“We are all Jamal Khashoggi,” by Julian Sher, Sweimeh, Jordan. Contributed to The Globe and Mail, Published December 7, 2018
This opinion piece was a large title-spread in The Globe Opinion section, following the brutal assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi by MBS (Mister Bone Saw). The intent of the article was to demonstrate solidarity with Mr. Khashoggi by all other journalists whose work carries them into the same dangers. But in presenting it as the newspaper’s editorial position, it was also presuming that the press: the publisher and editors, are also all “Khashoggis.” I sent in a letter protesting this interpretation, but I can’t locate a copy of it. But the main point was, no, you (the publisher and editors) are all Saudis, not Khashoggis. You take it upon yourself to compel your journalists to fit in with your world view, instead of being society’s forum for discussing important issues. Like the Saudis, your censorship is extensive and unyielding. In recent world affairs, such as the Middle East, you take as gospel IDF’s censorship of issues and in every article, keep repeating standardized blocks of text to fill out column space. The entire editorial perspective, coming as it does from your continuous existence aboard cruise ships (which I might christen (The Censor Ship), becomes more dissociated from world reality. Like our fake (and business-controlled) governments which improperly occupy the social space where legitimate government should stand, these MSM corporations have taken control of the social space that a bastion of further education should occupy and accede to the ruling business class by controlling all aspects of discussion.
That being said, to get important ideas out into the open for discussion necessitates using other media space. So many good journalists have departed from MSM (main-stream-media) to find uncensored outlets, such as Chris Hedges, Seymour Hersh, and the late Robert Fisk, who left The Times to write for The Independent (UK), and the writers at The Intercept, Drop Site News and TomDispatch.
A letter-writer in Dec 4th Globe states it well: Globe and Mail, Letters, Dec 4, 2024, under “You’re welcome,” by John Edmond: The writer states: “…my unpublished letters to The Globe are well into volume two.” My situation, exactly. You may write the best letter in human history, or most important to world affairs, however, unless it conforms to The Globe’s world view or is humorous, it gets round-filed. So here are some of my recent letters that got round-filed:
re: ”Building a better UN Security Council,” by Lloyd Axworthy and Allan Rock, Globe and Mail, Dec 30, p. A11 https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-a-blueprint-for-a-better-un-security-council/
I’m sorry, but this article is more Canadian bafflegab. First, it must be acknowledged that NATO was set up to maintain USA dominance by doing an end-run around the Security Council’s consensus and veto model. Imagine the disarray of a veto function at the Supreme Court. The proposed regional voting system for Council seats is a non-starter as there could not be oversight of that voting process. We already have a members’ voting system at the UN; it’s called the General Assembly. The GA would be tasked to create a list of suitable SC members, from a list of nations ranked in order of how well they have provided peace, order and good governance and generally improved living conditions in their countries, during the previous five years. Naturally, any nation performing an act of aggression or committing or enabling a genocide or other forms of slavery would be excluded. Nations which have instigated wars inside or outside their borders are proscribed. The principal activity of the Security Council will be to promote peace and prohibit all wars in and between nations. We cannot pretend to have a civilization on this small blue planet as long as war is an ever-present option. From that list GA members would elect SC members, and term limits are not necessary. But at any time, if a serving SC member permits any violation of UN Charter, that member can be removed in a GA vote. SC should be kept to a small odd-numbered group, no more than nine members. NATO should be dissolved in favour of this new system, and used as a bargaining-chip to achieve this result if needed.
re: “Recycling won’t solve our planet-killing plastic pollution problem,” by Adnan R. Khan, Globe and Mail, Dec 28, p. O8 https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-recycling-wont-solve-our-planet-killing-plastic-pollution-problem/
Mr. Khan writes that “We’ve been duped by Big Oil and Big Plastic into believing their products are a miracle material that we simply cannot live without. That’s a lie.” I’m sorry to say this is not a lie. Since this massive human overpopulation was entirely enabled by our dependence on fossil fuels and plastics, both the population numbers and these dependencies must be wound down in tandem.
