Colbert hits it out of the park at the Washington Correspondents Dinner

Do yourself a favour, and watch this incredible clip of Stephen Colbert (by clicking on the above link) at the Washington Correspondents Dinner - as it was shown on C-Span.

It's a fantastic example of how humour and satire can be an effective political tool. Considering the President is sitting a few feet away, and most of the aristocracy in Washington is in the room - it's devastating.

You can also see the same type of brilliance on "The Colbert Report" , or on his website.

Two thumbs up !!!

The joy of reading

Reading is an art. It is more than just comprehending words on paper. It is an interactive and lively experience for the imagination and a respite for the soul. Characters and story plots come alive in the mind. An entire world can be created simply by letting the imagination digest the language. Society today speeds along so fast that it doesn't take the time to stop and soak in life. Reading lets one enjoy the world around, through personal experiences and point of view. All memories and senses are awake when reading and yet while the outside world is still, the mind and imagination run wild. Reading gives temporary reprieve from the pressures of life and creates a new identity and a new environment. It is about learning. New ideas and opinions are introduced. Theories are proven or disproved. Reading is discovery in its most basic element.

- Heather Doerr

In researching this topic, I came across that quote. It's from a student, who was asked why reading was so important.

I think it's a wonderful answer.

One of the things that bothers me today is the small number of people I see reading. When I was growing up, as a young man, almost everyone carried around a book of some kind.

The thing that energized me to really reading was a teacher in fourth or fifth grade. She decided that she would read a chapter of " The Lion , The Witch, and the Wardrobe" each day - and she hooked us all from the first page. We would anxiously await the next day's chapter, to see what was going to happen next.

My family introduced me to reading at an early age, and over the years I have amassed quite a library of reading material. That ranges from some copies of the London Sunday Times dating from the last century, to an original Kipling ( Tales of My Own People)straight through to topical material from today.

I think the first book I ever took out of a library was in kindergarten, "The Cat in the Hat". I never stopped.

It's no wonder that a lot of children today are on medication to allow them to concentrate better. For their entire lives, they have always been quickly handed things, and ( for the most part) have not had to process any of it themselves.

When they get into school, and face the prospect of actually sitting down and reading something, it seems like an incredible challenge. For the first time, they have to be an active participant, and use their imagination.

One of the reasons I like Harry Potter so much, is due to the fact that series of books has allowed children to discover the joys of reading again. Anything that does that cannot be a bad thing.

I don't really care what anyone reads, as long AS they read. The simple act of doing that will actually change you. It's like a Gold's Gym for the mind.

When I was in college, I had an assignment to read a written by Suzanna Moody, who wrote about her experiences in nineteenth century Canada. I decided to sit outside on a sunny spring day, on Dufferin Terrace in Quebec City. I sat on a bench overlooking the St. Lawrence River, and started reading.

I quickly discovered Moody talking about arriving in Quebec City, and describing the exact location I was sitting in - a hundred years or so earlier. We were only separated by time...

That's the great thing about books, you can actually see the world through the eyes of another person. You can go back in time, and begin to understand how people saw their world back then - and how they really were not that much different from you and I in a lot of ways.

To close, one last example, a letter written by a Civil War soldier. We sometimes have this image of people in the past being somehow different than we are today.

The writer's name is Sullivan Ballou, and he is writing to his wife.

One such soldier was Major Sullivan Ballou of the Second Regiment, Rhode Island Volunteers. Then thirty-two years old, Ballou had overcome his family's poverty to start a promising career as a lawyer. He and his wife Sarah wanted to build a better life for their two boys, Edgar and Willie. An ardent Republican and a devoted supporter of Abraham Lincoln, Ballou had volunteered in the spring of 1861, and on June 19 he and his men had left Providence for Washington, D.C.

July 14th, 1861
Washington D.C.

My dear Sarah.

The indications are very strong that we shall move in a few days -- perhaps tomorrow. Lest I should not be able to write you again, I feel impelled to write lines that may fall under your eye when I shall be no more.
Our movement may be one of a few days duration and full of pleasure -- and it may be one of severe conflict and death to me. Not my will, but thine 0 God, be done. If it is necessary that I should fall on the battlefield for my country, I am ready. I have no misgivings about, or lack of confidence in, the cause in which I am engaged, and my courage does not halt or falter. I know how strongly American Civilization now leans upon the triumph of the Government, and how great a debt we owe to those who went before us through the blood and suffering of the Revolution. And I am willing -- perfectly willing -- to lay down all my joys in this life, to help maintain this Government, and to pay that debt.

But, my dear wife, when I know that with my own joys I lay down nearly all of yours, and replace them in this life with cares and sorrows -- when, after having eaten for long years the bitter fruit of orphanage myself, I must offer it as their only sustenance to my dear little children -- is it weak or dishonorable, while the banner of my purpose floats calmly and proudly in the breeze, that my unbounded love for you, my darling wife and children, should struggle in fierce, though useless, contest with my love of country?

I cannot describe to you my feelings on this calm summer night, when two thousand men are sleeping around me, many of them enjoying the last, perhaps, before that of death -- and I, suspicious that Death is creeping behind me with his fatal dart, am communing with God, my country, and thee.

