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February 28, 2007 - I am told there will be a statement about a certain former Prime Minister in the paper tomorrow, in relation to this. The statement, I am told, expresses regret for any false impression that MAY have been created, but does not necessarily say that a false impression WAS created. On such heads do lawyers, and angels, dance.
Unless you are a former employee of said Prime Minister, you will note that the fellow named Warren Kinsella is not expressing regret to anyone about any of this. Full stop.
Where's The Fifth Estate when you need 'em, eh?
February 28, 2007 - If winter is getting you down, be heartened by the fact that March will soon be here, and by Rather Good. And this, which always will make you giggle. And this, which is my favourite. The fact that it's first LP Vines makes it even betterer.
February 28, 2007 - At the hockey game last night, in client meetings these days, out by the water cooler, chatting with neighbours over the back fence on the weekend – it’s always the same, lately. “Warren, what the Hell has happened to the federal Liberal Party?”
So I sigh. It’s sad, yes, and it is not entirely what I expected. It’s unhelpful. I confess, too, that I have a suspicion that there has been an actual, bona fide, cultural shift. As in, how Tories used to be (ie., eat the leader, factional, divided, disputatious) and how the Grits used to be (ie., the leadership principle always prevailed, united, disciplined, organized) is now reversed. We are them, and they are us. It’s Invasion of the Political Body Snatchers, the Sequel.
That all said, it’s not impossible to get the Liberal Party of Canada back on track. If anyone can, it’s friends like Gordon Ashworth and Mike Marzolini and Paddy Torsney and Herb Metcalfe and George Young and Brad Davis and…you get the point. There’s a lot of talent there. Ashworth, in particular, does just one thing: win elections. He’s won them at every level, going back decades. So Grits who are depressed need to take a Valium.
Speaking of Valium, here’s what I wrote in the Hill Times this week, responding to my buddy Tim Powers, who was delighting in Liberal woes:
...
“…Timmy, take a Valium. Drink some warm milk. Go for a long walk in an Ottawa snowdrift.
Your partisanship is clouding your judgment, old chum.
When Jean Chrétien was Leader of the Opposition, here is a short sampling of the stuff we had to deal with: Oka. Meech Lake collapse. Paul Martin's supporters. Persian Gulf War. GST deadlock in the Senate. Paul Martin's supporters. Along with about a dozen other things I now forget.
My point is this: Opposition is awful. It is terrible. It sucks. Whenever you are there - believe me, because I worked for Chrétien when he was there - no one ever thinks you are going to make it to 24.
Don't take my word for it, you ham-fisted Newfie rugby lout: ask Stephen Harper. Mere weeks before the campaign that would see him become Prime Minister, Harper was being measured for a political pine box. Remember that? Party members in open revolt, members calling for his resignation, mass resignations by staff, upheaval in caucus, blah blah blah. And then he won!
Stephane Dion, compared to other Opposition leaders in the recent past, is doing quite well. His party is tied with the Tories, and they are recruiting bright young stars like Justin Trudeau. The civil war is over. Debts are paid off, or close to it.
Methinks you doth protest too much, Powers. Hmmmm. I wonder why?”
...
February 27, 2007 - Okay, sorry, but this is a little friggin’ creepy.
On the weekend, I am told, there was a meeting somewhere of something called the CLF. It is apparently the Conservative Leadership Foundation, which is a John Mykytyshyn thing. As you can see here, John Tory hangs out with the CLF, although I’m willing to bet he doesn’t brag about it.
A blurb from their web site, which proffers a bland and vaguely Chinese Socialist Youth League sort of prose: "The CLF is most famous for its Weekend Youth Retreats. These retreats focus on training youth... CLF Weekends have been referred to as 'political boot camp', a term which brings smiles to the faces of committee members."
Smiles on the faces of committee members, comrade! The CLF’s great leap forward! March!
Just kidding. Anyway, get a load of this picture, taken by one of my spies. It's Conservative MP Rob Anders - found here, with the other people I admire a great deal - talking about, um, me. With a PowerPoint slide, no less.
Whatever does it meanTM, as Frank magazine would say?
