Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in Kevin Laven's LiveJournal:

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Thursday, December 4th, 2008
3:27 pm	Letter sent to the Governor General I'm disappointed in our "symbolic" head of state, and have decided to sent a letter to her at info@gg.ca. Feel free to borrow this letter if you share my view. Dear Governor General, In a time when minority governments are becoming the norm in Canada, much as they are in many European countries, I am concerned as a Canadian that you have taken a dangerous step in allowing the prorogation of parliament at this time. My understanding of Canada's form of government is that we are a Parliamentary Democracy, where the people elect the members of Parliament to make decisions on their behalf. My understanding is that the role of Governor General is to ensure and protect the function of Parliament, and to ensure that the will of Parliament is fulfilled within the bounds of the constitution and law. The prorogation of parliament at this time is clearly not an expression of the will of parliament, but rather the will of the Prime Minister and his party alone, who were elected by a minority of Canadians. The reason for prorogation, as expressed by the Prime Minister, was to prevent the will of Parliament from being fulfilled by means of preventing it from functioning at all during the current session. This seems to be the very sort of thing that the Office of the Governor General exists to prevent, and is happening during a time of rapid change in the nation, when a functioning parliament is absolutely necessary to steer us through. Moreover, it sets a dangerous precedent for the future. There have been several incidents in history where a Prime Minister could have attempted to abuse their ability to request prorogation in this manner. They have refrained from doing so in the past, whether out of respect for our system of government, or out of a confidence that the Governor General would not allow such abuse. In the future, they will have no such reason to refrain. So long as minority governments are the norm, the Prime Minister will henceforth feel that they have the prerogative to prorogue parliament whenever they lose the confidence of Parliament, rather than submitting to its will. I fear that your decision today may have far-reaching effects in the years to come, and may lead to requests for prorogation stymieing the ability of the Canadian government to function. I sincerely hope that I am wrong, and that this decision has been carefully thought through. I also look forward to reading in the near future a public statement regarding the reasoning behind your decision. (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, June 6th, 2008
11:25 am	Marina is a permanent resident!!! After a somewhat long and very confusing process, Marina is now a permanent resident of Canada! We went to the final interview yesterday (which really was final - we were skeptical), and the process is finally done. :) (12 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, May 30th, 2007
12:16 pm	An update, as requested Well, I don't often use this journal, as most of the people who read it talk to me on a fairly regular basis anyway, but I've been "tagged" to update, so here goes! Last November, I bought a house. It's a nice little place near the subway line, and my tenants pay most of my mortgage for me. :) There's just enough room for a couple of guests to stay over, so a place to crash in Toronto is now available to friends. Last December, Marina and I got engaged!!! The date for the wedding is set for September 2nd, and we've finally got the church and catering booked for that date, but there's still so much to do! I'm looking forward to the wedding, but not nearly as much as I am to a lifetime as Marina's husband. :) I'm still working for The Pressure Pipe Inspection Company, although I've pulled out of software and IT entirely, and am now product manager for one of our service lines. It's interesting work, but the hours can be pretty ugly at times, and the lack of any real job description can get stressful. We've been spending a lot of time applying for (and stressing about) Visas and Work Permits for Marina, and also for her family for the wedding. It's amazing how much trouble it is to get people into the country (and in Marina's case, to keep her here). We've got 4 different applications "being processed" right now, so keep your fingers crossed for us! Finally, Marina and I seem to have developed a bad habit of heading to the emergency room - we've been 3 times in under a year, after a combined lifetime total of 2 in our previous 28 years. Once for almost-passing-out pain due to crazy muscle spasms in my neck, once to get Marina a tetanus shot when she stepped on a rusty nail, and now again on Monday when Marina was cut badly under the eye playing basketball. We've agreed that three times is enough, and we're done now. Finally, I just found out that the ticket I got when I was run into by someone who run a red light was thrown out (yay!), and now I need to go back to the insurance company to try once again to fight the "fault". That's all the major events I can think of at the moment! (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, January 3rd, 2007
6:24 pm	Random musings From a Globe and Mail story on chemical contents tests run on politicians: For reasons that are unclear, the politicians had a significantly higher burden of chemical contaminates in their bodies than other Canadians the group has tested. Now, to me it seems quite clear that these chemicals are giving people super mutant powers, which they are using to their advantage to seize political power. Mr. Layton had the highest levels of flame retardants of the four politicians. For example, this suggests that Jack Layton is actually the Human Torch. Can you guess the secret identities of our other politicians? (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, April 24th, 2006
