» Archive: January 2004
Canadian Punditry
Is it just me, or is this article by Barbara Yaffe almost identical in content to this column by John Ibbitson, published two days earlier?
They each strike the same pose: the NDP is doing well in the polls, but tsk tsk, they still lack credibility...
...even if they have to make up reasons for why that is. Both articles use the same word--"disingenuous"--to describe Jack Layton's characterization of Missile Defence as "Star Wars". Ibbitson says "disingenuous at best". They point out that the system will be land based. That is, a land-based system for shooting missiles in space, which is also likely to provoke a new arms race among those who don't feel like risking being on the receiving end of a winnable nuclear war with the US.
Doesn't sound quite as "disingenuous" with those facts in play, does it? Ibbitson's almost-calling Layton a liar itself seems disingenuous... at best.
I've sent emails to both pundits, explaning this. I have almost no doubt that they don't care at all. This is the nature of pundits: they make claims that set the terms of the debate--it hardly matters whether these claims are accurate or not. It'll be interesting to see how far the "disingenuous" trope travels through the national echo chamber.
In the US, the echo chamber is so big and blatant in its avoidance of reality that there's an excellent site (the Daily Howler) that provides a daily summary of the worst punditry (all of it written by respected commentators, of course).
So I suppose we're fortunate in Canada. Fortunate, anyway, if you discount Margus Gee, Margaret Wente, and most of the National Post and... ok, maybe we're not that fortunate.
Has Jack Layton heard about this?
Moveon.org held a contest for anti-Bush campaign ads.
The results are amazing.
Conflicts of Interest
Democracy Watch new release: "Democracy Watch believes that Martin is currently in a conflict of interest when participating in any discussions or decisions concerning tobacco, energy, media, transportation, telecommunications, health care and pharmaceuticals, environmental, postal, banking and corporate responsibility issues."
The Media Primary
Chris Shumway has some excellent analysis of the "media primary" in the US.
Last autumn, long before Democratic Party insiders Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts and Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina finished one-two in the Iowa Caucus, the most important primary of the political season was already underway. But unlike the Iowa Caucus, or the Washington DC primary held one week before it, this primary does not involve actual voters going to the polls. Rather, it is the process through which major news outlets "elect" the presidential front-runners and frame the issues, thus setting the boundaries for acceptable political discussion.
Canada doesn't have primaries in any similar way, but the same thing applies here. The media is smaller, so more topics get in the door, but patterns of marginalization and intensive scrutiny can be predicted.
Based on the economic interests of journalists and their employers, I make the following predictions:
- Economic inequality and child poverty will scarcely be discussed.
- The continued privatization of health care will be seen as a pragmatic choice, and no one will look closely at what the actual consequences of that have been in the US.
- The budget balancing pissing contest and "the economy" (but not its effect on poor and lower-middle-class Canadians) will be a major focus.
- Coverage of gay marriage and marijuana legalization will dominate to the virtual exclusion of other "social issues".
- There will be a few articles and three second clips of people speaking substantively about what missile defence actual intends to accomplish, but this will be dwarfed by the amount of coverage given to speculation about the political implications of various decisions.
- There will be extensive coverage of scandals relating to individuals within the Liberal Party, though intentional acts like stealing $40 billion from Unemployment Insurance will continue to be off-limits for political discussion.
- The media will continue to take Paul Martin's rhetoric at face value, and let him frame the issues... unless there's a scandal, and the journalists smell blood!
In the media, the election will be about how much scandals (and maybe some policies) have hurt the Liberals' "image". To this extent, the other two parties will be seen to improve their standing.
Of this much, we can be sure: the biggest issues of the election will not be those fundamentally faced by Canadians, but those that the country's small elite disagrees on.
Rich Richer, Poor Poorer, you know the score
PaulMartinTime.ca: Inequality and Paul Martin
In 1981, the richest 10% of Canadians earned an average of $122,000 annually, 25 times the average earnings of the poorest 10%. By 1997, thanks to a combination of welfare cuts, wage cuts relative to inflation, and the appropriation of Employment Insurance money for other ends, the richest 10% were making over 108 times as muchas the poorest 10%.
