Help, My Record is Skipping!

Some times I fell like my record is skipping, going over the same old groove over and over. But I can't help it. I love stumbling through the C.B.C.s website, mostly because I find stories like No exceptions for major polluters in Bali, says Baird. What an interesting piece.

International leaders attending the U.N. Climate Change Conference are hoping to draught an updated version of the Kyoto Protocol to include all polluters. Which as a matter of fact, coincides with the stance that P.M. Stephen Harper took at the recent Commonwealth summit. A lot of people criticized Harper for not wanting to be bound to the Kyoto protocol which only encompasses 36 industrialized nations. As many of you know, there are more than 36 industrialized nations that are contributing to Global Warming. Greenhouse gas emissions are increasing every year and it is time for us to do something about it!

This new 'Protocol' that International leaders are hoping to draught will encompass every industrialized nation. Far too long have smaller industrialized nations, out side of the Kyoto Protocol have been polluting with out limits. Granted that placing limits on Greenhouse gas production only slows the problem, but slowing the problem while we search for a solution is absolutely necessary. I'm sure people who have time to read through this post will agree, breathing is good, especially if its clean air we're breathing. But its not just for us that we have to create a solution for, its for the children.

How many people can remember having summers with out smog warnings? Is it possible to get rid of this health hazard? Is it really so hard to walk to the store instead of driving? Oil prices will never be the same as they were a decade ago, and the less dependant we are on cars, the better. Before the modern automobile was invented, we used to get around by steam powered trains, horses or just what God gave us, our own two feet. Economically, walking 20 to 30 minutes to get to the store is more logical than burning approximately $1-$3 worth of gasoline each trip. Not to mention the healthy side effects of walking. Are you willing to sacrifice some extra minutes for not only your health, but the health of our environment.

Image Sources: www.libcom.org and www.healthandenergy.com

Canada to the Rescue

Here's an interesting story for you, Canadian fighter jets temporarily fill in for U.S. air defences, I found this one the C.B.C.s website. Apparently Russian bombers had resumed flying high Arctic long range patrols, which forces fighters to scramble to meet them. Not since the cold war ended have the Russians flown so close to our continent. It never fails to amaze me when I hear some Americans saying that Canada doesn't need a military force just because we share the same continent. Shouldn't both of our countries work together in defence of our continent? I'm sure this incident should turn a few heads, even if it doesn't make the news on C.N.N..

Image source: Wikimedia Commons

The Deadliest Weapon

Everybody has one, if you don't have one you want one. This weapon has been mass produced for close to 100 years, but its not classed as weaponry. Most of these do not resemble in any shape or form the classic weapons, but do not fool yourself, it most certainly is one. This weapon has been studied for years, its been redesigned for safety, but it still is a weapon. Its sleek, sexy, its been revered and collected. A lot of people purchase one based on its sex appeal. Have you guessed what weapon I'm talking about? Its none other than the common automobile.

In its early years of production, the car was the most deadliest form of transportation. With the wrong person behind the wheel, it still is. When the car was first mass produced, the consumer just accepted the risks. Now there are people employed to design safety devices to prevent deaths in car accidents. Compared to the original car the rolled off the production line in early years, our cars are far more safe, for example; airbags, seat belts, collapsible steering columns and crumple zones keep the modern driver safe. Granted all these devices are not fool proof, people still die in car accidents, but thanks to these devices the number of deaths from car accidents has declined. But all of these safety devices would not have been installed prior to the first motor safety laws that were passed in 1967.

Some would argue that a car is one of the safest modes of transport in today's society. I can agree with that, at least when every body behind the wheel is fully aware of their surroundings. When they're not, the car or truck transforms into a 2500-65000lbs projectile, this is why cars and trucks are the most deadliest weapon on today's market. Most drivers are competent enough to pay attention to others around their vehicle, but this isn't always the case. How many deaths per year are attributed to motor vehicle accidents?

