At Home in Hespeler

…and the burning of the non-taxable book.

I’ve been pondering designs for a few weeks now for a little free library. The idea is simple, you build a little book house and post it at the front of your house. Neighbours and neighbourly-types can put in an old book, others can borrow the book. It’s a lending library with 20 or so books.

There’s a couple in my neighbourhood, and I was planning to get in on the action, share some community spirit and a few books I have lying around. Problem is, those pimply minions of bureaucracy have come up with an all new “vile, Jacobian, jumped up Jack-in-Office piece of impertinence:” a permit for your library

As The Atlantic’s Conor Friedersdorf explains, local governments in Los Angeles, Shreveport, LA and Leawood, KS have all tried to levy fines and other sanctions against people who put up these tiny birdhouse-like lending libraries.

I’m no longer planning on putting one up, I’m getting it up as fast as I can.

For certified professional guitar repair in Cambridge Ontario: Brian Gardiner Guitar Repair

Jacobian Piece of Impertinence, pimply minions of bureaucracy

a half-decade on.

“We are not out looking for people selling lemonade, but in this case, the police chief was driving around and saw them in the road and stopped due to safety concerns.”

I’ve noticed this aspect of these stories before, the Chief being the guy who makes the bust. It tells us something when the guy who’s supposed to be the voice of reason is the lunatic in the story. You get it when some overzealous rookie straight out of the academy wants to be a by the book guy. His Chief or the Sheriff should be the voice of experience, telling him to leave the seven-year olds alone!

And all those people offering a “wave of support,” you should be at the police station demanding a resignation or setting up your own lemonade stand on your own driveway. It’s alway the kids who seem to get it, disobeying the stupid law is the solution:

The Green sisters said they plan to take advantage of a loophole and set up their lemonade stand again this Saturday, only they’ll be giving their treats away for free and accept donations.

Reminds me of this.

for certified professional guitar repair in Cambridge Ontario: Brian Gardiner Guitar Repair

Jacobian Piece of Impertinence, pimply minions of bureaucracy

via Facebook:

Toronto is in three camps today: the usual suspects (union thugs, liberal/NDP partisans, leftist rabble), who are allowing their inner hate to run wild; the politically-aware right-of-centre, who are rightfully disturbed and a little depressed; and the vast middle, who are reacting in myriad ways. This post is for that vast middle. What has happened today is a (hopefully, after successful appeal, temporary) victory of arbitrary administrative tyranny over civil society. It does not matter what the administrative law says; a judge is free to throw it out, and force the complainant and/or the Province to appeal. So here’s what you need to know, Toronto: your Mayor has been ordered by a judge to vacate the office he was duly elected to in a free and fair election, for a petty reason that could apply to any and every politician in the history of our country, past present and future. We hope that does not sit well with you.

Jacobian Piece of Impertinence Rob Ford

… the mother-country edition:

The head of children’s services in Rotherham(England) has defended the decision to remove three ethnic minority children from foster parents, saying that their affiliation to the UK Independence Party (Ukip) meant they opposed ‘multiculturalism.’…

She said there was no ‘quality of care’ issue with the couple – the husband is a former Navy reservist who works with disabled people and the wife is a qualified nursery nurse – only that they were Ukip members.

Quality of care, providing love, a good home &tc.? Irrelevant. Approved thought patterns are the only criteria that counts.

As we say here in the colonies: Fire Them All!

Jacobian Piece of Impertinence, pimply minions of bureaucracy

The Canadian flag was removed from the Red Room of the Quebec Legislature Monday so members of the governing Parti Quebecois could take heir oath of office in the presence of just the Quebec Fleur de Lis. That’s OK though, they also banned cameras from the ceremony so there was no evidence of them swearing an oath to the Queen – a requirement in Canadian law.

Sure hope they didn’t run on a platform of transparency.

The Canadian flag (and presumably the cameras) were returned to the ceremonial room Tuesday so the members of the Quebec Liberal party could swear their oath in front of it.

Jacobian Piece of Impertinence, Wolfe Kicked Montcalm's Ass Quebec

…2-years on.

What’s in a name when it offends against the pimply minion mindset?

So you have a lovely son, and give him a not un-common name, Hunter. During his routine pediatric tests, you learn Hunter is deaf. What’s a family to do? You start by teaching him sign language, including the most basic of communications, his name.

Now three, Hunter is being told by some school administrator in Grand Island Nebraska to change how he signs his name because it looks like he’s shooting a gun. (actually, it looks to me like more like pleasing a woman 101, but no school administrator gets their knickers twisted over sexualizing 3-year olds)

Hunter’s dad, Brian Spanjer, in a classic bit of understatement, said “I feel l like it was an overreach…”

No Brian, it’s not an overreach, it’s who they are and what they do. It may have taken longer to come to Middle America, but there’s a rebellion being waged against the populace by the pimply minions of bureaucracy. This is merely a shot.

More at Adler.com.

Jacobian Piece of Impertinence, pimply minions of bureaucracy American sign language, Brian Spanjer, Grand Island Nebraska, Hunter Spanjer

Six years ago wrote this post in response to some dumb law some dumb politician was on about. Making it harder to buy toy guns, or some such stupidity, as I recall.

