Check this out.
A quarter million a year for 37 and a half hours per week? Is that one sweet gig or what? That sure leaves a ton of time left over to see private clients in your government-provided office at whatever the rate is these days...
Let's see... if you're paying $120/hr to get your car fixed, I'm guessing the hourly for the mental therapy is at least twice that.
So Buddy who takes this job with the Grey-Bruce Health Centre is gonna pocket a quarter million for her 37.5 hours per week job, and then pocket another quarter million a year giving counsel to her private clients.
No wonder we still see Mercedes SUVs on our morning commutes here in Owen Sound.
Saturday, October 31, 2015
Greedy grade four teachers threaten to bankrupt economy
What the hell is wrong with people who think nothing of spending $120/hour to get their car serviced, but begrudge the elementary school teachers their $45 per hour?
The sly bastards at the C.D. Howe institute know they can usually count on some free publicity when they slip Margaret Wente one of their anti-union screeds, and sure enough, there she is today on page F9 of my Globe and Mail, broom red-lined, ranting about our overpaid grade four teachers.
Margaret makes much of the fact that in 2002, at the dawn of the Liberal era, Ontario spent $7,201 per student on education; now it's a whopping $11,451!... yup, clear proof that the teachers unions have been colluding with the Liberal government to screw the tax-payer!
Get a grip, Margaret! This ain't 2002! In 2002 the minimum wage was $6.85; now it's $11.25... the minimum wage has gone up more than our education spending! In 2002 the average house in Toronto was under $300 thousands; today it's a million!
It's not 2002 anymore, folks!
Is $94,000 per year "a lot" of money? Sure, if you're making less. Not so much, if you're making more. According to the latest "sunshine list," well over half of the Toronto Police department is earning into the six numbers. I'd like to think that, as a society, we value the contribution of the grade four teacher as much as we value the contribution of the friendly neighbourhood policeman or policewoman.
A journeyman welder with the (private sector) Boilermakers Union has an all-in hourly rate of over $60, which translates into $120 thousand per year before overtime. Speaking of which, when that unionized welder works a Saturday, it's at double time. When that unionized teacher supervises a weekend volleyball tournament, it's for free.
Then we get the usual bromides about the fast-changing world, where, just because the private sector has managed to off-shore Canada's manufacturing base and create a precariat where there was once a viable middle class, EVERYBODY should live at or below the poverty line with no job security!
Of course we should! After all, according to Wente, precarious employment engenders innovation and creativity! How else will we compete against all those countries we've been rushing into "free trade" deals with?
The fact that some people earn more than others doesn't necessarily mean they're overpaid. Maybe we should worry about raising the standard of living for those on the lower rungs of our economy instead of stirring up spite and envy at those doing alright.
The sly bastards at the C.D. Howe institute know they can usually count on some free publicity when they slip Margaret Wente one of their anti-union screeds, and sure enough, there she is today on page F9 of my Globe and Mail, broom red-lined, ranting about our overpaid grade four teachers.
Margaret makes much of the fact that in 2002, at the dawn of the Liberal era, Ontario spent $7,201 per student on education; now it's a whopping $11,451!... yup, clear proof that the teachers unions have been colluding with the Liberal government to screw the tax-payer!
Get a grip, Margaret! This ain't 2002! In 2002 the minimum wage was $6.85; now it's $11.25... the minimum wage has gone up more than our education spending! In 2002 the average house in Toronto was under $300 thousands; today it's a million!
It's not 2002 anymore, folks!
Is $94,000 per year "a lot" of money? Sure, if you're making less. Not so much, if you're making more. According to the latest "sunshine list," well over half of the Toronto Police department is earning into the six numbers. I'd like to think that, as a society, we value the contribution of the grade four teacher as much as we value the contribution of the friendly neighbourhood policeman or policewoman.
A journeyman welder with the (private sector) Boilermakers Union has an all-in hourly rate of over $60, which translates into $120 thousand per year before overtime. Speaking of which, when that unionized welder works a Saturday, it's at double time. When that unionized teacher supervises a weekend volleyball tournament, it's for free.
Then we get the usual bromides about the fast-changing world, where, just because the private sector has managed to off-shore Canada's manufacturing base and create a precariat where there was once a viable middle class, EVERYBODY should live at or below the poverty line with no job security!
Of course we should! After all, according to Wente, precarious employment engenders innovation and creativity! How else will we compete against all those countries we've been rushing into "free trade" deals with?
The fact that some people earn more than others doesn't necessarily mean they're overpaid. Maybe we should worry about raising the standard of living for those on the lower rungs of our economy instead of stirring up spite and envy at those doing alright.
Thursday, October 29, 2015
CNN shovelling doo-doo for Waco Police
CNN has a scoop on view today!
CNN has obtained "thousands of pages of documents... as well as surveillance video," and, wonder of wonders, not a wisp of a fact in those thousands of pages contradicts the official story promulgated by Sgt. Patrick Swanton back in May!