The safest types of cars are not production vehicles. Racing vehicles are designed to be crashed, the forces that act on these vehicles are extreem and the car has to be designed to prevent the death of the driver. Granted that some race car drivers do die during races, but their deaths are not in vain, new safety devices are introduced to prevent more deaths from similar crashes. Also the drivers are wearing far more protective gear than the average civillian driver, they usually wear a fire suit, helmut, fire resistant gloves and boots, as well as a five point harness instead of the three point safety belt that all current production vehicles are equipped with.

Since the inception of the automobile, thousands of people have died from driver error. In my corner of the world we have a graduated licensing system which encourages more and more young people to take drivers education courses. The incentive is that you are allowed to take your first of two road tests four months earlier than with out a defensive driving course. All this is a good system that will help prevent some accidents, its not fool proof, but its a step in the right direction. In my opinion, the volume of drivers out on today's roads is increasing, which is increasing the chances of being involved in a car accident.

Next time you get behind the wheel of an automobile, please remember that you are behind the controls of a weapon and be responsible with it!

Is the Kyoto Protocol Bias?

Once again I find inspiration from the C.B.C.s website. This time is the article Harper alone on climate change at Commonwealth summit. Apparently Prime Minister Stephen Harper is the only head of a nation that doesn't want to agree to binding targets for greenhouse gases. There has been a few stories about Harper not wanting anything to do with the Kyoto Protocol, this time his only supporter, the Prime Minister of Australia, is busy with up coming elections. Granted here in Canada, warmer winters could be a good thing, considering it can get really cold, even in the most southern parts of the country.

The reason why I don't support Harper on this issue is that, even though I'm not the perfect example for green living, I do care about our environment. I can understand that some green policies can be bad for business, but really, we all live on the same planet and are facing the same global issues. The Internet has opened up many channels of communication and given us more access to information than we would have had twenty years ago, when the 'Commodore 64' was still popular. It's amazing just how much our world has changed since a large populous gained access to the military invention.

Back to the article, the British Prime Minister has said that he would persuade Harper into following the crowd on this issue. Whether or not the British P.M. will be successful remains to be seen. The Conservative minority government here in Canada has pushed the Kyoto Protocol to the back burner. I'm curious to see what effect the recent U.N. Climate Conference will have on pressuring environment ministers into creating an updated version of the Kyoto Protocol. The up coming U.N. Sponsored Climate Change summit in Bali, Indonesia is where we could see an updated version of the Kyoto Protocol.

I have also found an article on C.T.V.s website called All countries must agree to GHG cuts: Harper, which gives us some insight into P.M. Stephen Harper's logic on blocking this agreement. Its interesting to see a different spin on the same topic, and when the topic is climate change, things are definitely getting heated. Harper is taking the position that the Kyoto Protocol is biased.

The Kyoto Protocol was designed to give 36 industrialized nations incentive to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to set targets. I think the system is failing. Smaller nations not included in the Kyoto Protocol are catching up to the 36 nations included in the Kyoto Protocol, as a result, more nations are veering away from targets set by the Kyoto Protocol. Next months Climate Change summit in Bali should be a breeding ground for a new and up to date version of the Kyoto Protocol. I realize that all these summits on Climate Change will not produce a solution for Global Warming, but more ideas on reducing the speed at which our planet warms up will definitely be exchanged.

One thing that I can see eye to eye with Harper on is that the Kyoto Protocol is biased. If we are actually going to do something about Global Warming, it will have to be everyone on the planet. Most cities are becoming overwhelmed with smog, which chokes us and creates numerous health problems. All of this could have been prevented years ago, but now that we are faced with increased pollutants, we all must do something about it, not just the major industrialized nations of the world. How long will we take a step back instead of moving forward with cleaning up our environment?

My final thought is: unless all nations make efforts to slow global warming, our wonderful blue planet and its inhabitants should be placed on the endangered species list. Sooner or later the environmental crimes of the past will overwhelm our future. We shouldn't be looking to space for an answer when its right in front of us!

Big Brother Is Watching!

I recently ran across and interesting article on the 'C.B.C.s' website. In the article, U.S. tightens screening of Canadians with visas, the author describes an new fingerprint scanning procedure that the U.S. department of homeland security is introducing. Recently at work, management had a thumbprint scanner installed to get rid of the current system of swiping a card. Every day I see or hear about new technology that have a distinctly Orwellian look or feel to them.

