bleeding heart

I'd put it to you that most atheists don't believe atheism is the only truth; it's a default position, since they have been offered no evidence about the existence of God. (Why just Christianity, by the way? What more "truth" can there be for that religion than for the Homeric gods?) I don't believe there are faeries in Ireland, either. But I don't take it on hard faith; if I saw good evidence of faeries in Ireland, I could painlessly change my opinion.

It's a circle of hell in which a man must sit and screech "Mufti!" continually on an anonymous internet site, while everyone else rolls their eyes and mocks him for his obssessions.

Well, if the evidence is real, I do in fact need it. It's just that, Fletch my man, I so far have seen no evidence whatsoever that the NDP are behind this mess. The Conservatives haven't made the claim. The Liberals haven't made the claim. Investigative journalists, political scientists, pundits and commentators and intellectuals and partisans and Mark Steyn and the neo-nazis...none of them, to my knowledge, has seriously tried to make the claim. Only you, and one or three other anonymous folks on political internet forums. That's why, I suppose, I've yet to see any evidence. Because no one's offering any. And Fletch, by "Party," I meant the Conservative Party. That is, since they have been unable or unwilling to see what you have--since they're not as smart as you--I think you should offer them your information, so we can get to the bottom of this once and for all: Layton did it!

???? I was unequivocally, explicitly, and as stated, "focusing on what's been said by others who...have blown things out of proportion." People on this thread. To whom I was responding. And I was critiquing exactly and only the first. There's no mistaking it, since I spelled it out. I didn't say there was no burden. I said the burden was shared--and in fact surpassed--by countless (and mostly uncounted!) millions of other human beings. Just to be clear: I'm not one of them. I have an easy and contented life, by most comparisons. Who are you talking to? Whom are you trying to convince? I think you're arguing with a phantom.

Oh, AW...are you astute enough to imagine people can follow the snarks that you enjoy implying? Because to imagine otherwise is not too astute. Yes, i get it, in other words...since you need everything spelled out. Is there a reason for the scare quotes? Translation: they don't agree with AW, so they are arrogant. As you said. Yourself excepted. As you said.

Absolutely, dead on correct. I think you should bring this astounding information--that the NDP (in fact, Layton personally!) was behind the robocall scandal--to the Conservative Party. (You're a little smarter than they are, evidently.) You'll be admitted into the Order of Canada!

If you really believed this, you would be a simpelton. But you're not; so you don't.

The same point could be extrapolated to Canadians criticizing Canadian behaviour wholesale. But that's silly. When your own deserves criticism, it is a moral and democratic responsibility to criticize it. I guess we're too busy critiquing who we're told to critique--enemies of the state (including environmentalists, evidently)...a beautiful deflection, in the Orwellian tradition.

It was spoken in jest, except for the implication: that we should all be gazing with loving reverence upon the Queen's "work ethic," when countless millions of people all over the planet work a lot harder for virtually nothing. It's rank celebrity worship, a ceremonial cousin to moaning over Gwyneth Paltrow's skill at wearing a dress on a red carpet. With a dash of nationalist sentiment thrown in for good measure. And my remark was not even about the Queen, whom I find inoffensive, and imagine to be a decent sort. It's about the fanboys and-girls.

Oh, there's no question about it.

So now we've got two "the NDP did it!" intellectuals, offering their insights. Keep it up fellas....I promise this sort of thing won't discredit you in the eyes of everybody!

Hey, yeah, that's a fantastic theory. On the other hand, when your job is to be filthy rich, a work ethic is pretty simple to muster. A motivating factor. Yep: it's either the Queen, the USA...or socialism. Those are the choices.

Whereas AW is simply too good for this fallen world...or at least for this website, chocked to the brim with her intellectual inferiors. Well, who doesn't? Common ground at last.

These questions are reasonable, and are fair questions. But they extrapolate out, thematically, to everyone. Who are Canadians? People who overthrow democratically-elected leaders against the soveriegn will of the people? Who are Americans? Supporters of State terror, responsible for more deaths in a single case than Hamas and Hezbollah combined...multiplied? Who are the British? (Their tale of murder and plunder doesn't even need to be spelled out, even as they imply a celebration of it during the current Jubilee.)..... And so on.....

Yes, Albertan politics and ideologies are famous for their subtleties.

But don't let hypocrisy stop you. (Also, undescended testicles have nothing to do with their "grow[ing]"...unless one's view of objective biological reality is a little, well, right-wi....inaccurate.)

Well, I heartily endorse your passionate insight on this matter, and I dearly hope you keep hammering away it! The more often you bring it up, the better effect it will have...I assure you. Keep up the good work!

No, the evidence points far more to the Conservatives than to the other parties...that's common knowledge. And I'm not claiming that the Conservative Party is behind it. Only that as far as a Party being responsible, they'd be the most likely culprits. As for the "French connection"...if Darth Layton's sinister, dying plan was to cause scandal issues for the Cosnervatives...you don't think the diabolical genius might have considered this issue? And I don't hate Harper. I don't hate anyone.

So...your contention is that there is "zero" evidence pointing to the Conservatives....and yet, "all the leads" point to the NDP"? This is lunatic stuff, Fletch. Settle down, big guy.

There were Czechs and Hungarians who wanted Soviet rule, too...so what?

Once the intrepid team of American Woman and Betsy, working in tandem, outsmart Kimmy...well, I'll be forced to alter my view and believe in Malevolent Design.

Further, if a coalition of the most powerful nations on Earth are exacerbating the terrorism problem, it takes a bit of gall to blame "moderate Muslims" for insufficient effectiveness.

I'm sure it varies quite a bit, from country to country and even within countries. At any rate, I think the (other) point holds true; such wages are really not sufficient here, not even close. So I don't think that fighting to lower our wages (or evben to keep them stagnant) are going to stop the sort of cross-border labour shopping we're discussing. Frankly, I don't think many of the adherents of such an idea really believe it, which begs some serious questions. (If I'm right about that, I mean.)

It's proper you should use the term, as it derives from the Imperial practice of demanding superior Trade concessions and the like from weaker powers...through the use of violence. It's gangsterism, to put it bluntly.

Couldn't happen to a better bunch of guys.