8:43 am	A short note to our Prime Minister Dear Mr Harper, We all know that you promised to undo last year's Liberal income tax cuts, and use that money to cut the GST by 1%. You claim to be an economist, so you must understand full well the two reasons this is a very bad idea: 1) The only people that will be better off under your scheme are those with household incomes below $10,000 and above around $90,000. 2) A consumption tax (like the GST) is in generally better for the economy than an income-tax, since the consumption tax encourages people to save rather than spend. Surely you have noted that the rest of the developed world understands this, and is moving away from income and corporate taxes, in favour of consumption taxes. Now, apparently the entire finance department is speaking out against these changes <http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/rtgam.20060424.wrgst24/bnstory/business/home>. So, in short, please leave our income taxes alone, and please do not cut the GST! (Comment on this)
Tuesday, March 28th, 2006
11:54 pm	Planning Heather-related event(s)... So, Heather is going to be in Toronto next weekend, for likely the only time in a 2 year span, and I was thinking it might be fun to get some people together to do something. This seems like as good a forum as any for planning this. Last I heard of her plans, she hopes to arrive in Toronto Friday night 8pm-ish, and stay until, well, she didn't really say, but I've assumed at least Sunday. Heather mentioned "finding some food" on Friday, which I take to mean meet up somewhere (possibly Toronto-ish?) with everyone interested for dinner and/or post-dinner activities (movie, coffee, desert, drinks, etc.). Lindsay will also be in town as of Saturday, making it seem an opportune time for a grand get-together of some sort. My place would be available, but due to roommate concerns the gathering may have to be small, quiet, and end fairly early. Would anyone else care to offer a better place? Sunday unfortunately I'm busy from about 12:15 to 3:00, and again at some yet unknown point in the evening, so I'm pretty much out, but please chime in with suggestions! I haven't the foggiest idea where Heather is at the moment, but hopefully she'll get online soon and help make plans! (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, March 21st, 2006
4:50 pm	Ashley MacIsaac for PM? Oh my! Ashley MacIsaac has declared his intention to run for the Liberal leadership. Now, I've got nothing against celebrities running for office, but isn't this the guy who was dumped by his record label for poor behaviour...? This is just getting silly. Who's ready to get on board with the "Johnath for Liberal Leader" campaign? I think the time is ripe! (13 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, February 27th, 2006
10:46 pm	Buying a house... maybe? So, I'm thinking of putting in an offer on this house tomorrow. The location is right, the price is good, it's well divided up for renting, has a good tenant in part of it who wants to stay, and the price is good too. It's kind of nerve-racking, though. I have this natural aversion to spending money, and the idea of spending over $200,000 (which I don't have) all at once just kind of blows my mind! Any votes on what I should put in as an initial offer? (Comment on this)
Monday, February 20th, 2006
3:22 pm	Anyone around Toronto know how to sew and want to make some cash? Anyone who knows how to sew, lives in the Toronto area, has a bit of time on their hands, and would like to make some money (or knows someone who fits this description), please read on... ( Read more... ) (4 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, February 17th, 2006
1:35 pm	Tough choice? Sleep on it! Here's an interesting article for those with a passing interest in psychology. The basic idea is that your subconscious is much better at handling complex decisions than your conscious, so the best way to make a tough decision may really be to "sleep on it". Just ignore the choice for a while, and let your subconscious sort it out, and go with your gut. For those with some actual psychology background, is this something new, or is it a well established fact that I just haven't read about before? (Comment on this)
Sunday, February 5th, 2006
12:00 am	Quite a few weeks Well, it's been quite a couple of weeks. It all started with a lady driving an SUV decided she was going to swerve around a stopping transport truck, and run through a red light. Unfortunately, I was in the middle of a left turn at the time. Let me tell ya, when a Civic meets an SUV going at a good clip, the Civic loses. About 2 minutes later, when I could actually breath and see straight again, everything seemed generally okay. I had not been punctured, nor had my head been struck. The driver of the SUV seemed fine, and was apologizing profusely for running the red and hitting me. My car was dead, but given that this was clearly the other driver's fault, I should get the value back from insurance. But wait! The officer that arrived at the scene explained to me that the driver making a left hand turn is at fault for an accident, even if the other driver ran a red! So, I now have an at-fault accident on my record, and a ticket for "Turn - not safe" to go with it. So, I am out of pocket the cost of my car, the tow, and the rental I used for the following week - about $5,000 all told (assuming that I get the ticket thrown out, otherwise tack on an extra $4K or so in insurance costs). As is probably obvious, I'm bitter. A message to anyone considering not getting collision coverage: "fault" is based on formulas, not on who actually causes the accident! The following week was spent trying to figure out how I can get the official fault for the accident evaluated, hoping my back would feel better soon, and searching for a new car. While I have since found out that there is no appeals process for accident fault (that is what "no fault" insurance means), I have had success in the other two areas. My back is feeling okay, and I'm going to try it out playing sports again tomorrow. And I am the proud owner (well, leaser) of a brand new Hyundai Accent. So, to sum up the past 10 days: Civic dead, clean driving record spoiled, Kevin intact, new car has arrived. Quite a couple of weeks! (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, January 26th, 2006
