White Flight

   The term "white flight" is used to describe the phenomenon of the white population fleeing areas where they were previously the majority, when numbers of 'visible minorities' rise above a perceived threshhold. This is happening throughout North America at the same time as immigration numbers are at the point where more racially diverse neighbourhoods should be resulting. Canada prides itself on its multiculturalism. The majority of immigrants moving to Canada come to Toronto. The official policy of multiculturalism, and the immigration pattern should combine to create a city where races and ethnicities mix freely. What is actually taking place is, in fact, the opposite. Toronto is becoming a city of enclaves. In Montreal and Vancouver, as well, this pattern has been holding true. Visible-minority neighbourhoods, those with more than 30% of the population coming from the same visible-minority group, are on the rise in these three cities. A recent StatsCan report says that between 1981 and 2001, the ethnic enclaves in these cities increased from 6 to 254. The question "why?" is not an easy one to answer.
   The flight of the white population from any area is usually rapid when the transition first begins, and then slows to the point where the neighbourhood still shelters some mix of races. It is unusual for the turnover to be complete. Why does the flight occur at all? Some of the response stems from stereotypes, many of which trace back to desegregation and the civil rights movement. The beliefs were that real estate prices would plummet, schools would deteriorate, and crime would rise sharply when blacks moved into an area. These beliefs held sway across most of North America. They still persist, but now they have become a matter of "fill in the blanks" with Blacks, Tamils, Vietnamese, and any other race or ethnicity coming to North America. Does all of this come down to nothing more, and nothing less, than racism? I was speaking recently to an acquaintance who was born and raised here in Toronto. She was telling me that she and her husband have begun looking at houses in Peterborough, Ontario. When I asked her why there, she said "Because all the immigrants come to Toronto. They don't go to Peterborough. I'm going there because I'm tired of feeling like a minority in my own city."
    I was born and raised in Toronto, too, and I have it seen it change from a city where nearly every face was Caucasian, to one where the whites are now the visbile minority. As a teacher, I have found myself looking out at classes that have gradually changed over the years from ones where there was perhaps only one non-white student, to ones where I was one of the very few whites in the room. It has always been my practise to handle the question of racism in Toronto when it arose (and it always arose, among the older kids) with a question or two of my own. I would approach a student whose skin colour was different than mine, and lay my hand against theirs, for everyone else to see. Then I would say "Look how different we are, or ... wait a minute ... let me ask you something first." I would then ask the student what they did when they felt hunger. Of course, they would tell me they ate. I would ask them what they did when they were tired. Of course, they would say they slept. I would ask them if they had a family member who loved them and whom they loved in return. Invariably the answer was YES! Then I would turn to the class and say "Look, we are no different at all. Every one of their answers to those questions is the same as mine. Maybe skin colour is no more important than wrapping paper. When you unwrap a gift, you never keep the paper and throw out the present. If we could just think as ourselves as gifts to one another, then we could find the true importance inside ourselves, and not in the colour of our skin." I hope my words will stay with some of those students.

Not Again!

   Alright, what gives? Last night, while I was driving out to run an errand (Studies show that in 70 percent of traffic accidents, at least one driver involved is less than 10 miles from home when the accident occurs. Thus, the places where people feel safest are the places where they are in fact at greatest risk of serious injury) locally, my vehicle was rear-ended. That makes twice in the last two months that I have been hit. Am I having to pay off some kind of karmic debt? During the accident scene work-time required by the police, I had time to speak to the other driver. I asked her if she had been preoccupied, worried about something and her mind not on her driving. "No," says she to me,"I just drove into you." That was the end of that conversation!
   Her car is an Acura, mine a Corolla. Both have good safety ratings, but even so, she was seeminlgy quite unscathed, while I have come out of the experience with whiplash. This happened even though I had my headrest up for maximum efficiency. The EMS attendant told me my headrest postion will have lessened the injury I would otherwise have sustained.
   The cars seem to have fared in the reverse to thier owners. Her car was accordioned in on the driver's corner and leaking fluid all over the road. Mine looks to be in better condition, but then, there was smoke coming from under the hood, before I got it into Park, and turned off. We'll have to see. I swear ... public transit is beginning to look better and better to me!

Should They Be Banned?

