Star Wars: The Last Jedi Teaser Trailer!!!

Finally!! It has been out for a little while, but I am excited to share it and some impressions nonetheless!

Without further ado, here is the teaser trailer:


(Courtesy the official Star Wars Youtube channel)


Some thoughts:

*Boy howdy! Disney/Lucasfilm know how to draw people in to even a teaser trailer with their epic dialogue and frenetic action sequences. Cudos to their editing department.

*John Williams is the man! I get goosebumps just listening to the score of the soundtrack. Without him, Star Wars would be nothing more than another middling sci-fi franchise from the 1970's/80's.

* The Force Awakens, while definitely an entertaining and enjoyable film, was full of call-backs and plot points hoisted from the original trilogy. So was Rogue One. I expect The Last Jedi to the be the same, as even the trailer hints at a battle with Walkers on some sort of snow planet and many a training montage a la Empire Strikes Back. Add to that the fact that a Japanese poster for the film suggests that there will be a shocking surprise in this film and we are headed towards Empire 2.0 in a lot of ways. Good thing Empire is my favourite Star Wars movie, eh!

*Kylo Ren's mask being in pieces on the ground in the trailer suggests to me that he is ready to step out of the shadows and become his own man, no longer needing to emulate and rely on the guidance of Darth Vader to keep him on the dark side of town. It will be interesting to see what a fully realized dark practitioner formerly known as Ben Solo will be capable of.

*That space battle scene! Mouthwatering. Drool inducing. Spine tingling. It isn't a proper Star Wars flick without one and I like the mix of old familiar ships with some intriguing new vessels.

*Most viewers, including myself, have fixated on the final line of the teaser. Luke utter's the words "I only know one truth: it is time for the Jedi...to end" to Rey, it would appear, in a stoic, resigned fashion that makes one believe that there is no way to change his mind on the matter. The obvious questions that immediately spring to mind are: why do the Jedi need to end? How do want to end the Jedi line? What Jedi are left in the universe? I, for one, think that it's possible that Luke has found the Journal of the Whills or another such revered, ancient text that has completely altered his view of The Force, the Jedi and the very nature of existence itself. Add to that the guilt and emotional turmoil Luke seems to be suffering since Ben Solo turned on him and became Kylo Ren and you have the makings of a cynical, world-weary character who doesn't want to carry the mantle of the Jedi anymore, let alone pass it on to the next great hope for the sacred ancient order.

This concludes my nonsensical ramblings about the teaser trailer for The Last Jedi.I would also love to know what you think of this slice of cinematic heaven. Continue the conversation in the comments section of this post and I will respond to all that leave a reply.

Cheers!

Call to Action: Petition to Convince Uber to pay London drivers at least minimum wage and holiday pay

Dear Friends,

I just signed the campaign: Keep Uber’s drivers and passengers safe

Can you help me with this please by adding your own signature? Every name that is added builds momentum around the campaign and makes a win more likely.

Please join me by taking action on this campaign. It appears that the Uber power brokers are underpaying their drivers in London, England, affording the very people that make them all of their profits less than minimum wage. And forget about benefits or holiday pay!!

Here is the link to the petition and more about the situation:

http://campaign.goingtowork.org.uk/petitions/do-your-duty-keep-uber-s-drivers-and-passengers-safe

Thank you!

Donald Trump Winning the Battle but Losing the War?

Yesterday, the Toronto Star posted an article aptly titled "Why Donald Trump is a Historically Weak Candidate", which, unsurprisingly, explains why he may win the battle of the Republican Primaries, but at this point he is highly unlikely to win the war (the Presidential Election) to either Hilary Clinton or Bernie Sanders.

 Consider, for a moment, that Trump is trailing in polls among Black and Hispanic voters to Clinton pretty much everywhere and sits third to Bernie Sanders in many states as well. The Donald even trails 2012 Republican candidate Mitt Romney's numbers among white voters, and we all remember how much of a smackdown Barack Obama gave Romney on election day.

 And then there are female voters. Some recent polls are showing that more than half, and as many as 70 %, of women view Donald Trump unfavorably and his latest (re)tweet attacking Ted Cruz' wife are not helping with this demographic, let me tell you.

