Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a presentation which was televised to all of Israel documenting how Iran has been cheating on its nuclear program.
Some say this a prelude to war. Left-wing publications are doing their best to liken Netanyahu's presentation to that of former Secretary of State Colin Powell's to the UN prior to the War in Iraq.
But I don't think this is about war. Rather, one must ask if this is this the beginning of the end of the Iran nuclear deal? Clearly this presentation was as much for a U.S. audience as it was for Israelis. In which case, will this be what prompts President Trump to jettison the agreement? If so will Trump announce it during the opening of the new U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem? Or is he going to wait until mid-term elections in this country?
Whatever the case, it is long overdue. Frankly, Trump should have ended the Iran nuclear deal on the day he took office. But he hasn't because much of his cabinet favors the Iran nuclear deal although this is not the case with his new Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
But what if Trump doesn't announce an end to the deal this year? For starters, Bibi is going to have egg on his face. Such a spectacle for nothing in return. Aside from weakening Netanyahu, it will also further anxiety in the Gulf Arab states resulting in an escalation of nuclear arms.
As for Israel, while moving the embassy to Jerusalem is important that will be meaningless if there is no ground on which a new embassy can be built. Ending the Iran nuclear deal should have been Trump's first foreign policy priority and the fact it has taken this long to resolve doesn't inspire my confidence. If Benjamin Netanyahu's presentation doesn't convince Trump to end the Iran nuclear deal then nothing will.
Monday, April 30, 2018
My Experience With Racism in a Canadian Chinese Restaurant
Today, I read about the Chinese restaurant in Toronto that was ordered by the Ontario Human Rights Commission to pay $10,000 (about $7,800 U.S. dollars) for telling black customers to prepay for their meals.
It immediately reminded me of an incident which took place at a Chinese restaurant in Ottawa nearly 25 years ago. This incident involved a friend of mine named Logong Raditlhokwa. A native of Botswana, he had been my housemate during my second year at Carleton University. He was pursuing his MSW and we spent many hours talking. After the academic year, I moved to another part of the city and he would soon return to Botswana. Before he left, I invited him to my favorite Chinese restaurant in Ottawa's little Chinatown on Somerset Street to introduce him to the wonders of hot and sour soup.
I had been at this restaurant many times with various friends. But this was the first time I had been there with a friend who happened to be black. This time things were very different. The waiters would not acknowledge Logong. When I ordered my usual large bowl of hot and sour they insisted I order a smaller bowl, but I said it would be large. It took a long time for our food to come and when it did they practically threw Logong's food at him. I could see all of this was making Logong quite uncomfortable. I asked him if he wanted to leave or for me to say something. He wanted neither. We were staying and eating whether they liked it or not. So we did but neither I nor my friends ever ate at that restaurant again.
Logong would soon return to Botswana and I would never see him again. I wish we had parted on happier circumstances. Sadly, he died in 2015 at the age of 50.
I often wonder what would have happened had I taken my mentor Moffat Makuto and his wife Amy out to that Chinese restaurant. You see Moffat is from Zimbabwe and Amy is from Hong Kong. They would have gone ballistic.
Food is something that ought to bring people together. But hatred is a custom as ancient as our meal time. Segregated lunch counters might be illegal these days, but one cannot legislate away bigotry and ignorance.
With that said, while such attitudes will always be around, I would like to think these incidents are the exception rather than the rule. If it weren't I would have stopped eating Chinese food long ago.
It immediately reminded me of an incident which took place at a Chinese restaurant in Ottawa nearly 25 years ago. This incident involved a friend of mine named Logong Raditlhokwa. A native of Botswana, he had been my housemate during my second year at Carleton University. He was pursuing his MSW and we spent many hours talking. After the academic year, I moved to another part of the city and he would soon return to Botswana. Before he left, I invited him to my favorite Chinese restaurant in Ottawa's little Chinatown on Somerset Street to introduce him to the wonders of hot and sour soup.
I had been at this restaurant many times with various friends. But this was the first time I had been there with a friend who happened to be black. This time things were very different. The waiters would not acknowledge Logong. When I ordered my usual large bowl of hot and sour they insisted I order a smaller bowl, but I said it would be large. It took a long time for our food to come and when it did they practically threw Logong's food at him. I could see all of this was making Logong quite uncomfortable. I asked him if he wanted to leave or for me to say something. He wanted neither. We were staying and eating whether they liked it or not. So we did but neither I nor my friends ever ate at that restaurant again.
