Friday, January 13, 2006

No Suitcases At Mecca

The Saudi Government has announced that in the future all carry on luggage, bags, suitcases, backpacks, etc. will be banned from Mecca during the Haj in order to avoid incidents like this.

Stampede kills Mecca pilgrims by the hundreds
Interior Ministry spokesman Major-General Mansour al-Turki said the deaths occurred after some pilgrims began to trip over luggage that had spilled from a moving bus.


Of course this kind of news story makes Islam and Muslims look like primitive peoples You know unable to be civilized in public space, pushing shoving, throwing stones, doing strange ritualistic rites, down right tribalistic. But stampedes occur world wide, including in the west during Soccer games.

Backgrounder: Major lethal stampedes last year

Cash and coupons lure 42 to death in Chennai

Or perhaps its just how the media in the West portray it. Do ya think. Like if there were not accidents, incidents, or attacks by terrorists there would be no news about the Haj. It's the only time the western media reports on this major religious holiday. Unlike Christmas at the Vatican.

These aren't accidents, they are preventable incidents, but the Saudi's have failed to do anything about it.

Hajj crowd-pressure must be eased to avoid tragedy New Scientist

But experts say the sheer scale of the stoning ritual makes it inherently dangerous. "There's a huge risk and potential for accidents whenever you have so many people in a tightly confined space," says Keith Still, an expert on crowd behaviour at UK company Crowd Dynamics. "There's a limit to what can be done."

In 1990, 1462 pilgrims were killed in a crush within a tunnel leading to the site and in 2004 another crush caused the death of 251 people. Similar accidents also occurred in 1997 and 1998.

Funny that. Perhaps they should hire the Engineering Firm Bin Laden to solve the problem. Nope on second thought that may not be such a good idea. Mecca hostel collapse prompts rare media criticism

MECCA, Saudi Arabia (Reuters) - The death of 76 people in a Muslim pilgrims' hostel in Mecca before the annual haj prompted a rare flurry of media criticism of Saudi authorities on Saturday.

"Yet another building has collapsed, and with each one the bad management, bad supervision, and nonchalance of the concerned authorities are revealed," columnist Abdul-Rahman Al-Rashed wrote in the main Saudi daily Ashraq al-Awsat.

An Interior Ministry official, who said it was still not clear what caused the collapse, told journalists the hostel had been licensed by the Industry and Trade Ministry.

Or is it just that the statist Saudi's with their army and police can't do the responsible thing and protect public safety, looking the other way at the exploitation of the pilgrims by their own profiteers. Ah say it ain't so.

Still, a report in the daily al-Riyadh newspaper said: "The state is pumping millions into the haj and honest businessmen are sticking to rules, but some who look for quick gain embarrass the country before the international community."

I think given the choice between the luggage is to blame and the Saudi's abidcate responsibilty while cashing in on pilgrams I will chose the latter.

Saudi officials are being blamed for not having taken the necessary measures, yet they complain of “unruly” pilgrims.

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New Libertarian Journal

The Molinari Institute has launched a new bi monthly journal for Left Libertarians from both the individualist and socialist schools of thought. Congrats to them. A tip o the blog to Brad Spangler for this.

This of course exclude 99.9% of the Blogging Tory's in Canada, regardless of their labeling themselves Libertarian (they are actually Randites) and those who often comment here, sans Reg. And it completely excludes the Statist neo-cons that blog as Liberals.


For those interested here is what they say;


CALL TO SUBMIT ARTICLES

Later this year (2006) the Molinari Institute will begin publishing a magazine (either quarterly or bimonthly – stay tuned) titled The Industrial Radical, and devoted to radical libertarian political and social analysis in the tradition of Benjamin Tucker’s 1881-1908 Liberty, Emma Goldman’s 1906-1917 Mother Earth, and Murray Rothbard’s 1965-1968 Left & Right.
Topics to be explored include: radical libertarian alternatives to statism, militarism, and intellectual property; the social and cultural requirements of a free and flourishing society; the structure of work, family, and property relationships in such a society; strategies for getting from here to there; and the possibility of “gains from trade” between the left/socialist and right/capitalist traditions within libertarianism.

