Expat Texan

Read the comments.

Perhaps it would be useful to pause and remember the sacrifices made to protect freedom of speech, and other basic human rights.

“We are on high ground overlooking the front and have a grandstand view of the battle up ahead. We have a wonderful artillery barrage and swell support from the Typhoons and Spits of the R.A.F. and R.C.A.F. They sure make a grand sight with their rockets, bombs and cannon. No air opposition and very little flak.”

Of course, some would prefer we forget the sacrifices made and rewrite history to be much more sympathetic to the “other side”.

…it is Ferguson’s revisionist view of the tactics applied by the Allies in World War II that is likely to raise the hackles of those who have always believed in the “necessity” of bombing German and Japanese civilians, culminating in the atomic attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, to end a war we did not start.

“I think it’s very hard for those who have imbibed the idea of a ‘great generation’ that what the Allies did to defeat the Axis was in some measure to adopt totalitarian tactics,” Ferguson says in a Q&A on PBS’s Web site.

Ferguson, obviously, does not abide my any such nonsense as a “greatest generation“.  From Ferguson’s perspective, it’s OK to admit that Hitler was bad - as long as we accept that the allies were just as bad - if not worse.

Let’s see.  Canadian female blogger finds a hateful Sikh Facebook site directed towards a CBC commentator, who’s crime is to do a report on Sikh extremism.  Sikh’s get upset at being exposed, and threaten said blogger, accusing her of fomenting hatred (yes, I know - irony is apparently not a Sikh strongpoint)   Juvenile veiled threats (and perhaps some not so veiled) follow in comments.  Brave Sikh’s avenge their honor by making anonymous threats on the internet.  Hooray!  Manly celebrations and chest thumpigs cut short when their moms call them to dinner.

Why can’t we protect ourselves?

Toronto’s ban is irrational as it fails to tackle urban gun crime. Canada should look to the United Kingdom and elsewhere to see that firearm control bears no relation to gun crime prevention. Our own gun registry has done nothing to stop gun crime

Speaking of the Royal Tyrrell Museum, perhaps we could take up a collection for the CDN$10 admission fee and let Al Gore roam the halls for a bit (apologies for the flash - the obliterated word is Ocean)

Oh, yeah - there were other things to see there, too:

Yesterday he took a little trip to Drumheller - the home of the Royal Tyrrell Museum. The museum is a beautiful structure, with an impressive array of specimens.

The town of Drumheller is in the Badlands, themselves impressive.  The HooDoos are my favorite.

Apparently the GTA has a wee bit of a polygamist outbreak as well.

It was easy. He simply found an imam willing to break a Canadian law, in exchange for upholding an Islamic one.

“Polygamy is happening in Toronto; it’s not common, but it’s happening,” said Hindy, imam at Salahuddin Islamic Centre.

Hindy, hardly a stranger to controversy, is well known for his friendship with the family of Omar Khadr, the young Canadian detainee at Guantanamo Bay, and his outspoken views on the implementation of Islamic law. In the past five years, Hindy said he has officiated or “blessed” more than 30 polygamous marriages; the most recent was two months ago. Even some imams in the GTA have second wives, he added.

“This is in our religion and nobody can force us to do anything against our religion,” he said. “If the laws of the country conflict with Islamic law, if one goes against the other, then I am going to follow Islamic law, simple as that.” (emphasis added)

The inevitable result of what happens when you favor multiculturalism over assimilation.  It will be intersting to see how the Mormons will be treated, now that the idea of banning polygamy may be labeled, in some circles, as Islamophobic.

It all makes perfect sense.

More than 100 Canadian women with high-risk pregnancies have been sent to United States hospitals over the past year–in what a doctors’ group attributes to the lack of a national birthing plan.

The problem has peaked, with British Columbia and Ontario each sending a record number of women to U.S. neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). Specifically, 80 B.C. women have been sent to U.S. hospitals since April 1, 2007; in Ontario, 28 have been sent since January of 2007, according to figures from the respective health ministries.

The inescapable conclusion?

Read between the lines, and you realize this is a sinister Canadian plot to take over America. Canada’s military is no match for ours, so the crafty Canucks are using infancy instead of infantry to carry out their imperial designs.

Sneaky Canadians with their imperial designs.

But only after labeling them Islamophobes and haters.

Even though the Commission is not proceeding with these complaints, it
still has a broader role in addressing the tension and conflict that such
writings cause in the community and the impact that they have on the groups
that are being singled out.

While freedom of expression must be recognized as a cornerstone of a
functioning democracy, the Commission strongly condemns the Islamophobic
portrayal of Muslims, Arabs, South Asians and indeed any racialized community
in the media, such as the Maclean’s article and others like them, as being
inconsistent with the values enshrined in our human rights codes. Media has a
responsibility to engage in fair and unbiased journalism.

Just remember that when anyone tells you that you are unbiased, what they really mean is that you share the same biases as they.

UPDATE:

As Steyn notes - the HRC’s are capable of learning.  Not willing to get smashed in the court of public opinion while pursuing this, they instead drop the case while declaring the defendants guilty as charged! Ingenious!  And cowardly!

So, having concluded they couldn’t withstand the heat of a trial, the OHRC cut to the chase and gave us a drive-thru conviction. Who says Canada’s “human rights” racket is incapable of reform? As kangaroo courts go, the Ontario branch is showing a bit more bounce than the Ottawa lads.

I’d be interested to know whether the Justice Minister of Ontario thinks this is appropriate behaviour. At one level, Chief Commissioner Barbara Hall appears to have deprived Maclean’s and me of the constitutional right to the presumption of innocence and the right to face our accusers. But, at another, it seems clear the OHRC enforcers didn’t fancy their chances in open court.

An increase in gun crime in Calgary?  A 30% increase?  But what about gun control and that fancy new (overbudget) firearms registry?

“We can look at numbers on a page, but the data translates to increased public safety concerns and increased officer safety concerns,” he said.

“We should all … be concerned about this change and condemn it.”

 It always surprises gun control advocates to learn that criminals really don’t care about gun control laws, and aren’t too keen on registering their firearms, either.  Maybe Calgary needs to implement more draconian gun control measures.  I mean, look what they’ve done for Washington, DC.