Jazeera has the definitive scoop today, which is being dutifully retold around the world.
It's almost certainly true that the Great Freedom Fighter was poisoned. Well, at least that's how a lot of the story re-tellers are framing it. Al Jazeera merely leaves it at a "hint".
This story has been around in one form or another for eight years.
So we're nowhere closer to knowing anything we didn't know yesterday, except the sly hint that if he was poisoned by polonium he must have been done in by a country with an advanced nuclear program.
Oh gosh, I wonder who they might be referring too?
Probably a better theory than David Frum's "Arafat died of AIDs" thesis he trotted out a few years back. Although you never know.
So don't expect this revelation to unleash another intifada or anything. Arafat had more enemies in the Arab World than he had in Israel.
After all, there are only seven million Israelis.
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Brit Foreign Secretary wags finger of righteousness at Syrian torturers
William Hague mounted the white horse of moral outrage to lecture Syria about the evils of torture today.
The occasion was the release of a report from Human Rights Watch documenting wide-spread torture in Syria.
It is well know that after 9/11 Syria was a popular destination for the Nations of Virtue to send suspects for "interrogation". Seems we knew all along that interrogators in Syria have a little more leeway than they have in Canada or the US or Britain.
Times have changed, don't you know. Not that long ago we were out-sourcing torture to Syria.
Now we're outsourcing civil war, and since we're on the side of freedom and democracy in that civil war, it's important to shout loudly about how repugnant it is that the Assad regime stoops to torture..
Political grandstanding at its finest!
The occasion was the release of a report from Human Rights Watch documenting wide-spread torture in Syria.
It is well know that after 9/11 Syria was a popular destination for the Nations of Virtue to send suspects for "interrogation". Seems we knew all along that interrogators in Syria have a little more leeway than they have in Canada or the US or Britain.
Times have changed, don't you know. Not that long ago we were out-sourcing torture to Syria.
Now we're outsourcing civil war, and since we're on the side of freedom and democracy in that civil war, it's important to shout loudly about how repugnant it is that the Assad regime stoops to torture..
Political grandstanding at its finest!
The blissful certainties of a black-and-white world
Gwyn Morgan, according to the brief bio beneath his byline in the Globe and Mail, is "a Canadian business leader and a director of two global corporations".
Yesterday Morgan's astute analysis cut straight to the heart of the global economic crisis. The world is divided into two camps. On the one side you have the "givers". These would be your hard-working right-voting folks; entrepreneurs and wealth creators.
On the other side is your left-tilting grab-bag of liberals, Democrats, socialists of all stripes, welfare cheats, drug addicts, the sick, the halt, the lame, the weak of back and slow of mind, et. cetra. These are of course the "takers".
Quoting reverently from Glenn Beck's idol Friedrich Hayek, Morgan warns the reader that the long-suffering "givers" are on the verge of giving up. It's clear to Morgan that the insatiable demands of the "takers" are threatening the very future of the free enterprise model, which history has irrefutably proven to be superior. He cites two vastly over-simplified examples.
Look at Germany when the wall went down. Free-enterprisers on the one side. A socialist wasteland on the other. Germany was able to absorb those Eastern slackers and become the manufacturing powerhouse of Europe, but now all these "takers" in Greece and Spain threaten to break the back of the German miracle.
He finds an example in Canada as well. Look at those student protesters in Quebec. Talk about thankless "takers"! The lowest tuition in the land and yet they march for lower tuition?
And the "givers" in his Canadian scenario are the tax-payers of Alberta, who work tirelessly digging their self-created oil wealth out of the ground so that they can provide the "lions share" of the 7 billion in equalization payments that the rest of us bestow on Quebec every year.
But no economic analysis by this Fraser Institute regular is complete without a gratuitous slap at the NDP, the former socialist party with aspirations to form a government in the event that Canadians ever wake up and smell the Harper.
So Morgan has got the pro-labour NDP leader Thomas Mulcair marching to the barricades with the Montreal students. There they go, students and unionists arm in arm, rallying to "replace free-market capitalism with government controlled socialism".
