In honour of introducing Glenn to “Trigun” I’m sharing this ancient card I painted 11 years ago. God, on the one hand it seems like no time has passed, but so much has changed. 11 years is a long time.
Bill C-60 and the erosion of the Fifth Estate in Canada
I’m a big supporter of the Fifth Estate. I believe in independent journalism that has the freedom to criticise as much as condone. I believe in open debate and discussion and the proliferation of different ideas. Yes, even when I don’t agree with them, I still believe it’s important to air them in a reasoned and rational manner.
And so, I’m pretty uncomfortable with Bill C-60, which appears to move control of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) under direct Government control, rather than allowing it to continue as an arm’s-length, independent broadcaster. I’m so uncomfortable with the Bill, in fact, that I wrote a letter to my MP, Susan Truppe, who is a Conservative Member of Parliament. I also copied it to the Conservative Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, as well as leaders of the Opposition and of the Liberal Party.
This is what I said:
I just wanted to let you know that I do not support Bill C-60 which will, I believe, destroy CBC’s journalistic independence.
The kind of Canada that I- and I think most other Canadians, including yourself- want to live in is not one where the government in power actively works to erode the Fifth Estate. Having independent journalism is a fundamental aspect of possessing a true democracy. Think about it.
What is public broadcasting? The generally understood model is that of the BBC, upon which the CBC is largely based. This means it attempts to uphold the following principles:
- contribution to sense of national identity and community
- distance from vested interests
- direct funding and universality of payment
- competition in good programming rather than numbers
- guidelines that liberate rather than restrict program-makers
- universal geographic accessibility
- universal appeal
- particular attention to minorities
The CBC manages, in the face of constant criticism by your government and fear of cuts and restructuring, to do these things, providing high quality content across the country, tailored to its diverse regions, and this includes its internationally acclaimed, award-winning independent journalism.
Think about what is best for Canadians, rather than what is best for Harper and his vision of Canada. Even the staunchest conservative prime ministers of the past would have balked at this Bill and what it means for media independence. You should, too.
If you truly support democracy, as I think you do, then it is crucial for you to step away from the party line and take a stand and not vote for Bill C-60.
Feel free to copy it and edit it to suit your needs if you wish to email your own Member of Parliament. You can find your MP’s contact information listed here: http://www.parl.gc.ca/MembersOfParliament/MainMPsCompleteList.aspx?TimePeriod=Current&Language=E
And this is what the CBC said today in a very polite, but equally uncomfortable statement: http://www.cbc.radio-canada.ca/en/media-centre/2013/05/may-1/
A fascinating and troubling glimpse into late Victorian asylums and the pioneering of an early investigative journalist.
“I began to have more confidence in my own ability now, since one judge, one doctor, and a mass of people had pronounced me insane, and I put on my veil quite gladly when I was told that I was to be taken in a carriage, and that afterward I could go home. “I am so glad to go with you,” I said, and I meant it. I was very glad indeed.”
Excerpt from Ten Days in a Madhouse by journalist Nellie Bly who, in the late 1880’s, feigned insanity to investigate reports of brutality and neglect at the Women’s Lunatic Asylum on Blackwell’s Island.
Read more here.
Cooley’s Cork Corset, a circa 1870s/1880s “metamorphic” trade card wherein the before-and-after panels are achieved by folding down part of the card to reveal a second image.
As an out-of-the-closet sufferer of diagnosed, clinical depression with an anxiety order on the side, I have to agree with all of this. It’s taken me 10 solid years of effort to get to where I am as a mostly functioning, even content, mensch. It’s hard. I work at it daily and some days I fail. But it’s okay, because mostly I push on.
A while ago, I penned a fairly angry response to something circulating on the internet – the 21 Habits of Happy People. It pissed me off beyond belief, that there was an inference that if you weren’t Happy, you simply weren’t doing the right things.
I’ve had depression for as long as I can…
New favourite Tumblr… with second-favourite animal ! Inspiring.
Goat on a jump. Even if there seems to be nothing under a goat, there is.
Do not lie to me tumblr
I don’t know, I think it’s rather flattering.
jesus god can I please get more of these
Obviously the only way to wear a shirt.
Men of Tumblr…
dead
The men of tumblr win
i could dig it.
Seem’s legit tbf
Boy, this look is fabulous but I can’t seem to get the bow just right.
At first I was mad because I thought I looked ugly
But I simply added a cute jacket and I became glamorous!
^winning
THAT LAST ONE WITH THE JACKET TOO, HAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!
Why are these guys doing this?
I mean, why even try, when the baddest bitch is right here?
I will never not reblog this
My school had this week called, “I Believe” Week and one of the days was “I believe in my story.”
People wrote on these note cards starting with “If you really knew me you would know that…”
Some of these notecards said:
- “If you really knew me, you’d know that I was raped by my older brother everday.”
- “If you really knew me, you’d know that my mom is a heroin addict and it’s tearing my family apart.”
- “If you really knew me, you’d know that I had cancer when I was 5 and people made fun of me because I was different and didn’t have hair.”
- “If you really knew me, you’d know that I was sexually harassed and abused as a child.
- “If you really knew me, you’d know that I suffer from depression and I’ve attempted suicide.”
- If you really knew me, you’d know that I got into a car crash with my best friend and I held her in my arms, blood everywhere. RIP.
When people came up to read these note cards, a lot of them started crying. It made many people realize that everyone has a story and that you’re not alone.
every school should have this…
Every single school.