I have sought most closely and diligently, and often in my breast, for a wrong motive in thus hazarding the happiness of those I loved and I could not find one. A pure love of my country and of the principles have often advocated before the people and "the name of honor that I love more than I fear death" have called upon me, and I have obeyed.

Sarah, my love for you is deathless, it seems to bind me to you with mighty cables that nothing but Omnipotence could break; and yet my love of Country comes over me like a strong wind and bears me irresistibly on with all these chains to the battlefield.

The memories of the blissful moments I have spent with you come creeping over me, and I feel most gratified to God and to you that I have enjoyed them so long. And hard it is for me to give them up and burn to ashes the hopes of future years, when God willing, we might still have lived and loved together and seen our sons grow up to honorable manhood around us. I have, I know, but few and small claims upon Divine Providence, but something whispers to me -- perhaps it is the wafted prayer of my little Edgar -- that I shall return to my loved ones unharmed. If I do not, my dear Sarah, never forget how much I love you, and when my last breath escapes me on the battlefield, it will whisper your name.

Forgive my many faults, and the many pains I have caused you. How thoughtless and foolish I have oftentimes been! How gladly would I wash out with my tears every little spot upon your happiness, and struggle with all the misfortune of this world, to shield you and my children from harm. But I cannot. I must watch you from the spirit land and hover near you, while you buffet the storms with your precious little freight, and wait with sad patience till we meet to part no more.

But, O Sarah! If the dead can come back to this earth and flit unseen around those they loved, I shall always be near you; in the garish day and in the darkest night -- amidst your happiest scenes and gloomiest hours -- always, always; and if there be a soft breeze upon your cheek, it shall be my breath; or the cool air fans your throbbing temple, it shall be my spirit passing by.

Sarah, do not mourn me dead; think I am gone and wait for thee, for we shall meet again.

As for my little boys, they will grow as I have done, and never know a father's love and care. Little Willie is too young to remember me long, and my blue-eyed Edgar will keep my frolics with him among the dimmest memories of his childhood. Sarah, I have unlimited confidence in your maternal care and your development of their characters. Tell my two mothers his and hers I call God's blessing upon them. O Sarah, I wait for you there! Come to me, and lead thither my children.

He was killed a week later, with twenty seven of his men, at the battle of Manassas.

Since Harper won't do it, I will

Cpl. Randy Payne



Lieut. William Turner



Cpl. Matthew Dinning




Bombardier Myles Mansell





As a gesture of protest over my government's actions, and as a gesture of respect for our fallen troops - I'll place this virtual Canadian flag at half-mast here.



A nation mourns, and our thoughts and prayers go out to those who have lost their loved ones. We stand together, as one.


Freedom isn't free.


Here is our Prime Minister's e-mail address, should you decide to let him know how you feel.

pm@pm.gc.ca

Harpercritical - My new word for today.

Harper·crit·i·cal (harper'-krĭt'ĭ-kəl) pronunciation
adj.

1.The practice of professing beliefs, feelings, or virtues that one does not hold or possess; falseness.

See also hypocrite.


Well, as some of you may know, Canada has recently elected a new government. Our new Prime Misister, Stephen Harper, spent a lot of time telling us how bad the previous Liberal government really was - and how they were going to fix all the problems.

He was sworn in on February 6th, 2006, and the government was assembled in early April.

So, since the first month is about to wrap up - let's see where we stand here in Canada. It's a timely review of the political process, and a chance to see the solid foundation that this country is now be governed on.

Harper was quite convincing when he spoke of the departure of Brenda Stornach,one of his party members that crossed the floor and joined the Liberals before the election.

Harper said some members feel ''devastated'' and ''betrayed,'' but added he is ''relieved that we've at least gone through this before an election.''

''There's no grand principle involved in this decision, just ambition,'' he said.

That's quite understandable, seeing as how she left his party for the Opposition. Hard to blame a guy for that...

Then again, the election votes were barely counted - and we all found out to our amazement that a Liberal candidate had switched parties to join his.

"I asked David Emerson to join Canada's new government and he accepted."

Harper's comments are being viewed as hypocritical since the Conservatives were up in arms last spring when Belinda Stronach crossed over to the Liberals and was put into cabinet.

At that time, Harper was asked what he thought about MPs who crossed the floor and why did most join the Liberals and not his party.

"We don't go out of our way to romance MPs to get them to cross the floor," Harper said. "The Liberals will do anything to win. We are trying to create a principled party where people act in a principled way.

"We're fairly cautious about encouraging party jumping because I think that's the kind of thing that generates cynicism and frankly when somebody jumps once you're not sure to trust them that they won't jump the next time.

"So I will always handle with an extraordinary degree of caution."

As trade minister, Emerson will be Canada's point man on the softwood lumber file.

Before entering politics in 2004, Emerson was an executive with the lumber company Canfor.

That's being Harpercritical....

"I believe it's better to light one candle than to promise a million light bulbs."

Stephen " one lux" Harper

Then, after that rather shakey start to a new age of Enlightenment, we were treated to Mr Prime Minister dropping his children off at school - and shaking their hands. I guess Dad is a little formal with the kids.

