The New Blog
My New Blog

I've moved based on The Mad Scientist's logic. This place is better.

The Wages of War
Well I found a site today to help all of you out there who seem to think that driving is a good thing. It is an overlay of Gas Buddy, which quotes current gas prices, onto Google Maps. Check out the site and use it to find your way to cheap gas prices Cheap Gas. Gas is at something like $65 dollars a barrel (remember when we worried about it breaking $50?) and there is no sign it will go down. At one station in Mass the ppg is $3.00! That is crazy.

What makes this even worse is that gas companies make there profit on a percentage of the cost so right now, when our need is the highest, they are making record levels of cash. They are rolling in it. Funny that this happens under Dumbya "Mr. War and Military Actions" watch. Thankfully, he's looking out for us by helping to provide further tax breaks for these companies in the recently passed Energy Bill pushed by him and his Republican congress. Hoorah! The only good news is that these prices are really cutting down on fuel consumption and seem to be killing off the years of the SUV. This is good.

Bored
Okay, I got a bit bored with the blog thing. Too many things to do and it fell by the wayside. Does anyone care? Not that I need praise but it is tedious for just the MS39.

So we spent our Sunday bringing this beast up from the deep. For those who can't ID it, this is an Atlantic Cod. It looks big, but, they used to be easily brought up at 2 to 3 times the size you see. Those days are far gone. I'd read a book which does a great job telling the history of the Cod in relation to the western world in an entertaining way. It is a great story about how the fish had a huge impact on our history.

The thing about the Cod is that it is almost the perfect fish for building a culture around. They grow quite large, they eat just about any food found on the bottom (ours had a crab and two fish skeletons in its belly) which conveniently means they are easy to get on a hook, and they are not big fighters. If you hook one you caught it, the size doesn't matter. The most important feature that helped the west is that they are incredibly low in fat and the flesh can almost be dried completely. This means that it can be perfectly preserved and will last indefinitely if properly handled. Truly beautiful. Even more beautiful is that they are so easy to catch they almost seem to be giving themselves to you. Like apples from a tree.

Okay, this is really funny. This is a real photo from Dumbya's presenting of his new supreme court nominee. That dancing fellow is John Roberts young son. It is pretty disturbing to think that someone who will make decisions for the rest of us can't control his own child. I'm surprised that the whitey house hasn't issued a statement declaring the child mentally unstable from a swimming accident or something. Damn, that is funny stuff. Even funnier, after about a minute or so of his Mean Jean, the child (and Mom and sister) were escorted out by the secret service. To see the video go to The Daily Show and check out the "Who is John Roberts?". Kudos to Stewart and his team again.

Okay, here are my two cents. John Roberts seems to not be an uber-nazi right wing extremist. Is he an idealogue? Probably to some extent. The fact, however, is that he doesn't look like a Neo-Con. Can we expect more than that? As much as he isn't Sandra Day O'Conner or a Thurgood Marshall, he probably isn't a Thomas or Scalia? Let's face it, we lost the election. We failed. He isn't as bad as any of the people we fought over for the Federal courts and it is Dumbya's right to pick someone. With this guy maybe we can live with him relative to what the alternatives might be. We should save our fight for when Rehnquist has his embellism.

The Return
Hello my droogies! I'm glad to be back and I apologize for my absence. I hope I can be forgiven. I don't really have any excuses. I did deal with a lot of hangovers and too much silly other languages, but that hasn't stopped me before and now I must return to you humbly.

In my absence, terrorists have attacked, again, this time in London from some homegrown suiciders. Damn. Also, Sandra Day O'Conner resigned being replaced by a Bushie. Shit. The good news is that based on reports it looks like americans only killed about 30-40% of the casualities in Iraq. Not bad considering... Well, considering that a lot more people are dying from terrorists in Iraq and we don't worry so much about that.

I'll try not to leave you again.

For a few moments of fun check out this site which shows the next addition to my home:

Turbo Tap

and enjoy a pic from my last trip (from outside my window).

Mexico, mexico
Topic: Racism
Okay, I was asked to comment on this and the truth is that it is so shocking I felt I had to get involved.

These are the about to be released special edition stamps celebrating Mexican culture. A lot of news organizations have covered this (BBC and NY Times) and apparently 750,000 of these stamps are going to be released. The character is called Mem?n Pingu?n and (from the Times):

Created in 1943, the comic-book character was inspired by a Cuban child, its creators said. He is well intentioned but hapless, and his mannerisms and speech reinforce 1940's stereotypes of blacks as lazy, mischievous and uneducated, anthropologists and civil rights advocates say. Comic books featuring the character are still being published in Mexico.