   Several municipalities in Ontario, including Windsor, have banned ownership of pit bulls. Yesterday, the city of Toronto began debate on the issue, on the same day as a Scarborough (Toronto) man was rushed into emergency surgery after being mauled by two of the animals. Toronto has seen a number of attacks by pit bulls this summer. Ontario began looking into a province-wide ban on the vicious animals, after another Toronto man was attacked on the weekend. Police needed 16 gunshots to kill the animals, and there are reports that this man may lose an arm as a result of the attacks. Ontario Attorney General Michael Bryant referred to the breed as "what amounts to an assault weapon on four legs." One question being asked, of course, is whether this ban may cause the desired reduction in attacks, or whether dog owners will simply look for bigger and more vicious breeads to tie at the end of their leashes. I shall first refer you to the last paragraph of my entry from Wednesday September the 8th, and then leave after uttering a sigh heavy with a disillusioned lack of faith in the motives of many.

"Beyond Words": A New Vancouver Club

   Beverly Ranger, a prostitute peer counsellor has been helping out with the newest book club in Vancouver's seamy downtown eastside, a club that distributes a book of their choice to the "working women", for them to read in preparation for a discussion group. She seeks out interested partcipants and makes sure they receive a copy.
   Mary Trentadue is the owner of the 32 Books shop in upscale Kerrisdale. Some time ago she had thought of giving books to the hookers of the eastside, but hesitated because she was unsure the women would welcome them, when they have to work the way they do just to earn life's bare necessities. Then she met Maggie DeVries. Maggie wrote a book about her sister, one of the many prostitutes that disappeared from the area, and are feared dead at the hands of Robert Pickton, Canada's worst serial killer. The women of the area were interested in reading the story, and wanted to see how life in their neighbourhood would be described. Trentadue contributed some of the novels and started a drive that saw 125 copies in total donated to the nascent club. The women helped each other and after everyone had finished, Trentadue hosted the end meeting, when the women came to discuss the novel. There was an explosion of emotional reaction.
   The club's second selection is Billie Livingston's "Going Down Swinging", about a Vancouver mother whose children are taken from her by social services. The discussion group will include a meeting with the author, whose presence is a real validation of the women and their interest in the written word.The readers are offended that people should assume they would be incapable of interest in a book. Some of these women have come to this life from a childhood of unrelenting abuse. So many have been told over and over and over again how stupid they are and how unworthy of anything better in life than what they have ended up with on the eastside. Some others have come here form a "normal" life gone awry. No matter how they found themselves here, they still have a brain, and a club such as their reading circle acknowledges that. It gives them the dignity of a shared activity that challenges their intellect. Why should they be denied such a thing?
   Apparently, many people have felt obliged to express surprise that the women of the streets can read, and would be interested in books. They make judgmental assumptions about these women, and their lives. They forget to practice the pious platitudes that so many of them mouth when they deign to favour their chosen house of worship with their holier-than-thou presence. If they are such intellectual giants as they try to appear, they should think back to when they read Hemingway's "For Whom the Bell Tolls". They did read it, didn't they? They did understand the author's message, did they not? Maybe they could just take a moment or two from their incredibly busy and ever-so-important schedule, and ponder, REALLY give some thought to those women and the old adage "There, but for a stroke of luck, go I."

The World's Longest Street

   The distinction of having the longest street in the world belongs to my country. Yonge Street, begins at the waterfront in Toronto, and stretches itself out a total of 1,896 kilometres (1,178 miles), to end at Rainy River in Northern Ontario, at the border with the state of Minnesota. The spelling of the name is a problem for many students, and recent immigrants. As a teacher, I have corrected so many pupils who misspelled it as "Young" Street. It's spelled the way it is because it was named in 1793, in honour of Sir George Yonge, the British war secretary during the late 1780's. He was a personal friend of John Graves SImcoe, the first Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada (later Ontario). Simcoe was quite the tactician, a true military man. He led the regiment, the Queen's Rangers, during the American Revolution, and while he commanded, they never tasted defeat. Relations with the Americans were tense during the 1790's, and Simcoe had to govern the new province under the constant concern of invasion from south of the border. He built roads to facilitate the fastest possible movement of troops in case of such an invasion, and Yonge Street was one of those. The invasion did indeed come, in the war of 1812, and it was the only time that foreign troops sat foot on our soil. However, the man for whom the world's longest street was named, never even set foot in Canada.
   Yonge Street boasts some of Toronto's major attractions along its length, such as the Hockey Hall of Fame, and good ol' Sam the Record Man, an icon of the music industry since the 1960's. Yonge Street has so many towns and sights-to-see, strung along its length like pearls on a necklace. If you're ever in my town, set your feet down on this street, and see where it leads you!