It has been years since I have read George Orwell's '1984' but I still vividly recall the moral behind the novel. Granted that '2 + 2 = 5' in the novel, in reality it seems as though we are getting closer and closer to having two way screens in our living room that some unknown and unseen agent can check up on us. Is Orwell's grim fictional tale of the future becoming fact in our society?

With the introduction of the European Union, one of my first thoughts was a quote from Orwell's 1984, "Big Brother is watching you!" I've read articles that a similar system is to be introduced here on the North American continent, the North American Union (N.A.U.). Shades of these two unions were foretold in Orwell's book. It's amazing that a book written in 1948 could have so much impact on todays world. Just try to remember, "Big Brother is watching."

Tag, Your It!

Recently I've been tagged to do a meme. I'm not entirely sure what a 'meme' is, but since it was MeghnaK who tagged me, I will try. The topic is '50 things things to do before I die,' which means I have to do some thinking.

Well here goes:

50 Things to do before I die

1. Climb Everest
2. Go sky diving
3. Visit Japan
4. Learn to speak fluently 5 more languages
5. Visit Russia
6. Spend a week in Paris, France
7. Go to Hawaii
8. Write a novel
9. Have dinner with Gordon Ramsay
10. Stick my foot in the Pacific ocean
11. See what Australia looks like, up close and personal
12. Spend a week with my cousins in Britain
13. Meet some of my friends who have commented on my posts
14. Stay in Peru for a month
15. Take a picture of the Great Wall of China
16. Go to chef's school so I can learn a few things about cooking
17. Cook for a big dinner party
18. Challenge Iron Chef Bobby Flay
19. Go camping on Madagascar Island
20. Take an extended vacation in the Bahamas
21. Have my picture taken standing in the centre of 'Stone Henge'
22. Stand in front of the Sphinx
23. Get paid for blogging
24. Fly an airplane
25. Visit the International Space Station
26. Control the Canada arm2 and wave at Canada while flying over
27. Land on Mars
29. Buy a Canadian Flag for my front porch
30. See for my own eyes what the Rocky mountains look like
31. Spend some time in Rome, Italy
32. Visit India
33. Go to Disney Land
34. Join the 'Mile High' club
35. Get a high paying desk job
36. Write some freelance articles
37. Clean up our environment
38. Inspire some one to do something great!
39. Play guitar in a stadium full of people
40. Play drums in a stadium full of people
41. Meet Rachael Ray and Giada DeLaurentis
42. Get a guest judge spot on 'Iron Chef America'
43. Party with one of my favourite bands
44. See a Metallica concert
45. Play a song with Metallica
46. Cook with Jamie Oliver and Gordon Ramsay
47. Spend some money in a Las Vegas Casino
48. Drive a Formula 1 race car
49. Start a business
50. Fly a helicopter

Okay, that wasn't easy! Now onto the last part, tagging some other bloggers to do a 'meme,' but who to choose?


BadKitty0126: Things that Make you go WTF
TonyLewis: Global News Blogger
AntiBarbie: antibarbie.net - Madness, Monsters and Motherhood
Libdrone: The Thin Red Line
Globalgirl: Globally Minded Works


If you've been tagged, its because I enjoy reading your blog. Hopefully you'll have a meme up soon.

Can you imagine?

A couple days ago, I created a discussion in Blog Catalog, I was bored and wanted to see what happened when people were given the opportunity to take a sentence and run with it. I guess maybe I didn't give the discussion a good title or maybe even it was the sentence I started with. I was hoping to get some really wacky story out of it, or at least some ideas to write about. This post is what I'm getting out of a fizzled out discussion.

Maybe people have lost some of their imagination, or maybe no body has time for a little creative writing, I don't know. But what I do know, is that the next time I decide to create a discussion, I will definitely have to come up with a better title to draw people in. Life is all about learning for me, everyday you need to learn something, it helps to keep your mind sharp. But my thanks to those who've left a sentence, I got a laugh out of it.

