OddSox

Sorry, LE is Law Enforcement. Current GPS devices may work as you claim. But, ten years ago it was impossible to put a GPS in a cellular phone - five years from now it is likely that these devices will be a fraction of the current size with a corresponding increase in capabilities. It's coming, and current legislation does not protect consumers at all. EDIT: I think you may be wrong about the transmitting part - haven't the 'LoJack' and 'OnStar' systems have been around for years, which allow tracking of any vehicle equipped with the correct device? I understand, but I do not believe it is as easy as you claim to remove the devices (especially for a consumer that doesn't realize the device is even there or what it is capable of) and there is also a trend in modern society to discount privacy concerns of that nature in favour of the convenience. I have seen countless forum posts where the attitude is "why should I worry" (a la MAD magazine) and it really is a potential 'slippery slope'. EDIT: I don't believe in GPS units either - as a motorcyclist I prefer getting lost...

It's only a matter of time before all the systems are integrated by default. Data mining of consumers is the ultimate objective of the Googles of the world, and they won't stop until it's a reality. Don't get me wrong, I think Google is great, but it is also very frightening. Once it is a reality, is there any doubt that government won't stick their nose in - in the interest of society? I'm glad I'm not a young man anymore (I was a bit of a rebel), even as it is I am very concerned...

Any late model car available now has built-in computer modules that track your speed, engine RPMs, brake usage etc. on an ongoing basis -and there have been cases where LE has successfully accessed the information for use in accident investigations. Although not a big secret, it is also not commonly realized by consumers, and in any case they do not have any choice if they want to drive a modern vehicle. I haven't heard of any legal cases where built-in GPS units in cars have been used by LE, but I am sure it's coming if it hasn't already. As far as that goes, how long is it before LE obtains a warrant for the GPS info in your iPhone or Blackberry if you're a suspect, or even a witness? With some of the current anti-terrorism legislation around the world, even being a suspect is - well, suspect.

I understand what you're saying. So, what program do we cut? (keeping in mind that this is a minority government)

Just refugees from Betelgeuse. They're staying with me for a bit, then they'll go downtown to fill out the applications...

It depends on the purpose which the surveillance is used for. It's one thing for LE to use a public camera image to solve a mugging, but a totally different ball game if Home Depot is making use the RFID chip in your wallet to track when and where you go to the store. Will Google eventually be able to provide real-time video of you any where at any time - at your spouse's request? (assuming they pay the $29.95 fee). Will LE be able to use the GPS chip in your car to track your speed at all times as well as where you go and when? All in the interest of protecting society? Will they even tell you that they have the capability?

Sure, good idea - as long as the unions take responsibility for their part in the decisions. If the company loses money then the unions take their share of the loss along with the shareholders and other investors. (oh and does the middle manager serf who doesn't get union benefits or a share of the management bonuses also get a say?) In the case of the public sector, there needs to be a way to measure success or failure - and despite many attempts by different stakeholders I'm not sure if anyone has managed to do that accurately.

Of course we're not doing enough - but can we afford to do more? Any presence in the north, whether military or otherwise, is going to cost big money. They've tried to allocate funds for 'real' icebreakers, for search & rescue helicopters, for northern bases - but we're running a serious deficit as it is and there is always somewhere else that the money is needed. "Developing the North" would mean establishing more residential communities, more mining communities, and much more creation of the so-called 'global warming' gases just to provide heat and provide air transportation. What kind of outcry would there be then? I'm not sure what the answer will be, but we can't compete with the superpowers like Russia and America.

The word on the street says he has two young kids at home and his better half wasn't pleased with the 24-7 nature of the job...as good a theory as any.

I think you may be confusing all of Canada with the current nanny-government in Ontario...

Actually, millions of people make a profit every day by building roads. In fact, some would argue that because the revenue from gasoline taxes (perhaps not in the United States) exceeds the cost of the roads, even the government is making a profit - not much different than charging a toll. Similarly, I don't buy the premise that simply obtaining 'non-profit' designation means that you don't make a profit. Most charities, and NGOs are big business which have billions of people relying on them for their own profits - just because the end result is a balanced checkbook means not much of anything. As far as religious non-profits - why is the Vatican one of the richest places in the world?

Um, if it's that easy, I would suggest you get out there and get rich and famous so you can get your fair share.

Um, could they not get their supplies from Egypt? Seems to me that there is a perfectly usable border there...

Huh?

I have a suspicion that some Liberals (dunno how many) are already starting to have second thoughts about the coronation - or they were never really for it in the first place.

Actually, you don't have to travel that far... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nunavut#Language

I'm not sure what you've been smoking, but it has little resemblance to pot...

Poverty? It's pretty relative. I help out an older relative who is in his mid-eighties and had part of his leg amputated a few years ago. He lives on CPP, which along with various other government payments, pays him something less than $13,500 per year. His rent is $680 for a small apartment in Ottawa, he spends about $250 on groceries every 6 weeks (and eats healthier than I do - lot of vegetables in season along with meat and potatoes), and his other expenses total $30 for cable TV and $30 for his telephone. He doesn't go out, rarely buys any new clothes, and actually lives a pretty happy life - for less than $1000 per month. (plus he gets a rent-to-income subsidy which allows him to actually save a couple thousand $ a year). If he can live on that income, why can't others?

Umm, are you trying to be funny? The white kid called him a "f**king Chinese", then shoved him, then punched him in the mouth...

At that rate, you're never going to get rich. Perhaps you should shop around for a different bank or at least a different ATM.

It's one thing if you disagree with them, but I don't think it's very productive or mature to call them names...

Maybe they're all at the golf course? It's been almost 5 hours...

I suspect that a lot of insurance involves health and dental plans normally paid for by employers and employees. If enough people get laid off, then the insurance companies have a lot of idle bodies sitting around...

Regardless of whose fault it was, that money is gone. Once again, who is going to pay for it?

Actually, people buy hybrids because it either makes them "look good" or "feel good". The difference in cost will rarely be paid back through savings in fuel. Why? Nobody else sells a hybrid for the same price as the gas-powered model... True, but it has nothing to do with a 'made-in-canada' car company, or with hybrids, or with the economy...