re: “Voting Against Democracy” by Doug Saunders, Globe and Mail, Dec. 28, p. O1 https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-2024-was-a-year-of-elections-when-democracy-lost-out/
Sorry, Mr. Saunders, the notion that voters in America “never had it so good,” is elitist disconnect. Nobody on Main Street would believe that. What they would be experiencing is about the worst decline in economic outcome since the Great Depression, given the rise in homelessness, costs of city living, increase of inequality and general disrespect for the working poor. As well, voting is an emotional issue rather than a rational decision and people will vote for someone they perceive as actually talking to them, in their life situation. That is an emotional bond of trust rather than a rational selection of a particular outcome, and the emotional bond is stronger than reason.
re: "No sign yet of NDP reining in spending" by Vaughn Palmer, Vancouver Sun, 19 Dec 2024, p/ A1. https://vancouversun.com/opinion/columnists/bc-ndp-not-reining-in-spending-if-anything-the-opposite (although they may yet use this letter; they are tremendously slow)
The financially illiterate fail to recognize that Canada has the same problem as the EU: we have a monetary union but not a fiscal union. Non-federal spending is uncoordinated and unconstrained. This is why Tiff Macklem [Bank of Canada] said a while back that governments and the Bank of Canada are rowing in opposite directions on taming inflation. [BC Premier] David Eby has learned but one modus operandi from his mentor Justin Trudeau, in which every time he opens his mouth money pours out. Government handouts are the feeblest method of governing and enable taxpayer angst. Unfortunately, provincial governments think they have access to a different set of taxpayer’s pockets than what the federal government raids.
The Guardian asked for reader’s predictions for 2025, so I sent these:
As Mark Twain said, “It’s difficult making predictions, especially about the future.” But I can’t see any good coming out of 2025, sorry. Not with Donald J. Duck and Mickey Musk in charge. A good day will be one with no nuclear winter. More autocrats will roll democracy back further; the entire world grows ever-closer to all-out civil war of all against all. No peace in the Middle East without (total) regime change in Israel. January 20th would be an excellent time for China to invade Taiwan. For peace in Europe, we need a zone of neutral states including Ukraine, Poland and the Baltic States and all foreign military out of them.
The Globe and Mail is somewhat reprieved (only slightly) by a column in Dec. 4th issue, titled: “The case for cats” by Rosemary Sullivan, page O9, which concludes with “I think the animals we love are intermediaries that can lead us back to nature, which we are desecrating, literally divesting of its sacred character.” There are some good columns on occasion, but enough to compensate for the high subscription price?
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Today’s recipe offer - I made this for New Year’s Eve dinner, not that that day has any special meaning.
Τηγανητό κουνέλι
(Tiganitó kounéli)
(Fried rabbit)
You never had anything so tasty!
I mostly don’t use recipes, just make things up like this one, but here, it was so good, that I wrote it down, για την απόλαυσή σας!
Starting with a fresh fryer rabbit about 3 lb, cut up.
You need a fry pan about 2.5” deep by 10” with (Greek) olive oil to cover bottom to singe the pieces, which are breaded in a mixture containing:
a few shakes of Club House Greek herb blend, some home-made garlic powder, about 2 T of Brar sweet corn flour, same amount of masa harina and about 4 T of flour. Coat all the pieces then singe all sides. With pieces arranged in the pan and the heat still on, dump in about 1/2 cup white wine and cover quickly. Then add a dash of sherry and some water to keep the bottom covered. Simmer over medium heat for at least 1.5 hours, then add some pearl (pronounced “poyle”) onions (from the garden) and continue cooking until tender, which might be 2 h total cooking time or a bit longer. Don’t let the liquid dry out! Serve with rice. Nice with cooked frozen green beans, after cooking mixed with a bit of balsamic vinegar, fresh-squeezed garlic and small amount of plain yogurt. Enjoy!