Rob Ford

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Saturday Link-Off: Lights, Camera, Legal Action

alyssah-ali-anthropologie13-04Since we’re a week and a half before Christmas, I think that it’s safe to say that we’re in the home stretch. A quick FYI before we start: Jackie and I recorded a podcast this week. I don’t think it’ll be ready for this week so I think a December 24th release date is probable.

Alright, now it’s time for the links. Here’s Canadian model Alyssah Ali.

Time Magazine named the Pope their Person of the Year. They’re completely wrong. The real person of the year is Edward Snowden. (The New Yorker)

Well, I mentioned earlier this week that people were crying slander over what Rob Ford said in an interview with Conrad Black. Daniel Dale wasn’t impressed with what was said about him. (Toronto Star)

And then proceeded to serve Rob Ford with a libel notice with the full backing of the Toronto Star. Given how much Star personalities are tweeting about this, it almost seems like they’re trying to make this a story rather than let it happen naturally. (Toronto Star)

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Saturday Link-Off: A Tale of Two Leaders

deborah-mace-anthropologie13-01Happy weekend denizens of the interweb! It’s Saturday which means that it’s time for the links. As you might expect given the news this week, we’re talking about two very different types of people in the news this week. Anyhow, let’s start with Deborah Mace.

Nelson Mandela died this week so we’re going to start with a few Mandela links. First, here’s a timeline look at his life. (New York Times)

And here’s a look at Mandela’s life in pictures rather than words. (National Geographic)

While Nelson Mandela is now thought of as a hero for the freedom of South African, for a long time, he was thought of as a terrorist and vilified by the same folks who are now praising him. (The Daily Beast)

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Wednesday Link-Off: ‘Tis The Season

xenia-deli-lulifama13-03It’s the first linkdump of December. WordPress turned on the Christmas decorations so the falling snow isn’t a problem with the site or your monitor but our little piece of Christmas spirit… Unless we manage to do a Christmas podcast. Then that’s our contribution to Christmas.

Anyway, let’s get started with Xenia Deli.

You would think that Justin Trudeau might be a radical for wanting to legalize marijuana but he’s only following the recommendation of a forty-year-old study that said there was no scientific basis for the ban. In fact, Canada’s drug bans are all rooted in racism. (Toronto Star)

Without ad revenue from Hockey Night In Canada, the CBC’s current business model is broken but no one is rushing to fix it. (National Post)

Could Russell Brand be the smartest man occasionally in Hollywood? His op-ed about Rupert Murdoch and NewsCorp is epic. (The Guardian)

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Saturday Link-Off: Ford-ing Ahead

shanina-shaik-victoriassecret13-02We’re doing the sandwich method intro. Good news! The week is finally over. I haven’t had a particularly fun one but this weekend is looking fun. Chances are that you’ve already seen the Doctor Who 50th anniversary episode and there’s an F1 race tomorrow. I should have write-ups of both this week.

Bad news: Jackie’s been a bit all over the place this week and weekend so I’ve drawn in today. He’ll be popping in next week with more news and reviews from the Brisbane International Film Festival.

And good news: We’re starting off today’s post with Shanina Shaik who’s making her first appearance on the blog.

Is no one associated with Rob Ford a reputable character? Even his fitness consultant seems to be a disreputable character. (National Post)

Only… Nope. There’s no possible intro for this news. Rob Ford has a higher approval rating than Barack Obama. What the hell? (Daily Telegraph)

Norm MacDonald’s brother, respected Canadian journalist Neil, explains why America is more obsessed with the Rob Ford story than their own politics. (CBC News)

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Wednesday Link-Off: The Scandal that Never Ends

genevieve-morton-barenecessities13-04You know, I thought that we might finally be done covering the Rob Ford crack scandal but the story just never seems to end or get old. It’s just too interesting to avoid. That and I don’t think that the media are covering any other story.

Anyway, it’s time for the links. Let’s start with blog favourite Genevieve Morton.

