This White Christmas Could Be Greener … or Perhaps Abandoned in Favour of Kwanzaa

Driving down Lakeshore, past parking lots full of soon to be Christmas trees soon for the dump, does not exactly fill me with Yuletide cheer.

I have often wondered what the Christmas tree represents, and how it fits into the idea of the birth of Jesus. I don’t even know if it relates to the consumer culture driven alter-ego of the holiday? You are supposed to put a star on top of the Christmas tree which represents the Star of Bethlehem that led the three wise men to Jesus so they could give him presents. After you do that, Santa proceeds to place presents under the Christmas tree. Perhaps the Christmas tree is what unites the religious and commercial aspects of this holiday.

If rationalizing these two disparate elements of Christmas is what that pine tree with balls all over it is supposed to do, then my sincere congratulations go out to every sawed off tree and every person who lovingly decorates one.

I just can’t get past the fact that it is so wasteful. Tree farms take up valuable farm land that could be used to grow something infinitely more valuable, such as hemp, if our social values weren’t so distorted.

In addition to the trees, that require farm land, resources to cut down, deliver, sell, and remove, we have christmas lights, wrapping paper and infinite amounts of other packaging to contend with over the holidays. The packaging consists of more trees, boat loads of oil, and a bunch of metal. The Christmas lights, although pretty, burn electricity, so just remember, every time you flick on the twinkling proof of your festive attitude, McGuinty throws another shovel full of coal into the Nanticoke furnaces.

Not everyone is religious, and not everyone wishes to partake of the orgy of consumerism that the holiday coincides with. However, if Christmas is a holiday during which everyone can take some time out to remember what is important to them, then hopefully social responsibility is something that everyone can make a part of their Christmas or whatever it is that they celebrate.

For my Christmas, I’m giving Kwanzaa a shot this year. I’ve got to learn more about it first, but I do know that it is a week-long festival based on a communitarian African philosophy developed by Ron Karenga. The Nguzo Saba, are its seven guiding principles, one for each day of the observance, and it is celebrated from December 26th to January 1st. This lines up with my schedule just fine.

The Nguzo Saba are as follows:

Umoja (Unity) which stresses the importance of togetherness for the family and the community, which is reflected in the saying “I am because We are.”

Kujichagulia (Self-Determination) which requires that we define our common interests and make decisions that are in the best interest of our family and community.

Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility) which reminds us of our obligation to the past, present and future, and that we have a role to play in the community, society, and world.

Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics) which emphasizes our collective economic strength and encourages us to meet common needs through mutual support.

Nia (Purpose) which encourages us to look within ourselves and to set personal goals that are beneficial to the community.

Kuumba (Creativity) which makes use of our creative energies to build and maintain a strong and vibrant community.

Imani (Faith) which focuses on honoring the best of our traditions, draws upon the best in ourselves, and helps us strive for a higher level of life for humankind, by affirming our self-worth and confidence in our ability to succeed and triumph in righteous struggle.

Kwanzaa sounds great to me, and I’ll try anything once. Hopefully the African American community doesn’t mind, but then Christmas has always had a strong element of cultural appropriation in it anyway …

Whatever you are celebrating, warmest holiday wishes to you and yours.

Bob Kismet

Oprah-bama Must Be Stopped

Tens of thousands of people will gather at rallies for Barack Obama in the near future, because Orah will be in attendance.

Something like 9 million souls per day tune in to her TV show, so that she can tell them what to read, what products to buy, and allow them to know celebrities that they would not otherwise meet such as Tom Cruise and the like.

Now she is telling those people who to vote for.

Oprah’s audience consists primarily of lower income women, and they listen to her. In all fairness, Oprah has a wonderful ability to make people feel better about themselves, so for the most part, it is nice that people listen to her.

However, political parties are much different than book clubs. You might be able to enjoy the same book as a billionaire, but how often do you find a politician who can represent the interests of a billionaire and someone who exists near the poverty line?

At the end of the day, politics is about power, and a good chunk of the working poor, who desperately need a President to represent their interests after 8 years of devastation at the hands of the Bush administration, will be surrendering their votes to a billionaire.

Make no mistake, Barack Obama hasn’t offered up a lot of specifics yet, but what is known about his platform so far is that there is more in it for Oprah than one of her fans.

Robert Latimer Denied Parole.

Robert Latimer killed his daughter who was so disabled that she had nothing but seizures and agony in her life. Nothing to look forward to except suffering.

You know what I find absurd about the fact that this man, after 14 years, has been denied parole?

If he did it to his dog, it would been called an act of mercy. In fact, he would be chastised if his dog was suffering to that degree, and he didn’t euthanize it.

Latimer … I salute you, and curse those who fight to protect the sanctity of human suffering.

