Copenhagen not so Copious

Cost of doing something about climate change: hundreds of billions of dollars.

Cost of doing nothing about climate change: hundreds of billions of dollars.

Cost of sending the Environment Minister and Prime Minster of Canada to the Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen to do not much of anything either way: Priceless!

Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - Video Game Review

OK, I have yet to put a video game review on my blog owing to the fact that I am in school and the given cost of purchasing a video game brand new usually sees me waiting till the game is cheap brand new or purchasing a video game used.

That being said, I picked up a used copy of Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion.

Platform: Xbox 360

Genre: Role Playing Game

Release date: 2006

I haven't played any of the previous Elder Scrolls titles and had only heard good things about the franchise, so I didn't know exactly what to expect but was anticipating a good game, and overall the title does not disappoint.

Graphics. Very rich and detailed. The Elder Scrolls world is huge with plenty of colour, contrast, and texture to the outdoor and indoor worlds your character can inhabit. The only drawback I noticed is that some of the actions the main character can do are a bit 'stiff' looking. For example, when the character jumps, his or her body will remain in the exact same position during the jump which looks rigid, and when the character is standing in one spot and you make the character turn on the spot 360 degrees, the characters legs don't move at all. Otherwise the details on the main character and other characters and creatures in the game are nicely rendered.

Sound. A beautiful orchestral score adds to the fantasy setting of the game. The music shifts nicely to accompany the varying situations the character is in, such as when combat ensues. There are plenty of swordplay and magical sound effects to enhance the fantasy element of the game as well. I noticed Patrick Stewart, of Star Trek: The Next Generation fame, lends his voice to the game.

Play Control. Pretty easy to use overall. I found the map, item, and weapons menus took a little time to get used to navigating wise but your character reacts quickly with a push of a button.

Story. Quite involved with the larger quest consisting of several smaller quests that are not necessary to finish the overall game, but get you experience, money, or other items of interest when you complete the smaller quests. You can modify the race and gender of the main character and even alter the characters 'sign' which changes the game story a little so you get extra replay value out of the game if you play the game again and alter your character according to the race, gender, and good vs. evil alignment you choose for your character.

Graphics: 4.5 out of 5.

Sound: 5 out of 5.

Play Control: 4.5 out of 5.

Whose gonna care for health care?

I've been doing research into the cost of health care in the US and Canada and the hundreds of billions of dollars spent in Canada and trillions of dollars spent in the US on health care is staggering.

The figures reminded me of a report I remember hearing ten years ago, that indicated the health care system in Canada is going to be bankrupt in ten years. Well, that was over ten years ago and we seem to be doing fine.

Although, the reason the health care system in Canada is not broke may be because of all the cuts to health care that the federal government and in turn the provincial government made to health care over the last ten years or more, and the rise of private clinics and/or private medical services being offered to varying degrees across Canada seems to have filled a void in the wake of said cuts.

I think we need to realize that funding health care when health care costs are apparently rising faster then inflation from a purely publicly funded purse is not realistic.

A mixed system of public and private funding should be feasible in Canada as many European countries such as Sweden have a mixed system which is predominately public, but has private elements to it.

I know we cherish our social institutions in Canada, but there is a saying in law that goes 'the law must be stable, but not stand still,' and that certainly applies to the tyranny of tired two dimensional status quo thinking that dominates mainstream politics, economics, and how health care is funded.

Health care reform is inevitable, and we should be thinking beyond the terms of our elected officials when it comes to how we can keep health care accessible to everyone.

The Hulk - Blu-Ray Disc Review

Hulk Smash!

Oh yeah, a classic line! For the 2008 release of The Hulk, starring Edward Norton as Bruce Banner, aka The Hulk, Liv Tyler, and the always great acting William Hurt and Tim Roth, this most recent movie version of The Hulk is a great overall movie.

If you recall it was not more then five years before the last Hulk film was released with Eric Bana playing the lead character and Ang Lee directing (not a departure for Ang Lee at the time at all).

The previous movie version of the Hulk was, well, not that great overall, and thankfully it's most recent incarnation is a step up.

Video: Wow! The previous Hulk movie release came out before the Hi-Def revolution and the most recent version of The Hulk takes full advantage of the Hi-Rez age with vibrant colours, amazing black levels, and no noticeable digital artificating, or grain. There are some scenes where The Hulk is hiding out in a cave while it is raining and those scenes really show off the black levels.

Sound: You get a DTS-HD master audio track for hi-def playback and a standard Dolby Digital track for compressed surround sound playback. The hi-def sound is fantastic with lots of surround use during chases scenes with helicopters, gunfights, and explosions that will make your subwoffer rumble.

