Euthanasia Is More Than Just Teenagers In Hong Kong

Don't intend this to be the downer blog or the fundraiser blog, but for those interested, the Guyanese High Commission is holding a cultural show at Centrepointe Theatre in Nepean on April 23, from 6-9 p.m. Tickets are $25 for adults and $15 for children. Proceeds will go to flood relief efforts, specifically to get schools back in working order. Call 613-235-7249 for tickets. Also, our NGO is hosting another fundraiser on April 30th for tsunami relief in Sri Lanka; this will be a $50 evening of dinner and entertainment. Details forthcoming.

It strikes me that my position on the Terri Schiavo affair has been too vague. I've discussed it as a a medical issue, a patients rights issue and as a political hypocrisy issue. But what do I think should actually be done? Well, to put it bluntly, it seems to me that the husband is no longer Terri's de facto next-of-kin, having abdicated that role by starting another family with another woman. That should be the end of it, legally and ethically. The parents should be designated as the true next-of-kin, and whether she should live or die or be turned into a cyborg or given a new haircut should be their decision. Both the "santity of life" people and the "euthanasia, please!" people should both shut the hell up and let the true de facto family assume power of attorney, and get this bloody story off the front pages.

In other words, the issue to me is not one of whether she deserves to live or die, or whether she would want to live or die, or whether it's more moral to let her live or die, or whether government should be involved in this process ---rather, the only relevant question at hand is who is the appropriate guardian of her interests? Based solely upon the scant facts provided by the media, I fall on the side of granting the parents dominion over her interests.

"All You Can Eat" Is A Challenge, Not An Advertisement

I had lunch today at Mother Tuckers, one of those trough-style all-you-can-eat buffet restaurants. It was suggested that I should blog about the experience, as I fancy myself something of an expert on how to maximize your experience at such public fonts of excess. So, as a service to my public, I offer the following tips. Do keep in mind, however, that I am not an obese man. Nay, in fact I am quite fit and trim, proof that indulging in all-you-can-eat need not be an unhealthy affair. Rather, consider it more of a challenge than an advertisement. "All I can eat? I think not, sir!"

• If sitting at a booth, be sure to choose an "aisle seat", as you don't want any obstacles between you and the food
• Forego a beverage --they'll charge you through the nose for it, anyway-- and stick to water; any calorically enhanced fluid will detract from your eating potential
• Don't waste your time on breads and pastas; they're cheap and filling and will prevent you from maximizing on the valuable fare
• As a rule, avoid the starchy carbs. They will fill you up fast. Airy items like waffles will also expand in your stomach once water is added and prevent you from eating more
• Maximize the meats; dense animal muscle does not expand a whole lot once it's in your stomach, and thus will not fill you up quickly, nor will it cause you to feel sick and bloated afterward
• Put down the fucking celery!
• No need to adhere to traditional meal orders; it's okay to alternate cheesecake and roast beef. Who said dessert had to be at the end?
• Avoid drinking fluids if you can. Water will fill you up and, as mentioned, may cause starchy foods to expand in your stomach
• The key to my champion strategy: keep eating, don't slow down. Taking a "breather" allows your body the luxury of realizing that you're stuffing it with food it doesn't need. Best to keep your body confused and unaware by ramming as much cheap garbage down your throat as you can. So don't dawdle in between servings!

Now, I am not a medical doctor, so I accept no responsibility if any of you get horribly, horribly sick from using my method. But it works for me. So go forth, my droogies, and pork out, obesify, stuff your gorges, impact your intestines, stimy your stomachs, throttle your throats, ram that roast, chew that chicken, swallow that swallow, lick that lobster and cram that crab.

Did I mention I'm off to Africa in two weeks? Land of famine and malnutrition? Just thought I'd mention it.

Happy Easter

Happy Easter, everyone.

Fucking Blogger!!

Fucking Blogger.com ate my last post! Fuck! Fuck! Now I have to reconstruct it from scratch. Fuck!

