Fun fact: if you initiate a court case, you instantly become googleable

I cannot wait until Doug Anglin tries to get a job, since it is widely-disseminated public knowledge (not to mention the entire first page of google results) that he considers being expected to follow rules, sit down, and do his work grounds for a lawsuit.

Yes, I bought it just for the pilates ball

The Globe and Mail's Leah McLaren seems to have a certain disdain for people who would buy Special K for the pilates ball.

I'm not ashamed to admit that I did just that. Here's why:

I was in the market for a pilates ball already. They are often used in the exercise program I (try to) follow. I've tried to improvise with various household items, but they weren't quite comfortable to grip for such a long time - it would hurt my forearms in a bad way. However, all the balls I found available commercially either came in a set of different-sized balls, or came with a DVD. I didn't much fancy the idea of spending the extra money just to have extra junk cluttering up my home - all I wanted was one ball! Then the Special K offer came along, so for just a couple of bucks I got a ball, plus a box of cereal (which I don't eat regularly, but like to keep around the house as a staple). If that makes me a prole or a lemming or a slave to marketing or whatever, so be it.

Poor writing

I find poor writing - the kind that's the result of undereducation - very difficult to read. I find it particularly difficult when the writer uses punctuation incorrectly or uses no punctuation in a place where punctuation is necessary. These punctuation errors don't just make it difficult, they often impede meaning.

I wonder if these grammatical errors are equally difficult to read for other undereducated people - people whose writing skills (or lack thereof) are at about the same level as those of the writer of the ungrammatical text.

For example, in a book I'm reading about WWI, they included a snippet of a letter from an uneducated enlisted man. He used practially no punctuation, and I found it very difficult to understand. But did his family back home, who presumably aren't much more educated than he is, find it easier to read than I did because they don't write much better.

On TTC crowding

I commute northbound in the morning and southbound in the evening. My entire commute takes place north of Bloor. My morning commute is at the tail end of rush hour. I have to stand maybe 25% of the time, maybe less.

I don't feel overcrowded, but that does not negate the fact that other people in other places do. So it occurred to me: what if they short-turned subways? That would make my commute a little less pleasant, but we've got plenty of capacity up here, heading upstream. So what if, in the morning, every second or third northbound train short-turned at Bloor or Eglinton instead of heading all the way up to Finch. I know they did this in the past and then stopped, so perhaps there's a very good reason why, but it seems to me like something that would work.

If I could make the world understand one thing about introversion...

Yes, as an introvert, I do enjoy being alone. I recharge when alone, I'm at peace when alone. However, when I am with another person, it does not make it more comfortable to just sit there in silence. Just sitting there alone in silence does not give me the recharge that being alone does. It often feels awkward if we're just there without anything specific to do - just like it does for extroverts - so I'd much rather have a pleasant conversation to pass the time. Yes, there can be a comfortable silence in an extremely close relationship (like marriage-close, or possibly marriage-potential-were-it-not-for-incompatible-gender/sexual orientation-combination-close), and yes, I feel no awkwardness about silently riding the elevator or the bus instead of chit-chatting with strangers. But with friends, acquaintances, colleagues, classmates, etc. it is not in any way helpful or enjoyable to just sit there in silence. Use your extrovert skills to help guide me through a pleasant conversation instead, and I'll recharge later when I get home.

A word about commenting

Under the comment box, there are three options: Blogger login, Other, and Anonymous. If you don't have a Blogger login or don't want to comment under your usual screenname, click on Other instead of Anonymous. Then you can fill in the Name blank with the name of your choice. Please be consistent about the name you use - it's rather annoying when there are multiple Anonymouses. :)

Being compassionate means not embarrassing your children

The following is a letter to the editor of the Toronto Star from one Robert Campbell. I can't seem to find it online, but it's on page A21 of today's paper, in the very bottom left hand corner.

Who is the real Stephen Harper? the man who, during the campaign, was photographed cuddling babies or the man, now elected, who walked his children to school and shook their hands instead of giving them a kiss on the cheek? So much for a compassionate Canada.

Three things occurred to me upon reading this:

1. When I was Mr. Harper's children's age (I believe they're 7 and 9), I did not like it when my father kissed me. I do not know whether the Harper kids feel the same way, but it is certainly possible they do. If they do not want their father to kiss them, then he's doing the compassionate thing by not kissing them.

