NBC’s “Olympics guru” Dick Ebersol recently bashed Conan O’Brien, saying the former Tonight Show host failed because he didn’t follow advice “to make his show friendlier to middle America.”  While Ebersol may be simply trying to impress his boss by glossing over some important facts, his comments, unfortunately, accurately describe the state of things in major broadcast TV and show why nationalism should really be left out of the media equation.

Our media shouldn't be set up like this

If a TV network or newspaper is set up along national lines, as most are, then they have only one country to pull audience from.  This, in turn, means that they cannot tailor their major shows to one specific type of audience, people who live in large cities for example, if they want to reach as many people as possible.

If it’s gonna succeed, it’s gotta be able to play in Peoria or Moose Jaw.  This can lead to entertainment shows getting sapped of some of their edge and news coverage being limited to a narrative all parts of one particular country can accept.

There is a larger audience out there.  Shows aimed at a particular type of crowd can find that crowd in the same type of place around the world.  If, for example, a show plays primarily to urbanites, they can play to millions of them in all the major cities (that speak the same language) globally.

Likewise, if the majority or half the residents of a particular country are of a different political persuasion than the slant of a particular story, airing the story in that country may not be that appealing.  However, the remaining half of the population along with people in other countries that feel the same can together make up the desired audience for the content in question.

It’s all about thinking internationally rather than nationally and the internet is making this possible. Unfortunately, as the traditional media companies go online, they are trying to use the same country-based approach and restricting content based on national boundaries.  This approach hasn’t permeated down to smaller, independent content producers and hopefully it never will.

But wait, how will countries with smaller populations and less funding for cultural industries, say Canada, be able to compete with the American behemoths residing in Hollywood and New York if the nationalist protectionist approach to media is abandoned?  The answer is simple – they won’t have to.

If the networks producers operate with become international, then the primary producers become local.  While Canada may not be able to compete with the US, Montreal can most definitely compete with Detroit. Moreover, people in Montreal producing a certain type of content can network with like-minded people in Detroit, London and Frankfurt to get all of their content seen and/or read.

Why should 21st century media operate on 18th and 19th century constructs like national borders?

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So I have to admit it. I don’t really want to talk about this one.  So why am I?  Well our executive producer Candace has told me to! Apparently it’s the hot topic in the chat on Joe TwoFour broadcasts.  Fine! Want my two cents? Here it goes…

Price or Halak: Who's on top? Who knows?

It’s not that I have no opinion or that I feel the starting goalie position isn’t important, it’s just a question that you can’t answer with any short term observations.  It’s very common (unless your last name is Brodeur or Roy) for most goalies only to come into their prime in their late 20’s or early 30’s.  Don’t believe me? Well then, let’s take a little trip down memory lane…

Anyone remember Dominik Hasek?  Say what you want about his later career, but the guy did win six Vezina trophies, two Hart trophies, was the first European-born goalie to win the Stanley Cup and if you’re old enough to remember the Nagano Olympics, you sure as hell can recall him stoning team Canada on his way to leading the Czechs to the gold medal.

So when did he get his start?  Well, he was drafted by the Blackhawks in 1983 and of course because he is one of the greatest goalies of his generation they put him in the lineup – seven fucking years later!  He must have been a starter by that point, right?  Nope… he backed up Eddie Belfour for two seasons playing in only 25 games in that span.

Then came his big break as he was traded to the Buffalo Sabres…. and you guessed it, he was still a backup.  Finally in the 93-94 season (at the ripe old age of 28) he had the starting job for the Sabres and the rest is history.  So for anyone counting, that’s 10 years from being drafted to being a starter.

Maybe you’d like some recent examples? How about some of the top netminders in the league right now…

Tim Thomas: Last year’s Vezina winner was drafted in 1994, his first NHL experience came in 2002 (four games).  He got his first chance to be a starter in 2006. That’s 12 years from being drafted to starting.