The title “Industrial Radical” honors the libertarian and individualist anarchist thinkers and activists of the 19th century, who were “industrial” in the sense of championing what they called the industrial mode of social organization, based on voluntary cooperation and mutual benefit, over the militant mode, based on hierarchy, regimentation, and violence; and who were “radical” in the sense of recognizing that social problems are embedded in sustaining networks of institutions and practices, and so can be addressed only via thoroughgoing social change. Their approach informs our vision.

Canada and Quebec Two Tory Solitudes

Harper ended his platform speech this morning saying something different in French then English.

In French he called on "Canada and Quebec" to vote for the Conservatives, and only refered to Canadians in the English.

Federalists understand Quebec is a country, a nation within Canada, they just can't say it to us in English Canada, while appealing to the Quebecois they recognize this reality. Or maybe its cause he got the endorsement of the ADQ.

As Philippe Gohier says Harper is playing a dangerous game.

Harper’s support could very well be due to his appeal to both the soft-nationalist and soft-federalist vote. On the one hand, he is unequivocally defensive about Canada’s role in the province, but on the other, he is playing up the issues of fiscal imbalance and provincial jurisdiction, two issues dear to the nationalist heart.


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Harper Lies About Child Care

In his 30 minute speech announcing the Conservative Platform the Harper proclaimed that the Liberal day care program funding the provinces has not produced a single day care space. Really. In his own home province of Alberta it has and it has allowed Alberta to increase wages for child care workers. But hey don't let the facts get in the way of a good sound bite.

Also see:

Whose Family Values

Day Care

Defend Public Day Care



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Two Faced Harper


Harper has just announced the Conservative Platform. Including a series of broken promises. Promises made during the last sitting of the house, when the Conservative party promised to support Liberal policy and spending announcements in an orgy of me too politics. Harper not bound by Liberal initiatives

Now he is saying they will renege on tax breaks, aboriginal funding, daycare funding all ready negotiated with the provinces, the Kyoto accord, and will reintroduce a motion to support the American missle defense plan.


But after many promises to cost their platform, wait till we release our platform said Monte Solberg earlier this week, they still have NOT given Canadians the cost of their program.

In a lock up of selected reporters this morning, imitating a government budget release, Monte Solberg their point man in finance could not give a straight answer on costing their promises. Is it $60.5 billion or $90.billion. Last week it was either going to be $32 billion or $49 billion, or even $52 billion. However you cut it they still have not figured out how to use an abacus or a calculator.


"Voodoo economics" - Bob Fife


"It turns out that their total promises for the Conservative Party adds up to $75 billion. When there is reallocation we are told it is $60.7 billion. But this took about an hour or so of discussions and adding up to get to this figure of about $67 billion. Total tax measures are about 44.9 billion. Other spending initiatives I don't want to go there because it was so confusing even Monte Solberg the conservative finance critic did not explain that to us."

Journalists try to get their heads around the Conservative numbers following 'lock up' on Friday.

Journalists try to get their heads around the Conservative numbers following 'lock up' on Friday.

In the Conservative platform, the party says Canadians can expect $30 billion in new spending over the next five years, alongside $45 billion in previously-announced tax breaks.

The one new tax break pledged by Harper is to eliminate the capital-gains tax for individuals and companies who reinvest the money within six months.

Conservatives would spend $171.6 billion in the next fiscal year -- $1 billion less than Harper said the Liberals would spend.

And after five years, federal spending would climb to $198.8 billion, about $7 billion less than the projected Liberal platform, he said.

The Tory's really don't have a hidden agenda, they have a blatant agenda, which takes money from already promised deals to pay for their pig in a poke promises. This is a platform that is financed with your own money twice. And we still don't know how much it will cost!

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Marriage Canada Historical Revisionists

While checking out the right wing lobby Marriage Canada I found this interesting.

Marriage Canada is a pro-traditional marriage web site set up as an information outlet by
David Mainse. David is currently very busy behind the scenes as a "Spiritual Statesman for Canada." His public position on “Marriage” is certainly on record.

They are a political lobby, but since they are funded by David Manse of One Hundered Huntely Street does that make them a religious charity under his church?

They go on to say;
Marriage predates government. It is a religious covenant. Marriage is a union of "one man and one woman.”

