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So God had a wife. Nu?

20 March 2011
Posted by Ian Chadwick in Social values, Science, Uncategorized
According to a recent news story, Dr Francesca Stavrakopoulou of the University of Exeter, Yahweh, the god of the ancient Israelites, had a wife. Dr Stavrakopoulou has concluded after years of research that both a god and a goddess were worshipped in the same temple in Jerusalem, and this suggests she played the role of a divine wife.*

Or perhaps...

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Tags: goddess, religion, faith 2 Comments


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The intersection of alcohol and conspiracy

19 March 2011
Posted by Ian Chadwick in Social values
I'm looking forward to reading Christine Sismondo's new book, An American Walks Into a Bar, when it is released this summer. It's about the social history of drink and the role pubs play in both history and culture (predominantly American, but she does give nod to the tavern in other cultures).

There aren't a lot of good, recent...

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Tags: plot, pub, alcohol, conspiracy, inn 2 Comments


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What have dogs taught us?

21 February 2011
Posted by Ian Chadwick in Social values, Science
Dogs, say some social anthropologists, taught humans compassion*. Any dog owner will understand that claim, especially if he or she has ever had a puppy. It's tempting to believe that the relationship between humans and dogs began with puppies, perhaps an abandoned litter our prehistoric ancestors came across. But it might have come about...

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Tags: pets, dogs, anthropology, science, cats 4 Comments


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A Skeptic's Take on Naturopathy

16 February 2011
Posted by Ian Chadwick in technology, Social values, Science
There's an interesting piece in the recent issue of the Skeptic magazine (Vol. 16, No. 2) about naturopathy, as well as a related article on the growing popularity of the ancient Indian ayurvedic "medicine" that I found entertaining reading last night. In the column, SkepDoc, M.D. Harriet Hall asks "What is Naturopathy?"...

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Tags: pseudoscience, medicine, skeptics, naturopathy 0 Comments


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Order of Collingwood recipients announced

24 December 2010
Posted by Ian Chadwick in Collingwood life, Collingwood's municipal m..., Social values
The list of recipients for the Order of Collingwood, to be awarded on January 9, 2011, has been released. It includes:
  • Wilma Davies
  • Doug Garbutt
  • Gerry LaChance
  • Donna Mansfield
  • Marie Campbell Raithby
  • Barbara Sneyd
  • Gail Synnott
  • Kent Walton
  • Norman Wingrove

The recipients for the Companion to the Order of...

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Tags: Order of Collingwood 0 Comments


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User fees approval deferred

22 December 2010
Posted by Ian Chadwick in Social values, downtown-BIA, Collingwood's municipal m...
Big topic on the agenda last Monday: the proposed 2011 schedule of user fees. These are the fees charged by the town for all sorts of services not covered by your taxes, from dog licences to photocopies. The list is 40 pages long. Council got it in the agenda, Friday night, and was expected to pass it, Monday night - and pass it without a full...

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Tags: Collingwood's Municipal Madness, user fees, budget 0 Comments


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Contrived words and spelling

10 December 2010
Posted by Ian Chadwick in Social values, Language use and abuse
Contrived words generally make me queasy. Yes, I know English is a language in flux and neologisms come and go with annoying frequency. But when advertising and marketing companies get into the act and redesign the language for their own ends, the result is usually fatuous at best, and embarrassingly stupid at worst.

This post was sparked after I...

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Tags: English, bad spelling, metaplasmus, language 6 Comments


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A skeptic's take on the wireless debate

21 November 2010
Posted by Ian Chadwick in technology, Social values, Science, Collingwood life
I missed this post about the wireless debate when it was first written. Although a savvy reader brought it to my attention a couple of weeks ago, his email got lost in the cascade of email I get - 100 or more a day. When I was cleaning out my cache this morning I found it, and after reading it, thought I should share it because it relates to local...

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Tags: computers, wifi, Collingwood's Municipal Madness, Science, technology 3 Comments


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Why would anyone use "payday loan" services?

20 November 2010
Posted by Ian Chadwick in Collingwood life, Pointless legislation, Provincial folly, Social values
I received an advertisement in the mail box, last week, telling me the "Cash Store" would soon be opening in my area, and saying I was already "pre-approved" to borrow an amount of money as per the table on the back. Given that I never applied, that's a generous offer from a stranger. Or is it?

What struck me was the cost...

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A sappy Thoreau misquote becomes a viral meme online

14 November 2010
Posted by Ian Chadwick in Language use and abuse, Social values, technology
I came across a quote allegedly from Henry David Thoreau's work, Walden, today, and it bothered me that it rang false. The attributed quote was, "Most men lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them."

Humbug. What Thoreau actually wrote in Walden was, "The mass of men lead lives of quiet...

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Tags: meme, culture, Thoreau 0 Comments



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