In Quebec, that clip made headlines. His supporters claimed it was ok, and that it was unfair to place all that attention on his children...the same ones Harper had been using in ads all during the campaign.

Then, in a rather timely gesture, he roared off to Afghanistan to visit our troops. Unlike most leaders, he actually stayed overnight with them at their camp. I almost got a little optomistic when I heard that.

They got a chance to meet him, and he got a chance to get a photo op.

He is a big supporter of the military.

Four Canadian soldiers were killed in an IED attack by insurgents last week. Two of those men had served as part of the security detail that protected Harper while he was visiting.

His government banned journalists from the military base when their bodies were brought back home, and he refused to lower the flag in their honour.

I guess he supports the military only when they are alive.

He was also very vocal in his attacks on political appointees during the campaign.

Today in Vancouver, Stephen Harper released the Conservative plan of Democratic Reform which will see elected senators, fixed election dates and a cleaner nomination process.

Dec.2005

Once elected, a month later, the co-chair of his election commitee Michael Fortier is appointed as a senator, and minister of public works, even though he does not hold a seat in the House of Commons.

He named Gordon O'Connor, a former defence industry lobbyist, as minister of defence. During the election, Harper vowed to curb the influence of Ottawa lobbyists.

he appointed Conservative MPs as chairs of Commons committees. Among them was Saskatoon MP Maurice Vellacott, who will chair the aboriginal affairs committee. In 2004, Vellacott was heavily criticized for defending two Saskatoon policemen convicted of dumping a drunk aboriginal man on the outskirts of the city in minus-25 degree weather.

While in Opposition, Harper was so critical of the Liberals for appointing committee chairs that they allowed committees to elect their own chairs

He introduced his ethics and accountability package, one of the five priorities he says he intends to act on during this session of Parliament. But he shuffled the access to information part of the package, which could have had the potential to allow Canadians easier access to government documents, off to a Commons committee for study.

In May 2004 while Opposition leader, Harper promised to eliminate the GST on any part of gas prices above 85 cents a litre. Last week, he dismissed the pledge because it "was made two elections ago."

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1145657412408&call_pageid=968256290204&col=968350116795

Just today, we all heard of the deal in the softwood lumber dispute. The USA owes us five billion dollars they are holding on to, in violation of the Nafta Free Trade Agreement. We have gone before tribunals, and won our case that this is illegal .

During the campaign, Mr. Harper was the Iron Man of the North about how tough we were going to be with the Americans. We were going to stand proud and strong, and fight for the return of what was rightfully ours.

Harper said the U.S. had accepted Canada's key conditions. The agreement provides Canadian producers unrestricted access to U.S. markets under current market conditions, he said, meaning there is no overall cap on the Canadian share of the U.S. market.

With prices at the current market, this means no quotas or tariffs, Harper added.

Price drops will lead to export restrictions

But, if the price drops, certain export restrictions will kick in. Producers would have to pay an export tax of five per cent if there's a small drop in price. If it's aa larger drop, they would have to pay as much as 15 per cent.

"There is no quota; there is simply an export tax at the bottom of the market," said International Trade Minister David Emerson.

However, exporters who don't want to pay the tax will have to limit their volume of exports.

The U.S. would also return $4 billion of the $5 billion in duties it has collected so far on Canadian lumber imports, Harper said. But $1 billion will remain in U.S. hands.

He said the U.S. has agreed to a seven-year deal with the possibility of a renewal.

So, they keep a billion of our dollars - and get to impose quotas. Thank GOD we were playing hardball. Oh yeah, we signed a seven year deal.

And the main man responsible ? Emerson, the Liberal that switched parties, and used to be a lumber company executive.

I'm delighted to announce that we have reached an agreement," Harper told the House of Commons.

"This is what Canada wanted. This is what Canada got. This, colleagues, is a good deal."

It's a good deal for Harper's corporate friends.

Well, quite a first month in power - and who knows what awaits us in the future ? It seems like Little Stevie Blunder has finally ripped of his mask, and showed us all the great lie that got him elected.

Harpercritical, my new word for today.

Jon Stewart - His post 9/11 remarks on Sept.20th, 2001

I really like Jon Stewart. I watched him in his early days on television, when he took over the Arsenio Hall show, and I knew even then he was something different.

Everyone knows Jon Stewart now, and the "Daily Show" attracts a large audience every night. He's partially responsible for younger people becoming interested in politics, and that's a good thing. We need that today. He's intelligent, and very funny.

Most people don't remember his first night back on the Daily Show, after 9/11, however. I think it's one of the best things he ever did. It took a lot of courage, and I think we all remember how impossible it seemed to all of us at that time that we might ever laugh again. Those were terrible times, and Stewart could have done what a lot of people on TV did then, and just make some passing easy remarks.

He didn't.

What he did that night, on Sept 20th, 2001, was remarkable. Like all of us, he was shaken by what we had all gone through. In the best tradition of American rhetoric, he came on screen that night and spoke from his heart. I think it ranks as one of the best speeches on 9/11, and what being an American meant at that moment in time. It's far better than most of the ones given by the politicians, and it's done without a script.

You don't see that type of moment often on television anymore, or in real life for that matter.