This trend has continued in recent years. In 2001, the average earnings of the poorest 20% of Canadians fell by 4.7 %, while the income of the richest 20% rose by 2.2%.
The poor have also proven to be the first to have their wages substantially cut during a recession. Between 1981 and 1994, for example, the poorest 10% saw a startling 60% drop in income. Between 1989 and 1993, they experienced an unbelievable 86% drop in income.
Pope blesses breakdancers
CNN: "In an unusual spectacle at the Vatican, Pope John Paul II presided over a performance of break-dancers who leaped, flipped and spun their bodies to beats from a tinny boom box. The 83-year-old pontiff seemed to approve, waving his hand after each dancer completed a move, then applauding for the entire group. He watched the performance from a raised throne. 'For this creative hard work I bless you from my heart,' he said."
(I lifted this wholesale from Matt Brennan's Weblog, which is well worth your time.)
I [heart] New York, I [spade] my cat, I [club] baby seals
Tiresome American celebrities still trying to end the Canadian seal hunt.
Let's see....
1) It is wrong to kill animals unnecessarily or inhumanely.
2) Human beings depend on the harvest of seals for their economic well-being.
3) If our governments knew how to manage fish stocks, maybe we wouldn't need a seal hunt.
4) People who protest the killing of "cute" animals but happily eat factory-farmed animals are hypocrites (at best).
I'm so confused.
(link via Quiet Indignity)
Martin's Companies Given an Extra $160 M
CBC: "Prime Minister Paul Martin's shipping companies received federal contracts, grants and contributions worth $161 million over the past 11 years - a figure more than a thousand times higher than the government's original estimate."
You will not be assimilated
The Corporation is a new film from the makers of Manufacturing Consent. Read their interview with The Tyee:
I can remember crying watching [the Vietnam War documentary film] "Hearts and Minds." When was that? More than thirty years ago? People ducked when the first image of a train was shown in a movie theatre. It's a very powerful medium. But the fact that documentaries are making their way into these entertainment complexes – "The Corporation" is showing in a place called Tinseltown of all things – that's progress!
Inspired? Make your own independent film. Resources are here and here.
Who?
Just out of curiousity: In Canadian society, who is considered more likely to be killed:
a) A soldier occupying a foreign and
or
b) A woman living in Vanouver's downtown eastside?
So why is one major front page news and the other largely a footnote in Canada's national newspapers of record?
In any case, I'm willing to grant that a Canadian soldier dying is newsworthy. But in the context of the nearly nonexistent coverage of civilian casualties or effects of the ongoing occupation, does it really deserve to be on all of the front pages?
Honderich Pushed Out
Globe and Mail: "John Honderich was pushed out as publisher of the Toronto Star because he resisted making the deep cost cuts thatTorstar Corp. chief executive officer Robert Prichard demanded, observers in the media and investment industries say."
The Star has been known for operating based on certain principles set out by one of the first publishers of the T-Star, Joseph Atkinson.
Those principles, it is said, are quickly being moved aside in favour of... profits! Profits may be a lot less exciting than good journalism, but those corporate types just can't seem to get enough of 'em!
FNGA scrapped?
The Martlet: Scrapped bill no great victory yet for First Nations
Prime Minister Paul Martin’s recent dumping of the unpopular Bill C-7, the First Nations Governance Act (FNGA), was little more than saving face according to some aboriginal critics.
“I’m not impressed. It will be back to business as usual,” said Dr. Taiaike Alfred, from UVic’s Indigenous Governance Program.
“The government will push the same legislation through, just in a smaller and more digestible fashion.”
Mood Indigo
Results for the crucial third quarter of Indigo's fiscal year won't be announced to shareholders till early February but publishers say Indigo — their major customer, accounting for more than half of all books sales in Canada — is sending out gratifyingly large payments.
