Tamara Taggert Twitters Clipper Confiscation

CTV celebrity Tamara Taggert - who once made out with me at a high school party more than 20 years ago - yesterday posted a Twitter message about BC Place security confiscating her nail clippers:



Tamara Taggert is a great kisser, as I remember, and definitely not a danger to the public.

It's Really Warm in Vancouver

click photo to remove blanket

...war of the poses continues...

Geert Wilders, Free Speech on Trial in Amsterdam

Dutch Politician and Prime Minister contender Geert Wilders is on trial in the Netherlands for creating this film:



Columnist Salim Mansur writes sensibly in the Toronto Sun:

In protecting Muslims from those who offend them, the West ill-serves Islam and those Muslims who seek its reform. Muslims need untrammelled free speech to awaken to the awareness of how totalitarian and comatose is their culture.

British writer and comedian Pat Condell summarizes the situation even better:



If I was living in the Netherlands and paying taxes, I'd want my money back.

Raytec Raymax Infrared CCTV Guards 2010 Olympic Venues, Streets at Night

Raytec Raymax infra-red CCTV cameras are standing guard tonight over 2010 Olympic venues and public streets in Vancouver and Whistler:



This is a wonderful technology with a variety of implications.

Property and assets are protected from criminals who might otherwise operate under cover of dark. That's good:

Infrared Camera Catches Burglary Suspect

Camera operators will abuse the system and post internet videos of regular people doing things in the dark while they think they have privacy. That's bad:

"It appears to be fornication in a convertible."

Large installations can maintain fence-line security at night without bathing their perimeter in light, sparing nuisance to neighbors while saving energy. That's good:

Prison Perimeter Light Pollution - Springfield, VT

The government unchecked could create a 24-hour Orwellian surveillance society where four million cameras are watching the population - one for every 14 people. That's bad:

Now a reality in Britain

Stay tuned for more. It's great that here in Canada we are free to debate issues like this.

Vancouver Drivers Caught Flaunting New Cellphone Law

The drivers I caught on video yesterday seem undeterred by the new $167 fine...



...The third clip is my favorite, when the man spots me filming and smiles sheepishly, pulling the phone away from his ear.

The next man, texting into his lap, is a good example of why this law is needed: I'm standing in the street beside his window, moving around, pointing a camera directly at him - everything short of lighting my hair on fire - but he remains oblivious and distracted. Until he puts down the phone. (As the young folks say, PWNED!)

This was a fun project I'll be repeating soon. I'm glad I live in Canada where we have the freedom to do things like this.

Stay tuned for another video like this next week.

$167 Fine Tomorrow for Cellphone/Texting BC Drivers

She's very dangerous on the road.

UPDATE: My video of drivers breaking the new law is here.

The grace period expires on BC's new cellphone/texting law tomorrow and BC drivers face a $167 fine if caught using a hand-held device in traffic, plus 3 DMV penalty points if texting behind the wheel. From today's Province:

"The message we want cellphone tickets to convey is simple: No phone call or message is worth a life, so use your technology responsibly," said Graham...

This is great news for pedestrians and cyclists. Since 2006 we've known that drivers on cell phones are as bad as drunks; now it's a little safer to share the road in BC. And here I reply to a few comments posted by Province readers about the new law:

Bpe4life
"So I can't talk on my phone while I drive? ...how is this different from having your morning coffee, Egg Mcmuffin or Tim’s sandwich?"

Managing a conversation with a phone in one hand and car in the other requires vastly more brainpower than eating a sandwich and sipping coffee. A driver can eat and drink as conditions permit, unlike a cellphone conversation.

Businessman
"Someone didn't think about all the people who work out of their vehicles. You know, they need their phone for business?"

Um, yes, please google "hands-free phone" and expand your consciousness.

Perfect revenue
"I just drove across town today, and I swear two out of three drivers had their ears glued to a cell?!? ...if the fines could go toward paying for the Olympics we should have it paid off by end of Feb :)"

Well said! Tomorrow I'll be filming downtown Vancouver drivers, trying to catch scofflaws in the act.

Stay tuned!

How to Report the News

Friday night comedy relief! Guaranteed to put a smile on your face:



Charlie Brooker has a great formula there. I plan to try it sometime in the future.