Mikka Kiprusoff: This guy consistently plays 70+ games a year for Calgary.  He was drafted in 1995, his first NHL experience came in 2000 where he was a backup for San Jose and then Calgary till 2005.  10 years after being drafted, he was starting and beginning to be considered a solid no.1 goalie.

Evgeni Nabokov: Drafted in 1994, first NHL game in 1999, starter in 2000.  Six years from drafted to starting goalie.

Ryan Miller: Drafted in 1999, first NHL season as a starter 2005. Again, six years from being drafted to starting.

By the way, these last two were starting six years later but neither was the guy you could count on like they are now.  For example, Nabokov was always fighting with Toskala for ice time until the last couple of seasons.

Now I’m not saying that it’s impossible to be good right off the bat. I’m sure we can all come up with a few examples of this.  Marc Andre Fleury (won the cup last year at age 24) comes to mind.  What I am saying is that if you’re not a the No.1 guy right away it’s not a big deal.

Ok… now let’s look at our boys:

Neither Price or Halak is “the guy” yet.  I’m not saying they won’t be… just be fucking patient.  So which one is the better bet at getting there?  Nobody knows!  I mean that, the coaches who work with both guys day in and day out couldn’t tell you.  They’re not stupid, they’re just not psychic.

So for those of you who think you know because you watch the games, go fuck yourself.  I’m serious, give yourself a little stress release before watching the games and stop trying to think you know everything.

Games are only a small percentage of the evaluation.  The coaches are also factoring in the improvements made in practice, the overall work ethic of the players and the mental toughness they are developing.  Information that us casual fans are not privy to.

The mental toughness is in my opinion the key factor at deciding on the future No. 1.  Both goalies look at little sloppy at times.  This has more to do with age than anything else.  Which will grow up faster?  Again: not pyschic (neither are you)

One of the newest viewpoints is that we should make a decision soon as to who’s the No. 1 goalie and trade the other one to upgrade in other areas.  I’ve seen countless posts in our chat saying “Trade Price!” or “Trade Halak!”

Price and Crosby: A trade in the making?

I can’t either agree or disagree with these statements.  Why?  Because they’re not full statements!  It all depends on how you finish your sentence, i.e. Trade Price for a bag of pucks = bad idea, Trade Price for Crosby = take the deal in a heartbeat.

Finish your sentences people…

Which player(s) are we getting in return?

What’s their hit to the salary cap?

Can we afford this or will it limit future transactions?

Is the new player’s contract long term or will they be a free agent soon?

Is this player going to be good for a long time? (i.e if he’s good but old as fuck it’s probably not a good long term deal)

AND (This is the big one….)

Will the other team be willing to make this deal?

Price for Crosby is a great idea but won’t happen unless the Penguins hire someone who is mentally challenged as their GM (or Mike Milburry).  Habs fans seem to forget, if we see players not meeting expectations, so do the GMs of the other teams.

Why would they trade away a solid proven player for a goalie that nobody is sure about just yet?  Unproven players with potential usually get traded for the same.  Latendresse for Pouliot being the most recent example for Habs fans.

Unless a great deal falls from the sky, I say keep both, keep jerking off before games and let things develop in good time.

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Before I begin this week’s column, I just want to advertise an event happening January 29-30: a 24 hour gaming marathon for charity.  I know many of your wallets probably took a hit donating to Haiti, but this is something for the children.  Child’s Play is an organization that specializes in putting toys and games in children’s hospitals across the world, such as the Montreal Children’s Hospital.

Gaming for charity January 29th and 30th

Pro gamers will be streaming live on Justin.tv and donations are welcome.  The Facebook group is below, along with the Child’s Play website.  I think it’s a good cause and hopefully this helps get the word out.  Be sure to check it out, play along, and donate!

For more, please visit childsplaycharity.org or their Facebook group.

