J'Accuse

Canada's Dreyfus affair over Hockey. What foolishness. Luc Malo the BQ MP has made it his personal mission to be prosecutor, judge and jury in L'affaire de Sean Doan.

Parliamentary committee summons Hockey Canada

At the House of Commons Official Languages committee today he harangued and harassed Hockey Canada and Sport Canada officials refusing to believe them, when they said Shane Doan had not used an anti-French slur against a referee in the NHL.

"I mean it is not the first time that words like that are used against French players. That was almost a tradition and we should accept that? Never," Gilles Duceppe, leader of the Bloc Quebecois party, said.

No matter what they said Malo insisted they were wrong. His is a personal mission of scapegoating and political interference in the arms length operations of Hockey Canada. Perhaps his venomous misplaced attack on our national hockey team captain is the result of confusing Shane Doan with Don Cherry or Sean Avery.

Mr. Doan allegedly made derogatory remarks toward a French-Canadian NHL linesman two years ago. Mr. Doan has categorically denied making the comment and the NHL cleared him when it looked into the allegation at the time.

But some MPs still allege that Mr. Doan made a racist insult and wanted Hockey Canada to explain its decision to parliament.

Bloc MP Luc Malo aggressively questioned the hockey officials, saying the whole controversy is their fault and it could have been avoided if they had simply appointed someone else as captain.

He asked why they took the word of the NHL over the word of the linesman, who claims it was Doan that made the insulting remark.

The officials explained that Hockey Canada is a partner of the NHL and it is not about to challenge the NHLs jurisdiction or trustworthiness. They said the NHLs investigation determined an insult was made on the ice, but it could not be proven that it was Mr. Doan that said it, and so they see no reason not to have Mr. Doan on the team.

Could the BQ's real agenda be that they would like to see two teams in Canada, one from Quebec and one from the ROC. That was after all the official party line of the BQ in the last election as expressed by their Marxist Leninist leader Gilles Duceppe. One that Hockey Canada flatly rejected. Revenge is a dish best served cold, and in this case it is ice cold.

Bloc wants Quebec to compete in international hockey

When asked about a Quebec hockey team, the Bloc leader immediately rattled off the goalies who would be available: Martin Brodeur, José Théodore and Roberto Luongo.

"Today I'll announce goalies — tomorrow I'll give you the defence," he quipped yesterday.

Hockey world rejects Duceppe's plan

Kevin Lowe, assistant manager of Canada's 2006 men's Olympic team, doesn't think much of Gilles Duceppe's idea of entering a separate Quebec team in international hockey competition — and he has company in the hockey world.

Lowe, who grew up in Montreal and is fluently bilingual, flatly rejected the Bloc Québécois leader's proposal, which was unveiled Wednesday as part of his party's election platform.

"Those politicians should stick to politics," said Lowe. "If they want to come and apply for a job in hockey, then they can have their say."

Prominent lawyer wants a Team Quebec at the 2008 worlds

If lawyer Guy Bertrand has his way, Canada could be represented at the 2008 world hockey championship by Team Quebec.

Bertrand, who is again proclaiming his sovereigntist faith after embracing federalism for several years, said Thursday he wants Quebec's hockey elite to play a pre-tournament best-of-three or best-of-five series against players from the rest of Canada.

Up for grabs would be one spot at the 2008 world championship, which will be held in Quebec City and Halifax.

Bertrand's scenario would see some of the losing players allowed to represent the winning team at the worlds.

"When you look at Czechoslovakia, it split in 1992. Since then, Canada has won four championships, the Czech Republic won five championships and Slovakia one. Not bad for a country that split."
— Duceppe returns to the hockey sovereignty theme he broached earlier in the campaign.

The BQ contests only Quebec ridings. Apart from earning ridicule early in the campaign for his claim that Quebec national teams should be able to play in international tournaments for ice hockey and soccer, leader Gilles Duceppe made few new policy announcements. Election 2006: Canada changes government

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Stelmach the Perfect Strom

As I have said before our new Alberta CEO Ed Stelmach is haunted by the ghost of a Premier past; the lame duck Harry Strom.

Edmonton Sun columnist Neil Waugh knows this too and gloating with glee likes to rub it in;

Listen up on land

Last week Premier Ed Stelmach finally gave Albertans a peek under the tent flaps about his plans to stop the insanity of Ralph Klein's flawed oilsands policy, which sees energy companies pay a penny-on-the-dollar in royalties while at the same time shipping raw bitumen and jobs down the pipeline to Illinois and Texas and turning 48 townships of pristine boreal forest around Fort McMurray into a vast industrial zone.