Hmm... kinda makes you wonder where those thousands of pages may have come from, eh?
Obviously those gullible CNN "reporters" haven't been following the Twin Peaks story at the Aging Rebel.
CNN has obtained "thousands of pages of documents... as well as surveillance video," and, wonder of wonders, not a wisp of a fact in those thousands of pages contradicts the official story promulgated by Sgt. Patrick Swanton back in May!
Hmm... kinda makes you wonder where those thousands of pages may have come from, eh?
Obviously those gullible CNN "reporters" haven't been following the Twin Peaks story at the Aging Rebel.
Wednesday, October 28, 2015
Canada's back-channel support for ISIS
No serious person can deny the links between the Saudi regime and its Wahhabi driven seedlings, al Qaeda and ISIS.
Nevertheless, the Harper gang was loathe to raise their voice in protest against our "Saudi friends." After all, those friends were responsible for the biggest manufacturing export "win" in the history of Canadian manufacturing.
This was one of the great achievements of Harper's Decade of Darkness.
Justin Trudeau has weighed in on the Raif Badawi file. Maybe that signals a sea-change in Canada's modus operandi. Maybe we'll no longer shut-up about human rights abuses just to secure those big wins for our foreign-owned export sector.
While Justin is championing Badawi, he might want to have a look at the case of Ali-Mohammad al-Nimr. Ali Mo pretty much done what Badawi done; used the internet to cast aspersions on the Saudi royal family. But unlike Badawi, Ali Mo lacks an overseas support network.
So Ali Mo didn't get sentenced to 1000 lashes; he got sentenced to a head-chopping... and get this; after they lop his noggin, he's due for a crucifixion!
Yup, if that sounds like a scene straight outta the ISIS playbook, it's because it is. Now you know where ISIS/ISIL/Islamic State/Daesh got their playbook...
Saudi Arabia!
So while we're busy as can be supposedly fighting ISIS in Iraq and Syria with our fleet of '70's era jet-fighters, we're selling Saudi Arabia thousands of state-of-the-art armoured vehicles, the better to propagate their vision of human rights with.
Nevertheless, the Harper gang was loathe to raise their voice in protest against our "Saudi friends." After all, those friends were responsible for the biggest manufacturing export "win" in the history of Canadian manufacturing.
This was one of the great achievements of Harper's Decade of Darkness.
Justin Trudeau has weighed in on the Raif Badawi file. Maybe that signals a sea-change in Canada's modus operandi. Maybe we'll no longer shut-up about human rights abuses just to secure those big wins for our foreign-owned export sector.
While Justin is championing Badawi, he might want to have a look at the case of Ali-Mohammad al-Nimr. Ali Mo pretty much done what Badawi done; used the internet to cast aspersions on the Saudi royal family. But unlike Badawi, Ali Mo lacks an overseas support network.
So Ali Mo didn't get sentenced to 1000 lashes; he got sentenced to a head-chopping... and get this; after they lop his noggin, he's due for a crucifixion!
Yup, if that sounds like a scene straight outta the ISIS playbook, it's because it is. Now you know where ISIS/ISIL/Islamic State/Daesh got their playbook...
Saudi Arabia!
So while we're busy as can be supposedly fighting ISIS in Iraq and Syria with our fleet of '70's era jet-fighters, we're selling Saudi Arabia thousands of state-of-the-art armoured vehicles, the better to propagate their vision of human rights with.
Tuesday, October 27, 2015
The trouble with kids today
Kids today have many troubles, but the main trouble is that a good lot of 'em are not the lazy drug-addled apathetic shits that we were at that age.
In my era, the adage of the day was "fire one up, and let the day go up in smoke."
Now it's "fire one up, and let's get to work."
Huh?
Just got off the phone after discussing for an hour or so the travails of another father my age. Seems we both had daughters who just had to take that high-school trip to Europe.
That's a popular accoutrement to a high-school education these days. The kids get a tour of The Continent, cradle of Western Civilization and all that shit, and the teachers get a free trip.
Why not?
So both our kids go to Europe, and of course they both want to stay there.
I was able to reason with Junior, but alas, Buddy lost that battle. His kid moved back to the old country.
And here's where it gets at once dodgy and hopeful. Buddy's daughter happened to take a fancy to a French kid who was apprenticing to be a baker. And not just any kind of baker, but a hippy-dippy back-to-the-18th-century-recipes kind of baker.
In France.
Ya.
I know!
Get the fuck outta here, right!?
Well, here's why this is a hopeful story.
Those kids, of their own volition, are managing to figure out ways to get around the immigration regulations that their elders enshrined in the law. After all, on the face of it, some random Canadian hottie couldn't just take a shine to a French chef and mosey off to France...
But they're doing it!
And good on them!
At the same time, they got nothing on those folks walking, WALKING!!!, from Sudan and Eritrea and Niger and Nigeria and Syria and Afghanistan and on and on...