***

A few weeks ago, I changed my Facebook status to reflect the PlayStation 3 and its users.  It stated that people who “camp” (hide in a corner and shoot someone by surprise and never move for an entire game) and “noob tube” (use RPGs and grenade launchers instead of real weapons) in Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 belong on the PlayStation 3 and not the Xbox 360. The reason I did this was to see what kind of response I would get from people who just so happen to be PlayStation users and in some cases Sony fan boys.

My Facebook status was hit with over fifty replies in two days.  People replied with comments such as “PS3 > 360” and “Xbox sucks” whereas only one person actually made a compelling argument as to why he thought the PlayStation 3 was superior.  We went back and forth with our discussion for a while as I put on the role of “Xbox Defender”.  The result was a stalemate, but regardless, my point had been proven.

For the record, in reality, I hold no bias towards either console – why do you think I recommended the PS3 during my Boxing Day Gift Guide?  What I did was simple: attack the PS3 and lure in the fan boys.  Worked like a charm.  Nothing against Sony, but its fans can be real idiots.

Today’s column is all about why I think Sony fan boys are by far the worst to get into an argument with.  They turn a blind-eye to logic and attack Microsoft for competing with them. They fall back on their four trump cards: Metal Gear Solid 4, Uncharted 2, Blu-ray and free online.  They really have no idea what they’re talking about.

I have no problem with most PS3 users.  In fact, some of them just so happen to be very good friends of mine.  But it’s the ones who troll chat rooms and message boards that annoy me and it’s for reasons such as this:

I was watching a Youtube video one day and decided to read the comments.  Two users had gotten into a flame war over some minor issue.  One of the users called the other out, telling him “We’ll settle this online.  What’s your PSN?  And if you have Xbox, fuck you!!!”  That very post epitomized how it was I felt about Sony fan boys.

A few other instances came when I was watching pro gamers play on live streams.  It was actually on the same site that JoeTwoFour uses to broadcast its Habs games, which I have to say are done quite well.  Awesome commentary, guys.  But in these streams, more often than not, PS3 users will come in, badmouth Microsoft for a few moments and then leave without waiting for a rebuttal.  It is very, very annoying.

As you can see, it is no wonder I can’t stand people who take their console so seriously.  There are Xbox and Nintendo fans who do the same thing, but I think it’s safe to say that the PS3 users are by far the worst.

Maybe one day we’ll all just get along.  But in order for that day to come, I would think that there would only have to be one console and the Montreal Canadiens would have to win another Stanley Cup.

Anyways, that’s all for today.  Be sure to check out the 24 hour gaming marathon for charity on January 29-30.  It’s very important and maybe you’ll learn a thing or two about games in the process!

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The earthquake in Haiti on January 12th of this new year was another devastating blow for the country and the environmental problems before the quake pose further threats to the country now. We can learn some valuable lessons about long-term environmental planning, poverty and conservation from Haiti.

With less than 2% forest cover remaining, there are extremely high risks of landslides occurring. Having no vegetation to hold the soil back, the chances of recovery from environmental damage become less hopeful. This deforestation is largely based in tree to coal conversions, used for household fuel.

Before the quake, UNEP had planned projects for resource conservation, including forests and coral reefs, beginning in 2010. Thousands have died annually due to flooding in hand with erosion. Hurricanes have also had a larger impact on Haiti than on neighboring Dominican Republic from the severe lack of trees, which originally served as a natural buffer.

Satellite image of the border between Haiti (left) and the Dominican Republic (right) showing deforestation (source: NASA)

Haiti’s history of strife appears to be long and stricken with natural resource mis-management. The events of January 12th are acting as a headlight to look deeper into this unfortunately troubled country. Haitians are no stranger to disaster.

For more information on the history of Haiti’s environmental problems, please visit the following links:

Times of Malta

Excerpt: “Long-term efforts to help Haiti recover from the earthquake will have to reverse environmental damage such as near-total deforestation that threatens food and water supplies for the Caribbean nation, experts say.

The focus is now on emergency aid — Haitian officials estimate that between 100,000 and 200,000 people died in the January 12 quake. But President Rene Preval urged donors to also to remember the country’s long-term needs.