I'd like to share that clip with you now, and ask you to place yourself back to that time. Remember what it was like. Think of the enormous pressure that must have been on his shoulders. Think of what must have been going on as he faced his audience, and watch how that moment unfolds.

Some digital art, by yours truly

"Incident at Carter Lake"




When God rolls the dice

Both done with Vue D'Esprit

Self Portrait - "No Reflection On Me"

Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumble bee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and feel the wind. Live your life to the fullest potential, and fight for your dreams.

- Ashley Smith

A cold rainy morning here in Montreal. I went out for breakfast, bundled up in a long coat, with my collar up. In the pouring rain, I noticed a mirrored window, and decided to try taking a shot of myself in it.

Why the Dutch should rule the world...

Well, let me start by explaining that I am a great fan of the Netherlands. I figured that it might be time to do a post on why I love the Dutch so very much.

Next week is Koninginnedag, on April 30th. It's Queen's Day, a national holiday.

I thought I might use that opportunity to celebrate why the Dutch are so exceptional, and their country so fascinating to me.

To show you how very logical and practical the Dutch really are, the Queen Beatrix's birthday is actually January 31st. April 30th was Queen Juliana's birthday - her predecessor. Since the weather in the Netherland's is typically not great for a holiday at that time - they just kept it in springtime.

How can you not admire a Royal family that looks the other way, and gives everyone a nice spring day off ?

Queen's Day is celebrated in a rather interesting fashion. Open stands are set up, much like our flea markets here in North America, and those are not typically tolerated without a lot of paperwork during the rest of the year.

On Queen's day, it's time to go and sell your second hand treasures to other Dutchies. I actually think that's a rather wonderful, and typically Dutch, way to celebrate a monarch's birthday.

You also see a lot of orange around, the colour of the Dutch Royal family - the House of Orange. You get orange flags, foods, drinks, and the occasional orange fountain...and some orange painted Dutchies.

The entire day is a good excuse to go out and party - and get a good deal on something.

If you click the link above, you will hear a vocal version of the Dutch anthem - "The Wilhelmus". It's a very old melody, dating back to before 1572. Nobody's even sure who wrote it. The Dutch decided to use it as their anthem in 1932.

It's got 15 eight-line verses (the first and sixth verses make up the official anthem). I think anyone that can sing the entire thing, without a mistake, should be awarded Dutch citizenship on the spot. It's one of the few anthems I know of that changes it's time signature, just to keep you on your toes even more.

If you ever get the chance, I suggest you watch a football (soccer) game when the Dutch play. You'll know which ones are the Dutch fans, they will be the ones dressed in orange, rabidly rooting for their team against any and all others. In an important soccer match, the game is watched with a national passion. A win causes a celebration like a war being won, and a loss results in a national case of depression.

Like Canadians, the Dutch are typically not that openly patriotic - unless sports are involved. Then they go insane... That makes me feel strangely at home with them, because we are the same way here with our hockey teams.

The Dutch language is music to my ears. I have a good friend in St. Maarten's who is teaching me dutch on Skype...or at least trying to. I'm hoping to travel to the Netherlands next year, budget permitting. Thanks to my friends Sigi's incredible patience (she's a teacher,btw), and ability to listen to me massacre Dutch horribly, I've learned a little Dutch. Very little... That's not her fault, it's mine.

She is an angel.

As long as anyone in the Netherlands wants to know my age, and is willing to accept that I am ten years old - I am perfectly capable of telling them that. Let's just say it's going to take a bit of work. I do have this feeling that any Dutchie I speak with while there will instantly switch to English...and beg me to stop speaking what I think is Dutch.

Here is a Dutch radio station you can listen to, if you'd like to hear spoken Dutch.

www.wereldomroep.nl/luisterlive/luisterlive_nederlands

Right now, there seems to be a soccer game on, based on the singing crowds,drumming, enthusiastic comments, and cheering.

Either that, or they have just declared war on someone...

I took German in college, and it always sounded very harsh to my ear. When I hear Dutch, especially spoken by a female, it sounds to me like a very musical German spoken by someone from Liverpool, England.

You know how to get a Dutchie really angry ?

Read them that last sentence...and then start running.

Now, onto to Dutch food. This is why I think the Dutch should rule the world. Have you ever even heard of Dutch food ?

See ?

It's incredibly good. On a culinary level, it's like a stealth fighter. The Dutch walk around surrounded by all those amazing things to eat - and shrug their shoulders and say " So ? "

Actually, they would say " Zo ?", since they are Dutch.

Had they concentrated on their food, instead of tulips, they would make Bill Gates look poor. Dutch food factories would be all over the planet, and working around the clock to supply the demand.

Just one example. They have this magical delicacy called stroopwaffels.


My l'il sis Ely introduced me, in much the same way a crack dealer introduces a new customer, to stroopwafels when she sent me some. I remember opening the box, and looking down at these perfectly round waffles, and then opening the bag up.

I think they make them with heroin. These things are about as addictive. Imagine the perfect mix of a crisp waffel and syrup. That's nowhere near close to what a stroopwafel tastes like. The first time I tasted one, I think I know what heaven must feel like. I can get some Canadian ones, but that's like getting a Ferrari made in China...it's not quite the same.

Even better, there is only one store in Montreal that sells them, and they used to be in my neighborhood.