The final triumph of the "takers" over the "givers".
Then it struck me that both the students and the NDP leader would be more than comfortable in Germany!
No tuition!
Government mandated union representation on corporate boards!
And suddenly I realized that it's not such a black-and-white world after all. Maybe there are other options besides "free-market capitalism" and "government mandated socialism".
Maybe a government regulated capitalism?
Perhaps we should embrace the German model, Mr. Morgan!
But his economic analyses aren't all that's dodgy about Gwyn Morgan.
In the course of his business career Morgan built Encana into North America's second largest natural gas company, leaving a trail of despoiled communities all over the continent as a result of his wholesale embrace of industrial-scale fracking practices.
Since leaving Encana he has become Chairman of the Board of SNC-Lavalin, the Canadian conglomerate currently under a cloud of suspicion over corruption in Bangladesh, Mexico, Libya and Switzerland.
And here's the punch line; he's on the speakers circuit these days, giving lectures around the world on the topic of business ethics!
Yesterday Morgan's astute analysis cut straight to the heart of the global economic crisis. The world is divided into two camps. On the one side you have the "givers". These would be your hard-working right-voting folks; entrepreneurs and wealth creators.
On the other side is your left-tilting grab-bag of liberals, Democrats, socialists of all stripes, welfare cheats, drug addicts, the sick, the halt, the lame, the weak of back and slow of mind, et. cetra. These are of course the "takers".
Quoting reverently from Glenn Beck's idol Friedrich Hayek, Morgan warns the reader that the long-suffering "givers" are on the verge of giving up. It's clear to Morgan that the insatiable demands of the "takers" are threatening the very future of the free enterprise model, which history has irrefutably proven to be superior. He cites two vastly over-simplified examples.
Look at Germany when the wall went down. Free-enterprisers on the one side. A socialist wasteland on the other. Germany was able to absorb those Eastern slackers and become the manufacturing powerhouse of Europe, but now all these "takers" in Greece and Spain threaten to break the back of the German miracle.
He finds an example in Canada as well. Look at those student protesters in Quebec. Talk about thankless "takers"! The lowest tuition in the land and yet they march for lower tuition?
And the "givers" in his Canadian scenario are the tax-payers of Alberta, who work tirelessly digging their self-created oil wealth out of the ground so that they can provide the "lions share" of the 7 billion in equalization payments that the rest of us bestow on Quebec every year.
But no economic analysis by this Fraser Institute regular is complete without a gratuitous slap at the NDP, the former socialist party with aspirations to form a government in the event that Canadians ever wake up and smell the Harper.
So Morgan has got the pro-labour NDP leader Thomas Mulcair marching to the barricades with the Montreal students. There they go, students and unionists arm in arm, rallying to "replace free-market capitalism with government controlled socialism".
The final triumph of the "takers" over the "givers".
Then it struck me that both the students and the NDP leader would be more than comfortable in Germany!
No tuition!
Government mandated union representation on corporate boards!
And suddenly I realized that it's not such a black-and-white world after all. Maybe there are other options besides "free-market capitalism" and "government mandated socialism".
Maybe a government regulated capitalism?
Perhaps we should embrace the German model, Mr. Morgan!
But his economic analyses aren't all that's dodgy about Gwyn Morgan.
In the course of his business career Morgan built Encana into North America's second largest natural gas company, leaving a trail of despoiled communities all over the continent as a result of his wholesale embrace of industrial-scale fracking practices.
Since leaving Encana he has become Chairman of the Board of SNC-Lavalin, the Canadian conglomerate currently under a cloud of suspicion over corruption in Bangladesh, Mexico, Libya and Switzerland.
And here's the punch line; he's on the speakers circuit these days, giving lectures around the world on the topic of business ethics!
Monday, July 2, 2012
Rwandan war criminals enjoy protection of US Army
Here's the story about an indicted Rwandan war criminal who makes the best of the "robust" relations that exist between the US Army and the Rwanda Defense Forces.