Experts say deforestation in Haiti stretching back to the Duvalier dictatorships — leaving the nation with less than 2 percent forest cover — contributes to erosion that undermines food output by the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere.”

Grist online environmental magazine, “10 things I Haiti about you”

Excerpt: “More than 90 percent of the country of Haiti is deforested. If you think that’s depressing, consider that the lack of trees to hold soil in place has left Haiti’s rural residents vulnerable to periodic floods in which torrential rainwater tumbles down mountains, picking up gravel and boulders that slam into villages.”

Al older posting from a Latin America studies website, dating to 2003, on Haiti’s environmental disaster.

Excerpt: “The environmental crisis is very real and entails much suffering,” says Glenn Smucker, a cultural anthropologist who has worked in Haiti for two decades doing studies for the U.S. government and other organizations. “It’s about soil and water erosion, agrarian and population pressures on the land, political crisis and ineptitude, and erosion of many, if not most, of the formal structures of society.”

A small final note: pity does not always lead to progressive change. Empowering Haitians to help Haitians is one of the most sustainable ways to get this country strong enough to stand on their own feet. Please choose to donate to organizations who will help to empower Haitians so that help can also come from within, and encourage governments in the wealthier minority world to forgive Haiti’s debt so that they can have a fresh start.

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So The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien is done and its host is under contract not to return to TV until September and not do any interviews for three months. Agreeing to this may have been the only way Conan got the severance package he wanted for himself and his staff, but this attempt by NBC to deny people their Coco may have unexpected positive consequences if Conan listens to this appeal:

Conan now

Conan, there is only one place where you can do a show right now (or after a few weeks of chilling out) free from the constraints of big network contracts, free from the threat of being pushed out by the Jay Lenos of this world and free to do your show the way you want when you wants. That place is the internet and as an organization that produces content exclusively for the web, we’d like to invite you to join the Forget The Box Media Collective and bring your show to FTBTV.

It’s no secret that TV’s going online in a big way these days, but there’s much more to it than simply another platform to air stuff that has already aired on TV. It’s a place where content can originate. It’s a place where those who produce the content, like you, control the content in every aspect.

You can start at whatever time you want and people have the option of watching when they want. You can also do your show live if you so desire and don’t have to worry about stuff that has to get bleeped, because nothing does. There is even the possibility of interacting with your fans as the show progresses.

Conan later?

As a special bonus, we’re willing to grab Jay Leno clips from YouTube and run them after your show so he follows you for a change. We’ll only do this a few times though, because how many funny Jay Leno clips are there, really?

Your show can be seen around the world without having to secure affiliates and unlike shows that originate on TV and then show up on the web, there are no silly national restrictions to deal with. This is because everyone comes to the same place to watch. The content producers are the broadcasters.

We can’t offer you any money as we don’t have any ourselves at this point, but you would be free to run ads on your show and collect what that generates. True, we don’t have the promotion machine of an NBC or a FOX, but online, promotion isn’t as difficult. In fact, if you’re reading this appeal, it’s most likely because it was properly tagged.

We can offer you a studio, but you’d have to relocate to Montreal and do your show from someone’s apartment. Seeing as you’ve already moved once this year, I’d recommend finding your own studio or just squatting the one you left (NBC’s not using it).

We can’t offer you The Tonight Show, but you can always tag your videos as such. What we can offer here at FTB is an environment run by fellow artists where you will be respected.

Seriously, though, whether you decide to go with Forget The Box or not, we truly hope that you will move your show online. So do many other internet artists and most likely a good chunk if not all of your fans.

In your last episode, you said that you were inspired by all the people who showed their support and even came to rallies for you. Well, those people are all online and those rallies were even organized online.

Why not use the setback NBC dealt you to better connect with your fans and help spearhead the revolution that will ultimately see the internet replace TV and the artists and content producers taking control of their shows and no longer relying on a network middle man for permission to play.

