Several months ago, I noted a comment that was made on the internet, in regards to something I or someone else had stated. I found those comments bewildering, and I assumed that the person writing them might be mentally ill. I followed up and did some searching under this person’s name and found more disturbing comments, and information, including lots of angry rhethoric, and photos of guns.

I then put together a digital file and sent it off to the local sherriff’s department in an Arizona town. I warned them of this person’s comments, and quoted them, and sent them the links to the sites I had visited, and then asked that they check this person out. I remember stating that I hoped that this person was not going to do anything, but that I beleived this person was mentally ill and that, in the least, they would check him out.

I have no idea if they did, but I must say that I hope they did. I do not know if this person, Jared Lee Loughner, is the boy who was involved in the carnage in Tucson, but it may have been. The reason I don’t know is because all I had was a screen name, and I no longer have access to the emails that I sent out, over two months ago.

When Sarah Palin targets government officials, she must understand that some people will go out into the world and take these comments as instructions, and this may be what has happened here.

In addition, it seems that the mentally ill are particularly vulnerable because even when they show signs of decompensation—which this young man showed them, on a daily basis, in his college classrooms—they are left to fend for themselves. It is up to the friends, colleagues, and family members of those who are suffering from mental illness to assist them. We should not have to wait until someone goes out and kills innocent men, women, and children before they are given the help that they need.

Many, out of anger, will call for the death penalty, many others will want to avenge those who were killed, and that too is part of the problem. We must continue to make sure that the mentally ill are protected. We cannot hold this young man responsible for what he did because it is clear that he was not in his right mind. Of course, that will be up to the judge, the psychiatrists, and those responsible. I hope that this young man receives compassion, because he deserves it just as much as the victims do.

For many, around the world, this time of the year is particularly important, especially for Christians, for whom it means celebrating the birth of a seer, and spending time with friends and family. Indeed, millions travel around the world so that they too may be with their loved ones, regardless of religious convictions. The world, it seems, is just bubbling in mirth, and everybody seems to want to participate in the great celebration of light, and love.

Unfortunately, your press release informs us that conflagrations continue in the state of Israel, where recent bomb attacks have been leveled against Israeli citizens. But the attacks are not levied at Jewish citizens alone, they are directed, in growing numbers, by Zionists against Christians and Arabs alike, and by Muslims against Christians also. In other countries, similar conflagrations have yielded far deadlier consequences, by fundamentalist Muslims targeting Christians, who can no longer celebrate their faiths openly in countries such as in Iraq, Iran, and the Sudan.

The stories fueling these atrocities are varied, but religious intolerance, self-hatre, the hatred of women, all are at the center of these acts.  One of these particular illusions that has helped fuel the Israeli/Palestinian war is the belief—held by Jews—that their monothesitic God, Yahweh, gave the Jews their own country.

In none of my varied readings about the indigenous peoples of the world have I ever heard or read of any god or gods empowering a people with their own country, however. Certainly, we do not need a university degree to surmise that this is largely a myth which was perpetuated by the Jews to benefit only them.

For the most part, all great cultures share the belief that the world belongs to all of its inhabitants, and it would seem that with conquest came the desire to own and to possess. Whether examining the /San tribes in the Kalahari desert of the South African countries, or the native cultures of the Americas, no indigenous culture has ever claimed that land belonged to any tribe. Quite the opposite, actually, is true: all native cultures view the physical land as gifts to all the citizens. It is no wonder that so many wars have risen, in what are our so called “civilized” societies.

The Israeli Jews believe that their God, Yahweh, handed them this country; in fact, they were his chosen people, according to the Abrahamic texts of the Jews. When we examine this, it is rather easy to see the illusionary nature of such a myth, however, combined with their history, coupled with issues surrounding their exodus, and the discrimination they faced throughout the centuries, it is also understand just why and how easily it might be to embrace this kind of myth.

But I say if this is an illusion, what has its impact been? Well, in protecting this gift, which is seen as a miracle, the Israelis must protect it at any cost; it must be preserved, and unfortunately this comes at a cost to the Palestinians, who are expelled from the country. For them, it has meant generations of suffering, a catastrophic end to their way of life, a virtual imprisonment in refugee camps, lives lived behind wires.

In light of these privations, the recent bomb attacks against Israel, though dangerous, provocative, are
surprisingly small gestures. I find the Arabs and Palestinians have remained quiet passive, during the recent failure of the peace talks.

The few Palestinians, acting out, are using the only tools left to them. The far greater atrocities are being committed by both fundamentalist Jews (Zionists) and militant Muslims, who attack each other, and who attack Christians. Not much is said about the Zionists who are killing innocent Christians, however, and just as the Israeli press greatly exaggerates the shellings, and their outcomes, the attacks by Zionists against both Arabs and Christian citizens remains underreported.

As the dominant player in the battleground, we must re-examine the role of Israel in this conflagration. And what is that role? The Israelis have pushed thousands of men, women, and children down a dark alley, and keeping them there for more than 30 years, surrounding an entire community with more than 400 miles of barbed wire, road barriers, gates, dirt mounds, and trenches. They are practically starved to death, and even their water and sewage systems, electrical are under constant attack from the Israeli government.  This is how the Israelis have chosen to deal with Palestinian lives.

When Israelis decided they would continue building illegal settlements, the US and world community cried out in opposition, but none of those governments did anything to stop the Israelis. We must ask that the building of illegal settlements cease, that building licenses be granted Palestinians and other minorities whose homes, land, livestock and temples have been taken from them. Having failed to act to bring justice to the Palestinians, each and every one of us is responsible for the recent attacks.

