Arar deserves immediate apology from Stephen Harper

It's time for Stephen Harper to apologise:

Maher Arar still waiting for apology from the PM:
"'I understand (the prime minister) needs time to examine other issues, but . . . my reputation has been tarnished, I've suffered tremendously, my family suffered tremendously over the past couple years and I expected him to apologize without delay. But this didn't happen.'"

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Top secret: Banff security meeting attracted U.S., Mexico officials

A North American security meeting was secretly held in Banff last week, attracting high-profile officials from the United States, Mexico and Canada.

The North American Forum was hosted with the help of the Canada West Foundation and the Canadian Council of Chief Executives.

Among the attendees at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel affair was Stockwell Day, Canada's minister of public safety.

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Getting closer to Uncle Sam; the Toronto Star

TheStar.com - Getting closer to Uncle Sam: "Getting closer to Uncle Sam
Public kept in dark as business leads talks about North American integration, By Maude Barlow
Sep. 20, 2006. 01:00 AM

While the media were busy obsessing over rumours of a budding romance between Condoleezza Rice and Peter MacKay last week, a more significant relationship was developing behind closed doors."

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Deep Integration Planned at Secret Conference Ignored by the Media

Vive le Canada - Deep Integration Planned at Secret Conference Ignored by the Media: "Here's the scandal that should be outraging Canadians across the country. On September 12-14, elite proponents of deep integration from Canada, the U.S. and Mexico met at a secret conference at the Banff Springs Hotel. Stockwell Day, Tom d'Aquino and other high-profile Canadians were there. But the Hotel doesn't want to talk about it. No major media reported on the conference--not The Globe and Mail, not the National Post, not the Toronto Star, no one. Yet the topic of the conference, deep integration or the formation of a 'North American Community' aka the North American Union, will profoundly affect everything in our lives from our health and security to the currency we use (soon to be the 'Amero') to our very national identity. In essence, we will no longer be Canadians, but North Americans only--and worse, North Americans hog-tied in lock-step with the U.S. even as they gain open access to our energy resources. "

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Europe nuclear TALKS with Iran productive

Europe is not happy with the latest "dis-coveries" of the secret CIA prisons, more so because the U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice had refused to tell the truth when she visited Brussels (remember her "tour") last December.

So what does Europe do?
It starts TALKING to prospective enemies.

"The European Union says that new talks with Iranian officials on Iran's nuclear programme have been productive.

After meeting Iranian officials on Sunday, Javier Solana, the EU's foreign policy chief, said the talks had been worthwhile, and Ali Larijani, Iran's senior nuclear negotiator, said progress was made and that some 'misunderstandings' had been removed." (source:Aljazeera.net)

Stupidity has a face, and it's not funny.

Watch with amazement how the U.S. commander in chief mangles the English language, and speaks nonsensically about the war in Iraq. Also about America’s standing in the world, his relationship with his father, and Albert Camus. (from Truthdig.com)

Video 1:

Video 2:

Bush can not be trusted.

"Bush administration claims justifying the war against Iraq were based on fragmented, conflicting, and at times unreliable intelligence, according to two reports released today by the Senate Intelligence Committee." (Bloomberg)

What it means:
It means we can't trust Bush's government. This U.S. "cherry picking" presented misleading evidence. It's time for the Canadian government to let the U.S. government know we do not agree with these malpractises, and therefore we will not support these malpractises.

Going to war is a serious undertaking.

We owe our troops to be at war for the right reasons. This (criminal?) fabrication of facts and so-called evidence should not be awarded with military help from Canada any longer; any future military undertaking led by the U.S. should be turned down.

It's time for the world to wake up. And for Canada even more.

Harper's senate reform is not a "democratic deficit" reform

The senate, normally filled with old people (senex=old man) is going to change, if
Harper's gets his way. In a parliamentary system the house of commons is the dominant chamber, the senate (the "upper house") does play an important part; it puts restraints on the lower house. Together there's the balance of a innovation and restraint.

Still, there is the democratic deficit, a large gap between the wishes of Canadians and the way the government acts. But Harper must be dreaming to think that senate reform is going to narrow the gap.

The deficit has to do with our elective process; the first past the post system forwards too much power to a select few, power hungry, elite.

It's time for change, but the senate reform isn't it.

Going home?

BBC NEWS: "Nato to review Afghan challenge":

"Nato chiefs are due to meet to consider committing more troops to Afghanistan, where a British general has warned combat is 'more intense' than in Iraq."

The latest news sounds like the West is "loosin'" the war in Afghanistan. We need a lot more troops or else it's time for the troops to come home.

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Does CTV think "friendly fire" IS friendly?

Some media outlets do it right. They use quotation marks to clarify the unfitting euphemism "friendly fire" that has been adopted by the military for these type of deaths.

Not CTV. They don't seem to care about these things.