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“Buy Ontario” is part of the $12.5-million Pick Ontario Freshness strategy aimed at increasing the demand for Ontario produce in both our stores and restaurants. It’s seductively crafted by policy-makers to ensure you, the consumer, feel healthier and socially and environmentally virtuous.

“If we buy Ontario, everyone wins, because we are supporting our farmers, processors, rural economy, environment and ourselves with healthy food from here at home,” said Leona Dombrowsky, Minister of Agriculture Food and Rural Affairs. But does everyone really win?

Of course, buying local reduces packaging, increases bio-diversity, supports local small farmers, and minimizes energy consumption and pollution. But increasing the demand for Ontario produce may put foreign agricultural imports at a disadvantage, threatening the livelihoods of the people who produce them.

Many developing countries rely almost entirely on agriculture for their livelihoods. Even slight fluctuations in the market can have major socio-economic effects on these countries.

The economies of developing countries are already at a great disadvantage with regards to market access to Canada. Canadian farmers received approximately $3.3 billion in subsidies in 2008, according to the department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. And Ontario spent $717.1 million in direct subsidies to its farmers in 2008.

Canada does not import very much from developing countries. In 2001, 0.1 per cent of our agricultural imports were from Africa and zero from the world’s least developed countries. Most of our agricultural imports are actually from the United States.

Some economists argue that buying local might benefit developing economies. By decreasing trade between the global north and south, poorer countries may be encouraged to trade with one another. Over time, this would promote sustainable agricultural development, food security, and a variety of other benefits.

But because of the current global economic set-up and the wonders of “free” trade, many developing countries actually import more than they export. Protectionist measures such as agricultural subsidies make it very difficult for a country like Uganda to sell its rice to Kenya or Mozambique. It’s much cheaper for Kenya to buy its rice directly from the United States. Buying local in Canada would thus only disadvantage these countries further.

These road blocks need to be removed in order to promote intra-regional trade between African nations. According to the United Nations African Recovery Program, African countries must first eliminate trade barriers within the African community for agricultural export to become viable. They must diversify their produce, increase agricultural development initiatives, include the informal sector in their economies and improve transportation, infrastructure, and distribution.

There’s a long way to go, but intra-regional trade is on the rise and it’s changing lives. However, until those road blocks are obliterated, many people in developing countries will depend heavily on international export opportunities for the bulk of their income.

It’s not just Ontario and Canada that are developing armies of locavores. The United States is also urging its citizens to buy local produce, and the boom in Europe is astounding. If this eating local trend continues to explode on a global scale, it could further marginalize and harm developing countries. Good things grow in Ontario, but great things grow all around the world, too.

Ally Henderson is a Toronto-based writer. This article originally appeared in The Varsity and is republished here with permission of the author.

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Ah, Montreal winter weather.  Snow, freeze, melt, freeze, repeat.  Shovel, chisel, sand, salt, warm up the car, bundle up, etc.  Salt stains on your jeans and boots.  What’s up with all that salt anyway?  Is it bad?

Salt, or, sodium chloride (NaCl), is a crystalline compound that enhances flavor and increases the temperature of water molecules.  It’s a quick way to melt the ice that forms on your walkway and is often used in large amounts by the city of Montreal (and other wintery urban regions) to make our roads safer and cars rustier.  Oh, by the way, the salt used on our roads that prevent us from accidents isn’t exactly the same as what we sprinkle on our fries.

Although there are many claims that salt is a “natural” ice-decomposer with little impact on the environment, Green Bean Tuesdays says this is hogwash.  Why do you think the Romans salted their enemies’ lands after burning it?  So that they could no longer grow crops!  Salt can have some bad implications for the environment and we don’t really ever hear about them because a lot is invested in using it for a quick, cheap thaw.

Just a little salt

One of the main negatives is overloading the sewage system with salt (and petroleum) soaked melt-water.  Millions of tons of the stuff end up in landfills and the leachates, containing very high levels of chloride (which is toxic), contaminate the soil and ground.