Is the disarray in Canadian publishing finally over? Publishers are grateful to be getting paid, but still have a lot of eggs in the Indigo basket (via ArtsJournal).
From YK to New York, From New York to YK
New York's Newsday recently sent a reporter to Yellowknife, Northwest Territories (where I live) to write an article about "real" cold. The writer exaggerates a few things (like the idea that we wear Sorels all the time - he obviously didn't visit the high schools), but his facts are mostly correct. It is fun to be noticed, but the implication that northerners are insane, exotic yokels is a bit tiresome. We might live in a cold place, but we still go ice-fishing, watch the northern lights, and drive SUVs just like New Yorkers do.
The facts and figures in the article come from the Weather Winners website from Environment Canada which rates Canadian communities on various weather-related scales. Apparently, Yellowknife is the extreme weather champ (it was also the only community in the Northwest Territories or Nunavut which was in the competition).
When there is a cold snap in places like Toronto and New York, people often marvel at how hard northern life must be. Frankly, we can take care of ourselves; it's you guys we're worried about. I recently saw TV footage of homeless people on the streets of Toronto - when it was minus 40. Don't you southerners know that temperatures like that can kill people? In the north, we have terrible social problems, but at least we try to look after each other.
Sexism, the Media, and Belinda Stronach
There's no doubt about it. Belinda's rich-kid tag will take some shedding. --Toronto Star
Frankly, she's way out of her league. --Frank Oliver
With her mix of looks, lineage and savvy intellect, Stronach, 37, was described yesterday by our bachelor contenders as the "perfect woman" who, in all likelihood, doesn't need our help. --Winnipeg Sun
What kind of crap is this? Does Paul Martin have any trouble at all shedding his "rich old guy" tag? Would any man of Stronach's position be called "way out of his league" after being nervous during his first-ever political speech?
There are plenty of reasons to think that Stronach is not good for Canada. The only thing that her looks have to do with it is the extent to which the media is obsessed by them.
Journalists pride themselves (apparently) on being ruthless with people like Stronach. But notice that their ruthlessness has very little to do with the substance of her political positions. Instead, they're singularly focused on her style, appearance, and ability to answer questions. That's just cruelty--an inability to deal with someone as a human being. And in terms of informing political decisions among Canadian citizens, it's useless.
There are certainly some things worth taking note of, like the fact that she said that gay marriage is a human right. That's a lot more of a stand than Paul Martin's "I believe in the charter" dodge.
I encourage everyone to criticize politicians on their inability to relate to mainstream Canada because of their vast wealth and circle of CEO friends, and to lambast them for being capitalists and lending support to imperialism. Comments about inexperience are not out of order.
But when these criteria are applied to women and not to men, it's sexism. And apparently, that's still an acceptable practice among Canadian journalists.
Ugh.
The New York Post describes the condition of a documentary filmmaker who ate an all-McDonald's diet for 30 days:
Within a few days of beginning his drive-through diet, Spurlock, 33, was vomiting out the window of his car, and doctors who examined him were shocked at how rapidly Spurlock's entire body deteriorated.
"It was really crazy - my body basically fell apart over the course of 30 days," Spurlock told The Post.
His liver became toxic, his cholesterol shot up from a low 165 to 230, his libido flagged and he suffered headaches and depression.
Maher Arar is Suing the US Govn't
CBC: "Attorney General John Ashcroft, Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge and FBI director Robert Mueller were among the officials named in the lawsuit, as well as 10 "John Does" who took part in Arar's detention and interrogation in the United States in the autumn of 2002."
Underestimating Belinda?
Some people credit Belinda Stronach for the behind the scenes arm twisting that brought the PC's and Alliance together after years of flirting. Is it possible that her entry into the conservative leadership race is another example of tactical brilliance?
It's early days and I may not have a good handle on her yet but I think she may top her already significant contribution to the Conservative party and conservatives in general.