The Right Place at the Right Time?

   If you suffer from poor cardiac health, and live in Canada, you may want to consider moving to Edmonton. According to a recent study just completed, that is the one place, all across Canada, where you would have the best chance of receiving active help. The likelihood is just over 50% that a bystander would take steps to ameliorate the situation, including giving CPR. Ontario is the conutry's worst locale in which to suffer a sudden heart attack, with only 14% of those surveyed saying they would do anything more for you than just call 911. The good old bystander mentality ... the what-am-I-supposed-to-do mindset that can have a whole crowd, standing around, immobile, each one waiting for someone else to "do something". Be honest. What would you do if you found yourself beside someone, maybe at the mall, or on a street corner, having a heart attack?

Rosa Parks Still One Feisty Lady

   How sad to hear this news ... Rosa Parks, "the mother of the civil rights movement" has dementia. The grand old lady is 91 years old. She has been in the news again lately because of the lawsuit she brought against the hip-hop duo Outkast, for using her name as a song's name. She feels the song violated her publicity rights, and defamed her. The song really has nothing to do with her, other than to exploit her name. The only vague connection is barely to be discerned in the chorus "stop the fuss, everyone move to the back of the bus." I have to wonder why exactly it is that these "gentlemen" can not display the grace and courtesy to acquiesce to her asking that they change the song's title. I am sure they are looking on all this as a great source of publicity for their song and, thereby, their wallets, but... come on guys. Rosa Parks is part of the reason why you have the freedoms that you do. Grant her a little dignity and respect.Think up another name for your song.

The Grandmother Hypothesis

   Here's one of general interest to many, and specific interest to those who give less than respect to the female of the species. Hominids have walked the earth for millions of years. We have Lucy's remains dated to about 2 million years ago, and there are others older than her. For all so many years, however, the species did little more than survive. Then suddenly, about 30,000 years ago, it began to show signs of complex culture. What is there to explain the difference? Not some male brandishing a new and bigger weapon. No, the explanation belongs to the "weaker sex".
   Anthropologists know, from studying remains, that it was about the time of the Neanderthals that women began to live to twice the age of sexual maturity. In other words, that was the time when the species began to have its first grandmothers. These ladies of elder years were available to babysit, and while they did so, they had the time and the audience to which to pass on the stories from their own youth. This is credited with sparking the birth of traditonal culture. Grandmothers are believed to be the evolutionary advantage of modern humankind. Imposing your culture on others may have needed a spear, but having that culture in the first place, needed a distaff.

Back in Athens

Did you know there was a Math Olympiad held in Athens? I just found out. It has been held annually since 1959. This year, 85 countries sent teams of six high school students to compete in the event that took place over two days, in July. The team from the U.S. placed second behind China and brought home five gold medals and one silver. Russia took third place in the standings. Congratulations to all the "mathletes"!

Perfect Pancakes

   I gave you a recipe once before. Don't you think it's time for another one? This one, I guarantee you, is the healthiest pancake recipe you're ever going to see. It uses whole wheat flour and lots of other goodies, like wheat germ, oats and corn meal. You can toss a handful of blueberries right into the mix, before you cook them - either fresh berries or frozen ones. It makes pancakes that are incredibly filling, stay with you all the way through to lunch, and do all sorts of good things for you! Did you know, for instance, that each gram-per-day of fiber that you consume cam help lower LDL by 1%? The oats and other whole grains, give you that fiber.
Here we go!

* 2 cups whole wheat flour      *3 tbsp. each wheat germ, corn meal, and oats (NOT instant oats)      *4 tsp. baking powder      *1/2 tsp salt

Place all the above in a large bowl and mix them together with a fork.

*2 cups skim milk      *2 eggs      *2 tbsp. oil (try canola or olive oil)

Mix all the wet ingredients together in a smaller bowl, and then plop 'em into the dry mix! Stir until it's all well mixed, but NOT smooth. There should be a slightly lumpy texture to the mix.

Heat a griddle on medium heat, or 350 degrees F, if you're using an electric griddle. LIGHTLY oil the surface. Remember, you are not wanting to fry these little gems, so do go easy on the oil. When the pan is warmed, drop the batter on from a ladle, or large spoon. When the pancakes are beginning to show bubbles on the top surface, lift the edge to peek beneath, If they are nicely browning underneath, and holding together well as you lift, then it's time to turn them over. When both sides are evenly browned, they're ready for your plate.
Serve them warm with maple syrup, for that real Canadian touch. For a different taste, try topping them with applasauce only, or syrup and applesauce together. Use other fruits, as well, if you're adventurous. We have used peach and pear pieces, too. Bon appetit!

