Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada "Of Interest To Me" July01 -- July15, 2003
Email: mike -at- mikecampbell dot net
The opinions expressed on this website are those of the author alone, and are not necessarily those of his employer or any organization with which he is affiliated.
News Resources
Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI)
Dawson Speaks
Tuesday, July 15, 2003
Jonah Goldberg reports that Palestinian sources have confirmed that 34 out of the 52 Palestinians killed in the Jenin massacre were armed terrorists.
10:47pmADT
Hey Yasser, how do I get me one of them Nobel Peace prizes?
The Washington Times reports that there's been lots of kissing and making up in Ramallah among Palestinian leaders.
Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas yesterday declared an end to the rift with Yasser Arafat that has threatened U.S.-led peace efforts.
Mr. Abbas pledged his loyalty to Mr. Arafat as Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, visiting London, was being rebuffed by Britain in his efforts to further isolate Mr. Arafat.
"The disputes are over and things are all right," Mr. Abbas told reporters after meeting Mr. Arafat at his devastated headquarters in the West Bank city of Ramallah.
Wow, that's a relief; now we can get back to trying to unfold that ol' roadmap.
Meanwhile, James Taranto reports
Arafat to Palestinian Teens: Drop Dead
Here's a charming report from today's Jerusalem Post:
Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat on Friday called on Palestinian children to follow the example of Fares Odeh, a 13-year-old boy from the Gaza Strip who has been immortalized posthumously by a photograph showing him throwing stones at an IDF tank. Odeh was alleged to have been killed on November 8, 2000 after being shot by IDF soldiers. . . .
"A people that has the likes of Fares Odeh and other children martyrs will not die," he added.
Arafat won a Nobel Peace Prize in 1994.
All I can say to the Israelis is -- keep building that wall.
More Taranto from Best of the Web:
Meanwhile, CNN's Wolf Blitzer has a report bearing the title "WMDs: Did Iraq Ever Have Them?" Uh, Wolf, ever hear of Halabja?
10:37pm ADT
Wow, look at me! I'm riding on a commodious hi-speed train through the Windsor-Quebec City Corridor holding my book and drinking a martini! Woo-hoo!
David Janes trashes the silly wanker.
If Via Rail convinces the federal cabinet this month to spend $3-billion on a new roadbed and such, the train ride between Toronto and Montreal will fall to three hours from four, and you will have the choice of 10 trips a day in each direction, instead of six. You will enter Toronto's Union Station directly from the subway or the underground city that surrounds it.
$3-billion to save 1 goddamned hour. One hour, by-the-way, is a little less than the time it takes to fly from Toronto to Montreal. What the hell is wrong with you, Bill? 3-frickin' billion dollars is a lot of money: hell, you could register 45% of the guns in the country 3 times over for that! Not to mention that most of us don't live over Union Station -- we have to get there too.
Again, it only saves an hour?? Wow, 10 departures per day instead of 6 ... ~ you know, I just can't handle there being only 6 departure times per day. How can people live like that?
150 pages in 3 hours? That's not my speed, I can tell ya. [Egghead loves his booky-wook!]
The political process produces all kinds of spending decisions taken by the majority for minorities when the private market cannot sustain desirable goods in the public interest.
Ummm, well maybe these goods aren't as desirable or in the public interest as you think.
We evince a kind of common sense about these things that doesn't give way easily to simple arithmetical calculations of virtue, or priestly incantations about Adam Smith.
Yeah, all that 'unseen hand' mumbo jumbo.
DJ: Everyone else's money be damned, I want my super train!
10:12pm ADT
Well, my 38th birthday has come and gone, but not before I got spoiled rotten by my dear, sweet, beautiful, wonderful, generous wife (who sometimes reads this blog). 8-)
I received a
new acoustic/electric guitar:
an Ovation Celebrity CC057.
|
|
Now, she did have her own angle with this gift, as it means more private concerts, which she loves (as I say, she hears me play and sing with rose-coloured ears).
Thanks, Sweetie!
So, natch, I went out and bought me one of these babies & a mic: a Roland AC-60 acoustic chorus amp.
This innovative stereo amp uses sophisticated digital signal processing to deliver a crisp sound with lush stereo/multi-band chorus—including a new “wide” mode—plus delay/reverb and impressive Auto Anti-Feedback control. And with its 2-channel Mic/Line design and stand-mountable configuration, the AC-60 is clearly heads above the competition.
