Author: Alan

Martello Towers

martellos

Martello towers guard the mouth of the Rideau. There are actually three in the picture, the third hidden by the trees to the left. It stands out in the mist better here. Built in the 1840s to protect the then high-tech canal technology of the Rideau accessed between the nearest two towers, the theory was similar to Halifax Harbour’s defences – a killing zone of miles deterring any thought of attack. One gun in the red roofed tower to the left had a range of 7 miles. Greater detail and a harbour map can be found here.

Not Hot Law

Having a boo at the Jan/Feb issue of Canadian Bar Association’s magazine National it was very interesting to read at page 40 the list of areas of law considered “not hot”, not the “areas where finding work is currently fruitful”. Number one? Technology. The rest of the duds:

  • Securities
  • Mergers and Acquisitions
  • Corporate/Commercial
  • Public Sector

Looks like the 90’s are now truly over. Good thing I finished that LLM in IT back in ’02.

Futurist Nut Bars

So why is Tod Maffin so smart? I was driving along on Saturday afternoon not really listening to DNTO and – WHAMMO – Sook Yin Lee says Tod’s going to tell us that blogs are dead already. Here is the promo for the piece:

And Tod Maffin dives into the world of blogging. Like everything on the web, what began as a grassroots movement it’s suddenly become corporate. Is this the end for web diaries as we know it?

Isn’t there a rule that anyone who calls himself a futurist isn’t? Or at least goes somewhat nuts. But then today there is Dave3, also a smartie pants, saying, to get the news, he is going to give up reading everything but blogs. [Maybe he’s on an all rice crispy diet.]

I am confused. In the days before the future, when I was a kid, the characteristics of the future where unlike today – food would be in tubes, we’d use personal jet packs and clothes would be all silvery. I sure as hell didn’t expect that I would have to rely on self-appointed wackos with bandwidth for the news any more than I thought 13 factories would supply all the meat for the vast majority of prople in the USA [a frightful fact I heard on talk radio last night] or that most food in the store would rely on killer transfats. It is starting to look like eating real food and relying on good new sources are the kinds of things that will make you an outcast in the new next future.

I tire of this. Why don’t futurists tell stories like

around 2012 people will get sick and tired of self-appointed gurus consulting to government on untendered contracts [supported by 25% finder fees] advising upon which leaders and stakeholders needed input…and will kick the bums out.

Though its unlikely as 98% of cheques to futurists are sign by the bums, that’s a future I’d like to see. Then, again, now that I think of it…maybe it’s happening now in Ottawa in 2004. The wheels may be coming off of one guy’s particular future as we watch right now.