The proposed Charter of Québec values has rung the bell of the lamestream media and the chattering classes, both in la Belle Province and in TROC (The Rest of Canada). Those calling it "racist", "anti-Muslim", and "unhelpful" -- you know the list of epithets -- include the Federation of Québec School Boards, the association representing the province's health care industry, and even the Québec Bar Association, which says the Charter will certainly be challenged in the courts.
What's really causing those who celebrate diversity to soil their silkies is the possibility that the Parti Québecois -- presently a minority government -- will call a snap election with the Charter (and only that) as the ballot question. Latest polls put the PQ in first place (ahead of the Liberals), with 36% of decided voters likely to back them. If polling day results reflect those numbers, the PQ would be returned with a majority.
Why? Because the real people of Québec -- even in the "culturally diverse" Montréal region -- overwhelmingly support the proposal. On Monday, a Léger poll found that that 60% Québecois back the Charter. Among the crucial francophone voters, that number rises to just short of 70%!
It's real people -- like the Pineault-Caron family, from the Saguenay town of Sacré-Coeur -- who are speaking out against religious and cultural "accommodation", meaning the stealthy Islamization of their heretofore white Christian society. The video of part of their testimony about the upsetting sights and sounds of Islam they suffered during their travels in Morocco and Turkey — and their conclusion that it is "unthinkable" to allow people in such "disguises" to roam around in public in Québec — became a YouTube sensation, registering over 300,000 hits so far.
Some Québecois see the charter as little more than an electoral ploy. The pundits and "progressive thinkers" of the anglophone media accuse the PQ of playing the "politics of division", to get back the francophone vote they lost to the Coalition Avenir Quebec in the last election. If that's the plan, it's working; the Leger poll says support for the CAQ is down 10 points from the 2012 election.
What about a court challenge, if the Charter is enacted? For the liberals and diversity-lovers, the wish will almost certainly be father to the thought and grandfather to court challenges under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Such action would bring the whole issue of diversity and "accommodation" not just to the Supreme Court of Canada (ultimately) but to the attention of the real people in TROC. According to Walt's Canuck agents, there are a great many -- outside of Toronto, the font of all evil -- who would be happy to see a similar law in force all over the Great Not-so-white North.
Further reading on WWW: "What Québec's new Charter of Values will and will not do"
Thursday, January 23, 2014
Monday, January 20, 2014
Ex-chief of Swiss Guard confirms existence of "homolobby" at Vatican
"I know from personal experience that the gay lobby exists," Herr Mäder told the Swiss weekly Schweiz am Sonntag, according to a report on Kerknet, the website of the Church in Flanders. He was responding to questions about reports in which an unidentified member of the Swiss Guard had claimed that he had been the target of sexual advances made by a number of officials of the Curia.
Herr Mäder went on to say that active homosexuals [as opposed to passive homosexuals? Ed.] within the Vatican comprise a virtual "secret society". Because they are more loyal to each other than the Holy See, he added, "it becomes a security risk."
In June 2013, while discussing problems within the Roman Curia during a conversation with religious leaders from Latin America, Pope Francis alluded to the same problem. "There is talk about a 'gay lobby'," he said, "and it's true, that exists."
Neither the Holy Father nor Herr Mäder mentioned the name of Msgr Alan McCormack (pictured), an official in the Chancery of the Archdiocese of Toronto until he was transferred to... wait for it... the office of the Congregation for the Defence of the Faith in Rome in the wake of a libel action by Father Nicholas Gruner.
In 2004, after the court action had been kicked into the long grass, Msgr. McCormack returned to Canada as Judicial Vicar of the Canadian Appeal Tribunal, a position which placed him about as far from the public eye -- and any parish -- as a priest can get. Msgr. McCormack resigned from that post on 29 February 2012. Walt does not know if he returned to the Vatican or not.
Further reading on WWW: "Vatican insider identifies 'prelate of the gay lobby'"
Sunday, January 19, 2014
VIDEO: Culture clash! Québécois uncomfortable with Muslims importing their customs to Canada
The Québec National Assembly's Committee on Institutions has now begun hearings on the province's proposed Charter of Québec Values. If passed into law, the Charter would affirm the secular humanist values of "modern Québec" and severely restrict the religious and cultural "accommodation" of immigrants and religious minorities.
For example, the Charter would ban the wearing by public servants of overtly religious symbols, particularly headgear such as turbans and hijabs. See "What Québec's new Charter of Values will and will not do".
The proposed Charter has been denounced by the usual suspects as racist, anti-Semitic, anti-Muslim, anti-Sikh, ŷada yada yada. It can certainly be seen as blowback against political correctness, multiculturalism and the "celebration of diversity" which the Canadian government keeps saying is good for the country. The Bloc Québécois government itself has warned the vizmins that they'd better accommodate themselves to the values of their adopted country, not the other way around. See "Accept Québec values, black PQ minister warns immigrants".
The hearings now being held in the provincial capital are an opportunity for everyone -- not just the usual coterie of pundits, politicians and other "experts" -- to express their opinions. Even ordinary people are allowed to speak. Three such "real people" appeared on the 16th. Here's a short video of the testimony of Geneviève Caron and Claude Pineault, telling the commission about their experience travelling to Morocco and Turkey, countries that have a large Muslim majority.
For those who have difficulty understanding Québec French, Ed. has posted (below) a transcript of M Pineault's remarks, from Hansard, the official record of the proceedings. We'll add a précis, in English, below the video.
