| Loonie surpasses $1.10 US
The United States, our biggest trading partner, now has a huge external debt and its weakened dollar will further increase the costs of borrowing, causing its debt to balloon even more and further weakening that economy. Meanwhile, the resource sector can't sustain us indefinitely and the manufacturing jobs we are losing will never be replaced. And in the midst of this, the Canadian government is bloody irresponsible! It should be encouraging the Bank of Canada to adopt monetary policies that help keep the dollar in line. And meanwhile, it should be putting more of that budget surplus into research and development and other areas to encourage the development of industries that will sustain us when the oil economy comes to an end. But what is it doing instead?? The government is choosing to use a substantial chunk of that surplus to give us GST cuts and more income tax cuts for the rich.
Even at 58, it's a Barbie world for Gillette woman
Linda Hanson has wanted a Barbie doll and a pink Princess telephone since she was 10 years old.She finally bought a Barbie for herself in 1992. She had to wait 50 years for the Princess telephone, but just a few weeks ago, her 85-year-old father bought her one of the cotton-candy-pink telephones.Today, she is 58 and her Barbie collection dominates the window display case of Cook's Nook, the store she manages here in Gillette. There are Barbies in black and Barbies in pink and Barbies in purple and Barbies in gold. There are Holiday Barbies and there is a Millennium Barbie. There are Barbie ornaments, dozens and dozens of them; on the tree, on the shelves, on the display boxes. There is a cream-colored, Barbie-sized Corvette driven by a blonde Barbie in a emerald-green summer dress. There is also, of course, her brand-new, cotton-candy-pink, dial-lights-up-at-night Princess telephone sitting right up front.As far as Linda Hanson is concerned, she's living her second childhood."Why, I just loved Barbie as a child but when I was growing up, we didn't have a lot of money," she says.
RIM announces BlackBerry platform enhancements
Phone Scoop reported on the RIM announcement that BlackBerry owners will be receiving updates for their devices that adds enhanced functionality and security. These new software updates will be phased in over the first half of 2008 and if you buy a new device in mid to late 2008 it should have the updates already installed. The updates include enhanced messaging and collaboration, simpler management and support for IT departments, enhanced security, and expanded application support. End users will primarily see the enhancements in messaging that include integration of DataViz's excellent Documents To Go product for viewing and editing Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files, remote search for older messages no longer on your device, free-busy calendar lookup of coworkers, HTML and rich text email support, and IBM Lotus enhancements.
NASCAR Boss Brian France's State of the Sport Address
BRIAN FRANCE: Good afternoon, everyone. On behalf of everyone at NASCAR, thank you for being here. This has become a pre-season tradition of sorts and of course a very important one. We're starting off this year, as that video illustrated, in strong fashion. NASCAR is celebrating 60 proud years in 2008. Think about that, 60 years. We've covered a lot of ground in six decades. The first NASCAR-sanctioned race was run on the beach road course in Daytona in 1948. That was just a few weeks following the famed Streamline Hotel meeting in which NASCAR was formed. Red Byron won in a Ford modified. In a 1949, the first strictly stock race, what is now known as the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, was held at the Charlotte fairgrounds. Jim Roper won that race and Red Byron was the season champion. In 1949, there were a total of only eight races.
Reporter: Susan Ramsett
The death of Chicago news anchor Randy Salerno is receiving national attention after a snowmobile accident in Vilas County. The 45-year old Salerno died January 24 after a crash near Sayner. The driver he was riding with, Scott Hirschey is now facing charges of homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle. A criminal complaint says Hirschey's blood alcohol level was .22% four hours after the crash. The legal limit to drive in Wisconsin is .08. So far this season 15 people have died in snowmobile accidents in Wisconsin - and alcohol is believed to have been a factor in 10 of those 15 deaths. Whenever the topic of drinking and snowmobiling comes up - fingers point in lots of different directions. Should there be stricter laws and stiffer penalties? Should there be more authorities patrolling the trails? Can we blame the bartenders who serve the drinks? Or is it a matter of personal responsiblity - resting entirely on the shoulders of those who drink and drive? Maybe think drinking and snowmobiling isn't a problem at all.
Bentley shifts into coaching
There comes a time in an athlete's career when he or she replaces active participation with different aspects of professional life. The stick-and-ball player, once he hangs up his uniform, may move into broadcasting, business or coaching. The last of these options is not as common among race drivers. .
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