LA REVUE GAUCHE - Left Comment

Tuesday, September 19, 2006

They Walk Among Us

As the red scare Sci-Fi movie healdlines of the fifties would say.

Imagine this 'Walking Shark' Among 50 New Marine Species Found Off Indonesia's Papua Province

Luckily it's the kind of shark they keep at Big Al's Marineland stores....

This is quite amazing.....Watch a video of the "walking" shark and other species.

Again we are discovering whole new worlds in the Indonesian region both on land and on sea.

Researchers described an underwater world of visual wonders, such as the small epaulette shark that "walks" on its fins and colorful schools of reef fish populating abundant and healthy corals of all shapes and sizes.
"These Papuan reefs are literally 'species factories' that require special attention to protect them from unsustainable fisheries and other threats so they can continue to benefit their local owners and the global community," said Mark Erdmann, senior adviser of CI's Indonesian Marine Program, who led the surveys. "Six of our survey sites, which are areas the size of two football fields, had over 250 species of reef-building coral each - that's more than four times the number of coral species of the entire Caribbean Sea."

Unfortunately this newly discovered shark and its underwater world is threatened by capitalist development in the region. Oh no you say not that old canard. Well explain this then its not the regional human population that threatens this area......

Though human population density in the region is low,
the coastal people of the Bird's Head peninsula are heavily dependent on the sea for their livelihoods -
which now are under threat from a plan to transfer fishing pressures from Indonesia's over-fished western seas to the east toward Papua province.
Threats from over-fishing with dynamite and cyanide, as well as deforestation and mining that degrade coastal waters, require immediate steps to protect the unique marine life that sustains local communities. The seascape's central location in the Coral Triangle of the Pacific, which exports and maintains biodiversity in the entire Indo-Pacific marine realm, makes it one of the planet's most urgent marine conservation priorities.

Some of those mining companies that are dumping cyanide are Canadian.

But of course if we treat this region like the Tories treated our Kyoto commitments it wil be; the region is screwed there is nothing we can do so lets do nothing.

But that is not true as CI found out in research on coral reefs off Madagascar, another under research marine area.....

Healthy Coral Reefs Of Madagascar Resisting Damage From Climate Change

They found healthy coral reefs that have avoided bleaching attributed to climate change found in other Indian Ocean reefs. The researchers believe cool water currents from adjacent deep ocean areas offset the warming effects of climate change.

"The resiliency and health of the coral reefs with their biodiversity and endemism makes the reefs of Madagascar a high conservation priority," said Gerald R. Allen, a leading ichthyologist who conducted underwater fish surveys on the expedition.

So we are discovering that our planet is alive and self repairing, some areas of the planet can adapt to climate chang. The fact is that when we speak of human development and its impact on global warming we are not just talking about human communities or human industry but a specific kind of industrialization. We are talking about capitalism. Those on the right understand this and so they engage in the psudeo science of global warming denial.

Capitalism is a non sustainable system of industrialization. Its resulting pollution,planned obsolescence and creation of a society of throw away goods (look at the masses of landfills world wide that provide habitat and living spaces for the poorest of the poor in our growing supercities) has distrubed the world more in 100 years than all of human existance over the last 20,000.

Capitalism exasperates and increases global warming , climate change and environmantal damage. By its internal logic of constant growth at any cost. It not human societies or huamn development in a region perse will destroy vulnerable areas that are adapting.

These regions may be able to adapt to climate change induced by low level human industrialization, but they cannot escape results of capitalist development on the shoreline, whether it is large scale trawling fishing, mining tailings dumped into the sea or garbage, sewage and offal dumped by tourist ships.

Yes you can help preserve this and the other unique ecological niches in this area. Check out Conservation International who is doing excellent work in this region of our world.

And remember YOU can save the world you live in.... you too can smash capitalism and its state.

See:

Ecology

Global Warming

New Species

Lost and Found

Capitalism Threatens Coelacanth

Monday, September 18, 2006

Pope Embraces Orthodox Church

In his quoting of14th-century Byzantine emperor, Manuel II Palaeologus the Pope is not quoting a Latin/Catholic Church father but rather a member of the old church, the Byzantine Orthodox Church. The Church of Russia rather than the Catholic Church of Rome or the church of Paris or the Holy Roman Empire. Who was the Emperor the Pope quoted. An Emperor and consequently the Head of the Orthodox Church, which the Pope convinently did not mention the latter role.