In my view the Alliance had two significant problems: (1) their social policies were so far to the right they alienated many people who would otherwise have supported their fiscal/small government policies; and (2) everyone in Ontario and Quebec viewed the alliance as the Reform moonbats reincarnated.
Belinda seems to be taking these problems on.- She is making quite liberal social statements. For example she has come out in favor of the rights of gays and lesbians to marry - saying it is a matter of equal rights. This may help those who live in the political centre - 85% of Canadian voters - look at the conservative party again.
- She is Ontario establishment. She will be able to counter the "Stockwell Day" aura and that may help Ontario voters get on board - or at least not reject the new party out of hand.
Even if she is not successful in her leadership bid - and there is a good part of me that thinks she doesn't really expect to be successful - she may move the perception of the party close enough to the center that they actually have a shot at forming a credible opposition in the next election.
At the moment I think the dominant media is underestimating Stonach. Is it possible that she is clever enough, or alert enough, to have identified why the old Alliance could never have formed a government and she is going about fixing it?
Enter the Exiles
France is a less multicultural country than Canada, yet it consistently publishes books in translation from around the world, and from its own exile community. But France famously has no identity crisis and no insecurity about the strength of its home-grown culture.
The plight of immigrant writers in Canada (via Bookslut)
Barn-Raising for Life
...Amish men walk an average of 18,425 steps daily, and women an average of 14,196 steps.One man logged an incredible 51,000 steps in a single day while plowing fields behind a team of horses.
In studies done in mainstream Canadian and U.S. society, adults tend to log about 2,000 to 3,000 steps.
The Globe and Mail reports on another black mark against TV, automobiles, computers, and drive-thrus.
Are things getting better for Iraqis?
For Bush's state of the union address, the Indpendent gathered together some stats on the Bush presidency, which are worth reading. (link via laughingmeme.org.)
Some key bits about Iraq:
80%: Percentage of the Iraqi workforce now unemployed
55%: Percentage of the Iraqi workforce unemployed before the war
92%: Percentage of Iraq's urban areas that had access to drinkable water a year ago
60%: Percentage of Iraq's urban areas that have access to drinkable water today
130: Number of countries (out of total of 191 recognised by the United Nations) with an American military presence
29,000: Number of American troops - which is close to the total of a whole army division - to have either been killed, wounded, injured or become so ill as to require evacuation from Iraq, according to the Pentagon
32%: Percentage of the bombs dropped on Iraq this year that were not precision-guided
RCMP Raids Home
The RCMP raided the home of a journalist who was investigating the Maher Arar case this morning. Apparently, a source had told the journalist that Canadian officials had been aware of the fact that the US had sent him to Syria.
The priorities are clear: "internal security" is a priority, accountability to people like Arar is not. This is neither novel nor surprising. The question is whether it is possible for the RCMP to be held accountable for anything. Certainly Paul Martin has no will in this regard.
Facts and Arguments
[Posted as a comment in response to David Berlin's essay, Where Leaders Fail, on the Walrus website.]
It seems that the fundamental problem faced by people who want to solve the question of Palestine is to understand what has been going on for the last 50 years.
While David Berlin seems to be proceeding from fairly benevolent intentions, the overall effect seems to perpetuate false assumptions and misinformation about the situation.
Take, for example, the claim that "Palestinians do not yet have the civic culture to sustain a sovereign nation". The assumptions at work here are problematic at best. We're talking about a society that has been systematically dismantled by the state of Israel: economically strangled, humiliated daily, displaced, and so on. To say nothing of hundreds of house demolitions, the normalization of political assassinations, and the impunity with which Palestinians are regularly killed.
read more...Marc the Martian
The Canadian Space Agency wants to initiate a Canadian Mars Mission (perhaps to piggyback on any public enthusiasm for President Bush's election year pie in the sky). Former astronauts Chris Hadfield and Marc Garneau are both talking about the idea.
Meanwhile, the Canadian Arrow is using WWII V2 rocket technology to compete for the X Prize, which will be awarded to the first private group to safely send a human into space.
