International Rule 5 BikiniFest, Thursday

Okay, folks, let us start with Pamela Bianco Manalo, Miss Phillipines:



And move on to Japanese bikini model Hiro Mamiya:


And lest you think I'm ignoring the ladies of the subcontinent, Miss India, Puja Gupta:



And we round it out with the contestants of Miss Bikini Vietnam...hey, how could I choose but one?

Peter Worthington: 'Rein in the Human Rights bureaucracy'

Via Cathy Schaidle, Peter Worthington of the Toronto Sun pens a column on the Human Righs Racket.

His conclusion:

Prime Minister Stephen Harper should rein in the human rights bureaucracy that too often offends the very essence of due process and democracy.

With all due respect to Mr. Worthington, a fine writer, and a better man than I will ever be, no, Mr. Harper should not "rein in the human rights bureaucracy," he should abolish the whole fucking thing and make it's employees get real jobs. They might be qualified for WalMart greeter, except for being humourless gits.

It's Recycling Day

It's recycling day at the Fulminating household and today I learned a lesson...don't crush the Coke cans when The Boy is watching. Scared the daylights out of the poor little guy. Which is odd, considering the amount of bashing, crashing and all around destruction a 2 year old can wreak, without so much as a peep on his part.

Plan the Maple Leafs Stanley Cup Parade Route

It's the dog days of summer, and there really isn't all that much to write about.

I posted some snark about hippies (scroll down). I posted some cheesecake in Stacy's Bikinifest (scroll further). There hasn't been an idiotic comment on the wonders of Canadian health care in a couple of days, and the Tamils have gone quiet. I guess it's back to hockey.

Found via the Toronto Sun (my daily stop for what's happening in Leaf Land, and SunShine girls).

The Leafs have traded for Wayne Primeau. Yay, the final piece in the puzzle, a 3rd line centre who will contribute upwards of 10 goals and 30 points. Plan the parade route.

Okay, okay, snark aside, they've unloaded one of their excess defensemen, Anton Stralman, for Primeau and a 2nd round pick. Primeau is a decent checker, and a big guy. So, regarding my last hockey post, in which I posited that, to make the playoffs, the Leafs need to cut the goals against by at least 50, picking up a big, competant, checking centre is a good move. They're weak down the middle, and weak on the shut down. This move should help.

Eighth place, eighth place, eighth place.

Maybe.

God I hate the Leafs.

This is Gonna Get Some Panties in a Twist

Found via Yahoo news, researchers in Britain did a meta study: studying 168 studies over the last 50 years, they conclude that organic food has no nutritional or health benefits over non-organic food.

Holy shit, that's gonna get some patchouli smelling, hippie knickers in a twist, isn't it?

International Rule 5 BikiniFest, Wednesday

For your Wednesday BikiniFest viewing pleasure we have:

Chinese model Zhou Qiao:


Korean model (and Miss Korea 2006) Lee Ha-nui (Honey Lee):


Malaysian model Hanna Tan:


There's your cheesecake for the day. We now return to our regularly scheduled nonsense.

International Rule 5 BikiniFest

Stacy McCain is bored, so he's set up a rule 5 (for getting a million hits on your blog) contest. Post bikini pics. Win a beer. If you can find him in a bar with money in his pockets.

Good news, Stacy, I don't drink. But I'll play anyway, and I'll probably give away some of why I made the comment I did about redheads.

I came to this a day late, so here are entries one and two.

First, Japanese supermodel Yoko Matsugane.


Second, Thai bikini model Suthida Kasemsan.

"Analysis: July has been disaster for Obama, Hill Dems "

From TheHill.com, via Ace.

Now, keep in mind that the headline is in quotes for a reason, it's The Hill's head, not mine. As they say, read the whole thing, but what I want to draw attention to is the following:

While it is shocking to consider that Obama is anything less than one of the best communicators in modern political history, when it comes to healthcare, he simply has not been able to make the sell to people who do have health insurance.

Err, umm, ahh, hmm. Shocking to whom, might I ask? It sure as hell isn't shocking to anyone who has had to suffer through listening to him speak without the teleprompter. Not only is he not "one of the best communicators in modern political history," the man makes President George W. "Bumbletongue" Bush sound like Lawrence Olivier.

Don't believe me? Go here. Or here. Or here. Or here. Or, hell you get the idea.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. The left, especially the press, took Bush's lousy public speaking skills as prima facie evidence of mental retardation. And I expect they will apply the same standard to Obonehead any second now.

