Canada is supposed to be a democratic country but we have a few issues that does not make Canada a democracy, one of them is that senators are simply appointed by the prime minister yet these senators are making decisions for the people of Canada at the highest level.
We need to have them elected. You can argue any way you want but the fact is that IS democratic.
Some people have stated that we need it as is because at times politicians need to make though decisions that are unpopular to certain lobby groups that support them financially during elections and if they were elected those senators would think more about getting re-elected than doing what is right for the country... REALLY? And instead of finding a solution to that we simply leave it as is? (meaning UN-democratic).
I will give you the solution to that one... make it so they can not run for more than two terms, this way you can not be a senator for more than 8 years. This is something I discussed in a previous post regarding limited terms for politicians.
At least senators on their last term might not be afraid to make though decisions that are good for the country even if it would mean a backlash from certain interested groups.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Why humans will achieve immortality in the future.
That statement seems like total science fiction does it not? Well that is not the case as we have it in existance in todays world. One type of Jellyfish can live forever, it regenerates it aging cells continually basically being organically immortal (meaning it can not die of old age). It is the only known creature able to do so.
One day we will crack the code of how it manages to do this and be able to apply it to other lifeforms, from then on people will be able to avoid death from old age. It could also mean being able to regenerate cells that are being attacked by degenerative diseases (cancer, multiple sclerosis, parkinsons, alzheimer, etc...). So as long a person avoids unfortunate accidents you could live for 1000s of years if not more.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turritopsis_nutricula
One day we will crack the code of how it manages to do this and be able to apply it to other lifeforms, from then on people will be able to avoid death from old age. It could also mean being able to regenerate cells that are being attacked by degenerative diseases (cancer, multiple sclerosis, parkinsons, alzheimer, etc...). So as long a person avoids unfortunate accidents you could live for 1000s of years if not more.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turritopsis_nutricula
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Prez Obama achknowledges us non-believers (A FIRST!)
This for me is the greatest moment in the speech.
http://www.atheistnexus.org/group/atheistnews/forum/topics/obama-acknowledges-1
I give him credit for not saying ATHEISTS, that is just ONE category of non-believers and I am not part of that, I do not associate myself with any group.
I know the video links from an atheist website, but that is the shortest video I found via google search.
As humanity evolves I think non-believers will keep growing in numbers as they are now but at an exponational rate. North America has about 21% who openely state they are non-believers, I think that in 20 years that number will easily have doubled or even passed the 50% mark.
I consider this a good thing for I believe that for man to survive religions must ceast to exists.
http://www.atheistnexus.org/group/atheistnews/forum/topics/obama-acknowledges-1
I give him credit for not saying ATHEISTS, that is just ONE category of non-believers and I am not part of that, I do not associate myself with any group.
I know the video links from an atheist website, but that is the shortest video I found via google search.
As humanity evolves I think non-believers will keep growing in numbers as they are now but at an exponational rate. North America has about 21% who openely state they are non-believers, I think that in 20 years that number will easily have doubled or even passed the 50% mark.
I consider this a good thing for I believe that for man to survive religions must ceast to exists.
Monday, January 19, 2009
Canada is not a democracy until we have popular representation.
The current system of voting we have in Canada is just horrendous, it is NOT democratic and every vote DOES NOT count. Every vote MUST count in a democracy and this can only be achieved by some form of popular representation.
A good example of why our current system is undemocratic is the past election results:
2008 Federal elections results .
We can clearly see that the Bloc Québécois received 8% of the popular vote but ended up with 16% of the seats, the NDP got 18% of the popular vote and that gave them just 12% of the seats, the Conservatives finished with 38% but somehow that gave them 46% of the seats and finally the green party received 7% of the popular vote and that gave them ZERO seats.
Another great example was the 3 straight majority governments the liberals formed during the Jean Chretien era... not ONCE did they have more than 51% of the popular vote. What that says is that the majority of Canadians did not want them in power but they still ended with total control of the country without having to deal with other parties.
Popular representation would simply force parties to work together AND work harder to try and win majorities. It would give a chance to small parties to have a voice which means the PEOPLE who voted for them would have a voice.