In the future, creative writing may be a thing of the past, as imaginations are slowly pushed aside as dead lines at work become tighter. I know that good writing requires three things; ideas, time and a plentiful imagination. Maybe I lost my imagination along the way, coming up with ideas seems to get increasingly harder. I have to source out news stories mostly to write my posts. How many people who stop to read this, wish that they could be paid to use their imagination? How many of you feel like all of your creativity has vanished into the pages of the past?

Are Gas Prices Going Even Higher?

While surfing today I happened upon this article 'OPEC to study effect of weak U.S. dollar on oil prices' on the C.B.C.s website. I found it interesting because right now, OPEC is blaming the faltering U.S. Dollar for increase in the cost of their crude oil. Apparently, the cost of a barrel of oil is priced in U.S. Dollars and OPEC is concerned about having less reserve dollars because of the weakened greenback. Once again, people are being greedy!

Now here in Canada, where I live, the average cost per litre is hovering around $1 which is too high if you ask me. Unfortunately I have to commute to work every day and my expenses for gasoline is growing. In the article, OPEC is looking into the affect that a weakening greenback has on the cost of a barrel of oil. It doesn't take a bunch of economist to get together to see that in the end they are losing money and have to raise prices to stay in their mansions! But that's what capitalism seems to be, rip off the poor so they stay poor and keep the rich lining their pockets with gold.

Is it not time to level the playing field? Are we not all entitled to have food and shelter? The higher the rich want the prices, the greater the divide between the classes will be, soon their will not be a middle class if the few rich aristocrats get what they want. It is appalling to see prices going up, granted there really is only two things in life that are certain, taxes and death, but what kind of society are we creating by forcing more and more people below the poverty line?

In my experience, the harder you work to get ahead, the deeper in debt you get. The system of working for a living works, but only if you get paid large sums of money to come up with ideas. Labour intensive jobs are cut almost every day just to increase profit margins, once again to keep the poor on the brinks of bankruptcy and continue lining rich pockets with gold. The longer this practise continues, the larger the homeless population becomes.

By raising costs of oil, more an more people are going to be forced below the poverty line. With more people below the poverty line, retailers would have no choice but to bring down the price, but it won't be until a large number of people have been forced into that situation. My final thought is, oil prices are high, and if we do not put our collective heads together and start integrating a renewable fuel for our vehicles, more and more people are going to feel the pinch at the pumps! Lets all work together and get the necessary infrastructure for renewable fuels so we all can afford to have food and shelter!

United Nations Climate Talks.

Now climate change is a very hot topic in today's global society. I have been taking small steps to reduce my footprints, such as seeking the most energy efficient appliances for my home, switching to compact fluorescent light bulbs, and making an effort to walk instead of driving to where I want to go. This all may not be enough, but even a small change when practiced by thousands will make a difference. Recently I learned that the U.N. has agreed on a blueprint for averting major disasters that are linked to climate change. In the article I found on Reuters Alert net, the U.N.s climate conference held in Valencia Spain, have agreed on a blueprint for reducing climate change.

Now I didn't want to limit my research on this topic, because of the popularity of 'Green' movements I'm sure that other websites would have something on the topic of the recent U.N. conference. So I have checked both the C.B.C.s and C.N.N.s websites for some more information. There was an interesting article on the C.B.C.s website written from a Canadians point of view on the topic, and I found a video news file on C.N.N.s website. Both provided a little more information on the U.N.s Climate Conference.

The U.N.s Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon, hopes that the coming conference in Bali will agree on a successor to the Kyoto Protocol. Now the Kyoto Protocol was introduced to set a limit on greenhouse gases produced by 36 industrialized nations. The recent agreement by the climate council is said to put more pressure on governments to reduce greenhouse gases and slow the rise of global temperatures. We are already beginning to see the effects of global warming, more and more forest fires rage every year. Sea levels are slowly rising as the glaciers melt at both north and south poles.

