socialistunity — Well worth having a look at this by Tony Greenstein. The picture shows a screen capture of a BNP website, proclaiming their support for Israel

 I was struck by the  Thurrock Patriot blog, quoting in shocked horror, that in response to the Gaza war:

“There has been a significant rise in the number of anti-Semitic incidents, especially when compared with what is usually a very quiet time of year for racist, anti-Jewish attacks,” spokesman Mark Gardner said…. In the attack on the synagogue in Brondesbury north west London, arsonists tried to smash a window.”

Now, clearly it is terrible that there is a rise in anti-Semitism, and the attack on a synagogue must be deplored. But what are we to make of the BNP’s expressed outrage?

As I have reported before, in August 2006, BNP supporter, Mark Bullman attempted to burn down the Broad Street mosque in Swindon using a petrol bomb and was sentenced to five years in prison. Mark was the registered fund holder for Wiltshire BNP, and actively campaigned for the party in the 2006 local council elections, just four months before the arson attack. Strangely Mark used to write to me while he was on remand, and even rang me a few times. He had left the BNP to form what he called the “1290 sect”, named after the year the Jews were expelled from England, and he wrote to me: “I only attacked the mosque because there is no synagogue in Swindon, and it was close enough for public consumption”. The fuse used for the fire bomb was a rolled up BNP leaflet.

It since transpires that Danny Lake, who has since been expelled from the BNP, had raised concerns about Bullman with Nick Griffin, but the BNP did not consider Mark Bulman’s mental instablity, propensity to violence and gross anti-Semitism to be a problem. Bullman was supported by Wiltshire organiser, Mike Howson.

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backin15 — My Christmas break is nearing its end. Sadly. Family have come and gone. They were frenetically completing odd-jobs around the house as they departed. Jobs I'm grateful they've done, they were not going to be done by me - a lack of skill, not endeavour mind. No escape from Sydney was possible and, despite my predictions, the city remained busy. A obscene queue outside the aquarium, traffic and

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socialistunity — Where’s the Academic Outrage Over the Bombing of a University in Gaza?

By Neve Gordon and Jeff Halper

Not one of the 450 presidents of American colleges and universities, who denounced the decision of the union representing British academics to promote a boycott of Israeli universities, raised their voice against the bombardment of the Islamic University in Gaza. Columbia University President Lee Bollinger who organized the petition remained silent, as did his co-signatories from Princeton, Northwestern, MIT and Cornell. Most others who signed similar petitions, like the 11,000! professors from nearly 1,000 universities around the world, also refrained from expressing their outrage when the leading university in the Gaza Strip was attacked. The artfully named Scholars for Peace in the Middle East, which organized the latter appeal, surely had nothing to say about the assault.

The story was reported widely by the different news agencies, including the Chronicle. Haaretz noted that Israel “bombed the Islamic University and a government compound in Gaza City, key centers of Hamas power, in the third day of its aerial assault on the city.” While the extent of the damage to the university, which was hit in six different air strikes, is unknown at this moment, Haaretz reported that “Two major buildings were leveled to the floor. One building was main laboratories and the other was lecture rooms buildings. Each building was 4 floors high.” Witnesses said the two university structures hit today were the science-laboratory block and the Women’s Building, where female students studied in classrooms separate from those for male students. There were no casualties, as the university was evacuated when the Israeli assault began on Saturday.

Virtually all the accounts agree that the Islamic University was attacked because it was a “cultural symbol” of the Hamas movement, the ruling party in the elected Palestinian government which Israel has targeted in its ongoing attacks on the Gaza Strip. Mysteriously, hardly any of the news articles emphasized the educational significance of this university, which exceeds by far its cultural or political symbolism.

Established “with the approval of the Israeli authorities“ in 1978, the Islamic University is the first institution of higher education in the Gaza Strip and still its major and most important university, serving over 20,000 students, sixty percent of whom are women. It is comprised of ten faculties “ education, religion, art, commerce, Shariah law, science, engineering, information technology, medicine and nursing“ and awards B.A., B.Sc., M.A., M.Sc. and Diplomas. Taking into account that Palestinian universities have, in UNICEF’s words, been regionalized because Palestinian students from Gaza seeking hig! her education are barred by Israel from studying either in the West Bank or abroad, the educational significance of this institution becomes even more apparent.

These restrictions became international news when last summer, Israel refused to grant exit permits to seven carefully vetted Gazan students who has been awarded Fulbright fellowships by the State Department for study in the US. After the incident was covered by The New York Times, top State Department officials intervened to restore the students Fulbright fellowships although Israel allowed only four of the seven to leave, even after appeals by Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice. “It is a welcome victory” for the students, opined the New York Times in its July 8, 2008, editorial, “[and] for Israel, which should want to see more of Gaza’s young people follow a path of hope and education rather than hopelessness and martyrdom; and for the United States, whose image in the Middle East badly needs burnishing”

Notwithstanding the importance of the Islamic University, Israel has tried to justify the bombing. An army spokeswoman told The Chronicle that the buildings had been used as “a research and development center for Hamas weapons, including Qassam rockets. One of the structures struck housed explosives laboratories that were an inseparable part of Hamas’s research and development program, as well as places that served as storage facilities for the organization. The development of these weapons took place under the auspices of senior lecturers who are activists in Hamas.”