An Emperor and Church Father who ruled at the time of the begining of the Ottoman Empire and Turkish expansion. At the time of the historic Dracula and the Balkan wars against the Turks.

At a time when Europe once again would leave Byzantium to its fate under the Muslims because of Catholic sectarianism. Just as Catholic Europe had deserted it before during the Crusades, when it wasn't raping it on the way to Jerusalem.

Of course this is also a clever backhanded compliment a slap at the Omnipotence of the Orthodox Church as much as it's a slap at Islam.

This is very important the Pope was thus killing two birds with one stone in quoting Palaeologos. He condemns as outmoded the idea of the Orthodox Church being the New Rome. And he attacks Religion, read Islam, as political state military power, since the Vatican asa Spirtual City State perse has none. The Popes reading is that Islam remains too closely tied to State Power. Of course the role of the State in Catholic countries in the world can also be looked at, so people who live in glass houses....

Telling is the comment by Baum aboutManuels letters and writings....
Just as in the sixty-eight preserved letters between 1383 and 1417 few specific, day-to-day news items are to be found, so also in his theoretical writings the emperor distances himself from every-day reality.

Just as this current Pope has.Vatican experts say Pope 'unrepentant'

Orthodoxy and Islam

The Balkan Orthodox view on Islam in the context of the Ottoman conquest and rule during the 14th-15th century

Dialog with one "Persian"/ of the emperor Manuel II Palaeologos /1391-1423/. The writing is valuable because of its original character. It should be considered as one of the few polemic writings in the Byzantine tradition based on private observation and direct contact with Muslims. The author also shows deep knowledge of the Byzantine tradition and the previous polemic writings against Islam. The book of M. Palaeologos is written in the end of the 14th century and is a kind of record of his conversation with a Muslim scholar /muderis = professor/ in Ankara, in whose house the emperor spent the winter of 1391. There are many reasons to include this source in our survey. First, as we already mentioned the story is based on a real dialogue between the author and a learned Muslim . Second, the writing is providing us with Islamic teachings, unknown till then in the Byzantine tradition. For example, the teaching about the mortality of the angels; the existence of logic among the animals; That Mohammed has a higher place in the Heaven hierarchy than the angels, etc. Third, the thoughts of Manuel II Palaeologos about the Byzantine political doctrine. He dropped behind the traditional Byzantine view that the only true religion - Christianity is spread through the world by the only legitimate empire - Byzantine and by the only legitimate emperor, the emperor of Constantinople - the New Rome. For him the state and military success are not a part and do not come to confirm the truth of particular religious system. In his writing we see a refusal of the doctrine about the messianic role of Byzantine in the world's history as a unifier of the Oicumene.

Manuel II Palaeologus (1350 - July 21, 1425) was intellectual, soldier, statesman, and Byzantine emperor (1391-1425). He was son of John V Palaeologus, and when his father died, in February 1391, he escaped fron the turkish camp where he was kept as prisoner, and came to Constantinople to regain his throne (he had been crowned co-emperor in September 1373). The situation of the Greek Empire was desperate. Turks had conquered most of the byzantine provinces, had devastated and pillaged the big cities and had enslaved thousands women, young boys and girls. Manuel was forced to pay tribute to the Sultan Bayezid and was forced to follow him to his raids against the Greek cities. His chagrin was strong when he observed the Ottomans destroy and plunder the cities of Euxenus Pontus (Black Sea) and other cities of Minor Asia. When he asked Turks the names of christian cities that were pillaged and devastated, he received the answer: "the way we destroy them their name is also disappearing from earth...".

In 1396, Manuel made a journey to western Europe to appeal for help. He was graciously received in Rome, Milan, London, and Paris; he stayed in the french capital for two years. His visit did much to promote cultural ties between Byzantium and the West, but military aid was not forthcoming. As the historian Runciman describes "the french and english aristocracy received the king of Greeks with honor and respect and the intellectuals were happy to exchange views with such a sophisticated and educated person. They had already come in acquaintance with the classical greek studies thanks to Chrysoloras Manuel who was a pioneer in spreading Greek literature in the West."

Despite the agreement no military help came from the west. Europeans in reality prefered to support Muslims and not the Orthodox Christians. The same time, people and clergy back in Constantinople opposed to the union while emperor and army were in favor of it.

