The Questionable HST

Now that Van der Zalm has shown to this government of Gordon Campbell how unpopular the HST is, the Liberals have been forced to hold a referendum on the issue in September 2011. Does it take a year to know the opinion of BC voters? I certainly do not think so. This is a delaying tactic on the part of the Campbell government. He hopes that a year will give him time to show by devious arguments and the use of the media that he is right and the rest of the BC population is wrong. Gordon Campbell is well schooled in Macchiavellian politics.
If our Premier is so right about the benefits of the HST to the economy, why have only three of the ten provinces adopted the HST? Tell us Why, Mr. Premier. Has he considered the fact that the ordinary working man feels that he is being taxed up to the neck? Not too long ago , the Liberal government introduced with much self applause the Carbon tax, following the example of Governor Schwartznegger, the leader of a now bankrupt California state. No other Canadian province followed the example of Gordon Campbell. Why, Mr Premier? Or is it that they see you as a Moses leading our province into deep waters that will not part?
I suggest that this Liberal government got us into waters where they could'nt swim
when they staged the Winter Olympics. We are now like Montreal after they held the
Olympics, and like Greece we also needed a handout to keep our noses above water.
Whither are you leading us, our BC Moses?

Racism Quebec style

In 1969, I flew from Manchester to Montreal to take up a position for which I had been interviewed in London. My professor at Manchester University had tried to dissuade me from going. He had known students who had gone to Canada, and found themselves in a static work environment unable to move up in their careers. I thought that it might be different for me, since I spoke French fluently which might be a point in my favour in this French speaking province of Canada.
It did not take long for me to realize that speaking French that I had learned in France would not be a point in my favour. I found it extremely difficult to adapt to and understand Quebec French. I was immediately categorized as being English, and socially part of Quebec English society. The door to French Quebec society was slammed in my face.
I arrived in Montreal in the midst of the FLQ crisis. The British High Commisioner, Cross, had been kidnapped, and a Provincial minister, Pierre Laporte, was executed by the FlQ. I discovered that there was professional jealousy by English Canadians against imports like myself, as they considiered that we were taking away their jobs. I was unacceptable to the Quebec French and also to the English Quebecers.
I tried to find a way to become part of Quebec society by becoming a member of the Quebec Liberal party, but found that I was only allowed to be a member as a show front that they were not anti-English. Since I lived in Quebec for thirty years, I had a lot of time to unearth the Quebec racist style.

Demise of British empire not white man's ascendancy

The history of the demise of the British empire is well documented, but the ability of the white Englishman to maintain his hold on the education and cultural growth of his ex-colonial subjects has no place in the history books. The genius of the white man is that he saw the advantages of the Catholic Church's method of evangelizing by setting up missionary schools whose students eventually entered the fold of the church.
The British colonial rulers laid down the rules for graduating by making the Cambridge university responsible for granting the school leaving certificates that opened the doors to a university education in Britain. Although they had relinquished their political clout, they still held a decisive role over the minds and future of the young. It was only in the sixties that West African ex-colonies began to throw off the educational yoke by creating the West African examinations council.
The same method prevailed when the colonies began to create their own universities. They could not grant degrees except through academic ties to a British university. Even the appointment of staff was done through a inter-university office in London.
So, when I decided to try to find an academic appointment the dice was loaded against me.
I will never forget my first interview in this office in London. The most voluble interviewer seemede to think that reading the Peloponnesian wars of Thucydides was more important than my expertise in Greek tragedy. Of course, his object was to give the appointment to one of his white young students. Today, I would know how to answer him, but then I was just a green young man.

Surviving in a racist society

I was born in a British colony. As a child I was led to believe that the white man was superior to the non-white. At least, everything that I saw convinced me that this was true. The white man enjoyed wealth, position in society, the best paying jobs, was among the ruling class and lived in bigger houses with servants to tend to his needs. If you were born white you did not have to struggle to get a good education, you did not have to get good grades at school, but you had the pick of the best jobs in government and industry. This is what the colonial system was about,jobs for the boys.
When I went to Ireland and England to further my education in universities, I discovered that non-whites in these societies were not considered any different. The only difference was that it was not thought to be in good taste to openly vaunt the white man's superiority. Even in academic circles you were not given an open door to relations between students. You could go so far but no further especially in friendships with female students.
After I completed my first degree, and decided to change universities, and go to London, I discovered that although I had graduated first in my class, I had been denied a post-graduate scholarship on the grounds that I was not an Irish citizen.I do not remember ever meeting a non-white Irish citizen. On completing my post-graduate degree, the dissertation for which was awarded the distinction of being permitted to be published under the name of the university, I began my search for
a position on the teaching staff of a university. I was hopeful that I could lecture in the University College of the West Indies in Jamaica, since I was born on one of these islands. I soon realized that the white man had a decisive role even there.
I will continue my tale about my search for an academic position in my next blog.