Recounting her visit to a mosque in Morocco, where she was asked to remove her shoes, Mme Caron said she reluctantly gave up her footwear, following the customary Muslim practice, only to find women and men praying on their hands and knees in separate quarters of the temple. "I remained really marked by this," she continued. "I got back on the bus and said, 'Could this be? Praying on all fours on a carpet?'".
M Pineault, her husband, spoke about visiting an open-air market in Tangier. While looking for souvenirs to buy, he had his pocket picked by two people who were wearing some kind of religious headgear. "Who was under these disguises? Women? Men? I don’t know." he said. "What I do know, is that it’s unthinkable to allow people to walk around in Quebec, in the streets, in public places — really anywhere besides homes and private places — with such disguises."
Bernard Drainville, the minister responsible for getting the Charter through the National Assembly, replied that many Muslims who come to Québec integrate quite well. He told M Pineault that he didn't want to send the message that people from other countries are a menace to Québec society.
The hearings continue.
Further reading on WWW: "Nobody likes the Charter of Québec Values...except the people!"
For example, the Charter would ban the wearing by public servants of overtly religious symbols, particularly headgear such as turbans and hijabs. See "What Québec's new Charter of Values will and will not do".
The proposed Charter has been denounced by the usual suspects as racist, anti-Semitic, anti-Muslim, anti-Sikh, ŷada yada yada. It can certainly be seen as blowback against political correctness, multiculturalism and the "celebration of diversity" which the Canadian government keeps saying is good for the country. The Bloc Québécois government itself has warned the vizmins that they'd better accommodate themselves to the values of their adopted country, not the other way around. See "Accept Québec values, black PQ minister warns immigrants".
The hearings now being held in the provincial capital are an opportunity for everyone -- not just the usual coterie of pundits, politicians and other "experts" -- to express their opinions. Even ordinary people are allowed to speak. Three such "real people" appeared on the 16th. Here's a short video of the testimony of Geneviève Caron and Claude Pineault, telling the commission about their experience travelling to Morocco and Turkey, countries that have a large Muslim majority.
For those who have difficulty understanding Québec French, Ed. has posted (below) a transcript of M Pineault's remarks, from Hansard, the official record of the proceedings. We'll add a précis, in English, below the video.
Recounting her visit to a mosque in Morocco, where she was asked to remove her shoes, Mme Caron said she reluctantly gave up her footwear, following the customary Muslim practice, only to find women and men praying on their hands and knees in separate quarters of the temple. "I remained really marked by this," she continued. "I got back on the bus and said, 'Could this be? Praying on all fours on a carpet?'".
M Pineault, her husband, spoke about visiting an open-air market in Tangier. While looking for souvenirs to buy, he had his pocket picked by two people who were wearing some kind of religious headgear. "Who was under these disguises? Women? Men? I don’t know." he said. "What I do know, is that it’s unthinkable to allow people to walk around in Quebec, in the streets, in public places — really anywhere besides homes and private places — with such disguises."
Bernard Drainville, the minister responsible for getting the Charter through the National Assembly, replied that many Muslims who come to Québec integrate quite well. He told M Pineault that he didn't want to send the message that people from other countries are a menace to Québec society.
The hearings continue.
Further reading on WWW: "Nobody likes the Charter of Québec Values...except the people!"
Extrait du Journal des débats (Hansard) of the Committee on Institutions (Québec)
Note from Ed.: What's this all about, I hear you ask. Well, back in September the government of Québec proposed to enact a Charter of Québec Values, which would affirm the secular humanist values of "modern Québec" and severely restrict the religious and cultural "accommodation" of immigrants and religious minorities.
For example, the Charter would ban the wearing by public servants of overtly religious symbols, particularly headgear such as turbans and hijabs. See "What Québec's new Charter of Values will and will not do".
The proposed Charter was seen by many as a backlash against political correctness, multiculturalism and the "celebration of diversity". It was denounced by the usual gang of "progressive thinkers" as a message from the French-speaking, nominally Catholic majority to the vizmins that they'd better accommodate themselves to the values of their adopted country, not the other way around. See "Accept Québec values, black PQ minister warns immigrants".
The Québec National Assembly's Committee on Institutions has now begun hearings on the proposed law, inviting submissions, pro and con, from all and sundry -- not just the usual coterie of pundits, politicians and other "experts". Even ordinary people are allowed to speak. Three such "real people" appeared on the 16th, to share their opinions and experiences with "accommodation" in Canada and in countries where Islam rules.
In the following post, I'm going to embed a video so you can see and hear the testimony of Claude Pineault and Geneviève Caron. M Pineault asked the Committee had some pointed questions. For our readers who struggle with le français tel qu'on le parle au Québec, I'm posting this transcript from Hansard, the official record of the proceedings. Those who wish to have a translation into English or Arabic are advised to use Google Translator. You're welcome.
Le Président (M. Ferland) : Alors, la commission va reprendre ses travaux. Je demande aux gens de reprendre leur siège, s'il vous plaît. Maintenant, nous allons recevoir M. Claude Pineault pour sa présentation. En vous mentionnant que vous disposez d'un délai de 10 minutes pour la présentation de votre mémoire, suivi de l'échange. Et je vous demanderais peut-être de présenter les personnes qui vous accompagnent. Alors, M. Pineault, la parole est à vous.
