CBC Montreal - Bombardier granted huge Montreal metro deal | Thursday, May 11th, 2006

CBC Montreal - Bombardier granted huge Montreal metro deal

I'm not sure how I feel about this:

The government has granted the contract to replace Montreal's aging fleet of subway cars to Bombardier.
The Charest government announced Thursday afternoon that it has given
the $1.2-billion contract to Quebec-based Bombardier without a public
tender.

On the one hand, no-competition handouts frighten me, and remind me of the lobbyist / crony / congress circus that's setup up in th US, with government contracts going out to corporate buddies (see Halliburton, etc).

On the other hand, it makes sense that the contract to update Montreal's subways should go to a local company and the tax dollars should get reinvested into the local economy.

Gas theft in Laval reaching epidemic proportions | Wednesday, May 10th, 2006

warning sign

The Laval police, in cooperation with the Canadian Petroleum Products Institute (whose website makes me cry), have begun slapping these warning stickers on gas pumps across the city. They read:

Warning!
Driving off without paying is filling up your tank... with problems!
By distraction or intentionally, some people leave the gas station without paying.
They will be prosecuted in court.

In the booming city of Laval, near Montreal, several people a day drive off without paying, prompting some stations to post guards at the pumps. Police have created a new category of crime called "gas theft," after "pump and run" incidents in Quebec City surpassed 1,000 last year.

Another interesting issue is gas theft from individials - cases of gas being siphoned directly from a car's gas tank are at an all-time high. Locking gas caps are sold out at automotive parts stores across the province.

Welcome to visitors from stevesgallery.com | Tuesday, May 2nd, 2006

Background

Howdy!

If you're coming here from my other weblog, you'll notice that we do things a bit diff'rently 'round these parts. Because this isn't just a weblog, just a podcast, or just a videoblog, the main page is divided into four sections: videos, photos, podcasts and blog entries. Using the menu at the left, you can click on a subheading to choose which content type you want to view. This will bring you to the overview page for that kind of content, along with relevant links (such as "Subscribe in iTunes, for podcasts).

There's also an "Incoming" section, which lists all the same kinds of content that I'm looking at from other users. This page works in very much the same way, and lets you see what videos I'm watching, my favorite flickr photos, music and podcasts I listen to, and blogs or articles I read elsewhere.

I haven't had the time to test this site in all browsers, so please, if you spot any weirdness, let me know!

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