Israel as Victim

The role Israel plays is of obvious importance. Israel continues to accept and play the role of the victim. Israeli Jews and Jews around the world have in fact been victimized, for centuries, and yet this is also true about many other cultures around the world. In fact, I don’t know of any religion that hasn’t suffered from some persecution. The same can be said of cultural groups. It seems that the greater the religion, the greater its abuses around the world have been: that is how they survived.

The problem, in playing the role of the victim, however, is that it increases the victims power, and it reduces it, too. Having survived, the state of Israel has made it quite clear that it will no longer be the victim, but of course, it has accepted the role.

Playing the role of the victim has many advantages: people come to your aid. Of course, people will also come out against you, and that is what one is asking for when one plays the role of the victim. It is sad that a country with such a great history, however, is totally blind to the role it has so willingly embraced.

However, it is becoming increasingly clear to many that Israel is not the victim it believes it is. In that shift, the Palestinians are no longer the terrorists, or are seen as culturally viable, with their own values, ideas; much is made of other minorities around the world, especially in countries where those in power are from different cultures, religions, etc., And it is important to note that it is not only Arabs that are at risk in present-day Israel, it also includes other minority groups, including Christians, and the Bedouin tribes.

It has taken a long time for this shift to occur, however, and for many, it is not surprising that Israel is moving so aggressively. For the religious Jews of Israel, the Zionists, protecting the land is crucial to their survival as a survival as a race. But for decades, the Zionist agenda has had greater designs. For example, Jews are invited to come and live in Israel from around the world. Many are lured financially. It is clear that Zionists intended to make of the state of Israel a predominantly Jewish state and, as such, the land becomes a prominent focus, forcing many who were not/are not Jewish, out of the country. That started with the founding of the nation by Ben Gurion, in 1947.

All developing nations have development plans, and the state of Israel was no different. It was with expansionism that Jews in Israel went from being victims to being the victimizer. To desire to protect the land is to protect an intangible. Land cannot be set aside to protect one group of people. One wonders what could possibly be wrong with that, but one only has to look at the situation of modern-day Palestine to realize what actually can go wrong when preservation occurs at the expense of minorities. This is the very reason that Israeli citizens are now being asked to swear allegiance to the state of Israel, which apparently has no room for Arabs, Muslims, and maybe even Christians.

I had a friend who lived in Brookline Massachusetts. A conservative Jew, he came to my friend’s house on a regular basis, but one day he told me he was moving back to Israel with his wife. At a later time, he mentioned wanting to rid the country (Israel) of every last Arab! I was so shocked it turned my stomach! I then realized why he liked owning a pistol and went to the local firing range on a regular basis. Though I cannot deny that he was a spiritual man, I cannot possibly acknowledge his brand of spirituality. Lurking beneath the kindness he hid a very tangible anger towards Arabs. His return to the chosen land was more of a vendetta than a pilgrimage, and it is this kind of thinking that so many “spiritual” seem to embrace, both in the USA and in the Middle East.

The view that the land is Israels’ is a deadly belief, and it is obvious that the Jews, Christians and Muslims will undoubtedly kill each other off in near future, given that none of them are willing to give up their beliefs.  What they fail to see is that the Palestinians are simply looking for a safe place for themselves and their families, a safe harbor.

The existence of a monotheistic God may be open to philosophical discourse, with men and women of wisdom, we can at least debate these ideas, but it is becoming increasingly difficult to do that. Muslims who convert to Christianity, or any other religion or non-religion, risk violence, even death, and many meet it. How can this be called a loving religion? The fact is, people have surrendered their own common sense, and can no longer see that the divinity is within them; as such, they feel that they must rely on books and teachers to tell them what is right or wrong, even if it includes the order of a cleric to burn the neighboring village! Being willing to kill others to preserve land cannot be seen as a rational act, and yet millions subscribe just to that belief.

The same can be said of the rest of us, clinging, clutching at our own beliefs, our own cultures, nationalities, our looks, etc., holding them to be true. The truth is that the more nationalistic one becomes, the greater the threat that we will cause suffering for others, the smaller, the fewer.

These attachments and illusions not only bind us in suffering, but they force us to subject others to it. The world becomes a battlefield not only for land, but for temples, livestock, home, ideas. As such, those who do not share our illusions are ostracized; in short, they must be destroyed.

For centuries, the Jews of Israel have been victimized and continue to define themselves as victims. Interestingly enough, many Jews—many of them living in Israel, and around the world—do not agree with the Zionist view, and have sought to distance themselves from this view, some leaving Israel and returning to their countries of origin.

From afar, we too are engaged in the game, empathizing with either side, because of our own illusions, circumstances. This tyranny, conscious or not, on the part of the Israelis, has won them many friends around the world. But playing the victim, however, has a price. Unless Israel decides that it will embrace the Palestinians, they will continue subjecting them to suffering and to death.

If we examine our own stories, every single individual will realize that we have all taken sides, and this too is human, however, if we are embracing fear, or victimization, we continue to create fear and suffering, and are not actively involved in bringing safety, peace, harmony.

This realization can help move us to carefully examine the roles our governments are playing in this never-ending drama. We cannot continue to sit idly by, on the sidelines, pretending that we are incapable of influencing these events; if we think this then so it is. Just as by continuing to marginalize and isolate Palestinians, we help birth new generations of angry young men and women, which then helps confirm the fear of the state of Israel, still observing the landscape from its limited perspective. It is an endless cycle.

The small rocket fire attacks of this week are quite minimal, and yet they are dangerous. If we understand these attacks are a response to the outrage that Palestinians feel, surrounded by wire, slowly starved to death both emotionally and physically, we can help by asking our governments not to sponsor this form of suffering. Instead, we can help the Palestinians live more fulfilling lives by supporting their right to dignity in a peaceful manner.

