Link-Off

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Wednesday Link-Off: To No One’s Surprise

camille-rowe-victoriassecret14-22I noticed something about this batch of links. A lot of them are articles about things that should be blindingly obvious but some people still can’t quite believe. We should have seen some of these coming but I guess that doesn’t mean that everyone does.

Anyway, it’s now time for the links. And it shouldn’t be a surprise that we lead off the links with Camille Rowe.

Much to no one’s surprise, Sochi has been abandoned now that the Olympics and Paralympics have left town. Tens of billions of dollars down the drain for nothing. Good work, Vlad. (English Russia)

Also much to no one’s surprise, Russia has imposed sanctions against Canadian political players for imposing sanctions against Russian politicians. (Russia Today)

Illegal drug spending in the US is $100 billion. Government spending to combat the drugs trade is $200 billion. Spending on cocaine has plummeted over the last five years and has been replaced by marijuana spending which states are going easier on. It’s funny how law enforcement works (or doesn’t work) in America sometimes. (MarketWatch)

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Sunday Link-Off: Time is Short

rachel-mortenson-fredericks14-01It’s a slightly shortened version of the links today. For some reason, I just couldn’t find much in the way of interesting stories to link. That’s just the risk you run with regular linkdumps. Some days are better than others.

Anyway, let’s get the links going. Here’s returning favourite Rachel Mortenson.

A Toronto judge says there’s a video of Rob Ford inhaling from a glass pipe. Reporters at City Hall asked Mayor Ford what was in the pipe. Jesus Christ! What do you think he was inhaling? (The Globe and Mail)

Russia is answering American sanctions against prominent Russians with sanctions against America’s political elite. (New York Times)

It wasn’t just international relations hurt by Ed Snowden’s NSA revelations. A number of US tech companies were hurt financially by news that the NSA was accessing their data. (Times of India)

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Entertainment Link-Off: Make A Choice

Divergent - Los Angeles PremiereThe highly anticipated YA novel adaptation Divergent hits theatres this week. So let’s kick off the ELO with the leading lady from the film Shailene Woodley.

After the jump, Pacific Rim 2 is still happening, new Godzilla stuff to check out, The CW is the new sci-fi central and watch Bradley Cooper prove Louis CK wrong.

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Wednesday Link-Off: Russian Armed Farces

miranda-kerr-wonderbra14-02Well, the Crimean referendum went about as well as everyone expected seeing as it was a giant farce. That wasn’t even the only farcical election of the last week but that’s a different and funnier story.

Anyway, let’s get today’s links on the road. And we kick things off with Miranda Kerr who is the subject of rumours for a couple of obvious reasons.

It seems as though Vlad Putin is drunk on power and that may guide him to make increasingly reckless decisions. (Foreign Policy)

By the way, Ukraine is not backing down from Putin and may be gearing up for war over Crimea. (Kyiv Post)

And the US have followed up the alleged referendum in Crimea by slapping several prominent Russian businessmen / Putin allies with big sanctions. (Business Insider)

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Sunday Link-Off: The Lost

Well, this was an odd week. A Malaysian airliner has disappeared off the face of the earth and no one knows where it is and whether it actually crashed or not. Things in Crimea could spark a war because neither Russia nor NATO want to back down over this farcical “referendum.” Basically, I’m rebuilding the bunker again. It’s been a while since I mentioned that, hasn’t it?

Anyway, I think Jackie focused on the wrong movie star at the start of his ELO. He has Kristen Bell. I have Scarlett Johansson.

