Puffin Poop

The history of Haiti has been extremely complex since the slaves first began their revolt in 1791. It is therefore tempting for well-meaning reporters to oversimplify and/or allow inaccuracies to reduce the integrity of their commentary. One example of this is the linked interview aired on Democracy Now. I recommend it because it does, if imperfectly, tell a side of the Haitian story that needs to be told. I am deeply angered by the deluge of coverage that focuses only on the sensational. This lazy, ratings-driven approach is so superficial that it approximates, or at least produces a subtle subtext of, racist propaganda. Read the rest of this entry »

At Ristorante Don Valentino on the Big Day

Four Score Years - And Then Some

Watching on a far-off sandy shore

I loved the native grace with which you moved

You captured me and made my spirit soar

And through our life pure constancy you proved

*

I don’t know what I’d do without your care

In trying to fathom life without a heart

I don’t know how I’d hope if you weren’t there

I  wouldn’t even know a place to start

*

Our family robe your faithfulness has knitten

Always cooking someone’s favorite dish

Since Trinidad and Montreal and Britain

You’ve been the core of my most fervent wish

*

We’ve built a set of values for our children

And as we watch them live their lives and grow

The future bears a prospect bright and gilden

As their young, in turn, a love for goodness show

*

It’s not been simple; living rarely is

Our canoe has struggled sometimes to find land

But know there’s all my love in every kiss

And music in the soul that holds your hand.

For Anita - January 2010

Obama has done little more than add a genteel facade to the same old Dubya policies of world domination. I was half expecting this. Too bad.

At least the world saw through Bush; this charmer gets the Nobel Peace Prize.

This linked article is, admittedly, long, but well worth the effort. It reveals a U.S.-Israel-India axis designed to minimize Chinese influence in the Indian Ocean. And the control of Yemen is key.

Meanwhile, we’ll continue to drop our docile drawers before flying to the U.S. I guess it’s necessary if you’re going to be, er… played with.

From an editorial in the distinguished British conservative magazine, The Economist:

Harper may in fact be correct that “Canadians care more about the luge than the legislature, but that is surely true only while their decent system of government is in good hands” - and Canadians “may soon conclude that it isn’t.”

The article likens Harper’s reasons for the suspension of parliament (to enable the government to focus amidst the stresses of the economy and the distractions of the Olympic Games) to an admission that his ministers can’t walk and chew gum at the same time.

If you want to do something admittedly easy, and possibly shallow, to oppose the proroguing of Parliament, there is a growing list of objectors on Facebook.

After looking at the wealth of resources and links posted by these people at the amazing rate of about 10 posts per minute in real time, it’s hard not to become a little hopeful that something good might actually result, even in sleepy old Canada.

From Maude Barlow’s editorial in today’s Globe & Mail on Canada’s demise in world opinion.
Only one of many good points, but the funniest… and perhaps the saddest.

The extremists are winning the Great Chess Game. America exposed it’s queen when Bush used 9-11 to greedily invade Iraq and Afghanistan instead of advancing a few smaller pieces in an effort to win over moderate Moslems by taking a second look at its foreign policy. As many predicted, Dubya’s response simply increased hatred and abandoned the centre of the board to al-Qaeda.
Now the response to the latest airline incident will alienate ALL citizens from certain countries and US citizens with ties to these places, not to mention the entire world community of those with weak bladders and those who love, or otherwise identify with, weak-bladdered would-be flyers. Some of these might be vulnerable to recruitment by terrorist organizations. How can this last group be screened? Impossible?
Checkmate.

I’ve added Black Water to the My Songs page. It was overlooked when I created the page in Sept. 2008.

The New Year’s message from Harper’s simple little shitsu mouthpiece, aka Governor General Michaëlle Jean, contained the following main topics for the couch potato to consider:

• Canada’s Truth And Reconciliation Committee. Why mention this? To let simple-minded Canadians know that Harper cares about “Justice.” - Warm fuzzies for any wavering Liberal voters out there.
• Afghanistan: All the “good” we’re doing there (this probably co-authored by Harper and Obama). For the real scoop, read Eric Margolis.
• The Olympics: A photo-op showcase, a justification for, and a distraction from, the proroguing of parliament. Not to mention a corrupt, resource-gobbling industry posing as an idealistic movement.

Three carefully-chosen themes, and only three.

Still not heard from her lips: an explanation for what went down on December 30th.

Barf…

For putting up with Harper’s contempt for, and regular abuse of, our parlimentary system. After yesterday’s shocking prorogation of Parliament, and the calm, measured response from the media (the ignoring by many) “Democracy” here is a bigger farce than ever, but the couch potato goes back to his egg nog.

Friends can pull you out of the emotional mud and help get your thoughts (see below) flowing. Thanks, Tom.