"50 Cent and The Game announce that they were 'squashing their beef' ... The press, meanwhile, seemed to mistake the event for the Oslo Accords..." -Jody Rosen

Under "delicious irony", file this story about how abstinence leads to more risky sexual activity. I guess all those kids were spending too much time at this site.

Now I couldn't very well link to Khaaan.com last week without linking to ShatnerHasBeen.com this week. And while we're talking about fake space explorers of a bygone era, it seems Rice Burroughs's classic, A Princess Of Mars, is finally coming to the Big Screen under the new title, John Carter Of Mars. (Not to be confused with the formers Guyanese ambassador to the USA.) Who knows what travesty they will make of it, since the novel is now in the public domain. One advantage of the lapse in copyright, though, is that the original text is now available free online here.

I'd be remiss if I didn't make passing commentary on Paul Wolfowitz's appointment as head of the World Bank. I'll let Michael Lind speak my mind:

"Wolfowitz is the Mr. Magoo of American foreign policy. Like the myopic cartoon character, Wolfowitz stumbles onward blindly and serenely, leaving wreckage
and confusion behind...

Critics are wrong to portray Wolfowitz as a malevolent genius. In fact, he's friendly, soft-spoken, well meaning and thoughtful. He would be the model of a
scholar and a statesman but for one fact: He is completely inept...

Even the greatest statesman makes some mistakes. But Wolfowitz is perfectly incompetent. He is the Mozart of ineptitude, the Einstein of incapacity. To be sure, he has his virtues, the foremost of which is consistency. He has been consistently wrong about foreign policy for 30 years."

Don't Forget....

...Those of you living in Ottawa, come out to see me tonight at the Public Library at 120 Metcalfe, 7:30pm. They're not letting me bring any booze, so come already having imbibed.

Also, local groups are putting together a special evening of Asian literature on May 17 in Ottawa, in celebration of Asian Heritage Month. Mark yuor calendars now!

Khaaan!

Khaaan!

Schiavopalooza

Hell, everyone else has weighed in on the Terri Schiavo case, so why not me? Here's the count so far: husband wants to let her die, parents don't. Husband, claiming Terri had spoken about not wanting to live this way, gets Florida court order to remove her feeding tube. Parents appeal to the feds. Federal ruling is pending. The Republicans and Christian Right, cementing their hold on modern American discourse, have miraculously driven this private case to the front pages, above ongoing war, pending war, terrorism, global disasters, foundering economies and political scandals. Gotta give the bastards credit.

Here are my observations:

1. Isn't it odd that the same people who demand the strengthening of states' rights and the need for the federal government to get out of our lives are the very same people demanding that the federal government step in to overturn a perfectly legal state ruling? I see, they're for states' rights unless they need Congress to pander to their base.
   
2. Isn't it interesting that the same people who trumpet loudly about the sanctity of marriage and of spousal rights are so very eager to deny the spousal rights of Michael Schiavo?
3. All this "sanctity of life" crap would ring a lot more convincingly if it weren't spouted by the same people who fight like hell to execute minors and mental deficients, and who gleefully drop bombs on legions of innocent non-brain dead people in foreign countries.

Hypocrisy thine name is the American Right. If only the President and his goose-stepping minions were as concerned for the oceans of people going hungry in America and abroad, the children of the working poor, or even the limbless bloody civilians victimized in their foreign wars, as they claim to be for this single woman whose living status is questionable at best.

Lastly, let's consider the one thing no one else seems to: that when the federal government became involved in this case it was to enforce the will of the people. Well, what do the people want? Recent polling data, in outlets from Fox News to the Washington Post, show that an overwhelming majority of Americans back the husband. A 2003 Fox News poll (yes, Faux News), showed that a mere 2% of Americans believe the government should be involved in this case at all.

So what's my personal final verdict? Put the feeding tube back in. Yep, you heard me. Why? Because food and water are basic, not extraordinary, means. Starving someone to death, regardless of her cognitive state, is cruel. If her body is to die, give her a drug. If it's good enough for executed convicts and family pets, it's good enough for someone's wife and daughter.