I dunno, but I suddenly feel like rather like Tom Cruise in 'Eyes Wide Shut,' when he stumbles on that secretive and satanic group at the end. Without the consolation of being married to Nicole Kidman. But I digress.
Anyone with information on what the "smiling committee members" were up to may send confidential missives to the usual place. In the meantime, I need a drink.
 February 26, 2007 - True story: so I'm coming back from a meeting with my pal Rick Smith of Environmental Defence. Get off the subway, walk through the slush on Bloor. Ambulances and cop cars everywhere.
A guy gets wheeled out of one of the fancy-pants buildings in a straightjacket. He's hollering his head off. "I'm the CEO!" He yells. "I'm the f*cking CEO!"
Boy, I can think of quite a few people on Bay Street who also need a free ride to a rubber room, can't you?
February 26, 2007 - Bits and pieces, this and that:
- This guy may think it's true, but I can tell you that Jean Chrétien certainly
didn't look at it that way. At all.
- Are we going to win? Well, let's put it this way: we're going to work like we're way, way behind. That, plus the fact that we actually have a few things to say, will be helpful, I think. It usually is.
- I love that quote about Gomery: "...barked at everything." Chased parked cars, more like.
- I've been meaning to draw your attention to this blog. As per the last bullet, I like this line: "[We are] worried about what happens when the inquisitors become a power unto themselves, and become mirror images of the very things they pledge to eliminate."
- Finally: we murderous, thuggish, therapy-proof Irishmen get some
recognition. Rath Dé ort!
February 26, 2007 – As friends of the Nicholds, we were shocked and saddened to learn about Hap’s death. He was a great man and our deepest sympathies go out to his girls:
...
Riders boss hired first female GM in the CFL: Reserved man had a leader's 'presence'
Tony Lofaro
The Ottawa Citizen
24 February 2007
Ottawa Citizen
Copyright © 2007 Ottawa Citizen
The last time Jo-Anne Polak saw Ottawa businessman Hap Nicholds was last November at the Atlanta airport, where he was with his wife, Deirdre.
Ms. Polak, the first female general manager in the Canadian Football League, had been hired by Mr. Nicholds when he was president of the Ottawa Rough Riders in the late 1980s, and trying to revive the fortunes of the struggling football club. She had just been in touch with his daughter about writing a congratulatory letter for Mr. Nicholds' former company, Dollco Printing, which was about to celebrate an anniversary.
Yet, in the cavernous Atlanta International Airport, Ms. Polak spotted her old boss and watched as he showed his affection for his wife, affectionately known by many as "Deedee."
"Before I went up to him I watched him with Deedee," said Ms. Polak, a senior vice-president with Hill and Knowlton.
"I remember watching the way he looked at her and (how) he brushed something off her cheek. I remember losing my breath and being dumbstruck by that. Any couple who had that kind of love at this stage of their marriage, what a blessing," she said.
Mr. Nicholds died Thursday of a heart attack at the couple's winter home near Sarasota, Florida. He was 68.
Born in Ottawa, Mr. Nicholds grew up in the west end of the city and attended Fisher Park High School. After graduation, he immediately went to work at the family business, run by his father, Gerry Nicholds. It was the Dominion Loose Leaf Company, which later became Dollco Printing, now one of the city's biggest printing firms.
"My grandfather realized that my dad was probably better off working rather than continuing with school," said his daughter, Krista Nicholds, who took over the family business with her cousin, Kevin Nicholds, in 2001.
Mr. Nicholds started in sales at the printing company and with his brother, Barry, later bought the company from their father when he retired in 1979.
"My dad was not a gregarious man, but he had this sort of presence that people felt. He was a natural leader that was mostly shown in individual acts of communication and contact," said Ms. Nicholds.
She said her father was a real "hands-on guy" and referred to his management style as just "walking around." She said her father used to walk around the printing plant, talking and getting to know the more than 300 employees who worked there.
"He was a very natty dresser and he cared about his personal presentation, especially with customers. He decried dress-down Fridays and felt you weren't showing respect to your customers, employees or suppliers if you did that."