Features
 | Compact stereo acoustic amplifier with pure, natural tone and excellent projection |
| 2-Channel design: Guitar input and Mic/Line input with Phantom Power |
| Stereo 30-watt/dual 6.5-inch speaker configuration loud enough for club |
| gigs and small PA applications |
| Onboard DSP delivers lush stereo/multi-band chorus, newly developed “wide” chorus and delay/reverb with footswitch control |
| Built-in Auto Anti-Feedback controls allow for maximum volume without feedback |
| Convenient Mute switch for silent tuning on stage |
| Stereo Line Out for PA and recording applications; Subwoofer output |
| Built-in tilt stand offers better acoustic projection; can also be mounted on commercially available speaker stands |
Phantom Power! I got Phantom Power!! Let the summer concert series begin.
9:48pm ADT
Yawn. So there was a mistake in the SOTU. So what? Congress voted to go to war three and a half months before the SOTU.
Or was it a mistake? As Glenn Reynolds reports, MI6 is reportedly standing by their assessment, and discount the claim by Ambassador Joseph Wilson that Saddam did not try to buy uranium from Niger. The forged Niger documents were not the basis of the British intelligence.
The Telegraph reports that French secret service kept CIA in the dark over uranium and Iraq.
The French secret service is believed to have refused to allow MI6 to give the Americans "credible" intelligence showing that Iraq was trying to buy uranium ore from Niger, US intelligence sources said yesterday.
MI6 had more than one "different and credible" piece of intelligence to show that Iraq was attempting to buy the ore, known as yellowcake, British officials insisted. [...]
Niger is a former French colony and its uranium mines are run by a French company that comes under the control of the French Atomic Energy Commission.
A further factor in the refusal to hand over the information might have been concern that the US administration's willingness to publicise intelligence might lead to sources being inadvertently disclosed.
US sources also point out that the French government was vehemently opposed to the war with Iraq and so suggest that it would have been instinctively against the idea of passing on the intelligence.
So ... all this flap over nothing? The media 'coverage' of this story has been typically atrocious.
... the uranium issue is the latest in a series of desperate efforts by critics to impugn the president's success in Iraq. As the British might say, this is very odd indeed. Usually, intelligence controversies are over who is to blame for failure; this time it seems to be about discrediting victory.
9:30pm ADT
Monday, July 14, 2003
Has the Post found it's new lodestone columnist in the wake of Mark Steyn's departure?
Colby Cosh has another piece in today's Post: Chretien a convert to Senate reform? Not.
How long before we see the pencil sketch of Colby's head next to his columns, I wonder?
Congrats again, Mr. Cosh.
5:36pm ADT
Well, I do find this amusing. At a conference of, as the CBC puts it, "left-leaning countries", (does this organization have a name? what does a country have to do to qualify?), Canada's PM Jean Chretien tabled a paper outlining a formal means for bypassing national sovereignty concerns for humanitarian reasons.
[Hmm, these Third Wayers are talking about embracing globalization (I guess milking would perhaps be a better word to use).]
It's not Chretien's paper that I find amusing -- while it's probably unworkable in terms of coming up with some kind of organization to do this, I do complement him on the effort -- it's just the whole situation, and the reaction of those in attendance.
The conference is the Progressive Governance Conference, being held in Bagshot, England. The International Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty (ICISS) was founded by Ottawa at the request of UN sec-gen Annan. The document produced is called "The Responsibility to Protect". It had been sidelined in the wake of Sept.11th, but Blair had asked Chretien to revive it.
Countries attending: Britain; Canada; Germany; Poland; Hungary; Romania; Czech Republic; New Zealand; Chile; Argentina; Brazil; Ethiopia; South Africa. I'm missing one, although the Peoples' Republic of Bill Clinton was also in attendance, so maybe that's it.
(Are there any "right leaning countries" out there? No? Just the US of A? If so, why weren't there more countries in attendance at this Third Way get together?)
A key portion of Chretien's proposal states:
Where a population is suffering serious harm, as a result of internal war, insurgency, repression or state failure, and the state in question is unwilling or unable to halt or avert it, the principle of non-intervention yields to the international responsibility to protect.
Anyway, Third Way Club leaders rejected Chretien's proposal. The Globe and Mail reports:
... stopped far short of a Canadian proposal ... [while they called it] "a valuable contribution" to the debate over these issues, they failed to endorse the report or say that it should form the basis of further discussion at the UN.