RE: Think of Monique Smith when paying taxes (Nugget, Nov 5, 2007)

Dave Dale has written in his column: “It is unclear exactly what she’ll be doing, but it can’t be bad for her Nipissing riding. Let’s hope not, anyway. Revenue means taxes, usually, and fees for government services and other nasty devices no longer called taxes.” Combine this statement with the title of his column, and what you get is failed humour at best. At worst, it is a ham-fisted attempt to equate our dislike of paying taxes with our MPP.

Damn that Monique Smith for inventing taxes …

Dale subsequently speculates on Maureen Boldt’s strategy to retain her seat. Apparently, it boils down to playing possum, and begging for mercy. He also professes to know in advance how she and her detractors will argue their cases. And then, he drops a steaming cow paddy of innuendo onto the page: “Others will want to know exactly what Boldt did for the community, other than attend meetings and stir the political pot for the Grits in the hopes of a riding nomination.”

Who are these “others”, and what role do they play in choosing whether or not to unseat a city councilor?

Will Boldt’s fate be determined by other councilor’s attitude toward her performance? Is that the issue? Is it reasonable to consider her political affiliations (real or imagined) when deciding whether to grant her the leave of absence she is expected to request?

When elected officials can remove another elected official from office, we should not forget that the will of the electorate may be subverted in the process. Maureen Boldt was elected by the citizens of North Bay. The conditions under which she is un-elected should be very clear and free from any mechanism of political tampering. For example, if she is removed, it should not be for partisan-political reasons.

If there is a rule in place to unseat a councilor who can’t fulfill his or her duties, and council can create an exception to that rule, there is potential for inappropriate political manipulation.

As Dale points out in his column, Ms. Boldt’s “professional misunderstanding” is at least a decade old. Therefore, people in North Bay made their voting decision knowing that she was embroiled in such a misunderstanding.

Opinions are just opinions, and people are not obligated to support them with rational arguments. Mr. Dale is merely writing opinion and can’t be faulted for having one. However, in my opinion, it is a belly flop into the turtle pool of hypocrisy to suggest that Maureen Boldt is on council to “stir the pot for the Grits in the hope of a riding nomination”, without also noting obvious examples of councilors who have, or are, stirring the political pot for the Tories in hopes of a riding nomination.

Fair is fair, in anyone’s opinion.

BOB KISMET

www.bobkismet.com

Day Care for Every Child

RE: Day care was designed for military families. (Nugget, Oct 25) 

Linda Harvie responded to an article in the Nugget, the subject of which was the fact that civilian families in North Bay, are losing their day-care provider on the base.  

She points out, that military families take precedence over civilian families when it comes to day-care on the base. She says that any civilian family with a child in day-care on the base should be prepared to relocate that child when the child of a military person requires that space in the day-care facility. 

The justification for this outlook is that since military personnel protect and serve our country, they should not be worried about finding suitable child care.  

I have 3 things to say to that: 

1) No parent should have to worry about whether or not they will be able to find suitable day-care for their child. Quality day-care should be one of the nation’s highest priorities, in my opinion, as a spending priority, day-care ranks above military spending. Why bother protecting a nation that doesn’t properly care for its children? 

2) Civilians are very valuable contributors to the military, because they pay for it using their hard earned tax dollars. Every gun a soldier carries is paid for by civilians. Every pair of boots worn, every plane flown, boat sailed, bullet shot, grenade thrown, tank driven, and base lived on, is paid for by civilians. Therefore, so long as we have a volunteer army, let the gratitude flow in both directions.  

3) Every citizen does and will play a role in protecting this country. Currently, the only protective service rendered by the forces is one of deterrence. However, civilians provide another form of deterrence to our enemies. The population of this country, by virtue of its attitudes, actions, and the governments it elects, prevents Canada from having serious external threats. Civilians and military people can thank each other for the fact that no one has a very good reason to attack us.

Should She Stay or Should She Go?

Maureen Boldt has inadvertently provided this community with some interesting fodder for debate.

 

Due to recent legal entanglements which have been known to the public since well in advance of the last election, Ms. Boldt will require city council to approve a request for a short leave of absence in order to retain her seat. 

 

The decision will be based on either political or on ethical considerations.

 

If the vote is based on politics, then the only thing we will learn is how many allies Ms. Boldt has on council.

 

For that reason it would be far more interesting if each councilor made his or her decision based on the ethical considerations. One of those ethical considerations would be, should council even have the power to make such a decision?

 

Should the reasons that a councilor asks for a leave be considered when deciding whether to grant it? The question is a little more complicated than it initially sounds, because in one instance a councilor could ask for a leave due to a medical condition that prevents attendance at meetings, and in another, a legal entanglement could prevent the councilor from being at meetings. If, in the instance of a medical condition, the leave of absence is granted, and not in the instance of legal entanglement, city council has in effect sat in judgment, and dismissed a democratically elected official in favour of someone who has not been elected.