 Even worse, Trump is trailing BOTH Clinton and Sanders in usually staunchly conservative states like Utah. If the Republican candidate can't even win Utah, how will they be able to fare even respectfully in swing states like Ohio and Florida?

 The full Toronto Star article going into this subject in more detail is posted below, just below the tweet of Donald Trump attacking Ted Cruz' wife. Someone needs to tell this guy he is doing himself no favors.


(Courtesy Twitter)

"@Don_Vito_08: "A picture is worth a thousand words" @realDonaldTrump #LyingTed #NeverCruz @MELANIATRUMP pic.twitter.com/5bvVEwMVF8"

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 24, 2016

(Courtesy Toronto Star)

Why Donald Trump is a historically weak candidate

WASHINGTON—As Donald Trump racks up victories in the Republican presidential primary, breezily promising to win Democratic states like New Jersey and Michigan in the general election, it’s easy to forget just how unpopular he is with the American public. Extremely unpopular. Historically unpopular. Trump has managed to attract thousands of new voters. But he has repulsed…

On Rebel Media: What Decade are they Living in? The 20's???

I was recently watching John Oliver clips on Youtube and  few clips from Rebel Media popped up. I had heard of Rebel Media and vaguely had an idea that they were white, male, right-wing blowhards waiting for the 1950's to spring up again, and boy was I right. After a quick minute of research, I realized that this is the new forum for all the former Sun News Network hacks to ooze their slanted, hate-filled bile on the world. Figures. Oh...wait...now I remember hearing something about them being banned from NDP events in Alberta for a short time for being all kinds of crazy.

Take, for example, Gavin McInnes' take on single moms. He claims that men don't and shouldn't have time to get children ready for school because that is the domain of the 'single mom', who will have nothing to do all day when dad is at work but pick her nose. Hmm...so no women work these days? It's the man's job alone to be the bread winner and mom's can't work or else the kid will be left to fend for themselves? What about the vast majority of families where both parents work these days? Holy mother of... The video is below, if you want to see for yourself. Oh, and near the end he gets into the idea that dad's are better than making rules than moms and that adopting a kid as a single mom is child abuse. Very often one dedicated parent is just as or more successful raising kid(s) than 2 parents who neglect the child(ren) or fight and are bitter all the time.









The second video, entitled Racism Doesn't Exist, made me even angrier. Gavin Mcinnis is at it again, trying to claim that racism doesn't exist, or is so statistically rare that it's irrelevant. Tell that to Treyvon Martin, Michael Brown and Syrian refugees who are trying to find a safe place to live where bombs aren't threatening to destroy their homes and lives every second. That is not the same as an air conditioner falling on your head. He goes on to say that black guys get more 'poon' than white guys, which is supposed to make everything else even or ok? O...K...Next, Mr. McInnis decides to say that he has a slight aversion to people of different races when he first meets them and says women have emotional breakdowns when he talks to them (I wonder why?). Carrying on, McInnis calls 'the gays' 'literally abnormal' for 'taking a penis your butt' and takes about gay men having 'eightsomes'. Do I need to go into the plethora of reasons why these comments are homophobic, misogynistic and outright offensive? His main point this almost 8 minute rant is that we have much worse biases than 'our natural tiny little saran wrap layer of racism, sexism and homophobia' and goes on to site astrology and getting divorced when you have a 1 year old child as examples. Does anyone on the planet think that these personal biases are nearly as dangerous or prevalent as racism, sexism or homophobia? I am going to have to go back and look at the stats to see the last time someone was killed because the killer didn't like their sign. I'm going to need to bang my head of a wall and listen to some Henry Rollins to clear my head of this utter tripe!

Watch the videos for yourself and see if you find them as worthy of derision and ripping your ears off as I do. Please, make the madness stop!!

John Oliver Calls out Trump (Drumpf)...Bazinga!!!

Well, many have tried to get different mud to stick on Donald Trump for the last several months. Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz and Ben Carson couldn't do it. Many in the centre and on the left have failed thus far, as Trump is poised to clean up on Super Tuesday in the United States and cruise to the Republican Presidential nomination.

...But then John Oliver chose to get involved. And he finally brought with him cold hard facts to wipe that smug grin off the millionaire's face. You can watch the video below.