"My government is committed to ensuring there will never again be a major downturn like we saw in the 1980s," Stelmach boomed to the Canadian Energy Research Institute.

He plans to thwart any National Energy Program rerun by "developing and diversifying" the energy industry.

During the Alberta PC leadership campaign last fall Stelmach compared pipelining raw bitumen to Texas as selling the "topsoil" from a farm.

"This includes encouraging more upgrading and value-added activities in the province," he told the oilmen. "Our government will encourage that to happen."

He has a strange way of doing it. The latest jobs-down-the-pipeline dust-up happens before the National Energy Board in Calgary on June 4 when TransCanada Pipelines pitches its ultra-controversial Keystone bitumen pipeline to the States.

Alberta Federation of Labour president Gil McGowan has already filed an intervention describing the dubious line as a "devil's bargain".

NEB documents reveal the Alberta government is intervening too. But instead of a blizzard of submissions backing up the premier's pledge, Alberta taxpayers will be represented by one lowly "regulatory analyst" who is only there to "monitor" the hearings on behalf of his Edmonton bosses.

Spare us any more goofy speeches, Ed.

Tories drop ball on housing problem

They recommended the premier consider "limited, short-term market intervention." In short, they proposed the province impose "rent stability guidelines" consisting of once-a-year rent increases of no more than 2% above inflation. Also proposed was a one-year notice for condo conversions with no lease-busting rent increases in the meantime.

The task force report described this recommendation as a "very difficult one."

The Alberta Tories obviously had a difficult time of it as well. Because when the smoke cleared and Housing Minister Ray Danyluk released his $285-million response this week, rent controls were mysteriously missing.

In their place were a series of half-hearted attempts to rein in runaway accommodation costs.

The proposed condo conversion restrictions have been accepted. But landlords can impose once-a-year hikes with no ceiling.

Instead of responding boldly and constructively to a problem that's creating economic hardship for large numbers of Albertans and employment problems for many Alberta businesses trying to compete with the oilsands developers for workers, the Tories tried to dodge the bullet. They're attempting to buy a little more time.

In the meantime, apartment owners will continue to record huge profits, the affordable housing crisis will continue and the whole problem will blow up again next spring.

This is not leadership.

Boom's deadly toll

The blood spilled and the body count wasn't as high as in the tragic Diversified 690 bus crash. Thank God for that. But the cause of the death of two Chinese temporary foreign workers at Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.'s Horizon oilsands plant this week can be traced back to same source.

And that's the Alberta Tories' botched - and now extremely deadly - oilsands policy, which triggered a massive oilsands building boom without first putting in place the necessary infrastructure.

The Tories then conspired with the developers to tear up the labour peace treaty that ruled the oilsands for more than a decade.

There followed the airlift of cheap foreign workers, while thousands of Alberta tradesmen and women sit on union dispatch lists.

The collapse of the tank roof structure that killed Genbao Ge and Hong Liang Liu and injured four others working for the Chinese-government-owned contractor was the culmination of this goofy policy.

It's the same one that allows oilsands developers to pay a penny-on-the-dollar royalty until the multi-billion-buck plants are paid out, while at the same time shipping raw bitumen and jobs down the pipeline to Illinois and Texas and leaving behind irreparable environmental damage in the pristine boreal bush north of Fort McMurray.

It wasn't until after the bus crash that killed six construction workers on the Syncrude job that the Alberta PCs finally admitted that Highway 63 was fundamentally dangerous. And they're now playing a desperate game of catch-up to twin the major route to the oilsands.

But only last week, Finance Minister Lyle Oberg was bragging in his budget speech about more offshore workers coming in.

"We will develop an immigration strategy to encourage more skilled workers to come to Alberta." Oberg boomed. Well, how do you like your strategy now, Lyle?

And just how panicked the Stelmach government is to control the damage and deflect the blame has been clearly evident since Tuesday's tragedy.

A limited internal investigation by government bureaucrats - and no public report, but simply a handover to the dubious Alberta Justice Department, which already has the worst record in Canada on bringing boardroom bad guys to justice. (They've yet to get the trucker who crashed into Bus 690 into court - an accident that happened way back on May 20, 2005.)

Worker error

Meanwhile, CNRL is being allowed to do a parallel "full investigation" of the incident, where worker error will be the inevitable conclusion.