The effects of over salinization is felt most strongly by those who can’t speak any human language.  Have you ever tried to quench your thirst with water from the ocean?  I bet at least some of you have tried and I bet it just made you even more thirsty.  Sure, us humans and our domestic companions have it easy with our sewage systems, giving us potable water, but wildlife who depend on meltwater to quench their thirst can get pretty sick.

Chloride (the toxic stuff) disrupts the osmotic pressure in animal and plant cells.  What this means is that it changes the balance of water pressure inside the body, moving water where it shouldn’t be, and putting substances where water should be.  Moving water around like this can make plants and animals more vulnerable to diseases.

In the winter, we humans have our mukluks, toques and take-out Chinese food.  The wilderness has no such luxury.  Winter is a time of stress and starvation for many animals and adding tons of salt is like a big, sloppy slap to the face.  Imagine a diet of pickle brine and chips with a side order of sea water.  Salt from the roads can alter the environment, damage trees and draw animals that are attracted to salt to roadsides where they can have unwanted encounters with car bumpers.

Connifer salt damage

Environment Canada has stated that there is no link between road salt and human health, however, there has been some attempt to put the components of road salt on a government list of toxic substances after a five year study of its effects on the environment.  The government of Canada absolutely refuses to ban the use of salt for road in the winter, putting safety before the health of the environment.

In Michigan, judges ruled in favor of reducing road salt due to the damage it was causing to blueberry farmers, where there were some instances of 100% bud kill.  Farmers in Ontario put up stream buffers to protect water sources from saline pollution   So, there may be no direct link to human health, if you ignore the effects on crop land and irrigation and the fact that farms mean food.

It’s a difficult thing to oppose, since there have been much more harmful chemicals used as de-icers in the past.  Comparatively, salt it a welcome substitute.  In Canada and other cold countries, it is hard to find something adequate enough to ensure road safety, giving us another bombshell of an environmental and social ethics debate.

My answer = get rid of cars and go back to horses.

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In Montreal this year, gentrification was on a bit of a rampage. It claimed the Cock n’Bull Pub back in August and while this legendary drinkery has plans to re-open soon in a new location, the old spot is still quite a loss. Another loss on the horizon, sadly, is Le Medley.

One attempt to offer an alternative to this beast of boring was shut down rather quickly when Montreal police forcibly shut down the Autonomous Social Centre. This community-based cooperative arts and culture centre built in an abandoned Pointe-St-Charles factory was raided before it could even have an opening party.

One group fighting against gentrification in the form of a colossal office tower proposed as the centerpiece of the Quartier des Spectacles (entertainment district) are the artists of Café Cleopatre. Along with their supporters, they took their case against the city-backed developer’s plans to the Office de Consultation Publique (OCPM) who sided with them.

Cafe Cleopatre as it stands now (photo Chris Zacchia)

Despite this ruling in their favor, revelations about Angus Development head Christian Yaccarini’s criminal past, the surfacing of an email showing the developer’s true intentions, members of the coalition speaking out in the city council, benefit shows, public support for the artists and even an attempt to get Prince Charles on board, Mayor Gerald Tremblay is still committed to pushing through his handpicked developer’s plan.

Now, Café Cleopatre is taking Tremblay and Yaccarini to court. This won’t be the only court challenge the mayor is facing. This was an election year and corruption on the part of Tremblay (and to a lesser extent, Louise Harel’s right-hand man Benoit Labonte) soon became the focal point of the campaign.

Projet Montreal on election night (photo Jason C. McLean)

Unfortunately, corruption wasn’t enough to unseat Tremblay. Fortunately, there were significant gains for Projet Montreal, a party endorsed by Forget The Box. They swept the Plateau Borough and made significant gains in other places including the former Tremblay fiefdom of NDG and Rosemont to name a few. This is after only eight years of existence and two election campaigns.

