Too Much Democracy?

Is democracy a threat to capitalism? Fox News thinks so. On The Cost of Freedom yesterday they actually posited this thesis. That promoting democracy abroad may not be such a good thing cause in the Middle East these guys and these guys get elected. Of course then again they may have a point since at home in Amerika democracy is under threat... from the neo-con right....Losing our Democracy to the "New Authoritarians"



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CIA Reading Your Health Files?

OTTAWA (CP) - Software that will help sort millions of Canadian health records was developed by a company funded through the CIA's venture capital partner, sparking concerns about the confidentiality of patient data. Privacy advocates are raising questions about Canadian use of the Initiate Systems indexing program given its creator's financial connection to In-Q-Tel - a private firm that helps the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency zero in on promising technology.

The CIA has a venture capital company? So we should call them the Capitalist Intelligence Agency, heck why not they have always acted as an outsourcing intelligence company for American Big Business......


Also See:

CIA

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Butt Out

Once again the social fascists and morality squad called City Council in Edmonton are planning to beat up on nicotine addicts.
Smokers may face fines for dropping butts Already forced to huddle outside doorways just to get a hit of nicotine, the much maligned tobacco connoisseur could soon be subject to a new burden -- heavy fines. The result of forcing smokers to throw out butts in the trash would be this;
Cigarette butt blaze costs pub $160,000 EDMONTON - A south-side drinking establishment suffered extensive fire damage early Friday morning when cigarette butts started a fire in a wastebasket.

Instead of fining smokers, how about putting ashtrays out on the street. Nope that would be much to sensible and cost effective.

Also See:

Smoking


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Tories Put Endangered Species at Risk

The Harper government is quietly drifting away from protecting endangered species that are standing in the way of economic expansion, a leaked federal document has revealed.The draft policy document from Environment Canada suggests federal officials want to water down the Species at Risk Act in order to allow government regulators to factor in "socio-economic" concerns -- such as forestry, oilsands exploration and residential construction -- when they identify critical habitat areas that require protection. "Obviously that happened under a previous government, but we've accepted the recommendations, and our government is about openness and transparency and accountability and those problems will be solved," said Ms. Ambrose's spokesperson Ryan Sparrow. He added that the government planned to continue consultations before implementing any policy on species at risk.Species at Risk Act being weakened by Tories

Open, transparent acoountable. Yep that's why the Species at Risk Act is being quietly rewritten in the Harper backrooms. And they are consulting with, big oil, big business, and not special interest groups like this: Tories ignoring owl extinction: environmentalists

Yep ignore the owls and have a Sparrow defend our MIA Environment Minister.

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Stephen Lewis for Secretary General

Right whing blogger Jacks Newswatch writes an impassioned defense of Stephen Lewis and calls for him to be elected to be the next Secretary of the UN. No kidding. Watching Stephen Lewis bang his head on a wall Well said Jack.


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Your Sunday Bible Reading

It's Sunday and fellow blogger Ianism provides us with this pithy bible quote from the Old Testament, on the importance of Ishmael the son of Abraham and the current Arab Israel conflict over nationhood. Not a biblical quote you will read in a Michael Coren column.

The muslims view themselves as followers of the book, the Old Testament, thus they and the Jews are descendants of Abraham.

Call Me Ishmael.

Is the opening line of the Great American classic novel; Moby Dick. Showing that in the 19th Century Orientalism, was present in American literature.

The Great White Whale is of course a metaphor, one that could be applied to the current situation of the US in Iraq.

apocalyptic components of Melville's novel to the foreground. A novel that uses the Pequod as a microcosm of American diversity-in terms of class and race-ends with the destruction of that symbol. Furthermore, as Lakshmi Mani proposes in The Apocalyptic Vision in Nineteenth Century Fiction, Melville's apocalyptic ending relies on the vast ocean as the site of imperialist conquest and its failure, The Cold War's "undigested apple-dumpling": Imaging Moby-Dick in 1956 and 2001,


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Give em an inch

And they will think they are a ruler.... in this case Israel feels it can act with inpunity in violation of the current cease fire.....Hezbollah 'foils Israeli raid' and in illegal actions in the occupied terroritory of Palestine....Israel Abducts Palestinian Deputy PM

Of course this is all acceptable in the war on terrorism, except that these actions occur against democratically elected politcal parties; Hamas and Hizbollah. It is interesting to see how the American press interpreted the illegal actions of Israel in the occupied territories; Israel arrests Palestinian PM

When is an abduction not an abduction, when it is an arrest. This is kidnapping by any other name. This is the kettle calling the pot black, Israel who is guilty of war crimes, violations of UN resolutions, a nuclear threat to the region, etc. arrests a democratically elected Palestinian politician.

Hmm if we are going to use that standard, perhaps the UN should authorize the "arrest" of Bush and Blair for their illegal war in Iraq. After all they too were democratically elected and authorize state terrorism.

Aso See:

Israel




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A Hospital Named Ralph

The Edmonton Journal is reporting that the PC's ( Party of Calgary) wants to name a Calgary hospital after King Ralph. For all his, failed, efforts to privatize health care in Alberta. How about this hospital...

Implosion of Calgary's General Hospital

When the Tories blew it up in 1998, for reasons of debt and deficit hysteria, not only was it unneccasary but it created a public health risk, that was little reported at the time.

And it is still is controversial;

Taft accuses the provincial Tories of gutting the Calgary Health Care systems."We are experiencing the terrible consequences of that decision. Blowing up the Calgary General Hospital was a catastrophic mistake and somebody needs to be held responsible. Same with the Holy Cross."

Of course if the Tories really wanted a Klein legacy they could name an airport after him.....Alberta buys new planes for gov't fleet

Also See:

Ralph Klein

Alberta

Health Care

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Pyrrhic Victory

Israel alarm at UN force members
Israel says it would be "difficult if not inconceivable" to accept nations which do not recognise its right to exist as part of a UN force in Lebanon.

They may be the only volunteers available for the UN Lebanon border patrol. Call this a pyrrhic victory for the IDF. Call it ironic.

A Pyrrhic victory is so called after the Greek king Pyrrhus, who, after suffering heavy losses in defeating the Romans in 279 B.C., said to those sent to congratulate him, "Another such victory over the Romans and we are undone."

Aso See:

Israel

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Six Week War for Nothing

Zionist apologist Warren Kinsella claims that the Israel Lebanon War was not about who won but who lost. Of course he contends Hezbollah lost, while in Israel Ha'aretz says otherwise.

The IDF carried out three operations in Bint Jbail during the war, and did not conquer it because of its sprawling urban character. The public are not alone in not understanding the army's plans; the officers are hard pressed to comprehend them too. Since the passing of the favorable resolution, Israel is having to withdraw from the territory it has occupied, following heavy losses; but Hezbollah continues to hold the ground and maintain that it won. ANALYSIS: A new 'Mini-Iran' is emerging in southern Lebanon Ha'aretz

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Israel

Zionism

Kinsella

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