2. Even if they don't mind being kissed, it's possible that being kissed by one's father is the sort of thing that would get them tormented by their classmates, especially in the case of the 9-year-old boy. This was certainly the case when I was in elementarly school. If this is the case in their elementary school, then Mr. Harper is doing the compassionate thing by not kissing them when there are photographers around, thus avoiding having a photograph of the kids in a torment-worthy situation appear in all the major newspapers.

3. Displays of affection, in general, are a very personal thing. There are always private dynamics to any relationship governing what is a reasonable display of affection in any given situation. An outside observer cannot accurately determine what kind of affection is appropriate to the individuals in the relationship. I'm sure if I followed Mr. Campbell around commenting on the appropriateness of his displays of affection, he would not appreciate it. The Harper children deserve the same respect. If he wants to find evidence of Stephen Harper not being a compassionate individual, I'm sure he can find it in policy. Leave the poor kids alone!

Insider Trading

This week's Ethicist deals with a doctor who finds out, in his professional capacity, that the CEO of a major company is seriously ill. The doctor wants to know if he can ethically sell his stock in this company. Randy Cohen says this would be considered insider trading.

But then, under the insider trading rules, can the doctor EVER sell his stock? In general, if you acquire insider information, can you EVER change the investment in question? What if he wanted to sell it anyway? What if he needed to liquidate it so he could use the money for something else?

Things I Don't Understand about the election results

1. It seems that some 36% of Canadians don't feel it necessary to improve the social safety net. This absolutely boggles my mind. Even if we completely discount any possible feelings of altruism, this means that more than one third of all Canadians do not think it possible that they or their loved ones will ever lose their jobs or not be able to find new jobs before the money runs out. And these are all people who lived through the early 90s recession and the dot-com bust, and yet they feel completely financially secure, no matter what happens. More than one third! This is simply unfathomable to me.

2. I don't get Stephen Harper's whole "The West got in!" thing. Yes, I am aware of the history of "The West wants in," but I just dno't get equating right-wingedness with "the West". (Aside for non-Canadians: in the context of Canada as a whole, "the West" means the western provinces, not the western hemisphere). Perhaps people ar emore conservative out west, I wouldn' tknow, I've never discussed politics in Alberta, but why would you equate your national party with only part of the country? Isn't that just going to alienate the voters in the rest of Canada who voted Conservative instead of Liberal this time around? Isn't that terribly insulting to socialists in the western provinces? If their intention is to represent "the West," they should do so explicitly. Set it out in their platform, call themselves the Western Bloc. But if their intention is to be a right-wing national party, they should be national.

Update

Based on the information currently available, I voted correctly. I think the overall outcome could have been better, I also think it could have been worse. However, I voted precisely as I would have if I'd gone into that polling station knowing exactly how the outcome would have been.

There were I think four ridings I was following closely, because my close friends live there and I know their politics. The voting system I've been advocating produced the correct results in all four of those ridings; in other words, if my friends followed my system (and I don't know whether they did or not, it's none of my business) they would have cast the best possible vote for their ridings, given their politics. I don't directly and openly share political views with that many people, so I can't really vouch for the situation in more ridings.

More tomorrow evening - I have to be at work in 8 hours.

Voting

I felt like one of the elves, going in to fight at Helms Deep - a futile symbolic gesture, going out in a blaze of glory. I was wearing comfy runners, but I walked as tall as if I'd been wearing heels. I looked everyone I passed directly in the eye, unsmiling, with the kind of stare that would be considered a challenge among pack animals, not knowing who among them might be my judge, jury, or executioner. Into the polling station. Handed my ballot. Listened attentively to the instructions, despite the fact that I've done this many times before. I ceremonially bore the ballot over to the voting table, carefully unfolded it, and carefully, deliberately read the four familiar names, which I could have rattled off in my sleep.

Given my personal politics and the situation in the riding, I was faced with two clear choices: vote like a Gryffindor, or vote like a Slytherin.

I marked my X, folded the ballot off correctly, handed it back to the election lady so she could tear off the tear-off section, and placed it in the box with a jaunty tap. Then I thanked the lady and went home for a quick nap before I faced my doom.

I voted like a Gryffindor.

I'll walk the plank
Yes, I'll jump with a smile
If I'm gonna go down
I'm gonna do it with style

My kingdom for a Ravenclaw option.

Voters' Resources

This post has been post-dated, so it will be on top until election day. If the date and time indicated for the post have not yet passed, there may be new posts beneath this one.

This is an attempt to collect all the information you need to make an informed vote in one post. If I have missed anything, please feel free to leave a link in the comment.

Getting Started

First, go to the Elections Canada website and type in your postal code to find out your riding, your candidates, and where to vote.