Unsimulated Oral Sex! I Bet That Got Your Attention

From Charley Reese, the wisest curmudgeon south of the border:

"...The only prevailing morality in the country is greed. Greed has corrupted politics, law, science, medicine, education and even the church.

Greed is not the exclusive vice of the rich. The poor are greedy, too; they are just less competent. Every time we choose to buy a cheaper product from a multinational corporation rather than a product from a local merchant, it is because of greed and stupidity. It is greed because we would rather save a few dollars than support a fellow member of our community. It is stupid because the multinational corporation sucks money out of a community and therefore contributes to its impoverishment. It is greed that allows people to be lured by advertising into spending themselves into debt. It is greed that is making health care unaffordable even for the most prudent.

It is greed when we vote for the man who promises tax cuts even though we should know that reducing government revenues while demanding more government services is a formula for ultimate bankruptcy. It is greed when we covet another people's resources and resort to force and subversion rather than fair trade to get them. Greed corrupts, pollutes, impoverishes and kills."

And greed is undeniably linked to moral corruption of another kind. Tales of US military abuse against Iraqis continue to compile. The latest is a revelation that children as young as 11 were held by the Americans at Abu Ghraib. Go ahead, spineless conservative lurkers, defend that! The money quote, attributed to Major General Wodjakowski: "I don't care if we're holding 15,000 innocent civilians. We're winning the war." Yeah right. Winning. Are only retards allowed to become Generals in the US military?

Courtesy of Neil H., here's another in the regular mindless US conservative attacks against Canada. Really now, there's a lot to criticize Canada about, but this guy misses all the salient points.

As we jump back and forth on this blog between politics, health issues, literature, reality TV and the fascinating minutiae of my life, let us segue yet again to another vital topic: unsimulated sex in movies! At long last, this link will allow you to view the unsimulated oral sex scene between Vincent Gallo and Chloe Sevigny, from the movie The Brown Bunny, which was once heralded as the worst film ever shown at Cannes. Enjoy, my droogies, enjoy.

I leave you with this cartoon, courtesy of the ex-girlfriend's sister:

Don't Lift That Embargo!

The Apocalypse is officially nigh: I, Raywat Deonandan, actually agree with a neocon position, to wit their missive on the PNAC website titled, Europe, China and the Arms Embargo: The Implications of European-Chinese Partnership for American Interests. Specifically, I think it's irresponsible for Europe to be moving toward lifting the West's embargo of arms sales to China, though perhaps my motivations are different from those of PNAC.

First off, Europe's position is, in my opinion, driven mostly by the French agenda, which has always been to sell as many arms as possible to n'importe qui, regardless of the buyer's intentions or abuse record. I defend the French at every turn, since they are culturally attacked at every front on this continent; but in this matter they are clearly the transgressors. It is interesting that the question of lifting the embargo comes just as China rattles its sabre anew at offshore Taiwan, inching the world ever so closer to a Sino-American showdown.

Secondly, since the embargo was put in place, China's human rights record has not improved appreciably. Thus the only motivation for lifting the embargo is that China now represents the juiciest market in the world for such things; there is a great deal of money to be made right now, and to hell with the consequences.

This position in no way contradicts my position on the lifting of other embargos, such as that against long suffering Cuba. Commerce has been shown on many occasions to be a liberating force in oppressed communities; trade should not be denied the people of Cuba, North Korea or anywhere else labelled as a dictatorial rogue nation. But the arms embargo against China is just that: an arms embargo. Western nations are free to trade pretty much any other product with the Asian giant, as well they should.

On the other hand, there's a twisted argument that by increasing China's supply of conventional weaponry, the chances of a nuclear exchange are minimized. Interesting, but it's a bit of a long shot.

Meanwhile, "Anonymous" sent me the story about the US misleading its allies about North Korea's commercial nuclear ambitions. What more can be said? This administration has learned that it can distort the truth to any extent that it likes with no consequences. I expect increasingly more dubious claims in the future.

The Wikki Man

You know you've arrived when there's a Wikipedia entry for you, however brief.

(And no, I didn't write it myself, though I am curious about its origins.)