We are the Walrus
The Walrus is a new Canadian magazine for smart people.
Anyone willing to predict how long it will last before meeting the fate of Elm Street?
Uprising in Tlalnepantla, Mexico
SF Indymedia: "The town of Tlalnepantla, Morelos, Mexico, declared itself autonomous as the Zapatista communities of Chiapas, Mexico celebrated the 10 year anniversary of their uprising. On, 2/14 nearly 1500 riot police armed with assault rifles stormed the town to evict the autnomous government from Tlalnepantla. Snipers and police gunmen filled the air with bullets, beat women and men over 80 years of age, and left two dead, many wounded and scores of people disappeared and as of yet unaccounted for."
Interviews with Israeli soldiers
When I first got to Hebron I wouldn't open fire on little children. And I was sure that if I ever killed or hurt anyone, I'd go so crazy that I'd leave the army. But finally I did shoot someone, and nothing happened to me. In Hebron I shot the legs off of two kids, and I was sure I wouldn't be able to sleep anymore at night, but nothing happened. Two weeks ago I hurt a Palestinian policeman, and that didn't affect me either. You become so apathetic you don't care at all. Shooting is the IDF soldier's way of meditating. It's like shooting is your way of letting go of all your anger when you're in the army. In Hebron there's this order they call "punitive shooting": just open fire on whatever you like. I opened fire not on any sources of fire but on windows where there was just wash hanging to dry. I knew that there were people who would be hit. But at that moment it was just shoot, shoot, shoot.Jesus. More.
Exploiting King
Apparently, GW Bush exploited a trip to Martin Luther King's grave to pay for a fundraising trip.
The New York Times reports that the President "hastily planned" a visit to Dr. King's grave, and then will immediately go to "a $2,000-a-person fundraiser in Atlanta."2Even though Bush may spend the majority of his time hobnobbing with donors at the fundraiser, because he will briefly visit Dr. King's grave, he is allowed to deem the entire trip "official" and then bill taxpayers for portions of the huge cost of hotel rooms, rental cars, security, and travel. And those are no small costs - the Washington Post notes that Air Force One alone costs $57,000 an hour to operate.
Less depressing is "The Red Reverend", an examination of Martin Luther King's lesser-known socialist bent.
We are now making demands that will cost the nation something. You can't talk about solving the economic problem of the Negro without talking about billions of dollars. You can't talk about ending slums without first saying profit must be taken out of slums. You're really tampering and getting on dangerous ground because you are messing with folk then. You are messing with the captains of industry. . . . Now this means that we are treading in difficult waters, because it really means that we are saying that something is wrong . . . with capitalism . . . . There must be a better distribution of wealth and maybe America must move toward a Democratic Socialism." -King, '67
"I have a dream" continues to be one of the great pieces of rhetoric in American history. It's always worth a listen.
NS at WSF
The New Standard has a weblog about the World Social Forum, stacked with correspondents.
Over 700 Military Bases Worldwide
America's Empire of Bases, by Chalmers Johnson
Our military deploys well over half a million soldiers, spies, technicians, teachers, dependents, and civilian contractors in other nations. To dominate the oceans and seas of the world, we are creating some thirteen naval task forces built around aircraft carriers whose names sum up our martial heritage -- Kitty Hawk, Constellation, Enterprise, John F. Kennedy, Nimitz, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Carl Vinson, Theodore Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, John C. Stennis, Harry S. Truman, and Ronald Reagan. We operate numerous secret bases outside our territory to monitor what the people of the world, including our own citizens, are saying, faxing, or e-mailing to one another.
It's Mike Rowe, 17, vs. giant Microsoft!
Like any good fledgling businessman, Mike Rowe knew he needed a catchy name for his website design company.
And being possessed of a sense of humour and the cheekiness of a typical 17-year-old, and given his name, what better than to register his Internet domain name as mikerowesoft.com?
As in, but not quite, Microsoft Corp.
But the folks at the world's biggest software company aren't smiling -- they've demanded that he give up his domain name.