Story: Without getting into too much detail, if you remember the original Hulk TV series you will be pleased that Lou Ferrigno has as a cameo as security guard in it (and Lou is still quite buff because that is what you needed in the 70's before CGI). The script is pretty tight and the continuity and flow is solid with good acting throughout. There is a hint of what might come in a sequel at the end of the movie with the appearance of another famous superhero character.

Though if you were to compare the Hulk as a Marvel Character to some of the other Marvel characters you kind of feel The Hulk is not quite as cool as Spiderman or Wolverine. But that is just my opinion!

Video: 5 out of 5.
Sound: 5 out of 5.
Story: 4 out of 5.

Tiger Woods .... Just a mere mortal

It is easy to forget that celebrities, politicians, and professional athletes are mere mortals. They have the same genetic makeup as every other human being on this Earth.

And yet, when their personal lives become embroiled in scandal and conspiracy, their problems are thrust into the limelight and kept there for however long the tabloids can feed off the proverbial fodder.

I personally don't judge Tiger Woods for his infidelity. How many cases of infidelity are before the courts right now as I write this in the general public?

Why should Tiger Woods personal shame become a public forum on infidelity when it is happening all the time around the world to other people?

I say we should focus less on making a public spectacle and moral case of Tiger Woods infidelity, and more time focusing on our own lives.

Twitter hither

So, short form is in huh? Well, I can see the benefit of being limited 140 characters to craft a message. Especially if it is a business related message. I have learned in Creative Communications that less is usually more, and focusing on the important points is imperative and, Twitter certainly provides you with that medium.

Happy Twitter!

Ode to an airport

My wife and I had a voucher for travel on United Airlines that we obtained when we were deliberately delayed on a trip to see some of my wife's relatives in Missouri and held up overnight in Chicago.

Our dismay at that precise moment was not as animated as some of our fellow travellers, but we were annoyed nevertheless.

My wife and I decided to transfer said voucher to her parents to use which you can do, but when we got to Winnipeg Airport we couldn't do it .....

The United kiosk was devoid of any signs of life and in the end we waited for nearly four hours for a United Airlines departure to see the kiosk come to life.

My wife and I lined up, rife with confidence that our waiting was not in vain, but it was. We were told that the persons who can make the magic voucher transfer had left not more then 30 minutes ago; said persons were there all along, but needed to be called to come to the kiosk! Ahh, serenity now!

Now, I'm not saying my wife and I are not to blame, because I'm sure that we could have found out more info on the magic voucher transfer procedure.

The only thing I noted in my flustered and flabbergasted recollection of said event, is that the United kiosk had no information for customers in our situation indicating where, when, and who we need to speak to.

So, if you find yourself in a similar position for the first time as mentioned above, find out the where, when, and who first!

Going somewhere fast?

With laws prohibiting the use of cell phones and devices that allow text messaging in motor vehicles becoming a reality across Canada, I wonder if we will hear about 'road rage' again?

Or how about hearing horror stories about motorists who don't use signal lights and the speed demon motorists darting in and out of lanes to get home a whole 5 minutes early?

I don't think any law that bans electronic devices is ever going to ultimately eliminate being just a plain old bad driver on top of being distracted by an electronic device!

Transformers: Rise of the Fallen Blu-Ray Disc Review

Transformers! More then meets the eye! As an 80's child I remember Transformers very well and when I heard a live action movie was being made I was a little skeptical. To be clear, there were animated Transformer movies in the past.

I was impressed with the first Transformers live action movie and I saw first one on Blu-Ray Disc and recently saw the sequel on Blu-Ray Disc as well.

Technically, the sequel lives up to its predecessor in every way. The CGI is amazingly convincing and the production values through the roof.

Picture: Clean and crisp as we would expect with no anomalies that I noticed in terms of edge enhancement or artifacting. The hi-rez picture is bright with great contrast and color; especially the CGI colors of the different Transformer characters.

Sound: A DTS Master Audio layer is the hi-fi sound layer. It is the only hi-def layer available on the feature disc with a couple other Dolby Digital language layers for sound available. So if your system does not allow you to access the DTS HD Master file, your out of luck hi-def sound wise. The DTS Master file is astounding. Some DTS Master files can be overly bright and overdone on the low end, but overall I found the sound stage to be clear and not overdone at all. Listen for the cool sound effects running through your surround set up that accompany the Paramount logo at the beginning of the movie.

Story: Well, obviously they didn't copy the original Transformers story line and not every Transformer character is and will make it into this and any other sequels that might coming. That being said, the narrative plays out with good pace and at least there was an attempt to craft an interesting story with back story elements connected to the first film with new back story elements brought out in the sequel.

I wasn't on the edge of my seat guessing with bated breath what would be coming next, but the story was interesting enough to keep me from getting bored between the actions sequences. I was surprised that the length of the movie pushes well over 2 hours.

