Link-Off

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Wednesday Link-Off: Both Sides of the Border

katy-perry-parkerinstitute16-02Who says that all the interesting news in America? We certainly have our share of noteworthy stories in Canada even if we don’t mention the pending Canada Post strike. For fun, there is even some big British stories in the links so we have the whole Commonwealth/colonial thing happening as well.

Anyway, it’s Wednesday so we are obliged to do the links. Let’s kick things off with Katy Perry.

Iceland will be boycotting Israeli products until they end their occupation of Palestine. (PressTV)

His religious beliefs have been underplayed at the moment but is Donald Trump’s support showing there may be no need for religion in politics. (New York Times)

The FBI won’t be recommending charges against Hilary for her email dealings. (NYT)

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Sunday Link-Off: Resurgence

jessica-alba-braun16-03For our pre-July 4th edition of the links, I think it’s only appropriate that we title this post after the new Independence Day movie. I haven’t seen it yet but the critical reception makes me think that I should wait until it lands on TV before I consider watching it. After all, the original Independence Day is a mainstay on TV so why not the sequel.

Anyway, it’s Sunday which means that it’s time for the links. Let’s kick off with Jessica Alba.

The Baltimore Police Department is changing its Use Of Force policy for the first time in thirteen years to emphasize de-escalation and ask officers to intervene if other officers are stepping over the line. (Baltimore Sun)

I’m not sure if a podcast helping someone getting a new trial is a good thing or an indictment of the legal system that a random podcast might save a man. (NPR)

The UN says that disrupting internet access is violation of a human right. So everyone that extorts money for wifi should be reported to the UN. (Think Progress)

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Entertainment Link-Off: Movies and Music and TV, Oh My

margot-robbie-vogue16-01We’re getting into the middle of summer which should be full with all sorts of news and interviews about upcoming movies and TV shows because we’re running up to summer blockbuster movies and a few months from the start of the fall TV season. Unfortunately, it’s the holiday weekend on both sides of the weekend so we’re a bit short on news. The result is a hodgepodge of everything I find interesting. So the status quo, then.

So this weekend, theatres see three big releases. The Legend of Tarzan opens at the lowest Rotten Tomatoes rating of the weekend as we wonder how many Tarzan movies Hollywood has made over the years. The Purge: Election Year might turn out to be decent political satire in hindsight depending on this year’s US Presidential election. And the top movie of the weekend is Steven Spielberg’s The BFG but critical reception says don’t expect an Oscar.

Anyway, let’s kick off the links with Margot Robbie who stars as Jane in The Legend of Tarzan.

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Wednesday Link-Off: Summer is Coming

maisie-williams-tribeca16-02Despite the fact that the temperature is supposed to be in the mid-teens (Celsius) in my part of Canada on July 1st, make no mistake. Summer is coming. Everyone around here makes the same damn Ned Stark joke so I want to lazily spin it on its head. Considering that Ned’s head is no longer attached to his shoulders, I can’t imagine that would be difficult. By the way, this week’s Game of Thrones review drops tomorrow rather than the usual Friday post date.

Anyway it’s Wednesday which means that it’s time for the links. Since Game of Thrones just wrapped up, let’s kick off with GoT star Maisie Williams.

The House’s Benghazi Report says that there was no wrongdoing on Hilary Clinton’s part. That’s not going to stop it from being a Republican talking point but she has something to fire back with. (New York Times)

Former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski has joined CNN to add his insight on the reality TV star turned Presidential candidate despite his relatively hostile relationship with the press. (Washington Post)

Despite fears of the foolish, the legalization of marijuana hasn’t led to the downfall of society. In fact, their teen marijuana use is lowest in America. (Foundation for Economic Education)

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Sunday Link-Off: Battling Bregret

erin-heatherton-nhlawards16-01Did anything interesting happen in the news this week? Probably not. Nobody abandoned a multi-national political-economic unions. Nobody’s political campaign saw a power struggle end with a change of campaign managers. Nothing at all noteworthy.

Anyway, it’s Sunday so it’s time for us to do the links. Since we just got through the NHL awards and draft, here’s Erin Heatherton with the Stanley Cup.