M. Pineault (Claude) : Oui, merci de nous permettre de donner notre point de vue. Je suis accompagné de mon épouse, Geneviève Caron, et d'une de mes filles, Manon Pineault.... Je vous présente mon mémoire. Je désire présenter moi-même mon mémoire à la commission. Je ne suis pas un expert, comme certains semblent se définir, mais je suis capable de faire mon choix personnellement.
J'ai visité plusieurs pays où il y a différentes religions telles que protestantes, orthodoxes, surtout musulmanes, exemple, le Maroc, la Turquie et la Tunisie. Au Maroc, à Tanger, j'étais dans un souk à choisir des souvenirs, on me fouille du côté droit. Je croyais que c'était mon épouse, mais on me fouille aussi du côté gauche. Je regarde; je vois deux personnes avec des cagoules sur la tête. Je les ai repoussées, et elles se sont sauvées. Qui était sous ces déguisements, des femmes, des hommes? Je ne sais pas. Mais ce que je sais, c'est qu'il est impensable de permettre à des personnes de se promener au Québec, dans les rues, les endroits publics, enfin, nulle part sauf dans les résidences ou les endroits privés, avec de tels déguisements.
En Turquie, à la fête du sacrifice, dans la région de l'Anatolie, j'ai vu des milliers brebis et autres animaux arriver par camion pour la fête du sacrifice. Le lendemain, j'ai vu le sang de ces bêtes couler dans les rues. À Istanbul, belle ville, mais les minarets répartis un peu partout dans la ville où les muezzins ou crieurs font entendre leur sirène, leur chant plusieurs fois jour et nuit; c'est très dérangeant.
Il y a environ 20 ans, je me promenais seul dans les rues de Montréal et j'étais en sécurité. Mais plus maintenant, car les gangs de rue ont pris le contrôle. Et là, certains organismes et dirigeants de partis politiques, dans le but de se faire élire ou réélire, sont prêts à nous faire reculer de 1 000 ans en arrière ou plus avec des guerres de religion. En Turquie, j'ai visité des tunnels à la Ben Laden, des troglodytes, des maisons creusées dans la pierre et des églises aussi creusées dans la pierre, pour se protéger des autres religions. C'est ce recul que même nos anciens dirigeants veulent nous faire accepter. Je suis convaincu que ces derniers, lorsqu'ils ont visité ces pays, ils sont restés dans les grandes villes.
Je ne peux comprendre que la charte sur la laïcité, ce sera plutôt…que même nos anciens dirigeants veulent nous faire accepter. Je suis convaincu que ces derniers, lorsqu'ils ont visité ces pays, ils sont restés dans les grandes villes. Je ne peux comprendre que la Charte sur la laïcité, ce sera plutôt une charte sur la religion. La religion, ça, ça doit se passer dans les églises, les temples, dans le privé et… car c'est personnel. Si vous êtes obligés de faire des compromis inacceptables, laissez tomber cette charte ou faites-en un enjeu électoral.
Il est possible que la… Est-il possible que la secte du Temple solaire soit de retour parmi nous? Si une personne avec une cagoule a le droit de se promener en public et même de voter aux élections, pourquoi moi, je n'aurais pas le même droit car je suis un métis ou, si vous aimez mieux, un autochtone? Et si on recule dans le temps, nos ancêtres — et moi aussi — on portait une gaine à la hanche — un poignard, si vous voulez — un mouchoir au cou, et nous pouvions relever ce mouchoir à la hauteur des yeux quand nécessaire. Aujourd'hui, un métis ou un autochtone doit prouver ses origines pour avoir des droits au Québec et au Canada. Pourquoi cela n'est pas nécessaire pour les personnes venues d'ailleurs?
Certains se plaignent qu'il y a du racisme au Québec. Eh bien oui, c'est vrai qu'il y en a, mais il provient des groupes qui viennent s'établir au Québec après plusieurs années, refusent de s'intégrer, nos coutumes, notre langue, et même demandent à ce que ce soit nous qui vivent suivant leurs coutumes. Si je vais me faire soigner par une personne supposée d'être un médecin, féminin ou masculin, portant un niqab et que moi aussi j'en porte un, qui sera sous les déguisements? Vous voyez l'aberration, le ridicule que certains politiciens veulent nous faire vivre au Québec?
Je demande à la population du Québec de remettre à leur place les politiciens qui ont perdu le sens des responsabilités qui leur incombe. Et même vous, du Parti québécois, permettre le port du niqab en déguisement dans les rues, c'est inacceptable car qui sera sous ce déguisement, encore une fois?
Présentement, le 11 décembre 2013, vous pouvez consulter la radio internationale de Radio-Canada un reportage sur le centre africain où il y a eu des lynchages, des pillages… appels à la reine… à la haine, excusez, entre chrétiens et musulmans. Aussi, le ministère canadien des Affaires étrangères demande aux Canadiens d'éviter les voyages en République centrafricaine.
Aussi, en Europe, il y a des problèmes avec les religions. La France, l'Allemagne, enfin pratiquement tous les pays. C'est cela que nos dirigeants veulent nous laisser en héritage, à nos enfants et à nos petits-enfants? Moi pas.
For example, the Charter would ban the wearing by public servants of overtly religious symbols, particularly headgear such as turbans and hijabs. See "What Québec's new Charter of Values will and will not do".
The proposed Charter was seen by many as a backlash against political correctness, multiculturalism and the "celebration of diversity". It was denounced by the usual gang of "progressive thinkers" as a message from the French-speaking, nominally Catholic majority to the vizmins that they'd better accommodate themselves to the values of their adopted country, not the other way around. See "Accept Québec values, black PQ minister warns immigrants".