Mr. Nicholds became president of the Ottawa Rough Riders in November 1987, replacing Bruce Hillary, who had resigned after a losing football season. One of his first moves was hiring Ms. Polak as the team's general manager, which raised eyebrows around the league.
"It was such a bold move," said Ms. Polak, who had no football management experience before joining the Riders.
"It was the first time anybody had hired a woman in that position and that was Hap and Sol Shabinsky (a member of the community-ownership group that bought the team in 1987)."
She described Mr. Nicholds as a "prudent businessman" who saw a need to divide the football operations from the business operations. She said he recognized her marketing experience and felt that she could help promote the team and make it more saleable to Ottawa's sports fans.
She said he devoted himself to the club, putting in long hours, while at the same time running his printing business.
"He would sit back and let me take the credit. I got so much credit in those early years for different interesting things that would go on, but Hap was an absolute partner in everything that happened."
She said even though the football club had its difficulties during her three years as general manager, Mr. Nicholds was a great boss.
"He cared as much, if not more, about the people than he did about the business. He was loved by everyone," she said.
As of late yesterday, funeral arrangements had not been finalized, said his daughter.
...
February 25, 2007 - Our daughter is taking home a first place ribbon for the butterfly stroke in a city-wide meet! That's the toughest stroke, I am told.
There's precious little chance of it being acknowledged tomorrow, so we'll have a family celebration tonight!
February 24, 2007 - A couple of people have emailed me about the controversy surrounding the covering up of Mike Pearson's Nobel Prize. They point out, as did Tory spinners, that Paul Martin and Pierre Pettigrew did the same thing a couple times.
Here was my response: I don't give a sweet damn who covers it up, Grit or Tory. Both are wrong for doing so.
Bleating that "Paul Martin did it first" ain't much of an excuse in my book. At one time, it wasn't a credible excuse for the Tories, either.
Pull back the wall. Let people see Mike's Nobel Prize.
February 23, 2007 – Two muses for today, about Nobel Prize winners:
- Number one: tonight, as a few of you straighten a tie or put on a party dress – and as you head out to places where some have been, historically, more equal than others – I urge you to read Dr. King’s words, written nearly 44 years ago in a cell at the Birmingham jail.
(And, if you rolled your eyes just now, or you shook your head in anger, you have proven Dr. King’s point, I’d say.)
...
"I must make two honest confessions to you, my Christian and Jewish brothers. First, I must confess that over the past few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro's great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen's Councillor or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate, who is more devoted to "order" than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says: "I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I cannot agree with your methods of direct action"; who paternalistically believes he can set the timetable for another man's freedom; who lives by a mythical concept of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait for a "more convenient season."
Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will. Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection."
...
- Number two: Canada’s own Nobel prize winner, Mike Pearson. The Globe’s Gloria Galloway has a terrific story on this issue today. And, yesterday, I received a couple cell phone photographs from some DFAIT folks about this deplorable situation.
As my correspondent put it: "Warren, the presence of Condi Rice has caused the government to cover up a great Canadian icon. Pearson's Nobel Prize is out of sight in our foyer. Fifty years after it was awarded... I guess you are aware that this is the 50th anniversary of the awarding of the prize, which was given to the Department by the Pearson family, as the building was named for him. Placed in our foyer, a public place, it is viewed by visitors on tours from schools and universities, and is a reminder to all foreign service officers (which Pearson was) that this is what we can aspire to. It is also the only Nobel prize ever won by a Canadian Member of Parliament, and one who became PM. The only Prizes given to American politicians were Woodrow Wilson (in office) and Jimmy Carter (after being in office). I am not sure of cases of any other heads of government or heads of state, aside from Nelson Mandela, Lech Walesa, and Menachem Begin."
These photos, while grainy, say 1,000 more words. I hope that this mistake is remedied, right away.
Subject:
From:
Date:
Fri, 23 Feb 2007 11:38:19 -0500
Subject:
From:
Date:
Fri, 23 Feb 2007 11:37:54 -0500
February 22, 2007 – I am naturally excited that our friend Justin is taking the plunge. He will mop the floor with the Bloc incumbent, and he will be a great MP.
But I am just as excited that I managed to get our firm logo on TV, where it looked rather fetching.