If you have not received your voter information card, you can still vote on election day, you just need to take ID with your address and signature.

Your employer has to give you enough time off to ensure that you have three consecutive hours off during polling hours.

Issues

The platforms:

English summary of the Bloc Quebecois platform
Issue-by-issue summary of the Conservative platform
Green platform
Issue-by-issue summary of the Liberal platform
Issue-by-issue summary of the NDP platform

Tools to help you decide which party is best for you:

CBC Vote By Issue
Politics Watch Vote Selector
Globe and Mail Voter Analyzer

Strategy and Predictions

My "How to Vote"
My "Where to Vote"

Election Prediction Project
Hill and Knowlton Election Predictor To use this tool you need poll results, which can be found at the Globe and Mail, as well as most other media outlets.
DemocraticSPACE Strategic Voting Guide and seat predictions
Jord's Election Prediction (national and regional seat projectsion, but no seat-by-seat)

If I've missed anything, feel free to leave a link in the comments.

At Home in the World: Canada’s Global Vision for the 21st Century by Jennifer Welsh

I really appreciated this book because it dealt intelligently with Canada's foreign policy without lapsing into the whole "OMG! Canada must be the single greatest country in the world or else we'll be a FAILURE!" thing. The author actually outright advocates Canada carving out a niche for itself as a minor power rather than trying to be a major global power, which I find quite refreshing. I did find it a bit off-putting that the author was discussing certain things that I consider to have an ethical component (like military involvement) from a purely pragmatic political perspective, without even considering ethics, but I guess that's what happens in international relations. It remains to be seen how relevant this book will be after Monday though.

"Look what I found in the parking lot..."

In the move Catch Me If You Can, the protagonist tries on a number of occasions to bribe various female employees with a necklace, presenting it as something like "Look what I found in the parking lot! It must have slipped right off your neck!"

That wouldn't work on me. Not because I'm so freaking virtuous, but because I'm so socially awkward I wouldn't recognize it as a bribe attempt. I would be all "No, that isn't mine at all - we should probably turn it in at the front desk in case someone comes by to claim it." If someone came up to me with "Look what I found," it would never occur to me to claim it as mine just because it's nice.

In Defence of Percy Weasley

Fandom condemnation of Percy Weasley generally comes down to two reasons: he did not believe Harry when he said that Voldemort had returned, and he left his family.

If you think about it from Percy's perspective, both of these actions were eminently reasonable and perfectly justified.

The main thing to keep in mind here is that Percy does not know that he's in a Harry Potter book. The fact that Harry is, functionally, the messiah is not known to Percy until a year after he leaves the family, and even then it's still a rumour. Percy thinks he's in a Percy Weasley book, just as we all tend to envision ourselves as the protagonist in the story of our lives, and sees Harry as only a tertiary background character - his little brother's friend. Also, we must remember that Voldemort lay low after his return. There was no noticeable threat at the time when Percy left the family, and the question of whether Voldemort had returned was, at best, a matter of one's political convictions, and, at work, an unsubstantiated rumour. At the time, Percy was 18 and Harry was 14 going on 15. Picture yourself at age 18. Have a younger sibling? Picture them at age 14/15. Would your 18-year-old self change their politcal convictions just because your 14/15-year-old sibling's friend says they're wrong? While Harry has done nothing to make Percy think he's a bad person or anything, Percy still sees him as a child with a difficult upbringing, and assigns him credibility on adult matters accordingly. He happens to be factually incorrect, but the method by which he arrived at his conclusion is not unreasonable.

As for leaving his family, that was an entirely reasonable thing for Percy to do. In fact, it was inevitable, even if they didn't have the rift over the return of Voldemort. Fans don't like the fact that Percy left because he was breaking up this big, fun, wonderful family. But the very things that make the Weasley family so much fun to read as fans make in unbearable for Percy to live in.

Most of the Weasleys are popular, athletic extroverts. Percy is more of an intellectual introvert, and less popular both at Hogwarts and in the family (as well as to the readers, but he doesn't know he's being read so that doesn't count.) Because of this, he doesn't identify with the majority of his family members, and they don't identify with him. With so many people in the house and most, if not all, of them being extroverts, Percy never gets a moment to himself. When an introvert is not alone (with the possible exception of when they're with someone they love enough to marry, and with the possible exception of when they're with their own child), the can't completely let their guard down - they feel they have to be "on". This is imply the nature of introversion. With Percy not even getting a room to himself (at the beginning of GOF, Mrs. Weasley says that Percy has his own room for the time being as though that's something exceptional), he is never 100% comfortable en famille.