Then, just before I discovered them, they moved to the farthest part of the island of Montreal.

If Tim Horton's (Canada's leading doughnut chain)was ever bright enough to put stroopwaffels on their menu, millions would get made. One part of me secretly dreams of getting the Dutch government to send me a stroopwaffel cart, and a study supply of product. I'm pretty sure I could reduce any Dutch deficit rather quickly, and then be able to retire at a young age - if only I could avoid eating all the stroopwaffels.

I highly recommend you track some down and try them.

They even serve broken stroopwafels, in plastic bags. As I said, the Dutch are truly god's. Let no stroopwafel be wasted.

They also have drop , a licorice candy that is quite tasty. It comes in many flavours, and styles. It's made with real licorice, and it's nothing like the "licorice" we are used to in North America. They even have some cold medicines made with it.

Oh...still need more proof ? You know those chocolate sprinkles we in North America sometimes decorate cakes with ? Now, imagine those made with very high quality European chocolate. Now imagine sprinkling that on some fresh warm bread, over some melted butter.

The Dutch call that Hagelslag... that's considered breakfast... Only the Dutch could make something that sinfully delicious a way to start ones day...and then give it a name that sounds like a Jim Henson character.

They also have Erwtensoep, or snert. That's a rich pea soup made with pork and sausage. It's actually far more like a stew, and one way of defining a good one according to the Dutch is when the spoon stands up by itself in it. They eat this typically with rye bread, and mustard or butter, in winter. I've tasted a canned version, and it has a rich smokey flavour that will haunt you like a Stephen King novel.

They also have Zaansemosterd , which is a mustard that makes Dijon mustard look like a three year old child standing beside an NBA player.

When I first received some, being a fan of hot mustards, I made myself a sandwich, and generously spread on a nice amount of it. The second I bit into it, actually a micro-second, my sinus chambers instantly cleared up, and tears started to flow. It's exceptionally good, and exceptionally strong. The Dutch even make a cream soup with it, called mosterdsoep.

The silly thing ? The rest of the world thinks of the Netherlands as a place with windmills, gouda cheese, tulips and wooden shoes. Meanwhile, the real treasures are kept as secret as anything found in Area 51. The Dutch simply walk around clueless as to all of it, and assume that it's all normal and nothing very special.

I could go on and on about the Dutch, and how much I have come to love their country, and their people. I'm lucky to have a few Dutchies as friends, and they are among my closest ones.

During WW2, they treated Canadian troops there with incredible kindness. Sometimes starving families brought out food to troops in the field, even though they had almost none themselves - and were in danger of getting killed doing it.

Every Canadian I have ever talked to that has visited there has been welcomed warmly, and treated kindly. We have a bond between our two nations born in blood. That bond will last forever, and I cannot think of a better people to share it with.

I'd like to thank all my Dutch friends, and to wish them all the best with their Koninginnedag celebration. I trust at least one of them will have a stroopwaffel, and think of me while doing so.

I'd be honoured.

Vriendschap - that's friendship in Dutch, and that's how I feel when I think of the Dutchies I have come to know and respect so much.

Ely, thanks again for allowing me to be your big bro, and for introducing me to the magic that is the Netherlands.

Tot ziens, and Dank u wel, Nederlanders.

If a terrorist laughs in cave, does he make a sound ? ( political commentary)

I think what most Americans don't understand is the role the neo-con's have played in pulling your great country away from the rest of the world.

From that initial " You are either for us, or against us." remark from your President, the use of torture, the violation of the historical right of " habeus corpus", the insulting of other nations by your political leaders, and the refusal to join most international agreements have all shown us a much different America than the one we used to admire.

With Canada, my country, the US currently holds about five billion dollars of money that rightfully belongs to us. The softwood lumber dispute, where Canada has won ruling after ruling on the illegallity of the US to violate it's own agreement with us under the Free Trade act has shown how American politicians can be trusted to honour their word on agreements that they sign.

The sheltering of terrorists like Luis Posada Carriles, who blew a Cuban airliner out of the sky and planted bombs in Cuban hotels that killed innocent people only proves the hypocrisy of your neo-con leaders.

We must unite in opposing all terrorists, not just some of them. In this world there are good causes and bad causes, and we may disagree on where the line is drawn. Yet, there is no such thing as a good terrorist. No national aspiration, no remembered wrong can ever justify the deliberate murder of the innocent. Any government that rejects this principle, trying to pick and choose its terrorist friends, will know the consequences.

- President George Bush

November 10, 2001

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
TO UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Some terrorists are more equal than others, it seems. Just ask Carriles.

Your great country makes friends with brutal tyrants like Islam Karimov of The Republic of Uzbekistan , a man who allows torture of prisoners - including boiling them alive. Those types of actions get some countries invaded, while others are trusted friends.

However, credible non-government human right watchdogs, such as IHF, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, as well as United States Department of State and Council of the European Union define Uzbekistan as "an authoritarian state with limited civil rights" [1] and express profound concern about "wide-scale violation of virtually all basic human rights" [2]. According to the reports, the most widespread violations are torture, arbitrary arrests, and various restrictions of freedoms: of religion, of speech and press, of free association and assembly [3]. The reports maintain that the violations are most often committed against members of religious organizations, independent journalists, human right activists, and political activists, including members of the banned opposition parties. In 2005, Uzbekistan was included into Freedom House's "The Worst of the Worst: The World's Most Repressive Societies"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uzbekistan

And then we hear your politicians sing the praises of "God's gift to humanity...democracy. "

Please forgive those of us that have to muffle a laugh...