John Oliver on Donald Trump


Oliver is not afraid to call Trump out on flip-flopping more than a beached whale, racist tendencies, failed businesses (Trump Steaks anyone?) and his lack of actual grit and toughness. I believe he could have hit home on his proposed policies towards Muslims and his Facist ideas, but he did get into what he needed to for the most part.

I appreciate that Trump was called out for not disavowing former KKK leader David Duke, but I believe that Trump knew he couldn't outwardly shun racists when they form so much of his base of support (see: Tea Party).

American news outlet Vox.com has a fairly detailed article covering Oliver's Trump bashing at this link.  After watching and reading all of this, will you be able to look at Donald J. Trum....I mean Drumpf...in the same way ever again? (Yes, Drumpf was his original family name).

I am not a huge fan of Hilary Clinton, but if she is the best option to make sure this lunatic never gets near the Whitehouse, I am all for it.

I long for the opportunity to hear Vince McMahon say, just one more time in his trademark way, to Donald Trump, on the day of his losing the Republican nomination or presidential election, his glorious phrase: "Donald Trump...Youuuuuuurrrrrrr'eeeee Fiiiiirrrrreeeeeddddd!!!"

Daniel Bryan Set to Retire

It is with a heavy heart that I report to you, dear reader, that Daniel Bryan's sports entertainment career as an active wrestler is over. Pwinsider.com is reporting that Bryan is set to retire due to lingering health concerns. Daniel's Twitter account confirms the news:

Due to medical reasons, effective immediately, I am announcing my retirement. Tonight on Raw, I'll have a chance to elaborate. #gratitude

— Daniel Bryan (@WWEDanielBryan) February 8, 2016

Daniel Bryan won over fans with his infectious, everyman personality and expert technical wrestling skills. He is a professional wrestler who won over fans so much that they forced Vince and Co. to make him WWE Champ even though Mr. McMahon thought we was too small to carry the top belt and the company on his back. He proved his harshest critics wrong and was so over that other faces (ahem, Roman Reigns) were booed out of arenas when they defeated him.

I understand that his health comes first. He is making a choice I would also make, as he wants to live to be able to pick up his future kids and play with them. I wish him all the best in his post-wrestling life.

Henry Rollins: Big Think

Hello dear reader! I just came across some Henry Rollins (incredible musician, actor, lyricist, public speaker and punk god!!)  Big Think videos on Youtube and wanted to share them. They are a few years old, but incredibly relevant still today.

The short pieces go into gay marriage, racism, education and job outsourcing, to name but a few areas. He also echos my opinions very closely: racism is outdated adn juvenile, gay marriage is feared by uninformed overly religioso types, educated 20-somethings are struggling because most good jobs have been shipped overseas and our society won't be successful until employment opportunities are brought back.

Mr. Rollins is specifically talking about America, but his ideas can be applied to Canada and Europe almost seamlessly. I would love to hear your thoughts on some of these issues, too.

Anyway, on to the videos (credit to the original uploaders, BBC and Big Think!!)


Racism
 


 Gay Marriage



Education and the job market Henry



Rollins on BBC Hardtalk

VOTE!!!

In a tight election that will greatly alter the face of Canada, it is important that everyone eligible to vote goes out and does it.

If you are afraid that you are not informed enough to know who to choose, go to CBC's Vote Compass and find out which party is most in line with your views and vote for them. It's the least you can do when there is so much at stake this time: our environment, our economic health/future, First Nations rights, our future as a progressive, peaceful nation.

I am not going to tell you who I am voting for. The point here is not to sway, but to inform.

Good luck tonight Canada!

Hulk Hogan released by WWE over racist comments

If Hogan Knows Best, his divorce and his sex tape didn't tarnish Terry Bollea's (aka Hulk Hogan) image in the minds of lifelong fans, this latest scandal is likely to do the trick.

Several sources, including TMZ and Pwinsider.com are reporting that Hulk Hogan was released/fired by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) late last night for using racist language in a taped conversation. TMZ claims to have seen his sex tape, which includes Hulk Hogan admitting that he is a "little bit racist" and that he didn't like his daughter's current boyfriend partly because he is black.