Major Justus Majyamberre was indicted by a court in Spain and is wanted by Interpol. That apparently doesn't impede his ability to travel freely in the US.
That's one more reason to think Victoria Nuland's feigned ignorance at her presser earlier was just that; feigned.
The fact that both President Kagame and his former mentor, fellow US love interest President Museveni of Uganda, have been ass-deep in destabilizing DR Congo has been an open secret for years.
If you have lots of spare time you might want to google Wikileaks Rwanda and see what comes up. It soon becomes obvious that all sorts of American diplomats have had grave reservations about their African Allies for years.
Meanwhile, Kagame travels the world, the toast of the international development community, collecting accolades and honorary degrees, of which he has recieved at least four in the US.
Perhaps his "Noriega moment" is nigh?
Major Justus Majyamberre was indicted by a court in Spain and is wanted by Interpol. That apparently doesn't impede his ability to travel freely in the US.
That's one more reason to think Victoria Nuland's feigned ignorance at her presser earlier was just that; feigned.
The fact that both President Kagame and his former mentor, fellow US love interest President Museveni of Uganda, have been ass-deep in destabilizing DR Congo has been an open secret for years.
If you have lots of spare time you might want to google Wikileaks Rwanda and see what comes up. It soon becomes obvious that all sorts of American diplomats have had grave reservations about their African Allies for years.
Meanwhile, Kagame travels the world, the toast of the international development community, collecting accolades and honorary degrees, of which he has recieved at least four in the US.
Perhaps his "Noriega moment" is nigh?
AFRICOM caught with pants down
One of America's favorite allies in Africa, President Paul Kagame of Rwanda, was singled out in a UN report last week for arming rebel groups in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Among other things, our proxies have been accused of recruiting child soldiers and carrying out massacres and mass rapes.
Kagame has enjoyed friendly relations with the White House for many years, and has been a pet African leader of every administration going back to the Bill Clinton era.
So we are just shocked, appalled, stunned, etc. to hear these accusations. Who knew?
Hillary spokesperson Victoria Nuland laid it out straight away. "We are deeply concerned," she announced, and went on to say that if such goings on are ongoing, would Mr. Kagame please cut it out.
All this feigned surprise is a bit much. Here's a quote from the offical web-site of the US Army, circa 2009;
RDF spokesman Major Jill Rutaremara said the U.S. military and RDF share a robust military-to-military relationship.
"We have received training in a number of professional military institutions in the U.S., from our NCOs to cadets in school like West Point," Rutaremara said.
This was on the occassion of a visit to Rwanda by then AFRICOM boss General William Ward.
So the US Army has a "robust" relationship with the Rwandan Army, but nobody had any idea that the Rwandans have been stirring the pot in Congo all these years?
I'm thinking somebody's not telling the truth!
Among other things, our proxies have been accused of recruiting child soldiers and carrying out massacres and mass rapes.
Kagame has enjoyed friendly relations with the White House for many years, and has been a pet African leader of every administration going back to the Bill Clinton era.
So we are just shocked, appalled, stunned, etc. to hear these accusations. Who knew?
Hillary spokesperson Victoria Nuland laid it out straight away. "We are deeply concerned," she announced, and went on to say that if such goings on are ongoing, would Mr. Kagame please cut it out.
All this feigned surprise is a bit much. Here's a quote from the offical web-site of the US Army, circa 2009;
RDF spokesman Major Jill Rutaremara said the U.S. military and RDF share a robust military-to-military relationship.
"We have received training in a number of professional military institutions in the U.S., from our NCOs to cadets in school like West Point," Rutaremara said.
This was on the occassion of a visit to Rwanda by then AFRICOM boss General William Ward.
So the US Army has a "robust" relationship with the Rwandan Army, but nobody had any idea that the Rwandans have been stirring the pot in Congo all these years?
I'm thinking somebody's not telling the truth!
