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28 May 2003  

Rand Banned

As an illustration of how discriminating San Franciso's City Lights Books is in its product selection, we get this anecdote in an LA Times story:

Francis Ford Coppola said he once went in looking for a book on conservative [sic] author Ayn Rand "and was told in no uncertain terms that they didn't and wouldn't carry it."

10:58 AM |

20 May 2003  

Newfoundblog

Congratulations to Damian on his upgrade from Blogger to a new Movable Type-powered domain.

07:53 PM |

15 May 2003  

Blogger Bash Pix

Here, finally, are those few Blogger Bash pix I took.

02:38 PM |

14 May 2003  

You Fired Who?

A paper with the editorial bent of the National Post was probably just too much of an anomaly in Canada to last. And with decisions like this stunner, and the recent firing of the two men who shaped this refreshingly unique paper, it looks like it's only a matter of time before it implodes — either going out of business or becoming another boring center/left rag. It's been nice while it's lasted.

Update: I just sent this to the Post:

I've just heard that the National Post has fired Mark Steyn. I'm hoping the rumour is a bad joke because, if true, it signals the end of the National Post as an intelligent alternative to the dull, gray ideological monotony of Canadian newspapers. Mark Steyn's writing is the epitome of the kind of commentary I — a subscriber since day one — look to the Post to provide, and which is practically non-existent elsewhere. It boggles the mind that you would even think of letting him go unless you are planning a radical shift in your editorial direction.

Please, reassure this loyal reader that Steyn will remain on your pages for the forseeable future and that the Post will continue to be a rational oasis in the center-left desert of serious Canadian newspapers.

Sincerely,
Mark Wickens
Toronto

Update II: Well that was fast. I got a reply from Steyn's editor at the Post, Natasha Hassan. She says she's Steyn's "biggest fan" and assures me that "Mark has not been fired from the Post. He is travelling in the Mideast, London and Paris and won't be filing for most of this month." Well, that's good news, but how to account for Steyn's comments in Tim Blair's post on InstaPundit?

06:38 PM |

13 May 2003  

Civilization's Looters

ARI has an insightful op-ed piece by Keith Lockitch that draws parallels between the leftists' furor over the museum looting in Baghdad (which seems to have been both minimal and an inside job) and activists advocating the seizure of certain artifacts from US museums. An excerpt:

[C]onsider Kennewick Man, a 9000-year-old skeleton found in Washington State in 1996. One of the oldest individuals to have been found in North America, it generated great excitement among anthropologists eager to study the remains. Local Indian tribes, however, declared Kennewick Man an "ancestor" and claimed his spirit cannot "rest peacefully" until he is re-interred. Scientific access has been forbidden while the case is tied up court. Meanwhile, the bones were stored improperly and exposed to damage from moisture and possible contamination with modern DNA. Even worse, the native groups were secretly permitted ceremonial access to the bones. They performed rituals involving the burning of sage and cedar, further tainting the remains with impurities and possibly distorting future scientific study.

How is it possible that artifacts of such enormous scientific value could be routinely destroyed by the very people entrusted with their protection—and with an air of moral righteousness? The answer is the influence of the doctrine of "multiculturalism," which claims to value all cultures equally and demands our deference for all beliefs and practices, no matter how backward or destructive.

But it is impossible to uphold the values of all cultures at once if those values contradict one another. You can't both study the bones and rebury them, too.

08:27 PM |

Atlas Shrugged, The Movie

The rights for an Atlas Shrugged movie have been purchased and Contact screenwriter James V. Hart has been hired to write the screenplay. Let's hope this time around it actually gets made.

02:26 PM |

11 May 2003  

Blogger Bash

The Blogger Bash Friday night was much fun. Danke, David, for organizing it. I didn't get to speak to too many people beyond my end of the table, but Kathy of Relapsed Catholic, her non-blogging friend Arnie (hope I got the name right!), and Anthony of The Meatriarchy were great to talk to. I took a couple of pictures but I'm not sure how well they turned out. Will post on Monday if there are any good ones.

07:58 PM |

9 May 2003  

Elsie's Such a Drag

There's not much to say about Elsie Wayne, Canada's answer to Rick Santorum. And rather than get too upset about her outburst, I'll content myself with imagining the various forms of entertainment this little brouhaha is sure to inspire on Pride Day. In fact, at least one commentator saw this Elsie Wayne/drag queen affinity thing coming months ago.

01:01 PM |

Orwell Alert

Damian is in awe of British "anti-censorship" advocates who want to dictate what Fox News can broadcast and shut them down if they don't comply. It is indeed awful. If you want to get even more angry and depressed at the general lack of understanding of what "free speech" and "censorship" mean, check out this MetaFilter thread.

09:40 AM |

6 May 2003  

Suddenly Seymour

Lileks today has the definitive description of Philip Seymour Hoffman: "he’s like Barney Rubble after Betty left him and took the kids."

09:40 AM |

1 May 2003  

DJ Gets the Party Started

Thanks to David Janes for organizing this Toronto warblogger get-together. I'm looking forward to it. Maybe I'll get some inspiration for new posts!

Also check out David's rechristened BlogMatrix.

10:25 AM |