Picture = 1024 Words

Lest We Forget The Tsunami

You may recall that I've been involved in an Asian tsunami relief effort called the Canadian Committee for Relief to (Sri Lanka's) Eastern Province. Our first mission, during which our team (which did not include me, in case you're wondering) delivered emergency medical supplies to affected areas, returned last month. One of their tasks was to administer a survey, part of which I designed, to children living in refugee camps, in an attempt to measure the extent of post-traumatic stress syndrome as a result of both the tsunami and the decades-long civil war.

Well, I've just spent the past 3 hours entering data from the surveys into a statistics package, and hope to have some analyses ready for presentation very soon. Why do I mention it? Because this has been the most emotionally trying data analysis project I've ever endured. It's actually quite difficult to read these surveys of children who are reporting that they watched their fathers drown, who have nightmares every night, who cry when they see the water, and who are suffering from headaches, stomach aches and fevers while living in cramped refugee camps. It's one thing to consider these things from afar, but quite another to read their accounts, written in their own hand, at our behest.

So keep this stuff fresh in your minds, people. It may be off the front pages, but it's still going on.

Another Schedule Change

For the one or two of you who actually read my News & Appearances Page, you'll note that my upcoming book reading/signing in Ottawa has changed yet again: it has now moved to the evening of Wednesday March 23rd, and there it will stay. So come on out!

Updates

Let me say it again: man, am I tired.

Last night I was fortunate to attend a networking dinner with the federal Minister of Health Ujjal Dosanjh. Here's a blurry photo of him, taken on my Treo. (He's the brown dude on the left.)

I didn't get a chance to say much more than hello to him, but he seemed like a nice fellow. As a PhD working in the medical field, it was a joy to be in the company of a Health Minister who is not an MD. In fact, it was nice generally to be in the company of South Asians who weren't all doctors for a change!

Speaking of working in the medical field, today I received yet another invitation to appear on television to discuss avian flu. This time it was from the Discovery Channel. I jumped at the chance to say yes, since I have nothing but respect for Discovery's programming and scientific ethic. However, I will be in Paris on their taping date, so it is not to be. Alas.

I did, however, receive some other good PR news today. It turns out that an interview I did last year was published in the November 2004 issue of Books In Canada. Sweet! Can't wait to see a copy.

And speaking of my other career, you will note from my News & Appearances page that my book signing at the Ottawa Public Library has been moved from March 10 to March 24. So mark your calendars, kids!

Nature Adores Miscegenation

"Women are just as violent to their spouses as men, and women are almost three times more likely to initiate violence in a relationship, according to a new Canadian study that deals a blow to the image of the male as the traditional domestic aggressor." -Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science

Just so you know.

While we're in an iconoclastic mode, here's a story about a necrophiliac gay duck. Mallards are known for their sexual aggression and, like some other waterfowl, aslo for their propsensity for forced copulation. Homosexual animal stories are popping up everywhere these days as evidence of the naturalness of homosexuality. And I concur: homosexual behaviour, for the most part, appears to be innate, not learned, and is therefore "natural" for those who practice it.

But I'm going to get controversial on your asses and bring up a topic that is almost never discussed outside of biology classes: the "naturalness" of rape. You see, everything that every living creature does --everything-- is ultimately geared toward either propagating or sustaining its genes. Sexual infidelities are ultimately driven by an unconscious (or often conscious) need to procreate; and even animals who abandon or kill their own young typically do so to give greater survival advantage to the offspring that remain. In the animal kingdom, forced copulation --what we would call sexual violence-- is an effective means to achieve gene propagation for those animals (typically males) who are otherwise unable to convince another (typically female) to be a willing receptacle of their seed; those damned ducks sure get awaywith it often enough. It may offend us morally, but those damned little genes don't care about our sensibilities.

Of course there're going to be some illiterate trolls out there who will misread this post and conclude that I'm a supporter of rape. To them I say: learn to read.

What this might mean for human society is that no amount of public education, male sensitivity programmes or tougher laws is going to eliminate rape. According to mainstream biological theory, the gene pool requires that there will always be a handful of individuals driven to this compulsion, in order that genetic drift and transfer continue to be unstructured and as random as possible; nature adores miscegenation and diversity.