The Québec National Assembly's Committee on Institutions has now begun hearings on the proposed law, inviting submissions, pro and con, from all and sundry -- not just the usual coterie of pundits, politicians and other "experts". Even ordinary people are allowed to speak. Three such "real people" appeared on the 16th, to share their opinions and experiences with "accommodation" in Canada and in countries where Islam rules.
In the following post, I'm going to embed a video so you can see and hear the testimony of Claude Pineault and Geneviève Caron. M Pineault asked the Committee had some pointed questions. For our readers who struggle with le français tel qu'on le parle au Québec, I'm posting this transcript from Hansard, the official record of the proceedings. Those who wish to have a translation into English or Arabic are advised to use Google Translator. You're welcome.
Le Président (M. Ferland) : Alors, la commission va reprendre ses travaux. Je demande aux gens de reprendre leur siège, s'il vous plaît. Maintenant, nous allons recevoir M. Claude Pineault pour sa présentation. En vous mentionnant que vous disposez d'un délai de 10 minutes pour la présentation de votre mémoire, suivi de l'échange. Et je vous demanderais peut-être de présenter les personnes qui vous accompagnent. Alors, M. Pineault, la parole est à vous.
M. Pineault (Claude) : Oui, merci de nous permettre de donner notre point de vue. Je suis accompagné de mon épouse, Geneviève Caron, et d'une de mes filles, Manon Pineault.... Je vous présente mon mémoire. Je désire présenter moi-même mon mémoire à la commission. Je ne suis pas un expert, comme certains semblent se définir, mais je suis capable de faire mon choix personnellement.
J'ai visité plusieurs pays où il y a différentes religions telles que protestantes, orthodoxes, surtout musulmanes, exemple, le Maroc, la Turquie et la Tunisie. Au Maroc, à Tanger, j'étais dans un souk à choisir des souvenirs, on me fouille du côté droit. Je croyais que c'était mon épouse, mais on me fouille aussi du côté gauche. Je regarde; je vois deux personnes avec des cagoules sur la tête. Je les ai repoussées, et elles se sont sauvées. Qui était sous ces déguisements, des femmes, des hommes? Je ne sais pas. Mais ce que je sais, c'est qu'il est impensable de permettre à des personnes de se promener au Québec, dans les rues, les endroits publics, enfin, nulle part sauf dans les résidences ou les endroits privés, avec de tels déguisements.
En Turquie, à la fête du sacrifice, dans la région de l'Anatolie, j'ai vu des milliers brebis et autres animaux arriver par camion pour la fête du sacrifice. Le lendemain, j'ai vu le sang de ces bêtes couler dans les rues. À Istanbul, belle ville, mais les minarets répartis un peu partout dans la ville où les muezzins ou crieurs font entendre leur sirène, leur chant plusieurs fois jour et nuit; c'est très dérangeant.
Il y a environ 20 ans, je me promenais seul dans les rues de Montréal et j'étais en sécurité. Mais plus maintenant, car les gangs de rue ont pris le contrôle. Et là, certains organismes et dirigeants de partis politiques, dans le but de se faire élire ou réélire, sont prêts à nous faire reculer de 1 000 ans en arrière ou plus avec des guerres de religion. En Turquie, j'ai visité des tunnels à la Ben Laden, des troglodytes, des maisons creusées dans la pierre et des églises aussi creusées dans la pierre, pour se protéger des autres religions. C'est ce recul que même nos anciens dirigeants veulent nous faire accepter. Je suis convaincu que ces derniers, lorsqu'ils ont visité ces pays, ils sont restés dans les grandes villes.
Je ne peux comprendre que la charte sur la laïcité, ce sera plutôt…que même nos anciens dirigeants veulent nous faire accepter. Je suis convaincu que ces derniers, lorsqu'ils ont visité ces pays, ils sont restés dans les grandes villes. Je ne peux comprendre que la Charte sur la laïcité, ce sera plutôt une charte sur la religion. La religion, ça, ça doit se passer dans les églises, les temples, dans le privé et… car c'est personnel. Si vous êtes obligés de faire des compromis inacceptables, laissez tomber cette charte ou faites-en un enjeu électoral.
Il est possible que la… Est-il possible que la secte du Temple solaire soit de retour parmi nous? Si une personne avec une cagoule a le droit de se promener en public et même de voter aux élections, pourquoi moi, je n'aurais pas le même droit car je suis un métis ou, si vous aimez mieux, un autochtone? Et si on recule dans le temps, nos ancêtres — et moi aussi — on portait une gaine à la hanche — un poignard, si vous voulez — un mouchoir au cou, et nous pouvions relever ce mouchoir à la hauteur des yeux quand nécessaire. Aujourd'hui, un métis ou un autochtone doit prouver ses origines pour avoir des droits au Québec et au Canada. Pourquoi cela n'est pas nécessaire pour les personnes venues d'ailleurs?
Certains se plaignent qu'il y a du racisme au Québec. Eh bien oui, c'est vrai qu'il y en a, mais il provient des groupes qui viennent s'établir au Québec après plusieurs années, refusent de s'intégrer, nos coutumes, notre langue, et même demandent à ce que ce soit nous qui vivent suivant leurs coutumes. Si je vais me faire soigner par une personne supposée d'être un médecin, féminin ou masculin, portant un niqab et que moi aussi j'en porte un, qui sera sous les déguisements? Vous voyez l'aberration, le ridicule que certains politiciens veulent nous faire vivre au Québec?