Returning to peace talks is the first step. Doing so will help resolve these issues and is the only way to offer aid to both Israel and the Palestinian people. Likewise, we must encourage the men and women of Israel to voice their dissatisfaction with the new laws their government leaders have drawn. Israel’s religious leaders can help by opening dialogue with the more extreme religious leaders.

Likewise, the decision to continue building settlements when an overwhelming number of world organizations protested the continued building of these settlements, was a poor decision. If Israel really wants peace, they should be prepared to act like serious negotiators.

The maxim “We’re all in this together” is particularly poignant during the holidays. However, in a political sense, the maxim rings hollow. The new year is just around the bend, and for many, the promise of a new future looms. But for many, there will be little hope.

In negociating a real and meaningful peace settlement, Israel will have to make some sacrifices, but it seems that Israel has no such intention because it is only concerned with protecting the country, and of ridding itself of those who do not agree with her vision. It is self indulgent. The land of our ancestors is just that, it is simply the land of our ancestors. Once they have gone, so with them the land we try to hold. Taken by force, with violence, it doesn’t matter, it cannot be owned. It is the same with Tibet. Tibet is gone, and all that is left are the memories, the shadows of the past. All the Dalai Lama asks, in his wisdom, is that the dignity of the Tibetan people be preserved, their language, and their spiritual practices. He knows we cannot bring “Tibet” back, no matter how painful that is.

Israeli Jews and Tibetans suffer, as do all humans, from the Buddhist notion of attachment. Identities are not stagnant, they are fluid, are shaped, and re-shaped. Like everything else in a conscious world, they come into being, and disappear. It is our reluctance to let go of these memories, these photos, these desires, which cause our suffering. Of course, they never disappear, either, and this is also an illusion—that we too shall die. To return to the land of ancestors is to return to a myth of our own making.

When Israelis recognize that they are dancing the dance of the victim, they will then be free to choose the next dance. That new dance can only take shape when they realize that their neighbors are being subjected to the same atrocities that they were once subjected to.

Our identities are of no greater or lesser importance than those of our neighbors.

Regardless of which side we take, we must realize it is only a side. Instead, we must take both sides.

(This is not Bill Sirkus)

Bill Surkis, the ex-director of the Montreal chapter of B’nai Brith, was sentenced to 45 days of prison, this week. Mr. Surkis plead guilty to possession of child pornography. But in handing out its’ sentence, the Quebec courts may have given Mr. Surkis  a free GET OUT OF JAIL card.

Mr. Surkis, who at first vehemently denied that he was an offender, claiming that the pornographic material on his computer—including over 9 hours of video and several hundred photographs—was simply there for his “research” on child pornography, later plead guilty to the charges.

A pedophile collects and views child pornography; he or she may even be involved in producing these videos, or photography but is not limited simply to these items but also to literature. Medical experts agree that if the pedophile has in his/her possession, he/she is actively abusing children each time he/she handles the materials. Why the Quebec courts fail to understand this may be due to a lack of education about the subject. There can be no other reason a judge would allow this behavior and not implement measures to end it in a way of reshaping the abuser’s behaviors. Unfortunately, this is not the first time a Canadian court has given such a light sentence for such aberrant behavior.

Mr. Sirkus will be allowed to serve his 45 day sentence on weekends, as he presents  himself to the prison on 22 successive weekends. Local experts say that because of the overcrowding in Quebec prisons, Sirkus may actually be sent home within hours of his arrival.

In addition to having evaded a real sentence, a slap in the face to all child advocates, given the high rates of reoffending, no other restrictions have been placed on Mr. Sirkus. In fact, though a sex offender registry exists, his participation was not mandated by court officials, pointing to an on-going and persistent problem within the criminal court system, but one of many involving the protection of children and women’s rights in Quebec.  According to the National Sex Offender Registry, http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/tops-opst/bs-sc/nsor-rnds/broch-eng.htm a “designated” sex offense includes “child pornography (making, possession, distribution)”. As such, according to Canadian laws, Mr. Sirkus is a sex offender.

While Sirkus might have been ordered to submit DNA, the court also failed to take preventive measures. This is unfortunate because it might have linked him to any number of other child abuse or abduction cases, either in the past, or in the future.

Maclean’s magazine, a respected Canadian news magazine, reported on January 14, 2008, that the Canadian Sexual Offender’s Registry is not mandatory, and that the province of Quebec has the most significant problem, where there are “2,554 registered sex offenders.” It is also reported that one in five (480) are missing, and that law enforcement officials do not know where they are. The statistics were reported as of  July of 2007.

If this fact isn’t shocking enough, the fact that the RCMP has consistently asked the Conservative government to improve the registry program, citing many serious flaws, has elucidated no response from the Conservatives, keeping the RCMP out of the discussions, which severely impedes law officials across the country from adequately monitoring sex offenders.

The Conservative government of Steven Harper have somewhat made changes, and yet experts in the field cite countless problems with both the national and individual registry databases, including access to the national registry by law enforcement agencies, including the RCMP. Perhaps this is because the Conservatives want to take credit for the program, but they shouldn’t deny input from front line moderators such as the RCMP.

Introduction by the Conservatives of Bill S-3 ensures that Canadian soldiers who have been court-martialed for sex crimes are added to the Registry. While the RCMP continues to demand the Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada to include them in their policy making sessions, these requests and concerns have been ignored, hampering effective means of protecting citizens from repeated attacks.
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And, across the country, repeated attacks by offenders who should have been on the list but were not forced to update their location, have led to both additional rape and attacks by numerous offenders. It is clear that the province of Quebec, as of July of 2007 statistics, is guilty of a total of misplacing 480 offenders; meaning that neither the Registry nor the RCMP knew where offenders were living or working. Police state that finding offenders is similar to opening a missing person’s case. In fact, of those 480 missing offenders in Quebec, only one was prosecuted. This is the same province that convicted Bill Sirkus,but refused to order that he be added to the registry, in any capacity. Sirkus is also free to roam around schools, and no other limits have been placed on him, making the court’s decision unethical and irresponsible.

