stupid in Langley. Great at concocting elaborate plans, sure, but the execution is always lacking (pun intended).

And of course, Fidel IS very smart, much smarter than they, which is why Cuba remains the only Latin American country with no child malnutrition. It’s also why Cuba exports literacy and medical education to the rest of Latin America. And, oh yeah, this and so much more is why any effort to reverse the Revolution has failed to take. The problem with the so-called Cuban dissidents isn’t that they’re so few or so oppressed (they are neither), but because they have no fresh ideas. All they have is the financing and backing of the same failed US state organ that’s made a record number of assassination attempts on one leader who has now retired, since they couldn’t kill him out of office. Is it any wonder that they lack credibility? At this rate, Fidel will live to be 100, only to die peacefully in his sleep, and, one gets the feeling, merrily thumbing his nose in the general direction of Gringolandia.

Anyway: Enjoy your retirement and your Guinness, Fidel, ya big barbudo. You’ve certainly earned both.

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Posted in Cuba, Libre (de los Yanquis), Festive Left Friday Blogging, Spooks, The United States of Amnesia | 2 Comments

Spyware for Arab despots: Germany’s latest source of shame

Wikileaks just keeps exposing the imperialist underside of western “democracy”. And one of the latest to be embarrassed by revelations is Germany — an unlikely player in the imperial game, seeing as it’s been officially out of it since World War II ended. But what used to be done overtly by governments has since been taken over covertly by private corporations. Der Spiegel chimes in on the same themes as the above documentary:

The Cyber Warfare Europe conference, held in Berlin in September, was another key event for the intelligence and surveillance community. A former officer with the US Marines conducted the event in a windowless conference room at the Marriott Hotel.

A new, alarming attempt to create total surveillance at the expense of freedom was on display in Berlin. Functionality of the products is a priority, but so too is marketability. They are sold to any ruler who can afford it, no matter who he declares to be an enemy of the state and how he treats such so-called enemies. The attendees in Berlin seemed enthusiastic about what they were seeing, which included the latest tools for hacking into the suspects’ computers. The providers of the software promise that they can even provide interested third parties with access to encrypted emails and telephone conversations.

Representatives of the Gamma Group, a conglomerate that owns two companies headquartered in a Munich office building, had their own booth at Cyber Warfare Europe. Gamma describes itself as a leader in the field of cyber surveillance. The current brochure on its flagship product, “FinFisher,” reads like an investigator’s wish list — and a nightmare for civil rights activists. The 41-page brochure describes spy software for all kinds of devices and electronic eavesdropping situations.

Gamma offers a product, for example, known as an “active password sniffer,” which is supposedly capable of hacking into password-protected data transmissions in online banking (SSL), as well as private, encrypted WLANs. A product called “FinSpy” is designed to facilitate live surveillance through webcams and microphones, download files without being detected, and even monitor Skype conversations and chats.

In its marketing videos, Gamma promises “full access to target systems,” that is, the computers and mobile phones of those to be spied on. Of course criminals, as well as real or alleged regime opponents, should not be aware that any of this is taking place. The spy programs are installed on their computers through such tools as “fake software updates.”

According to the videos, unsuspecting users download the spyware onto their devices when they update their Apple iTunes program or BlackBerry software. Once a BlackBerry, for example, has been infected, the originators of the “FinSpy Mobile” spyware can not only listen in on conversations and read text messages, but can also view contacts, photos, calendar entries and other files stored on the device — no matter where in the world the device is being used at any given moment. Apple has just closed the security loophole that was being used for this purpose with a real iTunes update.

This in turn has me wondering if I got “finfished”, since I have iTunes and am frequently being urged to update it. Every time I get the latest update, there’s a new one a week later! It’s exasperating, all this updating. I’m reluctant to do so if it still works all right as is. A new look, and a few extra bells and whistles, aren’t as attractive as some might like to think.

And if it can happen in Iran, in Bahrain, in Oman and who knows where else, who’s to say it can’t also happen in Germany…or Canada? We already know that there is immense corporate interest in spying on private individuals. We also know that the Harper Government™ likes to spy on and repress anyone who contradicts THEM. I wouldn’t put it past them to waste taxpayer dollars on this shit, any more than I would put it past an Arab despot — or a corporate dictator wanna-be.