An Update

   I've added several new galleries to my photo collection. Go take a peek! I'm sure you'll find something you like. You might also want to investigate "Would You Like One?". Here's hoping your answer to the question will be a resounding "YES!".

   Happy birthday (one day late) to my oldest daughter, Vanessa. Her names' origin is from the Greek, and it means "butterfly". It is a good name for her, I think, because she herself is as beautiful a work of art as the gossamer wings of one of those lovely creatures.

Food for Thought

   If you want some good reading of the non-fiction type, pick up a copy of the Nutrition Action Health Letter, a monthly publication of the Centre for Science in the Public Interest. Each (Canadian) issue is 8.5 x 11" in size and just 16 pages in length, but they pack those pages with enough "food for thought" info to make a difference in your whole life. They get involved, themselves, in a great deal of activism and are constantly encouraging their readers to do the same. At the moment, they are on the Pan-Canadian Healthy Living Strategy bandwagon. In 2002, the federal, provincial, and territorial ministers had agreed to develop this strategy with a goal to reduce the health care burden form cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease by encouraging Canadians to eat better and exercise more. Little to nothing has been done. The diseases have not put themselves on hold, however, to wait for these do-nothings to catch up.
   In the past two dozen years, the government has focused much attention, publicity and money on the fears surrounding West Nile virus, avian flu, mad cow disease, anthrax, contaminated drinking water and SARS. According to the CSPI all these causes combined have killed several dozen Canadians, but preventable diet- and inactivity-related diseases have have killed more than 50,00, disabled many others and shortchanged the national economy of more than $13 billion. Michael F. Jacobson begins the September 2004 issue with an editorial stating that "Preventive measures can save lives... and money. That should be music to (government) ears." He exhorts his readers to e-mail the Prime Minister and provincial Premiers; to to go the phone directory's government pages for numbers to call, and to write the editor of the local newspaper. Why not add your voice to the chorus? The louder the music, the more likelihood that those in power would be disposed to listen.
   The reality of life in pampered North America is that obesity has become a pandemic. We have convenience gadgets galore, and many a job that has us sitting behind a desk all day. For relaxation, we go in droves to sit again in front of a video or a chat room. We consume calories and do little to use them. Since the name of the game is profit, the fast food outlets, where we eat more and more of our meals, encourage us to "Big size" our orders every time we approach the counter. Something needs to be done differently, and the CSPI has a lot of good suggestions as to what those differences could be.
   Think about getting involved on this one. It is, most likely, an issue that will impact on your life whether you are aware of it or not. Why not make yourself aware? You have arteries, like everyone else. What do you think? Are they still free-flowing? Do a bit of reading. Take a little action. Don't unwittingly contribute to any reason for the flow through those arteries to come to a standstill.

Cat Killer to Reformed Daisy Planter

   My hometown is currently hosting its annual International Film Festival . It comes complete with controversy every year, because of the content of one or more of the year's offerings. This time around, the festival is showing "Casuistry: The Art of Killing a Cat", and protesters are gathering again. ( the dictionary defines casuistry as the process of deciding right or wrong regarding conduct)
   Two years ago, Ontario College of Art and Design student Jesse Powers filmed himself skinning a cat for "an art project". An animal cruelty case resulted, and Powers and two others were sentenced to ninety days jail time, to be served on weekends. The above-named documentary was made about the case, and selected to be shown at he Festival. Yesterday's 6:00 p.m. screening was marked by a crowd of protesters, mostly quiet, outside the theatre. One of the protesters confronted Powers when he showed up at the screening, and asked if he had felt any remorse. "I felt sort of bad about it after, but I haven't had a chance to (feel guilty), because everything sort of barraged on top of me," Powers said calmly.
   When a young person is found to be someone who tortures small animals, the usual result is to hustle them off to the nearest psychiatrist and get the therapy started as quickly as possible. Killers like those who struck at Columbine are often of such an ilk. How then can anyone regard this "man" (quotation marks my own, because I can't quite bring myself to acknowledge this particular specimen as one of my species) as anything other than sick? If he could bring himself to coldly ignore the pain and anguish he purposely inflicted when he made his video, can we ignore the possibility that he might well have enjoyed it? The next step would be for him to want the experience again, and from there, he may decide to move on to "bigger and better" thrills. Would you want to live in the neighbourhood where he selects his next victim? Why isn't this creep acknowledged as the mental aberration that he is, and locked up? Don't incarcerate him in the usual jail setting, though. Give the little shit the chance to make himself useful. He could be made a member of some work detail, maybe helping to clean up some old landfill site, and planting daisies once it's covered over. There are plenty others like him, so we could pay the guards who would accompany the work detail, and give the human-garbage shovels to use to cover the inert garbage. Everyone would benefit. The physical exertion would ensure cardio-vascular health for the workers, and manual labour would ensure the job takes one hell of a long time. They'd be kept off the streets, and the pollution from machinery that would be used otherwise would be kept out of the air. You and I could feel safer, and the perverts like Powers might some day manage to feel some remorse, after all.