February 22, 2007 - Yes, indeed, so-called attack ads work.
Attacking people by insinuating they are terrorists, however, does not.
As one of these guys knows, and the other one should.
Or used to.
February 22, 2007 - This Andrew Keyes guy (see the Google ad, below) is irritating. Let's make him the Chew Toy of the Week, shall we?
Andrew is seeking the Tory nomination in Markham, where his provincial cousins had their asses handed to them by McGuinty a couple weeks ago. Fine. Democracy is grand, etc. Good luck to ya, Andy.
Now, Andrew spends a lot of time on the Internet, instead of selling memberships, apparently. When I took a swipe at a conservative blogger - a guy who is up at 4:30 in the morning, wearing Barney pyjamas, and sleeping on his Power Rangers blanky in his Mom's basement - Andrew leapt to his defence. He sent me an email. "Check your facts," I "make stuff up," blah blah blah. The usual. However, I found this part of his email interesting:
"My name is Andrew Keyes and I'm seeking the federal Conservative nomination for the Oak Ridges-Markham riding. I entered the nomination race a little late, leaving only a few weeks to get word out to my constituents that I was seeking nomination. As an advertising executive and as someone who plays to win, I decided to run a targeted campaign to politically active sites and blogs that are frequented by residents of our region - and of course your blog would be included on that list."
"Plays to win." That's funny.
Anyway and anyhow, I decided to check out Andrew's "advertising executive" credentials. Turns out he's the boss man at some web shop called Armantus. Here's his bio and a partial client list. ("Armantus," by the way, is an Inca scribe. Go figure.)
I found this little subclause noteworthy: "...and the Ontario Government."
Did Andrew get web boodle from the Harris/Eves gang, perchance? Three guesses, kids, and the first two don't count!
Anyone with info about the contractual relationship between this webby Tory and the Harris/Eves regime can drop me a line at the usual place: wkinsella@hotmail.com.
He can pay Google to put ads on this web site, fine. But I'm eager to persuade Andrew that it wasn't a very good decision, even for an "advertising executive" who "plays to win."
February 21, 2007 - Always a good idea to pause, and think, before hitting "send."
February 21, 2007 – Ha! 2006 is gone! I warned you!
As per the yearly tradition, all of the previous year is gone. Bye bye, 2006!
Why don’t I archive any of it? Because this ain’t the New York Times, folks. It’s just a web site. Nothing worth keeping here.
Carry on as you were.
February 21, 2007 – Get yer Hot Nasties collectibles here, from a fella in Germany. Eighty bucks as a starting bid! Wow.
If you are so inclined, click on the lyric sheet. How a guy in Germany got that is beyond me. Hell, I haven’t seen one of those things in 20 years, and I typed the damn thing.
The bad news: I am suddenly seized with the realization that I am extremely old. The good news: I have not yet shaved my head and tattooed some lips on my wrist. However, the day is still young.
February 20, 2007 - One of my small army of lawyers has remarked that I am cranky lately, and he is seeing evidence of it on this wee web site. He worries for me, which I appreciate a great deal.
I plead, in my defence, that I am writing another book, along with all of the other stuff I am doing, and have not slept for three months. I apologize to all and sundry.
To make the Warren-haters feel better, I also offer up this. Your braying and bleating has been heard. You are not forgotten.
I am terribly, terribly sorry. May the Lord forgive me for being, um, me.
February 20, 2007 - What a moron. What a loser.
This one is so easy, it isn't even sporting. Here's some context,
Ontario-Tory-moron:
- Google supplies the ads, you dope. If a political party wants to run an ad on a web site that considers the provincial Tories a directionless, message-less, soulless bunch of Bay Street toadies who will gut the province if they somehow become government again, that's fine by me. It's funny, in fact. So are you, Ontario Tory blogger.
- In that riding, and very recently, the Ontario Tories in question LOST, big time. Don't take my word for it. Here's what the Star published the morning after: "What must concern Conservative Leader John Tory is his party's failure in Markham, an affluent 905 riding that voted Conservative in the Harris years. Not only did the Conservatives lose the riding, but their margin of defeat rose to 14 percentage points from 11 in the 2003 general election."