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Posted in Canadian Counterpunch, Confessions of a Bad German, Do As I Say..., Fascism Without Swastikas, Filthy Stinking Rich, If You REALLY Care, Isn't It Ironic?, Isn't That Illegal?, Spooks | Comments Off on Spyware for Arab despots: Germany’s latest source of shame

“Did you call him a piece of shit?”

Justin Trudeau, Liberal MP for Papineau, explains why he lost his shit at so-called environment minister Peter Fucking Kent yesterday in the House of Commons. He apologizes for his intemperate language but, take note, NOT for the sentiments expressed therein. I think the only thing he should have apologized for is insulting fecal matter. But hey, at least he’s not saying “fuddle-duddle”.

PS: Don’t miss this HuffPo op-ed. Seems I’m not the only one who thinks Justin had nothing to apologize for, as he is articulating the outrage that we all feel with a so-called environment minister who doesn’t give a shit for the environment.

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The disappeared reappear in Argentina

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Argentine forensic scientists unearth a mass grave at a military garrison which gained infamy during the junta dictatorship of the 1970s and early ’80s. Here’s a rundown of what they found in it, courtesy of Cubadebate:

A mass grave with remains of disappeared persons from the time of the dictatorship was discovered in the former Miguel de Azcuénaga Arsenal, which served as the largest clandestine detention and extermination centre in Tucumán province, Argentina.

Judicial sources revealed the finding within hours of confirmation that in the Pozo de Vargas, remains were identified as those of former senator Guillermo Vargas Aignasse, who disappeared in April, 1976.

The excavation, conducted in the barracks courtyard, revealed “calcined bone remains”, as well as “entire bodies in different positions, many with upper extremities bound, some with projectiles and directly associated shells nearby.”

Specialists from the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team (EAAF), in collaboration with the Interdisciplinary Archeology and Anthropology of Tucumán, revealed this finding in relation to case 400443/84, according to the website of the Centre for Judicial Information.

“The found bodies were located as they had fallen,” said a source, estimating that “the gravesite had been burned”, as there were “tire tubes and marks of combustion on the bodies.”

At the moment, according to information from Federal Court #2, under the auspices of judge Raúl Daniel Bejas, there were “skeletal remains of a minimum of 15 individuals, partially burned”, along with “elements associated with those remains, such as firearms projectiles, remains of clothing, and footwear.”

The gravesite also “showed signs of a backhoe…supporting the hypothesis that at first, a burning of the bodies took place, then later the filling of the grave using a backhoe, in order to finally cover it over.” This reinforces the presumption of aggravated homicide and “actions after the fact, aimed at guaranteeing impunity for crimes committed.”

After 1975, during the so-called “Operation Independence” and the dictatorship, the arsenal served as a concentration and death camp copied from those constructed by the Nazis during the Third Reich, with barracks for prisoners, a double perimeter fence, and guard towers.

Translation mine.

The other day, I was watching Nuestros Desaparecidos again, for the umpteenth time. I cry pretty much all the way through, but what gets me most is what they chant at the end as they march through the streets:

¡Ahora! ¡Ahora! ¡Resulta indispensable! ¡Aparición con vida, y castigo a los culpables! (“Now! Now! It’s indispensable! They [the disappeared] must appear alive, and the guilty be punished!”)

The dead won’t reappear alive, sadly…but that doesn’t mean they can’t tell some mighty damning tales. Let us now hope that at least a few more of the guilty will face justice for this.

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Stupid Sex Tricks: Beds are for sleeping, subways are for screwing

Subway sex at Spadina Station. Only in TO, folks.

From the Toronto Star, in both cases, we have the following funny Canadian contradiction. First, the sad news that we’re not getting a lot of nooky:

While it stands to reason that Canada’s cold climate would be enough to send us all back under the covers in search of a warm body, Canadians — compared to many other nationalities — are, well, using their beds for more sleep, not sex.

We are having less sex and we are apparently masters at concocting excuses to avoid sex.

A newly released global survey on sexual behaviour, attitudes and opinions, involving more than 13,000 respondents over the age of 34 from 13 countries, reveals statistics that are not particularly flattering for Canadians.

For example, Canadians aged 46 to 60 are only having sex 1.35 times a week, ranking us in 9th place out of 13 countries.