                                                   OUR GAME!   

   We won, we won, we won! The World Cup of Hockey belongs to Canada. Team Canada skated to victory over the Finns tonight with a score of 3 to 2, and a perfect 6-0 record for the tournament.

                                    HOCKEY IS OUR GAME!

Back to the Competition!

   Canadian athletes are set to participate soon in the second biggest athletic competition of this year, the Paralympics. Look around you, though, and ask yourself where all the publicity is. Where is all the media buildup that preceded the Games held in August? Does it seem to you to be conspicuous in its absence?
   This year, for the first time, the BBC will show event coverage every evening. The CBC has published a 21-hour coverage schedule, which will air every night of the Games. The great U.S.A.? Well, it seems they have never covered the Games, not even when they were in Salt Lake City.
   The Paralympics were first held in Rome, in 1960 when 23 countries and 43 athletes took part. They grew out of the 1948 Games for People With Spinal Injuries, held in Britain after the war, as part of a rehabilitation program for those with war injuries. Since Rome, the Paralympics have been twinned with the Olympics.
   There are innumerable tales of glory that come from the Olympics,of course, but could there be a much more inspiring accomplishment than that achieved by the athlete who streaks across the finish line in a wheelchair, or the one who takes gold in the swimming pool in spite of having only one leg? Obviously, there are those who think no glory at all is due to the sportswomen and men who have overcome such obstacles to take their place in the winners' circle. Look at the American networks who give not one minute of coverage to these athletes. Because the Games do not draw the crowds that the Olympics do, the corporate sponsors are slow to give backing, and so the main sports channels do not want an event that has no big-budget advertisers. This is gradually changing though, and here in Canada, sponsors like Petro-Canada, Roots, and Home Depot are backing the athletes. As Helen Henderson, Star reporter, so aptly states, "Cyclist Lori-Ann Muenzer used her legs to turn the wheels in Athens last month. Chantal Petitclerc used her arms. Each captured a gold." It seems to me that there can be few photo ops better for an ad campaign than the one that shows your company backed a winner. Come on, Corporate America. Get behind the winners of the Paralympics!

   A day for odds and ends ... first, the sign I saw outside a country church on the weekend. "Every home is a school. What have you taught today?" Take a minute to stop and think about it.
   Second, happy birthday to my youngest daughter. She was born on September Friday the 13th, which immediately became a lucky day for our family! She is named Bernadette, which derives from the Teutonic and means "as brave as a bear". My daughter is a beautiful young woman, and along with her oldest sister, she is one of the brightest stars in my sky.


   Now, are you ready for something else disgusting from the Catholic Church.?
   Austrian Bishop Kurt Krenn is currently under pressure to resign. When his predecessor, Herman Groer, was embroiled in a sex scandal and refused to respond to allegations, insisting he had only to answer to Rome, the Austrian bishops withdrew their support from him. Before you say "Well, what else would they do?" you should know that Krenn supported the man throughout. Now Krenn stands at the center of another sex scandal involving some 17,000 downloaded images of child pornography. Although he was asked by the Vatican to avoid speaking to the press, Krenn has "made light of the pictures", and dismissed them as a childish prank, according to Michael Higgins of St. Jerome's University. Think of the little ones used in such a manner. Being used to make those images may not end their lives physically, but emotionally, they will likely become the walking dead. Anyone who can refer to child pornography as a prank needs to be immediately taken out back, stood up against the wall and shot. Never mind the blind fold. Let him see the rifles being loaded, in fact, as well as aimed at him. That way, for a fleeting moment before he ends his worthless existence, he can have some small understanding of the effect such experiences will have on the lives of the children used.

