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This page provides an Index to my columns for 2007 published in the Kamloops Daily News
EYE VIEW 
Ways to cool
down heated problem of global warming
Here are a few simple things you can do to reduce
the
problem of global warming. First, deny that there is a problem. That way,
even if the planet continues to heat up you won't have to do anything about it.
Words are important. Never use the term "global warming," which suggests
something alarming. Use "climate change" which sounds less cataclysmic says
Frank Luntz. He helped U.S. President Bush solve his global warming problem and
is now advising Prime Minister Harper. Find scientists to join the group
who revel in being antiestablishment. Dr. Tim Ball is one of those
scientists. He has not published anything on climate science for 14 years
but that doesn't stop him from presenting himself as an expert on climatology.
January 2
Who gave our leaders orders to go to war? If you judged Canada's involvement in Afghanistan, you would think that Canadians are warlike. Just the opposite was true. Canadians joined millions of peace demonstrators around the world in 800 cities on February 15, 2003. It was the largest demonstration in history of any kind, according to Guinness Book of Records but our leaders didn't seem to be listening. Support for peacekeeping remains high. A recent poll showed that 80 per cent of Canadians want our troops to build peace in Afghanistan and only 16 per cent said they prefer an active combat role. January 16
Technology has potential to take away civil liberties. Computers do tedious, yet complex chores that we would rather not be bothered with. Obvious examples are found in cars, cameras and phones. The goal of industrial designers is to integrate technology so deep into the structure of our lives that we are not consciously aware it. In order to do this, designers must employ the fundamentals of human nature. We should be very concerned about this loss of our civil liberties but because of clever design, we will only regret this intrusion when we are the innocent victims of technology. January 30
All human wastes not created equal We wouldn't throw plastics into the newspaper recycling bin but we don't think twice about mixing human waste when we flush the toilet. Human wastes are not equal. Urine is sterile when it leaves the body, unlike feces. Urine consists mainly of water, a bit of proteins and salts. It seems relatively innocuous but a little bit can create a big problem at the sewage treatment plant. Despite making up only 1 per cent of the volume of waste water, urine contributes about 80 per cent of the nitrogen and 45 per cent of all the phosphate in waste water. February 13
Concept of evolution has evolved Contrary to popular opinion, evolution is going nowhere. At least that's the opinion of Dr. Steve Jones, a professor of genetics at University College in London. He says that human evolution in the developed world has virtually stopped. Evolution has also spawned Social Darwinism. This has nothing to do with natural selection, gene drift, domination of man, or creation. Social Darwinism is also a justification for domination of the strong over the weak. As such, it becomes a model for aggressive behaviour between people and societies rather than cooperation. The concept of evolution itself has evolved. It started as a scientific theory to explain how species adapt to the stresses of changing environment and disease. The power of the idea pervades much of our lives. February 27
Interprovincial pact not all it's cracked up to be.
The trade agreement between B.C. and Alberta would be a good
idea if it removed significant barriers to trade and investment between the
provinces. But there are no significant barriers that need fixing.
TILMA is not about what it claims to be about. The agreement is really about
reducing the ability of governments to protect consumers, to set labour
standards, regulate pollutants, and protect the environment in the name of a
trade agreement. TILMA is an ideological agreement between two parties who
believe that the role of governments is to defend business from the laws that
protect citizens.
Mar 13
There's more than fat to think about when biting
into a burger. Feeding herds of livestock is not only hard on the
planet;
consumption of livestock is not good for you. At least, not the
amount of meat consumed by North Americans. Growing food for animals and
eating meat is not only inefficient, unhealthy and unnecessary; it contributes
to the cruelty of animals. Cutting back on the consumption of meat is not
only good for you and the planet; it could lead to better lives for animals. March 27
Rise of the ADQ plays into
Harper's vision of a fractured Canada. Be careful what you wish for. For
decades, Canadians have
wished that the Parti Quebecois would just go away and take their dreams of
separation with them. We finally got our wish. Popularity for the PQ fell
to its lowest level in 35 years in the recent Quebec election. Now the
rise of conservatism under Mario Dumont's Action Démocratique du Québec plays
into the hands of Prime Minister Harper to weaken the foundations of Canada.