In the case of Ms. Boldt, city council would be piling punishment on top of what has already been handed down by the courts. Is it appropriate for city council to engage in such forms of extra-judicial punishment?

Any governing body has to be very careful when subverting the will of the electorate in such a drastic way as this. These issues were well known to the public for years leading up to the last election. What, in the public mind, has changed since she was elected?

Some people regard Ms. Boldt’s conduct as an important form of social activism. It is very possible that some people might have voted for her specifically because of this conduct, and if the votes of those people are nullified in mid-term, it could be seen as a violation of democratic principles.

If the decision could be separated from the politics that might influence it, for example, if it were made according to a clear set of rules rather than at the discretion of politicians, we don’t have anything worth debating. If the rule that calls for a councilor’s seat to be vacated after a certain number of missed meetings could not be superceded by a vote by other councilors, then by extension, a situation in which the will of the electorate can be superceded by a council vote would also be avoided.

It will be very interesting to see how city council handles this issue, and hopefully some meaningful public discourse emerges from this process.

Caledonia Shrouded in Silence

When I first heard that Sam Gualtieri was beaten to within an inch of his life in a house he owns, by several thugs, associated with an illegal land claim protest, I thought there would be a long overdue public outcry demanding to know how the situation was allowed to escalate to this point. I was sure that Caledonia was going to be an election issue after that, and if the media was doing it’s job, it would be.

The media seems to disagree. There is very little beyond the local coverage in Hamilton and Caledonia, and if the latest polls can be trusted, the Liberals have not been affected by their lack of performance.

If the discomfort I feel just writing my personal thoughts on this matter is any indication of why it would be difficult for members of the actual media to render a balanced account of what is happening in Caledonia, then fear of political incorrectness is enforcing the silence on this matter. Racists and non-racists have at least one thing in common; they don’t like being called racist. I know that by writing this article, I expose myself to the possibility of being called racist.

Yesterday, at a press conference to announce the compensation package for natives who were victimized by the Catholic Church at residential schools, Phil Fontaine shot back at critics of the plan who say that the two billion dollars could be spent in a better way, by saying: “I sense a tone of racism to all of those concerns and worries.”

Accusing one’s critics of racism is a good way to shut people up, but unfortunately, shutting people up for the simple reason that they do not agree with you, does not serve the greater good.

An objective account of what is happening in Caledonia, would inevitably seem like criticism of the hypocrisy of Six Nations and the tactics they have employed in this so-called land claim protest. After having commented upon the illegal activity of a group of people who are very accustomed to getting political mileage out of their history of being victimized by who they commonly refer to as “The White Man”, one would have to expect splash back in the form of being accused of racism. The ability to throw out that accusation, buys a lot of silence, and First Nation leaders are not shy about using it.

During this election, I thought that the Conservatives would be able to nail Caledonia right into McGuinty’s forehead. However, John Tory is not hammering on this issue for fear of hitting himself on the Ipperwash thumb. Without John Tory forcing this issue, the media is not forced to cover it, and in fact, is content not to.

This conspicuous silence must create a terrible feeling of isolation for the citizens of Caledonia. The OPP upholds the law very reluctantly, if at all. The government of Ontario has washed its hands of the mess, while the government of Canada properly sees the land claim as having no merit in law, and doesn’t have jurisdiction to enforce the law where the OPP should be. Now that the media has refused to use the occasion of the savage attack on Sam Gualtieri to bring this story forcefully to Canadians who would certainly be keenly interested in this. Caledonians can properly conclude that they will face the lawless intimidation tactics of the Six Nations natives, virtually alone.

There is likely a lot of carefully guarded support among the Canadian populace, but perhaps no one understands what the people of Caledonia are going through as do the people of Ipperwash. Due to the fact that Ontario natives would be stupid not to recognize the fact that they are able to practice extortion with virtual impunity, I suppose that people in many other Ontario communities will learn first hand what it must be like to live in Caledonia right now. At least Caledonians will feel less isolated. They’ll have friends in places like Sharbot Lake.

For some interesting reading on this subject, check out:

Indispensible resource on the Caledonia stand-off:

http://www.caledoniawakeupcall.com/

A lot of information pertaining to the land claim, and experiences of Caledonians

http://www.citizensofcaledonia.ca/

Blog on Caledonia and Ipperwash

http://voiceofcanada.wordpress.com/

Excellent investigative report on the Six Nations tobacco and gambling industries. Hmmm … I wonder if
there is any connection with the land claim stand-off.

http://www.hamiltonspectator.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=hamilton/Render&c=Page&cid=1159869701435

Yes … it seems that there is a connection.

http://www.canadaka.net/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=15432

Same connection … from a source sympathetic to Six Nations.

http://sisis.nativeweb.org/actionalert/updates/060623expositor-b.html

Caledonia May Bite McGuinty in the Hind-quarters …

… and well it should.