Islamic University officials denied the Israeli allegations. Yet even if there is some merit in them, it is common knowledge that practically all major American and Israeli universities are engaged in research and development of military applications, and receive funding from the Pentagon and defense corporations. Unfortunately weapons development and even manufacture has become a major part of university systems worldwide - a fact that does not justify bombing them.

How, given the unfolding events, should academics respond to this assault? Regardless of one’s stand on the boycott of Israeli universities, anyone so concerned about academic freedom as to put one’s name to a petition, should be outraged no less by Israel’s destruction of a Palestine university. The question, then, is whether the university presidents and professors who signed the different petitions will speak out against the bombing of an Islamic University.

Neve Gordon is chair of the department of politics and government at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and author of Israel’s Occupation (University of California Press, 2008). Jeff Halper is director of the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions. His latest book is An Israeli in Palestine: Resisting Dispossession, Redeeming Israel (Pluto Press, 2008).

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socialistunity — By Mike Greenhalf

Is there an alternative to division and sectarianism?

This article includes no justification for my views in historical precedent, learned quotations, or dialectical analysis - which doesn’t prevent you from doing so. I have simply proceeded from the facts as we can all see them, and thought for myself. I have no pretensions towards brilliance or leadership. I am simply speaking for myself and inviting comment. My suggestions may be drastic, but it is at least a challenge for you to offer a better solutions.

Let’s begin by taking stock of the left wing forces in the UK. What do they amount to? Set aside the many ideological differences between socialists, and simply estimate the headcount. But first a definition to keep some perspective.

What is a socialist? I propose a working definition that a socialist is someone who believes that workers should control the means of production. This may be considered insufficient - how much of the economy? what sort of democratic control? how can the transition be achieved? are three obvious questions here. But bear with me, because I’m not sure that these discussions really affect my main point. I’m not saying they’re not important questions - just hear me out. And let’s include those who could, be classed as socialists regardless of whether they are politically active, or are members of a socialist organisation. How many people are we talking about?

Obviously we include members of existing left groups. Say 25,000 people? That seems a pretty generous number to offer. Now add the people who are also socialists but not members of any organisation. Ex- and potential members, those who didn’t renew, etc. I reckon maybe 10% of all socialists are active in an organisation, which would top up the total to around 250,000 socialists in the UK. Again, a reasonably generous number to offer.

Quibble about my estimates, and the lack of citations by all means - I freely state that I have offered no evidence for my numbers, but once again, hear my point first. If I’m wrong, at least my figures give the most positive picture on which to base a discussion on the forces of the left in Britain.

Obviously whatever number of socialists there actually are, are spread across many political organisations, and many are not members of any. We can agree too that the task of socialists is to present a united leadership and programme to organise the working class, to achieve socialist change. Put aside, for the moment, whether the political programme should be electoral, revolutionary, or even insurrectionary – we aren’t united, and there’s another point I want to make first.

That cadre of 250,000 represents roughly 0.4%, or one in every 250 people in the UK. The organised element - 25,000, only represents 0.04%. And any process of socialist change would necessarily need to mobilise a significant proportion of the working class to achieve it. And here we come to my central point. If we cannot unite a mere 0.4%, how can we unite a class? No amount of philosophical abstraction alone can answer that simple question.

If we have failed so completely in uniting those who consider themselves socialist - and who can really argue otherwise - how can we possibly aspire to unite even a significant section of the working class, who may not be socialist even by our broad definition? Socialist unity is a precondition of socialist change. Whether we will achieve socialism through revolution or reform is a sterile question, when we cannot even achieve unity amongst either revolutionaries, or reformists.

And when we contemplate the facts, no single socialist current can currently be said to be in the process of a breakthough, or even within sight of one. We are all wrong, as evidenced in our failure to grow. The evidence is all around us in the many groups, the doctrinal arguments, the often bitter clashes and criticisms raging back and forth. The actual numbers involved don’t affect this principle - although if I have overestimated our numbers, the problem is even more acute. If it was simply a question of using the existing forms of organisation, then we would have made progress by now. We must think new ideas, and then debate them through the lens of theory and history - not search our past for a route map of the future.

Our immediate solution must transcend existing forms of organisation, within a recognition that none of them have worked. I propose that unity must involve merging into a single whole. But I propose a further change too - we should disband our existing parties, and merge into a single new unitary organisation, within which there will be many differences of view. My point is that the unitary nature of the new organisation prevents a faction from walking away, going back to business as usual. We either stay together, or go back to square one, and have to build a party from scratch. It is better to have one large pluralist organisation with some real weight, than a doctrinally pure organisation, incapable of affecting the real world.

This party must tolerate differences of view, factions and groups, cannot enforce unity in action, and only the peer pressure of the wider membership maintains discipline. As in a trade union, perhaps. But each group is part of a unitary whole - of socialist unity in action, and has more to lose in walking away, than in staying and fighting for its view. What do we have to gain?

‘Huddling together for warmth’ has been decried as being politically unworthy, but many drop out because of the divisions and sectarianism in sometimes small and ineffective groups. Low morale saps much of the left already, and membership of a larger united organisation can help offset that.