Your President signed a bill that technically allows him to attack the World Court in the Hague, to free Americans held there. (HR4775)

Your government gave that lovely bill such a patriotic name - the "American Servicemembers' Protection Act "

This act deliberately misleads the American people, and threatens an international and respected court of law, in a free and democratic nation, with military attack.

Any case taken to the World Court is done so only after the home country of the national involved refuses to act. It's cases are for acts of genocide, and crimes against humanity.

It was written and enacted only to bully the rest of the world, and done so with no shame.

If the US ever decided to use the powers given to the President under that act, it would lose the support of every nation in the world.

It would be considered by all citizens of free and democratic nations (all of them members of that selfsame international court) to be indeed a terrorist act in and of itself. It would be the end of America's power in the world, and the total loss of any moral standing to call itself a democracy.

For all these reasons, and scores more, the US is becoming seen by more and more people as a rogue nation. It sets it's own rules, makes it's own definitions, and doesn't play well with others.

None of this is directed against the American people, but simply at it's current political leaders. Those men and women have acted in a manner which many of us never expected to see in our lifetimes.

In this time of great need for alliances, and for a mutual defense against an ever present and dangerous enemy, that is the greatest tragedy of our time.

On Sept. 11th, 2001 , every man and woman with any conscience was on your side. In a way, many of us were Americans that day. That attack was against us, because it was against you.

Now, almost five years later, we find ourselves torn apart, and in disagreement. We sit here calling each other names, and venting our frustrations.

Somewhere in a cave in Pakistan, if you listen closely, you can hear Osama Bin Laden laughing...

The Greatest Story Never Told (political commentary)

One of the things that strikes me about the current state of American journalism is it's ability in this modern age to concentrate on stories that are easy to understand, and shocking. The traditional type of journalism that was (in it's modern era) defined by people like Edward R. Murrow and lead eventually to Watergate is now pretty much on life support.

Part of it is the "dumbing down" of America media, in an "Entertainment Tonight/ American Idol" world. Thanks to short attention spans caused by an overwhelming bombardment of images and choices offered to viewers, and less time available to spend because of the need to spend hours working trying to survive, viewers now want a media experience that is less challenging, fun, and an escape.

Journalists in the past had been outcasts, they were professionals that were far closer to the working class than the aristocracy. Although well known, they were not living within the same circles of power that the people they commented on were.

Today, journalists (at the top levels) are celebrities. They are millionaires, they live in the same privileged communities as those they oversee, they send their children to the same schools, and their futures are decided by the contacts they have.

As opposed to the traditional model that existed before, they now have too much to lose, and too much in common with those that run the country. That causes them to avoid conflict, and to avoid questioning too much. Journalists have been "outed" by this administration, publicly revealed to be homosexual, simply because they questioned what they had seen going on.

That type of attack has lead to journalists that are afraid to go against a government that will take any measures, without any regard for decency or tolerance, and that threat silences them effectively.

A perfect example of this is the lack of coverage of the reversal of H.R. 3100, entitled the East Asia Security Act of 2005, on live TV ( C-Span). It was the death knoll of democracy in America, in my opinion. An act was proposed to protect America's security, votes were cast ( enough to ensure passage) - and then stunningly they were reversed - after rich lobbyists from the defense industry and corporations started telling American politicians how they were supposed to vote.

Without any shame, or guilt, they replied to their masters request - like the lapdogs they have become.

Here is what that act was all about, and why not only it's defeat was so telling of the current state of government in America, and the lack of any real coverage of it in the media. It should have been front page news the second it happened.

Almost no American I have spoken with is aware of this, thanks to the lack of intestinal fortitude of the journalists that are supposed to be looking out for such things, and reporting on them.

Official Title: To authorize measures to deter arms transfers by foreign countries to the People's Republic of China.

Project Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that requires the President to report all information to Congress relative to any foreign individual or country who transfers arms or related technology to the People's Republic of China.

Highlights:

Grants the President the ability to place sanctions on any individual or country that violates the arms embargo, including:

- Denial of participation in cooperative research and development

- Prohibition of ownership and control of any business registered as a manufacturer or exporter of defense articles or services

- Removal of all licenses relative to dual-use goods or technology

- Prohibition of participation of any foreign military sales

Jul 14, 2005: This bill failed in the House of Representatives by roll call vote. The vote was held under a suspension of the rules to cut debate short and pass the bill, needing a two-thirds majority. (Roll 374.) The totals were: 215 Ayes, 203 Nays, 15 Present/Not Voting.

Democrat/ Republican/ Independent
Aye 96/ 118/ 1
Nay 97/ 106/ 0
Absent 9/ 6/ 0

Here is who voted, and how :

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/vote.xpd?vote=h2005-374

This changing of votes crossed party lines too, and it shows how badly the legislative branch of government has been bought off by multi-national corporations and special interest groups.