Obviously WWE has seen the tape themselves or believe that these reports are true because they wasted no time in dumping Hogan, arguably the most famous man in wrestling history, once they caught wind of the comments.

Here are links to the story from Pwinsider.com and TMZ. You can get more details from them.

http://pwinsider.com/article/95381/updated-at-1029-am-wwe-fired-hogan-immediately-comments-on-hogans-release-the-reason-hulk-hogan-is-gone-from-wwe-and-he-wont-be-coming-back-any-time-soon-if-ever.html?p=1

http://pwinsider.com/article/95374/updated-914-am-hulk-hogan-removed-from-wwe.html?p=1


http://www.tmz.com/2015/07/24/hulk-hogan-wwe-website-removed-n-word/



This is indeed a sad day my fellow wrestling fans.   :(

Going To Work | FIFA sponsors must tell Qatar to play fair on workers' human rights (Now With Video)

The upcoming World Cup in Qatar has already received a lot of negative press for a multitude of reasons, human rights not being the least of such concerns.



The link below leads to a Trade Union Congress page where activists are campaigning to the sponsors of the 2022 World Cup to demand that Qatar clean up their act and protect the lives of the workers who will make the event possible. After all, 62 workers dying for each game played at the World Cup is too many. One dying at all is too many.



Click the link to find out more and get involved. More information from the Trade Union Congress campaign page is posted below the link.





Going To Work | FIFA sponsors must tell Qatar to play fair on workers' human rights

The Hypocrisy World Cup? FIFA sponsors must tell Qatar to play fair on workers' human rights

62 workers may lose their lives for each game played during Qatar’s 2022 World Cup, a tournament likely to be sponsored by FIFA partner companies Coke, VISA, McDonald’s, Adidas, Kia and Hyundai. Without sponsorship, this multi-billion dollar tournament couldn’t take place.

Due to poor health & safety, shocking living conditions and almost total absence of rights, more than 4,000 of Qatar’s workers will die before the first ball is kicked. Hundreds have already died through a combination of accidents, heart attacks and suicide. Because of Qatar’s laws, migrant workers are trapped with a single employer, barred from changing jobs or even leaving the country without permission.

Wages are paid sometimes months late, leaving trapped workers starving. Labour courts are costly and complicated, with little language assistance, and workers are banned from forming or joining trade unions to negotiate better conditions.  

There has been almost no pressure from FIFA to fix this, nor have sponsors taken a stand, despite their professed commitment to human rights and workers’ welfare.

Most sponsors commit themselves to respecting the UN Declaration of Human Rights – which guarantees the right to join a union - and have specific policies banning forced labour and slavery in their supply chains. However, none of them seem to have considered that paying FIFA to host a tournament built on slave labour goes against everything they claim to believe in.

As a customer or potential customer of these multinational companies, can you help us pressure them to live up to their own ethical standards in how they spend their sponsorship funding?

We know money talks in FIFA. If one of these sponsors were to speak up it would be hugely influential in guiding FIFA and Qatar into ensuring that labour standards for people preparing the country to host the World Cup meet international standards of safety, decency and human rights.

Is the New Citizenship and Immigration guide 'racist'?

Perusing the websites of local newspapers this morning, a few articles got my attention, but none piqued my curiosity like this gem from the Toronto Star:


http://www.thestar.com/news/immigration/2015/05/19/immigration-guide-for-detecting-marriage-fraud-called-racist-and-offensive.html


The article is discussing a new Citizenship and Immigration training guide that details "look fors" that immigration officials should pay attention to when assessing whether to accept a spousal sponsorship application is legit. or a scam to get someone "legally" into Canada. Some of what the document suggest they notice as signs of a scam can easily be seen as offensive, bizarre and possibly even racist.

Some of the most highlight-worthy items, according to The Toronto Star, are listed below:



INDICATORS OF A ‘NON-GENUINE’ MARRIAGE

• University-educated Chinese nationals marrying non-Chinese.
• Photos without parents or any family members, just a small group of friends. 
• Private marriage ceremony performed by either a minister or justice of the peace.
• Informal reception in a restaurant. 
• Sponsor is uneducated, with a low-paying job or on welfare. 
• The couple do not kiss on the lips in photos. 
• Couples who do not have a honeymoon, not even a couple of days away, usually because of university and/or no money. 
• There are no “diamond” rings. 
• Wedding photos done professionally but pictures are very limited. 
• Some submit photos dressed in pajamas or cooking, to show they are living together. 
• Photos have them wearing the same clothes in various locations. 
• Are they touching each other in the photos, or trying not to touch? 
• Photos of activities taken in the Niagara Falls area, Niagara-on-the-Lake and Toronto. 