- The by-election was nearly two weeks ago. But the geniuses in Tory Tory's office are still encouraging their federal cousins to run an ad in a riding where the provincial Tories seriously got their ASSES KICKED. You can't make this stuff up, folks.
The best part, however, is the time stamp.
Up at 4:30 in the morning, this loser was, reading Google ads. Sounds like
someone is in desperate need of a girlfriend, or a new hobby.
Politics isn't it, that's for sure.
February 19, 2007 - Tom Korski is in the Hill Times today, and he is upset that I referred to him, a few days back, as the worst columnist in Canada (yes, even worse than Norm Spector, who at least is well-read). Korski is feigning indifference, but the fact that he leads his column with the criticism suggests he doth protest too much, etc.
Why do I - and quite a few others - think Korski is stinkier than a wet dog?
Here's a sampling of Tom's terrific insights and judgment, all from the Hill
Times:
- On his forecasting abilities: "Stephen Harper has self-destructed." - February 28, 2005
- On the number one issue in the world: "[There's disagreement] over whether global warming will amount to anything in particular." - November 13, 2006
- On his forecasting abilities, part two: "Stephen Harper has lost the election before it was held...the next election is in the bag." - September 26, 2005
- On why the media, unlike other professionals, don't need ethics codes: "It is the product of a creeping Rotarianism that is turning the media into a beige bureaucracy." - August 15, 2005
- On travelling to Alberta, which he likens to a violent, human-rights-abusing dictatorship: "Bring a translator." - September 18, 2006
- On his forecasting abilities, part three: "You don't have to be Nostradamus to prophesy a defeat for [Harper]." - February 28, 2005
- On the subject his employer, more than any other media outlet, writes about in every issue: "Blogging is an industry joke." - March 21, 2005
- On pollsters, which his employers also quote approvingly in every issue: "Embalmers and rat catchers." - November 28, 2005
All of that stuff certainly demonstrates why Korski is a fool, perhaps. But why do I really, really dislike Korski? Because he calls those who support Israel's right to exist "apologists." Because he says those who support the Jewish state should have their "motives" delved into, "deeply," by the media. Because he said this, on March 14, 2005:
- "A man never convicted of any crime was picked up by police, detained without charge, cited for sedition on secret 'evidence' [sic] and then kicked out of the country...his case has a gangster quality to it..."
Who is Tom talking about? This piece of human garbage, last week sentenced to a five years for promoting racism, anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial. Tom insinuates that we are "gangsters" for acting against this neo-Nazi. That there was no "evidence" against one of the world's most notorious haters.
That's Tom Korski, folks. And that's why I, and quite a few others, think
he should be in another line of work.
February 16, 2007 - Skiing is imminent, so I'll keep this brief. Apologies, Adam, because I know you are (a) a good man and (b) a sensitive soul.
But the new Maclean's site has the
following problems, in my opinion:
- The colours are awful
- The fonts are weird and too small
- The main page is too busy and too hard to navigate
- There is no logic behind placement of stories/commentaries
- The "50" are disproportionately male
I know it's a work in progress, etc., and that we should all withhold judgment. But honestly, man: it just doesn't look that great.
Now don't send out one of your five million writers to get back at me, okay? It's just what I think, is all.
February 16, 2007 – Thanks for the many kind notes from folks – mainly guys – about yesterday’s posting, and my Dad. Just when I’m ready to write off the blogosphere as a place that drives people apart, you prove me wrong. Thank you.
Less seriously, Sue questioned me for this CP yarn yesterday as Rayman and I sped along the Gardiner, my windshield wiper fluid gone, and the glass caked with three inches of mud and muck. If I sound a bit crazed in the resulting interview, it’s because I figured my Calgary pal and I were about to buy the proverbial farm. Anticipated Toronto Star headline: “STAR OTTAWA BUREAU ERUPTS IN METRO-RELATED, PRO-ATKINSONIAN CHEERS AS KINSELLA DISPATCHED TO DEEPEST HELL.” Toronto Sun headline: “GRIT TWIT KICKS IT.” Jane Taber in Globe headline: “NOT HOT: Warren Kinsella. Quite cold, in fact.” National Post headline: “KYOTO SUSPECTED CAUSE IN COLUMNIST DEATH.”
