Sunday Link-Off: Puppet

amy-adams-elleuk16-01We’re almost at the end of the 2016 US Presidential campaign. The world will be a better place when it’s done and we can all move on with our lives, assuming that there won’t be any legal challenges or civil wars. It’s sad that this is a legitimate possibility in an American election but here we are.

Anyway, it’s Sunday which means that we’re doing the links. Let’s kick off with Amy Adams.

Donald Trump has been talking about rigged elections so let’s talk about Congressional district gerrymandering and how that might mean four more years of the same. (Salon)

“Trump Won’t Inherit the Land, So He’s Sowing It with Salt” (Foreign Policy)

If you’ve been having trouble keeping track of all the women accusing The Donald of sexual improprieties, here’s a primer on 17 of them. (Vox)

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Sunday Link-Off: Meanwhile, In Canadian Politics

amy-adams-arrival16-02I’ve been ignoring the Sunday links until this morning because I’ve been working on the F1 weekend recap for tomorrow on the blog. Before adding in any news about the pending sale of F1 and changes at the top of the sport or the actual race recap, the post is already at 1,200 words. If you’re an F1 fan, all the info you’ll need is coming tomorrow.

Anyway, it’s Sunday which means that we’re doing the links. Let’s kick things off with Amy Adams.

Could Donald Trump’s politics of divisiveness and unaccountability have a future in Canadian politics? (MacLean’s)

People are worried about what would happen to Canadian politics if the current first-past-the-post electoral system is dumped but it’s not like we’re used to majority governments in Canada. (National Post)

Marc Cuban thinks that Trump won’t release his tax returns because he’s tax planned himself in a way that his companies’ income is flowed through to his tax returns to save money so his business info would be on display (along with questionable US tax loopholes). (Business Insider)

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Sunday Link-Off: Simply Primary

amy-adams-vfoscars16-01I thought Super Tuesday was supposed to effectively end the primary process and leave us with a straight-forward 1v1 between Democrat-turned-Republican Drumpf and Republican-masquerading-as-Democrat Clinton. If only we could get that lucky. Well, luck is a relative thing. Another eight months of this must be a violation of the Geneva Convention.

Anyway, it’s Sunday which means that it’s time for the links. Let’s kick things off with Amy Adams.

President Jimmy Carter says that American politics is an oligarchy. Only the rich can afford democracy as they’ve bought and paid for it. (Inquisitr)

Tennessee Presidential primary winner defends penis size, promises war crimes. Just another day on the Republican Primary trail. (Nashville Scene)

After the Super Tuesday primary results, searches for moving to Canada jumped 1000%. I think that Canada should build a wall and make America pay for it. (Notable)

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Wednesday Link-Off: Lies, Damned Lies and the News Media

amy-adams-jennifer-aniston-vfoscars15-01Just when you though that Brian Williams was the only member in the media in the middle of a scandal, I happened across a bunch of stories about news media scandals. Welcome my friends to the show that never ends. And there’s a whole bunch of legitimately interesting stories if that’s more your speed.

Anyway, it’s time for us to do the links. Because the Oscars were this weekend, let’s kickoff with something special. Here’s Amy Adams and Jennifer Aniston.

The right often complains about the war on Christmas or the war on religion but they ignore their war on science. For some reason, science is under attack from people who should know better. (National Geographic)

“Among African-American men aged fifteen to forty-four, 88.7 percent of gun deaths are homicides; among white American men aged thirty-five to sixty-four, 89.2 percent of gun deaths are suicides.: (Harper’s Magazine)

Naturally, Bill O’Reilly went to town on Brian Williams for his lying scandal. Little did he know that he was about to get caught up in a scandal of his own. (Mother Jones)

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Wednesday Link-Off: The News Behind the News

jessica-chastain-amy-adams-goldenglobes15-01Just when I thought that all we’d be talking about the Golden Globes, the folks at Canadaland broke another major Canadian media story at the CBC. This is the sort of thing that I wanted to do with my life. Instead, I work a white-collar job and my life has no direction. Sorry, I’m watching Parks & Rec while I’m writing and that came up in this week’s episode.

Anyway, it’s time for the links. For something special, let’s start off with a two-for-one deal. Here are Jessica Chastain and Amy Adams.

You can’t really say CBC without putting scandal beside it these days. Once again, it’s Canadaland with the story. In this case, the CBC is the bad guy as they allowed star Amanda Lang to run interference with a story about RBC using foreign workers. (Canadaland)

To make matters worse, Canadaland says that Lang was romantically involved with an RBC board member while trying to spike that story. (Canadaland)

The CBC came out on the offensive with a denial that the Canadaland story is true. (Canada.com)

So CBC reporter Kathy Tomlinson allowed Canadaland to put her name to the accusations about Lang and the CBC’s conflict of interest in this matter. (Canadaland)

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Wednesday Link-Off: Did You Know?

amy-adams-artfilm14-002I could be wrong but the Jian Ghomeshi story could end up being one of the most important ones in a long while in Canada.  A number of people I know went from doubting Ghomeshi’s accusers for a variety of reasons to eventually coming around to the accuser’s side. It looks like the discussion around the so-called “rape culture” is changing and we aren’t so dismissive of women who accuse men of abusing them. Hopefully this continues the next time we see this story.

Anyway, it’s time for the links. Here’s Amy Adams.

Donovan, the Toronto Star’s superstar investigative reporter, talks about his dinner with Jian Ghomeshi during the investigation. (Toronto Star)

The other man on that Ghomeshi report, Jesse Brown, talks to a former Q staffer about Ghomeshi and what he saw. (Canadaland)

Toronto Star commentator Jia Junaid was originally a skeptic of Jian Ghomeshi’s accusers but not unlike many Canadians, she’s changed her tune. (Toronto Star)

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Wednesday Link-Off: Rise and Fall

amy-adams-vanityfair14-05It’s the middle of the week and I’m likely in the middle of a mountain of snow as you read this. The forecast is calling for a tonne of snow at Lowdown HQ so I’m expecting to be digging out for a whole. So much fun. Anyway, it’s time for the links. Here’s Amy Adams.

At one point in time, BlackBerry was the unquestioned king of the mobile sector. Now, they’re an afterthought. Here’s the rise and fall of BlackBerry. (Businessweek)

David Simon, the man behind The Wire, explains how capitalism has divided America into two nations. (The Guardian)

Rob Ford said some things that had people crying slander after an interview with Conrad Black. (Toronto Star)

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Entertainment Link-Off: Closer Than You Think

After several weeks of rotten films hitting the screen at the theatres, it’s rather refreshing to see three fresh films debuting at the box office this weekend. Topping the critically applauded films is The Muppers starring Jason Segel and Amy Adams. I figured it would be appropriate to start off with the leading actress from the film no?

After the jump, Nolan talks The Dark Knight, best Save Community posters, 3D conversion of old films is the rage, Twilight is still bad for you, Ah-nold gives the best audio commentary ever in Total Recall and Chuck Norris is now kicking ass in the World of Warcraft. Continue reading