Source: Citizenship and Immigration Canada training guide




So, let me get this straight. If a Chinese person comes here for school and falls in love with someone non-Chinese, that is automatically a red flag? Or because you have a small wedding with friends, the government has reason to be suspicious? And boy, oh boy, if I were from Niagara Falls or Niagara-on-the-Lake I wouldn't be particularly pleased with this list.

I am not suggesting that scams never happen or that some of these can't be red flags in conjunction with other evidence in certain situations, but most of these on their own don't paint a clear picture of a "non-genuine" marriage. Not kissing on the lips in a photo? Are you kidding me? What does that mean for people who are uncomfortable with PDA or what if someone comes from a culture where you don't often kiss in pictures?

"Racist", "bizarre" and "concerning" are just three words I would use to describe this document based on what I have read so far. Hopefully enough public backlash will lead to positive change in this government document.

For Climate Change Deniers: A + B = ???

http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/carbon-dioxide-global-levels-surpass-daunting-milestone-1.3064837

+

http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/antarctica-s-larsen-b-ice-shelf-a-few-years-from-disintegration-1.3075634

=

trouble

The connection between the two is obvious and undeniable, no?

Stories like these really show that, not only is climate change real, it is HAPPENING right now. There is no more "by 2020 ____ will happen" or "in the next 50 years ______ will happen unless we cut carbon emissions". It is happening NOW and the causes are obvious.

The world needs to make a choice RIGHT NOW. Change drastically now or face: unpredictable storms, the death of a multitude of species on earth, flooding of many islands and coastal areas in the world, the dangers of methane gas from melting ice trapping the sun's heat in the atmosphere and cooking us over time.

Let's stand up and demand change from our leaders today before it's too late.

The Irrelevance of EQAO (and Standardized Testing in General)

In response to a comment about a Toronto Star article on the EQAO cancellations,

(http://www.thestar.com/yourtoronto/education/2015/05/14/teacher-strike-standardized-tests-cancelled-because-of-job-action.html)


a Toronto Star reader named justobserving wrote the following comment:


justobserving
Rank 85

Seems these silly servant unionists have won again. The only way we can determine if a teacher is doing a job is by testing the students. Now any bimbo can teach.


I decided that, after reading this comment and other ignorant, sexist comments that bash unions and teachers (and women) without any justification or thought, I had to say something. This was my response (you will be able to tell very quickly I do NOT believe in EQAO or standardized testing for the reasons below. Cutting EQAO is where the government should find its savings, not raising class sizes and such):


@justobserving ...except that EQAO doesn't determine if a teacher is doing a good job. They don't tell anyone anything useful because:


1. ESL and students with any special needs are counted in the results as much as any other student, which really skews results.


2. Students who miss the test or refuse to write it count for a zero, which lowers a school's average.


3. Writing tests for 3 days in a row in a room where a teacher is not allowed to give any help or answer questions AT ALL is not an environment many can succeed in.


4. Many questions are ridiculous and most adults would struggle answering them.


5. There are many different types of students and many do not respond well to the pressure of a giant test like this. Students success can not be measured by one set of snapshot numbers, as they don't see trends over time.


6. Students in well-off neighbourhoods always do better on the test because they have more access to tutors, books, internet and other resources at home. Students in poorer neighbourhoods never do as well because they don't have the extra resources. The results are predictable.


     Also, EQAO is not part of the Ontario curriculum, it is a ministry initiative, so teachers are not contractually obligated to administer it. And the questions cover curriculum from grade 1-6 in grade 6 for example, so how can you judge one teacher on the results?


     Finally, not any "bimbo" can teach. We get regular performance evaluations like any other job and are scrutinized by principals, parents and students on a daily basis. Oh, and we have to have at least 2 degrees and years of experience to become a teacher in Ontario. Would you like to step into my classroom and try teaching my class for a week and see if "any bimbo" without training can do a good job at it?

