U.N. Abandons Darfur

The U.N.'s Special Representative in Sudan, Jan Pronk, says that the world should stop trying to get a U.N. mission into Darfur, and should instead focus on bolstering African Union forces on the ground. Which is all well and good, except that if the African Union forces show any sign of being capable of stopping the violence in Darfur, I'm sure they'll find that they are no longer welcome in the region either.

Keep in mind, however, that this is not all Sudan's fault. The Americans and the Brits are guilty of "megaphone diplomacy", according to Deputy Secretary General Mark Malloch Brown. He believes that this is not helping one bit, and instead endorses "ineffectual diplomacy", in which you make genocidal regimes feel good about their place in the world so you can get them to attend Very Important Meetings where they announce that there will be violence if your imperialist organisation invades their country. That's the kind of diplomacy that works, and this is why the U.N. has a long history of stopping genocides and other crimes against humanity.

Happy International Right To Know Day

Go ask your government something.

Remember when they used to decapitate dethroned kings?

I never thought Paul Martin was a decent human being, so I don't have anything of his to shred. But his recent attack on the Afghanistan mission is obscene. He was the one who sent the troops there in the first place. Yes, the mission has become more dangerous in the past few months, but that's why we sent soldiers to the region. If everything was peaceful we could have just sent the best bureaucrats our nation has to offer.

The Canadian left is just lazy. Although they are the first ones to say that our national identity is being destroyed by the imperialists to the south of us, they seem to see nothing wrong in forever taking the American left's battles and making them their own (like bringing up abortion during election campaigns). They look south and see the great fodder that the Iraq war provides in attacking the Bush adminsitration. Bush got the Americans into a controversial war, for the wrong reasons and then ran it badly (they claim). You can't just take this analysis, stick it on top of the Afghan war and make Stephen Harper into George Bush. The far left has been playing this game for quite some time, acting like the Afghan war is a war of choice. But now it seems the likes of Paul Martin want to get in on it too. He obviously can't play the "I oppose this imperialist war" card that the pacifist set get to play, but he can claim that the war is being mismanaged by the incompetence of the current leaders, like Democratic congressmen who originally supported the war and now have to run for re-election.

It is helpful to recall that the Afghan mission is NATO supported, U.N. approved and came about after Islamic warriors took over a nation, turned it into a theocracy, and allowed terrorists to run training camps and use the country as a staging ground for an attack on our closest ally (an attack in which Canadians were murdered). There is also the little matter of the fact that they denied their citizens even the most basic rights, and turned the women into property. But I've seen no recent evidence that the Canadian left actually cares about helping the citizens of the world (whining about globalisation doesn't actually make people's lives better).

I don't quite understand why Paul feels the need to comment anyway. Yes, he was the one who sent troops to Afghanistan, but it's hardly like he has to protect his legacy as Prime Minister. Standing in line and waiting your turn does not a legacy make.

Don't they know they're moderate democrats?

The people of Kismayo, Somalia took to the streets to protest after Islamist militias took over their town yesterday (apparently they didn't read the Times this weekend).

The militiamen responded to stone throwing with machine guns and killed a teenage boy. But look on the bright side, just think what would have happened if the moderate forces weren't in control.

Arianna

Meghan O'Rourke reviews Arianna Huffington's new book over at Slate:

Huffington is famously hard to pin down. For years, she was a Republican, a Newt Gingrich-backer, and a hostess on the conservative Washington circuit; now, she is a Democrat who hobnobs with Hollywood glitterati. While running for governor of California in 2003, she made cracking down on "fat-cat" tax evaders an important part of her platform, yet the Los Angeles Times reported that she had paid a mere $771 in federal taxes over the prior two years. She is anti-SUV, yet she uses a private jet... Is it possible to come up with a unified theory of Arianna?

Self-serving hypocrite?

Dear Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, I Like You, Do You Like Me? Check Yes/No

Jeffrey Gettleman has written an open love letter to the Somali Islamic Militias in today's New York Times. It seems the militias have brought peace and order and are headed for a democratic transition. The naysayers were wrong and the comparisons to the Taliban far-fetched to say the least. Sure, there are little matters like the as yet unsolved assassination attempt on the Somalian President, the murder of an Italian nun and the public floggings, but did you know that they are allowing people to play soccer and eat watermelon?

