According to this poll done by Fox news, thirty-eight years after Roe v. Wade, the tide is turning against legalized abortion. With numbers like this I believe it is possible for Roe v. Wade to be overturned in five years, providing of course President Obama is defeated in 2012. The poll shows that between 1997 and 2010 the number of Americans identifying themselves as "Pro-life" has gone up from 40% to 50% while the number of those who identify themselves has decreased from 50% to 42%. The importance of these figures for the abortion debate can hardly be understated (provided, of course that they are accurate).
Even more telling than this, in my opinion, is this note from New Jersey. If you don't have time to read the whole thing read this quote from it:
After watching Gov. Chris Christie try to burnish a reputation as a fiscal conservative, political analysts said the New Jersey governor on Monday significantly broadened his national credentials as a social conservative by joining abortion protesters at a rally and encouraging them to "stand up and speak strongly in favor for the protection of every human life."Christie spoke to the crowd from the top step outside the Statehouse, with the temperatures in the teens and the governor not in a topcoat. But there were other reasons why the five-minute speech was unusual.
Marie E. Tasy, executive director of New Jersey Right to Life, said it was the first time a New Jersey governor had addressed a pro-life rally. The event marked the 38th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court Roe v. Wade decision.
Christie had been silent on abortion during his first year in office and didn't refer to social views when he slashed funding for family planning from the state budget, saying that was a fiscal decision.
A state governor unabashedly lending his support for the Pro-Life movement. In New Jersey. If we thought the debates of the past surrounding this issue were heated it looks like we haven't seen anything yet.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Beyond the Text: "Muslims, Muslims everywhere."
I was providentially hindered from attending class on Tuesday and on Thursday so I am at a bit of a loss as how to provide piece of "art" which expands on the discussions I was to participate on in class.
Take a look at this video from the Onion.
The fact of the matter is that Muslims are immigrating to countries across the world and having kids. This very fact is bound to change the nations currently experiencing this phenomenon. This hilarious video highlights the fact that the media seems to be using Muslims as a convenient distraction from the West's real and harder to understand problems. Crushing federal debt, growing nanny states and governments increasing willingness to print worthless currency pose much greater threats to the so-called Western way of life than immigrant Muslims, extremist or otherwise.
Take a look at this video from the Onion.
The fact of the matter is that Muslims are immigrating to countries across the world and having kids. This very fact is bound to change the nations currently experiencing this phenomenon. This hilarious video highlights the fact that the media seems to be using Muslims as a convenient distraction from the West's real and harder to understand problems. Crushing federal debt, growing nanny states and governments increasing willingness to print worthless currency pose much greater threats to the so-called Western way of life than immigrant Muslims, extremist or otherwise.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Reseach Quest-My political ideology.
I did two of the quizzes and, to nobody's surprise, I'm a libertarian. About four years ago I started to transition to this viewpoint from a more neo-conservative one largely because of the writings of Texas congressman Ron Paul. Since that time I have read fairly extensively in the area of Libertarian economics and I think it's probably the most consistent economic view. When people ask me why I am a libertarian I usually say one of two things:
1) I don't think the government does anything very well at all.
2) Once I began to notice advocates of socialism presuppose a Marxist understanding of class struggle when discussing the causes of inequality I began to realize that their are many other causes. Creating more government doesn't help mitigate these causes, it makes them stronger, in my parochial opinion.
I'm comfortable with being a libertarian. It isn't the sexiest ideology in the world today but I like how it puts the onus on me to make careful decisions for myself.
1) I don't think the government does anything very well at all.
2) Once I began to notice advocates of socialism presuppose a Marxist understanding of class struggle when discussing the causes of inequality I began to realize that their are many other causes. Creating more government doesn't help mitigate these causes, it makes them stronger, in my parochial opinion.
I'm comfortable with being a libertarian. It isn't the sexiest ideology in the world today but I like how it puts the onus on me to make careful decisions for myself.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
News that made it into the mainstream media and news that didn't.
Made it:
Yad VaShem, an organization dedicated to Holocaust education, has announced that it will set up a YouTube account featuring videos in Farsi to teach Iranians about the historical fact of what happened to six million Jews, and a host of others, in Europe during the 1940s. I think this is a very appropriate response to Mr. Ahmadinejad's denial of the holocaust. It will allow Iranians themselves to evaluate the claims of Holocaust deniers with credible information from an organization with a reputation of doing excellent work in this field. I hope Iranians take this seriously as it could make life in the neighbourhood of the Middle East more safe for everyone who lives there.
Didn't make it:
Evidently poverty has doubled in the world since 1970. Although I'm hardly the type who thinks that every story that doesn't make it into the mainstream media represents some kind of vast conspiracy, it's not hard to guess why we're not hearing about this from all of the major news outlets in the world. World leaders in political and corporate spheres want us to believe that the prosperity most Westerners enjoy is spreading across the globe, largely because of their efforts. I was expecting the article to opine concerning why the number of poor people have increased. I'm glad it didn't because in the majority of articles I read from the non-mainstream media, the blame is more often than not placed at the feet of political and/or corporate bodies from the West. Be that as it may, at least some of the burden ought to be shouldered by the governments of the so-called "poor" nations themselves who almost universally taken on programs of planned economies (now you'd never read that in the mainstream media, would you?).
Yad VaShem, an organization dedicated to Holocaust education, has announced that it will set up a YouTube account featuring videos in Farsi to teach Iranians about the historical fact of what happened to six million Jews, and a host of others, in Europe during the 1940s. I think this is a very appropriate response to Mr. Ahmadinejad's denial of the holocaust. It will allow Iranians themselves to evaluate the claims of Holocaust deniers with credible information from an organization with a reputation of doing excellent work in this field. I hope Iranians take this seriously as it could make life in the neighbourhood of the Middle East more safe for everyone who lives there.