They don't see that there's nothing "friendly" about getting shot by your own side. It's as deadly as enemy fire, and, to be quite franky, pretty stupid. Why not change it to "stupid fire"?

Anyways, the U.S. seems to have a "friendly" report on "friendly fire".
Here are some, not so friendly, numbers, representing percentages of deaths through "friendy fire" (source: Wikipedia)
* World War II: 21,000 (16%)
* Vietnam war: 8,000 (14%)
* Gulf War: 35 (23%)
* Invasion of Afghanistan (2002): 4 (13%) **

Read also What the hell is friendly fire? by Scout.

**note: fatalities were Canadian Soldiers, not American. Caused when a US fighter pilot dropped a 500 lb (228 kg) bomb while Canadian soldiers were performing a live fire exercise on April 17, 2002 [1]

InSite: Attacking Harper's "New Fascist" ideology works!

Harper's idea about InSite, Vancouver's safe-injection site? Close it down.

There's plenty of reason to believe that the program to save the lives of addicted drug addicts is working, yet Harper does not want to fully support it, yet. Or, should I say, it doesn't fit the Conservative ideology?

Margaret Somerville (McGill University's Centre for Medicine, Ethics and Law) said it well:

"It can't be simply, 'We have a political platform and our platform is nobody is going to be helped in any way in terms of drug addiction behaviour or illness.' That would be wrong in my view."

And in my view too. Drug addicts are people too, only weakened by their addiction. Killing the weak is a fascist idea, practised by Nazi Germany to purify their own people. With the slogan "Volksgenosse, das ist auch Dein Geld" (Fellow Germans, this is your money too) the Nazis pointed out the financial benefit of killing the weak.

These days we're dealing with the New Fascism, which comes with a smile. The New Fascism doesn't kill the weak and disabled, at least not in the old way, thank God! But it doesn't help them either: ideology and message are very similar.

This message delivered by Harper is a good example (campaign statement December 2005):

"We as a government will not use taxpayers' money to fund drug use"

And the new ideology is not all that different either: Conservatives have no intention to help the weak and the poor. Lowering taxes is supposed to be the one and all "gift" to all people; social programs are a waste of money and can therefore be cut.

Are the Conservatives the New Fascists? Do the Conservatives really wish to see all drug addicts dying from overdosis or infected needles, rather sooner than later?

The InSite program works: it saves lives. And that message is hard to beat. Reason CAN overcome backwards ideology. Halleluhia! But it takes pressure, a lot of pressure. Are we up to it?

PS Doesn't the German doctor in the white jacket look a lot like Stephen Harper? The resemblance is frightening!

Afghanistan's opium harvest at highest levels; so who's in control?

Can anyone tell me what Canada is doing in Afghanistan? Obviously nobody is "in control" given the latest NY Times news:

Afghanistan'’s opium harvest this year has reached the highest levels ever recorded, showing an increase of almost 50 percent from last year, the executive director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Antonio Maria Costa, said Saturday in Kabul. (whole story)

Maybe good news for a neo-puppet like George Bush, being able to fight two wars with one rock. But not so good when you consider that most of the money of these cocaine operations is used for, exactly, supporting terrorism (February 2005):

Doug Wankel, Counter Narcotics Coordinator at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, said the opium industry in Afghanistan is financing terrorism in an interview with USA Today. "It's financing subversive activities. It's financing warlordism. ... And if it's a threat to the government of Afghanistan, it's a direct threat to the national security interests of the United States."

We fought the war for almost 5 years; about 10,000 people died sofar and, given the latest news, no real solution is in sight soon. Highest levels of opium harvest translates in highest financial gains for terrorism. This can fuel the renewed Taliban insurgency for a long time to come.

Jack is right, it's time to do something about it.
We have to change our strategy.
Normalize (remember the effect of Ostpolitik?) the situation with the Taliban (yes, start talking, duh).
And bring our troops home.
We owe them.

Does the Taliban have telephone?

What's wrong with Jack Layton? Has he gone mad?

Canada should withdraw its troops from the current mission in southern Afghanistan and invite Taliban fighters to peace talks, NDP Leader Jack Layton said yesterday.

"We believe that a comprehensive peace process has to bring all combatants to the table. You don't accomplish peace if those who are fighting are not involved in the peace-based discussion," he said.

Finally Layton got it right, for once: killing time is over, it's time for a solution.

Sure, we can stay in Afghanistan until the last Taliban is killed (or we run out of troops, whatever comes first). But that time is not going to come soon.

And the so-called "nation building" while still under attack is pure propaganda talk. Nobody in military circles will advice you to start nation-building (building schools, etc.) while troops and civilian are still daily under attack.

In short, we are now at stage we need to do something; and that's CHANGING TACTICS.

The "fun" is over; negotiate, and normalize the situation. It's about time.

I've never voted NDP in my life, but this unexpected quantum leap is about to change my mind! Jack, Bravo!

NB Does the Taliban have telephone?