   YES! YES! YES! There is a God and she wears a Team Canada jersey! Sudden death overtime tonight, and we beat the Czechs 4 to 3! We go on to meet the Finns in the final.

                                 HOCKEY IS OUR GAME ALL THE WAY!

    Last night, the Finns beat the Americans 2 - 1. The "hometown team" went down to ignominious defeat before a sellout crowd of 18,064 at the Xcel Energy Center. This marks the first time that the Finns have advanced to the finals of a World or Canada Cup. On Tuesday, they will meet the winner of tonight's Canada-Czech republic match. The Americans, the holders of the 1996 Canada Cup title, were the favourites (at least in their eyes) last night, and the crowd was mighty quiet as the clock marked off the last second of the third period, but in many another viewing venue, I suspect, the cheering was loud and sustained.


   Today, hubby and I wandered happily about the Cabbagetown Festival, in peace and safety. I worry, though, that it is a safety our 'good neighbours' to the south may be threatening. More than half the handguns used in crime in Toronto already come from the U.S., and on September 13th, George Bush will likely indulge in inactivity that may see that number shoot upward, no pun intended. That's the expiry date of a 10-year ban on the sale of military assault weapons, and he has done nothing to have it extended. Why can't that man manage to act as though he had at least half a brain? His attitude of holier-than-thou, mixed with his love of American-might-makes-right could spill its poisonous effects over into my streets, my neighbourhoods. I am powerless to stop it, and I fear it.
   Such statistics of pride for Mr. Bush, if he would only stop and ponder their import! In Mexico, 80% of the guns used in crime originate in the U.S. and in Jamaica, the number approaches 100%. Of course, maybe he can't quite see those stats because of the blinding effect of all the millions of dollars in campaign contributions he has accepted from the National Rifle Association. Bush's administration may do more than arm hometown lunatics, though. He may be helping to arm Al Qaeda.One of their training manuals tells budding terrorists that some countries, such as the U.S., make it perfectly legal for members of the public to own assault weapons. The manual goes on to exhort its readers to "obtain an assault rifle legally, preferably an AK-47."
   This ban that will soon be history, sought to keep AK-47's off the street. In fact, 19 kinds of semi-automatic weapons were under its control. Size matters, though, , no matter what any misguided type like James Brady might claim, and by this Monday all those brain-dead morons , like Charlton Heston, will be able to saunter into any outlet where they sell weapons of destruction for public use, and arm themselves with even bigger guns. You have to wonder if these guys are trying to compensate for something.
   Won't you feel ever so much safer knowing that you could find yourself standing in a crowd, like the one my husband and I were part of today, and suddenly find yourself inches away from the business end of an Uzi? Of course, if you believe the American ballyhoo, you won't be worried, because 'guns don't kill people'. Only the killers holding them do. That means you can relax, push thoughts of events like the Columbine shootings out of your mind, and stroll on.

   World Cup update ... The guys were in fine form last night. Marty Brodeur took Team Canada to its first international competition shut-out! In fact, they beat the Slovaks 5 to 0! Jarome Iginla finally made it out of his personal doldrums of not being able to score, and did it with style. By the end of the game, two goals and an assist had his name on them. In the second period, we scored two goals within 19 seconds! Canada has dominated the tournament so far, winning all four of its matches and outscoring everyone. OUR GAME! On we go, now, to the semifinals.



   On a separate topic, I want to share with you an incident that happened today on the "little red rocket", our public transit system. I've been riding the buses and subway here in Toronto for over five decades, and I've met a lot of good people behind the controls, but today I saw a driver who needs a reprimand; a driver the system would be better without. I boarded the bus at the station, and took the seat right opposite the driver, so I could see and hear everything perfectly. A young man, perhaps 18 years old, got on and approached the driver. In heavily accented English, he said to the driver exactly these words,"Where you are going." The driver's verbatim response was "I have no idea what that's supposed to mean, but Markham St. is the end of the line." That's it. That's all. He offered no help at all to the rider, who stood there looking rather abashed. He may not have understood the words, but I am sure he understood the less than pleasant tone, and the fact that he had just been spoken to that way in front of everyone. He retreated. I approached him and it took us a moment or two, because he does speak the english of someone new to the language, but we soon established which stop he wanted and that he was, indeed, on the right bus. As soon as I reached home, I made a phone call of complaint to the transit commission. I am sure that sort of thing happens every day, and that my phone call will not serve to bring it all to a halt. I am also sure, however, that most of the people to whom such things do happen, never get on the phone to place a complaint. It did not happen to me, directly, but it did happen in front of me. If I can speak for someone who needed just a little respect and dignity, but was denied it, then it is my duty to do so. I take that duty seriously.

