There were a lot of "we're greener than them" signs on various cars. Toyota had their Prius up on a rotating display, and the Lexus hybrid had a lot of space around it as well. Aside from a few very odd looking cars like the previously-sold-only-in-Japan Cube from Nissan, most of the regular auto manufacturers were bragging about their efficiency ratings. Kia had a sound booth to show off their new sound system (which didn't impress me at all), and GM had their stage back and announced both their "free maintenance" program for all new cars and bragged about how they spend more on research in Canada than all the other auto manufacturers combined.
I'll just throw up a few thumbnails of the shots I took for now ...
I just got back in the door from the Canadian International Auto Show in Toronto and I'm starting a bulk upload of some of the 804 photos I took today. I'll label, tag and comment on some later, then delete others. Feel free to see what's up so far.
I've gone to the Canadian International Auto Show in Toronto three years in a row now. I love seeing the concept cars and trying to squeeze my 6'6" frame into the various cars so I know what to watch for when I'm in the market. I've taken quite a few pictures each year as well, and this year will be no different.
I'm excited to be going this weekend and I'll blog the new photos going up shortly after, but it will be a very interesting experience aside from looking at cool cars. This is the year of the auto sector bail-outs. This is the year of everyone from GM to Honda reporting losses and lowering sales. This is the year gas prices peaked and then fell again, and this is the year over a dozen auto manufacturers pulled out of American auto shows.
My wife even asked me if I'd be going this year since so many manufacturers had pulled out. She'd seen it on the news and in the paper, and wasn't sure I knew. Well it turns out they did and they didn't -- they pulled out of American shows, but nobody has pulled out of the Toronto show. This weekend will be very interesting since everyone will be there from Lamborghini to Ferrari as well as the GMs, Fords and Toyotas. More manufacturers will be here in Toronto than at the Detroit show, and that's exciting.
It should be interesting to see everyone's focus. Will Ford still have their massive over-sized trucks on display or more hybrids? Will GM's display fill the Skydome as it has before or be smaller due to cost cutting? Will the interest be around Toyota's high efficiency cars or the exotic sports cars, Bentleys, Rolls and Maseratis?
Two days to go till I find out.
This thing has been circulating on Facebook and elsewhere on the Interwebs where someone writes twenty five random things about themselves, mentions a bunch of people and those people are then supposed to write their own set of twenty-five randomnesses. I'm not sure I want to do any such thing, but as I've been recently tagged by a certain Kate Buckle (yeah, I called you out), I guess I should make an effort.
Bah, that's all I can be bothered to share for now. The next five will probably come eventually. Feel free to leave your thoughts below.
So I see this ad on a gaming website that says "Before you eat it, analyze it." Okay, sure, makes sense, think about what you're putting in your body. An ad for some Omega-3 reinforced eggs or something, who knows. Nope, as you may have guessed from the image on the right, it was Cheetos.
Now what I think of eating Cheetos, and I admit, that's not very often, I certainly don't want to think about what it is that I'm eating. What exactly is wrong with advertising companies these days? Maybe I'm just so far out of the target demographic and IQ that my reactions just don't line up with their test groups? Either way, I still think the message doesn't fit the product.
I love how some people are all about freedom until they themselves have their feelings hurt. Part of believing in freedom of expression and freedom of thought is that people who thoroughly disagree with you are free to do so, just as you are free to disagree.
Its not really that complicated, and yet it would seem the University of Calgary really doesn't get it [National Post story]. The University didn't like the display set up by some anti-abortion activists and had them charged with trespass when they wouldn't remove it.
Trespass. For displaying and not removing images that are arguably no more obscene than those displayed during other events at the University (specifically of torture victims). An institute of higher learning believes that it must shelter its students from each others' views when no laws are broken and no hatred is incited?
It is said that truth need not fear any question, and yet the only location people cannot peacefully protest in Canada is in front of an abortion clinic. You can protest a hospital, a religious building, a private home, or a community centre, but not an abortion clinic.
This isn't about pro-choice, women have those rights in Canada as it stands now. What women don't have is access to good information from both sides, because of political speech stifling like this.
How can you claim to be pro-choice about a woman's body and not about a woman's thoughts?
Go ahead, leave comments below.
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