Was Brexit a series of mistakes and apathy that allowed Leave to win or is it a sign that people are done with globalization? (MacLean’s)

It’s not just Americans planning a move to Canada because of a vote. Brits are looking to make a move to Canada because of the EU referendum. (Global)

Scotland voted to stay in the EU. Now, they’re thinking about separating from the UK so they could join the EU. There’s a hell of a way to galvanize an independence vote. (Mirror)

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Entertainment Link-Off: Power Brokers

blake-lively-theshallows16-02This week’s edition of the entertainment links is all about people with power and money and ratings and all the things that matters in the acquisition of power in Hollywood. Not to sound too cynical but everybody wants to rule the world. We have a lot of those people featured in today’s ELO.

So how many of you have heard of The Neon Demon? IMDB has that as the best movie coming out this weekend. Also out this weekend are the far too late Independence Day cash-in, the one where Blake Lively gets eaten by a shark and a biopic with Matthew McConaughey. So let’s kick off with Blake Lively before she gets eaten by the aforementioned shark.

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Wednesday Link-Off: White Hat

emilia-clarke-jenna-coleman-mebeforeyou16-02Is a story really an insider story when it was extracted by less than kosher means? If the facts can’t be obtained any other way, maybe it’s for the greater good. Anonymous is pretty divisive but you have to admit their hactivism doesn’t make them villains. While the law doesn’t seem to take too kindly to White Hat Hackers, there’s definitely a need for them out there if they’re serving the public good.

Anyway, it’s Wednesday which means that we usually do the links. Let’s kick off with Emilia Clarke and Jenna Coleman.

Hackers got into Hilary Clinton’s campaign servers and the Democratic National Committee’s servers and went from there to hack info from all sorts of politically affiliated groups. (Bloomberg)

The real damage might be done by Guccifer 2.0 who found and posted all sorts of Clinton campaign docs. Maybe Bernie should stick around until the convention in case he’s needed. (Washington Examiner)

Meanwhile, Donald Trump is being accused of using his Foundation as a political slush fund. (The Daily Beast)

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Entertainment Link-Off: Frenemies

katherine-mcnamara-findingdory16-01After a week off to spam E3 coverage (which isn’t done yet), the ELO is back. I’m in for Jackie who is on some sort of world tour. And by world tour, I mean he’s probably trying to drive through Australia to experience all four seasons in a week.

Anyway, Hollywood brings us two movies on what is an extraordinarily hot weekend in my part of Canada. You have your choice of Finding Dory and Central Intelligence. I’d imagine most everyone will go see Finding Dory because it’s a Pixar movie. I suppose that means that it’s another weekend where no one is going to see Warcraft. Well, there’s always Netflix.

Anyway, let’s kick off today’s post with Katherine McNamara at the Finding Dory Premiere.

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Wednesday Link-Off: Vigilante

You know, I’m getting pretty bad at remembering to finish off blog posts. The whole of the links were done but I forgot to actually write the intro and hit publish. The good news is that I’m working on a bunch of stuff for next week so something will be ready to publish if I remember to hit publish. For example, E3 is coming soon so expect those previews and recaps starting Sunday.

Recently uncovered documents suggest that the Edward Snowden did try to whistleblow through the proper channels but was ignored by the American government. (The Liberty Conservative)

It’s not just Flint. Up to 33 other US cities might have high levels of lead in their drinking water. (The Guardian)

The incoming President of the Philippines sure sounds like he’s going to encourage vigilantism. (The Journal)

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Sunday Link-Off: Crime and Punishment

salma-hayek-red16-01You know, somehow, I forgot to have the weekly Game of Thrones review post on Friday. The change of month screwed up the post scheduling so expect a double dose of GoT this week. We’ll also have the start of E3 news at the tail-end of the week. Next Saturday will probably be a Saturday Link-Off rather than an ELO because Sunday will be E3 previews.

Anyway, since it’s Sunday, we have to do the links. Let’s kick things off with Salma Hayek.

A Secret Service agent from the Clinton White House is writing a tell-all book. That’s probably not good for the Clinton campaign. (Daily Mail)

By the way, Hilary hasn’t held a press conference in half-a-year. (Washington Free Beacon)

Make sense of this: A judge sentenced a Stanford student who raped an unconscious woman to six months in prison because a lengthy prison sentence would have a “severe impact” on him. (New York Magazine)

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