Those politicians, the ones who voted for that act and then changed their votes afterwards, betrayed their duty to represent and protect the citizens that elected them.

That's a pretty straightforward act, taken against a clear and present possible future danger to America - and Americans. It traded money, over homeland security. That same homeland security that your politicians have kept telling you for five years is of critical importance. They speak constantly of a need to protect against any threat.

We have experienced the horror of September 11. We have seen that those who hate America are willing to crash airplanes into buildings full of innocent people. Our enemies would be no less willing -- in fact they would be eager -- to use a biological, or chemical, or a nuclear weapon.

Knowing these realities, America must not ignore the threat gathering against us. Facing clear evidence of peril, we cannot wait for the final proof -- the smoking gun -- that could come in the form of a mushroom cloud.

As President Kennedy said in October of 1962: "Neither the United States of America nor the world community of nations can tolerate deliberate deception and offensive threats on the part of any nation, large or small. We no longer live in a world," he said, "where only the actual firing of weapons represents a sufficient challenge to a nation's security to constitute maximum peril."

-President George Bush Jr.

Tuesday, October 8, 2002

China is perhaps the only country on this planet right now that could perhaps pose a real threat to the USA. It's economy is exploding, thanks to American business using it as a source of cheap labour. Walmart alone accounts for a large sum, not to mention all the others.

That country currently has a strong military, growing wealth, weapons of mass destruction, and is expanding it's influence and control outwards slowly across Asia. It now is allowed to purchase the latest and most modern military technology without restraint or supervision, thanks to that act being defeated. Thanks to American businessmen and politicians working together hand in hand, it has access to better weapons, and the money with which to purchase them.

Those that gained the most by it's defeat ? The rich and the powerful, in essence the aristocracy of America. Those that have been rewarded the most by the freedom and democracy offered to them by America, those that live lives of privilige and wealth - they sold you out like Judas, for thirty pieces of gold, or at least it's modern equivalent.

10 And Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went unto the chief priests, to betray him unto them. 11 And when they heard it, they were glad, and promised to give him money. And he sought how he might conveniently betray him.

Matthew 14:10-11

"The Capitalists will sell us the rope with which we will hang them."

Vladimir Ilyich Lenin

That's it, the greatest story never told.

Manfred von Richthofen - The Red Baron (historical commentary)

As this month of April begins on a rainy note here in Montreal, perhaps it would be a good time to reflect back on another April day, April 21st, 1918.

It was the last day of the Red Baron's life.

He died at age twenty-five, the same type of sudden death he had dealt out to so many young Allied pilots and observers over the Western Front. He was both respected and feared by his enemies, in those last dying days of the age of chivalry.

It was still a time of kings and queens, and luckily far removed from the last ring of Hell that the First World War had become on the ground. As men were dying in relative anonymity in the mud thousands of feet below them, the knights of the air lived a life in full public view.

Man had only taken to the air fifteen years before, and the basic principles of air warfare were being written each and every day. They flew machines made of fabric and wood, machines that would sometimes break apart on their own in mid-air.

The speeds at which they flew and fought were not much more than a cars speed on the highway today. The Fokker Triplane Richthofen died in had a maximum speed of about one hundred and five miles per hour, and cruised at about ninety. It weighed about thirteen hundred pounds, was about eighteen feet long, twenty three feet wide, and less than ten feet high.

In battle, they fought close enough to see each others faces. In reading some of Richthofen's combat reports, one is struck by the fact that he is sometimes thirty feet or less away from his victim when he delivers the fatal blow.

On some occasions he lands in time to assist in the removal of injured pilots, men he has himself shot, and he takes care of them with compassion and respect. He sometimes goes to their graves, and says a prayer for them.

Here is account of his first kill, on the 17th September, 1915

When he had come down to about three hundred feet he tried to escape by flying in a zig-zag course during which, as is well known, it is difficult for an observer to shoot. That was my most favorable moment. I followed him at an altitude of from two hundred and fifty feet to one hundred and fifty feet, firing all the time. The Englishman could not help falling. But the jamming of my gun nearly robbed me of my success.

My opponent fell, shot through the head, one hundred and fifty feet behind our line. His machine gun was dug out of the ground and it ornaments the entrance of my dwelling.

A hunter in his youth, Richthofen kept trophies of his kills. He went out and had a small silver cup engraved with the details of each. On that day he died, eighty of them were on display in his room. On it's walls hung pieces of fabric from some of his victims planes that fell behind German lines.

When he was at the rudder, and in the air, he was a part of a machine. His Fokker Triplane was notoriously unstable in the air, but in the hands of an expert pilot that weakness became a great strength. It's three wings allowed great lift and mobility, both things that increased a pilot's lifespan if used properly.

This is how he spoke of the act of shooting down an enemy pilot.

My father discriminates between a sportsman and a butcher. The latter shoots for fun. When I have shot down an Englishman my hunting passion is satisfied for a quarter of an hour. Therefore I do not succeed in shooting two Englishmen in succession. If one of them comes down I have the feeling of complete satisfaction. Only much, much later I have overcome my instinct and have become a butcher.