Mind you, our genes have yet to figure out that we invented birth control some time ago.

The Asian Tinderbox

One of my favourite writers and political analysts, Eric Margolis presents an interesting topic in his column this week: the China-Taiwan powderkeg. A news mainstay in the 1970s and 80s, we haven't heard much of this conflict since the region's economic renaissance in recent decades. The assumption has always been that enormous wealth, enjoyed by both the Taiwanese and the Chinese, would smoothe over differences and that the promise of lucrative commerce would trump dangerous territoriality. According to Brother Margolis, though, a military stand-off is nonetheless inching nearer; he ends with these dire words:

"There's even an outside chance China might decide to gamble on a quick war to grab Taiwan while severely over-stretched U.S. military forces are bogged down in Iraq."

The Asian tinderbox has been simmering for some time. In his wonderful book, War At The Top Of The World, Margolis warns of other strained relationships between India and Pakistan, India and Iran, and of course India and China. The latter is confounded by the presence of Russia, which maintains military friendliness with both powers, and by renewed Indian interests in Nepal, which is too close for comfort to disputed borders with China.

It has been said that the biggest difference between the politics of the East and the politics of West is that the West makes plans only as far as the next election, while the East makes plans lasting generations. Russian and Chinese foreign policies have not changed in 1000 years; the Russians still seek a warm water port and buffers against future invasion and enslavement, and the Chinese still seek to reclaim and hold their traditional (medieval) borders, hence their occupation of Tibet and their 1962 defeat of India which resulted in expanded frontiers. If these patterns hold, a Chinese invasion of Taiwan seems likely, as perhaps is renewed militarism against both India and Nepal. Behold the dawning of the true New World Order!

I Coulda Been A Contenda!

As you all know, I just love reality TV. But even I was skeptical about Mark Burnett's new show, The Contender, about the supposed search for a boxing champion. The show is a bit talky and relies too heavily on the boxers' individual sob story and on host Sylvester Stallone's frightening botox countenance and indecipherable drawl. However, I was unprepared for the drama at the end of the first episode: an actual 5 round boxing match. I actually found myself cheering for my favourite boxer (good thing I live alone). Usually when I watch boxing I'm also eating steak or chilli --something manly and testosterone filled; this time I was eating salad. What does this mean? Well, maybe The Contender isn't as pure as a raw unedited, unfiltered boxing match, but it may be more dramatic, like one of Stallone's Rocky movies (any one except the last one).

Bottom line: due entirely to the final 15 minutes of the premier episode, The Contender is so far the finest reality show I've ever seen.

Hey look, my friend Dr. Mary Ann Gorcsi is now in a band!

OK, this is hilarious. First, read this description of author wunderkind (and asshole) James Frey. Then, read Neal Pollack's response here.

Interview Shminterview

I did a TV interview with CHCH-TV (a Hamilton affiliate of CanWest Global) on avian flu this morning. With me on the show were former Chief Medical Officer Richard Schabas and McMaster researcher Mark Loeb. Let me be as clear with you as I was with their producers: I am not an avian flu expert. I am an epidemiology generalist and a researcher in international health. As such, I was prepared to discuss avian flu in the context of other global diseases demanding public attention and funds. I had nonetheless studied the most recent influenza policy documents of both Health Canada and the Ontario Ministry of Health.

About 30 seconds into the interview, my audio cut out. That's right. I have no idea what was being said or what questions were being asked of me. But just before that moment, I did gather that the assembled persons were more interested in determining whether the WHO and the CDC are trustworthy stewards of the Power To Declare Pandemic; it's a leftover Ontario bitterness over the whole SARS thing. I really don't care about such political nonsense, though it seemed that's the way the discussion was headed.

So it's probably a good thing I was shut out of further commentary. The things I care about --global disease surveillance, the 10/90 gap, increasing funding and public awareness of basic vaccination needs of children, the diarrhea pandemic and simply caring about the Developing World-- were not going to be on the table.