This weeks stupidity by the Waterloo Region District School Board, Family and Children’s Services of the Waterloo Region and Waterloo Regional Police (especially the police), gave me a mind to repost it. It seems somehow appropriate.

*********************************************************************

Hespeler – Authorities today discovered a cache of illegal toys in the room of a local 8 year old boy. Among the toys discovered where a Chinese manufactured pump action water blaster 1000, a spider man web blaster and a Chinese made cap gun that authorities fear may have been purchased over the counter a dollar store. “The Water Blaster alone can deliver 1/2 a liter of water non-stop” said an adult at the scene “There were handcuffs too, and not the cheap plastic ones either, metal ones.” Authorities also discovered a lone ranger mask, a tire iron for bicycles, 3 hockey pucks “of the kind that is sometimes used in ‘chuck-a-puck’ competitions”, and an H2O Ammo water clip. Not shown in the picture was a Hurl, once used in an assault on a sister and a pointy stick, causing local mothers to fear that someone could lose an eye.

The 8 year old will be sent to his room to wait ’til his father gets home. Further grounding is expected, with crown prosecutors wanting two weeks without TV, while child care experts say time served waiting for Dad is sufficient punishment.

seized weapons are being tested to see if they are related to any unsolved soakings or frightenings of twitchy neighbours with loud ‘bangy’ noises.

Here is a complete inventory of the confiscated booty:

Elastic Gun
Chinese manufactured Shield Blaster 1000 water soaker.
Chinese manufactured Pump Action Water Gun
H2O AMMO Water Clip
Hot Wheels Jet Launcher, with Jet
Spider man Web Blaster with holder
Finger pointed in the classic gun position
Bicycle Tire Iron
3 “Chuck-a-Puck” style Hockey Pucks
Plastic Bullets
Plastic Holster
2 Used Elastic Bands
Irish Manufactured Hurl
24? Pointy Stick

Also found were:

Wild Planet Spy Listener with attached ear phone
Infra-pink Spy glasses/ Walkie Talkie
Lone Ranger style mask
Handcuffs and Coin Rollers and a couple of dollars in coins.

I think that covers how I feel about this.

crime and justice, Jacobian Piece of Impertinence, pimply minions of bureaucracy Family CHildren Services, Hespeler, Police, Toy Gun, Waterloo Region

Year 2.

First they come for your lemonade…

Seriously, do the police in city after city not realize how stupid they look?

h/t Meow

Jacobian Piece of Impertinence, pimply minions of bureaucracy Lemonade, Washington DC

returns us to the days when officers of the law were pigs, and pigs were breakfast:

Ridley (Pimply Minion Graham Ridley) staked out Tijssen’s (Major Mark Tijssen) home for five full days in November 2009, watching from a tree-house on the neighbour’s property, waiting to see whether anyone would leave Tijssen’s property with meat.

…the following evening, after dark, Ridley raided Tijssen’s property accompanied by four police cars and two MNR trucks, lights flashing. Armed police officers searched the property painstakingly and carried off 14 articles of butchering equipment.

The crime this major in the Canadian Forces with a degree in biomedical toxicology from the University of Guelph, committed? He legally slaughtered a pig, for personal use, on his own property, then shared the meat with his friend, half owner of the pig.

Jacobian Piece of Impertinence, pimply minions of bureaucracy

I like to use the phrase “the pimply minions of bureaucracy,” on this blog. It comes from a 1799 quote from an unknown naval officer, regarding the introduction of an income tax:

It is a vile, Jacobian, jumped up Jack-in-Office piece of impertinence – is a true Briton to have no privacy? Are the fruits of his labour and toil to be picked over, farthing by farthing, by the pimply minions of bureaucracy?”

It seems a Pimply Minion Rebellion is on.

From Ezra Levant:

First came the health department. They poked and prodded, and even took water samples. No one has ever got sick at a Jaworski barbecue — the opposite; everyone comes for the food — but the government ordered that no home cooking would be allowed. The Jaworskis complied with these costly and ridiculous demands, catering the whole weekend and serving only bottled water, at great cost. But bureaucrats travel in packs. A local bylaw enforcement officer waited until the barbecue itself, and marched right onto the property — no search warrant needed! — and started peppering the guests with questions. He wasn’t a health officer; he was a bylaw officer. Yet he demanded to know what the guests had for lunch. In the name of the law! Armed with this devastating information, the officer charged Peter’s parents with running an illegal “commercial conference centre,” which carries a fine of up to $50,000. The officer, a burly, tattooed, six-foot-something man, told Peter’s mom to “be very careful.” She burst into tears.

In using the pimply minions part of the quote, I sometimes forget the second, also wonderful, portion of it, and it fits here. This is a “vile, Jacobian, jumped up Jack-in-Office piece of impertinence,” if ever I have seen one.