Canadians and Quebec citizens should be very concerned. There are over 1,500 offenders running free somewhere in Canada, preying on children, and recent Quebec laws show that many are working with children, either in school systems, or as coaches, in churches, etc. The reason so many remain at large is directly linked to the poor laws in Quebec and other provinces, and it is becoming quite clear that Quebec laws are unwilling to protect women and children. The son of a famous hockey player was released only a couple of years ago and he was soon back to his old habits. It also seems that those with power, and prestige, like Sirkus, and the sons of influential national sports heros and, are not subjected to the same kinds of sentences the ordinary man would be given. The lenient sentences also give sexual abusers and predators the idea that they can carry out their crimes with little punishment and consequences.

As for Bill Sirkus, the Quebec judge could and should have mandated that his name be added to the Registry, but he/she declined to do that, a serious lack of insight and action, with potentially disastrous results. It is in fact well documented that numerous offenders have been allowed to come and go, and have re-offended on many occasions. This leniency has led to the rape, torture, and molestation of many children in Canada.

While advocates of children’s rights are working to build better systems to detect, treat, and prosecute sexual offenders, Quebec seems to have taken little notice of the effect abusers have on their victims; instead of dealing out punishment and treatment aimed at healing and/or prevention, the provincial legal system has retreated, allowing international child advocacy organizations and Interpol to take the reigns.

The impact isn’t only directed at the victims but affects all of us. While it is true that a registry doesn’t necessarily mean we will lessen criminal activity profoundly, many offenders have expressed their appreciation of the presence of the registry, feeling that short of prison sentences, it is one of the few options and treatment offered them. This is a sad comment on the state of the mental health and prison system in Canada. Like many with severe mental health issues, Canadians have taken to imprisoning men and women who should be hospitalized. With sexual offenders, the opposite seems to be true: instead of imprisoning them, they are left to wander about, and their illnesses remain neither treated nor monitored.

Many would want to avenge the victims of these offenders, but it seems that in a progressively more humane world, the focus of the mental healthy industry prefers to offer compassionate treatment. And yet, those in charge of caretaking are often left without resources, while the mentally ill remain invisible.

When was the last time you participated in a Walk-for-Hunger, or a Walk-for-Cancer walk? There are many of these organizations and many participate in them, throughout the year, however, I have never seen or heard of a Walk-for-the-Mentally Ill walk, probably because mentally ill are at the bottom of the list. Clearly, there is a larger stigma when it comes to admitting that there are many people with mental health issues, and even more who refused to even raise funds for such an event, much less talk about its’ impact on us.

This reminds me of an incident in Montreal last summer. I was in downtown Montreal on a beautiful day. I was with a friend and we decided to cross the street. As we stood there, waiting for the light to change, I noticed a relatively bearded man with several shirts and a winter coat. It was clear that this man was mentally ill, but I’m not just relying on the physical description, after all, it’s very fashionable to wear a winter coat in the middle of summer, especially in the throes of a nuclear, mid-day sunstorm! It was apparent that he was at a grand prix racetrack, and as the traffic lunged forward, he dropped on one knee, waving his invisible green and red flags, and the race was on! In any case, yes, I make a joke of it, call it highway humour, whatever, but the point I was trying to make is that there are thousands of homeless men here in the city, many of them, at least 3/4 of them, profoundly mentally ill. I also wonder what might have happened to him if I hadn’t simply walked in, gently taken him by the elbow, and led him off the race track. And I wonder why no one else reacted; in fact no one else seemed prepared to do anything. And that is the attitude that many have when it comes to mental health.

In any case, until  each and every one of us stands-up and assumes some responsibility for the people in our community, including sexual offenders, and demand that our government help them, we will never be able to protect our children from these sexual predators, etc. Even Level 2 or 3, or first time offenders, need our help, not just a caning.  And it is certain we must support our local police force, the point men, who are often times the first responders. Making sure the RCMP, the OPP and the provincial police have easy and direct access to both the national database and to those running it is one way we can help.

Various excuses for not providing these tools to our civilian employees are now appearing. True, thousands gathered last week in Montreal to protest an increase of parking meters and an increase in fees, but the masses have done little to sponsor stronger legislation when it comes to criminal law. Perhaps many of us are directly affected by the $3.00 parking fee, and yet, not as many are aware of the debilitating diseases that the mentally ill suffer from.

It is also the same government officials and those in power, the Conservatives, who, by and large, colluding with the Liberals, refuse to make the sweeping changes necessary to protect our children, the mentally ill, and women.

If the Liberals are soft on crime it is simply because their associations with the mafia have been hugely successful. The Liberals all seem to be implicated in a variety of criminal organizations, and not a day goes by without the media reporting that yet another politician has confessed to accepting cash, a money envelope, etc., How can a government sleeping with the mob, be expected to fight crime?

The mob has never been healthier, so much so that a majority of Italian restaurants in the city are now ladling poutine, a popular sauce, onto french fries. (Joke) While I’m joking, let me share another funny idea: that having a national sex offender’s registry, and granting civilians access to that site, would encourage vigilante justice. I cannot remember where I heard that one, but I did. As far as I know, the US has had registries in many states for many years and other than the “subway vigilante” Bernard Getz, no vigilante has emerged from the dark paneled offices of the American gloom to terrorize anyone.

What I find funny is Canada’s inability to juggle what amounts to a database, in a country of 35 million people. If Canadians have ever believed that they suffered an inferiority complex, as some of our friends at Wikileaks would have us believe, this would be a good time to step forward and into the light. The fact is that US citizens have easier access to their offender databases than do Canadian Police forces.

