Panglossian Notes

PM Steven Harper meets super hero!

Yesterday, September 20, 2008, Harper, the Prime Minister, made a pass through Iqaluit to ostensibly indicate how important the North is to Canada.

Me, I think, it was to officially acknowledge my lovely friend Leona as a candidate for the Conservative Party in the up coming federal election.

Or maybe it was to seek karma and assistance from Polar Man:

Technorati Tags: Arctic, Canada, great stuff, Iqaluit, Nunavut, Politicians

Steven Harper says market does not work!!!

In a stunning revelation, today in Halifax Nova Scotia, the Conservative Party Prime Minister of Canada, Steven Harper, indicated that markets do not work.

"Asked by reporters in Halifax whether he thought the sudden increase [in the price of gasoline across Canada overnight] was due to price gouging, Harper replied: "It certainly appears that way to me."

Canada PM says gas spike looks like price-gouging
Reuters
September 12, 2008

So, where has the "invisible hand" gone?

I'm becoming confused.

First we have the New Democratic Party (NDP) leader adopting business bullshit jargon, by saying he is applying for the job of Prime Minister - which must mean by implication that I'm not a citizen/voter but a "client" or a "shareholder" or a member of an "executive headhunter organization" - and supporting action along with the Conservative Party in opposing any realistic policy to deal with global warming.

Now we have Steven, economist (U of Calgary), cat-lover, card player, Harper agreeing with the NDP that there is no such thing as a market just predatory blackguards waiting to gouge the poor poor gasoline consumers.

Is the end of the world next?

Technorati Tags: Canada, Cheap tricks, CPC, Delusional?, Duh we like hockey, Economics, Great ideas, NDP, Pinheads, Politicians, Sarcasm

A view of GOP activity during the week

Steve Bell rendering "Republicans on offensive over 'pig' quote"
The Guardian
September 11, 2008

No offense, eh Slim 

Technorati Tags: GOP, Modern Republicans?, Wingnuts extrodinaire

One for us bike riders!

I had missed this earlier, but thanks to Peter Moskos at Cop in the Hood:

"Prosecutors dropped charges on Friday morning, as expected, against the bicyclist who was shoved off his bike in July by a police officer in Times Square. The confrontation between the cyclist, Christopher Long, and a New York City police officer, Patrick Pogan, was captured on amateur video and circulated widely over the Internet.

Charges Against Shoved Cyclist Are Dropped
John Eligon
New York Times
September 5, 2008

In case you missed the video clip the first time around, here:

Technorati Tags: Accountability, Bikes, Courts

The New York Times Editorial Page Notices the Arctic

in a sensible way:

"The only tolerable way to shape the future of the Arctic is through international cooperation, not a sovereignty battle. There is more to protect than access to valuable resources and shortened shipping routes. There is a desperately endangered and fragile ecosystem as well, which is threatened both by global warming and by the commercial development warming allows.

Arctic in Retreat
New York Times
September 9, 2008

The editorial says that "...  the Arctic is increasingly a scene of commercial and territorial conflict."

I guess I'd say there isn't any, what I'd call, real conflict, just yet, over the Arctic.

So far, other than the more detailed and slow routine like process of scientists presenting papers and findings of their sea floor mapping projects, there have only been dramatic gestures, lots and lots of words, massive hand wringing by Southerners worried about icebreakers and lack there of, images of the dastardly Russians in submarines with flags maybe stealing something(?) and, from Canada, a flurry of announcements about a beefed up military presents in places North of Toronto and Calgary. [The latest of these announcements from from the Defense Minister MacKay about a new reserve unit to be put, in of all places YK (YellowKnife). So Arctic, eh! Sorry, I am trying to contain my sarcasm.]

In fact if you just looked at the corporate media's headlines, least in Scotland, you might even think PM Harper had crossed to street from 24 Sussex Drive to dropped the writ at the GGs place yesterday morning because the new friendly Steve was worried about the Arctic - Canada's PM calls early election as race for Arctic's resources hots up - funny, eh.

For both the US and Canada the Arctic is again, after 100 years back on the front pages, almost daily it seems, of newspapers (Southerns are such opportunist), where as for some countries - Russia, for example, with an Arctic population of 2,000,000 - it has, in fact never been off so-to-speak.

I completely agree with the sentiment of the NYTs editorial. There is more to worry about in the Arctic than who owns what. For this concern there is also an agreed process to determining the important but prosaic issue.  The danger, I think, is that important social and cultural issues will be stampeded over as the "gold rush" mentality of needed development looms on the horizon.

I think we here in Canada have until 2013 to make our final case under the UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea) for the area we content, with Denmark, is linked to our continental shelf, i.e. the Lomonosov Ridge. I'm hoping other matters aren't lost sight of as we prepare our detailed scientific and geological case.

Technorati Tags: Arctic, Canada, Denmark - Greenland, Finland, Iceland, Law of the Sea, Norway, Russia, Sweden, UN, US - Alaska

A good picture of Palin and little Johnny whathisname?

Steve Bell has been trying out renditions for the new GOP perfect pair. I think he has found the right one:

Technorati Tags: McCain, Politicians

Amazon makes a killing

I should have known that someone would have had a book out on the Northerner. But published on "All Fools Day"? A bonus? Lovely and it's back ordered - great for Amazon and Epicenter Press, though I think I'd wait for the remainders:

"Sarah: How a Hockey Mom Turned Alaska's Political Establishment on Its Ear" (Kaylene Johnson)

I wonder where the adults are?

Thank god the US convention season is almost over. It means that the November election is just 60 days away.

The POTUS elections are, in recent times, hard enough to take - i.e. they can monopolize the time of a emotionally and mentally mature individual  - in these day of demagoguery, militarism, fake crises and other assorted buffoon shenanigans meant to confuse and sway voters.

But the conventions, eh?

Gads, when these crazy events are in full swing even the Canadian CPAC channel (our version of C-Span) succumbs to complete coverage of what seems to pass as public speaking by the "borderline insane". I've been forced to finish reading: Human Smoke, Playing Cards in Cairo, The Tragedy of Great Power Politics, A Year in the Merde, Natural Born Celebrities, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, The Trouble with Diversity and Savage Mules in order to keep my head in some sort of equilibrium.

I could barely stomach the pomp and schmalz of the Democratic convention and I was seriously wondering whether I might be completely unplugged from the rest-of-the-world when I thought Obama's acceptance speech wasn't earth shattering. [I concluded I was jaded - satiated with good intentions.]

I should have held on my self-doubt 'til after the GOP fest. Now I wonder where the adults in the US might happen to be hiding. Can someone please get these characters in hand. They are giving some, right of centre viewing, US citizens a strange reputation for group madness.

Technorati Tags: Empty, Insanity, Madness, McCain, Obama, Outside view, Politicians, Schmalz, Sleaze, Slogans, Soothing? maybe, eh!, Speeches, Spin