The many different ideas brought by the founding organisations are aired in debate, strengthening our activity, and end the ‘groupthink’ of consensus that exists in many of the left groupings now. A battle of ideas would strengthen us all, especially given that the ideas of the majority in each debate would then carry some weight of numbers for the first time in decades.

We save our energy and resources with a single set of politically broader publications circulated to a much wider constituency. Many socialist newspapers already consist substantially of articles calling for the same kinds of support for the same struggles and campaigns. Would the world really be a worse place with just a single one which we all read?

There are already successful non party aligned socialist journals - Socialist Register does something similar now, although with just one there might be less space for abstract debate about how many Marxists can dance on the head of a pin, and more emphasis on what needs to be done now, and why. But all this without precluding any group of members wishing to associate in producing other publications to argue their views. Anyone would still be free to produce other publications arguing their views. Let a hundred flowers bloom - providing the united party is not expected to buy all the seeds.

But a larger organisation, even just of the currently organised socialists, creates a pole of attraction for wider growth. At a stroke, it addresses the single most commonly heard complaint from those who are politically sympathetic, but who resist joining - the lack of unity amongst socialists. It also presents a strong, coherent, united organisation founded on a tradition of pluralism and debate, but within the socialist tradition - and this enables us to talk with real credibility to the big battalions of the working class - the trade unions themselves. Instead of talking largely with each other, we start talking to others beyond our number.

Socialists of the UK unite… you have nothing to lose but your shibboleths……

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newerlabour — You must be bloody joking! One of these people invented the most inhumane immigration system in the world, one consorts with terrorists and overlooks the execution of trade unionists by half-endorsed paramilitary death squads, and two of them have been intimately involved in planning the most destructive war the world has seen in the last twenty years.

So much for freem n' moxy. Staggering.

...'For services to neoconservatism'...

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socialistunity —

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danvojir —

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goablog — The Goa Handicrafts Rural and Small Scale Industries Development Corporation (GHRSSIDC) is planning to set up a arts and crafts center at Dhargalim to provide a boost to the sector. The village is expected to be set up on an area of 15-20 acres.

The acquisition of the land is expected to be completed shortly. Training programmes and workshops will be held for the benefit of the artisans of Goa at the center. GHRSSIDC had also sought the help of the South Asia Foundation for the project.

A delegation from the corporation had visited different handicraft villages set up along the same lines in Delhi and Varanasi. The corporation expects that with the setting up of the village, the handicrafts of the state will be taken to greater heights.

Courtesy: fibre2fashion

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danvojir —
What Better Way To Start Your New Year's Resolution
To Be More Assertive!

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thecylinder —

… and a feeling of déjà vu.

Cross-posted @ Filasteen
——————–
The World is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don’t do anything about it.
——————–

      

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creativerevolution — I've been listening to a lot of really dumb music this evening. Music so dumb that it's actually insidiously clever. As guitarist David St. Hubbins reminds us in the mockumentary movie This is Spinal Tap, "It's a thin line between clever and stupid, innit?" I've been listening to that very dumb and very clever music very, very loudly as the man responsible for some of the biggest, dumbest and most grin inducing riffs was found dead this morning at age 60.

The godfather of punk guitar, Ron Asheton of the Stooges, was found dead Tuesday in his Ann Arbor, Mich., home.

Asheton, 60, had not been heard from for a few days, and police were called to the guitarist’s house by his personal assistant to check on him. An investigation continues, but police do not suspect foul play.

<snip>

His iconic riffs were the basis for many of the band’s best-loved songs. He played in a simplified style that cut against the grain of the guitar-god era, when long blues-based solos were the standard by which musicians were judged. Yet a few years ago he was ranked among the top guitar players of all time in a Rolling Stone magazine poll.

read more

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rollbacktide —
The Harper government, while admitting it doesn't have a clue what actually happened, says Hamas is to blame for the 40-dead Palestinians killed by Israeli fire today. The United Nations, which operates the school, says it wants a full investigation.

When picking between two proven liars, Harper doesn't hesitate to blindly accept whatever Israel claims is the truth, even when it involves a dead Canadian..

Harper and his underlings have short memories. The Cons have conveniently forgotten Canadian Forces Major Paeta Hess-von Kruedener, killed by an Israeli artillery barrage just two years ago in Lebanon. It was obvious that Israeli forces were deliberately targetting the UN observation post where the Major was stationed. That time too Harper wasn't interested in getting the facts of the killing before blaming the death on Hezbollah.

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mollysblog —
ECONOMICS:

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myblahg — You’re probably familiar with the Friday newsdump. That’s when a government releases something late on Friday in the hope that the media won’t give it any attention over the weekend. Well I’ve begun to take note of another similar phenomenon; the Israeli war newsdump. That’s when a government releases news during one of Israel’s rampages in the hope that the media won’t give it much coverage.

One such example of this comes to us from Ethiopia, better know as the starvation nation. It seems their xenophobic–probably conservative–legislators have decided to shoot themselves in their malnourished foot rather than have icky foreigners meddle in their affairs.

Ethiopia’s parliament has passed a controversial bill imposing tight restrictions on aid agencies.