Logong would soon return to Botswana and I would never see him again. I wish we had parted on happier circumstances. Sadly, he died in 2015 at the age of 50.
I often wonder what would have happened had I taken my mentor Moffat Makuto and his wife Amy out to that Chinese restaurant. You see Moffat is from Zimbabwe and Amy is from Hong Kong. They would have gone ballistic.
Food is something that ought to bring people together. But hatred is a custom as ancient as our meal time. Segregated lunch counters might be illegal these days, but one cannot legislate away bigotry and ignorance.
With that said, while such attitudes will always be around, I would like to think these incidents are the exception rather than the rule. If it weren't I would have stopped eating Chinese food long ago.
Kelly Denies Calling Trump An Idiot
White House Chief of Staff John Kelly has emphatically denied calling President Trump an idiot.
This stands is stark contrast to former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. Last October, when reports emerged that Tillerson had referred to Trump as a moron he wouldn't deny he had said it. What was more interesting me is when Tillerson arrived at that conclusion. Regardless of when Tillerson arrived at that conclusion, he was out of a job less than six months later. Kelly wants to avoid this fate.
I'm inclined to think Kelly didn't call Trump an idiot. Trump and Kelly are kindred spirits. He shares Trump's mean streak. Indeed, Kelly told reporters that Tillerson was on the toilet when he gave him his walking papers. Back in October, Kelly vociferously defended Trump's call to Sgt. La David Johnson's widow who had said Trump had been disrespectful to her and the memory of her husband. If Kelly is willing to call a war widow a liar then I doubt he referred to Trump as an idiot. John Kelly has become one himself.
This stands is stark contrast to former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. Last October, when reports emerged that Tillerson had referred to Trump as a moron he wouldn't deny he had said it. What was more interesting me is when Tillerson arrived at that conclusion. Regardless of when Tillerson arrived at that conclusion, he was out of a job less than six months later. Kelly wants to avoid this fate.
I'm inclined to think Kelly didn't call Trump an idiot. Trump and Kelly are kindred spirits. He shares Trump's mean streak. Indeed, Kelly told reporters that Tillerson was on the toilet when he gave him his walking papers. Back in October, Kelly vociferously defended Trump's call to Sgt. La David Johnson's widow who had said Trump had been disrespectful to her and the memory of her husband. If Kelly is willing to call a war widow a liar then I doubt he referred to Trump as an idiot. John Kelly has become one himself.
Where Were Trump Supporters When Heidi Cruz & Carly Fiorina Needed Them?
It's hard for me to take the outrage of Trump supporters seriously where it concerns Michelle Wolf's jokes about Sarah Huckabee Sanders at the White House Correspondents' Dinner when they were laughing along with Trump when he went after Heidi Cruz, Carly Fiorina, Heidi Klum, Alicia Machado among others for their appearance.
John Podhoretz called out Laura Ingraham on Twitter specifically referencing Cruz as well as Serge Kovaleski, I replied:
A Trump supporter told me today he hadn't been engaging in this kind of behavior lately & he should be applauded. I told her that was like applauding a racist for not using the N-word for a few months.
I should note this tweet was liked 672 times. But I digress.
Sooner or later, President Trump is going to say or tweet something demeaning and his supporters aren't going to bat an eyelash.
John Podhoretz called out Laura Ingraham on Twitter specifically referencing Cruz as well as Serge Kovaleski, I replied:
A Trump supporter told me today he hadn't been engaging in this kind of behavior lately & he should be applauded. I told her that was like applauding a racist for not using the N-word for a few months.
I should note this tweet was liked 672 times. But I digress.
Sooner or later, President Trump is going to say or tweet something demeaning and his supporters aren't going to bat an eyelash.
Saturday, April 28, 2018
What If Alfie Evans Had Been Born a Prince?
When I awoke this morning I learned of the death of Alfie Evans, the 23-month old child the British government took off life support against the wishes of his parents who wanted to take him to Rome for treatment. Evans suffered from a rare neurodegenerative disorder.
The NHS took Evans off life support on April 23rd. That same day, Prince William and Kate Middleton welcomed their child, Prince Louis into the world.
What if Alfie Evans had been born a prince?
What if William and Kate wanted to seek treatment in Rome for their child?
Would the British government have dared to stop them?