12:33 pm	Harping on Harper So, priority number one for Stephen Harper was to pass the "Federal Accountability Act". But apparently accountability doesn't apply when you have a busy schedule. "Despite a code of conduct that says it is an MP's duty to co-operate with an inquiry by the commissioner, Mr. Harper's office told (ethics commissioner) Mr. Shapiro he could not find time in his schedule to answer his questions between August and November of last year." Can anybody say "one term"? (Comment on this)
Friday, January 13th, 2006
2:33 pm	Where I've been I think the secret is to hit the big countries first. They make your map look more colourful! (Comment on this)
Thursday, January 12th, 2006
8:53 am	A Conservative majority..... Just read an article talking about the upcoming elections, saying that at the current poll numbers, we may be heading for a Conservative majority. This kind of scares me, not because of the "hidden agenda" fears the Liberals are pushing, but because of the platform he's running on. Some highlights: 1) Re-criminalize marijuana possession. 2) Use parliamentary means to disallow gay marriage. 3) Repeal recent tax cuts that favour the poor. 4) Bring in new tax cuts that favour the wealthy. 5) Cancel the national firearms registry, continue to allow handguns, and arm the border crossing staff. 6) Cancel the national child care program agreed to by the provinces, replacing it with a stipend paid to parents. This one sound nice, but a national child care program would provide a mechanism for poor mothers to get back into the workforce, whereas a stipend would not. 7) Tax credit for monthly transit passes. I had a discussion about this idea about a year ago with a friend of mine in economics, and he said that it has been shown NOT to induce more people to use transit, it just rewards current users. Since it is a tax credit, it provides less benefit to those with low to middle income. 8) Raising the age of sexual consent to 16. While many 15 year olds aren't ready for sex, I don't believe that a 16 year old should be a criminal for sleeping with a 15 year old. Now, I've got nothing personal against the Conservatives or Stephen Harper, and I would have no problems with them forming a minority government, since they would be unable to follow through on most of their platform. But if they get a majority, most of these things could actually come to pass. (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, November 15th, 2005
5:06 pm	Help Wanted I'm looking to hire a good mechanical engineer to work out of our Toronto office. If you know of anyone who might be interested, please feel free to forward this job posting. ( Read more... ) On a related note, does anyone know of good places to post this? I know about jobshark.com, monster.ca, workopolis.com, and apparently U of T has a free job posting site. (Comment on this)
Monday, November 7th, 2005
1:44 pm	Yarrrr! Avast! There be pirates on them thar sees. Arrrr! <http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/rtgam.20051107.wxpirates07/bnstory/international/> (Comment on this)
Wednesday, October 26th, 2005
9:56 am	Can I Afford To Ignore Small Cap Oil Stox? For some reason, the admin account here keeps getting "penny stock" spam. You'd think that spam advertising stocks would want to sound professional, but apparently not. I have just been informed of a stock that has been rated "Str0ng_Buy". The use of a 0 in place of an o has clearly convinced me to invest my life savings the "Stox" they advocate. (4 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, September 30th, 2005
7:59 pm	Travelling again... I'm starting to feel like a real globetrotter here. Tomorrow night at 10pm I'll be getting on a flight bound for Iran (well, first London, then Iran). If all goes well, I'll be back on October 7, just in time for Thanksgiving (yaaaay, turkey!!!). Hopefully I'll have some pictures to share (of something other than water pipes, of course). (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Sunday, September 25th, 2005
3:30 pm	Changes, changes So, for those of you that don't know yet, Tracey and I split up a while ago. Whether this turns out to be one of the best or worst decisions of my life to date, it is definitely one of the biggest. ( Read more... ) In academic news, I have officially submitted my Masters thesis, and I'm due for convocation in November. In work related news, my supervisor is no longer with the company. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, as he was a bit, well, eccentric at times. Finally, it looks like I may be going to Iran for a week starting October 1st. Should definitely be interesting... (14 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, August 29th, 2005
5:44 am	Hello from Seoul After a roughly 48 hour trip, I finally arrived with most of my luggage in Seoul. Turns out that the conference I'm here for started a day later than I thought, which is nice, since it gave me today to recover. I've discovered that wandering around a foreign city where nobody speaks your language is much less fun when you're on your own. It's interesting, but the lack of somebody to talk to really detracts from the experience for me. Although I'm getting used to the "point to something on the menu and hope" method of dining out. :) The hotel menu makes me appreciate the premium paid on "foreign" foods. Toast, juice, and coffee: 12,000 Won (~12 US Dollars). The "Standard Korean breakfast" was 7,000 Won. Cheaper, so I figured it would be even less filling than toast, juice, and coffee, but I'm in Korea, so I should eat their food! Boy was I wrong: a bowl of soup, a dish of rice, a "main dish" consisting of half a fish (very tasty!), broccoli, and mushrooms, and 3 side dishes (literally separate dishes of food on the side): kimchi (cabbage with spicy sauce, served with every meal everywhere), some sort of seaweed in sauce, and a dish of something (possibly a vegetable) I couldn't identify but tasted good. A truly satisfying breakfast! (3 Comments |Comment on this)