The Massachusetts Sex Offenders’ Registry has also made it very clear that harassment or discrimination of offenders is a serious offense with a two and a half-year prison term, a $3,000 fine, or both. Having such a program means that offenders, now out of jail, trying to rebuild their lives, have a right to and deserve the same protections as the rest of us. Having such a registry, and access to it for both citizens and the police means a safer envrironment.

Take a look at the site, above, and note that over that at the present time there are 50 level 3 offenders who are in violation (click VIOLATION in the CITY field, and hit return; DO NOT enter any name) and have failed to register their work and home addresses. These men are serious offenders and the only reason they are in violation is because they are in hiding, are deceased, or are planning on taking out Sarah Palin. No seriously, they are out there, hiding. Do you recognize any of them? Have any of them moved into your neighborhood?

One thing I did notice, several years ago, when working in Boston, is that many ex-offenders live in homeless shelters. Accessing the list provides the viewer with a great number of details, and actual photos, making it quite simple to see who is in your neighborhood.

In 2008, James Albert Aucoin, a prominent coach in a small New Hampshire town, was indicted on charges of “enticing a child under the age of 16,” and of the “purchase or possession of child pornography.”

Like Mr. Sirkus, Mr. Aucoin, regardless of whatever else he may be, to his wife, and children, etc., is a sexual offender and is required to sign up with the Sex Offender’s Registry. If Quebec lawmaker’s and judges decide they want to stem the flow of crimes against children, they can enact laws which will adequate create services that will enforce the rehabilitation, incarceration, and identification of sexual offenders living in our province.

Though it is hard for the Quebec courts to understand, Canadian law describes those who are in the possession of and who view and/or distribute pornography and films is a sexual offender.  The programs initiated in the US have had overwhelming and positive effects both in the lives of abusers and in the prevention of abuse. Considering the laziness of the Quebec court system and their continued refusal to protect the women and children of this province by updating and enforcing sentencing guidelines, it is clear it is the citizens who will have to pressure the courts to initiate a national registry and to make sure it is available to citizens and law enforcement agencies. Unfortunately, for many, these changes will come too late.

Well, the new Dream Act, the latest in a series of Republican social ploys, would grant Mexican children who were younger than 15—when their parents illegally brought them into the US— amnesty. But there are several important conditions to this program, and frankly, I’m a bit worried as to why the media hasn’t picked up on this.

The Dream Act would only give these children/young adults amnesty status if those children later attend two years of college or serve two years in a branch of the US military. These are serious conditions.

Let’s get real here, do we really think the Republicans care about young Mexican children, or workers rights? Of course not, and they haven’t since Ronald Reagan wiped out social services for the needy in 1979. And neither do the majority of corporate American businesses that hire large numbers of  illegal aliens. I remember one such employer, the largest Kosher Jewish meat processor in the Bronx, who was arrested in 2008 for housing illegal aliens and child-workers; and subjecting thousands of them to work in sub-human conditions, actions which inevitably lead to his prosecution.

Why have TV media pundits have been silent ? One of the facts may be that this is a bill designed to further enslave Mexican children, those who are the easiest to manipulate. Just as in the Rubashkin case, it is business corporations who will benefit from this Act, and the military. If you really think of it, those a dirty ruse, it’s a brilliant money-maker for US interests!

Of the 30,000 who might benefit from this Act, how realistic is it to believe that even a fraction of these new immigrants would ever be able to afford the costs of a university degree, and in what world do the sponsors of this “Dream” Act live in, believing that a two-year university even exists? Surely, even if they managed to find the funds for the two years, that education wouldn’t amount to beans.

When we calculate the ongoing financial crisis, the impediments these children have faced and will continue to face in an increasingly hostile environment, doesn’t it make a lot more sense most of these kids would have to choose the military option, and is that really an option? I think not. Of course the government is aware of this. Unfortunately who is there to advocate for the children, or the Mexican community? I say it’s an option, but only for the Republicans, who are also aware that with an increase in body count and the continued conflicts in the Middle East, the African continent, and a possible engagement in Iran, Russia, and yes, even in North Korea, it is important that we have access to a fresh and continued supply of troops.

It is this demand for troops that is the real reason President Obama seeks to repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell; given the certainty of our involvement in numerous conflicts around the world, for the next two decades, repealing the policy makes political sense.  The Dream Act is just another method of enlisting more troops. If the US wanted to provide these children amnesty, they would have done so year ago, and without these barbaric conditions.

While American troops continue to face devastating tolls both in the field and at home, with those returning facing an insurmountable number of mental health issues, including the lack of psychological treatment options for troops dealing with suicide, depression, anxiety disorders, and PTSD, we must ask ourselves if we are offering these children valid choices and if they are ethical.

As a boy I remember asking my foster father why he was a Democrat. We were sitting on the large porch in the countryside and he had just returned from the barn with a hat full of eggs. He slowly rocked back and forth in his chair, scanning the horizon, and then he said, “It’s was the only party that cares about people.”  I knew then that I wanted to be part of that movement.

That this is not a Democratic bill is clear; it is largely corporations and businesses—like the Rubashkins—and the military, who will benefit from labour and troops. Once again, the government is subjecting those at greatest risk, and children, all in the name of a common good, capitalism. Where is the compassion? All I see is a lack of sympathy for struggling familes, and the birth of more narcisstic, dangerous ideas, and Republicans would like the rest of us to believe that they are offering illegal immigrants a new life, and promising alternatives. But they are wrong: the Act is vulgar, both in its language and its vision.

I hope the Senate will come to its’ senses and allow this Act to languish on the floor. I hope Latin American citizens and their neighbors and their families and their friends rally and fight to make sure that this Act never passes. If nothing more, many will come to realize that this Act is nothing more than a dream drummed up by greedy politicians eager to streamline the precious lives of innocent children.

