Just forget the words and sing along

Saturday, June 11, 2005

So, as I spend every Saturday morning, I kicked back and watched The Batman. And, as always, I wondered which villain they re-invented for the show this week. You can imagine my surprise when the villain was Spellbinder. This is unusual because Spellbinder has never been in the comics. He was created exclusivly for Batman Beyond for the future Batman to fight. So, this blending of the various Batman continuities was a little offputting.

But, Spellbinder was re-created from the ground up, retaining only name and powers. Every thing else, new and different. His power was that he'd trick you into doing crimes for him by using hallucinations. Now, here's where things differ:

Batman Beyond - Spellbinder was a disgruntled high school guidance councellor, whose power of hallucination stemmed from newfangled technology.

The Batman - Spellbinder was an ancient Eastern mystic, whose power of hallucination was some form of telepathy.

It was interesting to say the least.


And I can believe the government sent my replies to my angry letters! Well, they weren't angry, just offering an alternative.

A few blogs back, I shared my plan of shipping people to Fort McMurray on the railway to get them off the highway. The road to Fort McMurray is, apparently, the most dangerous highway in Alberta. So, I outlined my plan for passenger rail service, recommended that the government look into it, and mailed it off! I sent it off to three people: Premier Ralph Klein, Transportation & Infastructure Minister Lyle Oberg (railroad and highways fall under his portfolio), and my MLA Fred Lindsay.

First I heard back from Fred Lindsay. He thanked me for my suggestion and forwarded my letter to Lyle Oberg.

Then I heard back from Ralph Klein. He went into all kinds of statistics about the highway and how much money the government is pouring into upgrading the highway, missing my point completely. Then, he revealed that my letter was forwarded to...Lyle Oberg.

So, I guess the buck has been successfully passed to Lyle Oberg. I now wait for his response.

The only thing I found odd was in my reply from Fred Lindsay. At the beginning, the words "Dear Mr. Cappis" were typed in, and Mr. Lindsay scribbled out "Mr. Cappis" and wrote in "Mark." According to my mother, this tactic is a politician's short hand for, "Wait a minute...I know this guy!"

For those who don't care, Fred Lindsay is a former mayor of Wabamun, and my mother had a lot of dealings with him when she was on the school board. Obviously, he recognized the "Cappis" name.

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