Je demande à la population du Québec de remettre à leur place les politiciens qui ont perdu le sens des responsabilités qui leur incombe. Et même vous, du Parti québécois, permettre le port du niqab en déguisement dans les rues, c'est inacceptable car qui sera sous ce déguisement, encore une fois?
Présentement, le 11 décembre 2013, vous pouvez consulter la radio internationale de Radio-Canada un reportage sur le centre africain où il y a eu des lynchages, des pillages… appels à la reine… à la haine, excusez, entre chrétiens et musulmans. Aussi, le ministère canadien des Affaires étrangères demande aux Canadiens d'éviter les voyages en République centrafricaine.
Aussi, en Europe, il y a des problèmes avec les religions. La France, l'Allemagne, enfin pratiquement tous les pays. C'est cela que nos dirigeants veulent nous laisser en héritage, à nos enfants et à nos petits-enfants? Moi pas.
Friday, January 17, 2014
Jeffrey Sachs and the great Ugandan donkey fiasco
Jeffrey Sachs had a Big Idea: to eradicate extreme poverty in Africa -- maybe the entire world -- by 2011, or maybe sooner. And why not? After all, the self-celebrated Dr. Sachs had already single-handedly salvaged the economies of Bolivia, Poland and even Russia. (Well, maybe not Russia, so much.)
In his influential bestseller The End of Poverty, he posits that poverty is simply an economic problem that can be solved. So, with single-minded determination, he set out to put his theories into practice, to prove that the world's most destitute people could be lifted onto "the ladder of development".
The proving ground that he chose was Africa, site of most of the world's truly wretched countries. Wisely, he didn't attempt to develop and enrich the whole of the Dark Continent at once. Rather, he launched the Millennium Villages Project, a five-year experiment in bringing progress and prosperity to a handful of impoverished rural communities.
One of the villages selected was Ruhiira, a flyspeck in southwestern Uganda, very near the Heart of Darkness. To organize and manage the Ruhiira operation, Dr. Sachs chose David Siriri, a man of good intentions and credentials -- a Ph.D. in forestry and agronomics, a local person who knew the language and the people.
The team of geniuses working with Dr. Sachs in New York made a plan for Mr. Siriri to follow. What they must do, he was told, is move from the subsistence farming of matoke (bananas) to the commercial farming of crops which could be sold elsewhere in Uganda, or even exported. Cash crops like ginger, cardamom and pineapples. Seriously.
Mr. Siriri told the folks in New York that the proposed crops needed water...lots of water. Ruhiira does have a water source, down in the valley. Unfortunately, the community's shambas (small farms) are on a ridge...about 1000 feet higher.
But Sachs had an answer. (He had an answer for everything!) The good doctor convinced JM Eagle, the world's largest manufacturer of plastic pipes, to donate $150,000 worth of PVC pipes to Ruhiira. They were ready to be shipped, and would be, once someone figured out who was going to pay the $120,000 needed to get them from the USA to rural Uganda.
Of course the pipes would still need to be installed. Unfortunately the Eagle pipes were manufactured to American standards, with American fittings, whereas Uganda uses British standards.
While the boys in New York were wrestling with this problem, the chief of the MVP funding arm came up with his own brilliant solution. Donkeys! Yes!! "Did you know that just four donkeys can carry eight hundred litres at a time?", the NY pointdexter asked Siriri. "We could create water-filling stations at the top of the cliffs and have people collect their water there for a small fee. We'll prove that people can make money on their crops even if they have to pay for water."
In short order, eight donkeys arrived in Ruhiira. Within a couple of months, four of them died of exhaustion. The Eagle pipes were eventually shipped, but the boat carrying them was hijacked by pirates in the Indian ocean, off the coast of Kenya.
A few pineapples were grown, but proved too difficult to store and ship. No cardamom or ginger was ever sold. The small farms of Ruhiira are still growing...wait for it...bananas.
The great Ugandan donkey fiasco is just one of the many examples of the folly of trying to solve Africa's problem with Eurocentric ideas and techniques. Dr. Sachs was informed and guided by western economic ideas centred on the concept of "the rational man". This theory presumes that, given two choices, the rational man will choose the better option, regardless of religious and cultural influences. In Africa, that's simply wrong.
In another Millennium Village, in Dertu (in northeastern Kenya, near the border with Somalia), the local people -- mostly ethnic Somalis, thus Muslim -- refused to build a clinic because, they said, descendants of Ibrahim (Abraham) do not do manual labour. Instead, MVP funds were used to hire ethnic Bantu (black) labourers to do the work while the Somalis sat around and chewed qat.
These stories, and many more, are to be found in The Idealist: Jeffrey Sachs and the Quest to End Poverty, by Nina Munk (Signal/M&S 2013). Walt recomments it highly!
With the co-operation of Dr. Sachs -- let's be fair about this -- Ms Munk spent six years reporting on the Millennium Villages Project.
She shadowed Sachs on his trips to Africa, sat in on conversations with heads of state, and interviewed scores of people involved, from high officials right down to illiterate inhabitants of Ruhiira and Dertu. Here's a quote from the second-last paragraph of the book:
"In the beginning, Jeffrey Sachs had set out on a question to validate his scientific approach to ending poverty. He'd used the Millennium Villages Project as a laboratory to test his theories and to prove that his series of 'interventions' could transform the lives of the world's poorest people. He'd spent more than $120 million on his experiment.