Heavy Metal Monday

Is this going to be a regular feature? I dunno. But here's a classic, from my high school years.

Back to Health Care, Again

Recently I dropped a comment over at Cold Fury that I'd like to get to a Why Canada Sucks post on multiculturalism. Guess that one is going to have to wait, since the host of my local all news station, and his guest, were blatting on about health care, and some new study about how wonderfully wonderful, awesome, look a unicorn, Canajun health care is.

The guest is a doctor, and is proud to tell us that most Canadians are happy with their doctor. And that, five years after getting a doctor, most Canadians are still with that doctor. And they're happy with Cuban, err, Canajun health care. And when a caller mentioned the CNN add wherein a Canadian woman complains about Canuckistadian health care, said Dr. guest (or maybe it was the host) says that, well, they found the one dissatisfied patient.

Hoo, boy, as always, where to begin?

Okay, lets start with Dr. Bimbo, an impressive specimen of the Canadian affirmative action medical education system. Ahh, isn't it grand that 1/2 of all doctors graduate in the bottom half of the class? And that med school admissions are highly dependant on your skin colour and genitalia, ensuring that our doctors come not from the best candidates, but the best politically correct candidates? Hey, I'm a fair kinda guy, I like to give the benefit of the doubt. I'll blame her stupidity on her, not on having intelligence removed by the system.

Canadians, once they get a doctor, don't change doctors. Hmm, after waiting, potentially years, to get a physician, people are unwilling to leave and look for another? I can only imagine that is because of deep satisfaction with the doctor, not because they fear waiting years more for another doctor. Hey Dr. Dimwit, the patient rosters aren't static because the system is good, it's because the system sucks.

Oh, and they found the ONE dissatisfied patient to complain, did they? And most Canadians are happy with the system. Let's break that in half. Maybe this guy can find some other dissatisfied patients. And was it not in Quebec that some dissatisfied patient successfully sued, in our extreme Liberal Supreme Court, Quebec Health over it's waiting times?

Come to think of it, you can count ME as a dissatisfied patient. Why? Because I've been a patient in a better system. The American one. You know what would be an interesting survey? A survey of Canadians who have had treatment in a private system, such as the American HMO system, of their satisfaction with the Canadian system.

And we're "satisfied," are we? The survey Dr. Bimbo cites is composed primarily of people who have known 1 health care delivery method, Cubas. Oops, there I go again, Canada's. And there are those amongst the born-profoundly-deaf who object to cochlear implants giving hearing to the profoundly deaf. They've never heard Mozart, so they dismiss the ability to hear. That dismissal comes from ignorance, just as the approval of Canada Shitty Health Care comes from the subjects of the Deranged Dominion.

To paraphrase Bob and Doug MacKenzie, the difference between Canadian health care and American health care is like the difference between side bacon and back bacon...one's better, eh? And no, Virginia, the Canadian health care system is not better.

Hockey Odds and Ends

Some time ago I wondered if we can now dispense with the Marianne "The Passenger" Hossa myth. It seems the answer would be, sort of. Detroit didn't like him enough to piss 7+ mil away to keep him, in the hope of dragging him to a cup. So, he went to Chicago, where he took a 2 1/4 mil paycut. Sure, that was almost 30%, which means he's still overpaid by about 3 mil.

Yes, I've got a hair up my ass about this guy. Yes, I've had it since he hacked Bryan Berard's eye out of his head, protesting that it was just the follow through. Hey, asshole, you're responsible for your stick. Your stick took out a man's eye. Thus, you took out a man's eye. No, the fawning over him hasn't helped. No, being in the unfortunate position of being a Leafs fan also doesn't help, but I think I laid out my case against him pretty well in my last post on the subject.

At any rate, if you're paying north of 5 million a year for a forward, he'd better be the type of guy you can build a team around. Whatever Hossa may be, he ain't that.

Which brings me to Dany Heatly, another, whiny, overpaid prima donna. Yeah, Dany boy, you have a helluva one timer. So did Brett "The Golden Pissant" Hull. They tried to build the St. Louis offense around him. How'd that work out? It wasn't until he was just a cog in the machine, and not expected to be the driveshaft, that he (most unfortunately) won a cup. Heatly is making too much money for what he brings, and, like Hossa, his act is wearing thin.

Oh, yeah, back to Hossa. Seems the ownership of Chicago is really pleased with his acquisition. How long did it take them to fire Dale Tallon after he signed Hossa? I mean, yes sports is a game of "what have you done for me lately?" but, Tallon took the biggest joke in the league (next to the Leafs) from worst to the conference final in what, 3 seasons? But what did he do lately? Signed Marion "The Anchor" Hossa to a 5 year contract. And got fired. Harsh.