Force Awakens Teaser Trailer #2 and Information (POTENTIAL SPOILERS AHEAD)

I am really sure that everyone on the planet has seen this TWENTY times by now, but I am going to post it anyway. Here is the second Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer. Here are some facts and thoughts:

1. the desert planet in the clip is Jakku, not Tattooine. It is cool to see a downed X-Wing and Star Destroyer in the sand there. They are a nice reminder of a time gone by in a galaxy far, far away.

2. Chewie hasn`t aged a day. Han looks OK for his age as well. Maybe there is a reason Luke and Leia haven't been shown in the trailers  yet. Just saying...

3. The Chrome Trooper you get a glimpse of is Gwendoline Christie of Game of Thrones fame (Breanne of Tarth).

4. We see Luke`s (presumably) metal hand reach out and touch R2-D2 when Luke says ``I have it.``

5. I am sure we have all heard the controversy over what Luke means when he says ``My father has it.``   Was this just a soundbyte from Return of the Jedi like it sounds like or is Vader`s spirit somehow still alive?

6. The dude with the cross-hilt lightsaber is Kylo Ren and he is played by Adam Driver (tall, longish-haired guy from the show Girls). He may be a new Sith who has a thing for old relics (Darth Vader's burnt helmet perhaps?). Is he trying to re-awaken the dark side a couple generations after the demise of Darth Vader and his emperor? And is it possible he is the offspring of Luke or Han/Leia? Maybe.

7. Leia (most likely) is given Luke's ORIGINAL lightsaber in a scene in the trailer where Luke says "My sister has it," She is given it by an alien creature who is much shorter than her. How did anyone find Luke's original weapon? Everyone assumed it was lost in the bowls of Cloud City with Luke's hand (that Vader sliced off in Empire Strikers Back) forever.

8. The back of the ship that the Millennium Falcon flies into towards the end of the trailer does NOT appear to be the same one that is seen at the beginning. The engines make it look more like the back of a Super Star Destroyer. Interesting.

9. I wonder who the man at the front of the platform in the clip showing row upon row of new storm troopers is. Seems like a new military leader a la Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin (yes, that is his real name in A New Hope). Rumors suggest he is played by Max Von Sydow and he is likely the leader of the First Order, the military faction trying to take the place of the old Empire as ruler of the galaxy. The whole thing looks very communist Soviet Union to me, with the big red banners and whatnot. By the way, for those interested, The Rebellion is now known as The Resistance in the sequal trilogy.

10. I have no problem whatsoever with a black storm trooper. Obviously others have been allowed to join since the days of the clones, which were at least 50 years before Episode 7. Not every storm trooper in the history of... ever... is a clone of a now-famous Maori actor, so stop your whining and racist comments (if you are complaining or making nasty remarks).

Anyway, the trailer is below. Enjoy!

Why Are Elementary Teachers REALLY Starting Strike Action? (Pass this on to anyone who is curious about why/how we are striking)

I have found, in talking to many people, that most people don't know the real reasons why teachers are taking strike action all over Ontario right now. It has NOTHING to do with "wanting more money". We have all pretty much accepted that a continued pay freeze is in the works, but we do object to other demands the government is making that lessen the chance of each student to succeed and, frankly, put the lives of young students in danger. Some highlights of the government demands include:

1. Taking all language regarding class size caps out of the agreement, making the government free to save money by reducing the number of employed teachers in each school by having classes of, say, 30....or 35....or 40...it would be totally up to the government's discretion

2. Making it the job of our principal or the ministry to dictate how teachers spend their preparation time every day, instead of leaving it up to the professionally trained teacher to decide how to best make use of their time. Trust is an important thing in any work place and very few employers sit and watch you every moment to make sure you aren't "using your time inappropriately".

3. Taking Early Childhood Educators out of kindergarten classes for part of the day, leaving one kindergarten teacher in a room with up to thirty 3-5 year-old youngsters on his/her own. Does ANYONE think this is a good idea?

4. Reduction of the number of paid weeks a new mother or father gets on a maternity/paternity leave, This doesn't sound like progress to me.

