I was struck by something when he said “People trust Apple.” The software seems to be undergoing a microsoftification. When I loaded Leopard on my last MacBook it caused problems. When they put out a patch to solve the problem, it didn’t work. When I bought a new MacBook and tried to migrate from the old computer that didn’t work. My Time Capsule didn’t work until I had spent an hour on the phone with Apple Support and once it worked, my attempt to migrate the old laptop to the new one via Time Capsule didn’t work either. Today I email documents back and forth between two computers because I couldn’t migrate everything and since I set up the new computer, my .mac account no longer recognizes the old one.
All of this might be because I am an idiot. Certainly the fact is proven if not the correlation, but for the last 10 years you could be an idiot and still take anything Apple out of the box and happily use it. I worry that they are having so much success designing gadgets that they are not focusing enough on the other reason people buy Apple products.
My friend is thinking of converting. She’s still pretty much a pagan, but at least she’s considering replacing her PC with a Mac. What I didn’t say about that this time, I have said to every person who considered the same change in the past: “You’ll be glad you did. They just work.”

My kids gave me the new Ipod TOUCH for Christmas. Any ideas out there on how to operate the thing?

Ask your kids, Canucklead.

Hmm, hadn’t thot of that. Thanks for the suggestion.
Further on the Kuo burning at the stake, I like your idea that we go w/ the higher octane this time.
Boom.

We’re burning David? Did you get a carbon offset for that?

Shall we give Dave another chance before assaulting the environment?

No, no. Just buy a carbon offset. Or I can plant a tree.

While Dave is pondering his upcoming tribunal, let me give you, my American friends, an example of the kind of Americana that really p/o’s us in Canada and why whatever little relational capital Bush had here is all but gone with most of us.
Seems one Michael Scheuer, a former bigshot in the Bush CIA, pontificating at a Duke University panel discussion last weekend, continues to propogate the Bush government’s convenient belief that Canadian Maher Arar’s deporting from JFK to Syria in 2003 was done in complicity with the Canadian gov’t. Arar, as you may know, was held in a Syrian jail for more than a year where he was tortured for alleged terrorist connections.
A subsequent 2.5 year investigation led by Justice Dennis O’Connor found no substance to the claim and the Canadian gov’t paid Arar in excess of 10 million dollars as an apology.
Scheuer, called the Canadian justice’s finding, “the biggest piece of baloney” and said that Canada was “totally surprised like Captain Renault in Casablanca.” Arar, has never been convicted or charged anywhere, nor has any credible information surfaced publicly (apart from U.S. claims) to link him to terrorism.
Turns out, expert Scheuer from 96 to 99 was the head of the CIA’s unit pursuing Osama bin Laden. Well done there, Mike. Might this qualify as a classic case of the potty calling the kettle black?
Add to this the news today that charges have been dropped against half of the 15 or so Muslims arrested in the Toronto area almost two years ago on suspicions of plotting to blow up various Canadian nuclear and oil structures.

Canucklehead, I think the war on terror has been an excuse for all manner of despicability which pisses this loyal American right the hell off including Arar’s case but it seems a little odd to apologize and give 10 million loonies to someone you didn’t wrong. Was it a loan to us?

Yeah, at the time it was about $2M in U.S. funds but that was more than a year ago. He had been scheduled to start a PhD program, his wife and kids were left high and dry, yada yada, were the reasons given for the payout. Personally, I think our Conservative gov’t was a tad embarrassed even tho his original arrest wasn’t on their watch.

David, what is the best way to contact you for a possible media request? I tried to email you at the beliefnet.com address but can’t seem to make it past your filters. Thanks,
jjt