Sunday, July 1, 2012
The trouble with surveys
The first problem with surveys is that people lie.
I know I do.
In fact, that's one of the few places where you can get away with fibbing and there are no repercussions.
In general lying is not a good strategy.
You tell a lie and then you have to tell another to cover up the first. Then another, and of course another one after that.
Before you know it, you can't remember who you told what lie to, and the whole thing collapses on your head...
On a survey you're home free!
But surveys get tossed around as though they mean something.
I was reading an interview with the new president of the AMA on Ezra Klein's Wonkblog at the Washington Post website.
The article has a link to a survey about what doctors think about Obamacare. What doctors think about Obamacare should be of some import, so I was keen to have a look.
There on page 12 of the report from the Deloitte Center For Health Solutions you'll find they sent the survey to 16,537 doctors.
501 took the trouble to fill it out and send it back.
I'm guessing the other 16,036 were too busy.
But those 501 are presented as though they speak for the medical profession in America.
I'd rather know what the guys who were too busy think.
I know I do.
In fact, that's one of the few places where you can get away with fibbing and there are no repercussions.
In general lying is not a good strategy.
You tell a lie and then you have to tell another to cover up the first. Then another, and of course another one after that.
Before you know it, you can't remember who you told what lie to, and the whole thing collapses on your head...
On a survey you're home free!
But surveys get tossed around as though they mean something.
I was reading an interview with the new president of the AMA on Ezra Klein's Wonkblog at the Washington Post website.
The article has a link to a survey about what doctors think about Obamacare. What doctors think about Obamacare should be of some import, so I was keen to have a look.
There on page 12 of the report from the Deloitte Center For Health Solutions you'll find they sent the survey to 16,537 doctors.
501 took the trouble to fill it out and send it back.
I'm guessing the other 16,036 were too busy.
But those 501 are presented as though they speak for the medical profession in America.
I'd rather know what the guys who were too busy think.
Meet my new personal trainer
Kipling.
Yup. As recently as yesterday I was casting aspersions on young Kipling.
I rather mockingly suggested that he was a poor choice as a fitness guru.
Then I read this in the New York Times.
I take it all back.
As is often the case, Kipling is way ahead of the curve, while I'm so far behind it I can't even see which way the latest trend is going.
According to the Times you can be crowding your 70's and be a personal trainer. So young Kipling is indeed young.
And while the Times makes no mention of how the weed of wisdom can figure into one's fitness plan, Kipling sat me down and spelled it out.
He has modified the standard hemp smoothie breakfast regimen specifically for me. I will be permitted to smoke the hemp.
But cigarettes are out, he says.
That sounds a little dodgy to me, but I'm willing to give it a try. I had thought that Kipling has a smoke break in the middle of his daily 10k run, but apparently I was mis-informed.
Like I said, I'm way behind the curve.
He's got me on the weight training as well. According to Kipling you have to lift something weightier than a Moosehead tallboy to keep the biceps toned.
Who knew?
Yup. As recently as yesterday I was casting aspersions on young Kipling.
I rather mockingly suggested that he was a poor choice as a fitness guru.
Then I read this in the New York Times.
I take it all back.
As is often the case, Kipling is way ahead of the curve, while I'm so far behind it I can't even see which way the latest trend is going.
According to the Times you can be crowding your 70's and be a personal trainer. So young Kipling is indeed young.
And while the Times makes no mention of how the weed of wisdom can figure into one's fitness plan, Kipling sat me down and spelled it out.
He has modified the standard hemp smoothie breakfast regimen specifically for me. I will be permitted to smoke the hemp.
But cigarettes are out, he says.
That sounds a little dodgy to me, but I'm willing to give it a try. I had thought that Kipling has a smoke break in the middle of his daily 10k run, but apparently I was mis-informed.
Like I said, I'm way behind the curve.
He's got me on the weight training as well. According to Kipling you have to lift something weightier than a Moosehead tallboy to keep the biceps toned.
Who knew?
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