There are other issues as well, but I won't get into all of them right now. The government, like 2 years ago, has refused to budge on any of these issues and frankly, many teachers feel that they want us to go on strike to save money. The cost of full-day kindergarten is much more than they expected, they spent millions uselessly in the gas plant scandal and other debacles and they refuse to raise taxes on the wealthy or corporations, which prevents them from creating any new revenue for education, healthcare, infrastructure or social assistance.

They also keep throwing more and more millions into standardized testing, like EQAO, which yields very little usable data for a multitude of reasons (ESL students and students with special needs count equally with every other student, school averages don't consider that some school populations are much smaller/bigger than others, students who miss or can't write the test get a score of 0 which counts towards the school score, the questions are not similar to how the ministry wants to teach us to teach math or language to students etc.). Since when were students data and why do schools have to be audited like businesses? Kids don't work that way!

Anyway, below is a video from English Teacher's Federation of Ontario (ETFO) president, Sam Hammond on the current state of affairs with our union. We will still be working Monday and teams and extra-curricular (voluntary these are, by the way!) activities will not be affected. Our fight is with the government, not students. We still care about them. Time for the government to do the same.


Statement from ETFO President Sam Hammond

A Punk/Metal Song I am Working on Lyrics For...

Climate Change

Nationalists mobilizing

Racism on high

Disabled still not enabled

And the question is “why?”

Empowerment has come to but a few

While others toil, not knowing what else to do

It’s time to join together and tell the world “no”

The traditional way of conducting business has to go

What the world needs right now is a...

Climate change! Climate change!

We’ve got them outnumbered.

Climate change! Climate change!

Now is the time to attack!

Climate change! Climate change!

If we strike them where it hurts most

Climate change! Climate change!

Will they really fight back?

The atomic clock is running out of minutes

And once it’s over, there’s no turning back

Government, business and citizen alike

Must realize that scapegoating and selfishness over unity

Has left us in need of a massive

CLIMATE. CHANGE.

Weather patterns are changing

Gases in the sky

Bring about destruction (background: floods, drought, hurricanes, plant and animal loss)

And money won’t save us (background: no way to buy your way out of this one)

When the end is nigh

Reacting to a disaster once it has occurred to avoid another fall

Doesn’t work when change takes decades if it’s possible at all

It’s time to join together and tell the world “no”

The traditional way of conducting business has to go

What the world needs right now is a...

Climate change! Climate change!

We’ve got them outnumbered.

Climate change! Climate change!

Now is the time to attack!

Climate change! Climate change!

If we strike them where it hurts most

Climate change! Climate change!

Will they really fight back?

The atomic clock is running out of minutes

And once it’s over, there’s no turning back

Government, business and citizen alike

Must realize that economics before environment

Has left us in need of a massive

CLIMATE. CHANGE.

Feedback and suggestions welcome guys and gals!!

On WWE Fastlane from Sunday, February 22nd, 2015

On the very same night as the Oscars were disseminating from Hollywood, the WWE produced a live pay-per-view that looked intriguing on paper, especially from the standpoint of not knowing for sure who was going to win most of the matches. That is always a bonus. Here are my thoughts on the show:

1. Vince missed the boat again!!: Vince McMahon gave himself a mulligan after the Royal Rumble, where the crowd, to a man/woman/child, booed not only Roman Reigns, but the Rock out of the building, too, after choosing Reigns as the anointed future face of the company instead of crowd favourite Daniel Bryan. So, WWE called an audible and gave the fans what they wanted by putting Bryan in a match with Reigns at Fastlane to see who would take on Brock Lesner for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at the show of shows: Wrestlemania 31. And what does Vince choose to do? Have Bryan win? No. Have a controversial finish so there can be a triple-threat match at Mania to keep fans happy? Nope. Piss fans off more by having Reigns win clean? Bingo! The match was good and both men are rising stars. Hopefully one day they can be the next Rock and Austin, but right now Daniel Bryan is a much better all-around performer and has the crowd on his side. Reigns is getting there, but it is too early for him and a push too early may ruin his chance to ever get over with fans. He deserves better!!