"For all that, however, he had misjudged the complex, shifting reality in the villages. Africa is not a laboratory: Africa is chaotic and messy and unpredictable." [My emphasis.]
Walt can add only that the failure -- for that's what it was -- of the MVP experiment is a classic example of "MAWA" -- the short epitaph beloved of old Africa hands: Mother Africa Wins Again.
Further reading on WWW:
"Have you given yet to help Somalia? Don't! "
"Biggest ratholes named and shamed"
"Coming soon - another 'nation' to help"
And there's much, much more! Use the search tool to check the posts with the "foreign aid" tag. And remember...you can't help those who won't help themselves!
In his influential bestseller The End of Poverty, he posits that poverty is simply an economic problem that can be solved. So, with single-minded determination, he set out to put his theories into practice, to prove that the world's most destitute people could be lifted onto "the ladder of development".
The proving ground that he chose was Africa, site of most of the world's truly wretched countries. Wisely, he didn't attempt to develop and enrich the whole of the Dark Continent at once. Rather, he launched the Millennium Villages Project, a five-year experiment in bringing progress and prosperity to a handful of impoverished rural communities.
One of the villages selected was Ruhiira, a flyspeck in southwestern Uganda, very near the Heart of Darkness. To organize and manage the Ruhiira operation, Dr. Sachs chose David Siriri, a man of good intentions and credentials -- a Ph.D. in forestry and agronomics, a local person who knew the language and the people.
The team of geniuses working with Dr. Sachs in New York made a plan for Mr. Siriri to follow. What they must do, he was told, is move from the subsistence farming of matoke (bananas) to the commercial farming of crops which could be sold elsewhere in Uganda, or even exported. Cash crops like ginger, cardamom and pineapples. Seriously.
Mr. Siriri told the folks in New York that the proposed crops needed water...lots of water. Ruhiira does have a water source, down in the valley. Unfortunately, the community's shambas (small farms) are on a ridge...about 1000 feet higher.
But Sachs had an answer. (He had an answer for everything!) The good doctor convinced JM Eagle, the world's largest manufacturer of plastic pipes, to donate $150,000 worth of PVC pipes to Ruhiira. They were ready to be shipped, and would be, once someone figured out who was going to pay the $120,000 needed to get them from the USA to rural Uganda.
Of course the pipes would still need to be installed. Unfortunately the Eagle pipes were manufactured to American standards, with American fittings, whereas Uganda uses British standards.
While the boys in New York were wrestling with this problem, the chief of the MVP funding arm came up with his own brilliant solution. Donkeys! Yes!! "Did you know that just four donkeys can carry eight hundred litres at a time?", the NY pointdexter asked Siriri. "We could create water-filling stations at the top of the cliffs and have people collect their water there for a small fee. We'll prove that people can make money on their crops even if they have to pay for water."
In short order, eight donkeys arrived in Ruhiira. Within a couple of months, four of them died of exhaustion. The Eagle pipes were eventually shipped, but the boat carrying them was hijacked by pirates in the Indian ocean, off the coast of Kenya.
A few pineapples were grown, but proved too difficult to store and ship. No cardamom or ginger was ever sold. The small farms of Ruhiira are still growing...wait for it...bananas.
The great Ugandan donkey fiasco is just one of the many examples of the folly of trying to solve Africa's problem with Eurocentric ideas and techniques. Dr. Sachs was informed and guided by western economic ideas centred on the concept of "the rational man". This theory presumes that, given two choices, the rational man will choose the better option, regardless of religious and cultural influences. In Africa, that's simply wrong.
In another Millennium Village, in Dertu (in northeastern Kenya, near the border with Somalia), the local people -- mostly ethnic Somalis, thus Muslim -- refused to build a clinic because, they said, descendants of Ibrahim (Abraham) do not do manual labour. Instead, MVP funds were used to hire ethnic Bantu (black) labourers to do the work while the Somalis sat around and chewed qat.
These stories, and many more, are to be found in The Idealist: Jeffrey Sachs and the Quest to End Poverty, by Nina Munk (Signal/M&S 2013). Walt recomments it highly!
With the co-operation of Dr. Sachs -- let's be fair about this -- Ms Munk spent six years reporting on the Millennium Villages Project.
She shadowed Sachs on his trips to Africa, sat in on conversations with heads of state, and interviewed scores of people involved, from high officials right down to illiterate inhabitants of Ruhiira and Dertu. Here's a quote from the second-last paragraph of the book:
"In the beginning, Jeffrey Sachs had set out on a question to validate his scientific approach to ending poverty. He'd used the Millennium Villages Project as a laboratory to test his theories and to prove that his series of 'interventions' could transform the lives of the world's poorest people. He'd spent more than $120 million on his experiment.
"For all that, however, he had misjudged the complex, shifting reality in the villages. Africa is not a laboratory: Africa is chaotic and messy and unpredictable." [My emphasis.]
Walt can add only that the failure -- for that's what it was -- of the MVP experiment is a classic example of "MAWA" -- the short epitaph beloved of old Africa hands: Mother Africa Wins Again.
Further reading on WWW:
"Have you given yet to help Somalia? Don't! "
"Biggest ratholes named and shamed"
"Coming soon - another 'nation' to help"
And there's much, much more! Use the search tool to check the posts with the "foreign aid" tag. And remember...you can't help those who won't help themselves!
Monday, January 13, 2014
Today's special in Central Africa: Muslims! Deeeelicious!
