Phasor Burn

There’s probably a grain of truth in there; like all Dilbert strips actually . . .

[…] the CBC of 50 years ago was a very different institution. There was far more local television programming and much less emphasis on being “Canadian.”

[…] Beginning in the ’60s, however, more and more television production became centred in Toronto, and more and more emphasis was placed on something called the “Canadian identity.”

Since nobody really knew what that was — and few cared — the CBC took it upon itself to define it. This, I think, was the beginning of its long decline.

The trouble started because the staff at CBC in Toronto stopped thinking of themselves as regional. People who live in Halifax or Saint John consider themselves Maritimers. British Columbians belong to “the coast.”

Saskatchewanites identify with “the prairies,” and this province is populated by Albertans, or Calgarians or Edmontonians.

Now to recognize you’re regional is very important. Because, as an Albertan, you don’t expect everybody else in the country to look at things the way you do.

But the people at the CBC Toronto forgot they too are regional. They didn’t see themselves as “Ontarians” or even Torontonians. They saw themselves as Canadians, and soon they undertook the onerous responsibility of telling the rest of us what it means to be a Canadian.

I have never been a strong supporter of the CBC, nor a constant Listener or Viewer of them. On occasion I have watched some things, but it seems the best of those or the ones that attracted the most of my attention at least were joint CBC-BBC (Doctor Who) or CBC-Germany (Lexx) productions. Certainly not “Canadian” in feel at all, in any case.

I don’t agree with Ted Byfield on a lot of things, I hardly ever read his column in fact, but I think he actually has something worthwhile to say this time.

It’s time to scrap the CBC and/or wrest control of it away from Toronto and go back to mostly regional programming on that network.

Certainly something other than “center of the universe” aka Toronto needs to have more say there. Hmm, sounds like what is wrong with our federal government come to think of it.

Read his entire article here.

Jumping Jesus H. Christ on a Pogo-Stick, turn your god damned christmas lights off, it isn’t even fucking December yet, you morons.

Huh?, originally uploaded by NetteBini.

Sometimes I think we need signs like this on all entrances leading into Calgary . . .

makes you wonder, originally uploaded by Brian U.

Would you hire “Pete” and his “Team” ? I suppose it depends on what exactly it is they do that requires no brains . . . Must be government work or something.