Overall, this one is worth a rental if you are into sci-fi or a Transformers aficionado though you might not like the blatant military advertising throughout both the first Transformer film and the sequel.

Picture: 4.5 out of 5.
Sound: 5 out of 5.
Story: 3.5 out of 5.

Happy movie!

Wonderful weather isn't it?

Has anyone else noticed that in between seasons the weather seems, well, more erratic?

This last year we had a winter that didn't seem to end, a summer that seemed more like a prolonged spring, summer conditions near the end of summer, and then most recently a jump to early winter!

I will preach and say that having lived in the same geographical area for all of my life that the seasons don't transition as smoothly as I remember when I was young.

I am not trying to imply that weather patterns are not naturally erratic but I think it is safe to say that climate change is here; whether you believe that the current trend of climate change is caused by human activity or not.

Buyer Beware Blog Entry - Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs

The federal government of Canada is planning to phase out incandescent light bulbs by 2012 in favor of Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs. The reason? CFL light bulbs are touted as being more energy efficient, cost efficient, and will help to reduce green house gas emissions.

Sounds good doesn't it?

Well, before you run out and convert every light in your residence there are a few things you should consider and be informed about.

Our team focused on finding out specific information about CFL bulbs in terms of actual cost savings, environmental impact, and the aesthetics's of the light emitted by CFL bulbs. We focused on information about CFL bulbs put out by the government, private sector, and feedback from a survey we administered.

Here is what we found out:

There is a cost savings associated with using CFL bulbs. CFL bulbs are more expensive up front, but do typically have a longer life span then incandescent bulbs; so the extra cost up front is recouped from the long life of a CFL bulb.

Because of there lower wattage and longer life span, CFL bulbs on a large scale will help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The federal governments testimonial of the savings around using CFL bulbs pegs the savings around $50 per year.

The only issue with this stat is that if you figure on an average of 30 lights per household it would cost over $150 dollars to make the switch to CFL bulbs and the cost savings would not be immediate; rather it would take a couple years to see a return on your investment in CFL bulbs.

So, if a person was to simply change 2 out of 30 lights in their house to CFL bulbs, the savings would be very negligible and certainly not very noticeable on their electricity bill.

The aforementioned disparity was backed up by a large percentage of survey responses in which respondents were aware of energy savings, but were not seeing a cost savings on their electricity bills.

From an environmental stand point, CFL bulbs are not without some controversy.

CFL bulbs contain mercury whereas incandescent bulbs do not. Incandescent bulbs are typically thrown in the trash when burnt out or broken and that behaviour seems to have passed onto CFL bulbs; a large portion of the respondents we surveyed were disposing of CFL bulbs in their regular garbage.

What is disconcerting is the lack of awareness of the fact that you can (and should consider by-laws governing the disposal of mercury) recycle CFL bulbs. Again, a large number of respondents seemed unaware of either the mercury content and/or the fact that places like most local municipalities and Home Depot can recycle/dispose of CFL bulbs.

To round our research down we did find most respondents did not care for the light emitted from CFL bulbs; CFL light is 'soft' and 'dim' whereas incandescent light is 'bright' and 'room filling'.

There are options CFL bulb type and size wise. It is reasonable to assume that choices CFL bulb wise will expand in the future to close the luminosity gap further between CFL bulbs and incandescent bulbs.

One last interesting factor for consumers to consider is the fact that CFL bulbs do not emit as much heat as incandescent bulbs. This should be a consideration for individuals living in climates where a furnace is required for home heating. A change over to CFL bulbs can have an impact on how often a furnace will turn on and off during cool to cold times of the year.

From a promotional stand point, CFL bulbs are pushed for energy savings and money savings, but the safety and disposal of CFL bulbs, while information is available, is not being promoted.

Ultimately, what our group was left asking was why is the government and/or private sector not sending out information to consumers about the safety and disposal of CFL bulbs? Right now, most of the information about safety and disposal of CFL bulbs can be found on the Internet; why is information about safety and disposal not being sent directly to consumers via the mail in the form of brochures?

Overall, CFL bulbs are a good long term investment. Our teams findings shed light on the fact that the safety, disposal, and shear aesthetics's of CFL bulbs should be taken into consideration by consumers.

Caveat Emptor!

Into the suburbs

Pretty much everyone has seen and continues to see cities expand to meet population growth.

Some call it growth and others call it sprawl. I have mixed feelings on the growth or sprawl of cities. On the one hand people need places to live and on the other hand I don't know if the average citizen, city counsellor, or urban planning and development professional is really thinking about the long term ramifications of either how fast or the way in which cities are expanding.