   You must have known it wouldn't be long before someone would make this one, a film that "humanizes" the 9/11 terrorists. ""The Hamburg Cell" premiered August 25th at the Edinburgh International Film Festival. Director Antonia Bird has made a "wrenching drama" that presents the terrorists as human beings.
   We all know there are two sides to every coin. Before you can total the number of ways in which any situation could be interpreted, you must first total the number of people involved, both directly and indirectly, and only then might you have your answer. "It appals me..." says the mother of a woman who died in the Towers. This mother is not ready to view those responsible as anything other than monsters. She has been forced to endure the most terrible thing that could happen to any mother, when she had to bury her daughter. Many who did not lose anyone in the tragedy will. nonetheless, take up her cause and champion the continuation of this view. The problem is there are so many mothers, on "the other side", who are grieving just as she is. They have buried sons and daughters, too. How can anyone tell any bereaved mother to put aside her sorrow, and forgive? Ziad Jarrah is a main character in the film, and the man who flew the plane that crashed into the field in Pennsylvania, He speaks some of the film's first words. Minutes before the attack, he tells someone on the other end of the phoneline, "I love you."
   Many Americans view every Muslim with hate, right down to the tiniest baby who has absolutely no idea that he or she even is a "Muslim". Many Muslim fundamentalists view every American with hate, again, right down to the tiniest baby. But those babies are the future of our world, and until their adults fill them with soul-destroying hatred, they are open to everyone. Have you ever seen a baby, perhaps in a store line-up where circumstance declared that you should spend several minutes in close proximity to that little one? Did you suddenly find yourself trying to elicit a smile from the baby? You probably spoke to the child in soft tones, maybe saying "hello" repeatedly, and marking off each syllable with an extra big smile of your own. Most often, the babies do respond with a smile. They don't take time first to wonder whether or not you are of the "right" colour, or religion, or ethnic origin. They simply smile.
   Michael Moore, and Antonia Bird are trying to get people to see the other side of this coin, before it is too late. Our species has made such incredible progress in its ability to kill. We need to make like progress in other areas, as well. We need to rethink the way we see the 'other guy' in any situation. As an entire species, we need to make changes that will be incredible in their scope, and when you think about that, it becomes so daunting a prospect, that it is hard not to lose faith. It is hard not to imagine us refusing to make those changes, and continuing to hurtle down that path to our own destruction.
   Are you a Bugs Bunny fan? Have you seen the one where he and his arch-rival Yosemite Sam are warring with each other from the ramparts of two immediately adjacent castles? They begin shooting at each other with tiny cannons. After each shot from the one, the other races away and reappears with a new cannon, twice as big as the one just fired by his enemy. I have always thought that cartoon was meant to be more than just a laugh. Think about it and you see the message it presents. When humankind has fired off its last weapon and the dust finally clears, who will laugh at our cartoon-esque ending? If humankind is to avoid the firing of that last weapon, every member of our species must somehow come to see the truth in a statement made by Gandhi. His words were short and simple, but they speak myriad volumes. "An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind."