Though the border issues have been a dividing issue in the southwestern states, most latinos are aware that the US administration has served more as a wedge than as an advocate and now the Obama administration has dreamed up this dark idea, plunging that wedge deeply into the family, threatening to separate parents from children. If this should pass, it is certain to create more suffering within the respective communities. The ideas herein are similar to those which affected hundreds ofnative Americans treaties; American Indian Law is accurate and shows that thousands were duped by the government’s slight of hand, and sometimes lives were lost because of those laws. Surely, American interests in the battlefield far outweigh the rights of Latinos and illegal immigrants, just as the rights of native Americans were secondary for well over two centuries. Here again, American immigration officials have sided with various governmental offices to make sure that the interests of the state are upheld, regardless of the cost to Mexican immigrants, or their children.

The dangerous application of the Dream Act belies its’ name, and compassionate measures, in any shape, don’t place at-risk youth in harm’s way; one would think we had learned from our past mistakes, and that we would be careful not to separate children from their parents, or force adults to sign away their rights, but this bill shows that we are blind to the past. These measures, if enacted, would force children to mandatory military service, and result in the loss of lives. Why this is not an issue within the halls of the ACLU, remains baffling.

While their was talk of reenacting the draft during the Bush years, perhaps the usage of this Act is a political scheme. It surely would avoid the need for a draft, and this is perhaps why Republicans are anxious to pass the resolution.  Given the number of casualties, a draft seems almost inevitable, so maybe this really is a Dream Act, for the Republicans, and so too for Obama, who would certainly receive acknowledgement and accolades from his bitter enemies. The sad fact, however, is that initiating a draft wouldn’t hold parents and children hostage, but drafting this Act would. In some ways, it’s a brilliant ploy, but more disturbing, I wonder how a gaggle of Republicans got Obama to sign on for this! And how can a national healthcare advocate embrace such a grossly unethical measure?

Whatever the trade-off, this Act benefits the administration, and both Democrats and Republicans. The conglomerates get cheap labor, and the military get thousands of troops. I wonder, though, how Obama will sleep at night, knowing that an honest apology doesn’t include subjecting children to great risks, exploitation, and death.

I’ve always loved language and translation, and so too their successes and failures.

A recent foible comes to us from Japan, one of the most technically savvy countries in the world.

The Japanese have, without question, some of the most sophisticated packaging designers in the world; their branding far surpasses that of many countries, and the Japanese are at least a decade ahead of the rest of us. And yet this success obviously doesn’t mean that they have learned the one most important lesson in the marketing world: hire an editor.

But the Japanese aren’t the only ones guilty of this: clearly both India and Malaysia have efficiently fudged the English language, whether on hand-painted billboards across the Indian plains, or in the modern fashion magazines of Kuala Lumpur.

In seeking to capitalize on foreign exports, the Japanese have recently given us bottled water humorously titled “Pocari Sweat”.

Whatever Pocari means, “Sweat” doesn’t actually equate drinking water—not in my book. For the Japanese, though, a country that has successfully made burgers out of fecal matter, drinking sweat may not seem so bad! And though even Wikipedia seems to think that it’s fine to bungle this product name, I fluidly disagree.

Collectors of Japanese faux pas, however, will be happy that they can add a new product to a long list of strangely named products, raining down on us from Japan.

VZCZCXRO2163 RR RUEHCN RUEHGH DE RUEHSH #0004/01 0070012 ZNY SSSSS ZZH R 070012Z JAN 10 FM AMCONSUL SHENYANG TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8952 INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC 0247 RHMFISS/COMUSKOREA J2 SEOUL KOR RUEKJCS/DIA WASHDC 0194 RUCGEVC/JOINT STAFF WASHDC 0137 RHEHAAA/NSC WASHDC RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC 0195 SE C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 XXXXXXXXXXXX 000004 NOFORN SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR EAP/K, EAP/CM, INR E.O. 12958: DECL: TEN YEARS AFTER KOREAN UNIFICATION TAGS: CH ECON EFIN EIND EMIN KN KS PGOV PREL

SUBJECT: WAITING AND WATCHING: NORTH KOREA AFTER CURRENCY REFORM REF: 09 XXXXXXXXXXXX 167 Classified By: Consul General Stephen B. Wickman. For Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)

¶1. (S/NF) SUMMARY: On December 15, EAP DAS XXXXXXXXXXXX and XXXXXXXXXXXX staff met with XXXXXXXXXXXX, a major player here in Chinese-North Korean economic exchanges. XXXXXXXXXXXX attributed the DPRK,s recent currency reform to several factors: controlling rampant inflation, preventing ‘hot money’ flows, leveling the wealth gap between workers and traders, controlling domestic currency, and most importantly, uncovering potential political opposition. As a result of the reform, commerce has come to a halt. The leadership, as part of an ambitious 2012 development strategy, hopes for the restoration of relations with the United States. XXXXXXXXXXXX also believes that current plans assume Kim Jong-il will be around for some time and that Kim Jong-un will be his successor. The recent recall of DPRK scholars, students and scientists from China following the defection of a North Korean exchange student, for example, suggests increasing levels of paranoia. END SUMMARY. GIVE ME GOOD REASON ——————- ¶

2. (S/NF) On December 15, EAP DAS David Shear and Consulate Shenyang staff met with XXXXXXXXXXXX, XXXXXXXXXXXX visits Pyongyang frequently. Admitting he is unsure of the exact value of Chinese investment into North Korea, XXXXXXXXXXXX believes the number to be many billions of renminbi. Chinese companies, like their ROK counterparts, use North Korea as a processing zone, primarily in the mining and seafood industries. According to XXXXXXXXXXXX, the DPRK leadership’s 2012 target for achieving ‘strong-country’ status should form the principal basis for analyzing recent political developments, including the currency reform measure. ¶