I learned my lesson. While I'm thankful to CHCH for considering me, it clearly was not a good fit. I'll vet my media opportunities better in the future.

Sitar Palooza

Well, our sitar school held its first Ottawa student concert last night. Despite some technical gaffs, I think everything went well. Of course, everyone --myself included-- was justifiably awed by the charisma and skill of our instructor, Anwar Khurshid. Here's a picture of me, hidden behind other students, diligently focused on playing my 3 notes. Yep, that's all I was playing, and even screwing that up.

Tomorrow morning I tape an interview with CanWest Global TV on avian flu. Wish me luck!

My Complicated Life

Further to my last post, Evan Solomon's people have not got back to me after my confession that I'm not a true avian flu expert. Oh well, just so they know: I'm really cute on camera ;-)

However, CanWest Global CHCH TV didn't seem to care that I don't do direct research on avian flu, and so I will be taping an interview with them Monday morning. Not sure of the broadcast date. It's not necessarily a national audience, so I feel a little more comfortable doing it.

Meanwhile, much to my horror, my sitar instructor has convinced me to take part in tonight's recital (610 Cumberland, Ottawa, 8pm) even though I've had exactly one lesson with a sitar. That'll be me in the back playing three notes over and over. Come on out just for that visual!

Since Andrew Currie has shared his recent chat room faux pas with the world, I've decided to share a parallel experience. Ever been contacted by an automated pornbot on MSN or Yahoo! messenger? The following transcript is from when a pornbot recently tried to get me to sign up for her naughty pictures. It was fairly obvious early on that it was an AI (artificial intelligence), but I still had some fun:

howdee_there_handsome: ok im back. sorry bout that.. still there?
me: yep
howdee_there_handsome: ohh your there :) hi...
me: how you doing? nice pics.
howdee_there_handsome: i have some pics on my homepage the link is in my profile, :-) still working oh it ...
me: so i've noticed. this one is my favourite
howdee_there_handsome: aa/s/l (age sex location)?
howdee_there_handsome: :))
me: 37/m/canada
howdee_there_handsome: im 27/f/USA. was lookin at your profile. thought you might like to chat.
me: are you in california?
howdee_there_handsome: so what have you been up zo me?
me: packing for a trip.
howdee_there_handsome: cool. i was just hangin out watching tv. i was getting kinda horny :) (*blushes)
me: I see. What's your name?
howdee_there_handsome: all my personal info is on my eeb page, the link is in my profile.
me: OK. i will look at it.
howdee_there_handsome: feel like a little cyber fin with me ? please please...
me: Unfortunately, I have to continue packing. So I can't chat right now.
howdee_there_handsome: alright :) how bout i get down on my knees in front of you and help you out of your pants?
howdee_there_handsome: tell me what you wantt me to do with you while i slip out of my panties
me: that would be nice. but I really have to o pack now. perhaps later.
howdee_there_handsome: oh yeah babe.. dont stop. while i slide my hand down betweenn my legs and part my moist lips
me: I see. Are you an automated program?
howdee_there_handsome: oh it feels so good. Im holding your pulsing cock in my hand, my shiny red fingernails dig gently into your balls, while my full, soft lips engulf the mass oof your meat
me: Wow, you're one horny artificial intelligence!
howdee_there_handsome: open my website so you can look at me while im sucking yoou. use the link in my profile!
me: Oh you vixen you. You vain temptress, siren of the web. Shall I continue, O Automaton?
howdee_there_handsome: what do youthink of my pics?
me: I think they're.... plaid.
howdee_there_handsome: shit the phonne. dont stop stroking it. hold on...
me: Plaid doesn't bother you, huh? I think they're morose.... no, insipid.... how about torpid?
howdee_there_handsome: sorry, I have to take this call, probly take bout five minutes. If you want, come to my page and lets finish this. I have my cam on there ccyberfungirls dot com look for me on there
me: riiiiight. ok, eGirl, I'll see you there. Wink wink... Now look elsewhere while I run away.

Not as clever as other AI chatters, like SmarterChild, but fun for about 90 seconds or so.