Missile Defence, an illustrated primer
Download the poster [100k, pdf]
Homeless Iraqis
The San Francisco Chronicle say that "between 7 million and more than 12.5 million" Iraqis are homeless.
Anti-Semitism or Wishful thinking?
I still hear reports that cite the supposed results of the poll that found that most Europeans believe that Israel is the greatest threat to world peace.
It's worth noting, then, that what the poll actually asked was whether people thought Israel, and a number of other countries, were a threat to world peace. They answered "yes" or "no". Through a bit of original creative interpretation followed by a distinct lack of fact-checking, the story was repeated over and over again.
Letter to the NDP, re: "Missile Defense"
[The NDP just sent out an email announcing a new ad campaign against Martin's likely support of National Missile Defense, Star Wars, or whatever you want to call it. Here's my response...]
To: jack@fed.ndp.ca
The NDP's reasons for opposing National Missile Defense/Star Wars:
1. Star Wars is expensive Star Wars could costs as much as $1 trillion. If Canada is asked to pay even 1/100th of the bill - it will mean $10 billion less for medicare, cities, and the environment. (Source: Centre for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation)
2. Star Wars won't make Canada safer Starting the next arms race will do nothing to promote security. Canada's Department of National Defence warns Bush's missile defence plan paves the way for putting weapons into orbit (Ottawa Citizen, Jan. 9, 2004).
3. Star Wars doesn't work Star Wars technology has never worked. Last year the New York Times reported that one test missed its target 'by hundreds of miles'. In contrast, there's lots of technology to keep us safe from climate change. Where's the leadership for that?
With all due respect, these aren't the reasons that Star Wars is wrong. In fact, they share many of the assumptions that lead people to think that Star Wars is in fact a good idea.
If Star Wars was not expensive, did make Canada safer, and worked, would it be a good thing? No.
The reason is that, despite its name, NMD is an offensive weapon. Don't take my word for it; read the words of the Project for the New American Century (of which Dick Cheney, Don Rumsfeld, Richard Perle, Paul Wolfowitz and Jeb Bush are members). Quoting from "Rebuilding America's Defenses", a PNAC report:
Effective ballistic missile defenses will be the central element in the exercise of American power and the projection of U.S. military forces abroad. Without it, weak states operating small arsenals of crude ballistic missiles, armed with basic nuclear warheads or other weapons of mass destruction, will be a in a strong position to deter the United States from using conventional force, no matter the technological or other advantages we may enjoy. Even if such enemies are merely able to threaten American allies rather than the United States homeland itself, America's ability to project power will be deeply compromised.
If you condemn NMD for the right reasons--that American Empire, global military dominance, or whatever you want to call it are wrong, and to be resisted instead of helped--then I'll support the NDP's fancy new politics a la Wired magazine.
A debate isn't worth starting unless it's based on all of the reality we have available to us.
sincerely,
dru oja jay
paulmartintime.ca
dominionpaper.ca
2004 Election
James Bow has some extensive and interesting Canadian election predictions, followed by some intelligent discussion. That's always fun.
Canadian Con
I'm becoming somewhat more aware than usual of the lack of Canadian content on this weblog. I seem to have acquired the habit of posting a lot of the US news that I come across here, and the small crowd of people who usually post about things Canadian have been posting less often lately.
Many of my Canadian-oriented efforts of late have been focussed on PaulMartinTime.ca, a website I've been working on far too much lately. We got a lot of national media attention when the Liberal party tried to shut us down with various threats and intimidation tactics. Since then (Dec. 23 or so), there has been a steady trickle of interview requests from across Canada, which has made the site seem more important than it might otherwise be. (Canadian Business and a right-wing radio show in Calgary are two of the more unlikely sources to cover PaulMartinTime.ca in recent days.)
In any case, the madness surrounding the site afforded me the opportunity to meet the Prime Minister two days ago. This consisted of me shaking his hand, asking him if he was still suing PaulMartinTime.ca, and then getting grabbed and pushed away by RCMP officers. I approached him four seperate times, didn't receive any response, and was finally escorted away and not allowed near him again.