Heck, Employment Minister Iris Evans didn't even bother to issue a press release acknowledging the latest oilpatch accident even happened.

Smoke and mirrors

"Alberta intends to borrow $300 million on behalf of its corporations this year," noted CIBC World Markets economist Avery Shenfeld. "With half of that raised in the public debt market."

Shenfeld added that the government-backed Alberta Capital Finance Authority and ATB Financial plan on floating paper worth $2 billion this year.

BMO Capital Markets economist Michael Gregory also determined that the Tories are back in the borrowing business "which will be subsequently lent to other provincial corporations to meet their funding requirements."

Things get even more murky when you dig deep into the budget documents to find the true meaning of P3 (public/private partnerships), like the Anthony Henday and Stoney Trail ring roads in Edmonton and Calgary.

P3 magic, we are told, is that it "allows the government to transfer certain risks that the private sector is better able to manage."

Without getting too specific.

But the background blurb also admits: "contribution of public financing to a P3 project should reduce total project cost."

And under a section called "debt servicing costs," Oberg's documents show a line identified as "financing costs for government-owned capital (P3s)" growing from $8 million this fiscal year to $22 million by 2009-10.

Yup, we're back in debt.

Except the budget book would prefer to call it "alternative financing" or "capital lease liability".

Of course, there's more debt on the books in "debt free" Alberta.

Another $166 million in medium term bonds comes due this year.

That leaves over $1.2 billion of old Don Getty debt on the books to be paid off from the debt retirement account when it comes due. Some of that won't be until 2013.

Sure, there's another $2.2 billion surplus in the forecast this year plus another $7.7 billion ticking over in the Sustainability Fund.

OTHER FUNDS

At the same time, the Tories will pull another $1.4 billion of investment income out of the Alberta Heritage Fund, while other funds will yield an additional $2.1 billion more.

But isn't the HTF supposed to be used for a rainy day?

Don't worry, it could be pouring soon.

The University of Calgary's Institute for Sustainability, Energy, Environment and Economy recently released a paper on Alberta's economic future.

The results of that study are suddenly showing up in government documents.

The "bulk" of the government resource revenue came from gas royalties in recent years.

In 2004, it hit over $8 billion. By 2013, the institute predicts gas royalty revenue will be only $3 billion.

While oilsands revenue is the next big thing, the way the Tories have screwed up the royalty regime with their goofy penny-on-the-dollar giveaway leads the institute to a grim conclusion.

"In general, one would expect significantly lower royalties as a percentage of revenues in the case of oil- sands compared to conventional oil," the paper warns. Expected royalties compared to recent years will be "substantially lower."

And the projected royalty revenues for 2013 are "just over $5 billion" - which the report points out are "about one-half the average levels" over the past five years.

Looks like Oberg is just getting warmed up for when Alberta is back aboard the debt and deficit wagon.

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Glass House Politics

This is what happens when you are a politician preaching from a pulpit.

The fallout from Elizabeth May's comments on Neville Chamberlain continues. It is all about religion and religious outrage.

The Conservatives began it in the House of Commons with attacks on the Liberals, quoting from letter's they received from the Jewish lobbyists complaining May's comments some how demeaned the importance of the holocaust. Clearly political support for the Conservatives disguised as faux outrage. Call it pay back for all the nice things Harper has said about Israel and his unconditional support for their war against Lebanon and the Palestinians

I am pleased to extend my warmest greetings to everyone marking Yom Ha’atzmaut, the 59th anniversary of Israel’s independence.
On Yom Ha’atzmaut, you have an opportunity to reflect upon the history of the struggle that led to the birth of the modern State of Israel on May 14, 1948. It is a time to remember the past while renewing your dedication to the challenges of the future. The Jewish people have always faced the task of building a nation of freedom and peace with perseverance and enduring faith. These qualities have helped Israel grow in strength and stature since its formation. Its very existence is a testament to the spirit of its people and the power of hope.
Canada enjoys close ties with Israel, and I know that our relationship will continue to flourish in the years ahead.
On behalf of the government of Canada, please accept my best wishes for a memorable and enjoyable celebration.
Stephen Harper
Prime Minister of Canada

Not to be outdone in sucking up to that lobby the Liberals and NDP joined in throwing stones at May's glass house.

Liberal Leader Stephane Dion said May should withdraw the comment, even though references to weak-kneed Chamberlain are often employed in commentary on environmental or poverty issues.

"We should not use it — for the very reason that in the spectrum of power, the Nazi regime is beyond any comparison," Dion said outside the Commons.