Marriage certainly does predate the state, but as I have written here before marriage as a union of one man and one woman IS sanctioned by the State. It is a legal entity created by the State. It is a property relationship.

Marriage prior to that was a relationship between mothers and their children in a communal property relationship.

With the rise of property and property rights under the patririachy the State defined marriage as one man and one woman, and the man's mistresses of course and his slaves, and his children, and his farm animals, etc. etc.

I also like this about Marriage Canada's campaign, you see they are not really lobbying over relationship but a word.
Defending the traditional definition of the word "Marriage"

Also See my articles:

Whose Family Values?

Marx on Bigamy

The Sexual Revolution Continues

History of the WRF

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Who Not To Vote For

Candidates endorsed by the right whing whiners; Marriage Canada.

Former Liberal and outgoing Independent Member of Parliament Pat O’Brien and former Leader of the Opposition the Hon. Grant Hill, P.C., announced, today, that Vote Marriage Canada endorses three pro-marriage candidates. Said Pat O’Brien, “On behalf of Vote Marriage Canada, Grant Hill and I are endorsing incumbent Liberal Paul Szabo of Mississauga South, Conservative Dan Mailer of London—Fanshawe, and former NDP and incumbent Independent Bev Desjarlais of Churchill. Each has taken a stand and given clear indication of supporting marriage as the legal union of one man and one woman in the next Parliament.” Vote Marriage Canada is carrying on a national campaign calling on the next Parliament to restore and to promote marriage as the legal union of one man and one woman.


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Look Up Is It A Bird?

Is it a plane? Is it...
Paleo-anthropologist at the University of the Witwatersrand, Lee Berger, holds a replica of a part of the skull of the Taung child in Johannesburg, Thursday Jan. 12, 2006. Berger said that his research into the death nearly 2 million years ago of the ape-man shows that human ancestors were hunted by predatory birds, similar to the model on the left. (AP Photo/Denis Farrell)
Nope it is defintely a bird.
Researcher: Early Man Was Hunted by Birds


Other Science stories I have blogged on

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Stephen Harper Grand Wizard of the KKK?

I found this attack ad against Harper on Blogging Tory website; KerPlonka! No really. Go figure.

Is he trying to pretend this is a Liberal attack ad?

Or is he saying that this is an ad the Conservatives should run as part of their truth in advertising campaign?

I am not sure. Just thought it was funny to find on a pro-Conservative web site. I think this guy is trying to be too clever by half, and has inadvertantly blown it with this one. You decide.

Another Harper Ad

When Stephen Harper plays Dungeons and Dragons...

...his character is a wizard.

In the KKK, the Grand Wizard is the boss.

Stephen Harper.

Wizard.

Choose your Canada.


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Laurie Hawn Chicken Hawk

Conservatives anger gays This is news?

Well in this case it is. Edmonton Centre Conservative Candidate Laurie Hawn, who prides himself on being ex military, a former fighter pilot, afraid of appearing at a gay forum. Claiming he would be set upon by gays and lesbians.


Tch, Tch I see he is suffering from typical Conservative arrogance, like his pal Rahim Jaffer. Pick and choose your forums. I would think it would be important to adress folks whose lives you are about to impact if you become the government.

Nah why bother eh, Laurie. The Conservative stance on Gay Marriage is not an election issue right. Not in a riding that has the largest population of gay's and lesbians in the city. Nah. Don't bother trying to represent them.

Oh I like this out he only shows up at forums where he can debate Anne. See it's not about issues at all for Laurie.

What arrogance, what disdain, what a loser.

Organizers are furious that the Edmonton-Centre Conservative candidate yesterday backed out of a gay and lesbian all-candidates forum to be held tonight.

"I was angry," said Joe Woytowich, executive director of the Pride Centre, after hearing the news yesterday.

Woytowich said Laurie Hawn's campaign manager has told him "he felt that (Hawn) would be walking into a lion's den and that he might be set upon. He was worried it was an attack of some sort."

But a spokesman for Laurie Hawn said he's not showing up because Deputy Prime Minister Anne McLellan, the incumbent in Edmonton-Centre, won't be there until the forum wraps at around 8:30 p.m.

"We wanted to debate Anne, because she's the elected representative of Edmonton-Centre," said William McBeath.


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