Now add to this the fact that Percy is the favourite target of Fred & George's jokes. This means he has to have his guard up all the time, 24/7, even in his own home. That is no way to live. He must also feel some resentment towards his parents (and perhaps his older brothers too?) for not putting a stop to Fred & George's constant tormenting. Yes, we see Mrs. Weasley scolding the twins for their various jokes, but she is not able to stop them pre-emptively, and Percy still has to suffer through the jokes. It's fun for us to read, but it must be hell for Percy. Then he goes to Hogwarts and gets a taste of life without being a constant target. This just makes him realize how bad it actually is when he comes home. Then in his third year, Fred & George go to Hogwarts with him. His sanctuary is no longer safe; the comfortable little niche he has carved out for himself has been invaded by his very tormentors. He is once again the butt of jokes. The twins, being funny and outgoing, quickly become popular, and soon have everyone laughing at their jokes. Percy becomes the object of ridicule by his housemates and classmates, people whose treatment of him previously ranged from indifference to friendship. Again, he must be on guard 24/7.

In his fifth year, Percy becomes a Prefect. However, his brothers constantly undermine his authority. This explains the constant pomposity we see in him - it's an adolescent attempt at a defence mechanism. Percy has to have a certain authority in the school so he can carry out his Prefect duties and, later, his Head Boy duties, but he never knows when his brothers will make a fool of him. So he tries to deliberately exude authority at all times, hoping this might cancel out the mockery that will arise from his brothers' inevitable pranks. Even when he finishes Hogwarts and goes out to work at a real office job, his brothers continue to undermine his professionalism by sending him dragon dung. During all this, his family gives him practically no support, does nothing to stop the twins from tormenting him, does nothing to make his life easier. Despite the fact that he has done everything right - gotten a bunch of NEWTs and went straight into a job with a prestigious department at the Ministry - his family does nothing to make the twins treat Percy with at least basic human respect.

Then Percy gets the promotion of his dreams. Finally, someone is recognizing his worth! Percy proudly announces his news to his family . . . only to be told that he didn't get the promotion on merit, he just got it to spy on them, and he therefore shouldn't accept the promotion. This is the last straw! All his life, Percy was mocked and tormented while is parent stood idly by, and now they're trying to sabotage his career - the one place where he is treated with respect! So, like any 19-year-old in that position would do, Percy moves out.

Yes, it happened that Voldemort was back, but Percy didn't know. He had seen no evidence, so he chooses to trust empirical observation and the information he can access in his capacity as a Ministery worker rather than the word of a 14-year-old boy whose upbringing would probably make him more susceptible to attention-seeking behaviour and even mental health problems than the average 14-year-old. Yes, as it happens the Weasleys were of potential interest to spies, but they wouldn't have let Percy know this since he's not in the Order and is in the Ministry. Who would assume, apropos of nothing, that their frumpy, middle-aged parents were spies? What Percy sees is a family who has never made the effort to see that he's given basic human respect and always mocked him instead of applauding his accomplishments suddenly try to undermine and belittle his greatest achievement to date. They were more right than he knew, but he had no way of knowing that. Percy is far too old to just blindly trust and obey his parents, especially considering his history in the family, and we should not condemn him for acting in a way that was age- and circumstance-appropriate in the face of no credible mitigating information.

Canadian Politics for Foreigners

I just realized that lately my blog might be inscrutable to my non-Canadian readers, so here's a quick summary for foreigners, making generous use of gross generalizations in the service of brevity. If you are Canadian, this is not for you. Canadians should use my post-dated "Voters Resources" post above to decide how to vote.

The parties, right to left:

Conservatives: This is Canada's right-most mainstream party. They are perhaps somewhat to the right of the US Democratic party, but still well to the left of the US Republican party. The impression I get is that they would prefer to be closer to the US Republican party, but the Canadian public wouldn't stand for it. Their general position is fiscally and socially conservative, and their guiding principle is that there should be less government. They are an amalgamation of the former Progressive Conservative (centre-right) and Canadian Alliance (formerly Reform) (far-right/neocon) parties. They are currently the Opposition, and have governed in their past incarnation as the Progressive Conservatives.

Liberals: Canada's centrist party, well to the left of the US Democratic party. They are fiscally conservative, perhaps out of necessity, but socially centre-left, and not opposed to spending on social programs. The impression I get is that they try to be all things to all people. They have been the Government for the past 12 years, and have been the Opposition in the past.