Perhaps I am wrong. Perhaps this will all turn out for the best and I am just a horrible cynic who has come to expect the worst from Islamists through my own deeply held prejudices. Or perhaps the public relations campaign being run by the militias is evidence that they are getting smarter. Why doom your plans for a theocratic state right from the start when a friendly letter to the U.N. and some empty statements about democracy will get people off their guard. I hope that I am just being my usual jaded self, and that things turn out for the best for the people of Somalia. But I've been on this planet long enough now to know that when an Islamist militia manages to take control of the capital of a long failed state, the victory of the moderate voice is hardly the most likely option.

Site Changes

I thought I would take advantage of the recent changes to blogger to freshen up the site a little bit. Maybe it will distract you from the fact that there has been very little in terms of new content since I returned from my trip.

So far the biggest change is the blog roll (still in progress... it is causing undue stress), but in the next few weeks I might play around with the colour and layout as well. We'll see.

It's always good to start a fall project that will quickly be abandoned when work and school commitments become overwhelming (see also: half-crocheted blankets; unsewn patterns).

Update: So I've done some redecorating. Do you hate the new layout? Do you love the new layout? Did you do a double take and check if you were on the right blog and are as yet unwilling to accept my voice on this set up? Did you end up on my site hoping to find a place to buy Schweppes Bitter Lemon and are now disappointed? Comments are appreciated.

Shut up Jack!

Just watching the news and there was a segment on Jack Layton's meeting with Hamid Karzai. Jack met with the Afghan leader to tell him that if he had his way, Canada would have abandoned Afghanistan a long time ago.

I have never agreed with Jack Layton's politics, but until recent months I always thought of him as a decent human being. But, I am willing to admit when I am wrong.

I am also willing to admit that I need to learn to gain control of my temper when dealing with people with irritatingly simplistic political beliefs. Luckily for Jack, he wasn't in the room when I was watching the news this evening. So I took out my rage on the next best thing...



Sure, maybe it was a little juvenile... but it made me feel better.

When Hugo Chavez says "jump", I say "off which bridge?"

I'm not sure what it says about you that you take advice from Hugo Chavez. But you're probably not the type of person who'll be disappointed by his selection.

Say it Ain't So Condi

This better just be a case of the rumour mill in overdrive. I'm all for better Canada-U.S. relations, but you're one of the most powerful women in the world, surely you can do better than Belinda's castoffs?

Five Years

Andrew Sullivan is commemorating the tragic events of September 11th, 2001 by celebrating the West's ongoing commitment to freedom.

Check in throughout the day for images and words that will gall Islamists everywhere, quotes that reveal tenacity and lack of fear, videos that expose the failure of the medieval bigots who struck five years ago, tributes to people who have stood up to these bullies and who have shown that we have not submitted yet; and never will.

That is the best way I can think of to remember the events.

Thinking back to everything that has happened since that day, it seems like a very long five years. But watching the memorials on T.V. and reading people's recollections of the day, it feels so immediate that it seems impossible to believe that so much time has passed.

Bitter Lemon Will Be Moving Into the Gates Mansion* *Pending Bill's Approval

The U.N. Security Council has approved a force of over 17,000 troops for Darfur. Now the only thing missing is the approval of the Sudanese government.

Signalling their interest in taking the matter under careful consideration, Sudan boycotted the council session. Add to that the threats of violence made by the Sudanese government against any non-African Union peacekeeping force and I'm sure that the situation in Darfur will be resolved in no time.

Do I get another wish?

I'm off to Miami this weekend and thus have spent much of the week on hurricane watch with my fingers crossed. Gaia has been kind to me, and Ernesto "Che" Tropical Depression did not ravage the Florida coast. And while I am thankful for that, there is one more favour I would like to ask: since we are all on Fidel death watch anyway, would it be too much to ask that he go to that great workers paradise in the sky this weekend?

We haven't had a good dictator death since Mobutu, and that was nearly a decade ago (unless you count Pol Pot, which I don't because it was shrouded in weirdness and I don't even remember where I was when I heard the news. Or Slobo, but the joy of his death was tainted by the sense that he had escaped justice). And while I will admit that I did a little jump for joy when I heard of the kleptocrat's death on the radio, the customer that I was serving at the time did not seem to share my enthusiasm and gave me a sort of concerned look.