For the Liberals, this is the exact wrong time for a flare-up of the situation in Caledonia. Media references to this debacle have been rare lately, but due to a very unfortunate incident on Thursday, Caledonia may become an important voting issue in this election.

Sam Gualtieri, was attacked by native youths in a house he was building for his daughter, several kilometers away from the protest site in Caledonia.

He is now in serious condition, drifting in and out of consciousness. His brother Joe says he believes Sam was one strike away from being murdered. He also says he expects Dalton McGuinty to bear some responsibility for the attack.

The Globe and Mail reports that Joe Gualtieri said Ontario Provincial Police officers on the site “stood there, and they did not intervene” until after the beating, when the attackers had fled.

If this story has legs, and the media decides it likes Joe Gualtieri, then I predict that Caledonia will be McGuinty’s inverted Ipperwash.

I think that there should be an investigation to determine to what extent that Dalton McGuinty has influenced the OPP to prevent them from enforcing the law in Caledonia.

Six Nations Chief, Allen MacNaughton has said “We cannot condone the violent actions of a few.” Not condoning something is a few steps short of condemning it. Also, it remains to be seen how co-operative Six Nations authorities will be in terms of identifying the assailants.

McGuinty was very quick to lash out at the federal government, saying that they need to do what is necessary to resolve the dispute.

The last time I checked, the OPP is responsible for policing Caledonia. If someone is trespassing on someone else’s land, it is up to the OPP to arrest that person. The owner of the land is the person whose name is on the deed. Any outstanding issues between the Canadian government and the aboriginal community are not relevant. The courts are the proper place to sort that out. By refusing to enforce the law in this situation, the OPP has exceeded its authority by interjecting itself into the land claims resolution process. It is that simple.

Due to the fact people of a different race would never get away with these sorts of actions, Caledonia is an example of the fact that there is no equality under the law in McGuinty’s Ontario.

Bias on Front Page of the Nugget

Today, on the front page of the Nugget, an article titled “Parties disagree on health premium” started like this: “The hot-button issue of taxes and the Ontario health premium, an enduring symbol of the Liberal government’s promise-breaking record, took centre stage on the campaign trail Wednesday.”

Perhaps such an article should be on the opinion page, or at the very least carry an “Opinion” heading. Opinion articles masquerading as news are damaging to the public discourse.

I have to believe that a good number of Nugget readers adjust their perceptions to correct for conservative bias, but I know many people who don’t. Therefore, failing to label opinion pieces as such is a form of political manipulation.

In one of the larger metropolitan areas, this wouldn’t be cause for concern, because a person has access to many different media viewpoints, but in North Bay which is fully dominated by the Nugget, it is alarming to say the least.

Here’s hoping that whatever the result of the election in Nipissing, it reflects the will of the people, not the will of the North Bay Nugget.

Election 2007 is a GO!!!

… and apparently John Tory is going to run his first race to the Premier’s office after having taken his first step into some doggie doo doo.

To what degree will the media seize on his promise to fund private religion-based schools, including ones that would teach such things as creationism?

No joke – Tory actually said that these schools would have to teach evolution as per the curriculum, but that they would be free to teach the other “theories” out there, such as creationism!!!

By extension, could schools teach that the earth is flat? Check out the Book of Genesis, it’s in there. The earth is supposedly flat, and the sun orbits around the earth.

What about Scientologists? They have a religion, and maybe they will want to open some private schools on the government’s dime. If creationism can be taught in some religion-based private schools, then, in the interest of equality, the Scientologists should receive funding in order to teach impressionable young minds about Xenu, who was the dictator of the Galactic Confederacy and who, 75 million years ago, brought billions of his people to Earth in a spacecraft, stacked them around volcanoes and killed them using hydrogen bombs. Scientology holds that their essences remained, and that they form around people in modern times, causing them spiritual harm.

Tory can’t have it both ways, if he advocates religious equality, then every nutty religion is equal, not just the ones that aren’t currently the object of popular ridicule.

The media loves to grab hold of emotionally charged issues. It will be interesting to see if the Conservatives can bury this one, because if they can’t, this is going to be a long month for them. If creationsim turns out to be one of the defining issues of this election, Tory will not win this race. In fact, he may just face plant into a cow paddy about three feet short of the finish line, much to the amusement of those folks who are the product of millions of years of good old scientifically proven evolution.