Sometimes, in fact most times, those deaths were horrible. This is another account that might bring about a different view of that commonly used term " shot down in flames. "

Once I was on the ground next to a benzine tank. It contained one hundred litres of benzine which exploded and burnt. The heat was so great that I could not bear to be within ten yards of it. One can therefore imagine what it means if a tank containing a large quantity of this devilish liquid explodes a few inches in front of one while the blast from the propeller blows the flame into one's face. I believe a man must lose consciousness at the very first moment. Sometimes miracles do happen. For in stance, I once saw an English aeroplane falling down in flames. The flames burst out only at an altitude of fifteen hundred feet. The whole machine was burning. When we had flown home we were told that one of the occupants of the machine had jumped from an altitude of one hundred and fifty feet. It was the observer. One hundred and fifty feet is the height of a good sized steeple. Supposing somebody should jump from its top to the ground, what would be his condition? Most men would break their bones in jumping from a first floor window. At any rate, this good fellow jumped from a burning machine at an altitude of one hundred and fifty feet, from a machine which had been burning for over a minute, and nothing happened to him except a simple fracture of the leg. Soon after his adventure he made a statement from which it appears that his nerve had not suffered.

On July 6th 1917, the Red Baron came as close to death as one could come in those days, and still live to tell the tale. It was a wound that should have ended his flying career, but Richthofen could not desert the men of the squadron he lead, nor the cause he fought for.

In his book, von Richthofen describes how he was about to attack a Vickers "bomber" and had not even taken the safety catch off his gun when the bomber's observer started to fire at a range of 300 m, a distance that von Richthofen considered to be too far away for "real" combat. In his own words, "the best marksman just does not hit the target at this distance". Suddenly there was a blow to his head and he was totally paralysed and blinded. After a great effort he was able to move his limbs again while sensing that his plane was in a dive; still he could not see. When the darkness slowly lifted he first checked his altimeter, which showed 800 m, a drop of 3200 m within a few moments. He reduced his altitude to 50 m and made a rough landing, when he realised he was going to faint again. He was able to get out of the plane and collapsed remembering only that he had fallen on a thistle and had not been able to move from the spot. After a drive of several hours in a motorcar he was taken to a field hospital.

The history in his medical file is very similar, noting that he did not lose consciousness in the plane. "His arms fell down, legs moved to the front of the plane. The flying apparatus fell towards the ground. At the same time he had a feeling of total blindness and the engine sound was heard as if from a great distance. After regaining his senses and control over his limbs, he estimated that the time of paralysis lasted for only a minute. He descended to an altitude of 50 m to find an appropriate landing spot until he felt that he could no longer fly the aircraft. Afterwards he could not remember where he had landed. He left the plane and collapsed." His memory of his transportation to the hospital was blurred. Upon arrival von Richthofen immediately told his physician that he had only been able to retain control of the aircraft because he had had the firm conviction that otherwise he would have been a dead man.

The initial diagnosis on reaching hospital was "machinegun (projectile) ricocheting from head". The stay in hospital was uneventful after surgery to ascertain that the bullet had not entered the brain.

Von Richthofen stayed in the field hospital for 20 days until July 25, 1917 (figure 2). He left because he wanted to take command of his wing again. The skull wound was not closed, and the bare bone was probably visible until his death. He was advised not to fly until the wound in his head had healed completely. There is a special mention of the fact that even the surgeon in charge held this opinion in the medical file. It was also recorded that "without a doubt there had been a severe concussion of the brain and even more probable a cerebral haemorrhage. For this reason sudden changes in air pressure during flight might lead to disturbances of his consciousness". The record ends with the statement that von Richthofen promised not to resume flying before he had been given permission by a physician.

A new chapter of The Red Air Fighter was added in the spring of 1918, in which von Richthofen mentioned his depression and melancholy when he thought about the future. He describes a totally different von Richthofen than the one who wrote the first edition of The Red Air Fighter. He feels unwell after each air combat and attributes this feeling to his head injury. After landing he stays in his quarters and does not want to see or to talk to anybody.

At the end of January, 1918, when on another visit home, his mother noted the change in her son: she describes him as taciturn, distant, and almost unapproachable. She thought that he had changed because he had seen death too many times.

And so, on that last April day of his life, burnt-out and physically weak, he violated his own air warfare rules. He was far behind enemy lines, far too low to the ground, and allowed himself to be caught in a crossfire of machine guns from both the young Canadian pilot behind him (Roy Brown), and an Australian anti-aircraft position as he fixated on the target flying yards in front of him.

A discussion still continues to this very day as to who fired that fatal bullet.

Like many of his victims, he probably never knew what hit him.

A bullet pierced his heart, and the small frail red machine made an almost perfect landing on the ground below. Once the troops on the ground realized who had just been shot down, his plane was picked apart by eager souvenir hunters.

The engine from his plane is an exhibit at the British War Museum.

His body was lifted gently from it's seat, and he was given a full military funeral by the very same men he had spent most of his military life trying to kill. They treated him as one of their own, and that perhaps tells us how much the world has changed since that April day in 1917.

After his burial, his body was moved three times. He finally returned home to Wiesbaden, to the family's burial plot in 1975. There he lies today, a symbol of an almost forgotten time when war was fought with rules, by men of honour.