3. (S/NF) The most important reason for the recent DPRK currency reform, according to XXXXXXXXXXXX, is to uncover political opposition, particularly against Kim Jong-il’s younger son. Controlling inflation, leveling the wealth gap, controlling domestic currency and access to foreign currency, are all part of this strategy. XXXXXXXXXXXX believes that the third son, Kim Jong-un, favored the currency revaluation, and that going forward Kim Jong-un leans toward a Vietnamese-style of economic reform. Opposition to the currency exchange, according to XXXXXXXXXXXX, might reveal who opposes the ascension of Kim Jong-un to leadership. According to XXXXXXXXXXXX, Kim Jong-il’s support of the currency reform points to his favoring the third son; those opposing the revaluation, also oppose the third son. XXXXXXXXXXXX drew parallels to the 2009 nuclear tests, which he said were also influenced by succession plans. XXXXXXXXXXXX said that the first son, Kim Jong-nam, opposes his younger brother’s reform plans and favors a Chinese-style of economic opening. ¶

4. (S/NF) XXXXXXXXXXXX said that the number of factions competing for Kim Jong-il’s attention have made it increasingly difficult for Kim Jong-il to listen to anyone. As a sign of Kim Jong-il’s paranoia, he recently recalled all students, scholars, and scientists in China following the defection of an exchange student in Northeast China. He did this despite the need for Chinese knowledge, production skills, and technology to achieve the country’s goals for 2012. However, XXXXXXXXXXXX believes that current instability will settle and the government will move ahead with reform, fully expecting Kim Jong-il to be around for sometime to come. The reform, according to XXXXXXXXXXXX, may not be toward a more open economy. Rather, with currency reform giving the regime the ability to control domestic currency, reforms will lead to tighter control over the economy. ¶

5. (S) Prior to revaluation, one dollar equaled 3500 won. To put that in perspective, the average worker in Pyongyang earns 3000-4000 won per month. XXXXXXXXXXXX reported that according to the DPRK Embassy, the official exchange rate following reform is now one dollar equals 129 won. For the common person, SHENYANG 00000004 002 OF 002 besides suffering from a significant cut in won-based savings, supermarkets and department stores that deal in won have suspended activity as they wait to see what impact currency reform will have on commodity prices. Thus, it has become difficult to purchase day-to-day needs. XXXXXXXXXXXX pointed out, if commodity prices rise, the economy will be ruined. However, if prices settle as a result of reform, and assuming constant wages, the economy will be okay as workers once earning one dollar a month will now earn nearly 20 dollars.

¶6. (S) Traders, who earn many times more than the average wage-earner, have been unaffected by the reform in monetary terms, as savings are held mostly in euro and dollars. Since the revaluation, only stores dealing with foreign exchange have been open and prices in these stores have increased 400-500 percent. For example, a TV that cost RMB 4000 now costs RMB 20,000. Many of these stores raised prices in anticipation of the reform, with the expectation that prices would then fall. However, prices have not fallen. Many of the stores that raised prices prior to reform have since been closed by the government, their goods confiscated. Thus, even traders who have not lost money from revaluation now have nothing to buy. Chinese traders along the North Korean border have also been affected by currency reform even though most trade is done in euros and dollars. As is the case within North Korea, people are waiting and watching to see what will happen to prices. In the meantime, nobody wants to sell anything. NOT A CRISIS YET BUT CLOSE ————————–

¶7. (S/NF) XXXXXXXXXXXX does not believe the DPRK is in crisis mode at this time. As he said, the people are used to this sort of thing. He saw the currency reform as being part of a broader conflict within the government as it moves forward in the next several years. Since 2002, the DPRK has allowed some economic reform, without expressing strong support or opposition. As he put it, the government has been waiting and watching to see what would happen. CHINA, the U.S., and EVERYTHING ——————————- ¶

8. (S/NF) XXXXXXXXXXXX said many in the DPRK believe the Chinese do not understand their country. While neither the Chinese nor the DPRK are likely to criticize the other in public, XXXXXXXXXXXX said that in private the DPRK has disparaged the Chinese for not including North Korea on its list of 147 tourist destinations or 137 investment destinations. These omissions and the disparate Chinese actions on regional development projects clearly indicate that North Korea is not a priority for the Chinese. For instance, while China recently elevated the long-beleaguered Changchun-Jilin-Tumen River development plan to a national level project, the DPRK left the Tumen River Development Plan, as it sees no benefit (REFTEL). Relations between the two countries were getting so bad, in fact, Premier Wen Jiabao visited Pyongyang two months ahead of schedule.

9. (S/NF) According to XXXXXXXXXXXX, North Korea has set an ambitious target of developing a strong country by 2012. As part of this project, it is planning to build 100,000 residential apartments in Pyongyang by 2012. In order to encourage Chinese investment, the DPRK is offering Chinese investors mining and ocean rights for their injection of cash into the project. A former Consul General of the North Korean consulate in Shenyang, recently spent two weeks in Beijing attracting about RMB 12 billion for this project and planned to come to Shenyang following his time in Beijing. ¶

10. (S) Restoration of relations with the United States is another important part of the DPRK’s reform plans. He said, however, that North Korea looks forward to an ongoing cycle of ups and downs in negotiations and that it counts on the U.N. to be slow in implementing sanctions. As he said, he believes that once things settle down, North Korea will show China and the U.S. “its bottom card.”

WICKMAN

It is important to note that 18 years ago, while Americans were busy implementing the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy, thereby discriminating against gay men and lesbian women, Canadians had decided to allow gay and lesbians to serve in the Canadian Armed Forces.