Foreign agencies are prohibited from a number of areas including human rights, equality, conflict resolution and the rights of children.

Local groups that receive more than 10% of their funding from abroad are also banned from working in these areas.

It’s hard to conceive of anything this abysmally poor nation hopes to accomplish by passing legislation that will greatly hinder aid agencies from helping them. One thing is clear however. The Ethiopians are no better at electing governments that will look out for their best interests than we are.

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cathiecanada — Digby describes a recent incident in Oakland, CA where a transit policeman shot and killed an unarmed man -- the man was under arrest with a bunch of his rowdy friends at a subway station, all were sitting on the floor, some of others had been handcuffed. The man is sitting with his hands in the air, lipping off at the transit police, when one of the transit cops just pulls out his gun and shoots him.

Officials have not said whether the officer intended to shoot Grant. One source familiar with the investigation said BART is looking into a number of issues, including whether the officer had meant to fire his Taser stun gun rather than his gun. Alameda County prosecutors are conducting their own investigation, as is standard in officer-involved shootings.

I wouldn't be surprised if he did. The police use their stun guns on people who are already on the ground and offering no threat all the time. It's no wonder that one of them would get confused and just start shooting people in the same position. They have no sense of what constitutes a real threat anymore.
See, the problem isn't the form of gun they use, a stun gun or one with bullets. It's that they use any gun on people who are already down.

Emphasis mine.

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trssastt — Just read. It's short, I promise you.

And, yes, it's that John Locke.

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myblahg — Can you guess which country this refers to?

Everything, it seems, has grown worse here. The recession started earlier and its bite has been deeper. Housing prices have fallen by as much as 50 percent. Bank shares have plummeted by more than 90 percent. Unemployment is approaching 10 percent.

Here’s a hint. Not so long ago conservatives thought she was a bonny lass for giving corporations an almost free ride with rock bottom tax rates. If you guessed Ireland, pride O’ conservative tax cutters everywhere, give yourself a star. Now it seems however, that this bonny lass has choked on conservative fiscal policies.

The roots of Ireland’s fall date to more than 20 years ago, when a clutch of economists, politicians and civil servants put their heads together in this very pub and planted the philosophical seeds for the Irish economic miracle.

Known widely as the “Doheny & Nesbitt School of Economics,” these beery musings soon became government policy that chopped taxes in half, sharply reduced import duties and embraced foreign investment — a radical transformation that gave birth to the Celtic Tiger and perhaps the most open and vibrant economy in Europe.

But beyond the glow of this sudden efflorescence that made Ireland the fourth most-affluent country in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, a housing bubble had begun to form. Low interest rates, a wave of inward immigration and a bank lending spree drove housing’s share of the economy to 14 percent, the highest in Europe, from 5 percent, according to research done by Finfacts, a financial Web site that analyzes the Irish economy.

Despite the mounting evidence of the global collapse of conservative fiscal policies our own leprechaun of finance, Jimmy-boy O’Flaherty, is stubbornly clinging to the misguided belief that more tax cuts will cure all that ails us. Undoubtedly the rubes chasing after the rainbow in search of O’Flaherty’s pot o’ gold will buy into this belief but should the rest of us really be expected to accept more of the same policies that got us into this mess in the first place.

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devinjohnston — Conservative blogger Stephen Taylor writes an interesting blog post regarding Team Canada winning its fifth straight gold medal in the World Junior Hockey Championships on Monday and its relationship to federal politics. Taylor writes:

Hockey games usually provide photo-ops for Canadian politicians to awkwardly rub shoulders with “every day” Canadians and pretend to show interest in the game that the rest of us plebs know and love. However Stephen Harper, a man with an interest that could be described as a genuine but fanatical love of the game (maintained by his trademark calm) was there not only for the gold medal game, but most of team Canada’s games during the entire tournament.

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While the tournament provided great photo ops for the Prime Minister, newly minted Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff did not fare as well in Taylor's estimation:

Michael Ignatieff was also in attendance but only for the gold medal game. The Liberal leader and grandson of a Russian tsar took a break from writing a book on his family history long enough to recognize the tournament and descend to mingle with the masses. Ignatieff had a rare chance of witnessing a Canadian hockey victory while living in Canada - the distinguished academic has been largely abroad since the late 60s. A friend joked that Ignatieff told TSN, “I am a fan of the game of hockey, but not necessarily a hockey fan.” For the two men, Harper and Ignatieff, hockey underscores a vital political strength or weakness. For the Prime Minister, voters select someone they see in themselves and they pick someone who understands and shares their concerns. For Ignatieff, voters will sever him if he cannot genuinely tie himself with the threads that line our hearts.

We’re a nation bound by our love of hockey.

Taylor's view, i.e. that Canadians vote in large part based on their identification with one of the party leaders, is shared by many experienced politicos. For example, Liberal strategist Chrétien-era political staffer Warren Kinsella has often written about the "HOAG" ("Hell Of A Guy/Gal") factor. As Kinsella puts it "Personality matters a lot [...] Not your personality, per se, but the personality of the politician seeking your vote." [Emphasis in original.]