   Mohamed Zeki Mahjoub stares out at the newspaper readers from the photograph where he sits with his right arm around a young boy, while he cradles an infant in his left arm. This is obvioulsy a picture meant to identify him to the reader as a family man, a loving father, the kind of guy who you wouldn't mind having as a neighbour. The text hits you early in the article with reinforcement for the picture's grab at sympathy. "Deportation looms for Egyptian man" screams the print. Is it about time to grab a pen and begin dashing off letters of protest? Should we get our hands on a placard and scrawl on it a demand for his release, then wave it about as we join in a march on the Legislature?
   Hold off on all that for just a moment more. Read the rest of the article, first. In just a few more lines, you find yourself scanning the info that this man is a high-ranking member of the Egyptian Al Jihad, the group linked to the 1998 bombings of the American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, where more than 200 people died. The CSIS identifies this "loving father" as a member of the group's inner circle, the Vanguards of Conquest. Documentation filed by CSIS has been reviewed by a federal court judge and deemed sufficient to uphold a national security certificate, which means that the government deems him to be such a concern to the security of the country that they are ready to deport him. Now it's really time to get out those bug crying towels, folks. Mahjoub claims he will be tortured if deported to his country of birth. His lawyers have filed a motion for a stay in the deportation order, and are charging that his stay of detention (held in segregation since 2000) constitutes "cruel and unusual" punishment. Are you still with me? Can you continue reading, or is your vision being blurred too much by your tears for this poor soul?
   OK, I apologize for the sarcasm. It's just that it seems to me this article is incomplete. Before the paper's readers can really be expected to make up their minds about this case, don't they need to see just a few more pictures? We shouldn't have to take up too much space or ink either. Take just one close-up of some of the corpses taken from one of the embassies, and place it to the left of the cozy-warm picture of Mahjoub with the two kids. Then, immediately to the right of the family photo, place a close-up of the grief on the faces of family members of someone who died in the bombing. What do you think? Would it be an appropriate touch to have all the pictures in colour? Colour, or not, I don't think the bleeding heart liberals could get quite as many people on their side, if this story were covered just a little more accurately.
   He faces torture, does he? Poor man. Perhaps his captors could be persuaded to paper the walls of the room where this 'action' is going to take place with some pictures of the bombing victims. It might give him something to take his mind off the proceedings.

   Yes!Yes!Yes! Team Canada beat the Russians tonight! Their first goal came early in the second period. It was a shorthanded beauty by #39, Richards. Only 1 minute 37 seconds later #33, Draper, drove in the second goal, and in period three, Mario Lemieux made a sweet little pass to #91, Sakic, who slipped it into the net. Lemieux has "come back" to hockey- back from retirement, back from hip surgery and back surgery, even back from cancer, to the hockey ice. It's simply wonderful that he was part of that play tonight. Victory is indeed sweet!

   

Trink, Trink, Bruderlein, Trink!

   Ok, so it isn't quite a frothy stein that we're talking about here, but this is a brew treated with the same 'reverence' as many give to the hops. Tim Horton's coffee has indeed become a Canadian institution, to the point where the military too has now acknowledged this to be the case.

   As a volunteer with the CNIB, I meet once a week with a client of theirs. I am her "friendly visitor" which means that we go out together, wherever she chooses, and I act as her sighted guide. We've gone for evening strolls and shopping trips to the mall, among other things. Last night she told me the story of a previous experience she had, in the Toronto subway. It is an incredible story to hear, an experience impossible to imagine. She was at Union Station, usually a very busy place indeed. As she waited for the train, she stood with her back pressed against the wall, to feel safe. Suddenly, she felt herself being grabbed and lifted right off of her feet, She could tell it was a man holding her. She felt herself being carried along and began screaming and kicking for all she was worth. She was dropped to the floor where she landed heavily. She felt about carefully first before she tried to stand up, and found herself right at the edge of the platform. This whole time, no-one came forward to offer any help. Thank god her assailant left. As if losing her eyesight had not been enough of a loss, that experience robbed her of even more of her independence. She had been working downtown, but had to give up the job, because fear now prevents her from using the subway. The animal who did that to her ought to be taken out and shot. Period. I have no problems at all with capital punishment, and this seems to me like a good time to use it. Anyone who willingly inflicts terror on another has declared themselves unworthy of living even one more day.
   To balance that story, came another in today's newspaper, about a woman who works not so very far from me. Her name is Jo Kennedy, and she truly understands, and embodies, the concept of kindness. When she stops for her morning coffee at a Tim Horton's drive-thru, she frequently pays for a coffee for those in the car behind her. She does it simply for the good feeling it gives her, and to "do something nice for other people". The boss at the coffee shop says "one good person cancels out all the bad ones". If only that were true, but you know what? Even though it isn't quite that way, a person like Jo Kennedy can do a lot to restore your faith when some piece of human-garbage damages it.

   All is well with the world, or my part of it, anyway! Last night -what a birthday present!- Team Canada met the Americans on the hockey ice and beat them two to one! Go, guys, go! The jerseys the Canadians wore were an interesting choice. They are replicas of those worn in 1920 by the Canadian team that won gold in the first ever Olympic hochey competition. The Americans always think they can walk in anywhere and be the top dogs. If they meet opposition, they use brawn next, instead of brains. Look at how they kept attacking our goalie. It didn't work for them, though, not this time. Heads up America. Hockey is our game!