The Religious right in Canadian politics

The July, 2010, issue of the Quebec French magazine, l'Actualite, published an article reviewing the book, The Armageddon factor, written by the journalist, Marci McDonald. The title of the article is Stephen Harper and the religious right. This article is written in French by Chantal Hebert. I am a subscriber to this magazine, and what the reviewer said about the contents of the book piqued my interest.
We have heard a great deal about the religious right's hold on the Republican party and its influence on the policies of George W. Bush. What I didn't realize was that it also controls so many of the decisions of the federal Conservative party in Ottawa. However, I wanted first to test the truth of the statements made by Marci McDonald.
I found articles in Canpalnet Ottawa showing that since 2006 the Government of Canada has "deliberately set out to silence the voices of organizations or individuals who raise concerns about government policies or disagree with government positions." There has been a definite pro-Israel policy in the attitude of this government in its silence about the actions of the Israeli army in its bombing of a UN school and other UN locations in Gaza, its recent attack on a flotilla carrying aid to Gaza, actions condemned by other UN representatives but not by Canada. In his recent visit Mr. Netanyahu described Canada as Israel's friend.
Most recently, at the G20 meeting in Toronto, Canada was foremost in its aid to developing countries for maternal health, but the power of the religious right was demonstrated by the proviso that no portion of this aid was to be used for abortions. Is the Prime Minister becoming more and more the hostage of the religious militants in his party?
It seems that the author is correct in stating that the "Canadian religious right has never been so well placed to influence the political federal life".

Satisfying man's basest instincts

Last night Vancouver was the stage for the first time of Ultimate Fighting. Thousands flocked to be treated to the spectacle of two men battering each other until either one dropped to the floor or the referee stopped the fight. Ultimate fighting combines the martial arts, wrestling and boxing. Man, apparently,is not satisfied with one of these sports, but his thirst for something more thrilling has brought together the elements of these three spectacles.
In Roman times, the emperors of Rome treated his subjects to the sight of gladiators fighting each other to the death or confronting wild animals until either the man or the animal died. We condemn bull fighting as a cruel sport. We have severe judicial penalties for those who take part in dog fighting or cock fighting. We used to consider boxing as the noble art of self-defense. Is there any nobility in seeing a
man like Mohammed Ali suffering now from Parkinsons disease as a result of the blows he received to his head? We now consider wrestling and the martial arts as sports that are not ferocious enough to satisfy our need for excitement.
So now, we are willing to pay $300 to witness Ultimate Fighting. Even the Mayor of Vancouver was present at last night's first exhibition of this so-called sport here in BC. Afterwards, he signified his approval of how the event was managed.
How far are we willing to go to satisfy our basest desire for excitement? Is this the kind of example that we want to set for our children? Aren't there sufficient cases of young people fighting and killing each other? Where is society heading?

The Forgotten people of BC

Last week a news item that was splashed on the pages of the Vancouver Sun and echoed in the local TV news broadcast caught my attention. The headline in the news was:"Canadian seniors to outnumber kids by 2021". Apparently this was something that might be a catastrophe in contrast to kids outnumbering seniors in 2021. However that might be, according to Statistics Canada, "Canada's population is expected to age rapidly until 2031 when the entire generation will be at least 65 years old.
Since seniors will form such a substantial part of our population, and I will be speaking especially about the 65 years old in BC, you would expect that our Provincial government would be making a major effort to prepare for this event. One would expect the government to be budgeting for the construction of more Senior Centres and preparing to meet the requirements for medical attention that such an increase in 65 year olds will bring.
One hears almost daily about the needs of the homeless. Millions must be spent to build homes and shelters for them. Unfortunately, these are either people who have chosen for the most part this way of life, and do not feel comfortable living between four walls, or should be obtaining psychiatric care in an institution. We do not
hear the voices of advocates for Senior care. Yet, seniors have worked all their lives, have paid their income taxes, and built this country to be what it is. Our Provincial government to balance its budget has made seniors targets of their cuts,reducing the subsidies to those living in Seniors Homes so that these seniors are left with very little in their pockets after paying for their care. Senior Centres that provide programs for seniors health saving the public medical services millions of dollars are being told that they will no longer receive the few thousand dollars that were provided to pay the salaries of a few coordinators.
I would like to compare the treatment of senior citizens in BC to what is happening in some countries. In Scotland seniors travel free on the buses and trains. In Sweden seniors pay 40 percent of the fare on all public transport. This BC Liberal government cannot be proud of their social record, topping it all with the HST that will hurt seniors most of all