And this is what's amusing. This philosophy trashes the argument used by so many prior to, during and after the Iraq war ~ that it's up to Iraqis themselves to decide what type of government they have.
Schroeder, for example, strongly opposed any communique wording that would imply this foreign policy initiative would have supported military action against Iraq.
But it does exactly that. Suffering serious harm as a result of repression. Would this go further to apply to international military action to free the repressed people of Iran or the utterly oppressed people of North Korea? Would it have supported international military action against the Contras or Castro's insurgency in Cuba or Pol Pot or the Chinese and Russian involvements in so many nations over the last 60 years?
It seems to me that it would. No one who supports this proposal should have opposed the war against Saddam's regime. No one.
This line of thinking also supports military action sans UN approval. Kosovo is the example used. Chretien himself said that this was acceptable, as Russia was using their UN Security Council veto "capriciously". (As France did this year?)
But, as I said, this kind of mechanism would be unworkable. Isn't the UN supposed to solve these kinds of problems now? And it's interesting to see those who did the most to uphold the UN system are talking about contravening the sovereignty of the nation state.
It's also amusing that these leaders use the excuse of "the US won't vote for it" for not supporting it. Who cares if the US doesn't vote for it ~ if it's the right thing to do, why don't you support it?
In the end, of course, the US will continue to be the guarantor of human rights and liberties around the world and not some Third Way commission. It won't be able to help everyone, everywhere, and this assistance may tend to come when American national interests are at stake. But, look at what's happened since September 11, 2001. Now in Afghanistan and Iraq, approximately 48 million people have been delivered from oppressive regimes into freedom. At least, they have a chance at freedom now if they choose to grasp it.
Now, Americans are dying in Iraq, victims of terrorism and fascist insurgents. In Afghanistan, Americans and others (including Germans) are at risk, as they will be in Liberia. And, in England, Schroeder is whining about the wording of a communique.
5:24pm ADT
Thursday, July 10, 2003
Yes, 38 years old today. As David Janes recently said, there's a song in there.
Same pattern on the table, same clock on the wall
It seems I'm just a few weeks shy of David's birthday, and Mark Wickens is a few weeks shy of mine. The summer of '65 saw a good crop of anti-idiotarian Atlantic Canadian bloggers.*
38 years ago today, while I was finding my way into the world, the greatest rock 'n' roll song of all time first hit number one on the charts. It was the Stones' first appearance at number one.
Yo! A big Campblog shout-out to the good people of the great state of Wyoming, who celebrate Wyoming's admission as the 44th state in the union in 1890.
Celebrity birthdays today? tennis star Arthur Ashe, Barney Millerite Ron Glass, Jessica Simpson, Fred Gwynne, Arlo Guthrie, Neil Tennant (Pet Shop Boys), Greg Kihn, Rik Emmett, Ronnie James Dio, Max Von Sydow, late tv journalist David Brinkley, boxer Jake Lamotta, novelists Saul Bellow and John Wyndham. More. And more.
Everyone have a good day ~ it's on me.
6:39am ADT
* Update: Jeebus! And Doug (Le Blog de France / La Tour de Blog) turns 38 this Sunday!
They mostly came
from towns with long French names
But one of the dozen was a hometown shame
9:07pm ADT
Wednesday, July 9, 2003
Damian Penny reports that the day of protest in Iran has been cancelled by student organizers in the face of stiff government opposition. Shame, but it will come.
The people of Iran want change and freedom, and their government won't be able to stop it. Change will come - no thanks to Western governments who are trying to build relations with the mullahs, or a Western media which has largely ignored this brewing revolution. (Ominously, Reuters notes that Iran's "Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance" sent a fax to news organizations, saying "it is expected that you not attend" any demonstrations. And who can doubt that they'd comply?)
Damien also notes that the far left could care less about Iranians' hopes for freedom.
TEHRAN, Iran (Reuters) -- Hundreds of Iranian hardline Islamic vigilantes, police and pro-democracy youths fought three-sided running street battles near Tehran University on Wednesday on the anniversary of 1999 student unrest.
A witness said police had fired tear gas at groups of youths near the campus and also fought fist fights with plainclothes Islamic militiamen to prevent them from engaging in further running battles with youths.
Earlier witnesses said armed Iranian Islamic vigilantes seized three student leaders as they left a news conference where they announced they had cancelled protests to mark the anniversary of 1999 university unrest.