Right now our planet's fate is in our hands. A few small changes by the masses will slow the process. Although change is going to be slow, mostly because environmental friendly policies are currently costly and non-profitable. At least that is the views that I have seen on the subject. What can you do to make governments realize that climate change will change the bottom line, and ultimately affect profit lines? The only thing I can suggest is to make small changes and encourage companies to go 'Green.'

Links to articles in this post:
U.N. climate talks agree blueprint for action
And,
Evidence of climate change 'unequivocal': UN report
Also a video,
Climate Warning

Refuge Appeals Denied by Canada's Top Courts

Recently I learned that the C.B.C.s website referred a couple readers to this blog, so I thought that it would be good to continue posting interesting articles from their website. Recently I read the article Top court refuses to hear cases of U.S. deserters and decided that I would take a look around the Internet to see what others were saying. So far I have found two other articles on the topic. I found an article on both International Herald Tribune and Reuters.com.

All three articles are definitely interesting and have some suggestions for those deserters of the Iraq war to think about. I can understand why Canada is refusing to grant refuge status to the deserters in these three articles. In the cases mentioned, the applicants are facing court martial, dishonourable discharge and up to 5 years in jail. Those circumstances are hardly enough to grant political refuge, in my opinion. I can understand if they were facing the death penalty, I'm sure they would get refuge status here in Canada if that was the consequences of deserting their posts.

The recent denial by Canada's high courts has encouraged refuges of the Vietnam war to come forward with their stories. Back in the 1960's and 1970's Canada granted refuge status to deserters and draft dodgers from the Vietnam war, but now in 2007, the world is facing different challenges. Not only is there a war in Iraq, but also in Afghanistan. Canada has troops in Afghanistan helping to rebuild and fend off any Taliban extremists. Now I'm not an expert in the challenges that face Afghanistan, but I am standing behind our troops that we have deployed there.

As for the recent deserters, if you didn't want to fight in Iraq, then why did you enlist? I know that it was possible to predict a war with Iraq before it happened, there were signs everywhere. Saddam Hussein was unyielding to Americas demand for United Nations inspectors to look for the illusive weapons of mass destruction, which did not turn up after Hussein's regime had been crushed.

To conclude this post, there are other options than applying for refuge status. Canada consists of many immigrants, not only refuges, but people from very far off places who are looking to build a better life here. There is a possibility of permanent residency for those trying to escape a tour in Iraq, at least this path hasn't been looked into yet. I'm sure that the Canadian economy would benefit from allowing U.S. citizens to apply for permanent residency. Not only would the economy benefit from U.S. ex-patriots, but also the Canadian society. Canada as a whole needs to grow, certain industries here in Canada would benefit exponentially but a surge in population. Well those are my thoughts, what are yours?

The other articles I found are:
Sanctuary closed to deserters
Runaway GIs find a changed Canada
and
U.S. deserters lose bid for Canada refugee status

Really, is that so?

I just read an article from Reuters website on China and their claims of reduced pollution. In the article, China says key pollution levels nudge down, the China Daily reported a 1.81% drop in sulphur dioxide emissions and a 0.28% drop in chemical oxygen demand (a measure of water pollution). All this is good to hear, but considering that China is a communist nation, how much can we here in the west believe?

The pollution levels of many Chinese cities has been under scrutiny by the United Nations Environment Programme mostly over concerns about athletes health for the 2008 Olympic Games. Most cities are reported to be blanketed with smog, this can't be good for anyone, never mind the world's elite athletes. All this pollution can't stay in China, just like all the pollution we have here in the Americas can't stay here, winds will blow air borne pollutants around the globe.

As China emerges and its economy grows, so do the levels of pollution. I don't know about anybody else, but I'm sure we all can agree on this one, I like breathing. Our planet is definitely warming up because of air borne pollutants, and our generation has to take responsibility to start the process of cleaning up our environment. I just hope that we all still can breathe clean air 10 to 20 years from now!

We're Going On A Tangent!

What happens when you open your minds eye? Do you get a flood of uncontrollable silliness or just a wisp of dust? I started this blog to keep my brain thinking, believe it or not, that is a hard task when you have a very mundane repetitive job. Not that I'm complaining about being employed, just being unchallenged. Your brain is like a muscle, you have to use it to keep it in shape, otherwise it will suffer from fatigue and eventually become nothing more than a grey sponge locked in your skull.