We are only slightly sexier than our American cousins who (in the same age group) are only having sex 1.19 times per week. The global average is 1.41.

We’re also not so quick to jump into the sack, scoring low on the spontaneity scale. The survey says 79 per cent of Canadians have spontaneous sex, well under the global average of 86 per cent.

When it comes to sex we are decidedly premeditated, unlike Portugal, Austria and Belgium. Those three countries posted numbers above 90 per cent.

And from headaches, to fatigue to life’s many distractions, Canadians suffer terribly from the “not tonight dear” syndrome. Two in five Canadians use excuses to avoid sex.

But hey, at least we have our Yankee cousins beat. Neener, neener, nee-ner.

BTW, that study was financed by Eli Lilly, marketers of fine boner-pill products worldwide. Including Cialis, the fabled “weekend sex pill”. How convenient, then, that this survey seems to chide us all for not having sex often, or spontaneously, enough. Surely a malign coincidence!

Then, a Toronto couple that appears not to have gotten this message, because they got it on where they shouldn’t:

A man and woman have been charged with engaging in a lewd act after a couple had sex on both a subway car and platform — in the middle of the afternoon.

The incident happened aboard a southbound train around 2:30 p.m. Sunday. A rider saw the couple — described as intoxicated and “old enough to know better” by TTC spokesman Brad Ross — having sex and just couldn’t ignore it.

“I wasn’t there, thankfully, but from what I understand, is a customer did activate the passenger assistance alarm,” said Ross. “They saw this couple engaged in I guess what would best be described as a lewd act.”

The train stopped and a TTC guard boarded and kicked the couple off at Spadina station.

But they clearly weren’t satisfied.

“Alcohol being a factor, they I guess decided they hadn’t completed their journey and continued on the platform,” Ross said.

A video apparently shot by a fellow passenger shows the train stopped as a man lies on top of a woman, moving rhythmically with his bare buttocks exposed. A TTC employee in a bright green jacket with reflective material stands at a reasonable distance on the yellow subway strip, and appears to curse at the couple to stop.

Ross said the video appears authentic, although he couldn’t access it from his TTC work computer.

Shortly after the train stopped at Spadina, police and EMS arrived on the platform. The couple was charged and transported to hospital due to their inebriation.

Link to video added. (Warning: Bare bum, and BORING!)

Let’s hope they got separate beds to sleep their drunkenness off in. (Rimshot!)

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Posted in Canadian Counterpunch, Isn't It Ironic?, Isn't That Illegal?, She Blinded Me With Science, Teh Heterostoopid, The United States of Amnesia | 5 Comments

An Ecuadorable little satellite

A Russian Dnepr RS-20 rocket like this one will carry an Ecuadorian satellite into orbit next year.

Sheesh. Those crazy Latinos, whatever will they do next? First Venezuela puts Simón Bolívar into orbit, then Bolivia follows suit with Tupac Amaru. Now, Ecuador is also getting in on the Earth-orbiting business, with a tiny little titan of its own:

Ecuador will be launching its first satellite, for use in scientific and educative missions, in September 2012. For this reason, it will sign a contract in the coming week with a Russian company which will launch the satellite into orbit, according to the Ecuadorian Civil Space Agency (EXA).

The satellite, named NEE-O1 Pegaso, weighs 1.2 kilograms, measures 75 centimetres wide by 10 centimetres high, and was built by Ecuadorian technicians with no foreign assistance, according to an EXA press release.

The satellite will be placed in orbit by a Dnepr RS20 rocket launched from Russia next September. It will incorporate a video transmission system for live broadcasts from space, and solar panels just 1.5 millimetres thick.

The signing of the launch contract will take place on Tuesday in the auditorium of the Aerial Warfare Academy in Quito.

Translation mine.

BTW, Aporrea also reports that at least 6,000 Venezuelan households now enjoy satellite TV courtesy of the Simón Bolívar satellite, also known as Venesat-1. The project is still in its early stages, but so far, reception has been good (pun intended).

Something tells me that at the rate things are going, Latin America is going to be a lot less dependent on gringo technology, and a lot more reliant on its own. And that’s a GOOD thing!

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Posted in All About Evo, Ecuadorable As Can Be, Huguito Chavecito, She Blinded Me With Science, Teh Russkies | 1 Comment