The Crimean referendum is a farce and doesn’t give voters an option to not vote to join Russia. Good luck having anyone besides Russia consider this a legitimate exercise in democracy. (Reuters via Huffington Post)

Former Ukrainian President Victor Yanukovych didn’t just up and run away. He planned his departure well in advance. (Kyiv Post)

A former Politico writer explains what it’s like going from covering a Presidential campaign to being thrown into the depths of retail hell. (The Atlantic)

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Entertainment Link-Off: We Used To Be Friends

kristen bell veronica mars premiereIn theatres this week, there’s the highly anticipated video game adaptation Need for Speed! For those that were into the cult TV classic Veronica Mars, after a very long wait, we finally get a followup movie for a show that was cancelled way too soon! Let’s kick it off with Veronica Mars herself Kristen Bell at the premiere for the film. 

After the jump, learn how to run a TV show in 2014, an amazing Matrix fan film to check out, a cool concept movie trailer to see, Game of Thrones sorta has an end date, and watch the hilarious blooper reel from Anchorman 2. Continue reading →

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Wednesday Link-Off: Smoke ‘Em If You Got ‘Em

danielle-knudson-barenecessities14-01I’ve had a busy couple of days. A lot of time goes into these F1 previews and there are still three more posts coming up this week. Hopefully, you’ll be up to speed on the new Formula One season before the first race starts.

For now, though, it’s time for the links. Let’s start with Canadian model Danielle Knudson.

A Republican congressman thinks all NBA players are criminals. No, wait. He meant to say that they all smoked marijuana. No, wait. He meant to say that he’s racist. (The Daily Beast)

Speaking of the Republican bubble, a different congressman says that the government didn’t shut down during the government shutdown. (BuzzFeed)

Only in Canada can a porn channel get in trouble for a lack of Canadian content and too little closed captioning. My tax dollars at work. (New York Times)

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Sunday Link-Off: Back in the USSR

anna-kendrick-oscars14-04Well, just when you think that things were calming down in the Ukraine, business is picking back up. I don’t know if we’re looking at a rekindling of the Cold War or the start of something much worse but Putin’s foreign relations policies seem to be as if the last 25 years didn’t happen.

Anyway, it’s Sunday which means that it’s time to do the links. Let’s start with one of our favourite women, Anna Kendrick.

The so-called Fair Elections Act introduced by the Conservative government would be anything but. A look at the Act would indicate that it would be among the worst things that could happen to Canadian democracy. (Canada.com)

Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger gives his analysis on the crisis in Ukraine and what the best solution should be. (Washington Post)

Since people have been talking about international law in relation to the situation in the Ukraine and Crimea, where does international law actually stand on this situation. (CBC News)

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Entertainment Link-Off: Seize Your Glory

eva greenAt the box office this weekend marks the anticipated quasi-sequel 300: Rise of an Empire. The green screen heavy war epic is back for another round of stylized action and bloodfest. At least there’s a lot more eye candy to go around this time as Eva Green is featured prominently as Artemisia. 

After the jump, the CW fails at pushing boundaries, punk goes pop once again, Funny or Die is sorry about something again, check out the ugly ‘doh’ moment during the famous Oscar selfie, a few trailers to check out and True Detective gets the Community treatment. Continue reading →

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Wednesday Link-Off: Going Back to Cali

kristen-bell-oscars14-01Usually I do a little preamble at the start of the link-off but I’m going to cut it short because your attention should not be at the top of the post but the bottom. All the Rob Ford stuff is at the very end. There are recaps of his Jimmy Kimmel appearance, a TMZ story and the whole Kimmel interview. Just click through and go scroll down.

With that out of the way, let’s get the rest of the links going. Here’s Kristen Bell who certainly attracted some attention at the Oscars.

Things in the Ukraine keep deteriorating as Vlad Putin says one thing and does the complete opposite. The world is dealing with a dangerous man who is still in the Cold War mindset. Has he lost touch with reality? (The New Republic)

Bitcoin might be an interesting idea but there are still bugs to work out. Like when a major exchange goes down and causes chaos in the market. (Venture Beat)

Disney has cut funding from the Boy Scouts of America over their anti-gay policies. If only companies did that with the Olympics over Russia’s anti-gay policies. (Associated Press)

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