Manuel II PALAIOLOGOS (1391-1425 A.D.)

After his father's death, Manuel fled from the sultan's camp and hastened to Constantinople, in order to forestall his nephew's plans. After his return, he married (on the tenth of February, 1392) Helena Dragash, the daughter of the Serbian prince Constantine of Serres. In the national museum in Sofia is preserved an icon which empress Helena had brought along for her father who fell in battle against the Turks in 1395. Both Manuel and Helena were crowned by the patriarch Antony IV. The archimandrite Ignatius of Smolensk has left us a description of the coronation. The pompous ceremony was supposed to strengthen the people's morale and demonstrate self-confidence.

Byzantium, however, held to the bitter end onto the dogma that its ruler was the only legitimate emperor and hence was the head of the civilized world. Nonetheless Antony stressed in 1393 in his missive to the Grand Prince that precisely because of the Turks' stranglehold the exceptional position of the emperor in the Christian world had to be emphasized. "The emperor occupies in the church that place which no other secular ruler can occupy. Many other emperors in the course of history have advanced religion, summoned ecumenical councils, confirmed the canons, fought against heresies, set up primacies (i.e., rankings of patriarchal seats) as well as provinces and dioceses. All this justifies their value and their place in the church.... patriarchs, metropolitans, and bishops therefore everywhere respect the name of the emperor... For Christians there is no church without emperor.

Also See:

Pope

Catholic Church

Manuel, II, Palaeologus, Byzantium, Pope, BenedictXVI, Islam, Orthodox, Russian

Two Hours Wait For A Bag

The security paranoia has gotten so bad that the Vancouver International airport was shut down for a security check for two hours because a bag got lost.

It's not terrorism we have to fear but the fear and terror that is inculcated in our new authoritarian security state.

I think I'll stick to trains and buses.

Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
Vancouver, bag, security, 9/11, Airport, Canada, terorism

Good On Ya

A blow for smokers rights. Ignore the stupid law and let the businesses who haven't the guts to fight it take the fall. I like it. That Sean Penn what a bad boy.

Sean Penn listens to a question as he smokes a cigarette during a news conference for the film 'All the Kings Men' at the Toronto International Film Festival in Toronto, Sunday Sept. 10, 2006. (CP PHOTO, Adrian Wyld)

Penn's smoking to cost swanky hotel $600 in fines

CTV.ca News Staff

The swanky downtown Toronto hotel that allowed actor Sean Penn to light up and smoke a cigarette during a Toronto International Film Festival news conference, will be levelled with more than $600 in fines.

Images of Penn lighting up, then puffing casually away during the event at The Sutton Place Hotel made headlines around the world on Wednesday.

Though Penn -- who was in town for the premier of All The King's Men -- won't face charges, Ontario's Health Promotion Minister Jim Watson confirmed the hotel will be issued two tickets. One is for $240 for failing to post no-smoking signs, and another is for $365 for not attempting to stop Penn from smoking.

Also See:

Smoking

cancer, capitalism, industrial-pllution, smoking, lung-cancer,
surgeon-general, second-hand-smoke, smoking-ban, smoking-at-home, US, children&second-hand-smoke
Canada, kids, toxic, toxins, pesticides, toxic-poisioning

An Honest Politician

Finally an honest politician. Honestly.....Hungary PM: we lied to win election

The prime minister of Hungary has confirmed the legitimacy of a leaked tape recording in which he says his government lied to win April's election and "lied in the morning; lied in the evening" during office.

Find blog posts, photos, events and more off-site about:
politics, hungary, PrimeMinister, PM, lied, liar, poltician, politicians, lie

Tories Get Tough On Crime Logic

Ya gotta love the Conservatives. They stay on message. Despite the massacre last week at Dawson College the Prime Minister, the Minister of Public Safety, and the Justice Minister all say the same thing.

Justice Minister Vic Toews has spent the last few months touring the country as the government's champion of law and order, the paladin of uncomplicated, retributive justice. Lock the criminals in jail and keep them there. Enough of liberal molly-coddling.

"Canadians are fed up with the soft approach to crime that has been taken for so long. They want their government to get tough on criminals and send a clear message that violence will not be tolerated in our communities ...I believe that violent offenders deserve more than a slap on the wrist. People who commit serious crimes deserve a harsher penalty than sitting back and enjoying the comforts of home."