Another party that may very well make waves in the years to come is the Pirate Party of Canada. Inspired by the success of Sweden’s Pirate Party, they hope to reform Canada’s copyright laws and protect both privacy and net neutrality. They hope to do so by influencing the other federal parties.

In federal politics, the Harper government has been all about image control this year. We’re not talking about quashing stories about the rise of the NDP or their own dwindling support in Quebec, but rather eliminating potential embarrassment and as a result coming across like a bunch of repressive thugs.

In the run-up to Copenhagen, Greenpeace dropped banners critical of Harper’s (and Michael Ignatieff’s) environmental stance on the parliament buildings and as a result, anything Greenpeace-related, including t-shirts, were banned from Parliament Hill as a security precaution. Both during and after an embarrassing performance at the Copenhagen Climate Summit, Harper’s troops decided to attack Equiterre as well as parody websites put up by US activist pranksters The Yes Men instead of attacking Climate Change.

The Harper government is also ignoring another threat to the environment: the practices of Canadian mining companies around the world. Fortunately, there was some good news on this front in 2009.

For a few years now, the Frente Amplio Opositor in Cerro de San Pedro, Mexico and their supporters in Montreal have been trying to get an illegal mine operated by New Gold (formerly Metallica Resources) shut down. The groups have been working in solidarity with activists against the open-pit practices of Canadian mining companies both around the world and in Canada as well.

In May, under the banner of fake mining company Royal Or, FAO Montreal staked a legitimate claim to mine Mount Royal. This was a theatrical attempt to show what open-pit mining is like for other communities and it resulted, rather unexpectedly, in Mount Royal being officially protected against mining interests.

Mining pig (photo Raymond Bégin)

The group used theatre again when they took part in a global day of action against open-pit mining in July. They wanted to show what the real swine flu was with actors playing pigs in front of the Montreal offices of the Toronto Stock Exchange.

In November, the FAO’s efforts finally paid off and the mine in Cerro de San Pedro was closed by the Mexican government because it had been (surprise, surprise) operating illegally. There were rumors of initial violence, but they turned out to just be rumors.  Since then, the situation has escalated but it hasn’t gotten as bad as the one in El Salvador where activists opposed to Vancouver-based Pacific Rim Mining’s attempts to set up a mine have been killed.

Speaking of Vancouver, in case you haven’t heard, the Olympics are coming up real soon and resistance to it has been met with considerable repression. From pulling down artwork to questioning American journalists at the border for well over an hour, local, provincial and even the federal government have made it clear that this is one brand they want to protect from damage.

We’ll have to wait until 2010 to see how this unfolds and to see what becomes of Café Cleopatre and the other stories we’ve been covering this year. We also plan to cover quite a bit more and if you want to write for us or take pictures, please get in touch, that is after you take some time to ring in the new year!

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It was a good year for technology and video games. There was a massive increase in production and more and more people are getting into gaming. Sadly, the word “gaming” is thrown around as often as the word “gamer”, which begs the question: who is a gamer and what is gaming?

The reason I ask this is due mainly to people supporting Nintendo’s new theme, it would seem. The new theme I am alluding to is the casual “gamers” initiative and products such as Wii Fit selling like hotcakes.

I must ask, does exercising using a video game console and its accessories count as “gaming”? It’s a question that has no right or wrong answer: it is, in fact, a matter of opinion. Until there is a clearer definition of the word “game” and its nature, then sadly, whaling your arms around like a retard and hammering in 8000 hours playing Gears of War will be considered the same thing.

Modern Warfare 2: Good for hardcore gamers

As for hardcore gamers, there was a plethora of games which came out to appeal to the audience. Games such as Modern Warfare 2, Halo 3 ODST, Assassins Creed 2, Uncharted 2, and many others…and did they ever sell like they were going out of style! It was a crazy year, but sadly, there were a lot of bad games, too.

No, nothing really that bad from a hardcore gamers standpoint, unless you’re a PC user playing Call of Duty or you can’t seem to wait another billion years for Star Craft 2 and Diablo 3. But, it would seem that for Wii users and people who grew up loving Nintendo, they have been quite robbed of some good games.