The worst part I have found about being creative, is actually being creative. How many times have you looked at blank page and wanted to fill it up with words and had absolutely no clue what write? I hate writers block! It is annoying and so far the best thing I have found to cure it is to just ask a question and run with it. That's all this post is, me running with the original question.

All in all, it is fun to go out on a tangent once in a while, but how do you find your way back. You could leave a trail of bread crumbs like Hansel and Gretel did. But what happens when the birds come along and eat your trail? Anyway, this has been a wonderful tangent to be on, but I must get back to reality!

Hmm...Interesting...

Today I was on the C.B.C.s website and found an article about a temple archeologists have found in Peru. The article entitled Archeologist's unearth 4,000-year-old temple in Peru
describes the temple as pre-Incan. It is one of the oldest discoveries as of late on the American continent. It was quite informative, that is if you like history!

Oh, Great, More ads!

As much as I like seeing adds on websites (sometimes, but usually ads that I find use full, like 'Google Ads'), Facebook just unveiled a new social advertising strategy. I found the article on CNN.com and I was intrigued. The article was called Facebook unveils targeted 'social ads' and it describes that they will be placing target ads sent to you by the friends you have on their social network.

I can't speak for everybody out there in the world wide web, but I can tolerate a small amount of ads on websites. Pop up ads are just plain annoying and I am glad that I have a good pop up blocker installed on my PC. Every time I'm surfing the net, some new pop up tries to make it through, my web browser usually asks me if I want to see the pop up and I get so many of them that I don't even look at the notice. I do use the facebook social network, but not very frequently, its overrun with applications to add to your profile.

Apparently the article states that you (the facebook user) have to agree to seeing these 'social ads.' I certainly do not want to see anymore, I have put the amount of ads I can tolerate on this site (two 'Google AdSense' boxes). Anymore than that and even I wouldn't want to look at it. How many of you out there in the world wide web have seen enough?

I.S.S. Hits Milestone, but Still Incomplete

Recently I found a site with an update on the International Space Station entitled The International Space Station So Far: Five Years of Service, But Incomplete by Tarig Malik a staff writer at Space.com. It was quite interesting. The slated retirement of the shuttle fleet could cause problems with completing the massive construction as NASA plans to retire their fleet of shuttles in 2010. The completion of the international project requires quite a few more shuttle missions.

Canada's major contribution is the 'Canada arm2,' and is currently flying with the International Space Station. However, there is still one component left to go up, hopefully it will fly soon, no details on when it is scheduled to fly as of yet. But the Canada arm2 is a major work horse for assembling the station, it has been flying since April 19, 2001, and has been used for installing the stations 'Quest' airlock.

Currently the International Space Station is awaiting the delivery of the 'Columbus' module, which is the European Space Agencies contribution to the Station. Also the Japanese 'Kibo' Lab is still awaiting launch. The most recent addition to the station was the U.S. 'Harmony Node 2,' which is necessary for installing the 'Columbus' module and the Japanese 'Kibo' module.

Hopefully there will be more news on the assembly of the International Space Station, as it is imperative to future endeavors into space. We will need a place to stage flights to the moon and Mars. I'm sure that NASAs homepage will have more. When I find more, I will post more, till then, Peace!

Prices Fall, Finally

As of late, the C.B.C.s website has been a major source for inspiration for my posts. This time, its an update about parity pricing. In the article, Prices fall though retailers warn deep cuts won't arrive until 2008 retailers are willing to finally bring some prices down. Also, they are willing to give discounts on most magazine and book prices. This has been one of the biggest concerns that Canadian consumers have been voicing their opinions on. This is definitely a good step forward.