To those of us who spend an inordinate amount of time thinking about the substance of public policy, this is a very disturbing realization. Voters are, of course, entitled to base their political choices on whatever criteria they like. And even if voters choose to base their choices on more substantive issues, there is no denying that personality and imagery will play some role in voter selections at least subconsciously. Nevertheless, I am growing concerned that the political discourse in Canada is increasingly moving away from a robust debate on the substance of pressing issues in public policy. When I examine campaign advertising, media coverage of political debates, and the tone adopted by the major players in our political system, I worry about the health of our democracy.

The risk is not that our politicians will necessarily make poor public policy choices. In fact, most politicians are much more clever than they would ever let on in public. Instead, the risk is that substantive political decision-making is taken out of the hands of citizens and put in the hands of political staffers, bureaucrats, lobbyists, and elected officials. If votes are based on personality politics and photo-ops rather than the political stances of the candidates, the real power in policy-making lies with those who can most successfully manipulate their public image.

The economist Joseph Schumpeter once argued that the "classical doctrine" of democracy (i.e. that the public articulates the public good through voting which is then given effect by the elected leaders) is unrealistic because of the ignorance and superficiality of the electorate. In its place, he posited a minimalist notion of democracy which casts elections as a competition between political leaders akin to an economic market. In this model, the only real strength of democracy compared to other systems of government is that it is not impossible for voters to oust their current leaders should things get particularly bad.

As political messaging becomes more and more simplistic, Schumpeter's minimalist democracy becomes a more and more apt description of the political system we have in Canada. Although Schumpeter appeared comfortable with this model of governance, I and many others are not. Notwithstanding that his model seems descriptively true, I believe that a modern, literate society (particularly one in which citizens have unprecedented access to information) is capable of a richer a more robust form of democracy.

I believe that politicians are not solely to blame for the growing phenomenon of one-liner politics. Politicians are merely employing the tactics that have been demonstrably successful within our electoral system. The traditional news media also play a role. Deadlines, competition, and other systemic pressures lead to superficial reporting on political issues. The public is also a part of the dangerous cocktail. Short attention spans and general disinterest in politics contribute to a positive feedback loop that leads politicians to adopt ever-simpler messaging.

The question, at least for those of us who see this as a negative trend, is this: How do we stem the tide and encourage politicians, the media, and the public to discuss and think about political issues more rigorously? While a complete answer to that question continues to elude, some answers are beginning to emerge.

I strongly believe increasing access to communications technology and the citizen media that such access facilitates is one part of the solution. Emerging forms of non-corporate media including blogs, podcasts, etc. enable average citizens to investigate, research, and comment on issues of public importance. Free from at least some of the systemic pressures of traditional corporate news media, citizen publishers can explore issues in greater depth and present their findings in new and creative ways that have the potential to capture the imagination of others. In a sense, Act Like Grownups seeks to be one of the many voices in an emerging online conversation between citizens about how we can strengthen and enrich our democratic institutions.

Some politicians are awakening to the possibilities of citizen empowerment through emerging technology. US President-elect Brack Obama, in particular, has harnessed a number of social media technologies to enter into a great online conversation with his supporters and constituents about the future of that country. Closer to home, Elizabeth May and the Green Party have pioneered a new style of politics that uses web technology to empower Green Party supporters to support the party through creative online action included Green Party-hosted blogging. Although the Greens remain the largest party outside of Parliament, the significant rise in their popularity (as well as the election of Obama to the highest office of the United States) demonstrates that the public has an appetite for a new kind of political discourse. A new generation of political thinkers is beginning to emerge. The potential exists for significant change in how citizens interact with government and politics in the very near future.

For all of the positives, however, it remains the case that Canadians currently enjoy and embarrassingly low quality of public political discourse. Changing this will require the strength and tenacity of many millions of people from coast to coast to coast.

Are you in?

This article is cross-posted at Act Like Grownups.

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norightturn — The Emissions Trading Scheme Review Committee has called for submissions on its review of the ETS. Two copies, by Friday, 13 February 2009, to:

Committee Secretariat
Emissions Trading Scheme Review Committee
Parliament Buildings
Wellington

This is an important review, which will decide the fate of New Zealand's climate change policy: whether we protect our environment and live up to our "clean and green" brand, or sacrifice both so that a few dirty businesses can enjoy a few more years of artificial profits extracted by dumping their costs on the rest of us. I encourage everyone to submit and speak up on it. The terms of reference of the committee - which are a useful guide to the issues a submission should address - are here. A guide to making a submission can be found here [PDF]. Unfortunately, you don't seem to be able to submit online anymore, but postage to Parliament is free, and I encourage everyone to abuse it mercilessly.

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vivianjpaige —
The two special elections held Tuesday resulted in no changes to the number of Republicans and Democrats in the House of Delegates. Republicans retained the seat in the 81st District, where Barry Knight won with nearly 83% of the vote. In the 70th, Delores McQuinn ran unopposed and despite the concerns of a write-in candidacy, was elected with just over 73% of the vote. (Information from the SBE.)

Next Tuesday, January 13, there will be another special election, this time in the 46th House District. Democrat Charniele Herring will face Republican Joe Murray. This seat became available when Brian Moran resigned to campaign for governor.

      

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thejurist — If Paul Wells was looking for more fodder to show that the Harper government isn't even competent enough to follow through on its own stated priorities or basic functions of the state (or indeed find its own ass with a map and a flashlight), today provides two worrisome new examples.