"So I’m uncomfortable with the reference to Chamberlain about anything else than what happened in the Second World War."

NDP Leader Jack Layton said May’s comment was "certainly not something we consider to be wise or appropriate," and added voters will be the ultimate judge.

A shame that, since this was clearly a political effort by the Harpocrites to divert attention away from the failure of the Tories green plan as well as their failures in Afghanistan to protect human rights. While abusing what May actually said.

Of Course the Harpocrites overlooked the fact that the same Jewish lobby that criticized her accepted her apology but gave a dyer warning to politicians who would usurp their right to be the sole arbitrators of the political implications of Nazism. Of course she never did compare Climate Change to the Holocaust, but never mind that small detail.

Bernie Farber, chief executive officer of the Canadian Jewish Congress, said the Green Party leader had telephoned the organization Wednesday to retract and apologize for her comments. The congress had written Ms. May a critical letter about her speech.

"This is probably a lesson for all politicians who are tempted to make comparisons with the Nazis in their speech. They are going to lose the argument every time," said Mr. Farber, adding he was impressed by Ms. May’s sincerity.

And now it has expanded into faux outrage from the Evangelical and Fundamentalist protestants as well for her comments about them too.

Mike Duffy Live: Debating the May controversy

You know the nice folks who are not political except for their lobby against human rights for gays and lesbians, their lobby to oppose a womans right to choose, their lobbying against child care, etc. etc.

"It is time for the Liberal members opposite to stand up against outrageous, hateful, mean-spirited comments by their candidate in Central Nova," Environment Minister John Baird said in Tuesday's question period. "It is inexplicable how they could not stand up against people who bash Christians and invoke Nazi-era atrocities."

But Mr. Harper, referring to a letter from Ed Morgan, the national president of the Canadian Jewish Congress, condemning the May remarks, said he lacks confidence in the Opposition Leader. He said Ms. May has "diminished the Holocaust, used the Nazi analogy that is demagogic and inappropriate, while belittling Canadians of faith.

Gee thats funny considering May is a Christian and she was speaking in Church. How that makes her anti-Christian well its your guess. The reality is of course that the terms; "Christianity and Canadians of Faith" are open to interpretation when used by the Conservatives. They are referring to Evangelical and Fundamentalist Protestants who make up their social conservative base.

By comparing today's approach to the environment to pre-war approaches to the Nazis, Elizabeth May shows insensitivity to context and history. Her comparison of Stephen Harper to Neville Chamberlain is both demagogic and inappropriate, revealing that the Green party leader is still too green to have learned to control her excesses of rhetoric. Further, her belittling of Evangelical Christians, characterizing their theology as "waiting for the end of time in glee," signals a truly dangerous mindset. The Green party leader, who is also an Anglican minister-in-training, demonstrated that she considers herself and her religion to be morally superior to another. And it doesn't matter that she ridiculed the beliefs of a branch of her own religion, rather than those of an altogether different faith.

Ms. May is not giving private lectures to her congregation now that she is running as Green party leader in alliance with the Liberals. She is being heard by a diverse public at large on an important policy issue. She should start respecting all of them.

Ed Morgan, national president, Canadian Jewish Congress, Toronto.

However as we can see those that live in glass houses and those professing in the House of the Lord should be cautious about throwing stones. Because the media is doing a good job of showing that the shoe is on the other foot when it comes to politicians using Neville Chamberlain against their opponents. Proving this is all a tempest in a tea pot that is the Glass House of Commons.

The glass house is getting crowded

Why are so many MPs so fond of Neville Chamberlain?

Preston Manning Invokes Chamberlain, Diminishes Holocaust, Insults Jews Everywhere

May appalled by Tory spin on her Chamberlain comment

Uncommonly nasty Commons

See:

Year of the Pig and the Liberal Green Alliance

Charles Agrees With Elizabeth May

Green Nazi's


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Hillier's War

Before it was Harpers War, Afghanistan was Hillier's War. And as such it was one that was created by him to change Canada's Armed Forces from Peace keepers to warriors. And as we know warriors take no prisoners.

Harper stands by Hillier

Prime Minister Stephen Harper is staunchly defending his Defence Chief amid claims the General did not consult with Foreign Affairs before signing a detainee transfer agreement in 2005 that left no provision to verify prisoner safety.

Hillier pushed flawed detainee plan

The Department of Foreign Affairs was pushed to the sidelines when Canada struck its detainee-transfer deal in Afghanistan, two senior government sources have told The Globe and Mail.