Now, the Leafs.

Shit.

(1) They have a backup goalie to challenge Vesa "The Sieve" Toskela.

(2) They've brought in decent blue liners so that the kid Schenn (a) doesn't have to try to do everything, and (b) learns his craft properly. With 9 on the roster they've even got trade bait.

(3) They brought in a legitimate heavy weight so that, again, Schenn doesn't have to try to do everything.

(4) They haven't pissed the draft picks away on short term fixes.

Judas Priest on a pogo stick. It's almost as if the management has a fucking clue how to run a hockey team. A nice change from John "Doofus" Ferguson "I'm proud of what I've accomplished" Jr.

Now, they finished 12th in the East, meaning to make the playoffs they hafta get ahead of 4 teams. Ahead of them were; Ottawa, Buffalo, Florida and Montreal. The only one close to a gimme is Florida. Ottawas still has a poison in the dressing room, and I don't think Montreal improved this off season. Buffalo? I don't know. How many can they move up? 1 to 3 spots, leaving them on the outside.

Who was there? The top spots aren't changing Boston, Pittsburgh, Washington and New Jersey are Likely going to be the top 4. Philly, Carolina and the Rangers round out the playoff teams. Are two of them going to fall 4 to 6 places? Carolina pretty much stood pat, Philly improved, and New York got chewed up by free agency. Maybe Carolina slips and the Rangers fall, but 4 - 6 places for both? I dunno. If the stars align just so, maybe they sneak into 8th.

Look at it another way, Toronto was 13 points out of 8th. Do the new defensemen, and the fire Burke lit under Toskela's ass equate to 7 more wins? Look at goals for/goals against. Toronto was tied for 5th in goals for, and dead last in goals against. In bolstering the defense, Burke is working the goals against. They cut out 50 goals against, they're in 8th place. That's a goal every other game. Can they do it with a brand new defense? Maybe.

So, do the Leafs have a shot at the playoffs? Yes. A good one? As it stands, not really. Is trading 2 of the superfluous defensemen for a proper shut down line in the cards? Shit I hope so. Goal scoring isn't the problem, it's shutting down the other team. I guess we'll be standing by.

Why Canada Sucks, Part IV, the Weather

God I hate the climate in this fucking country. Oh, sure, it could be worse, the year I spent in southern China was, weather wise, a sojourn through one of the inner rings of Hell. But still...

As the name at the end of the post implies, I live in Ontario. In fact, South Central Ontario, nicely nestled in amongst the Great Lakes. So it's always damp. Oh, sure, in the winter we call it snowy, and in the summer we call it muggy, but those are fancy words for, respectively, cold and damp, and hot and damp.

Have you ever met someone from Phoenix who tells you, "Sure its 110 degrees, but it's a DRY heat," as if that makes a difference? Well, guess what? It does. 5 years I lived in the Denver 'burbs and the only time my fuckered up joints ached was when I left the state. For those interested, the front range is pretty much desert. Sunny, warm and dry, beautifully dry.

Now we're in high summer, and the goddamned temperature can't climb into the mid 20's. Fer chrissake, warm up would you? If I have to suffer this frigging country, at least let me wear shorts in July. Global warming my frozen, aching hairy toes.

Lighten Up Fulminandrew

Okay, I've been ranting an awful lot lately, and while that is the reason for this blog, I'm finding it a little hard to scrounge up the inspiration and energy to have at it. So, thinking about the central planners who choose which of us get treatment, and which don't, who lives, and who dies, and to lighten things up a little, I present you...Arch Enemy, Blood on Your Hands.

Back to Health Care

Gah, we're back to this farging topic. Sadly, we're probably going to be stuck here until Obonehead finishes with health care "reform."

So, while Mrs. Fulminandrew was getting dressed, the boy turned on the idiot box. The default channel was showing, I think, Canada AM, and I heard the moron commentator drag out that hoary old chestnut, "Canada spends half, as a percentage of GDP, on healthcare, with better outcomes, than the USA."

Where do we begin with that stinking pile? How about with defining "better outcomes."