For example, the only real console Mario game just so happened to be a side-scroller and a ode to the good old days of the NES and the SNES. The game, however, although fun, lacked meat and substance from a certain point of view, such as my own.

Mario: why no new characters?

Not to mention the fact that there was a severe lack of M-rated titles which were actually note-worthy and not forgettable. Sure, one good M-rated title just so happened to be Madworld, but aside from that game and its originality, there seemed to be too many garden-variety light gun shooters for the console.

Even worse than this is the lack of appearances from Nintendo’s roster, such as Star Fox, Donkey Kong, F-Zero, or even new characters, which actually brings up another point: why is it that Nintendo does not try to create new and perhaps great stars using the people at their disposal.

It seems to be a case of the same old same old and it’s going to make a lot of people angry. Nintendo is afraid to take risks now that their BIG risk has paid off. Their big risk, of course, was the Wii itself and from a marketing point of view, the risk was worth it.

However, Nintendo is playing it too safe. A good example would be in the Super Mario Brothers game where they failed to think outside the box in ways that would have completely turned the game from a good game to an amazing one. The fact that there were only three characters to use: Mario, Luigi and Toad x2… The game suffers greatly.

But enough of my hate for Nintendo. In fact, it’s not as much hate as it is annoyance. I am annoyed at Nintendo for not delivering games that I would want to play. Instead, there are too many mini-game collections and not enough games that are fleshed out.

Many games seem to be watered down to the point where they become unplayable. The graphics, for some reason or another, are worse than that of the Gamecube on many different titles. It has become sad… too sad. Sad enough that the watered down games make me want to cry a river and drink and drink and drink… the night away.

One of these things is not like the others: gaming consoles

Anyways, as I said before, 2009 was a good year for the two REAL consoles, the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. PS3 had an amazing year with awesome exclusives such as Infamous and Uncharted. Meanwhile, the Xbox 360 had fewer red ring of death errors and delivered in exclusive downloadable content and made sure Xbox live retained its title as the world’s best online video game experience.

As far as handhelds go, well, the PSP is pretty much going the way of the Sega Dreamcast, by which I mean, it won’t be lasting much longer. What with its sales dying and its games not even comparing to that which people can buy for their iPhone.

Indeed, the iPhone has become a great gaming handheld and for games which cost as little as $0.99, you are getting bang for your buck. Hell, even the DS has games which, if I were younger, would probably check out, although technologically the DS is years behind the PSP, yet it sells a lot better.

What can I say? Seems like 2010 could be an even bigger year. Still, I hope Nintendo does something worthy of the Nintendo name and makes games. Hell, I even wish Microsoft will step up their game against Apple and realize that people are buying Macs.

Personally, I’m not too keen on Macs or Apple products. They… pain me and I wish more people would go back to using Pcs and stop the Apple Revolution before it takes on an even bigger movement and strikes at the ruling Microsoft order.

Regardless, that was my little 2009 Video Game rant. If you are looking for fun and excitement, then do yourself a favour, and buy yourself a 360 or PS3, because mark my words, you don’t know what you’re missing…

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Well, this is going to be one bucket of sunshine, so strap yourself in and hear all the good we’ve been doing for the planet during the last year of the decade.

Having had my head buried in schoolwork for the past year, I have to admit that the topics I have chosen to write about since becoming a regular contributor on Forget the Box may not be the hot, burning environmental issues covered by regular media.  Maybe some of the problem is that the media doesn’t cover the hot, burning environmental issues that we should be hearing about.  The good thing is that many subjects regarding positive environmental action, no matter how big or small, is that it rarely has anything to do with “au courant” topics.

Elizabeth Penashue and her husband Francis

I try to write about environmental, or socially-related environmental topics that I find important.  One of the most significant experiences I had over the year was canoeing with Elizabeth Penashue, an Innu elder who is fighting tooth and nail to protect her land Continue Reading »

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