As the year 2013 passed into history -- not a moment too soon, either -- Walt posted "Chaos in the CAR: an African mess gets messier", about the sectarian warfare in the Central African Republic.
In spite of the accompanying picture of an attractive Ubangi, not many people read that post. Muslims are killing Christians, Christians are killing Muslims, and no-one seems to give a skit. [Eh? Ed.]
So here we are, two weeks later, and the situation has gotten uglier. According to Associated Press and CBCNews, some of the Christians are not just killing, but eating the followers of the Prophet.
In the CAR's capital, Bangui, a Christian mob killed a Muslim man, says the CBC's Paul Wood, and one of them publicly ate from the dead man’s charred flesh. That's "charred", not "boiled", so the old cartoon image is not valid in today's Africa.
Walt regrets not having access to a video shot by bystanders, which appears to show a charred body being dragged through the street while the crowd cheered. Another video shows the mob leader, identified as Wanja Mogloire, eating one of the dead man’s legs, his cheeks full to bulging. When these videos appear on YouTube, we'll certainly bring them to you.
M. Magloire told Wood that what he did has made him famous as "Mad Dog Magloire". His motive, he said, was revenge for the killing by Muslims of several members of his family.
The CBCNews report goes on to say that, while most Christians were horrified by the "apparent" act of cannibalism, some viewed M. Magloire as a hero, shaking his hand and patting his head.
Walt feels the whole episode may have been misunderstood by those unfamiliar with African ways. It may well have started as an exercise in drawing members of both faiths together. "I know what... Let's have some Muslims in for dinner."
In spite of the accompanying picture of an attractive Ubangi, not many people read that post. Muslims are killing Christians, Christians are killing Muslims, and no-one seems to give a skit. [Eh? Ed.]
So here we are, two weeks later, and the situation has gotten uglier. According to Associated Press and CBCNews, some of the Christians are not just killing, but eating the followers of the Prophet.
In the CAR's capital, Bangui, a Christian mob killed a Muslim man, says the CBC's Paul Wood, and one of them publicly ate from the dead man’s charred flesh. That's "charred", not "boiled", so the old cartoon image is not valid in today's Africa.
Walt regrets not having access to a video shot by bystanders, which appears to show a charred body being dragged through the street while the crowd cheered. Another video shows the mob leader, identified as Wanja Mogloire, eating one of the dead man’s legs, his cheeks full to bulging. When these videos appear on YouTube, we'll certainly bring them to you.
M. Magloire told Wood that what he did has made him famous as "Mad Dog Magloire". His motive, he said, was revenge for the killing by Muslims of several members of his family.
The CBCNews report goes on to say that, while most Christians were horrified by the "apparent" act of cannibalism, some viewed M. Magloire as a hero, shaking his hand and patting his head.
Walt feels the whole episode may have been misunderstood by those unfamiliar with African ways. It may well have started as an exercise in drawing members of both faiths together. "I know what... Let's have some Muslims in for dinner."
Friday, January 10, 2014
Random House Canada fails high school English
Ed. here. Since the blog belongs to me today, my words will appear in Roman letters, not italics. [Italics are mine. Walt.] Ahem... The blog is mine because the topic is proper English, knowledge of which seems to be lacking even at venerable publishing houses such as Random House Canada, part of the vast [or half-vast] organization known simply as Random House, "the world's largest English language trade publisher".
Things being a little slow here, I checked Random House's Canadian and international websites under "careers", thinking perhaps they would be looking for editors or at least proofreaders. Apparently not.
But why would I think there might be such a vacancy? Because I have just finished reading Peter Newman's When the Gods Changed: the Death of Liberal Canada (RHC, 2011) which appears to have been published without any proofing beyond what might have been done by a spell-check utility.
The quality of the output is, frankly, shocking. Errors of vocabulary, grammar, spelling and even punctuation abound. Here are some of them, shown in bold, with page numbers so you can check for yourself.
Before the "Introduction", there are two untitled pages which I suppose might be called a preface. On p. xii we find "This incidence of non-recognition..." Arrrggghhhh. Didn't we just post "'Incidents' vs 'incidence' -- what's the difference?". Oh wait, that was just this past July -- too late for Mr. Newman. [But he's even older than I am. He should know better! Walt]
Page 71 - "each new wave of Grits hot off the grittle" - I'm hoping this is not a spelling error, but an intentional neologism, a play on "Grits" which is slang for (Canadian) Liberals.
Page 80 - "until the midfifties" - "mid-fifties", surely, or possibly "mid-50s".
Page 102 - "waking a spectacular international decision" - How do you "wake" a decision? Perhaps Mr. Newman writes in longhand and the typesetter can't tell his M's from his W's.
Page 164 - "humming 'Il a perdu son epaulettes'" - Should be either "ses épaulettes" or "son épaulette". If you don't speak French, don't try to write it and expect an anglophone proofreader to fix it for you.
Page 224 - "'We're looking at a growing gap between the successive previous generation of immigrants like my dad, and the generation coming in from Africa and Asia.'" - Supposedly quoting Michael Ignatieff. What is a "successive previous generation"? Did Iggy actually say "successful"?
Page 236 - "...to send the matters to their respective parliamentary committees for consideration; he committees found..." - Missing a T there, but the spell-checker wouldn't catch that.
Page 242 - "After the first week of the campaign, Ignatieff's approval rating jump from nineteen percent to twenty-five percent..." - Tense trouble.
Page 256 - "[The Conservatives]...came under the leadership of nineteen individuals, many of whom gave anonymity of big boost." - What does this mean?