Oh, and speaking about headlines, Sue Bailey and I chatted about (Ramones fan) Brian Laghi’s story on the front of the Globe yesterday – you know the one. I told her it was the best placement of a political mind-f*ck I’d seen…since the last time Doug Finley successfully mind-f*cked loadsa Ottawa media folks. As I said to Sue, having a “closed-door luncheon at Toronto's Albany Club” with six dozen political hacks is the equivalent of handing out press releases about your top-secret plans to 6,000 complete strangers on King Street. It isn’t amazing that Doug Finley sucked in official Ottawa – it’s amazing that the Globe fell for it. I swear: this Finley guy could sell Raid to a bug.
Now, where is that windshield wiper fluid?
February 15, 2007 - Happy birthday, Dad. We miss you.
Today's column.
February 14, 2007 – Megan’s a star! Check it out!
Tom Flanagan looks like a smiling hit man! Duffy needs a new official photograph! Never go drinking with Stephen Taylor!
February 14, 2007 - Happy Valentine's Day!
Let me say that I have a beautiful, smart, amazing wife - and one who is brave, too, as I was reminded yesterday afternoon - and I don't know why she puts up with me.
There. Online Valentine obligations complete, I now offer you my interview with Paul Simonon of the Clash, here. My review of American Hardcore, which is like a documentary of my adolescence, is in the same issue, but I
can't find the link. I'll post the story if it doesn't turn up.
Back to shovelling!
February 13, 2007 - The snowstorm begins! (This being Toronto)...Call in the army!
The meeting this afternoon at our kids' school was difficult, but good. All agreed - me included! - that we need to do things better next time. And all seemed to agree that all future fundraising events need to reflect shared values.
I told them that we don't feel any of them were racist - just that the process didn't accomodate legitimate concerns about race (and many other issues).
Our objective achieved - (a) getting people's attention and (b) an agreement that we all need to do better, for our kids - I have taken down past posts about this difficult issue. As a gesture of good faith.
Hope things get better, now. We shall see.
February 13, 2007 - A nice note, printed with permission:
...
Hi Warren
Sorry we didn't get much of a chance to chat the other week... Just a short note to let you know that our newspaper's board heard from our Web manager yesterday that your review for us drew the largest number of Web visitors in some time, largely due to links from the punk community. Hey, it did 45% better than our headline "Archbishop disciplined for performing same-sex marriage" (3,513 visits, compared with 1,931 visits). You did better than sex -- no small feat in our world. We're going to have to do some self-examination at cultivating our punk audience. With our aging audience, it could be our future.
Take care,
Leanne
...
Leanne Larmondin
Editor, Anglican Journal
...
February 12, 2007 – Oh, my, I've been delisted. After all these years.
Pierre – for the love of, um, Pete – if you think your position is defensible, then call back the guy at Canadian Press. I mean, it’s not like you don't already advertise that you run headlines for money, man!
(Checked my spine, by the way. No shivers. Thanks for the expression of concern, however.)
February 12, 2007 - This is the Internet equivalent of a flare, to assure the many kind folks forming search parties that I am still among the living. Pithy quotations are gratis.
- This is what I expected, pretty much. Given the fact that it was going on during the last federal election, too, that's where the story will go next, I expect. As one reader observed, in a quote: "Payola is the year’s new word. It doesn’t sound as ugly as bribe, but it means the same thing."
- Funny. What does it mean, do you think, when some ads about leadership don't actually contain the leader they seek to promote? Like Adlai Stevenson said: "It's hard to lead a cavalry charge if you think you look funny on a horse."
February 8, 2007 - Today's Post column, here.
Because I - yet again! - write too many words for the space available, this paragraph is AWOL from the final edit:
"This is not to say, however, that Canadian Jews and supporters of Israel
currently possess a uniquely clear perspective on the media's impact on Canadian public opinion. For some time, quite a few of us have believed that the Jewish community are not always well-served by some of those who measure public opinion on their behalf. They need better advisors, perhaps."