First, there's a promised set of vehicle emission standards which figure to be delayed a full year due to the Cons' missing their own deadline for the end of 2008:

Almost a year ago, Lawrence Cannon, then federal transport minister, vowed to publish new fuel-efficiency standards by the end of 2008. Those standards, he said at the time, would take effect with the 2011 model year.

"We made a commitment to implement fuel-consumption regulations for the 2011 model year that are benchmarked against a stringent, dominant North American standard, and we are keeping our word," Cannon said on Jan. 17, 2008...

The Motor Vehicle Fuel Consumption Standards Act, which became law late in 2007 during the Conservatives' second year in office, requires the federal government to give auto companies three years' notice before any new standard comes into effect.

By failing to publish the new figure by the end of 2008, the earliest the government could force car companies to meet new fuel-efficient standards would be the 2012 model year, a year later than Cannon had promised.

For those wondering, the Cons responded with their usual openness and competence:

After the October election, Cannon was replaced by John Baird, who moved over from the environment portfolio. A spokesman for Baird said Tuesday that Environment Canada was now the lead department on the file. Environment Minister Jim Prentice was not immediately available to comment.

And then there's a government's basic obligation to protect its citizens abroad, where the Cons have similarly failed miserably by dragging their heels in working to bring Canadians home from Gaza:

Canada only asked Israel for help in getting its stranded citizens out of Gaza after hundreds of other foreign nationals were able to depart, and as a ground assault was preparing to roll in.

More than 200 foreigners, including 39 Canadians, were to leave war-ravaged Gaza Monday, but the Israelis said security risks forced them to shut down access to the Erez Crossing into Israel. They said they would try again to get them out Tuesday.

It's unclear why Canada's officials did not ask sooner for Israeli assistance to get Canadians out – before the start of the ground war on Saturday that made travelling in Gaza far more dangerous.

Several countries clamoured last week for Israel to help their citizens leave Gaza, before an expected ground assault, prompting the Israelis to allow about 300, including Americans, Russians, Ukrainians and Moldovans, to leave on Friday.

A spokesman for the Foreign Affairs Department in Ottawa, Rodney Moore, said that's the day that Canada sent a list of 36 Canadians who wanted to leave Gaza, and asked for Israeli assistance.

But Peter Lerner, a spokesman for the Israel government civil administration in the occupied territories, said Canadian officials only approached them for help the day after, on Saturday.

And lest anybody think the Cons could be excused for not knowing any better:

During the 2006 Lebanon war, Canadian officials were criticized for the slow pace of their efforts to evacuate about 13,000 citizens from Beirut, as they struggled to arrange safe passage for ships for days after the United States and several European countries began ferrying out their nationals.

In this case, it's not clear why Canada did not ask for help sooner, before the situation on the ground in Gaza became dramatically more dangerous.

So to sum up, the Harper Cons have broken their own self-imposed deadline to do something about fuel efficiency by flat-out forgetting it existed, and left dozens of Canadians in danger due to their failure to learn anything from an equally well-publicized mistake two years ago. Which would seem to confirm that about the only thing Canadians can count on from Harper is continued incompetence - and offer all the more reason to hope to see some adults in charge at the earliest opportunity.

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intrepidliberal — One of my favorite bloggers is Diane G, the proprietor of the Wild Wild Left (WWL). Diane has asked me to post her promotion of WWL's entry into the exciting world of blog talk radio. Read all about it below.

This Friday, January 9th will be the premier of the Wild Wild Left Radio Hour at 6pm Eastern time on the Blogtalk Radio Network.



I'm Diane G, and will be producing the weekly hour, and am honored to have two of the Left Blogosphere's best writers, Gottlieb and Ed Encho as Co-Hosts of the Show.

This week we will open with a short introductory conversation, followed by a WWL take on current events.

In our second half hour, our special guest this week is Commander Jeff Huber, author of two books, and proprietor of the esteemed "Pen and Sword" blog.

Cmdr. Huber will be answering questions from a military expertise point of view about the fronts we are engaged in presently, as well as the Gaza Crisis.

Tune into to listen to the live stream, add commentary in the live chat area, or call in and talk directly to our Hosts or Guest. Make sure you tell me what Blog you post from, and we will shamelessly plug your blog on air too!

All you have to do to join us, is click the blogtalkradio link, and you will be able to listen to the live stream of our radio show.

If you want to be able to type questions or suggestions in without calling in, you have to go to that same link and create an account first. That will allow you to type in the chat. Its free, and will allow us to see what you type while we are on the air. If you have never used a chat, all you do is type and hit enter, and all user comments appear in a window, chronologically.

I will add the direct "link" to the chat 15 minutes before the show on The Wild Wild Left.
(thewildwildleft.soapblox.net)

You do not have to sign in to listen or call! The call is free, other than whatever phone charges your own service provides. The area code is in New York.

Now, if we get a lot of potential callers, you may have to re-dial. Once you get through TURN YOUR SPEAKERS DOWN and listen to the show through your phone while on hold. Listen for me to say "You're on the Air!" and then fire away! :)

We would love to hear from you!!!!