5:41pm ADT
Yes, I realize the post title is a Ranier Wolfcastle. But, hey.
(via PrestoPundit) 5:35pm ADT
Mob informant Henry Hill, the subject of Nicholas Pileggi's book "Wiseguy" and played by Ray Liotta in the film Goodfellas, has a new book out ~ A Goodfella's Guide to New York.
Hill, the infamous mob informant portrayed by Ray Liotta in the classic film "GoodFellas," has many such scenes that endure almost solely in his memory.
He can summon the fabulous Copacabana, where Sammy Davis Jr. once sent him a bottle of champagne. He can revisit other old mob haunts: the Bamboo Lounge (burned out by an arsonist), Snoope's Bar (where John Gotti made his bones), Robert's Lounge (a dozen bodies buried beneath its bocce court).
All gone -- but not forgotten.
5:27pm ADT
On July 2nd, US authorities arrested the Iraqi "diplomat" (intelligence agent) whom Czech intelligence reports as having met with Mohammed Atta in Prague. While Czech authorities insist Atta and al-Ani met, US officials are dismissing that claim.
If Atta wasn't in Prague in April 2001, the question is where was he? Perhaps Czech officials can explain why they insist the meeting took place.
4:21pm ADT
Tuesday, July 8, 2003
National Review Online has a symposium on summer/beach reading suggestions. Nothing there I think I'd go for, this summer anyway, although Andrew Stuttaford recommends a good one. (Last year's list is much more interesting ... of that list, I've read Michael Oren, Robert Harris' "Fatherland" and "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight", although it wasn't due to the list.)
What pages will I be turning this summer?
Well, right now I'm reading How The Scots Invented The Modern World by Arthur Herman. An interesting read thus far, basically an examination of the Scottish Enlightenment and its legacies. I have The Scottish Enlightenment, An Anthology, edited by Alexander Broadie; I've only perused it so far, but I think Herman's book will help me dive into it. Hume's Selected Essays and Locke's An Essay Concerning Human Understanding are also on my to-be-read shelf.
Could this be the summer of my Scottish Enlightenment?
While I'm embarrassed to admit it, I've only this year begun reading Frank Herbert's sci-fi classic, Dune. I've read the first three and have the last three to go; would like to finish them in 2003.
As I've done prior to "Fellowship" and "The Two Towers", I will be rereading "The Return of the King" this year in advance of the Christmas release of the film. So, this might be in the fall.
I
always have more
Churchill to read (my reading can't keep up with my used bookstore
purchases), so that's a possibility probability. I've
never read
My Early Life, so that may be it.
I'm sure I'll blog more about the summer reading situation as it unfolds.
7:19pm ADT
While we often complain about restrictions on individual and economic liberties in Canada, we're not doing too bad when we put things in perspective relative the rest of the world. Pretty darn good, in fact, when it comes to economic freedoms. The Cato Institute has published its Economic Freedom in the World: 2003 Annual Report. Researchers ranked countries using 38 separate variables. The Top Ten are:
| 1. Hong Kong |
| 2. Singapore |
| 3. United States |
| 4. New Zealand |
| 5. United Kingdom |
| 6. Canada |
| 7. Australia |
| 8. Ireland |
| 9. Switzerland |
| 10. Netherlands |
When you look at the decreasing individual liberties that China is imposing on Hong Kong these days, it would not be surprising to see Hong Kong quickly drop in these rankings over the next few years. How long can economic freedoms last when individual freedoms are restricted? I don't anyone would use the phrase 'sweet land of liberty' to describe Singapore (I've been there; it is a "fine" city, as they say themselves.)
When you get past the first two, look at who comes next.
And how are some of the other biggies doing, particularly certain UN Security Council members?
The rankings of other large economies are Germany, 20; Japan, 26; Italy, 35; France, 44; Mexico, 69; India, 73; Brazil, 82; China, 100; and Russia, 112. The bottom five nations are Guinea-Bissau, Algeria, Zimbabwe, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Myanmar.
Most of the lowest-ranked countries were in sub-Saharan Africa, however, there is hope as we look to Botswana, which has enjoyed a higher degree of economic freedom than other sub-Saharan states. Today, its Per Capita GDP is 7 times that of its neighbours, and it is ranked 26th on the Cato Institute's country rankings, tied with other strong economies such as Japan and Norway.