Is that paragraph important? Let's just say that it is to me, and many of my Jewish friends know why.
February 7, 2007 - Ouch.
Funny. This too.
Like I said - you can't go anywhere in Ottawa without being spotted.
Useful rule of thumb: never walk past a bar with this guy. "Drinking you under the table" does not begin to capture it. I despise youth.
The worst columnist in Canada, Tom Korski, is up to his old tricks again. Pre-response imminent.
Back to the Big TeeOh. Ouch.
February 6, 2007 - Ten contextless, linkless, Ottawa-based observations:
- It is impossible to go anywhere in Ottawa without running into someone you know. Impossible. If you are J. D. Salinger or Thomas Pynchon, do not move here.
- Yesterday's speeches were fun, but the Canada Israel Committee one was the most fun. My friend Ezra Levant and I were onstage and being asked about blogging. One young guy asked about how blogging affects one's interpersonal relationships. I said this: "People are always coming up to me and asking me if I plan to blog the resulting conversation. I always say the same thing: 'You are not that interesting'."
- Norman Spector. Ha ha ha!
- After one question, Ezra said: "I have nothing intelligent to say about that." Said I: "Well, that's never stopped me before, so I'll answer it."
- SFH is going on the road early next month and is playing a gig here with a pile of other punky folks March 3. A lot of people here seem to know about it already, which surprises me, since we haven't advertised it yet. Once again: there are no secrets in Ottawa.
- I am wearing jeans in Hy's at lunch, when I meet with a senior Dionista. I am hoping they throw me out as a result. (For the jeans, not the Dionista.)
- Susan Delacourt. Jim Travers.
- Found a ton of heavy dub reggae last night - two big King Tubby collections are the stand-outs. How is it that Ottawa is a good place to go to find super-obscure reggae disks? Go figure.
- Charest's election will come right after the federal budget. If he loses - still a possibility, because West Island anglos always artificially inflate his numbers - everything will change. All of the current conventional wisdoms about Canadian politics will be smashed to pieces.
- Last time I was here was about a year ago. Didn't miss it. Still don't.
February 5, 2007 - Welcome to Winterlude in Ottawa! It's f*cking cold!
Before giving a couple speeches (on blogging and lobbying) and before listening to a couple speeches (by Messrs. Harper and Dion), I am compelled to note that Norm "The Bitch Is Back" Spector is taking a swipe at Mr. Harper in the Globe this morning. Sigh.
Norm's screed is behind fifteen Glib and Frail subscription walls, plus an armed Imasco security guard, so you'll have to find it yourself. But the gist is that Norm is taking the same swipe at the Prime Minister that he took at me last week - conflict of interest, who is pulling the strings, grassy knoll, UFO abductions, etc. etc. Norm wants writers and pundits to publicly declare all potential conflicts of interest before they are allowed to, um, speak or write. As they do at the New York Times, sort of.
Fair enough. Good idea. So let's start with the bitch-slappin' man himself, shall we? At the top of Normie's fourteenth-century woodcut website, there is a fetching photo of the Left Coast deep thinker - and, just three inches west of same, a little button bearing the word "DONATE."
How interesting! Lacking such a button myself, I am moved to ask: who has donated, Norm? When did they donate? How much? How often? Have you ever disclosed who is secretly passing you money - not in envelopes stuffed with cash in hotel rooms, as your former boss seemed to favour - and, if not, why not? Will you commit now to disclosing every detail about penny you have ever received in "donations"? Will you?
Hey, Norm, I don't want to be mean or anything, but why don't you point yourself at Victoria's sunset, tonight, and go for a long, long walk? Your "donors" will send out a search party. Eventually.
Me, I'm off to marvel at the beauty that is Winterlude, at minus fifty kabillion degrees.
February 4, 2007 - At the airport, going through the security line-up thing. Guy asks to see my boarding pass. Looks at it, expression changes.
"Warren Kinsella," says he. "The punk lawyer?"
Not sure what to say, and then I spot two tiny Ramones and Misfits pins on his lapel. "That's me, man," say I.