 2. Impressive Tag Team: Cesaro and Tyson Kidd won the tag-team titles last night, the only belts to actually change hands, and they looked good doing it. Ceasaro has been on the upswing in terms of performance and fan love since last Wrestlemania, where he won the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal. After that, WWE's creative team tried to seemingly destroy his career by keeping him heel, pairing him with Paul Heyman and not being able to figure out that all they needed to do was turn him face and let him have a run on his own, so it was nice to see him win something last night. Tyson Kidd, on the other hand, is very good between the ropes and is finally starting to learn to develop a character that fans actually care about. Good on them for winning and hopefully they will stay together long enough to build a decent following.

3. STING: Obviously WWE is going back to Sting's glory days in WCW where he wouldn't speak and wielded the great equalizer, a black baseball bat, against his treacherous foes, with his WWE character. And I am fine with that. I like the eery supernatural elements and think that staying silent keeps him more mysterious and interesting. Triple H did a great job as the scheming businessman who wants to avoid a real fight at all costs and it was nice to see him actually take Sting down for a minute, just to show the audience that Sting wasn't going to just come in and destroy him every time they met. However, in the end, it was nice to see the baseball bat come out and for the Wrestlemania match to be officially set up. I have no doubt Sting will win the match, but with these 2 trading promos and competing in the ring, an exciting story should unfold over the next 34 days.

4. Cena finally puts someone over: As much as I want to see Rusev lose after a year of being a beast, I really like how Cena put him over in their match. Cena remained strong by passing out to the Accolade instead of tapping out and Rusev got a big rub from this. He has the potential to be the next great monster heel if they build him right.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens Teaser Trailer

Here is the first teaser trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens (like you haven't seen it already!!)

Likes: Fiery lightsaber saber, Milennium Falcon, X-Wings and TIE Fighters flying near the surface of Tatooine possibly??? (Could it be??)

Dislikes: Stupid rolling R2 unit head (let's not get Original Trilogy Special Edition again! PLEASE!!)

What do you think?

Call on Zara to let workers unionize and negotiate collectively

Here is the latest from LabourStart, an organization that runs campaigns to advocate for workers' rights worldwide. There latest campaign is against Inditex, the parent company of Zara. Read below to learn what is going on and how you can get involved.

Cheers!

USA: Zara must respect workers' rights Inditex is a transnational corporation that wants to be seen as socially responsible. For example, it signed a global agreement with UNI Global Union committing it to respecting the rights of its workers worldwide. And to be fair, in many countries, workers in Zara and other Inditex brands enjoy rights consistent with the obligations laid down in the global agreement. But not in the USA. There, Inditex refuses to give practical effect to its Global Agreement. In the USA, Inditex and Zara workers do not have the same rights of consultation and negotiation as they do in other countries. In the USA, Inditex does not permit workers to freely choose to join a trade union. Please take a moment to tell Inditex that you expect them to live up to their obligations, and to respect workers' rights everywhere.  Click here: http://www.labourstart.org/go/changezara And please share this message with your friends, family and fellow union members. Thank you! Eric Lee

Copyright © 2014 LabourStart, All rights reserved. You are receiving this message because you opted in at our website (http://www.labourstart.org) - most likely when you signed up to support one of our online campaigns in support of workers' rights. Our mailing address is: LabourStart 27 Muswell Hill Place London, England N10 3RP United Kingdom

Toronto Municipal Election 2014: Vote Compass

The 2014 municipal election has tons at stake for a lot of areas, but none more so than Toronto. I am not saying to vote against the drug-dealing bully who doesn't know conflict of interest if it smacks him in the face (unless you want to, which you certainly have the right to do). I am saying to go on CBC's vote compass and see how your views stack up against the 3 leading candidates: Olivia Chow, John Tory and Doug Ford.

Here is the link:

http://www.cbc.ca/news2/interactives/votecompass/toronto2014.html

This is a quick and easy way to inform yourself before making an important choice on October 27th. And it can't hurt even if you consider yourself an informed voter. All you have to do is answer a few questions about your views and it matches them against the opinions and promises of the big three contenders. 

I am not saying who to vote for, just to inform yourself and vote on election day so we elect the mayor that best represents the views and opinions of the MAJORITY of Torontonians. 

Cheers!