But when the people of Miami hear the news of Fidel's death, there will be no worried looks, no concern for their barista's sanity; there will be jumping and there will be dancing in the streets. And I for one would like to be there to witness it.

A Kinder, Gentler, Taliban-Style Militia

I keep hearing that the Islamist militias in Somalia are nothing like the Taliban and that just because they bring stability in the name of Allah doesn't mean that they are going turn Somalia into a theocracy. Yes they burned down theatres that showed the World Cup, but that was just a misunderstanding. You'll forgive me for not finding this very comforting (despite the fact that, as the article points out, it is only the second public flogging since the militias came to power).

The Cult of the New Yorker

I would like to start this post by saying that I love The New Yorker. Last weekend I sat down and read all the issues I had missed while I was away in Europe and it was perhaps the perfect way to spend a Saturday morning. It is true that I own the Complete New Yorker DVDs, and despite this I have been unable to get rid of my back issues (if anyone feels that they can give them a good home, please let me know, but recycling them feels like sacrilege).

Having said that, this strikes me as a little odd. Perhaps, I am wrong. Perhaps there is a huge market out there for an 80 GB portable hard drive that contains all the back issues of the New Yorker. It is true that switching back and forth between disks can be a little irritating if you are trying to read all of the articles by one particular author in one sitting (not that I would ever display that level of obsession).

But seriously, are there a lot of people out there who love the New Yorker that much, and who are also comfortable enough in their geekdom that are willing to spend $300 on the hard drive version rather than (or as well as!) less than $100 on the DVDs. And if so, who are they and why aren't we dating?

No U.N. Troops For Darfur

Omar Al-Bashir has rejected a proposal for a U.N. force to bring peace to Darfur, and has written a letter to the U.N. Security Council saying that the government in Khartoum needs more time to cope with the situation themselves. In his letter he states that he fears that a U.N. presence would lead "to acts of violence and unmanageable confrontations among all parties in Darfur, including the United Nations forces." Which, given the fact that he is a genocidal killer, reads to me as more of a threat than a concern.

He also says that he is going to send more troops into Darfur in an effort to keep the peace. Which is about as comforting as if Hitler had said that he was going to send more SS officers to help improve conditions in Auschwitz.

But the U.N. will continue to talk with the Sudanese government, because no matter how criminal a state has become, everyone is equal at the U.N. (or at least, they are as long as they have oil to share with the Chinese).

But perhaps all is not yet lost for the suffering children of Darfur, because I have a plan: dress them all up like little pageant contestants and take pictures of Omar sipping champagne. That region will get the 24 hour news coverage faster than you can say Nancy Grace.

129 Days Left

Clearly, at this point, Kofi is just counting down the days until his job is over. Only a few months left until he can go on the lecture circuit and start seeing some serious profit from this whole Secretary-General deal. If he hasn't come down with a case of senioritis, can someone explain why he didn't bother to find some new material for his most recent report? It seems that Sudan's armies and militias are guilty of abusing children! He urges the Sudanese government to do something about it:

"Dear Mr. al-Bashir Omar,

Can you please tell the Janjaweed militias that when they are burning down villages, raping women indiscriminately and hunting people as they go to the well for water, to be careful not to upset the children. You have been extremely co-operative with our organization and I have every faith that you will take my concerns seriously.

Yours,
Kofi

p.s. I'm going to have some time on my hands come January... you wanna go for beers?"

Bitter Lemon Puzzled by Effah-Apenteng's Puzzlement

This month's president of the Security Council, Ghanaian ambassador Nana Effah-Apenteng, is puzzled by the Arab League's request to delay a meeting planned to discuss the situation in Darfur. I'm confused. What in the Arab League's history would suggest that they should be expected to put the interests of a few hundred thousand innocent people over those of a member government?

To be fair, perhaps the Arab League representatives can't be bothered to waste their time in pointless meetings. The Sudanese government has made it clear time and time again that they won't allow a force into Darfur that has the power to stop their crimes. What good will a meeting do?

The Journey Back

I will confess that after hearing that they had foiled the terror plot and that nobody had died, my response was "getting home is going to be a bitch" and started plotting routes back to Canada that didn't involve flying back to England first. Luckily, it wasn't nearly the nightmare that the news would have you believe. Granted, I wasn't at Heathrow so I can't really say what it was like for passengers there. But it does seem to me that if you film footage of your average international airport on any given day you can make it seem like a nightmare, 'cos let's face it airports generally consist of people standing in line or sitting around looking frazzled. Even people who like flying generally can't stand the airport.