As long as the Canadian dollar continues its rise or at least remains at a similar trading price with the U.S. Greenback, Canadians will eventually see some lower costs. But the recent high, described in Loonie closes above $1.07 US on strong job growth predicts an all time high of $1.10, which is definitely good for Canada's economy. However, our dollar has seen an increase against the U.S. Dollar, but really has not seen an increase versus other currencies. As a Canadian I am concerned about this. A lot of our goods for sale in the market are imported, and if we import from other countries, the exchange rate on those goods could be a great deal higher than the exchange rate between Canada and the U.S.. Right now, the U.S. Dollar is stronger against the Euro than the Canadian Dollar.

Another piece of good news, I have recently heard commercials telling consumers that prices are going down. It will take some time for prices to come down, but if its being advertised by retailers, it will happen. Thankfully the Canadian Media has been keeping up with the story and Canadian retailers are taking note. Nobody really wants to see consumers cross the border just for lower prices, but with reports of job growth on the rise, lower prices is more of a reality than a fantasy.

Granted that the job growth here in Canada is on the rise, we also have to look at producing more Canadian made goods at lower costs in order to sustain our economy. With an increase in competition in Canadian markets this can be achieved. I have studied economics, but I am no expert by any means, but increasing the supply of a good will help to bring down the price in the marketplace. Also there are many barriers to entry in the Canadian marketplace, if we want to sustain the current growth of our economy, more competition needs to be introduced. These barriers to entry should be reduced to encourage more competition into our markets.

Even though Canada has a smaller demographic in terms of population compared to the U.S., it is definitely possible to create more competition in today's marketplace. There are ways to gain entry into today's marketplace. The Canadian Government does have a program to aid entrepreneurs to start their own business, I still have to do some more research on this, but our government recognizes that we need to see more growth in our economy.

This is just my opinion and I do believe that Canada does have a roll to play in the global market place. Some of my suggestions could change the country for the good, but I am definitely not willing to run for political office. In the coming days and weeks, I will look at the larger picture of the Canadian economy, hopefully to gain a greater appreciation of the current competition and to look for little details that could improve our economy.

How Many Stars Can You Count?

Today I was taking a look at another page on the C.B.C.s website. This has been a source of inspiration for my posts as of late. I found an article on Light Pollution, which was quite interesting. I have a lot of interests and one of them is preserving our planet, and one thing that has been bothering me about the current urban environment is light pollution.

Years ago, when I was a child, I could look up at the night sky and see many stars. Over the years, the stars have been blocked out by light pollution. After groups like the International Dark Sky Association called attention to the phenomenon of light pollution, some Governments started asking cities to reduce their light pollution. Street lights were were changed so they would reduce the amount of light pollution, some cities even passed by-laws that prohibit the use of light fixtures that spill excess light into the night sky.

One of the main reasons why light pollution irks me, is that I used to draw inspiration from the stars. I also remember going on many camping trips and seeing the stars at night after a great campfire always gave me a warm feeling. Now when I look up at the sky from the backyard of my house in one of Canada's cities, I can almost count all the stars in the sky! I know that there are an extremely large number of stars in the sky, but most of them get blocked out by light pollution. In fact a few nights ago I went outside for some fresh air, and looked up at the night sky. I could count the number of stars on one hand! Granted the full moon that night may have blocked some of the stars out, but come on, how can we be inspired to go to space if we can't even see the stars that we want to reach?

November, my thought of the day!

Well its November now. Where does the time go. This year has been flying by, but its not over yet. We are now a lot closer to Christmas now, and the end of the year. Last month I joined a couple of blog directories, and had a lot of comments on my posts, thanks to all who commented. Hopefully I am slowly gaining readership, I'm not entirely sure who all is reading my posts, but thanks to everyone who stops by and reads through some of my posts.

I'm hoping that November will bring more people here to read my posts, I've been working on different ways to increase the flow of people to this site. This month I do have an agenda, I have to post more on the North American Union, just as soon as I can find more information on it. The Canadian dollar is still high, and so are prices here in Canada. Also, I am actually going to try and do some Christmas shopping before December 24Th. I'm sure that I'll have something to say about the crowded malls. And maybe I'll sneak in a post or two about my favourite failing hockey team.

Well this is my first post of November! There will be more, don't worry, and I'm sure that I will find more interesting topics to post about. Stay tuned!