1 MORE PART TIME, LESS FULL-TIME AND UNEMPLOYMENT OVERALL IS UP And that’s the state of employment in Canada today.

2 COAL POWER RULES LOOSEN It looks to me like there are some nuances in the Conservative’s sudden relaxation of coal emissions regulations–the  fact that Ottawa’s emission reduction targets must still be met is good, for instance — but on the whole this still sounds pretty boo-urns. Worth a read, though.

3 KILL KILL KILL THE ENVIRONMENT WOO!!! A bluefin tuna sells for almost three-quarters of a million bucks which is great since we’re fishing them to extinction, George Monbiot has a column about how libertarianism is fucked and Saskatchewan continues to experience record temperatures which are totally not a sign that humans are breaking our only planet’s climate.

4 WHO CAN’T HANDLE MONEY AGAIN? Two audits say the federal government is mishandling First Nations funds.

5 MAYBE SANTORUM IS NUMBER ONE AFTER ALL Apparently there’s some dispute over the Republican Iowa caucus results (N/T Ron). meanwhile, Rick Santorum is still saying stupid, out of touch things about same-sex marriage, which he is creepily obsessed with outlawing forever (along with birth control).

6 OUR PRIME MINISTER’S SO-CALLED “JUDGEMENT” IS TERRIBLE AND HIS RECKLESS, TOADY-ASS BONER-FOR-AMERICA RHETORIC IS A THREAT TO WORLD PEACE Well great, here’s some idiotic tough talk against Iran. They want to use nuclear weapons, Harper? Really? Uh, NO. They’d be annihilated, and, being somewhat sane, they’d realize that and not want that. And of COURSE they’re going after nuclear technology: THEY’RE A MODERNIZING COUNTRY. In any case, it’s been clearly established that the U.S has a tendaency to invade middle eastern countries that DON’T have nukes, so if they ARE going for a bomb (which would be a terrible idea), we kinda drove them to it. Jesus CHRIST, people! I’m no fan of Iran’s government either but at least I realize that in this, I have a lot in common with lots of Iranians. Give them time to fix it. It’s already a semi-open, quasi-democratic country. It will get better. It’s not like it’s Saudi Arabia, after all.

As for Stephen Harper’s U.S. Republican party-style opinions, I will always be appalled that more than half of the people in this province voted for an American style government. This was the political party that wanted to go to war in Iraq, after all. That was a warning sign, people. Stop voting for crazy, crazy politicians!

As for Iran, watch this lovely thing. It’s a few years old but its point stands.