WALKING TO EUROPE!
Here's the point; kids today are not ready to settle for the fucked up world we left them.
And that's a good thing.
In my era, the adage of the day was "fire one up, and let the day go up in smoke."
Now it's "fire one up, and let's get to work."
Huh?
Just got off the phone after discussing for an hour or so the travails of another father my age. Seems we both had daughters who just had to take that high-school trip to Europe.
That's a popular accoutrement to a high-school education these days. The kids get a tour of The Continent, cradle of Western Civilization and all that shit, and the teachers get a free trip.
Why not?
So both our kids go to Europe, and of course they both want to stay there.
I was able to reason with Junior, but alas, Buddy lost that battle. His kid moved back to the old country.
And here's where it gets at once dodgy and hopeful. Buddy's daughter happened to take a fancy to a French kid who was apprenticing to be a baker. And not just any kind of baker, but a hippy-dippy back-to-the-18th-century-recipes kind of baker.
In France.
Ya.
I know!
Get the fuck outta here, right!?
Well, here's why this is a hopeful story.
Those kids, of their own volition, are managing to figure out ways to get around the immigration regulations that their elders enshrined in the law. After all, on the face of it, some random Canadian hottie couldn't just take a shine to a French chef and mosey off to France...
But they're doing it!
And good on them!
At the same time, they got nothing on those folks walking, WALKING!!!, from Sudan and Eritrea and Niger and Nigeria and Syria and Afghanistan and on and on...
WALKING TO EUROPE!
Here's the point; kids today are not ready to settle for the fucked up world we left them.
And that's a good thing.
A good news story out of Libya at last!
Yup, there's a brand new Libyan airline taking to the skies!... well, maybe... sort of.
Veteran aviation journo Martin Rivers has this happy story on view; Out of the ashes, a new Libyan airline takes flight.
Seems that the erstwhile start-up promoter Edgardo Badiali has managed to rent at least one airplane long enough to have it painted in Libyanwing colours.
Pretty, isn't it?
And what a boon for a country so hard on the ropes after its generous liberation by the Nations of Virtue!
Alas, the further you get into Rivers' story, the more caveats you trip over. Seems that at least for the moment, the fleet, such as it is, is grounded somewhere in Tunisia.
Then there is the matter of CEO Edgardo Badiali's track record. Yes, he actually has quite an extensive track record, having been instrumental in launching at least half a dozen start-ups in what was once euphemistically referred to as the "third world." As to how many of those start-ups are in the air today... well, you can do your own research.
But here's a clue; generally, it's only Mr. Badiali who walks away from the wreckage.
Veteran aviation journo Martin Rivers has this happy story on view; Out of the ashes, a new Libyan airline takes flight.
Seems that the erstwhile start-up promoter Edgardo Badiali has managed to rent at least one airplane long enough to have it painted in Libyanwing colours.
Pretty, isn't it?
And what a boon for a country so hard on the ropes after its generous liberation by the Nations of Virtue!
Alas, the further you get into Rivers' story, the more caveats you trip over. Seems that at least for the moment, the fleet, such as it is, is grounded somewhere in Tunisia.
Then there is the matter of CEO Edgardo Badiali's track record. Yes, he actually has quite an extensive track record, having been instrumental in launching at least half a dozen start-ups in what was once euphemistically referred to as the "third world." As to how many of those start-ups are in the air today... well, you can do your own research.
But here's a clue; generally, it's only Mr. Badiali who walks away from the wreckage.
Monday, October 26, 2015
Behind the scenes arm-twisting suspected as Canada Post backs away from community mailboxes
Joint-blazin' Justin is showing his totalitarian tendencies early. A mere week after the election he's succeeded in extinguishing one of the most popular public health programs in the land.
Canadian's were overjoyed when Canada Post boss Deepak Chopra announced the end of home mail delivery a year and a half ago. Like many of my countrymen, I had been lobbying Deepak for years to do away with this nostalgic backward-looking tradition. For gosh's sakes, what with pizza delivery, booze delivery, and Amazon's everything else delivery, getting the bills out of the friggin' community mailbox is pretty much the only reason to leave the house!
We're in for a long four or five years folks, if this is the way the Pothead starts... pandering to the postal workers union and depriving us seniors of the opportunity to get a little exercise.
Canadian's were overjoyed when Canada Post boss Deepak Chopra announced the end of home mail delivery a year and a half ago. Like many of my countrymen, I had been lobbying Deepak for years to do away with this nostalgic backward-looking tradition. For gosh's sakes, what with pizza delivery, booze delivery, and Amazon's everything else delivery, getting the bills out of the friggin' community mailbox is pretty much the only reason to leave the house!
We're in for a long four or five years folks, if this is the way the Pothead starts... pandering to the postal workers union and depriving us seniors of the opportunity to get a little exercise.
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