Moral-Flexibility.Net

I’ll admit that I’m conflicted about the Guardian Angels in general, and their efforts in Toronto specifically.

My feeling is that despite the best intentions of those organizing this group, it will tend to attract the lowest common denominator. This feeling, however, is precisely that, a feeling. It’s based on no hard evidence or statistics I am aware of.

It occurs to me that even if their ranks were filled with goons they remain ciminally responsible for any excess while performing their “duties”. It seems therefore, despite my reservations, that there is little harm in giving them a chance to demonstrate whether this sort of “citizen patrol” can have a positive impact, without crossing the line into vigilantism. If it’s a success then so much the better, if not then the experiement will likely end on it’s own as support disappears.

At this point they’re still encountering a fair amount of resistance in Toronto, and not even from the criminal element yet.

(As an aside, is it just me or do they really need to form those berets properly?)

Good luck!

As our move fell just before Canada Day one of the first things I did was to mount a small flagpole on one of the uprights of our front porch and fly the Canadian flag. There was significance to this act beyond national pride, the flag was the realization of an ideal I had long held, that my home would have a Canadian flag proudly flying out front.

Flag Mk.I

I had concerns of course. The bottom of the flag hung a mere 6′ above the ground, making it well within reach of any local ‘loogans that might be tempted. Time however conspired against me, and I took the expedient route hoping for the best (at least until I could get a longer ladder).

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I guess you’d get this sort of thing for the gun owner who has everything else. Table lamps made from castings of a Beretta 92F and an AK47 by Phillipe Starck.

Of course, while I’d see these as “kinda neat”, they’re a political statement to the designer;

“These are our weapons,� he continues. “Our governments produce them and we agree.� He shrugs. “I understand we are not obliged to act against that, okay? But if we do nothing, we can [at least] pay a little attention to the people who die for us.�

To drive home our culpability, Starck chose different guns to represent different nations. The Beretta symbolizes the responsibility of western Europe; the Kalashnikov, the suffering caused by the former USSR; and the M16, the havoc created by the United States.
[Source: Article - Phillipe Starcks Politique, Metropolis Magazine]

Politics aside, at a cost of $700 for the pistol lamp, and over $1000 for the AK version I’d rather buy the real thing, ya know?

[Hat tip: Carbonman]

Happy Independence Day America!

Random Nuclear Strikes is back after a hacking incident.

Welcome back AK, my morning read was suffering with you gone!

Our move happened to coincide with a long weekend for old friend BoydFish who’s spending some time in Quebec training with the federal government. Having three days off from policies, procedures and bad government food he had planned to rent a car and trek out our way for a visit.

We had not even been in our new home for a week when he showed up at our door (making mobile records for the trip, coming in a clean hour before I figured he’d arrive “best case”).

Now I fear Lisa, Jilly and I were far from the perfect hosts, as a sort of cumulative exhaustion seemed to hang over us, but overall I’d still say it was a fantastic visit, and at least any concerns he had that I was inventing my entire life here since moving back from Vancouver have been reasonably dispelled.