So that Rob Ford crack tape is from February. So was he in a drunken stupor then? (Toronto Star)

Is Rob Ford beyond help and does he just need to get out of office? (National Post)

And the Ford Brothers’ new TV show was cancelled after one episode. Sun News Network says it’s because it cost too much but I don’t think anyone is sold on that. (Globe & Mail)

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Sunday Link-Off: Plenty to Eat at Home

hannah-davis-aerie13-02The week is over. The PlayStation 4 is out and I haven’t been left behind because I don’t own it. Similarly, I won’t be left behind because I’m not getting an Xbox One. Newsflash: Neither will you for the next six months while we wait for a  sufficient game library to roll out.

Apart from the console launch, this week brought us even more Rob Ford news. And here you were thinking that the fun was over. So let’s not delay any longer and get to the links. Here’s Hannah Davis.

Just when you thought that it was over in Toronto, the Rob Ford story got a lot more interesting over the last few days thanks to some new allegations from court documents. (Toronto Sun)

In addressing those allegations, Mayor Ford said some things that we wish he hadn’t. (Deadspin)

If you’re looking for the encyclopedia of Rob Ford buffoonery, check out this website. (MayorFord.info)

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Sunday Link-Off: The Fun Never Ends

reka-ebergenyi-3suisses13-01Well, this has been a fun week, hasn’t it? All that Rob Ford stuff sure was weird. I doubt it there could possibly be more this week so we’ll have some F1 coverage and I think I should be able to get a gaming post up by the end of the week. First, we have to kick the week off with the links and the links with Hungarian model Reka Ebergenyi.

The Toronto Star’s lead reporter on the Rob Ford crack tape, Robyn Doolittle, tells the tale of the tape. (Toronto Star)

Meanwhile, a new Rob Ford tape has come out which shows him threatening to kill a man. (Toronto Sun)

Let’s take a one-link break from Rob Ford to hear what Russell Brand thinks about his Newsnight interview of a few weeks ago and why he doesn’t like current democratic systems. (The Guardian)

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Wednesday Link-Off: We Are All on Drugs

kelly-brook-newlook13-01Well, the moment we’ve been waiting for finally arrived… Sorta. We were hoping for the Rob Ford crack tape but we still got fairly close. Well, let’s get right to the action. First, here’s Kelly Brook.

Toronto mayor Rob Ford confessed to smoking crack cocaine. Tell us something we don’t know. (Toronto Sun)

Even with the confession, we’re still expecting more big noise from the Rob Ford investigation. (Toronto Star)

One of those bombshells is that the mayor’s office hired a hacker to recover the crack tape. (Vice)

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Sunday Link-Off: All It’s Cracked Up to Be

rachel-mortenson-fredericks13-01It’s the end of another week… or is it the beginning of a new one. That’s the problem with North America and Europe disagreeing on whether Sunday or Monday starts a week. Anyway, it’s Sunday which means that it’s time for the links. Let’s start with Rachel Mortenson.

Funny story, after the Lisi fella was arrested, a co-worker asked if I actually thought the Rob Ford crack video existed. He thought it was all fake. Well, the Toronto Police Chief says he was wrong. (Toronto Star)

And Mayor Ford also called into a news talk radio show under a pseudonym to defend himself. Smart move. (Boing Boing)

Meanwhile, in federal government, Prime Minister Harper isn’t responsible for anything going wrong in Parliament… Unless he is to blame. (National Post)

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Sunday Link-Off: Drugs and Shut Downs and Baseballs, Oh My

elyse-taylor-victoriassecret13-10It’s Sunday which means it’s time for some links. I’m hoping to have an F1 recap tomorrow for the Korean Grand Prix which already ran and isn’t getting replayed in Canada until 9:30 PM. They have a block of taped programming from 5:30 PM onwards but why would we show it at a convenient time for our audience? I really think TSN is the Canadian F1 fan’s worst enemy. At least Sportsnet hasn’t screwed over IndyCar fans. I’ll have the GP of Houston recap on Tuesday. Unless I decide to flip-flop posting dates.

Anyway, like I said at the top, it’s time for the links. Let’s start this post with Australian model Elyse Taylor.

The Globe & Mail put together a lengthy, detailed and fascinating report about how BlackBerry went from the top of the smartphone world to dead in the water. (Globe & Mail)

Toronto mayor Rob Ford frequently visited Alexander Lisi. Now, Lisi has been charged with drugs offenses which can’t be good for the mayor. (Toronto Star)

This week, we also found out that the Toronto police had Rob Ford under surveillance using a Cessna airplane. (Toronto Star)

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