Jacobian Piece of Impertinence, pimply minions of bureaucracy Clarington, Ezra Levant, Liberty Summer Seminar, Peter Jaworski

Last week I discussed how divisive Mike Harris was getting an honorary doctorate from Nipissing University. This caused tolerant people everywhere to refuse  their honorary degrees, refuse to sit on the stage, refuse to give speeches on the same stage.

Now those tolerant teachers are threatening professional consequences against graduates of that school, in the name of Mike Harris’s divisiveness. Want to know why the teachers were such an easy target for the Harris PC’s. Because they made themselves one.

Shouldn’t the inclusive McGuinty Education Ministry be denouncing this letter? Or does Dalton’s mom not approve of Mike Harris getting an honorary degree either?

h/t SDA

Jacobian Piece of Impertinence Dalton McGuinty, Dalton's Mom, Mike Harris

I never got the whole Mike Harris was divisive shtick. Mike would say “I think teachers should have to re-prove their credentials every few years,” the leftists would shut down Windsor, riot at Queens Park and throw Molotov cocktails at police horses. While the clean up crews were still picking up the litter, the guy with the face mask, Zippo lighter and tequila bottle full of gasoline would be quoted in the Toronto Star as saying, it’s all because Mike Harris is so divisive.

Now that the great uniter, Dalton McGuinty has a hap-hap-happiest province since Bob Rae gave the fine folks at our local city halls and fire stations Rae Days, the ever divisive Mike Harris is at it again:

“I can think of some appropriate letters Mike Harris should have in front of his name, not after it,” Anishinabek Nation Grand Council Chief Patrick Madahbee said in a statement released on Friday. “You don’t reward a person who was directly responsible for so much economic hardship and divisiveness in this province.”

Chief Madahbee will refuse to give a speech, receive his honorary degree or sit on the same stage at the same time as Mike Harris, because the Chief is an honourable, tolerant, reasonable man who unites people.

Some people say the great Genie, irony, is dead. It’s not, it’s just in it’s bottle and hiding, lest some great uniter throw it at the legislature.

Jacobian Piece of Impertinence Anishinabek Nation, Bob Rae, Dalton McGuinty, Mike Harris, Patrick Madahbee, Rae Days

Jack Layton is in the middle of the crowd when they cut to the camera at Wayne Gretzky’s pub in Toronto. A girl’s arm is in the way of the camera showing his always smiling face, and he moves the arm.

h/t  Torontoist

Jack Layton, Jacobian Piece of Impertinence canada hockey, Jack Layton, wayne gretzky

Sometimes you wonder what these companies are thinking. Case in point: Mad magazine artist  Tom Richmond drew 540 caricature’s of all the representatives and senators in the United States. Those caricatures where put on one of 12 bodies, which created” virtual bobbleheads,” and included in an iPhone app that gave contact information for “senators and congressional representative either via zip-code or by using the iPhone’s GPS location services.”

The information was good, the tool valuable, and you could shake the phone or flick the screen with your finger and make the heads bobble. A useful app with a fun interface. It is all well done, not nasty, and non-partisan.  Head over to The Mad blog and see examples for yourself.

If your in the U.S. and thinking you’d like to get that app, sorry, Apple rejected it on the grounds it is “obscene, pornographic, or defamatory.” Obviously, it is, in their eyes, defamatory. A ridiculous assertion and a ridiculous decision.  An app that might have helped get people more involved, and it is kiboshed because of John McCain’s exaggerated jowls.

Jacobian Piece of Impertinence app, Apple, Bobble Head, caricature, iPhone, John McCain, Mad Magazine, Tom Richmond

Back when Dinosaurs roamed the earth, and Led Zeppelin was a going entity, a young fellow went off to school to learn the three R’s. By the time he got to high school, he was bored and disliked much of school. Reading, he thought, was uncool.

Is That Gun Licensed?

Years later, a full fledged reader, he went back to the high school curriculum, and re-read the books he could remember disliking.  A more awful list of books it would be hard to find. Lord of the Fly’s, An Edible Woman, the truly, utterly God awful Catcher in the Rye. There was one saving grace in that high school curriculum I was forced to read through: To Kill a Mockingbird.

Harper Lee’s only book about a Depression era family in Alabama, Mockingbird tackles such difficult issues as racism, rape, poverty, alcoholism. It is a novel of great depth, subtle humour and charm. It is possible to suggest that few better books have ever been written. So naturally, it ought to be banned.

Anyone who suggests this book ought to be banned because of it’s liberal use of a racial epithet that is not spoken in even impolite company these days, displays an ignorance that’s hard to fathom in the modern world. Key to the many themes throughout To Kill A Mockingbird is the accurate use of language from the Southern US in the thirties. The level of ignorance required to demand Mockingbird be banned based on a single word is hard to fathom. That some parent somewhere in Toronto displays that ignorance is not surprising, that The Toronto District School Board entertains such complaints goes a long way in explaining what is going wrong with our education system.

Memo to the TDSB: it’s a sin to kill To Kill a Mockingbird.

Jacobian Piece of Impertinence, pimply minions of bureaucracy Atticus Finch, TDSB, To Kill a Mockingbird, Toronto District School Board