Page 264 - "To shift the burden of justified criticism on to his shoulders..." - Should be "onto", and yes, there is such a preposition.
Page 266 - "aimed at demoralizing Michael Ignatieff" - Supposedly from a "partial transcript" of an interview with Peter Donolo. My guess is Donolo said "demonizing", not "demoralizing", although Ignatieff probably was demoralized.
Noted twice - a member of a municipal council would be a "councilor" in the USA, but a "councillor" in Canada.
And finally, the piece of resistance (as Mr. Newman might have said)... Page 218 - "There has been a hard edge in the Conservative's pursuit of national competitiveness..." GAAAAAHHHHHHH!!! Does he really mean just one Conservative? No, this is clearly an apostrophe error, committed by Mr. Newman [who should know better. Walt] or an editor or proofreader who doesn't know how to construct a plural as opposed to a possessive.
Those at Random House or elsewhere large who weren't paying attention in Grade 8 English should read "Apostrophe Catastrophe" and "Let's kill the apostrophe ???". You're welcome.
Short book review from Walt: Leaving aside the problems with English usage noted by Ed., is When the Gods Changed worth reading? No. Fifty years ago, when he wrote for Maclean's and authored Renegade in Power (about the Diefenbaker years), Peter Newman was a crackerjack political commentator.
His last opus was supposed to be about the making of a prime minister. Such was the working title. Sadly for him (and RHC) Ignatieff led the Liberals to the worst defeat in their history, and quickly resigned. Mr. Newman was left with under 300 pages (including generous leading) of shoulda/woulda/coulda. The book is proof positive that even a skilled writer can't make something out of nothing.
Things being a little slow here, I checked Random House's Canadian and international websites under "careers", thinking perhaps they would be looking for editors or at least proofreaders. Apparently not.
But why would I think there might be such a vacancy? Because I have just finished reading Peter Newman's When the Gods Changed: the Death of Liberal Canada (RHC, 2011) which appears to have been published without any proofing beyond what might have been done by a spell-check utility.
The quality of the output is, frankly, shocking. Errors of vocabulary, grammar, spelling and even punctuation abound. Here are some of them, shown in bold, with page numbers so you can check for yourself.
Before the "Introduction", there are two untitled pages which I suppose might be called a preface. On p. xii we find "This incidence of non-recognition..." Arrrggghhhh. Didn't we just post "'Incidents' vs 'incidence' -- what's the difference?". Oh wait, that was just this past July -- too late for Mr. Newman. [But he's even older than I am. He should know better! Walt]
Page 71 - "each new wave of Grits hot off the grittle" - I'm hoping this is not a spelling error, but an intentional neologism, a play on "Grits" which is slang for (Canadian) Liberals.
Page 80 - "until the midfifties" - "mid-fifties", surely, or possibly "mid-50s".
Page 102 - "waking a spectacular international decision" - How do you "wake" a decision? Perhaps Mr. Newman writes in longhand and the typesetter can't tell his M's from his W's.
Page 164 - "humming 'Il a perdu son epaulettes'" - Should be either "ses épaulettes" or "son épaulette". If you don't speak French, don't try to write it and expect an anglophone proofreader to fix it for you.
Page 224 - "'We're looking at a growing gap between the successive previous generation of immigrants like my dad, and the generation coming in from Africa and Asia.'" - Supposedly quoting Michael Ignatieff. What is a "successive previous generation"? Did Iggy actually say "successful"?
Page 236 - "...to send the matters to their respective parliamentary committees for consideration; he committees found..." - Missing a T there, but the spell-checker wouldn't catch that.
Page 242 - "After the first week of the campaign, Ignatieff's approval rating jump from nineteen percent to twenty-five percent..." - Tense trouble.
Page 256 - "[The Conservatives]...came under the leadership of nineteen individuals, many of whom gave anonymity of big boost." - What does this mean?
Page 264 - "To shift the burden of justified criticism on to his shoulders..." - Should be "onto", and yes, there is such a preposition.
Page 266 - "aimed at demoralizing Michael Ignatieff" - Supposedly from a "partial transcript" of an interview with Peter Donolo. My guess is Donolo said "demonizing", not "demoralizing", although Ignatieff probably was demoralized.
Noted twice - a member of a municipal council would be a "councilor" in the USA, but a "councillor" in Canada.
And finally, the piece of resistance (as Mr. Newman might have said)... Page 218 - "There has been a hard edge in the Conservative's pursuit of national competitiveness..." GAAAAAHHHHHHH!!! Does he really mean just one Conservative? No, this is clearly an apostrophe error, committed by Mr. Newman [who should know better. Walt] or an editor or proofreader who doesn't know how to construct a plural as opposed to a possessive.
Those at Random House or elsewhere large who weren't paying attention in Grade 8 English should read "Apostrophe Catastrophe" and "Let's kill the apostrophe ???". You're welcome.
Short book review from Walt: Leaving aside the problems with English usage noted by Ed., is When the Gods Changed worth reading? No. Fifty years ago, when he wrote for Maclean's and authored Renegade in Power (about the Diefenbaker years), Peter Newman was a crackerjack political commentator.
His last opus was supposed to be about the making of a prime minister. Such was the working title. Sadly for him (and RHC) Ignatieff led the Liberals to the worst defeat in their history, and quickly resigned. Mr. Newman was left with under 300 pages (including generous leading) of shoulda/woulda/coulda. The book is proof positive that even a skilled writer can't make something out of nothing.
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