Canadian Courts too lenient by far.

This story makes me sick.

Leo Teskey is a diagnosed psychopath who has 9 violent crime convictions, including shooting a police officer in the head in 1988 and tearing the penis off a 2 year old in 1992.

In 1995 Crown applied to have him designated a dangerous offender, but failed. Because, I guess, the courts thought he didn't sound all that dangerous.

So in November of 2000 Dougald Miller finds someone squatting in the hallway of a building he owns and goes to toss him out. For this, he is viscously beaten, receiving kicks to the head and having his ear torn off, leaving him a vegetable who cannot move or speak. He is now tube fed and needs to be changed like a baby, requiring 24 hour a day care.

After the beating, Teskey robbed Miller's apartment and took off in his car. The extent of his remorse over the beating includes remarks that Miller can "still dance in a wheelchair and enjoy life".

The courts are now once again hearing arguments on whether this diagnosed psychopath - who, by the way, has refused treatment - should be declared a dangerous offender.

The kicker? Defence's argument is that he had a bad childhood.

This man gave up his rights to freedom long ago. In my opinion, the courts are taking away from the basic rights of average citizens by being too lenient on offenders. Did you know, for example, that in this country sentences are served concurrently? That means that life sentences for multiple murders are all served at once. In effect, after the first killing, the rest are free. And there is always the possibility of parole.

I'm completely in favour of rehabilitation of ciminals, but if you're not going to put the effort in to do that, then you can't just let them back on the street assuming that being locked up with other hardened criminals for years has somehow turned them in to model citizens.

What about our right to be free to feel safe enough to leave our houses after dark? Or in the light? Or even to stay home without being invaded?

Feel free to leave comments if you agree, disagree, think I'm off my rocker, whatever.

Lookee, a post

So the other day, I was to meet boy for a quick bite of dinner before a show we had tickets to. I had needed to stay late every night so far that week, so I anticipated working late and being a touch rushed at the end of the day. I told boy to work late and not to expect me downtown until at least 6:30.

Well, as it turns out, things went a little more smoothly than I expected that day, and Peggy suggested heading over to the Officer's Mess for a pint after work. We get to the Mess, and 'lo and behold, we are received by a large party of sorts. It is, in fact, the Mess' Octoberfest. Nifty, we say. So we pony up for our beer and bratwurst - and our commemorative stiens - and head over to grab a table. At this point, I feel a little guilty, being that I've convinced Boy he should work late because there's no way I'll be able to leave on time. But the guilt is assuaged by some cold beer (out of my commemortive stein). The girls and I are chatting when all of a sudden my phone rings. It's Boy, of course, wondering when I'll be by. "Um, still technically at work", I tell him (yes, I used the word "technically", which - being the bright boy that he is - does not escape him. Or perhaps it the noise of loud pub conversation and the clinking of commemorative steins in the background that piques his curiosity.). At any rate, I'll be by in 1/2 hour to pick him up.

So I hang up, feeling a little more guilty but not really all that much (he had lots of work to get through this week, you see, so it's for the best that he stay late. Plus, commemorative stein). Well, not 3 minutes after I hang up the phone, someone stands up in the back and announces the official Oktoberfest band is on their way in. True to word, in comes a Scottish BagPipe Marching Band, complete with large bass drums. Imagine a small room filled with the sounds of multiple bagpipes and at least two bass drums. Then imagine them marching into the room, to your table and around you, then coming to a stop (marching, that is...the bagpiping continued) directly behind your table.

Peggy takes one look at me and sais "God, I wish you were still on the phone with David when they came in". Yes, it might have been hard to explain the Scottish Bagpipe band traipsing through the lab.

Then again, how do you explain them at Oktoberfest?

Quasi-update

I did stuff in September. I paintball-ed with the boy and his work friends (that was fun, although more painful than I thought it would be). I became a Godmother (Madrinha) to Becky. I also did stuff in October. Went to the Island for Jeff's wedding. Visited the Royal BC Museum Egypt exhibit. Went on the Stanley Park Ghost train.

Ok...so I didn't do a whole lot of "stuff". But it was cool stuff.

Happy Thanksgiving!