The separatist PQ only wanted to break away from Canada. The conservative
dream is separate all provinces into
autonomous states. April 10
Patient flow key to hospital woes. Some doomsayers claim that health care will consume 71 per cent of our provincial budget by 2017 but that's not likely. Health care costs are not as much as they claim and revenues will make health care costs well within our reach. Who benefits by creating the impression that health care costs are out of control? You only have to look as far as the hucksters who try to convince you that health care is broken and only they can fix it. Health care only needs to be organized to maximize the flow of patients through the system. April 24
Canada can't win in
Afghanistan -and here's why. We can't win because our current tactics
won't work against Afghan guerrillas and the tactics that will work are
unacceptable. Modern armed forces are no match against the
community-supported insurgents of Afghanistan. The superior firepower of the
NATO allies can destroy roads, bridges, tanks, electrical grids and
communications towers. But when the enemy is indistinguishable from the
local population, no victory can be achieved. Edward Luttwak, senior
fellow for Strategic & International Studies explains that: "More advanced
forces will have large advantages in firepower, mobility, and operational
coherence. But they will also have no visible enemy to fight, so that the normal
operational methods and tactics of conventional warfare cannot be applied." May
8
BC Hydro handcuffed by province with restrictions
on power plants. If the government of British Columbia were really
serious
about providing us with low-cost electricity, they would tell B.C. Hydro to
build more generating plants. The opposite is true: the government
has prohibited BC Hydro from building new plants. It gets worse. Not only
has BC Hydro been restricted but
they must buy privately produced electricity at approximately double the current
market prices. And they must buy private electricity at inflated rates for the
next 25 years. Let BC Hydro do what it does best and we won't have to
depend on expensive private electricity. May 15
Will Harper use
military for U.S. style power grab? World capitalists suddenly became
true believers in the teachings of John Maynard Keynes when they saw Hitler's
successful arms industry. German industrialists may have disapproved of
public projects for peaceful purposes but they could whole-heartedly support the
growth of the government-sponsored arms industry. After
all, they would be the chief beneficiaries of those projects. This new
system was imported to the U.S. and has contributed to the growth of
presidential power. Prime Minister Harper's commitment to increased
military spending by Canada is troubling. Does he want to increase his already
substantial hold on government? Does Harper want more Canadians employed
in weapons manufacture at the expense of public works? May 29
When it comes to fat, it's
what's inside that counts All body fat used to be lumped together but
now doctors and
scientists realize that we have two kinds of fat. Each acts like a separate
organ with distinct functions. Inner fat, called visceral fat, is potentially
nasty stuff. Too much of it can cause life threatening problems.
"Visceral obesity," says one expert, "does seem to be truly evil." In
contrast, outer fat is relatively benign. It doesn't improve our looks when it
collects around our hips, buttocks
and thighs but it's not as dangerous.
Because excess inner fat accumulates around the abdomen, it can be easily
determined with a tape measure. Waist measurement is quick and easy
compared to CT scans or MRIs. June 12
A stable base to the economy is created with fair contracts The more BC's health minister thinks about it, the more health care workers are laid off in spite of the Supreme Court of Canada that ruled the actions of his government were wrong when they tore up collective agreements. According to the Hospital Employees Union, 30 care aids will be laid off at MSA Manor in Abbotsford. In the past six weeks, nearly 700 workers have been laid off due to Bill 29. This brings the total to 8,000, mostly of those women. Since the Liberals formed government, poverty has increased in B.C. relative to the rest of Canada. Cuts to wages and social programs have especially hurt women. If poverty was an unintended consequence of Campbell's action, he can redeem himself by restoring the collective agreements. June 26
Happiness is all about the way you live We still haven't found what we're looking for. But my generation, the baby boomers, hasn't stopped looking. In the 1960s and 1970s we wanted the simple life: sex, drugs and rock and roll. The "me" generation of the 1980s abandoned flower power and found fulfillment in the material world. Now, as boomers approach 60 they find a certain emptiness in a lifestyle based consumption. They think happiness will fill the hollow. Happiness is the new Holy Grail of the baby boomers. The pursuit of it is a growth industry. Happiness is not about you. Happiness can't be bought, sold or cajoled. It's not a state of mind; it's a condition of place. Examine the way you live rather than searching for personal gratification. Self-absorption is a barrier to happiness. July 10
Province closes
door on open government Premier Campbell likes open government. He said so
before he became premier. "Open government is the hallmark of free and
democratic societies." It's too bad he doesn't walk the talk. His failure
to fund
and build a strong Freedom of Information office has had the opposite effect.
It was the best in North America when B.C.'s Freedom of Information and
Protection of Privacy Act was was enacted by then Premier Harcourt in 1993.