Despite the fact that Europeans are far less ignorant than North Americans and spend their lives absorbed in world affairs instead of malls and NASCAR, nobody at the airport in Poland seemed to be aware that they wouldn't be able to take carry-on luggage. So the check in line was a little longer than expected, but no chaos.

Gatwick was a little bit more crazy, but not nearly as bad as it could have been. Watching a toddler stand with her arms out getting patted down by a security guard was one of the stranger things I've witnessed in my life, but she seemed to find it all very amusing.

Having drilled it into our heads that we weren't going to be allowed to take anything except our travel documents on board, the folks at the check-in desk failed to mention that once we got through security anything we bought could be carried onto the plane. So I walked all the way past the main shopping area and to my gate thinking it was going to be eight hours without anything to read. At the gate I noticed the little W.H. Smith was packed with people. At first glance, I assumed it was just people getting a magazine to read while they were waiting, until I saw people with bags of stuff. I checked and, yes indeed, it was okay to bring stuff onto the plane. We were supposed to be boarding at any minute, so I didn't think I had time to get back to the main area, buy a book and make it back to the gate. Of course, it turned out that the plane was delayed by an hour. So needless to say, my one magazine (they were running very low) and my crossword book failed to keep me entertained for the duration of the flight -- but considering how bad things could have been, it seems petty to complain.

I have had a wonderful trip, but I am glad to be home.

Poland

Krakow was great. Lots of restaurants and things to do without the sense that it was all about the tourists. I suppose that may be because they don't get as many visitors as Prague or Budapest, but there was more of a feeling that people were just going about their lives with normal jobs.

Auschwitz was strangely unsettling, and not in the way that you might expect. It is very green, a lot of trees have grown up around the barracks and I couldn't escape the feeling that, were it not for the knowledge as to what had gone on there, you would not feel out of place having a family picnic on the lawn. This was less true of Birkenau (where more people were actually murdered), but it still didn't have the same impact on me as I would have expected. Ultimately, I think the fact is that the pictures from that time and the memoirs of the survivors are just so disturbing that the site of the camp today was never going to have as significant an effect on me. The one exception would be the room of shoes. Seeing children's little sandals and women's stylish high heeled shoes made the fact that this happened to regular people, with otherwise normal lives a lot more clear.

Warsaw is not an attractive city, it seems to fall somewhere in between Detroit and Cleveland in the looks department... but in its defense it was bombed to smithereens by the Nazis and then run by communists for fifty years. Its old city seems somewhat artificial, having largely been rebuilt after the war.

The rest of Eastern Europe had left me unprepared for the Poles. They are far more outgoing, friendly and helpful. When a woman in the Krakow train station realised I didn't speak Polish, she decided that I was utterly helpless (or at least I gather that this is what she had decided... she didn't speak a word of English and so just spoke slowly and yelled at me in Polish) and would not rest until she saw me get on my train (for my part I was very nervous to get on the train until I confirmed for myself it was indeed the one Warsaw.... they leave every hour on the hour and this train was waiting at the platform 40 minutes early... I had no desire to end up in St. Petersburg). She then refused to allow me to carry my own bags and started ordering around male travellers to help me.

The rest of my journey had also left me completely unprepared for the men of Poland. Or rather, Warsaw. Walking to my hotel from the train station, I had a number of men try to speak to me in Polish. They were all very old men (father, bordering on grandfather age). Since I don't speak any Polish, I don't really know if they were just being friendly or trying to be "friendly". But it is my general experience that friendly types don't stare at your chest when they are talking to you.

People staring at my chest I can handle. My final day in Poland I was walking from my hotel to the subway at 11 o'clock in the morning. A guy came up to me and started talking at me in Polish. Obviously I had no clue what he was saying. "Sorry, I don't speak Polish". Unlike the old men he didn't walk away. He looked sort of confused for a moment and said "erm, sex?". Apparently, standing there in my jeans and t-shirt I looked like a Polish prostitute. He didn't seem to want to take no for an answer so I got away as quickly as I could. I was ready for home.