But it was not in vain. We also came with a list of more substantial questions about his policies. We managed to get a "yes" and "no" answer out of him on two questions, before being yanked away by the RCMP. (No, we weren't threatening him, just asking questions.)
All that is a long way of saying that I've been spending a lot of time thinking about Canadian politics and news, but that tends to show up over at PaulMartinTime.ca.
Sometimes I even think about Canadian culture, geography, history, music, existence, and other things. I don't write about these as much, though, but I invite you to join the Dominion weblog and do so! (Send an email to dru@dominionpaper.ca)
Henceforth, the "award-winning Dominion Daily Weblog"
This weblog has been selected as a "top blog" by Blogs Canada.
Felonious Miami
Miami Herald: "A judge presiding over the cases of free trade protesters said in court that he saw ''no less than 20 felonies committed by police officers'' during the November demonstrations, adding to a chorus of complaints about police conduct."
targeted kill, surgical strike, executive action, preemptive manhunting
(They all sound strangely like murder.)
Douglas Valentine:
Preemptive Manhunting: The CIA's New Assassination Program
The CIA has concocted various euphemisms for its long-standing policy of assassinating civilians whose ideas and political beliefs it hates. In a 24 July 2003 article for CounterPunch titled Nation of Assassins, I listed some of them: "targetted kill" being the most popular, along with neutralize and "executive action". I've been waiting for the new euphemism with which the media will assuage the public and now we have it from disinformation specialist Seymour Hersh: "Preemptive Manhunting."The CIA has concocted various euphemisms for its long-standing policy of assassinating civilians whose ideas and political beliefs it hates. In a 24 July 2003 article for CounterPunch titled Nation of Assassins, I listed some of them: "targetted kill" being the most popular, along with neutralize and "executive action". I've been waiting for the new euphemism with which the media will assuage the public and now we have it from disinformation specialist Seymour Hersh: "Preemptive Manhunting."
Preemptive Manhunting is the new name for assassination and, according to Hersh (quoting one of his usual anonymous sources), the rationale for resorting to this immoral and illegal measure is that "The only way we can win is to go unconventional. We're going to have to play their game. Guerrilla versus guerrilla. Terrorism versus terrorism. We've got to scare the Iraqis into submission."
This is a textbook description of "selective terrorism" as the ultimate form of psychological warfare, and Hersh is correct in describing Preemptive Manhunting as the rebirth of the CIA's Phoenix Program in South Vietnam.
Iraq Blocks Out Rest of World
Interpress: "AIDS killed three million people around the world last year, more than two million of them in Africa. The three major U.S. television networks' evening news programmes devoted a combined total of 39 minutes to the issue."
Quarantining Dissent
San Francisco Chronicle: "When President Bush travels around the United States, the Secret Service visits the location ahead of time and orders local police to set up "free speech zones" or "protest zones," where people opposed to Bush policies (and sometimes sign-carrying supporters) are quarantined. These zones routinely succeed in keeping protesters out of presidential sight and outside the view of media covering the event."
About time somebody did something
Global warming is killing us too, say Inuit
The Inuit people of Canada and Alaska are launching a human rights case against the Bush administration claiming they face extinction because of global warming.
By repudiating the Kyoto protocol and refusing to cut US carbon dioxide emissions, which make up 25% of the world's total, Washington is violating their human rights, the Inuit claim.
Admittedly the United States is a major [possibly the largest] contributor to the planets pollution problem - but they aren't the only ones by any stretch.
The suit should be extended to every 1st world industrialized nation that doesn't get with the program.
Canadian Mines and Violence in Africa
CBC TV aired the show "Human Cargo" tonight, which raised interesting implications between Canadian Mines and violence in Africa. The show follows the stories of two refugee claimants. Part two airs on CBC Monday night at 8:00 pm.
