Blog about politics (mideast and pro-Israel, Canadian and local Montreal), world events, and random thoughts.

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The World I Know is updated on a semi-regular basis by segacs.

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Comments are open and unmoderated, although obscene or abusive remarks may be deleted. Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of segacs's world i know.

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12:23 AM
It's a very Canadian thing to make jokes about Americans, and to put down the US with our superiority complex. But even though I've certainly been guilty of this myself, I've long maintained that a lot of it is really an inferiority complex in disguise.

Put simply, we're jealous.

Most Canadians live within 50 miles of the US border, and yet we're relegated to the status of outside observers. We're practically more affected by US presidential elections than Canadian federal ones, but of course we're not Americans and we have no vote or say.

We are directly influenced by American TV, but are forced to either illegally steal satellite signals or hear about the hottest new shows over the internet or from our American friends, cause the CRTC has decided we're not cool enough for first-runs of the Sopranos and instead must watch endless reruns of Royal Canadian Air Farce on the CBC.

We are we get American commercials, and yet we can't shop in US stores. Or, if we do decide to drive across the border to shop for the day, we have to pay the exchange rate, plus ridiculous amounts of duty at the border. All just to get access to the varieties in styles that aren't available here because our market is a tenth the size of theirs.

We work similar jobs to our American counterparts, but we make less money and pay much more of it in taxes. And when we complain, we're reminded we have socialized healthcare - which is great, don't get me wrong - but it's like we're supposed to use this as an excuse for everything.

I'm a proud Canadian. I love being Canadian, and I don't want to move to the US. I think there are a lot of things that are great about Canada, but sometimes I wonder why I feel like a second-class American with my nose pressed against the glass.

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11:18 PM
Canada's embattled national airline, Air Canada, has mere hours to reach a deal with its pilot union before an extended bankruptcy court deadline expires.

This may be selfish, but I'm starting to get concerned about my July plane ticket. They'd better friggin' honour it.

Update 06/01: Air Canada has reached a deal with the pilots union and it looks like they'll keep on flying. Let's just hope things are still running in a month.

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1:29 PM
With Ottawa's proposed decriminalization of small amounts of marijuana, it seems everyone is ringing in with their opinion.

The Quebec government is concerned that it will help and encourage organized crime. Halifax police are worried that more people will drive stoned. Peter Wlodarczak of the Edmonton Journal claims in a column that marijuana is an "entry-level drug which only leads its users to other forms of illicit narcotics. Then they enter a spiralling black hole from which precious few escape." And an editorial in the Regina Leader-Post decries the confusion of the proposed new law.

On the other side of the debate, readers claim that the new law will allow law enforcement to direct more resources towards fighting "hard" drugs. And an editorial in the Globe and Mail claims that the new law is "as moderate as it's possible to be while still doing the right thing".

There are so many opinions on the subject, it's dizzying to keep them straight. People are worried that the US will be mad at us. Others are concerned that our tourism industry will be negatively affected or that crime rates will soar. Advocacy groups for cancer patients are angry that growing marijuana remains illegal. Some people want the laws tightened, other people claim the new proposal isn't relaxed enough. It seems that every political group and constituency is weighing in on this one.

But it is a letter in the Vancouver Sun that most accurately reflects my opinion on the matter:

Marijuana should be legalized and treated exactly the same as alcohol is, distributed only to those with proof they're at least 19. Just as it's a legal right to purchase any type of alcohol for use either recreationally or medicinally, the same should apply to marijuana. Period!

The argument being touted about how bad marijuana is for youth is well taken. Just as alcohol is. But then, we haven't done a very good job at educating or setting an example for our children about the responsible use of booze, have we?

You cannot legislate some peoples' tragically poor decisions and resultant behaviour. On the other hand, legislation should not restrict the rights and greater benefit to the majority because of those poor decisions of a comparative few. If that were the case, alcohol would be prohibited because it produces drunks.

No, I don't smoke pot. No, I have no desire to try it. Nor do I smoke cigarettes. But that's not the point.

It is much worse to be a nicotene-dependent chain-smoker than to ocassionally smoke a joint. So why are cigarettes legal and not marijuana? It doesn't make any sense.

Laws designed to protect people from hurting themselves are all very well and good, but this one simply doesn't work as-is. All the new law would do is put down on paper what is already essentially true in practice. Police don't bother prosecuting a teenager caught smoking a joint. There's just no point in throwing him into the criminal justice system, costing a fortune in the process. It's already de facto tolerated. I've been to numerous rock concerts where the unmistakeable scent of thousands of kids partaking was hard to miss. It's reasonable to assume that the police know this too, and yet I've never seen them slap the handcuffs on a fan at a Dave Matthews Band concert before.

If anything, I think the new law doesn't go far enough. The government ought to make the total leap and just legalize the damn stuff already. That will take organized crime out of the supply business, and generate millions in tax revenue for the government.

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9:44 PM
Right now all the talk is about the planned meeting between Bush, Sharon, and Abu Mazen. But somehow I don't think that this meeting with Sharon will have any effect on the peace process whatsoever:

Whitney Houston on Tuesday visited Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who took time out from preparations for a summit with his Palestinian counterpart and President Bush to meet the pop diva.

"It's home. It's a friendship I've never had with any other country," Houston, dressed in a long red robe with white embroidery, told Sharon.

Houston was in Israel with her husband, rhythm and blues singer Bobby Brown, to visit "friends and family" among the Black Hebrews, an African-American community that moved to Israel in 1969 and settled in the southern town of Dimona.

According to CNN, the "Black Hebrews" are a group of polygamous vegans who believe they are descendants of one of the Lost Tribes of Israel. Houston, apparently, is there looking for inspiration for her upcoming Christmas album.

I'm not sure what's funnier: that, or the confused look on Ariel Sharon's face when he took a photo with her.

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12:11 AM
The new Live CD, Birds of Pray, and it's awesome. Back to the band's rock roots, with great songs and full of instant classics.

Well, except for the last track, an anti-war anthem called "What are we Fighting For?" that just makes me want to scream at Ed, hey, you're fighting for the right to sing a song called "What are we Fighting For?"

Aside from that, though, it's a top-quality CD. Highly recommended.

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12:05 AM
And I thought Moms aren't supposed to play favourites:

It's official. Mom loves Rob best.

Well, not exactly. But Carol Niedermayer is rooting for younger son, Rob, in the first Stanley Cup Finals battle of brothers in 57 years.

"I guess I'm proud of both of their accomplishments in getting to the finals, but I think where I'm at is that Scott has won two (Stanley Cups) and Robby hasn't won one," Carol Niedermayer explained on the eve of the series opener. "And although I'll be cheering for both of them to do their best on the ice, I would like to see the Ducks win the Stanley Cup."

Go Ducks!

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4:38 PM
The Israeli Cabinet has approved the road map under intense international and American pressure. However, several members of government expressed strong reservations. And the fictional "right of return", a euphamism for the destruction of Israel, was rejected once again out of hand:

In a separate vote of 16-1, the cabinet rejected any influx of Palestinian refugees into what is now the Jewish state, a proviso likely to be a bump on any road to peace.

The road map does not refer to a specific Palestinian "right of return" but calls instead for a "fair and realistic solution to the refugee issue" in the proposal's final phase.

I guess Sharon isn't too concerned about the road map because he knows that things will never get past stage one, which calls for, among other things, an end to Palestinian terror attacks. Hamas doesn't seem inclined to obey that anytime soon. So the road map is, in the long run, meaningless.

Still, there are going to be many angry Israelis concerned that the government is sacrificing their security for international brownie points. I for one don't blame them.

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