(via PrestoPundit) 6:24pm ADT
In your satin tights, fighting for your rights
The Flea is casting a new Wonder Woman movie.
But who would play Lyle Waggoner's character??? Not a show-stopper, I know...
5:47pm ADT
Sunday, July 6, 2003
The Flea has an excellent post regarding his opposition to the so-called international criminal court.
Well meaning idiotarians can rally round a court whose primary purpose would be to hobble American power. Having lost economically, militarily and culturally all that is left to the self-hating nihilists of the world is to fool the cool kids into limiting themselves. ...
(T)here is no community of nations. The United States is a community subject to the express will of its millions of free citizens through a variety of democratic processes. No such will can be expressed by the millions held in bondage by the dictatorships of Saudi Arabia, North Korea, Cuba and elsewhere. The evil men who rule over those people kept in bondage cannot be allowed a say in the fate of any American citizen, let alone a member of the United States military charged with the defense of hard-won liberty. It is shameful so many Europeans have been so ready to give up their own precarious freedom to the dictators of the world. It is a tragedy they should choose to turn over the very men and women who protect them as a grotesque latter-day danegeld.
Yes, 'twould be a farce from the get-go. The Court's 18 judges and a Prosecutor have now been 'elected', btw. A look at the FAQ shows that member nations haven't agreed on definitions as to what constitutes crimes of aggression or terrorism.
The NGO group working to develop the Court mentions Hitler, Pinochet and Milosevics as examples of individuals who would have been tried in the ICC for war crimes. The Court claims it would not simply try these men, it would have deterred their actions.
[Please note the three names above chosen as examples ~ all taken from the extreme "right" (you know, free markets, property rights, the rule of law, individual rights, etc.) ... no Lenin, no Mao, no Stalin, no Castro, no Ho Chi Minh, etc. ...]
The International Criminal Court (ICC) is an independent judiciary body capable of trying individuals and serving as a deterrent to the Hitlers, Pinochets and Milosevics of the future. The past century witnessed the worst violence in the history of humankind. In the past half-century alone, more than 250 conflicts have erupted around the world; more than 86 million civilians, mostly women and children died in these conflicts; and over 170 million people were stripped of their rights, property and dignity. Most of these victims have been simply forgotten and few perpetrators have been brought to justice.
Do these, as The Flea puts it, "well-meaning idiotarians" really think that Adolf Hitler would have said to himself, "My military and state apparatus will withstand the military and economic might of the United States, Great Britain and the Commonwealth, Russia and all the old European states that lie in the path of the destiny of the Third Reich, but, wait .... once I'm dictator over much of the world, I may be tried in the International Criminal Court!! Perhaps I should reconsider my evil plans. Oh wait, I'm already occupying Belgium -- there is no more International Criminal Court. Phew." As criminals never think they're going to get caught, totalitarian and authoritarian despots never think they're going to be stopped or deposed. Domestic criminal courts and laws exist; this does not stop the murderer or rapist or bankrobber or terrorist.
And how precisely to these well-meaning idiotarians think they're going to get at a Hitler or a Milosevics sans military conflict? If the Court tries someone in absentia, is it condoning military conflict in order to get at this individual?
The ICC will also handle sex crimes. Great, but only in the context of armed conflict. But the Court is supposed to handle not only war crimes but also crimes against humanity. What about when sex crimes are used as an instrument of terror by an existing dictatorship against its people? The Court's coverage includes forced pregnancy; what about forced abortion?
The Statute includes crimes of sexual violence such as rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution and forced pregnancy as crimes against humanity when they are committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against a civilian population. They are also considered war crimes when committed in either international or internal armed conflict.
What about US citizens and soldiers?
10. Can a citizen from a country that is not party to the agreement establishing the Court be prosecuted?
Yes, provided the country where the alleged crimes occurred is a State Party, or that country accepted the Court's jurisdiction on an ad hoc basis, or the UN Security Council referred the case to the Court. However, under the principle of complementarity, the Court will act only if the national court of the accused does not initiate a prosecution.
So, if Saddam took the American soldiers who were captured in Iraq and whisked them away to The Hague, would they be standing trial today if the ICC were up and running? You bet. (well, until they're broken out of jail; what's that you say? an American aircraft carrier battle group in the English Channel? don't be absurd!)
Would they receive a fair trial? But Of Course!