“We were not consulted,” said one, adding that Foreign Affairs was shunted aside by the Department of National Defence and Canada's top soldier, Rick Hillier, when he signed the accord in 2005. The deal has become mired in controversy because it includes no follow-up role for Canada on the fate of detainees in Afghanistan's notoriously brutal prison system.

Another senior foreign-service officer gave a longer explanation: “Hillier went to Kabul thinking of them [the detainees] as ‘scumbags' and made the deal. Hillier wanted to sign it; he insisted on signing it,” he said. “Defence took the file and messed it up.”

The comment played off a remark General Hillier, Chief of the Defence Staff, made in July, 2005, when he set off a national debate by referring to the Taliban as “detestable murderers and scumbags.”

See:

Afghanistan

Heil Hillier, Maintiens le droit

Joined At The Hip

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Anti-Smoking Hypocrites

An excellent summation of the philosophical and political morality of anti-smoking legislators;

Going into a privately-owned restaurant where smokers voluntarily associate and then complaining about the smoke makes as much sense as going to a rock concert and then complaining that they won’t turn off the loud music.

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RCYA

Further proof that RCMP Commissioner 'Cover Yer Ass' Zaccardelli was an incompetent administrator who has a penchant for perjury.....as if we needed anymore proof....

Former RCMP commission Giuliano Zaccardelli told the Commons justice committee in 2004 that the forensic lab services matched the best in the world, that it had no backlog and that all cases involving violent crimes were given priority and that its clients — police forces and prosecutors were satisfied.

"Our audit found many of these claims to be incorrect," Fraser stated, adding that the most of the same problems found in the audit were raised in 1990 and 2000. "It is disappointing to find them still unresolved," she told reporters.

The auditor general said the fact is that for 99 per cent of its cases it is unable to meet its own turnaround target of 30 days, partly due to its backlog of DNA requests, which on average take 114 days to complete in 2005-06. However, when pressed, it can turn around urgent service request in 15 days, but this only happens in about one per cent of the cases.

Former RCMP Commissioner Guiliano Zaccardelli told a Parliamentary committee in 2004 that there was no backlog at his force's forensic services and that DNA analysis for major cases was completed within 15 days.

But a report released yesterday by Auditor-General Sheila Fraser says there is a backlog, it is growing, and fewer than one per cent of DNA samples sent to the RCMP Forensic Laboratory Services are processed in less than two weeks.

The rest, including homicides and sexual assaults languished in the lab for an average of 114 days in 2005-06, Ms. Fraser said in her report released Tuesday.

That was actually an increase of nearly three weeks over 2003-04 when additional spending and staff were directed at the labs because the force was being criticized for long turnover times and backlogs.

Ms. Fraser refused to speculate on the reasons for Mr. Zaccadelli's misleading testimony when she spoke to reporters at a news conference yesterday.

“I think you have to ask the people who made those statements. I have no explanation for that,” she said.

The suggestion that the former commissioner may have misled politicians comes after he resigned for providing false information to the government about Maher Arar who was wrongly accused of having terrorist ties. It also comes as Parliament is trying to get to the bottom of mishandling of the RCMP pension.

See:

Keystone Kops and Air India

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Buzz the Protectionist

First he sucked up to the Liberals now he is sucking up to the Conservatives. Despite his 'I am more socialist than you' rants, Buzz Hargrove is simply a good old fashioned protectionist. But now the Tories like his protectionism, whereas they opposed him over Free Trade, and will again as they try an pass a bilateral free trade deal with Korea which he opposes. Strange bedfellows indeed.

Buzz Hargrove agreeing with the Conservatives and the Conservatives agreeing with Buzz Hargrove?

Maybe there is something funny with the environment after all.

But Buzz and the Tories think the only thing that's funny is with the crazy so-called environmentalists' ravenous quest for pushing Global Warming Doom -- all at the cost of the Canadian economy.

"Everybody is chasing this new idol called the environment without any thought of how we got here," the CAW president said yesterday. "I am not buying the argument myself."

But he does believe tens of thousands of jobs will be lost if the movement continues at this pace. "I think people have to recognize this problem is serious," he said.

And it's not global warming he's referring to. It's a Canada and Ontario without an auto industry he's worried about. If Al Gore and David Suzuki get their way, Buzz said, this very well could be the result. "The rhetoric is worrisome," he said. "We have got everything working against us right now."

Unrealistic environmental goals, unfair trade deals and out of control inflation don't add up to good times for automakers --not to mention related industries.