Is it better for the people waiting 2 years for joint replacements? How many retirees die waiting for a new hip or knee? Was it a better outcome that they spend the last of their "golden years" wheelchair bound and in pain, while Canada saves a few bucks on their health care? On the other end, was it better to skip giving that sick, premie all the care possible? Yes, the kid died, and his parents were devastated, but we saved the health care system a few bucks. How many cancer patients are forced to forego a final 6 months with their loved ones because the new drugs are unavailable because they're too expensive? That a good outcome? How many critically ill patients die waiting for surgery? How many cancers metastasize in the 4 - 6 months between diagnosis and treatment? Let's define our fucking terms...

"Better outcome" = longer life expectancy. According to worldlifeexpectancy.com Canada beat the USA's 78.1 years with 81.2 years. Okay, the average life expectancy in Canada is 3 years longer than in the USA.

In compiling that statistic, did they take into account the following:

Murder rates. Most murder victims in the USA are young men invooved in criminal activity. That's gonna skew the life expectancy down.

Immigration. The USA has upwards of 20 million illegal aliens. Most of them are from Latin America, all of whose countries have lower life expectancies and poorer early life nutrition and health care than the USA. Couldn't find statistics on legal immigrants, but, generally, people move to a better places, so I'm willing to bet that the legal immigrants, generally, suffer the same nutrition and health care issues as the illegals. This will skew the life expectancy down.

Lifestyle. The USA is trumpeted as the fattest, unhealthiest country in the developed world. Okay, if that's so, then the obesity related health care issues (diabetes, heart disease, joint problems...) are going to cost the system more, per capita.

Military forces. The USA has the largest military in the developed world, and the most soldiers in combat, and all the health care issues associated with that. Did Mr. "Canada has better outcomes on less money" take into consideration combat medicine, prosthetics, post traumatic psychiatric treatment, etc.? Did he take into consideration the deaths of soldiers skewing the life expectancy down?

How about heroic measures both at birth and death? An extreme premature birth who dies, in most of the world will be counted as a stillbirth. In the USA, if a baby draws first breath, no matter if he dies within minutes, he is counted a live birth. Not only does this skew the life expectancy down, it shoots a hole in another hoary old chestnut, "The USA has the highest infant mortality in the developed world." Yeah, because they count ALL the babies born alive, not just the ones that make their shitty socialized medical systems look good.

At the other end of life, socialized medicine is killing the elderly. In the Netherlands, euthanasia is now at the doctor's discretion for both the very old, and for deformed babies. Great, don't spend money keeping people alive, kill them before they fuck up the statistics. I know, I know, we don't have that in Canada, not actively, we just don't treat the very, very sick. We put them on a waiting list and hope they die before they cost us an opportunity to turn our noses up at Uncle Sam.

These are just off the top of my head, I'm sure you can think of more. And that is just on the subject of "better outcomes." On to costs.

Canada has only 1 health care system, the govt provided one. The USA has 2, the govt provided one, and a parallel private one. Each gets about 1/2 the per capita spending. There being 2, you have a choice, go with the govt one, or pay for the private one. In the private one you have access to much better, and faster treatment. Why?

How about this; self interest. When the payer is in charge of your treatment, it is in his self interest to deny treatment, to save money (that would be Canada). When the payee is in charge of your treatment, it is in his interest to get you treated so he can, you know, get paid (that would be any private system). With the former, costs are kept down, at the expense of the quality of treatment. With the latter, costs tend to drive up, with the benefit of better quality of care.

Don't believe me? Then why, to take a recent example, does Canada not have enough neo natal care beds to treat our babies? Why do we have to send them to the USA? If we have such a wonderful fucking system, why does our system outsource its problem cases to the eeevil, 2 tier American system. In fact, if govt health care is so bloody wonderful, why do the rich, world wide, go to the USA for treatment? Cutting edge technologies? Rapidity of treatment? Availability? The patient and his doctor being in charge of course of treatment? All of the above?

Yes, the Americans spend a whole lot more on health care than we do. Good for them, and thank them very much, because if they stop doing so, the whole world loses its hospital of last resort.

Oh, and Mr. "Canada has better outcomes on less money?" Kindly fuck off and die.

Happy Dominion Day

No, I won't wish you a happy "Canada Day". "Canada Day" is one of the things about this "nation" which sucks. The reason for it is our utter contempt for history and tradition. Can you think of any other first world country which changed the name of its national holiday?

Worse yet, can you think of another first world nation which changed its flag?

This is not the flag of Canada, hell, this is not even a flag...

This POS is a trademark, brought to us by Lester B. f'ing Pearson, Liberal asshole.

This is the flag of Canada...


Unfortunately, after 45 years, the former is far more representative of Canada than the latter.

Happy Dominion Day.