The Court's Statute creates a true international criminal justice system as it reflects input from all major legal systems and traditions. ... In addition, the Statute also contains elaborate provisions (over 60 articles) on criminal law principles, investigation, prosecution, trial, cooperation and judicial assistance and enforcement. These provisions required the harmonization of divergent and sometimes diametrically opposed national criminal laws and procedures.
And the Court's 18 judges?
To ensure that the composition will be truly balanced and international, their election must take into account the need to represent the principal legal systems of the world, and to ensure the inclusion of judges with equitable geographical representation, a fair representation of female and male judges, and the inclusion of judges with expertise on violence against women or children.
Hmm, somehow, I'm not feeling confident. To whom is the Court accountable?
The States Parties will oversee the work of the Court and provide management oversight regarding the administration of the Court for the President, the Prosecutor and the Registrar, decide on the budget for the Court, decide whether to alter the number of judges, and consider any questions relating to non-cooperation of States with the Court. The States Parties cannot interfere with the judicial functions of the Court.
And there's accountability there ... how?
I'll go back to The Flea's post.
President Bush's decision to withdraw from participation in the court was one of the best of his administration.
6:14pm ADT
Our kittycats received a fairly clean bill of health last week at the vet's. They're littermates and are almost a year and a half.
Callie, the female, weighed in at 8 pounds even. We had thought she was a bit of a runt, especially compared to her brother, but she is reportedly bang-on for a cat her age.
Furgus, tipped the scales at 12.76 pounds. He's at a 3.5 score on his weight, with a "3" meaning the right weight and a "4" being overweight. They're both indoor cats, but I guess we'll have to get him some lower-cal food. This might be tricky, because they're used to grazing on dry food and tend to eat from one another's bowls when they receive their wet food each morning.
Other than what appears to be congenital heart/valve problems, they're both in good health. Furgus has a level II heart murmur in a scale up to VI. This was detected very early on; the fact that it hasn't become worse is hopeful. Callie has a faint murmur, a I out of VI. Not really much we can do about these problems.
Something to watch, but we naturally hope they're both with us for a long time. They're both really nice cats, very laid back.
2:51pm ADT
Tour fans can visit Doug Elliott's blog for updates and info ~ Doug is dedicating his blog to Tour de France coverage for July.
2:36pm ADT
Saturday, July 5, 2003
More Iraqi Blood on Baath's Hands
CNN reports that an explosion in Ramadi, west of Baghdad, has killed 7 Iraqis who were training to be police officers.
The Baathists loved killing Iraqis before Saddam's regime fell; why stop now? Old habits die hard.
1:07pm ADT
When in Ottawa, as we were over Canada Day, it's always nice to visit the National Gallery of Canada. I do like the architecture of the building itself, and it's enjoyable just to be inside of it. Plus, there's, like, art and stuff in there, too.
The pre-20th century Canadian art is certainly interesting, but I really enjoy moving into the 20th century, particularly the Group of Seven stuff. Varley, MacDonald, Jackson, Lismer, Harris and Thomson. Lots of other wonderful stuff, too, of course, such as Lucius O'Brien's Sunrise on the Saguenay.
A (very quick) stroll through the modern art section is a must, just to get some perspective on things. I realize I'm just a pro-American, knuckle-dragging luddite, but I just can't see anything in this stuff. But, I realize most people can't ... which (no, it doesn't beg the question) implies the question: what the hell is it doing there?
As my buddy Mike says, If I can do it, it isn't Art.
One fairly well-known piece in the modern art section is a mop leaning against the wall (mop end up, of course! hmph!). Another is a recreation of a trailer, as in the 18 wheeler variety sans the 18 wheeler. Another has bricks laid out on the floor. Of course, there is the Andy Warhol, Brillo. (Thankfully, I didn't see his Mao Tse-tung images, 1, 2, 3, 4.)
Of course, if you really want to get your blood boiling, you have to go to the American Art section to see the infamous "Voice of Fire" by Barnett Newman. One long blue strip, one long red strip, one lone blue strip ... that will be $1.8 million of taxpayers money please. There are actually two other Newmans in that section; one is just a square canvas, all black except for a yellow strip running down the side. I wonder what that one cost.
Ah, but it sparks discussion, pushes the envelope, makes us reevaluate .... oh, can it! (using Campbell's soup cans, of course)
7:15am ADT
Friday, July 4, 2003
Great things about the US of A
The Flea has a fine list of the 50 (or so) things he loves about the United States of America. Well done, Nick.
