The report ‘A game of Trust: Investigation into the Ontario Lottery
and Gaming Corporation’ s Protection of the Public From Fraud and Theft
can be viewed on line at

http://tinyurl.com/2kat9u

—-

I read this report last night.  I can’t even begin to tally all the money that OLG has spent in trying to ‘rehabilitate’ their image since the Oct. 25/06 broadcast by the fifth estate that looked at insider wins.  I would advise all voters in Ontario to read this document and make a stink … all that money that has been paid out to suspicious lottery winners is your tax money.  A pretty paltry sum of $100 million a year in the grand scheme of the total take from OLG goes to ‘charitable’ programs through The Trillium Foundation.  The other revenue goes into the government’s general funds and is not accountable.  I hope that it is a truly independent regulatory regime  is set-up to address these issues.  This is a real can of worms and the impact is being felt across Canada.

Geez, just after I extend an invitation to ’men in trees’ people to visit the Squamish area there is a tragedy.  A 15 year old boy was knifed by a 19 year old last nite at a party and he died.  There were numerous roadblocks in the area checking cars this morning.  Last month there was the first shooting in Whistler in 25 years - again two guys who had been ‘partying’.  Such a waste of young lives. 

The yellow house that is the ‘hotel’ on the TV show ‘Men in Trees’ is located on Judd Road in the Brackendale area of Squamish. The Chieftain bar is on the main street in Squamish - Cleveland Ave.  And there are lots of ‘he’ guys, extreme sports guys in the area. 

The pictures of Elmo, Alaska are really of the area around Squamish, an hour drive north of Vancouver.  This is a beautiful area of the world - 45 to 60 minutes away from Vancouver (depending on traffic) and 45 minutes from Whistler, home of the 2010 Winter Olympics. 

I hope that people who are attracted to the area via Men in Trees will come and visit.  I am a newbie to the area myself but the scenary is spectacular at all times of the year.  If you want to meet local ‘he’ guys then you will have to participate in their sports activities (which are many) - the ‘Test of Metal" bike race; kite-sailing off ‘the Spit’; hiking, mountain climbing, …   

at http://dosemagazine.com/2007/03/22/songs-in-the-tubes/

from TPL’s blog

I can see how people get tired of the rain on the west coast.  It said in the newspaper yesterday that so far in March there has been 43 hours of sun, much less than usual.  My perception is that it rains for days at this time of year interspersed with a couple of hours of sun here and there.  I was in Vancouver last Monday and the cherry trees are in blossom - very beautiful even in the rain.  I haven’t seen one cherry tree in a public place in Squamish - something the local municipality should consider.

I did plant some seeds indoors a few weeks back and the scarlet runner seeds are now plants (about 8 inches tall).  The other seeds I planted -black-eyed susan and nasturtium vines - are growing at a much slower pace.  The plan is to have them in pots on the back porch which will provide some privacy.  I expect that we will stay put here - this residence in Squamish - until the end of the summer.

My summer goal is to do a surf weekend in Tofino with ’Surf Sister’ (see http://www.surfsister.com).  This would also be an opportunity to explore the west coast of Vancouver Island.  A person I spoke with last week advised me to start exercising now in preparation for ’surf school’ as it is physically demanding (I saw recently that surfing burns 600 calories an hour).  I will start off by going to the local pool this week!

A look at Al Gore and environmental policies while he was in power.  I wonder what happens to people’s values and ethics as a result of the political process?  Gore seems convincing in "An Inconvenient Truth" but while he was in a political position to actually forward some of the ideas he articulates in his presentation, he either didn’t or wasn’t able to. 

St. Patrick’s Day Weekend Edition March 17 / 18, 2007

When Al Gore was Veep, The Green Imposter

By JEFFREY ST. CLAIR

The official version of the political battles over the environment in the late 1990s goes something like this:

As the Republican Visigoths swept into control of the 104th Congress, in January of 1995, trembling greens predicted that not an old-growth tree, not an endangered species would be spared. The Republicans’ threats were terrible to behold. They proposed to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling. They vowed to establish a commission to shut down several national parks; to relax standards on the production and disposal of toxic waste; to turn over enforcement of clean water and air standards to the states. They uttered fearsome threats against the Endangered Species Act. They boasted of plans to double the amount of logging in the National Forests.

Then, the official myth goes on, the president, Gore and the national greens fought off the Visigoths.

American politics thrives on simple legends of virtue combating vice. As regards the environment, the Republican ultras did not carry all before them. They didn’t need to. Clinton and Gore had already done most of the dirty work themselves.

The real story begins back in the early days of the administration, when Clinton and Gore had what might be called an environmental mandate and a Democratic Congress to help them move through major initiatives. But the initiatives never happened. Instead, those early years were marked by a series of retreats, reversals and betrayals that prompted David Brower, the grand old man of American environmentalism, the arch druid himself, to conclude that "Gore and Clinton had done more harm to the environment than Reagan and Bush combined."

continued at http://counterpunch.org/stclair03172007.html

2 bunches walnut-sized beets, with greens, about 10 in total

1/4 lb. good-quality slab bacon, cut into 1/2 in. dice (me:  suppose you could omit this if vegetarian)

4 cloves garlic; minced

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 lb. dry penne

4 tablespoons crumbled blue chees

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Trim and peel the beets.  Discard the stems and wash the greens.  Cut the greens into thin strips and cut the beets into 1/4 inch dice.  Cook the bacon over low heat until it is crisp.  Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon to drain on absorbent paper.  Discard the bacon fat.  Add the garlic and olive oil to the same pan.  Cook over medium heat until the garlic is pale gold.  Add the bacon and remove from the heat.  Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Add the beets to the boiling water and salt liberally.  It should taste like seawater.  Cook for 10 minutes.  Add the penne and cook, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is very firm, about 6 minutes.  Add the beet greens and continue cooking until the pasta is tender but still firm to the bite, 3-4 minutes longer.  Drain the pasta and return to the pot.  Add the bacon and garlic mixture and stir over low heat to coat the pasta with the sauce.  Stir in the blue cheese.  Season with salt and pepper.  Serve immediately in heated bowls.  Serves 4.