But the Tories, said Buzz, get that. And their plan is a proper response.

"It's realistic. They understand it is going to have to be a long-term solution that will take some time," he said.

He thought Al Gore's comments that the plan the Tories introduced was a "fraud" was out of line.

"I think John Baird is right on the money," said Hargrove. "Al Gore was vice-president for eight years and in the senate before that where they voted against (environmental reforms). So I don't know where he gets his credentials to come in here and lecture."

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Year of the Pig and the Liberal Green Alliance

Remember this is the year of the Red/Golden pig in Taoist astrology.

The last time the Liberals did something stupid was in the year of the monkey and that ended up with a minority government under Paul Martin.

This year we have the marriage of the Liberals and Greens under Dion and May. As Hexagram 31 of the I Ching says for the year of the pig; Some that marry young women get fortunes through it.

Of course this does not say 'good' fortune, just fortunes. And some fortunes can be bad.

The Liberals may have bought a pig in a poke with their alliance with the Greens.


See:

Prince Charles Agrees With Elizabeth May

Green Nazi's


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Whine Me A River

The loonie's impact is hardest on manufacturers in Central Canada as its impact on western manufactures is being offset by the high demand for their products, Myers said.

There's not much the Bank of Canada can do to help firms deal with the strong dollar, Myers said. However, governments can continue to cut taxes on investments in new machinery and equipment and reduce their regulatory compliance costs, he said.

"The high dollar has forced manufacturers to become super-efficient, but they still face a lot of mandatory overhead costs," he said.

If they are so efficient then they should be able to plow their record profits back into their companies, instead of investing them in the stock market or sending them offshore to tax havens. Of course "super-efficient" is just another way of saying job cuts.

See:

Productivity Myth

Canadian Workers Poorer Today Than Yesterday

Variable Capital


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A.J. Toynbee

One of my favorite historians who was influenced by Spengler and Ibn Khaldun. His critique of WWI blaming the harsh politics of repatriations on the rise of Nazism remains controversial.

A.J. Toynbee
Toynbee's approach may be compared to the one used by Oswald Spengler in The Decline of the West. He rejected, however, Spengler's deterministic view that civilizations rise and fall according to a natural and inevitable cycle.He expressed great admiration for Ibn Khaldun and in particular the Muqaddimah, the preface to Khaldun's own universal history, which notes many systemic biases that intrude on historical analysis via the evidence.

Toynbee's ideas have not proved overly influential on other historians. Comparative history, to which his approach belongs, has been in the doldrums, partly as an adverse reaction to Toynbee. The Canadian economic historian Harold Adams Innis is a notable exception. Following Toynbee and others (Spengler, Kroeber, Sorokin, Cochrane), Innis examined the flourishing of civilizations in terms of administration of empires and media of communication.

Toynbee, Arnold Joseph, 1889-1975

• The Balkans
  A History of Bulgaria—Serbia—Greece—Rumania—Turkey (English)
• Turkey: a Past and a Future (English)

Arnold Toynbee: Pro-Arab or Pro-Zionist?
Israel Studies - Volume 4, Number 1, Spring 1999, pp. 73-95
Indiana University Press Israel Studies 4.1 _________________________________________________________________ Arnold Toynbee: Pro Arab or Pro-Zionist? Isaiah Friedman * Zionist Dialectics _________________________________________________________________ In the late forties, Toynbee acquired the reputation of being a passionate Arab protagonist and a fierce opponent of the State of Israel; by his own admission he became known as a "Western spokesman for the Arab cause." But during World War I and its aftermath, he was less than sympathetic toward the Arabs. He was greatly disturbed to note that the Syrians, contrary to assurances made by Hussein, as well as by al-Faruqi, remained loyal to Turkey and "their conscripts fought dutifully on her side . . . their leaders are too prudent and the people too peaceable to allow them for a moment to contemplate rising in arms." Early in the War, he ascertained that, in the Turkish Asiatic provinces, there was only "a veritable cockpit of nationalities so mutilated that they have never even achieved that [kind of] unity which is the essential preliminary to a national life." By 1917, when the general Arab uprising had failed to materialize, he concluded that they had no "national consciousness. There are Arabs in name who have nothing Arabic about them but their language--most of the peasants in Syria are such . . ." This view was not unique. The official Handbook prepared in 1918 to guide the British delegates to the Peace Conference gave the following description: The people west of the Jordan are not Arabs, but only Arab-speaking. The bulk of the population are fellahin; that is to say, agricultural workers owning land as a village community or working land for the Syrian effendi.