Dinesh D'Souza also lists 10 great things. While you're at it, go read some Tocqueville.
11:31am ADT
There was an email thing going around just before Canada Day regarding what's great about Canada. Some were quite appropriate, however, one in particular displayed a dismal lack of historical knowledge, not to mention a sad anti-Americanism.
In the war of 1812, started by America, Canadians pushed the Americans back...past their 'White House'. Then we burned it...and most of Washington, under the command of William Lyon McKenzie who was insane and hammered all the time. We got bored because they ran away, so we came home and partied...Go figure...
Oh, man, how can someone stick so many errors into so small a blurb? It wasn't called the 'White House' at the time, but perhaps the author insinuates as much with his scare quotes.
But William Lyon Mackenzie?? WLM was in Scotland at the time and immigrated to Upper Canada after the War of 1812. Mackenzie was a great figure in Canadian history, though ~ he fought for democratic freedoms in Upper Canada against the aristocratic 'Family Compact' that ruled at the time. First, he edited The Colonial Advocate, which criticized the Family Compact. In 1837, he lead the failed Rebellion of Upper Canada.
Insane? The ignorant author is perhaps thinking of Mackenzie's grandson, William Lyon Mackenzie King, who was Canada's Prime Minister during the Second World War. He had a strong interest in the occult, but he wasn't 'insane'.
11:19am ADT
Thursday, July 03, 2003
Hope everyone had a fun Canada Day. We were up in Ottawa visiting family and friends, so we spent the day downtown. Went out about 9:30am. Parliament Hill at first, then migrated toward the Market's watering holes. Spent some time at the Black Thorn Cafe and Paddy Bolland's Irish Pub; ate dinner at Royal Thai (yum). A warm weekend, to be sure. Fun day though.
There was perhaps a hundred thousand people downtown (perhaps many more than that; estimates had 75,000 on Parliament Hill) and I think from the looks of the streets later in the day that they dropped about a pound of litter each.
Bailed after dinner and watched the concert on the Hill from where we were staying. Damian Penny has some info on some of the concert's lineup, particularly the ones who refused to sing O, Canada (!!!).
9:09pm ADT
George Perkovich writes that Iran must concede its WMDs. Even with regime change, the nuclear weapons program issue will remain.
The CIA, echoed by conservative U.S. analysts, has concluded that "No Iranian government, regardless of its ideological leanings, is likely to willingly abandon WMD programs that are seen as guaranteeing Iran's security." Reformers as well as hard-liners feel threatened by U.S. domination of the Persian Gulf and world at large. All Iranians remember Iraq's use of chemical weapons in the 1980-88 war, and U.S. complicity in it. Practically all Iranians resent the double standard by which the U.S. embraces nuclear-armed Israel and Pakistan while denying Iran the nuclear cooperation to which it feels entitled. Young Iranian protesters loathe their anti-liberal rulers, but they don't love Israel or Pakistan or U.S. global hegemony. They embrace the idea of America, not the U.S. government.
To persuade Iranians not to seek nuclear weapon capabilities requires redressing the insecurities and frustrated nationalism felt by a wide spectrum of Iranians, not just hard-liners.
8:19pm ADT
As lame as it is, we're watching this show. More my wife than me, but I'm still tuning in a few nights a week anyway. As Robert Fulford said recently, so long as you suspend your disbelief that a group of 9 or 10 people would take the exact same train every day, actually start interacting and talking to one another and getting into one another's lives, etc., then you can sort of follow along and enjoy it. Well, sort of.
There is actually a blogger on the train, a young guy, Zach. Another character, Pete (who my wife loves to hate), discovers Zach's blog. It turns out that Zach spends his time blogging .... about politics? sports? music? nope ... he blogs about all the other people he rides the train with! He trashes some of them, and Pete spills the beans. Zach's totally embarrassed and tries to make it up to his fellow trainmates, buying them dvd's, etc. [Note to Zach ... take a later train! No, change that. Keep trashing Pete!]
We both think Randy's pretty funny.
7:59pm ADT
Saw Bend It Like Beckham on Tuesday. Yes, formulaic. I liked it though, it had a nice sense of fun and style. The actors (actresses?) playing Jess and Jules were both good and very watchable. Not sure about the coach, Joe, or the 'relationship' between Joe and Jess.
Rotten Tomatoes reviews. It gets a Campblog 'cheers'.
7:34pm ADT