The Depths of Media Whoredom

Well it was bound to happen again. Remember my Toronto Star article on avian flu? Evan Solomon's show, CBC News Sunday on CBC Newsworld, contacted me to ask if I'd like to be interviewed on the show to talk about the epidemic. While I, ever the eager media whore, was excited by the prospect, I did the responsible thing and told the producer that I'm not a true expert on avian flu, and that she should seek to acquire some engaged in direct research on the topic. Alas.

About two years ago, while I was living in Washington, I wrote a similar article for The Star on SARS. This one was so popular it was picked up by the wires and I was interviewed on CFRB radio. I was then contacted by CBC Newsworld in Washington for a live TV interview. Luckily that one didn't go forward since I was not a SARS expert either.

So if there are any media producers reading this, let me be clear. I am very happy to do your shows. But I'm an epidemiology generalist with a strong focus on international health issues. If you're looking for an expert on a highly specific topic, I'm not your guy. However, if you'd like someone to talk about general concepts and challenges to global health, I can be quite eloquent and photogenic when the stars are aligned appropriately ;-)

An Armful of Rabies

My Toronto Star article on avian flu was published yesterday morning, and so far no true experts have emailed to complain, so I guess I did okay. You can read the article here.

I've not yet mentioned that in the month of April I will be travelling to London, Paris and... UGANDA! I will be in the company of my good friend and smartphone guru Andrew Currie, while imposing on the hospitality of one Sue Kelly. In preparation for the trip, I went and got my vaccinations today. Now, I travel a lot, so I tend to always have an armful of exotic antibodies, but it's always fun to get new ones. Today I got shots for meningitis and rabies. Sweet.... but expensive!

Nojjy Boy sends us this NY Times article about the biggest tax cheat in US history. The money quote is the very last sentence of the article.

Meanwhile, Guyana is still flooded. An epidemic of leptospirosis is unsurprisingly underway. I received an email this morning from CSIH informing me that CIDA is issuing emergency funds for a short-term project to alleviate flood-based suffering in Guyana; we have until March 11 to get our proposal together. But an hour later, a subsequent email informed me that CIDA had shelved that plan and that another will be forthcoming. While I'm pleased that CIDA is stepping up to provide huminatarian aid to my birth country, and that I was called on to contribute my expertise, I am a bit concerned that the administration of this aid appears to be muddled, based upon the stop-and-go content of the emails. I hope this doesn't end up being yet another story of well intentioned foreign aid ending up stultfied by bureaucratic paralysis.

I'm back to watching TV again. It was an enjoyable vacation from boobtubery, but all vacations must come to an end. Last night I really enjoyed the most recent installment of Lost, what I consider to be the finest television show today. I can't say enough good things about this show. The acting is acceptable, casting appropriate, setting entrancing, characters fascinating and the story.... well, the story is the thing. Every episode could easily be expanded into a full two hour movie or award-winning short story, that's how tight the writing is. My only concern is that the show might suffer from X-Files disease: you know, when the writers are generous with the mystery and intrigue but really have no idea what's going on.

Cheater? Moi?

It seems AC has caught me in a possible fabrication. MY Feb 26th post below, titled "Brunch In Manhattan" was indeed written on my Treo on that date in the Barking Dog cafe in Manhattan. But for some reason my PDA was unable to upload it or its accompanying photo... until this morning, when I fiddled with the upload settings and managed to get both posted. My clever blogging software inserted the post where it chronologically belonged, though you will note that my subsequent post states, "Clearly my attempts to upload photos ...have failed," which is probably what tipped off AC to potential shenaningans. I ask you, Dear Reader, does this count as cheating? Has my mobile blogging experiment failed?

I will admit to some post-mobile tinkering, though. I went back this morning and edited all my mobile posts to move the titles into the appropiate title field, allowing them to appear in attractive green; hblogger does not yet allow me to do that on the PDA.

Man, am I tired. While in New York, I got a message from the Toronto Star asking me to write an article about the avian flu. I got home last night at 9pm and was up until 5:AM finishing it. And I still make it into work by 9:AM!! I'm not sure if what I wrote actually makes sense, so you decide.