It's become weaker ever since. Premier Campbell made changes under Bill 25
that were supposed to improve FOI. But the effect has been to resist,
evade and delay the flow of information. July 24
B.C. able to increase power while
still being green There is a way to deliver more power to homes and
businesses
without building any more plants or reducing energy consumption. I know it
probably sounds too good to be true but this really works. Conservation
alone can't make up for the expected shortfall in power. That's why the
B.C. government hopes that private developers will come with 2,500
gigawatt-hours of electrical energy in the next three years. I estimate
that we can save that much power by making the power lines more efficient. It
involves a change in the way power is carried. This plan uses direct
current instead alternating current. Such a system has been in operation
since 1992 between Quebec and New England. It's especially efficient for long
power lines such as we have in B.C. August 7
Trudeau as Worst Canadian? What about the Kamloops Kid? The Beaver magazine picked Trudeau as the worst Canadian. Sure, he was disliked but to select him as worst demonstrates a lack of knowledge of history. He was often cavalier and told western farmers to sell their own wheat but there are better candidates for the worst. Take the Kamloops Kid, for example. Will there be a Worst Kamloopsian contest? I don't think so. August 21
Clock ticking on resource ownership Who owns the rich minerals and resources of the sea bed is not a matter of flags and stirring patriotic speeches but geological mapping and surveys. The clock is ticking. Canada is at risk of loosing a resource at our doorstep; one that will become increasingly accessible as Arctic ice melts. The prime minister should abandon his military posturing in the north and get to work on mapping the Arctic seabed. September 4
CBC wrongly sees us as an extension of Kelowna Like it or not, CBC is Canada's only national radio and TV network that links the regions of Canada together. It's a way of sharing our news, concerns, and interests. CBC executives think Kelowna can speak for Kamloops. That's why they recently scrapped plans to open a CBC radio studio in Kamloops and instead, plan to expand the existing studio in Kelowna. As long as we are considered an annex of Kelowna, we are doomed to obscurity. September 18
Kleptocracy renews threat to masses The revolution of the rich started about three decades ago when they decided they weren't getting enough. It's been a remarkable success. Now, the richest 3 people in the world control more wealth than one-quarter of the world's poorest countries. Rich Canadians have doubled their share of wealth since 1970. The richest one per cent now controls 16 per cent of all income. The demise of the middle and poor classes has been engineered by stealth. Just as a frog doesn't notice that it's being boiled to death if the temperature of water is slowly increased, the underprivileged don't notice that they are stewing in soup of easy credit and cheap trinkets from China. October 2
Why we still pay more
than Americans Now that the loonie has soared above the U.S. dollar,
Canadians are asking why they still pay more for goods than Americans.
There are some justifiable reasons why goods should cost slightly more in
Canada, even with our strong dollar. But the current price difference
seems beyond explanation until you realize that the marketplace
is a persistent illusion. One of the fundamentals of capitalist societies
is that the marketplace delivers goods at the lowest price. We are told that the
invisible hand of the free market will deliver savings to our pocket and when it
doesn't, we are baffled. October 16
Want to reduce violence? Invest in child-care plan. Researchers wanted to find out when aggression starts in humans so they started studying young subjects. They were surprised to learn that babies express a lot of anger and aggression. This discovery was astonishing because the usual stereotype of babies is that they are cute and cuddly. However, babies are not born in sin - - they are simply underdeveloped humans in need of nurture and guidance. The more we spend on child care and parenting skills, the more future crime will be reduced. If we want to get tough on crime, it's a good place to start. It will pay off in the next generation. October 30
Don't let U.S. hordes blindside our game. The B.C. Lions are on top of the Western Division of the Canadian Football League. And all CFL players are better because of their union. The CFL Players' Association, like the Canadian game itself, reflects the distinctive nature of Canada - - generous, big, and caring. Simon Black praises the CFL in his article for Canadian Dimension magazine: "If leagues fall across the political spectrum, the Canadian Football League can be seen as the social democracy of the sports world." The American National Football League threatens to expand into Canada. It's a dull game compared to ours. Canadians should repel the U.S. invasion. The CFL reflects our history, character and values. Canadians need to defend our border from this dull, plodding giant. November 13
Canada's mission failing in
Afghanistan Malalai Joya inspires everyone through her ability
appeal to people. Her message of courage and hope strikes a cord in
audiences. The Afghani parliament was so inspired that they wanted to
killer her. in
2003 in which she denounced the corrupt warlords and fundamentalists in her
government. Afghanistan is showing us the power of free speech through the
bravery of Malalai Joya. In return, Canada is showing Afghanistan
the power of war. It remains to be seen who will have a lasting influence.
My bet is on Joya. November 27.
Welfare 'reform' makes no
difference to outcomes Kamloops MLA Claude Richmond claims that his
welfare-to-work
program is effective. The only way he can make such a claim is to track
the progress of individuals. Otherwise there is no way of
knowing whether those leaving welfare are actually getting jobs. And such
statistics are available but they show that Richmond's reform is not working any
better than before 2002. "Although the proportion of employable clients
having employment income has declined, the magnitude of the decline is not
statistically significant." December 11.