Conservative Republicans in the American Congress say that allowing gays to serve in the military would undermine all aspects of the military. It is interesting to note that prior to lifting the ban on gays in the military in Canada, a total of 62% of Canadians had also stated that they would refuse to sleep in the same room as gay men and women. A similar American survey, most recently, consisted of 60% of military officials saying that they would leave the armed services if DADT was overturned, either by Congressional members, or by the Supreme Court. Of course, if they left, this might not be so terrible for the gay men and women soldiers, who will undoubtedly be subjected to anti-gay harrassment, but the military would be forced to court-martial an estimated 225,000 troops!

The repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell will occur, in spite of the unwillingness by Christian fundamentalist bigots and Republicans to repeal the bill. We cannot allow bigoted attitudes to define the futures of thousands of gay American men and women who want to serve in the US Armed Forces with dignity.  The fact is that there are many gay men within the ranks of the Marines. I even dated one of them, years ago. Surely, he could not have been the only one.

According to wikipedia, 22 countries around the world allow gay men and women to serve openly in the military; and of the 26 that military participants in NATO, only two, China and the United States, do not allow gay men and women to serve openly.  So much for liberties and democracy.

Bill Sirkus Heterosexual Pedophile

Bill Surkis, former director of B’nai Brith Montreal, plead guilty to child pornography charges.

Mr. Surkis, who initially stated that he had downloaded the photos and videos of young children—ages 6 to 14 years of age, engaging in sexual relations with adults—had done so because he was “studying” child pornography in order to speak to students about it. Of course, now he has changed his mind and plead guilty.

Unfortunately, the real problem is that child pornography laws aren’t very strict in Quebec, and now that he has plead guilty, it is assumed that he will serve the minimum sentence which is 45 days of jail time. This is an insult not only to all Canadians but to all children who rely on the province to protect them.

In another recent and similar case, a popular Montreal television and radio broadcaster is facing similar charges, and his sentence could also consist of only a month! As a kid who was sexually abused by several staff members including a staff psychologist, house parent, and counselor in a group home run by Catholic Charities Maine, I think that this is a slap in the face to all children. In the US, individuals facing these charges could get something like 5 years of jail time, and that is appropriate for ruining the lives of children and participating in this industry.

Surkis, who now apologized for his crime, at first denied it vehemently. His defense has now requested that he not be placed on the sexual offenders registry, but I hope that presiding judge Celine Lamontagne will give him the maximum jail time, will monitor him, have him register with the sex offenders registry, and force him to undergo psychotherapy.

While some are wondering why the fact that it is mentioned that Sirkus was the head of the Montreal Chapter of B’nai Brith, it should be noted that it senior members of the Montreal Jewish community  came to his aid, providing, according to court documents, at least 8 pages of testimony. Why members of the Jewish community did not distance themselves from a man who plead quilty to downloading and watching pornographic videos and photographs involving children remains unclear, and who knows, there may be others in his tight circle who, like him, are child predators.

Surkis’s past status and reputation in the community should not allow him to circumvent provincial laws, but it appears that because of his status in the Jewish community, he will get off with little more than a month in jail and a slap on the wrists.

Citizens and parents should be outraged at the criminal courts in Quebec, which seem to have no respect for children. In a Montreal courtroom another man was recently accused of beating his 13-year old daughter, Noutene Sidime, to death for refusing to do her prayers, or, as other stories claim, for refusing to wash the kitchen floor, which seemed not to have met with his approval.

The fact is the young girl was so brutally beaten she continued to bleed profusely from her head and nose, and remained in intensive care for three days before she died. The man’s wife said he had never hit his children, but other family members, including his son, stated that he regularly struck him and another family member.

The coroner had not yet ruled on the cause of death, but it is obvious that her father killed her, beating her so severely that she died from her injuries. That would be a crime anywhere else in the world, and the use of his fists would constitute a felony aggravated assault. It is clear that he did more than slap her twice in the face!

What, I ask, is wrong with our criminal system? Last year I complained about a man who held an underage girl hostage and beat her severely for days. Because his father was a prominent hockey player, he was allowed to pay his dues and did hardly any time.  Recently, he was again arrested.

I’m not saying that we throw him in jail for the rest of his life, but this man did the unthinkable, he killed his daughter with his two bare hands! Just as in similar cases of murder, involving honour killings here in Montreal and in Ontario, the lives of women and young females appears to be of little value here in Quebec.

Even more shocking and disgusting is the fact that the man who killed his 13-year old daughter in Longeuil, a Montreal suburb, was actually allowed to leave the prison after his arrest, on a bail which amounted to a mere $5,000! The Quebec judge responsible for that crime is Judge Denis Bouchard, who did not agree with the prosecutor who asked that he not be released.

Surkis, like many sexual predators, appears to have spent much of his life surrounded by children. That troubles me. For 22 years he also served as an academic dean at John Abbott College in Montreal. Given his behaviour, it is not unlikely that he has acted out before, and who knows, there may be others who have settled out of court, or who will come out of hiding to denounce him. These guys don’t usually do this just one time.

Sending the message to Quebec citizens that one can commit these crimes and serve little or not jail time at all will simply encourage those who engage in these activities to take the risk and continue indulging themselves. Why not, the price seems to be quite inconsequential!

We cannot allow any individual, not even school deans or prominent members of society, to jeopardize the safety of children, not if we are seriously concerned about the welfare of those children.

We should all write to the judge and send Quebec courts the message that 45 days of jail time is insufficient, and fails to address the nature of the crimes committed by pedophiles and their lasting and damaging effects on society.

Here is the Bedbug Registry I found some time ago.

It seems that Montreal has a lot of them, so this is a great place to look for ‘em, or find out who has ‘em!

http://www.bedbugregistry.com/