If they had stopped the Royal Couple then what does it say about the value of life? Especially the lives of children at their most helpless and vulnerable.
If they wouldn't stop them then why are some parents permitted to try to save the lives of their children while others are not?
Why are some lives more precious than others?
Alfie Evans might not have had long to live. But the British government had no business ending his life.
Alfie Evans might not have been born a prince, but he surely died one. R.I.P.
The NHS took Evans off life support on April 23rd. That same day, Prince William and Kate Middleton welcomed their child, Prince Louis into the world.
What if Alfie Evans had been born a prince?
What if William and Kate wanted to seek treatment in Rome for their child?
Would the British government have dared to stop them?
If they had stopped the Royal Couple then what does it say about the value of life? Especially the lives of children at their most helpless and vulnerable.
If they wouldn't stop them then why are some parents permitted to try to save the lives of their children while others are not?
Why are some lives more precious than others?
Alfie Evans might not have had long to live. But the British government had no business ending his life.
Alfie Evans might not have been born a prince, but he surely died one. R.I.P.
Wednesday, April 25, 2018
Never The (Shania) Twain Shall Meet
With the apologies to Rudyard Kipling, "Left is Left, and Right is Right, and never the twain shall meet."
This is certainly true in the case of Shania Twain.
The backlash which came over the weekend after the legendary country music singer told The Guardian she "would have" voted for Donald Trump in the 2016 election was sufficient
for her to write a four part tweet on Sunday apologizing
"to anybody I have offended" and insisting she is "passionately against discrimination of any kind."
Given that Twain is Canadian
and resides in Switzerland one can only imagine what the reaction might
have been from The Left had she actually voted for Trump.
In the course of her apology,
Twain claimed the question caught her off the guard. On the contrary,
her words are very telling and is the most interesting thing about this entire row. Twain, who is planning to tour this summer for the first time in more than 15 years, stated, "I would have voted for him
because, even though he was offensive, he seemed
honest."
Of course, Trump is anything but honest. Trump lies about things both big and small. He lies about being offered Time Magazine's Person of the Year, about the President of the Boy Scouts telling him he delivered the greatest speech he ever heard, the
size of his inauguration crowd, the size of his Electoral College win, about thousands of Muslims cheering the 9/11 attacks and, of course, his wealth. Yet he is a better liar than Hillary
Clinton and a good enough liar for someone like Twain to believe he
seems honest.
In fact, her comment reminded
me of an incident I saw take place on Boston Common following a rally
for the Libertarian ticket of Gary Johnson and William Weld. The former
Massachusetts Governor was criticizing Trump's
immigration proposals when a Hispanic male began heckling him. A
reporter approached this man a few minutes later who revealed he was a
Trump supporter because he liked his honesty. No doubt there were
millions of American voters who thought Trump honest enough
to cast a ballot for him.
As the old saying goes,
perception is nine tenths reality. If The Left were smart they would
have taken Twain's candor as an opportunity to persuade instead of to pillory. But as long as The Left is going to get angry
at people who would have voted for Trump if they could then how are they
going to persuade the people who actually did vote for Trump in 2016 to change
their minds in 2020?
As Shania Twain might say, "That don't impress me much."
Monday, April 23, 2018
Thoughts on Toronto
Regardless of what motivated the man who deliberately killed 10 people while injuring 15 others with a rental van, a stretch of Canada's longest street in Canada's biggest city is closed in a clutter of chaos.
Given the frequency with which vehicles have been used in terrorist attacks over the past several years one cannot and should not entirely rule out that possibility. But we have also learned that one need not have a political motive to commit mass murder as was the case in Las Vegas. Whatever the reason these sorts of attacks have become part and parcel of our post-modern age.
Once again a city which I have either frequently visited or lived in over the years has become the sight of bloodshed and mass carnage. Sooner or later, I wonder if I will see such bloodshed and carnage up close and personal. I hope I will never have to find out.
Given the frequency with which vehicles have been used in terrorist attacks over the past several years one cannot and should not entirely rule out that possibility. But we have also learned that one need not have a political motive to commit mass murder as was the case in Las Vegas. Whatever the reason these sorts of attacks have become part and parcel of our post-modern age.
Once again a city which I have either frequently visited or lived in over the years has become the sight of bloodshed and mass carnage. Sooner or later, I wonder if I will see such bloodshed and carnage up close and personal. I hope I will never have to find out.
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