Moderation Pending Revolution
Revolutionary Moderation, a new (to me) weblog out of Alberta: "Sure, I'm suspicious of highly successful capitalists, but I'm far more suspicious of horribly failed capitalists who have lots of money anyway, like the Commander-in-Chief of the United States Armed Forces."
School of Fat Salmon
The Nation reports from Iraq: "Much of the world thought the war would result in a flurry of business activity, with the world's oil giants sweeping through Iraq like a killer whale through a school of fat salmon. That didn't happen. One reason is that it's probably the most dangerous place in the world for an oil executive right now."
Grab the Saudi Oil!
BBC: "The United States considered using force to seize oilfields in the Middle East during an oil embargo by Arab states in 1973, according to British government documents just made public."
Inter Press News: "The voice of community radio is getting louder across Asia, but so is the interference coming from governments that are wary about their growing strength."
Inter Press News: "Now that the U.S. Navy is gone, residents of the Puerto Rican island-town of Vieques face pressing environmental problems."
Corporate Media Silence on Whistleblower
Back in early March the British Observer reported on a “dirty tricks” campaign aimed at six UN Security Council members who were non-committal on voting for the UN resolution desired by the US and UK. The US decided to eavesdrop on communications to Angola, Cameroon, Chile, Mexico, Guinea and Pakistan at the UN headquarters in New York.
A young woman working in British intelligence, Katherine Gun, was later singled out as the person responsible for revealing the illegal surveillance plot. The celebrated physicist and humanist Albert Einstein once said, “Never do anything against conscience even if the state demands it.” Ms. Gun obeyed her conscience and leaked information on the US and UK governments' eavesdropping on the UN missions. In the end the US attempt to coerce the six countries to vote for a resolution approving an aggression on Iraq (based on what is clearly known to be lies) failed.
Media analyst Norman Solomon asks why the story of Ms. Gun remains uncovered in the corporate US media. He cites Daniel Ellsberg, of Pentagon Papers fame, who said of Ms. Gun's disclosure, "Truth-telling like this can stop a war." This time it didn't.
Meanwhile a group of former CIA people calling themselves, Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity, has been calling for CIA workers to obey their conscience and step forward now in an attempt to expose the lies behind the war drive and occupation.
A google search on Katherine Gun and Canada turns up zilch for Canada’s corporate media. Emails sent to the various newspapers have so far gone unanswered. Why is the plight of this courageous woman facing prison time in Britain uncovered in the Canadian corporate media?
Surprise: those who designed NAFTA benefit at workers' expense
Inter Press News Service: Numbers Up, Workers Down After 10 Years of NAFTA
North America's trade deal drove down the real wages of Canadian workers by about 20 percent -- if they did not lose their jobs altogether, says globalisation critic Murray Dobbin, author of a critical book about Canada's new prime minister, Paul Martin.
”All of the studies have shown that workers in Mexico, the U.S. and Canada have not profited from NAFTA,” says Dobbin, whose book 'Paul Martin: CEO for Canada', argues the multi-millionaire prime minister broke the unions in his companies, closed domestic shipyards and registered his fleet under ”flags of convenience” to drive down wages and workplace rights.
Global Dimming?!
Guardian: "Ohmura's results suggested that levels of solar radiation striking the Earth's surface had declined by more than 10% in three decades. Sunshine, it seemed, was on the way out."
Attack on The Elk Creek Conservation Coalition
The deliberate destruction in the “Forest Protectors” area at the base of Elk Mountain, was a cowardly and reckless act. The Coalition is disappointed, but not surprised by Cattermole Timber’s recent antics.
This area of recent destruction that the “Forest Protectors” have called home for several weeks is the same area designated for a road under Cattermole’s “cutting permit amendment proposal”. As of Dec 23/03, this proposal was not confirmed to be approved by the Ministry of Forests, and this recent falling incident could constitute a trespass against the Crown. The road right-of-way was NOT included in the original controversial “Grozier Rationale” and the recent destruction has raised considerable concern in the community. Our members are scrutinizing these new developments closely.