It didn't make the security process any less onerous, but it was comforting to know that the international punk conspiracy continues to spread, maaaaan.
February 4, 2007 - The gig with Mickey DeSadist went into the wee hours. There were no arrests or nudity this time. People danced to our 'Barney Rubble Is My Double' and his cover of a Gary Glitter tune. Mandatory shout-outs: Mo, Emily, Jason (both of them), Dom, the OLP regulars, and Luc from Quebec City - who owns an original Hot Nasties' 'Tribbles' EP, and who filmed the whole night.
I'll be in Ottawa most of this week to give speeches, attend the Canada-Israel dinner, catch up with old friends and try out my new Kevlar vest, guaranteed to repel Rachel-Marsden-fixated Wikipedia vandals. But, mostly, I'll be paying attention to this.
People wonder why we left Ottawa, ten years ago this month. Check out those temperatures, if you want 75 per cent of the reason.
February 3, 2007 - Before I yet again advertise tonight's gig with Mickey DeSadist at Rancho Relaxo, I draw this Sun story to your attention. I love Sharon's lede: "Misspending of funds, forging documents, conducting surveillance -- it sounds like an episode of The Sopranos, but it's what executives of the biggest union local in North America were apparently doing right here in Toronto."
Who is she talking about?
Paul Martin's big union pal, Tony Dionisio.
Interesting.
Oh, yeah...don't forget this!
February 2, 2007 - Top twenty www.warrenkinsella.com search strings. I particularly like 7, 8, 12, 14, 15, 17 and 18. Crazy old world, ain't it?
| RANK | # | % | TERM |
| 1. | 53 | 38.41% | warren kinsella |
| 2. | 14 | 10.14% | kinsella |
| 3. | 6 | 4.35% | warren kinsella blog |
| 4. | 4 | 1.45% | afraid |
| 5. | 2 | 1.45% | i'm sorry i'll read that again |
| 6. | 2 | 1.45% | steven harper's parents' names |
| 7. | 2 | 1.45% | what did bob marley do politically |
| 8. | 2 | 1.45% | what do you say about the mini golf picture |
| 9. | 2 | 1.45% | www.warrenkinsella.com |
| 10. | 1 | 0.72% | 212614-100 |
| 11. | 1 | 0.72% | another word for upset |
| 12. | 1 | 0.72% | behind them on the land were some hills and small white houses |
| 13. | 1 | 0.72% | canadian political blog |
| 14. | 1 | 0.72% | case of congress election adding father's or husband's name |
| 15. | 1 | 0.72% | do americans have a well balance of good and services on hand |
| 16. | 1 | 0.72% | doug collins |
| 17. | 1 | 0.72% | funny cuss word quotes |
| 18. | 1 | 0.72% | funny picture of a constipated guy sitting on the toilet |
| 19. | 1 | 0.72% | gay guy give heads video |
| 20. | 1 | 0.72% | gay guys playing with other guys |
February 2, 2007 - Three contextless, linkless thingies:
One, I stop to get the morning espresso, and Burning Spear's 'Marcus Garvey,' one of the greatest songs ever made, is playing. This is a good sign.
Two, I get a new watch from my gal for Christmas. For weeks, I find myself unable to read it very well. Do I need reading glasses? Am I going blind? Um...no. The watch face had one of those clear plastic protective sheets on it. For weeks. Oops. This is a bad sign.
Three, Shit From Hell is backing the legendary Mickey Desadist at Rancho Relaxo Saturday night. C'mon by! We'll buy you a pint (and people wonder why the band never makes any money). Poster below, which is a sign that the Apocalypse is imminent.
February 1, 2007 - It's behind a subscription wall, but my column on a certain former Prime Minister is, in fact, in today's Post. So go buy the paper!
(Hint: I also hear it's cross-posted
here.)
February 1, 2007 – Here’s a great way to start February – and, so, I hereby and herewith adopt this list.
(And, yes, Lucie, I hear you loud and clear.)
Here’s the list. Bookmark the ones you like. I plan to do likewise.
All contents copyright 2006-2007 warrenkinsella.com.
No reproduction whatsoever, in any form, without permission.
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