The Oppenheimer Report - 3/28/11

I spoke too soon about the imminence of Spring, as Toronto got smacked with a healthy dose of snow and cold last week. For me, this time of year is always the ball buster, because we have the tease of Spring and then we go back to Winter for a week or two. This is the last time I trust a groundhog. Yesterday, the Juno Awards, Canada’s answer to the Grammys, were held at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto. There is always a lot of buzz the week before the Juno’s and this being the 40th Anniversary, a lot of big names in Canadian music were in town for the event. Last Saturday I rode my bike down to Queen Street to immerse myself in the fandemonium. I thought perhaps I'd bump into Neil Young (who was honored at this year’s ceremony) or Joni Mitchell walking down the street. Disappointed by my failed attempt at stargazing I found myself wandering around in the legendary Steve‘s Music, drooling over recording equipment. I have a rather large collection of rock photographs taken in the 60s and 70s, and within that collection are quite a few photos taken of past Junos. Back when Gordan Lighfoot, Anne Murray (yuck), and the Guess Who were popular, it was a much less elaborate affair. I thought this year’s Juno Awards ceremony was quite entertaining.



Radiation has showed up in spinach and milk produced near the Fukushima Dai-ishi Nuclear Power Plant in Japan. It’s also showing up in the drinking water. I can’t help feeling that any elevated levels of radiation is a bad thing, but I know very little about this threat. Somebody on the news said we’d have to eat two pounds of the tainted spinach per day for a year to recognize any significant risk, but is that an accurate assessment of the danger, and who really knows for sure? How much radiation do North Americans unwittingly absorb talking on their cell phones? I try to use those hands free thingies whenever I can. I’m also a little skeptical of the experts in North America who say that a nuclear disaster like Fukushima can never happen here. It is sobering to note that America still has no long term plan in place to dispose of the countless tons of nuclear waste generated by her approximately 100 plants presently on line. Somehow, I have managed to ignore that all this waste is now stored on site. Yucca Mountain in Nevada was supposed to be a solution, until Obama scuttled that project, at least for the time being. Nobody wants high level nuclear waste in their backyard, but we all want the electricity. Perhaps this is why we’re so interested in the Middle East; let’s bury it in the desert. Remember the good old days when our president didn’t even know how to pronounce the word n-u-c-l-e-a-r? The other night Letterman was ranting with uncharacteristic zeal against a proposed 20 year license renewal for the aging Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant, situated on the Hudson River about 38 miles north of Manhattan. And what about all those plants in earthquake-prone California? Clearly the time has come to figure this out or come up with a viable alternative source of energy. Like the majority of other concerned Americans, I will now proceed to bury my head in the sand.



And in the Great White North … after a vote of no confidence last week in the Canadian Parliament, Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Conservative Party may no longer at the helm of the good ship Beaver. Because they never had a majority, they never really were in control anyhow. Now, from my admittedly limited grasp of Canadian politics, and parliamentary procedure in general, there will be an election in early May, something most Canadians probably feel is a waste of money. I think this will backfire on the opposition parties who called for the no confidence vote in the first place. Right now it looks like Harper and the Conservatives might win a majority vote simply because the opposition does not appear all that capable to lead. The Liberals have had their share of troubles, and their baby-kissing leader Michael Ignatieff comes across as a bit of an a-hole. Nobody wants those separatist bastards from Bloc Quebecois or the commies from the NDP to get their paws on all the power and money. The fear is that a coalition of the other three parties will be worse for Canada than the status quo. Harper will use this fear-mongering approach that once worked so well for the elephants in the U.S. The devil you know.



And finally, Dame Elizabeth Taylor died of congestive heart failure last week at the age of 79. She was married eight times, although I’m not sure that Larry guy with the earring really counts. He was more of a rental. She kind of downsized after Richard Burton. Seriously though, the woman did a lot of good things, including her founding of the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation. Zsa Zsa, you’re next.



Written by Jamie Oppenheimer c2011 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED