Friday 12 April 2013
When war hawks pose as human rights officials . . .
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Obama/Kerry scramble to end squabbling among allies
to allow focus on Syria attack that will hike the 'Butcher Bill'
Russia and China flex their military muscle as they warn
the US to keep the international peace, especially in Syria
By Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya
Global Research

According to the Kremlin, the war games involved about 7,000 Russian servicemen; Russian Special Forces, Russian Marines, and airborne rapid deployment troops. All of Russia’s different services were involved and used the exercises to test their interoperability. Over thirty Russian warships based out of the Ukrainian port of Sevastopol in the Crimean Peninsula and the Russian port of Novorossiysk in Krasnodar Krai will be participating. The objective of the games are to show that Russia could mobilize for any event at a moments notice. (More)
A sportswriter takes on the myth of Margaret Thatcher
'Dear Friend' of Chilean butcher General Augusto Pinochet

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To play or not to play? is BBC's connundrum Ding Dong the Witch is Dead soars to No. 10 (and climbing) on English Charts
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Both quests are due to come to a head next weekend.
In Ottawa, the Liberals will finish voting on whether Justin Trudeau should be crowned their new chief.
Meanwhile, in Montreal, New Democrats will be wrestling with the thorny question of what they stand for.
Specifically, they will be debating — again — the preamble to their party’s constitution. (More)
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Venezuelans vote for a new president April 14 against a background
of lies bordering on hysterical by local and foreign mainstream media

"News is what (certain) people want to keep hidden. Everything else is just publicity."
-- PBS journalist Bill Moyers.
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A lost opportunity by First Nations?
Nishiyuu Walkers left their homes at the mouth of the Great Whale River on the eastern shore of Hudson Bay and took a 1,600 km walk through bitter winter to defend treaty rights in Ottawa. But they didn't get their 15-minutes of fame.

He had jog-thumped from Newfoundland to the Capital aiming to reach the Pacific Coast to raise attention for the need for funding for a lot more cancer research. He made it as far as Thunder Bay before cancer finally claimed him. His guts and determination made him a national hero.
Or to quote famed Second World War U.S. Admiral Bull Halsey, “There are no great men, just great challenges which ordinary men, out of necessity, are forced by circumstances to meet.” Winston Churchill had a similar tribute to bravery. (More)
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The press and the public are contained
as 'tar sands' oil soaks an Arkansas town
'Since ExxonMobil and its employees have not yet been convicted of committing a crime, it seems premature to consider jailing them'

Among the questions touched on in that piece were protecting the pipeline from terrorists, residents suing ExxonMobil in federal court, the nature of Wabasca Heavy tar sands oil, some effects of the spill, and the "martial law" atmosphere described by reporters trying to look at the cleanup site.
As the second week of toxic air in Mayflower begins, here are more of the questions this disaster raises and some of the current answers, subject to future refinement. A reader writes:
What is the point of origin of the leak? In front of whose house? Why no image of the hole in the ground or in the pipe? Was it corrosion, a weld failure, sabotage by cutting or explosives, or WHAT? Do we have to wait for NTSB for answers? Are ExxonMobil and their execs too big to jail?
The point of origin appears to be in the woods, behind the houses, and underground. The absence of images is unexplained. (More)
Geneviève Hone introduces herself and her new column with all due modesty
Granny Witch has something to say


Study nature, love nature, stay close to nature. It will never fail you. (Frank Lloyd Wright)
By Alberte Villeneuve-Sinclair
True North Perspective
Alberte Villeneuve-Sinclair is the author of The Neglected Garden and two French novels. Visit her website to learn more www.albertevilleneuve.ca.
12 April 2013 — Fed up with winter? I hear you! I came home from an eleven-day Barbados vacation in mid-February to delays in Toronto because of snow and -22C weather. The next day was a chilly -29C. I wanted to go back to Barbados’ sunny weather of 27 to 30C.
And I wasn’t the only one complaining! A Citizen’s March 23 article read: “Punxsutawney Phil indicted over spring forecast”. Amanda Lee Myers and Mark Scolforo suggested Phil, the Ohio groundhog, might want to go back into hibernation.
Spirit Quest
Self respect was the issue for the Nishiyuu Walkers
12 April 2013 — By now the Cree youths have arrived back home. This time not on foot over ice and snow and hard ground the way they came. I have not heard but I surmise that they returned by more modern modes of transportation.
Did their winter odyssey change anything? Undoubtedly that question has been asked many times. Will the Journey of Nishiyuu (the Journey of the People) have accomplished anything at all? Will it have made a visible impact on Indian and non-Indian relations, on the way the government treats the First Nations and have done so from time immemorial. Doubtless their appearance in the various communities through which they passed made an enormous impact on the residents causing some to leave home and join their ranks. Their numbers had grown to hundreds. (More)
Frances Sedgwick is on a working holiday so here is a ParkTales classic
Friday 28 May 2010
It's been years now since my husband Paul had a stroke.
When I was looking after him at home I used to take him for walks in the neighbourhood and we would end up sitting on a bench in front of Parkdale Collegiate, and enjoy watching and talking with the children.
Many students remembered Paul as the man who had helped save their school.
As I walk by the schoolyard now, I see the basketball players have returned. In this case mostly Tibetan. There is a large community from Tibet in Parkdale.
One young man from Tibet gave me a refresher course in driving and much to his dismay, and to my delight, I failed both tests.
Such a gentle young man. He would tell me his problems while I was driving.
"You know Fran, what should I do? My girlfriend used my cell phone to phone Tibet!!"
I looked at him, thinking that in my day we sure never had problems like that. We didn't even have a phone let alone a cell phone. I smiled and said the obvious, "Don't let her use it."
On this walk, as I looked at Parkdale Collegiate, I thought to myself, this school may not have been here but for the will of the people in the community.
I recalled attending a meeting to save the school. There had been government cutbacks and they were trying to save money by closing schools. I remember the principal saying that there were over 127 nationalities represented at the school and 57 different languages spoken.
I marvelled at this at the time and still do, as I look at the school today seeing the sign "Registration Starts May 1." (More)
Beating the Drum
Friday 27 July 2012 -
It was a week of interesting articles in First Nations country this week. Justin Bieber lead the way by announcing in a Rolling Stone article that he believes that he has Indian or Inuit heritage and apparently it is enough to get him free gas. This of course sparked outrage among some First Nations and called for a public apology. (More)
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Cross Town with Carl Dow
I reiterate that there must be full emphasis on quality words
no matter in what way, shape or form that they may appear
Being fundamentally conservative, and I'm not talking politics here, although John Diefenbaker will always be one of my favourite politicians, I'm talking of resisting change simply for the sake of change.
This time it's about words. One time, while working my way through a 40-pounder of brandy, I remember thinking, words are so beautiful, if they didn't exist I'd invent them. So I take offense when they are abused
In my early days in journalism my attention was often caught by politicians who would declare that they would support or oppose something in any way, shape or form. It took a great deal of restraint to not challenge the speaker to explain what was the difference in meaning between the words shape and form? There is no difference. They mean the same thing. But the speaker would use the phrase as if he was making profound use of the English language.
Speaking profoundly, another politician would say at this point in time. I would think, what's the matter with the word now? (More)
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From the Desk of Darren Jerome
A continuing update on the war against WikiLeaks transparency
Please be advised that the below is not just the same old thing. By clicking on it you'll find the petition in support of Julian Assange and discover fascinating on-going reports and videos related to one of the most important events in modern history, and the desperate attempts to put a lid on information that everyone should know. Don't miss this special opportunity to stay informed.
There can be no life without laughter
From the Desk of Nick Aplin
A Chinese Ming Vase is up for auction. The bidding opens at a half-million Euro. Bidding is brisk and each bidder is clearly identified as each raises the bid by 100,000 Euro. Within seconds, the bid stalls at one million Euro, and the gasp from the crowd identifies the excitement that prevails in the room. The successful bidder is the last one who bid one million, and the auctioneer counts down the bid, "Going once, going twice, and sold to the gentleman sitting in front of me for one million Euro."
Now, you are going to have to see the video for yourself. The auctioneer is exuberant. The pace is fast. This is how an auction should be run. Note the excitement on the auctioneers face after the final bid.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3e0yZCLjwfU
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Naked breasts blind Russian President Vladimir Putin
while display offends German Chancellor Angela Merkel
German Chancellor Angela Merkel walked with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Hannover Fair in Germany on Monday 08 April. Several activists from Ukraine's Femen group bared their breasts and shouted Putin Dictator! Putin smiled and said it was good publicity for the Fair but suggested politics were better discussed fully clothed. 'I can't remember whether they were blondes or brunettes.' Chancellor Merkel was not amused. “Whether one has to resort to such an emergency measure in Germany and can’t say one’s piece some other way, I have my doubts,” she said. The girls were immediately detained by police.
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Church notices
• The sermon this morning: Jesus Walks on the Water. The sermon
tonight: Searching for Jesus.
• For those of you who have children and don't know it, we have a
nursery downstairs.
• Low Self Esteem Support Group will meet Thursday at 7 PM . Please
use the back door.
By Mark Kearney and Randy Ray
Mark Kearney of London, Ont. and Randy Ray of Ottawa are the authors of nine books about Canada, with best-seller sales of more than 50,000. Their Web site is: www.triviaguys.com
Get in the swing to make the cut
April is here and with it thoughts of hitting the links and attempting to shave a few strokes off our scores once we haul the clubs out of the basement.
To get you into the spirit of a fresh season of golf, we’ve teed up a quiz to test your knowledge of Canadian golf history. As some of the world’s greats begin rattling off birdies and eagles at this weekend’s Masters tournament in Augusta, Georgia, take a swing at some of these puzzlers and see if you can score well enough to make the cut.
1. John H. Oke captured the first Canadian Open in 1904. How much did he win?
a) no money, just a trophy b) $20 and pocket watch c) $60 d) $100
2. Sherri Turner is one of only two LPGA players with two career double-eagles. The other is a Canadian. Is it:
a) Lorie Kane b) Dawn Coe-Jones c) Gail Graham d) Sandra Post
3. True or false. Pat Fletcher, who on the Canadian Open in 1954 at the Vancouver Point Grey Golf Club, was the last Canadian-born player to win the championship.
4. In 1932, Sandy Somerville of London, Ont. became the first Canadian to win the U.S. Amateur Golf Championship. But he was also the first golfer to do this at the Masters in Augusta, Georgia.
a) score a hole in one b) complete 18 holes at the first Masters c) be disqualified d) play a round without a caddy
5. George S. Lyon of Toronto is the only man to ever win a gold medal in golf at the Olympics. True or false.
6. In 1977, the Glen Abbey Golf Club, designed by Jack Nicklaus, hosted the Canadian Open for the first time. Who won the tournament that year?
a) Lee Trevino b) Tom Watson c) Tom Weiskopf d) Lanny Wadkins
7. Name at least one of the two Canadian golfers who teamed up to win the World Cup of Golf in Rome in 1968 – the first time Canadians ever won the event.
8. When Bob Panasiuk of Windsor, Ont. played the Canadian Open in 1957, he became the youngest player ever to make the cut at a PGA event. How old was he?
a) 12 b) 15 c) 17 d) 19
9. The Links O’Tay Golf & Country Club is the oldest golf course on a permanent site in Canada. Where is it located?
a) Windsor, N.S. b) Fredericton, N.B c) Pointe Claire, Que. d) Perth, Ont.
10. When Canada’s Mike Weir won the Masters, he was the first left-hander to win a major tournament. True or false?
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University of London psychologists measured the facial width-to-height ratio, or fWHR, of 104 batters in Japan's professional Central League Pennant who played in the 2011 and 2012 seasons.
In both seasons, the players who scored the most home runs had the highest fWHR, said the study in the Royal Society journal Biology Letters. (More)
They didn't ask for it but 'Cuban Diet' saw weight loss
accompanied by sharp fall in diabetes and heart attacks

In a unique natural experiment, externally imposed, researchers have observed how a nation lost an average of 5kg per head over five years, contributing to a halving of the death rate from diabetes and a one third reduction in deaths from heart disease.
The natural experiment occurred in Cuba which was plunged into crisis in the early 1990s following the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Its experience demonstrates what could be achieved elsewhere if the same changes could be brought about, without an economic crisis. (More)
After three-year strike, Mexican workers
win ownership of shuttered factory

Mining licence approved in wake of violence
while investigation into murder is pending
Mining Watch Canada
08 April 2013 WASHINGTON DC — After more than two years of delay, the Guatemalan Minister of Energy and Mines (MEM) announced on Wednesday, April 3, that it had approved the exploitation licence for Tahoe Resources' Escobal mine in San Rafael Las Flores, Guatemala.
The announcement comes less than two weeks after four indigenous Xinca leaders were abducted while returning from a community referendum in El Volcancito, in which more than 99 percent voted against the Escobal project. One of those abducted was found dead the next day. (More)
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By Giuliana Sgrena

In the spirit of Berezovsky the Bush attack on Iraq
was not to own oil but to control production and price

I closed in. I said I wanted to make sure she and I were working from the same State Department draft. Could she tell me the official name, date and number of pages? She did.
Bingo! I'd just beaten the Military-Petroleum Complex in a lying contest, so I had a right to be stoked.
After phoning numbers from California to Kazakhstan to trick my mark, my next calls were to the State Department and Pentagon. Now that I had the specs on the scheme for Iraq's oil — that State and Defense Department swore, in writing, did not exist — I told them I'd appreciate their handing over a copy (no expurgations, please) or there would be a very embarrassing story on BBC Newsnight. (More)
Obama administration lied about who Drones kill

Contradicting previous rhetoric claiming the U.S.’s targeted killing program only targets “specific senior operational leaders of al-Qaida and associated forces,” the documents corroborate existing reports that hundreds of “other” Pakistanis and Afghans have died at the hands of the Obama administration’s drone attacks. McClatchy’s analysis goes into numbers and details: (More)


Friction emerged before the Dublin meeting as France's budget minister warned Austria it could be blacklisted if it refused to share information on EU citizens' bank accounts, a threat Vienna dismissed as an “improper diversionary tactic”.
Isolated in the European Union following Luxembourg's move this week to share foreigners' bank data to foil tax cheats, Austria's finance minister said she might discuss a change of tack, but insisted it could not be a “one-way street” and accused London and Washington of failing to close international tax loopholes in the likes of Delaware and the Channel Islands. (More)
How and what the rich buy, live-in, and sell
Top ten real estate deals in the United States
Hot Home News: Jackie's Mom, Rita Rudner and Fifty Shades Of Grey Penthouse
This week at TopTenRealEstateDeals.com we take a look at the just sold $8.6 million Georgetown home that Jacqueline Kennedy's mother, Janet Lee Auchincloss, purchased during John F. Kennedy’s presidency. Its history also includes Martha Washington’s great great granddaughter; the first mayor of Georgetown; and Laughlin Phillips, former CIA operative, founder of Washingtonian magazine and head of the family's Phillips Collection — the first American modern art museum. Hillary Clinton considered buying this home in 2000 following her election to the U.S. Senate.
In other home new:
The setting for the steamy Fifty Shades Of Grey novel is a stunning penthouse on top of Escala, Seattle’s new high rise condo in the heart of downtown. It was picture perfect for the character Christian Grey and is now that for the new owners, who paid $6.2 million to acquire the fantasy laden condo. The 5,100 square-foot home in the sky has stunning views over Elliott Bay, the Olympic mountains and downtown. It is the highest price ever paid for a condo in Seattle.
The 1920's era Villa Lauriston estate was built by Herbert Edwards Law, a San Francisco capitalist better known for purchasing the historic Fairmont Hotel just days before the 1906 earthquake. Unlike his peers who built their mansions in the city, Law chose to build his 16,000 square foot home in the rolling hills to the south in today’s Silicon Valley. Law made many trips to Europe where he acquired marble flooring, fountains and statuary, wrought iron gates, leaded and stained glass windows, brass hardware, bronze and crystal light fixtures, paintings and artwork. Villa Lauriston was for sale at $20 million, now going to auction.
Also, Rita Rudner has made a funny video to help sell her $8.975 million California beach home, and Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy are Florida neighbors with new homes who will be competing this week in The Masters.
Real estate is never boring at TopTenRealEstateDeals. Check out today's most entertaining and unusual real estate news stories of the week. News such as weird celebrity homes, haunted homes you can actually buy, and dirty real estate tricks.
TopTenRealEstateDeals.com also features Top 10 Condo Developer Deals, Top 10 upcoming home and condo auctions, and regional real estate agents' choices for the best deals in their areas.
Contact:
Terry Walsh
Marketing Coordinator
terry@toptenrealestatedeals.com