Didn't make it:
Evidently poverty has doubled in the world since 1970. Although I'm hardly the type who thinks that every story that doesn't make it into the mainstream media represents some kind of vast conspiracy, it's not hard to guess why we're not hearing about this from all of the major news outlets in the world. World leaders in political and corporate spheres want us to believe that the prosperity most Westerners enjoy is spreading across the globe, largely because of their efforts. I was expecting the article to opine concerning why the number of poor people have increased. I'm glad it didn't because in the majority of articles I read from the non-mainstream media, the blame is more often than not placed at the feet of political and/or corporate bodies from the West. Be that as it may, at least some of the burden ought to be shouldered by the governments of the so-called "poor" nations themselves who almost universally taken on programs of planned economies (now you'd never read that in the mainstream media, would you?).
Viola Desmond-A Canadian Rosa Parks?
The history of mistreatment of people of African decent in Canada is a shameful one. No balanced person could possibly disagree with that. In 1946, Viola Desmond was dragged out of a New Glasgow movie theatre for the crime of sitting in a chair which would have otherwise been occupied by a white person. For this, Ms. Desmond is called "Canada's Rosa Parks." While I can sympathize with that title I don't think it's appropriate for two reasons...
1) If I were an African Nova Scotian I would be offended by such a title because it subtly and perhaps unwittingly implies that the stand Desmond took is somehow a footnote to Parks. We should remember that Desmond took her stand years before the civil rights movement was ever heard of. Also this whole affair happened in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia in a place where the Black community was far less powerful that in Montgomery Alabama where Parks took her stand. Moreover New Glasgow did not seem to have a powerful leader like Rev. Martin Luther King to use the event as a catylist for change as did Montgomery. Despite this Ms. Desmond fought her case all the way to Nova Scotia Supreme Court with none of the hype and fanfare that accompanied the struggle of Ms. Parks. I find more inspiration in the story of Viola Desmond and I think that others would too if they knew about it.
2) I have to be cautious about how I write this. The struggle of Parks and Desmond are fundamentally different because of one detail: property. Public transit systems are exactly that: public. All members of the public should therefore be afforded with equal and open access to public transit. A movie theatre is usually private property. Does the public enjoy equal access to public property? No. Although it sounds strange to sympathize with the owners of such a racist establishment I think a better statement would be for the Black community to boycott the theatre totally as opposed to entering needless discussions about what a person can and cannot do with his/her own property. I could write endlessly about my beliefs about this but I've already stated how it relates to this issue
1) If I were an African Nova Scotian I would be offended by such a title because it subtly and perhaps unwittingly implies that the stand Desmond took is somehow a footnote to Parks. We should remember that Desmond took her stand years before the civil rights movement was ever heard of. Also this whole affair happened in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia in a place where the Black community was far less powerful that in Montgomery Alabama where Parks took her stand. Moreover New Glasgow did not seem to have a powerful leader like Rev. Martin Luther King to use the event as a catylist for change as did Montgomery. Despite this Ms. Desmond fought her case all the way to Nova Scotia Supreme Court with none of the hype and fanfare that accompanied the struggle of Ms. Parks. I find more inspiration in the story of Viola Desmond and I think that others would too if they knew about it.
2) I have to be cautious about how I write this. The struggle of Parks and Desmond are fundamentally different because of one detail: property. Public transit systems are exactly that: public. All members of the public should therefore be afforded with equal and open access to public transit. A movie theatre is usually private property. Does the public enjoy equal access to public property? No. Although it sounds strange to sympathize with the owners of such a racist establishment I think a better statement would be for the Black community to boycott the theatre totally as opposed to entering needless discussions about what a person can and cannot do with his/her own property. I could write endlessly about my beliefs about this but I've already stated how it relates to this issue
Monday, January 17, 2011
Judas: A Biography. George Elliott Clarke
Read the poem here.
As someone who is descended from black slaves who escaped to Canada from the Southern United States and as a Christian I find this poem to be most interesting. The title lead me to believe that this poem would be about that apostle of Christ who betrayed his Master for thirty pieces of silver. Instead it is about a preacher, an apostle of Christ of sorts who betrays his own flock, manipulating them for their own welfare cheques. The poem shifts to tell us about some kind of criminal, controlling women with prostitution and drugs. When "Mary" quits "Judas" for "Christ", "Judas" has him killed publicly.
A little about me...
I'm twenty-nine years old, and moved here from Toronto to work in L'arche here in Wolfville just over two years ago. I have never been to university, or attended any secular post-secondary school. I'm pretty apprehensive about being here at Acadia and I'm already very daunted by the amount of work I have to do simply to keep the people in the enrollment and accounts departments off my back. I feel like my future will be in jeopardy if I don't follow their rules and do well so I am obliged to fulfill these obligations without complaining.
I have been interested in politics since I was eleven years old when I lied about my age on a membership form to join the NDP. Although I am still a member of a political party (not the NDP) I have mellowed considerably and my zeal for the political process has been tempered by a healthy dose of cynicism. Over the years the writers that have influenced my political thinking the most are probably Thomas Sowell, Friedrich vonHayek, Eric Hoffer and (I'm almost ashamed to admit) Ayn Rand. I hope that this course will be an opportunity to expand my opinions about the state of Canadian politics which I have to admit are probably a little too parochial to take seriously.
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