Crasher Squirrel

A cheeky squirrel in Alberta's Banff National Park has gone viral after stealing the spotlight in a tourist's photo.

Melissa Brandts, who was visiting from Minnesota, had set up her camera on a tripod to capture her and her husband, Jackson, in front of picturesque Lake Minnewanka in May.

"We had our camera set up on some rocks and were getting ready to take the picture when this curious little ground squirrel appeared, became intrigued with the sound of the focusing camera and popped right into our shot!" she wrote.

The ground squirrel became the focus of the picture as the couple faded into the background.

"A once in a lifetime moment! We were laughing about this little guy for days!" wrote his wife.


The couple submitted the photo to a National Geographic contest. The magazine posted it to an online gallery on Aug. 7.

In less than a week, the Crasher Squirrel, as it's become known, has stormed the internet. Photoshop enthusiasts have added the furry scene-stealer to family portraits, famous paintings, and even to the top of the Queen's hat with a pile of nuts.

The Crasher Squirrel upstages former U.S. president Bill Clinton and North Korean President Kim Jong Il with other government officials. (David Morgan/CBC)

Fraser Institute report

According to an Edmonton, Alberta teacher, an annual report ranking all the schools in the province "is doing more harm than good." Mr. Peter Shipley, who has a daughter in grade seven, went on to say "What comes out of it is a lot of frustration for schools that are low on the list, but it’s not going to end anytime soon because that’s the nature of our society — always compare, compare, compare."

What I'd like to know, is how are school administrators to know if changes are needed if comparisons aren't made? I wonder if he's also against testing students since exams just "compare, compare, compare." Perhaps, they shouldn't keep score at sporting events, either--it's so hard on the...er...um...team with the lower score. (I'm sure Shipley would object to referring to it as the "losing team". ) Okay, one last shot at this guy: It's probably teachers with views like Shipley that are dragging down some schools.

Ripped from the headlines

Bob Barker, well-known and popular ex-game show host is angry with Edmonton, Alberta, Canada for keeping Lucy the elephant in an inappropriate environment. He claims that she is sick and should be transferred to an elephant sanctuary in California citing the harsh, cold winters in Edmonton as one of the reasons the pachyderm is not doing well. but city fathers and zoo officials say that Lucy is healthy except for a tooth problem and insist that an extended trip may kill the elephant.

After being pressured by Zoocheck Canada, a Toronto-based animal rights group, the Edmonton zoo released the following photo which it says demonstrates that Lucy is well cared for and is provided the same highly effective protection from the cold that most Canadians use:


The story.