If you miss the show, and want to hear it, there will be a podcast embedded at WWL shortly after the show.http://rpc.technorati.com/rpc/ping

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creativerevolution — That is what Israel and it's apologists keep saying.

The representatives of that country insist they are only bombing terrorist targets. Anyone who really buys that one? Seriously? Do you think Hamas is making it all up too? 

There was a list posted today. It's an important read. These are from other International media, seems the North American media is just taking faxes most of the time. Biz as usual.

read more

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monur4pigeons — I haven't written about the Israeli invasion of Gaza, but not because I haven't been following it. I've been to two demonstrations and followed the daily news updates when I can. But there's only so much I can take. Nothing makes me feel more powerless than the news that the Israelis are at it again: bombing, shelling and shooting their captives. Today it was 40 murdered at a school sheltering refugees. It will be something else tomorrow.



Other people have spoken coherently about Israel's agenda. Chris McGeal writes in the Guardian on how the invasion - and the media strategy - have been planned for months. Al-Jazeera reports the farce of portraying two equal sides, when in reality, as Avi Shlaim writes, the Israeli Goliath is crushing the Palestinian David. Bashir Abu-Manneh, writing for the Socialist Project, situates the invasion as the latest bloody salvo in a long campaign, stretching back to the establishment of the Israeli colonial project in 1948. I won't try to duplicate their words. I'd simply add that I blogged about Israeli hypocrisy on Hamas three years ago (links in the sidebar), and I think the analysis holds. Hamas has to answer for all their actions; Israel and the occupation slip from view.

The barbarity of the state of Israel's racist, murderous existence rarely shocks me. But the bloody ferocity of the Israeli Defence Force is a reminder that 'our' interests in the Levant do not come cheaply.


Or the present, for that matter - from Matzpen, about Israeli anti-Zionists

Slogans don't count for much in times like these, but for what it's worth: occupation is a crime; free, free Palestine.

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rollbacktide — I caught a few moments of a discussion on Charlie Rose's show today. What was being weighed is the possible approach Obama might take toward the Middle East and, particularly, toward Israel.

It was agreed by all that America would remain Israel's close friend, but... it might also chose to follow its own path instead of marching lockstep with Israel.

There appeared to be a consensus that Israeli policies during the Bush administration had not improved either Israel's security or the region's and it's time that America and the West steered all the parties in a new direction. There was particular focus on the illegal settlements of the West Bank which were said to have grown by fully 40% during the W. years. These have to go, in their entirety.

There seems to be a growing "enough is enough" attitude in Washington and Europe. More tanks and more bombs simply aren't going to bring peace between Israelis and Palestinians. It's never worked, it never will.

The violence only deepens radicalism throughout the Arab Street and the greater Muslim world. Does anyone think when Afghanis come out to protest in support of the Palestinians it bodes well for our soldiers?

The problem Israel faces is that Obama is a clear-headed pragmatist who isn't likely to write Israel any blank cheques as George w. Bush has these past eight years.

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coffeeman — Tarvasjoen Horinen l. Horrinen on yksi niistä neljästä tilasta/kylästä, jotka mainitaan ensimmäisissä, säilyneissä kirjallisissa lähteissä tämän entisen Marttilan emäseurakunnan Euran kappelin alaisuudessa. Itseasiassa nuo neljä tilaa olivat tässä vuonna 1316 kirjoitetussa Suomen käskynhaltijan, Lyder von Kyrenin allekirjoittamassa asiakirjassa Bjurstekt, Kalenningiatekt, Svenstekt ja Brytiatekt. Aulis Oja tekee Tarvasjoen Historia -teoksessa erinomaisen oivaltavan esityksen näiden kummalliselta kuulostavien paikkojen suhteesta nykyisin tunnettuihin kyliin tai taloihin.

Ensinnäkin noiden nimien suomennoksia ovat Ojan mukaan Majavanraivio, Kainulaisenraivio, Soininraivio ja Voudinraivio. Vanhoja karttoja ja muita asiakirjoja tutkimalla Oja päätyy pitämään Majavanraiviota Kotamäkenä, Kainulaisenraiviota Kallelan kylänä, Svenstekt eli Soininraivio Yrjäntilä ja vihdoin Brytiatekt Horrinen. Itse nimi Horrinen mainitaan ensimmäinen kerran 1533, kun Pietari -niminen isäntä on Marttilan kihlakunnanoikeuden lautamiehenä.

Horristen kylästä otan tällä kertaa lähempään tarkasteluun Kulan talon, jonka ensimmäinen tunnettu isäntä oli Matti Pietarinpoika vuosina 1540-1572. Hän oli luultavasti edellä mainitun lautamies Pietarin poika. Kula oli ns. talonpoikainen perintötalo ja sen seuraavia omistajia olivat Juha Matinpoika 1572-1575 sekä edelleen Knuutti Matinpoika 1575-1621. Knuutin poika Matti hoiti isännyyttä sitten vuoteen 1633 saakka, mutta tämän jälkeen Kula autioitui peräti 50 vuoden ajaksi.