And finally... I hate that every federal & Provincial elections I ever voted in my vote was USELESS, I could have just not voted and it would have made no difference because in our current system if the party you voted for does not win in your riding then your vote is good for nothing except statistics for the media.
If we had a form of popular representation EVERY vote would count, THAT is power to the people.
A good example of why our current system is undemocratic is the past election results:
2008 Federal elections results .
We can clearly see that the Bloc Québécois received 8% of the popular vote but ended up with 16% of the seats, the NDP got 18% of the popular vote and that gave them just 12% of the seats, the Conservatives finished with 38% but somehow that gave them 46% of the seats and finally the green party received 7% of the popular vote and that gave them ZERO seats.
Another great example was the 3 straight majority governments the liberals formed during the Jean Chretien era... not ONCE did they have more than 51% of the popular vote. What that says is that the majority of Canadians did not want them in power but they still ended with total control of the country without having to deal with other parties.
Popular representation would simply force parties to work together AND work harder to try and win majorities. It would give a chance to small parties to have a voice which means the PEOPLE who voted for them would have a voice.
And finally... I hate that every federal & Provincial elections I ever voted in my vote was USELESS, I could have just not voted and it would have made no difference because in our current system if the party you voted for does not win in your riding then your vote is good for nothing except statistics for the media.
If we had a form of popular representation EVERY vote would count, THAT is power to the people.
Monday, December 29, 2008
If you make a resolution to lose weight, look at FOOD 1st, not the gym.
Once again a new year starts and millions of people will make the resolution to lose some weight and for the most part it will mean making a commitment to exercise.
For those that will stick with their work out routine they will see results if they go no less than 3 times a week for 1 hour each time. But then something frustrating will occur, the results will stop showing in terms of weight loss. You will be healthier overall but people want to see some weight drop and if they lose 30 pounds and still have 30 to go and it just sits there people tend to get frustrated and eventually quit.
The problem is they would have to keep increasing the exercise to the point that it would be 6-7 days a week for 1 hour each time which is non sense even for myself who enjoys working out.
So what is the other option? FOOD!
80-85% of the success you will have in your health and fitness goals is nutrition, the remaining is split up between exercise and sleep.
So my suggestion is look at what you eat, eliminate the junk, eat proteins, eat good fats (all healthy foods have good fats), eliminate the carbohydrates. Carbohydrates makes people FAT, not the fat content in healthy foods.
Start with just the following: keep carbohydrates under 100 grams a day of good sources, do not count carbohydrates from vegetables, you can eat as many veggies as you wish.
If you can cut out the junk foods and keep carbs under 100 grams a day you will see weight loss. Add in a 45 minute walk 3 times a week and the results will be encouraging.
A great website that helps you count calories and shows their protein, fat, carbohydrate content is www.fitday.com
Enjoy the new year!
For those that will stick with their work out routine they will see results if they go no less than 3 times a week for 1 hour each time. But then something frustrating will occur, the results will stop showing in terms of weight loss. You will be healthier overall but people want to see some weight drop and if they lose 30 pounds and still have 30 to go and it just sits there people tend to get frustrated and eventually quit.
The problem is they would have to keep increasing the exercise to the point that it would be 6-7 days a week for 1 hour each time which is non sense even for myself who enjoys working out.
So what is the other option? FOOD!
80-85% of the success you will have in your health and fitness goals is nutrition, the remaining is split up between exercise and sleep.
So my suggestion is look at what you eat, eliminate the junk, eat proteins, eat good fats (all healthy foods have good fats), eliminate the carbohydrates. Carbohydrates makes people FAT, not the fat content in healthy foods.
Start with just the following: keep carbohydrates under 100 grams a day of good sources, do not count carbohydrates from vegetables, you can eat as many veggies as you wish.
If you can cut out the junk foods and keep carbs under 100 grams a day you will see weight loss. Add in a 45 minute walk 3 times a week and the results will be encouraging.
A great website that helps you count calories and shows their protein, fat, carbohydrate content is www.fitday.com
Enjoy the new year!
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