The fourth link in the big post two down from this deserves note of a correction, thanks to the highly intelligent and worth-reading Lindsay.

I find it interesting that the 21st commentor revises her main post, from a true correction into indeterminacy. Her refutation of some of the background to the original scare article remains sound; what impresses me is the level of thought that she gets in those comments, and her more-than-willingness to listen to them.

Nonetheless both the post and the comments are unanimous that Canadian vaccines have been 'safe' from this for longer than my readers have been alive. Whether this is justified or not is certainly worth studying... but it's nice to be able to relax. This is a long post - Read the rest.

As part of an effort to get peer reviews done on all the entries to the IGC, the first review of The Last Supper has finally been posted. Emily Care's review is glowing, and I am indeed damn proud. In return, for those who haven't seen it, I recommend all my readers (especially the ladies of our crowd) to go check out Breaking The Ice... not so much as a thank-you to Emily, but because it deserves the attention in its own right. (I'm not sure whether the version at that link is the most current, or not. Perhaps someone can enlighten me about this in the comments.)

To the Edmonton crowd... I think I will try and organize a Last Supper evening for either Canada Day or the day after (Saturday 2nd). Many of you have mentioned interest... email me or leave a comment if you're actually willing to put out. This is a long post - Read the rest.

...and much ado about things that matter. And then some gravy.

Most of my readers are news unjunkies, so much of this will be, well, news to them. That's what this post is for. Note that the links provided should not be taken to imply that a single source is ever a smart way to look into an issue; these are simply jumping-off points with good punch, with a viewpoint that's a decent match to my own.

Number one: The Downing Street Hearings.
"Very slowly, and after an embarrassing gap of silence from the news media, the American people have come to hear about the Downing Street Minutes. This document, once confidential but leaked by a British version of Deep Throat, describes in plain language the manner in which the Bush and Blair administrations planned to manipulate their way into an invasion of Iraq. The Minutes describe how intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy of invasion, and that a pretense for war had to be manufactured in order to paint a veneer of legitimacy over what everyone involved knew was a patently illegal military action."

Finally it begins.

Number two: The Supreme Court of Canada on healthcare.
When you visit this link, read the whole thing - including all of the comments, and if interested some of the supporting links provided therein. It showcases some excellent cross-political discussion about the outcomes of the SCOC's recent decision to strike down a Quebec law forbidding private health insurance, on the grounds that the deficiencies of the public system made it a rights violation to deny any other alternative. The short-sighted and the political right are seeing this as a green light to private medicine in Canada. King Ralph will certainly do so.

The data say this is a fucking stupid idea. Follow those links in the comments, guys; they're pure gold for convincing people who might be wobbly about privatization issues. Peer-reviewed hard data from nonpolitical medical journals, collated into summary form.

Number three: Debt Relief for the third world.
"Instead of this self-congratulatory Lady Bountiful act, how about some real debt relief? That means unconditional, mass repudiation of debt, the sacking of the World Bank and IMF headquarters, and Paul Wolfowitz's bleeding head on a pike."

Anyone with a libertarian streak, once you follow the link above, go read all of the favorite posts linked down the left of Kevin Carson's blog. Fantastic stuff. Libertarianism isn't actually short-sighted and imbecilic; it's just that so many libertarians are.

Number four: Vaccines, Autism and Silence
Normally one would prefer to dismiss such things as the ravings of the tin-hat crowd. One really, really would. And in ninety-nine percent of such stories, one probably can. This is important, intensely relevant, and I very much fear it's one of the one percent. I will do some further research on this with respect to Canadian usage, but something tells me the outcome is unlikely to be pretty.

Other news worth noting includes the crisis in Bolivia, the Conservatives and the Liberals and the contempt they deserve, Microsoft and China, and a June 21 launch date for Cosmos 1.

And here's a little amusing gravy for you all to enjoy when you can take no more of this nonsense.

Enjoy! This is a long post - Read the rest.