Wordle

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(Click to enlarge)

During one of my rambling wanderings across cyberspace, I stumbled upon this interesting Java applet. Called Wordle, it's a "toy for generating 'word clouds' from text that you provide."

Not only can you customize the text (you can even plug the tags from your blog into it, provided you have an RSS feed), but you can also change the colors, fonts, and orientation patterns. The cloud above is what popped up after I copied and pasted the text from my It'll Come a Tide post.

Enjoy!

http://www.wordle.net/

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Independence Day

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Happy July 4th.
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The Revolutionary War... in Quebec

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The following is a quote from Wikipedia on the involvement of Canada during the American Revolutionary War:

Three weeks after the siege of Boston began, a troop of militia volunteers led by Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold captured Fort Ticonderoga, a strategically important point on Lake Champlain between New York and the Province of Quebec. After that action they also raided Fort St. John's, not far from Montreal, which alarmed the population and the authorities there. In response, Quebec's governor Guy Carleton began fortifying St. John's, and opened negotiations with the Iroquois and other Indian tribes for their support. These actions, combined with lobbying by both Allen and Arnold and the fear of a British attack from the north, eventually convinced the Congress to authorize an invasion of Quebec, with the goal of driving the British military from that province. (Quebec was at that time frequently referred to as Canada, as most of its territory included the former French Province of Canada.)

Two Quebec-bound expeditions were undertaken. On September 28, 1775, Brigadier General Richard Montgomery marched north from Fort Ticonderoga with about 1,700 militiamen, besieging and capturing Fort St. Jean on November 2 and then Montreal on November 13. General Carleton escaped to Quebec City and began preparing that city for an attack. The second expedition, led by Colonel Arnold, went through the wilderness of what is now northern Maine. It was a logistical nightmare, with 300 men turning back, and another 200 perishing due to the difficult conditions. By the time Arnold reached Quebec City in early November, he had but 600 of his original 1,100 men. Montgomery's force joined Arnold's, and they attacked Quebec City on December 31, but were defeated by Carleton in a battle that ended with Montgomery dead, Arnold wounded, and over 400 Americans taken prisoner. The remaining Americans held on outside Quebec City until the spring of 1776, suffering from poor camp conditions and smallpox, and then withdrew when a squadron of British ships under Captain Charles Douglas arrived to relieve the siege.

Another attempt was made by the Americans to push back towards Quebec, but they failed at Trois-Rivières on June 8, 1776. Carleton then launched his own invasion and defeated Arnold at the Battle of Valcour Island in October. Arnold fell back to Fort Ticonderoga, where the invasion had begun. While the invasion ended as a disaster for the Americans, Arnold's efforts in 1776 delayed a full-scale British counteroffensive until the Saratoga campaign of 1777.

The invasion cost the Americans their base of support in British public opinion, "So that the violent measures towards America are freely adopted and countenanced by a majority of individuals of all ranks, professions, or occupations, in this country." It gained them at best limited support in the population of Quebec, which, while somewhat supportive early in the invasion, became less so later during the occupation, when American policies against suspected Loyalists became harsher, and the army's hard currency ran out. Two small regiments of Canadians were recruited during the operation, and they were with the army on its retreat back to Ticonderoga.
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In the News, 28th - 4th

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Sunday, June 28

• Canoe.ca - There's a moose loose aboot in Haysboro.
• CBC - Let me be brief: The homeless need your underwear.
• Canoe.ca - Statistics Canada says Canadians just keep on getting fatter, blames Tommy Douglas for the rise in obesity.

Monday, June 29

• CBC - According to a new survey, 6 in 10 Canadians are planning a summer vacation. In other news, 6 in 10 Canadians are inexplicably unaware that there is no summer in Canada.
• CBC - Whiny woman files complaint with the Human Rights Commission, is awarded $3,000 on for "injury to her dignity and self respect". I don't think this one needs a punchline.
• CBC - Manitoba First Nation mired in leadership dispute. Hail to the chiefs.

Tuesday, June 30

• CBC - Tim Horton's to become a Canadian company. Because apparently it's not.
• Canada.com - Awww, did Awbewta woose some of its money-woney?
• CBC - Remember that missing $15.3 million dollars in gold and silver bars that the Canadian Mint lost? The $15.3 million dollars in gold and silver bars that Jon Nadler said not to worry about? Yeah, about that...

Wednesday, July 1

• Canada.com - Canadian senate: We need to act immediately to repair Canada's credit-card market, and to make the systems more fair. Translation: Socialism has worked so well for us in the medical system, let's start controlling the economy, too. What could possibly go wrong?
• Canada.com - More and more people in Regina are homeless now. Not that there are any less homes, there just seem to be more people not living in them.

Thursday, July 2

• CBC - They are anti-sealing activists. Does this mean they have a moral objection to caulking?
• CBC - B.C. school cancels the singing of the national anthem in order to be more "inclusive", and then it gets weird. Can't think of a punchline right now, but it will probably have something to do with watery-eyed Canadians letting immigrants walk all over them.
• Floriduh - Just in case you needed one, here's a good reason not to keep an 8-½ foot Burmese python in the living room.

Friday, July 3

• CBC - If you're looking for high-quality weaponry and ammunition, look no further than "Friendly" Manitoba. Act now and get free shipping on orders of $1.2 million or more.
• CBC - Videos of Canadian politicians name-calling, swearing, bickering, and generally acting like small children surface on YouTube, to the surprise of absolutely no one. Also, Colin Kenny would like you to know that Stephen Harper is not the boss of him.
• CBC - Because nothing kills your business model faster than running out of Coke.
• National Post - Owner of Chinese buffet chain offers free meals to Canadians on Canada Day to show his gratitude to the country, is immediately accused of violating human rights of non-Canadians. Dim sum silly liberals.

Saturday, July 4

• Canada.com - Hearing examines whether police officer's thyroid problem means he shouldn't be fired for misplacing evidence and not doing his job.
• National Post - "Jowi Taylor set out in 1995 to create an object more quintessentially Canadian than hockey, Tim Hortons donuts, insulin, the CN Tower or Lake Louise. Eleven years later, he was able to hold it in his hands".
• Canada.com - In Canada you can't be held criminally responsible for your actions if you're under 12, which is great news if you're a 9-year-old who wants to burn down an abandoned McDonald's._