But, it must be born in mind that liberal democracy and socialism-communism, irrespective of their differences, are not absolute opposites. They are branches of the same spiritual tree. This was, for example, claimed by Spengler and Karl Popper, the two otherwise so different thinkers. Not only that A.J. Toynbee, on his part, shared this opinion, but even he saw in the Russian communism the means of westernization of those parts of the world which are hardly accessible to the western civilization in its original form. The true negation of both liberal democracy and communism is Islamic fundamentalism, which is also an imperialism of high style. It personifies a militant, expansionistic nature of the prophet Muhammad's religion. Therefore, the names "Islamic fundamentalism", "Islamic imperialism" or even "Islam in its authentic form" are equally justified.

According to British historian Arnold Toynbee the decline and fall of
great empires was caused by routine and the lack of creativity among social
elites. On the one hand, those societies lacked a shared vision of the future
– on the other they failed to hammer out generally acceptable values that
could contribute to social stability and lend to a shared identity. Growing
internal divisions led to the demise of authorities and the erosion of the
elites’ control, whereas institutions complied less and less to the needs of
the real social and economic situation. Institutional inertia and the
inability to make strategic choices intensified the systemic incoherencies
that manifested themselves in escalating conflicts of interest, the
particularism of various groups, and the loss of steerability over the system
as a whole.

See:

Ibn Khaldun 14th Century Arab Libertarian

Oriental Origins of Post-modernism

Ibn Khaldun, Oswald Spengler, A.J. Toynbee, Metropole, Metropolis, capitalism, Decline of the West, decadence, Islam, imperialism, globalization,
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Ibn Khaldun

Religion and the Market

Protestantism is Capitalism

An Economic Analysis of the Protestant Reformation

"This paper seeks to explain the initial successes and failures of Protestantism on economic grounds. It argues that the medieval Roman Catholic Church, through doctrinal manipulation, the exclusion of rivals, and various forms of price discrimination, ultimately placed members seeking the Z good "spiritual services" on the margin of defection. These monopolistic practices encouraged entry by rival firms, some of which were aligned with civil governments. The paper hypothesizes that Protestant entry was facilitated in emergent entrepreneurial societies characterized by the decline of feudalism and relatively unstable distribution of wealth and repressed in more homogeneous, rent-seeking societies that were mostly dissipating rather than creating wealth. In these societies the Roman Church was more able to continue the practice of price discrimination. Informal tests of this proposition are conducted by considering primogeniture and urban growth as proxies for wealth stability."

Protestants explain their religion of capitalism as neo-platonism. The marketplace of vice and virtue, and God gives you free choice. Which is why the Calgary School and the Harpocrites embrace neo-platonism.

Social conservatives want morality to dominate the market while promoting the idea of free choice. Their free choice of course is not for the social good but for oneself, their morality some idealized version of the 1950's as we can see in the debate over child care.

On balance, I conclude that the market economy allows more people more of the time to achieve more of the goals they set for themselves. I think this is not only arguable from economic theory but seems to me to leap from the pages of history. Conversely, I have learnt that, beyond its essential function as policeman, judge and welfare-provider-of-last-resort, the state is a very ineffective means of enabling people to achieve their ends. It lacks the flexibility and tacit knowledge that is needed to coordinate the revolving kaleidoscope of people's valuations, plans and choices. It has great difficulty in replacing profit with another barometer for measuring the quality of its services. A large state attracts undesirables who use its apparatus as an instrument to exploit others for their own selfish ends.

But it is nonetheless true that market capitalism permits the greedy person, the hedonist and other moral reprobates, at least within the basic rules of property and life, to pursue their chosen ends of self-gratification. In a free society, the possibility of making immoral choices is a real possibility. The sun of liberty rises on the evil and the good, as the rain of misfortune falls on the righteous and the unrighteous.

Yet the liberty to make immoral choices allowed by the free society should not lead us to conclude that immorality is the norm in free societies. To draw this conclusion is to commit a logical fallacy. The liberty to commit immoral acts is at the same time a liberty to perform virtuous deeds. So, in a society where people are free to choose their lifestyles, the heedless acquisition or conspicuous consumption of material wealth, or the pursuit of pleasure for its own sake, need not be preferred choices. I can choose to live for myself or for a higher principle―to pursue extrinsic or intrinsic goals. Even if I choose to make money, it may be for my own pleasure or I could emulate Andrew Carnegie and earn it for the benefit of others.