What I've noticed walking through recently developed neighborhoods is the lack of green energy infrastructure investment; not a single solar panel, wind vein, and perhaps less visible, Geo-thermal energy production.

Perhaps the aforementioned technologies are in newly developed neighborhoods and I simply don't see them. I think if would be reasonable to assume that most new housing developments are being constructed in a green manner; energy efficient windows, furnaces, air conditioners, etc,.

But as more housing developments are hooked up the grid the demand for energy is just going to keep growing and I think green sources of energy production should be integrated where possible into new housing developments.

What is preventing green energy production from making its way into new housing developments? I think the most obvious answer is cost. No one building their dream home from the ground up to the tune of a few hundred thousand dollars is likely to spend another couple thousand on a solar panel. Though if you have the extra money do it!

So, what is the government doing to encourage green energy infrastructure investment? At best I have heard the government encourages but does not offer much in the way of subsidizes, rebates, and/or incentives a small business or homeowner to invest in a green source of energy production.

I will avoid getting into extraneous detail about the status of federal energy policy for now.

Tell me what you have noticed in neighborhoods in the green energy production movement.

Pour a 40 oz'er for Confucius off the Pakoda y'all ...

It was the great philosopher and some would call the original gangster of political science Confucius's birthday last week. Hmm, he would be well over 2000 years old if I am not mistaken.

In tandem with the great words of wisdom that Confucius was known for, here is one quote that I really like.

When asked about examining what citizens like and dislike Confucius replied:

"If the people dislike something it should be examined. If the people like something it should be examined"

X-Men Origins: Wolverine - Blu-Ray Disc Review

This review rates the picture and sound as I am a video and audiophile as well as the storyline for the movie.

The video is presented in full 1080p (my 42 inch plasma TV goes up to 1080i). The images are clean and clear with very good color and clarity throughout the movie.

The audio track contains a DTS Master Audio 5.1 mix as well as a Dolby Digital 5.1 mix. I played the DTS Master Audio track back and I found the overall presentation clear though a little on the subtle side. For example, many scenes take place outdoors and I didn't hear a lot of presence in the surround field in the way of ambient sound effects. There are some nice low frequency effects when explosions occur that are not wall shattering.

I am not an avid reader of comic books. With that out of the way the storyline is essentially a prequel to the first three X-Men movies; more specifically the character Wolverines back story.

I really liked the initial trailer for the X-Men Origins movie I saw but like most movie trailers sometimes what you see in the trailer makes the overall movie actually look better then it is.

I think where the storyline falls short is the back story that was chosen for the script and to a lesser degree how said back story was presented. The best way to describe how I felt when the movie was finished was that I was not excited and awed by the storyline. I will leave it at that as I don't know the full back story myself and am now interested to read Wolverines' back story to see what may have been omitted, or, as so often happens with comic book to movie adaptations, changed.

Overall ratings:

Picture: 4.5 out of 5
Sound: 3.0 out of 5
Story: 2.5 out of 5

Penny pinching when buying video games

Well, you wouldn't be the only one pinching pennies because of the recession that looms over all of us to some degree. Sales of video games are down much like sales for most other products around the world. Even before the recession I was becoming more 'picky' about spending money on video games. The biggest factor is most likely the fact that I don't want and/or don't have endless hours to spend playing video games. And let's face it, 60 plus dollars for a brand new video game is a lot of money to part with compared to the price of let's say, a new release blu-ray movie.

I am looking for the best bang for my buck when it comes to spending money on a video game and I'm sure that I am not the only one. A couple of years ago I started reading reviews for video games at ign.com before considering purchasing a game as background research. So, I would like to end with a survey if you prefer to buy a new video game or a used video game primarily.

Is the Enviro Levy dry ....

I was just recently at Home Depot and was asked if I would like a bag for five cents. I can't recall this situation occurring in the past at Home Depot until not so long ago, and now it seems to be the norm for consumers to be asked if they want to pay for plastic bags and/or just be charged for plastic bags wherever consumers shop for small ticket items.

Putting aside the plastic industries morbid fear of cloth bag dominance, my recent plastic bag incident prompted me to ask; where does the money from the enviro levy go?

I was under the impression that the enviro levy is paying for the cost of disposing of the plastic bag at a landfill. Or is it to help keep recycling facilities going?

Many plastic bags don't get recycled and I am curious if anyone has any specific information on this subject or can direct me to a link that might.

Into the blog frontier

Hello,

Welcome to the Unofficial Meat Man blog. My hope for my blog is to have a variety of reviews and articles about video games, movies, electronics, and commentary on topics of interest such as politics. Over time I anticipate that my blog will undergo changes and focus as the world around us certainly can and will change. To all my fellow creative communications section 1 classmates I look forward to checking out your blogs as I hope you look forward to checking out mine.