How this is representative of Mexican culture I will never know. This is extremely shocking in light of the current state of racial misunderstanding. I guess the good thing is that it does really illustrate how blacks are considered in the broader world (especially in light of yesterdays post). Still, it is really just unbelievable that something like this could be possible in a country that one considers to be a modern nation.

This is really funny commentary on why they just don't get it (from the BBC):

A spokesman for Mexico's president on Thursday noted that the cartoon had in the past helped to promote family values, and called the adverse reaction "strange."

One Mexican diplomat responded that the character was no more offensive than the cartoon Mexican mouse, Speedy Gonzalez.

I should add that Speedy Gonzalez is a pretty offensive stereotype...but we aren't making a stamp.

After initially posting about this I found these pictures of covers of the comic. F**k me but I can't believe that they think this shouldn't be offensive. I guess no aid to Africa from Mexico. Makes you wonder what all the Native Americans in Mexico are complaining about.

>

Back to what I really wanted to cover. Check out this catfish!

This 650lb catfish was hauled in on the Mekong River. Sadly, giant catfish are a dying species and this one, which they hoped to keep alive, didn't make it. They were able to milk it for spawning purposes but then it was cut up and sold to villagers. I wonder how he tastes.

Rwandan Genocide
Topic: Movies
The wife and I watched the movie Hotel Rwanda which is the rivetting story of Paul Rusabegina who used his mind and his poise to save over 1200 Rwandan refugees from the butchers of the madness of the genocide. It is a very moving story. As intended by the director, one is moved by anger, sadness and, most importantly, shame. A little history here...

This is an excerpt from a short BBC write up on the subject:

Ethnic tension in Rwanda is nothing new. There have been always been disagreements between the majority Hutus and minority Tutsis, but the animosity between them has grown substantially since the colonial period. The two ethnic groups are actually very similar - they speak the same language, inhabit the same areas and follow the same traditions. But when the Belgian colonists arrived in 1916, they saw the two groups as distinct entities, and even produced identity cards classifying people according to their ethnicity. The Belgians considered the Tutsis as superior to the Hutus. Not surprisingly, the Tutsis welcomed this idea, and for the next 20 years they enjoyed better jobs and educational opportunities than their neighbours. Resentment among the Hutus gradually built up, culminating in a series of riots in 1959. More than 20,000 Tutsis were killed, and many more fled to the neighbouring countries of Burundi, Tanzania and Uganda. When Belgium relinquished power and granted Rwanda independence in 1962, the Hutus took their place. Over subsequent decades, the Tutsis were portrayed as the scapegoats for every crisis.

So the issue is that any racial differences between the two types of people (Tutsis are thought to have lighter skin - more northern african - and be taller) but the actual differences can be very subtle. The real issue is that the Belgian colonialists made grades and then divided the people changing the gradient of human differences into two classes. This is what really started the problems.

The genocide itself doesn't require too much explanation. Rwanda had become a place where everything required a well placed bribe and corruption up to the highest levels set the scene for the need of scapegoats. In the early nineties, reprisals(?) against Tutsis forced a division in the population. The Tutsis left the country. In Uganda they regrouped into a 'rebel' force called the RPF (Rwanda Patriotic Front) and, with the help of moderate Hutus, were intent on ending the racial injustices that plagued the country. As they began their campaign against the ruling government, the government and military began to help foster racial divides. One of the biggest parts of this was the somewhat state sponsered hate radio of Radio-T?l?vision Libre des Mille Collines or the RTLM which spewed devisive rhetoric. Referring to the Tutsi minority as 'Cockroaches' between mixes of popular music from the time. Although I don't speak french, if you listen to an excerpt you can hear the subtelty of the propaganda (in fact in this case you can actually here the starting bars of a popular song of the time 'Now that we found love by Heavy D).

This racial anger was supported by some wealthy Hutus, such as Felicien Kabuga (still wanted), who armed the angry mobs (an unofficial militia) called the Interahamwe or Those Who Attack Together. The trigger for the atrocities was a peace accord signed between the President of Rwanda Habyarimana and the RPF. Habyarimana had helped to foster the tensions by calling Tutsis RPF collaborators. Unfortunately, after signing the accord his plane was mysteriously shot down. His death was immediately blamed on the RPF and retribution would be swift and unjust.