So a community of monks or nuns, having embraced voluntary poverty and individual ownership, is just as authentically part of the market economy as is the board of directors of a multinational company. Both ways of living are marked by their respect for the lives, rights and property of others, and are thus distinguished from the lifestyle of the swindling business executive, the petty thief, the mafia boss and the hired killer. We can conclude that, if everyone in our free society renounced the possession of anything beyond the mere essentials, or adopted the technology-free lifestyle of the Amish, our society would nevertheless be just as authentic an example of market capitalism as would a community populated with clones of Gordon Gekko.

Understood in this way, market capitalism cannot be equated-as it so often is-with materialism. Materialism is the genuine foe of Christian morality, rather than market capitalism, which can be both friendly and inimical to Christian morality depending upon the choices people make. As I have already mentioned, the very freedom of the market facilitates all sorts of responsible, even self-denying behaviour, which must be set alongside the irresponsible and selfish actions chosen by others. Some observers discern a greater preponderance of materialist attitudes among the less affluent, non-capitalist societies―their more affluent, capitalist cousins having discovered that, 'All that glitters is not gold' and having the time and resources at hand to pursue non-material ends in life.

But, while market capitalism may provide for and even encourage virtue, it cannot guarantee virtuous behaviour. There is another side to the symbiotic relationship between freedom and virtue. The free society confines its legislation to the enforcement of justice. But in order to survive, the free society requires a critical mass of the community to value virtue and to behave virtuously. There must be more than a minimalist adherence to virtue.

We can begin to reflect on the necessity of virtue for freedom by looking more closely at choices-not from an economic, but from an ethical point of view. Our choices have consequences, not just for our material but also for our moral well-being. Our choices live on in us to shape our characters. Good choices make us virtuous while bad choices make us vicious. In other words, as we continue down a path of good or bad actions, we inevitably become different people, for better or for worse.

The latest endeavour of Christianity. God is your financial counselor.

See

Prince of Peace?

Pauline Origins of Social Conservatism

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David Horowitz, Linda Kimball, Neo-con, Frontpage, Ramparts, Gramsci, Marx, Goebbels, War on Christianity, Culture War, New Right, conservatives, None Dare Call It Conspiracy, McCarthyism, New Left, gay rights, schools, academics, conspiracy theories, reds under the bed, anti-communism, Jesus, Christ, America, USA, GeorgeWBush, BillyGraham, AmericasGod, JesusisanAmerican, Jesus, god, christian, Christianity, ChrisitanAmericans, evangelicals, protestants,

CRTC vs The Public Interest

The CRTC was created to protect the interests of citizens today it protects the interests of telcos and communications media oligopolies in Canada.

The former monopolies can now vary rates among customers depending on where they live, and other factors. The companies had asked for permission to vary rates, in order to help them compete with cable rivals such as Rogers Communications Inc., that face no restrictions when they offer local service.

Companies such as Rogers will have about 18 per cent of Canadian telephone customers by the end of the year, according to a report by Convergence Consulting Group Ltd. that was released this month.

Stuart Langford, the sole CRTC commissioner to dissent, said the ruling removes any consumer protection except for clients who subscribe to the most basic service. "Incumbent phone companies can charge whatever they like; the sky's the limit," he wrote. "Consumers are left with two choices: pay or do without."

Monday's ruling will remove any incentive for new entrants to compete with the former monopolies, now that the CRTC "has given incumbent phone companies so much power to crush competition before it even gets started," Langford said.

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Spot The Contradiction

France opposes Turkey joining the EU because it is a Muslim country. But Turkey banned the Islamic headscarf for women before France did....And France declares it is doing this to remain secular, which Turkey does to.....go figure.....




SEE:

Breaking Out Of The Cultural Burka

Catholic Hajib

Watch How You Dress

Why We Fight

The War For Women's Rights

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secularism, Muslim, Turkey, Singers, France, Burka, Bikini, Paglia, McElroy, feminism, Islam, women, liberation, empowerment
Religion, babuskhka,Headscarves, Veils, Hajib, Patriarchy, Women, Muslim, Islam,

Now You See It....

...Now you don't.

"The Conservatives had come from behind to establish a lead and now that lead is gone,'' said Decima CEO Bruce Anderson.





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Canada, budget, politics, Conservatives, Harper, Liberals, Dion, NDP, Harper, Green Party, BQ, Decima, Quebec, election, election2007, polls, election, politics, Canada, Angus-Reid