Green: This party is trying to become mainstream, running candidates in every riding, but so far they have never won a seat. They focus mainly on environmental issues, but do have substantive positions on other issues. They are generally perceived to be far-left and radical, and they are further left than the Liberal party socially, but they are actually rather fiscally conservative, on par with the Liberals, or perhaps even further right.

Bloc Quebecois: This party's primary mission is to promote the interests of Quebec (Canada's mostly French-speaking province) at the federal level. They are looked on with some suspicion in the rest of Canada, because they tend to associate themselves with Separatists, who want Quebec to separate from the rest of Canada. They are further left than the Liberal party, (but not quite as far left as the NDP), mostly because Quebeckers tend to be further left than the rest of Canada on average. They have been the Opposition in the past.

NDP (New Democratic Party): Canada's furthest-left mainstream party. Historically a workers' party, but it does enjoy significant support from urban professionals. While most people do agree with the majority of their policy proposals, there is some concern about what a left-wing party would do to Canada's budget situation. They have held seats in the House of Commons for several decades, but have never been the Government or the Opposition.

There are also other smaller parties that have not held seats, but these parties aren't running in my riding so I don't know anything about them.

The current situation:

The Liberal party, which is currently governing by a precarious minority, was recently involved in a corruption scandal. As a result, the other parties all banded together to cause the government to fall, triggering an election. Among the general population, there is a lot of will to overthrow the Liberals, who have been governing for 12 years and are perceived by many as corrupt and hegemonous. The Conservatives are the only party who could win more seats than the Liberals. However, the Conservative position is seen as uncomfortably right-wing by a lot of people. They have been trying to soften and moderate their image lately, which has won over some voters, but other voters still remain suspicious. The other parties have a chance of holding the balance of power in a minority government, but only slim chance of becoming the Opposition and no chance of becoming the Government.

Some people will vote Conservative, just to defeat the Liberals; other people will react to this by voting Liberal, just to defeat the Conservatives. In a limited number of left-wing ridings where the Conservatives have no chance of winning, some people will vote NDP, just to defeat the Liberals. A lot of people in Quebec will vote Bloc. Some people will vote Green just for the sake of not voting for any of the other guys. And, of course, some people will vote with their conscience for the party that most closely matches their values, but strategic voting has always been something of a Canadian tradition and has to be taken into account.

The election is on Jan. 23, and the current prediction is a Conservative minority, which might swing into a Conservative majority. However, the possibility of a Liberal minority upset has not yet been completely eliminated.

Indaba Shiraz

This is a really interesting wine, because the sort of sharp/zippy taste that usually comes from tannin in a shiraz doesn't come from tannin here - it comes from the fruit itself. Instead of being tannic, the tang comes more from the part of raspberry flavour that is present in raspberries, but not in Schwepp's Raspberry Gingerale (do they even still make it?) I find it much preferable to most shirazes for that very reason, although carnivores may not agree.

The subtle joys of adulthood

Because I am a grownup
If I need to take something somewhere with me
I can carry it in a purse, or a tote bag, or a backpack,
Or a gym bag, or a suit case,
Or any other kind of luggage I own or can acquire
Instead of being told "Just stick it in a plastic bag!"

And if I do choose to put it in a plastic bag
I can go through the entire plastic bag collection picking out just the right one
Nice shape, strong, sturdy
Not too cheap looking, aesthetically pleasing
From a suitably fashionable store
Instead of being told to stop being so picky
And made to put it in a bag from Biway.

And if I do choose to use a bag from Biway
(Or the 21st-century Toronto equivalent cheap, unfashionable, much-mocked store)
I can go about my business
Secure in the knowledge
That no one will spit on me, vandalize my possessions, or sexually harrass me
For carrying my spare indoor shoes in an unfashionable plastic bag.

The Divine Husband by Francisco Goldman

As a linguist, I enjoyed this book SO much! It is originally written in English, but in many parts it's written in an English that is intended to give the impression that it's a translation from Spanish, while preserving dialect features. In some points, the author takes this conceit a step further by introducing Anglophones into the Hispanic milieu, and altering the syntax of the English text to give the impression of what Anglophone syntax used in the Spanish language sounds like to Hispanophones. It's all very exciting!

Plotwise, the book could benefit from more clues and fewer red herrings. The "mystery" of the book is the identity of the father of the protagonist's child, but the book spends too much time focusing on the people who AREN'T the father, so the reader couldn't have figured it out themselves. When books have a mystery element, I really prefer to have a chance of figuring it out myself, or at least look back and see clues (c.f. Prisoner of Azkaban). However, this book is still worth reading just for the linguistic goodness.