The RTLM broadcasts demanded retribution and the unofficial militias began attacking all the Tutsis in their neighborhoods. Many reluctant Hutus were swept into the madness and the death toll quickly rose. The hate filled speech demanded the blood of all of the 'Cockroaches' and no one was spared the machete. Woman were repeatedly raped, some to death, and pregnant Tutsis were cut open to remove the fetus so they could be killed as well.

During this time the UN maintained a constant presence on the ground. The soldiers were ordered specifically not to shoot. Many watched hopelessly as Tutsis were butchered in front of them. Foreign forces moved in quickly to evacuate foreign citizens and then the Rwandans were left to themselves. While the world looked on the killing continued unabated for 100 days. Politicians talked, and talked, and did nothing. The UN was impotent, the 'security' council quickly ordered that the remaining UN forces be removed and people like Madelaine Albright, representing my country, stalled. French troops remained in Rwanda but offered no aid. The west went to great lengths to ignore the problem.

In the end, estimates of over 800,000 people were killed. 12% of the Rwandan population was decimated. The country was torn apart. The killing only stopped when the RPF forces arrived in the capital, Kigali, and seized power.

Rwanda currently continues to sit on a powder keg. Too much blood was spilt for the sins to be forgiven so quickly. Over 100,000 people remain in prison for their part in the massacres, but many leaders are still free. The tension will lie under the surface and we must never turn away again until peace is ensured. Of course we will look away as we are currently looking away in the Congo and the Sudan. Freedom isn't free is our rallying cry for Iraq yet no massacres were happening there. No genocides. When will the west pay for the damages to the beautiful continent of Africa.

For me the saddest part of this is that all the participants are victims. Africa has been raped and pillaged for so long all sense of humanity has been brushed away. The blood of the dead is on all our hands.

Check out the BBC site dedicated to the atrocities.

U2's trip (con't)
Topic: Travel
Once again I'm diverging to my good friends travels, enjoy!

... I saw some restaurant or something called Fifi recently, which of course made me laugh.

I won't be back until the end of July, so no 4th for me. Maybe I'll go to one of the popular "Yankee go home!" rallies instead.

Well, I probably have quite a few stories to tell so far, but I'll tell you about this afternoon. I decided to drive back to Trabzon from Erzurum early in the afternoon, to get over the coastal mountain range that gave me so many problems last week. Well, I was on track, when I picked up a farmer hitchhiker just outside of İspir, who then convinced me to stop and have some tea at his destination, which was no more than two or three kilometers from where I picked him up.

Well, over the next two hours we ate a huge pile of cherries from his trees, ate tomatoes, green peppers and cucumbers, a couple of eggs, bread, all along with a lot of tea. He and one of his sons then picked another few kilograms of cherries for me, and then if that wasn't enough, started shaking mulberries out of one of their trees for me. The only thing that stopped them was a thunderstorm that rolled into the valley. Anyways, he then took me up on my offer to drive him to his village, about two kilometers up the hillside. Just as it seemed I'd be on my way, he again convinced me to have "just one more glass of tea", so I ended up meeting his mother, wife, younger son, and daughter. Of course, the whole time I was grilled over my education, work, parents, their jobs, their parents, marital status, age, and the current ecomomic conditions in Canada. They found the word "okay" to be hilarious, because I apparently use it a lot. Well, with evening approaching, I again headed for the mountains, this time one pass east of the last one I went over. I thought I was homefree, when I came around a bend and saw the wall of fog ahead. This time, though, the road was fine all the way, with a few exceptions, and the biggest problem was looking out for the cows in the mist, trotting up the road out of the fog, then disappearing again into the ether...

I'm back in İstanbul tomorrow, thankfully for my pocketbook. Gas is USD 2 a litre here; did I mention that before? That explains the lack of cars on the highways here.

Nobel Prizes
Topic: History
While in Oslo we happened to arrive at the opening ceremony for the Nobel Peace Prize Museum. While there we listened to a few speeches by the director and I think members of the royal family. It was interesting and the web page is interesting as well. Compare the two pics. Which one did I take?






Anyway, the interesting thing in all of this is that many of the peace prize awardees haven't been so successful at creating peace, only fighting for it. That is most illustrated in the peace prize for the end to fighting in Israel. Anyhoo.

I have been to the mountain top and it is owned by Alfonso Bedoya.