Autiotilan otti sitten 1683 haltuunsa Matti Martinpoika vuoteen 1690, jonka jälkeen isännäksi tuli hänen vävynsä Matti Yrjönpoika. Kula autioitui kuitenkin jo 1696 kahdeksi vuodeksi ja 1698 taloon tuli em. Matti Martinpojan toinen vävy, Niilo Heikinpoika. Hän viihtyi Kulalla aina kuolemaansa saakka 1732. Niilon poika Mikko oli naimisissa Liisa Heikintyttären kanssa ja isännöi talo isänsä jälkeen.

Kun tultiin 1750-luvulle, jaettiin Kula kahteen osaan eli Frostiksi ja Hakamäeksi. Näistä Frostin talo nimi voisi periytyä Paimion Rukkijoen samannimisestä talosta, josta se olisi kulkeutunut uudisasukkaiden mukana harvaanasutulle Tarvasjoelle. Samoihin aikoihin Kulan jakautumisen kanssa kuoli vanha isäntä Mikko Niilonpoika.

Kun Tarvasjoen eli silloisen Euran kappelissa tehtiin isojakoa Horristen osalta (vuonna 1788), ilmoitettiin Frostilla olevan 42 hehtaaria peltoa ja niittyä sekä 44 hehtaaria metsää. Vertailun vuoksi esimerkiksi Liedonperän Isotalolla oli pelto- ja niittymaita 165 ja Euran Sepällä 109 hehtaaria. Jos mukaan lasketaan vanhan Kulan tilan toinen puolikas, Hakamäki, olisi näitä kallisarvoisia maita ollut yhteensä 91 hehtaaria. Noin sata vuotta myöhemmin, 1881 tehtiin senaatin toimesta maataloustilasto. Sen mukaan Frostin pelto- ja niittymaat olivat kasvaneet 103 hehtaariin ja metsääkin löytyi vielä 62 hehtaarin edestä. Tilalla käytettiin kaksivuoroviljelystä eli kesanto/syysviljakylvöä.

Jos palataan ajassa hieman taaksepäin, oli eräs Mikko Jaakonpoika ostanut Frostin kruununtalon perintötalokseen vuonna 1793. Samalla Heikki Yrjönpoika osti Hakamäen. Mikko oli asunut talossa jo viimeistään vuodesta 1779 lähtien puolisonaan Liisa Erkintytär. Pariskunta sai yhteensä kahdeksan lasta vuoteen 1795 mennessä. Lapsista Juho otti isännyyden 1800-luvun alussa ollen naimisissa Maria Matintyttären kanssa. Kolmatta polvea tässä uudessa perintötalossa edusti edellisten poika Juho, joka haki morsiamensa Maria Heikintyttären Kirkonkylän Uudestatalosta. Juho luopuikin Frostin isännyydestä ja lähti rusthollariksi vaimonsa kotitaloon.

Frostin tuoreempia vaiheita ei ehkä kannata sen kummemmin käydä läpi. Tämän 250 vuotta vanhan tilan profiili piirtyi Salo-Aura -maantielle kauniisti talvisena lauantaipäivänä.

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darkdaughta — I found a map tracking the destcruction of Palestinian villages in 1948 here...

Download the map in pdf format (source)

Palestine: Destroyed Villages (1948) by Map Index

No.from map	Name
1	Abil Qamh
2	al-Zuq al-Fawqani
3	al-Sanbariyya
4	al-Shawka al-Tahta
5	Khan al-Duwayr
6	al-Mansiyhiyya
7	al-Khisas
8	al-Zuq al-Tahtani
9	Hunin
10	al-Khalisa
11	al-Mansura
12	Lazzaza
13	Madahil
14	al-'Abisiyya
15	Qaytiyya
16	al-Na'ima
17	al-Dawwara
18	al-Salihiyya
19	al-Hamra'
20	al-Muftakhira
21	al-Zawiya
22	al-Buwayziyya
23	Khiyam al-Walid
24	Jahula
25	Ghuraba
26	al-Nabi Yusha'
27	Qadas
28	al-Malikiyya
29	al-'Urayfiyya
30	al-Dirbashiyya
31	Baysamun
32	Mallaha
33	Harrawi
34	Arab al-Zubayd
35	al-'Ulmaniyya
36	Dayshum
37	Saliha
38	Suruh
39	Tarbikha
40	al-Nabi Rubin
41	Iqrit
42	Khirbat 'Iribbin
43	al-Bassa
44	Arab al-Samniyya
45	al-Zib
46	al-Mansura
47	Kafr Bir'im
48	Fara
49	Alma
50	Tulayl
51	al-Husayniyya
52	al-Ras al-Ahmar
53	Sa'sa
54	Dayr al-Qasi
55	al-Kabri
56	al-Nahr
57	al-Ghabisiyya
58	al-Tall
59	Umm al-Faraj
60	Khirbat Jiddin
61	Suhmata
62	Sabalan
63	Ghabbatiyya
64	Safsaf
65	Taytaba
66	Dallata
67	Marus
68	Kirad al-Ghannama
69	Kirad al-Baqqara
70	Yarda
71	al-Wayziiyya
72	Ammuqa
73	Qabba'a
74	Qaddita
75	Fir'im
76	Mughr al-Khayt
77	al-Dirdara
78	Mansurat al-Khayt
79	Khirbat al-Muntar