by Diane Wilson
Years ago, when we were in London, we ended up in a cheeky section of a really great department store. Amidst all the practical and lovey-dovey items were whips and cat of nine tails and other scary gizmos, giving the display the name of Agent Provocateur. All of which brings me to the recent flotilla of ships to Gaza, and whether they were bringing loving humanitarian stuff or were they really there just to whip Israel? Afterall, it has been pointed out that humanitarian aid ships do not come bringing people, but supplies. The Turkish ships were at the very least Agent Provacateurs.
Now, Iranian ships are making their way to Gaza. This is no longer Agent Provacateur. When you have Israel's darkest enemy approaching, it is dead serious.
Let's be clear. Back in 2005, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad stated that Israel must be wiped off the map. On October 30, The New York Times published his speech in full, in which he says "that the occupying regime must be wiped off the map...."
Israel has difficult decisions to make in the days ahead, and so do we, for most of us must realize that this is not really about Palestine or Israel. This is a larger matter of East versus West. Some say it was EU's apparent rebuff of Turkey that led to its disenchantment with the West. I would not know. However, I am sure that many of the questions and answers still reside in Turkey, which until recently had been friends with Israel and America.
Thomas Friedman wrote recently in The New York Times about the importance of Turkey and Israel, noting that "both Israel and Turkey have gotten out of balance lately, and it is America’s job to help both get back to the center — urgently."
Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan is no doubt pleasing the street these days, but when I visited, I had thought that Turkey was preparing itself for a more splendid future. I was hopeful that Turkey was accomodating both its secular and religious populations, and seeking its place among developed nations.
Given that our future hinges on spanning differences among nations and cultures, it would be wonderful and logical if Turkey could serve as a nexus for economic and social development between the eastern and western worlds, as well as between Muslim, Christian and Jewish worlds. Unlike Iran, Turkey has everything and everybody at its disposal. Over the years, Turkey has created immense goodwill that must not be lost.
It would be more than unfortunate to see Turkey move into the Iranian fold because the EU wasn't kind, or because an opportunity exists to lead the East. Turkey could have a bigger and better role than all that. Turkey could be the focal point for negotiation and resolution. Turkey could be the example the West needs to understand the East. Then there's geography. Given the fact Turkey spans Asia and Europe, we need the leadership Turkey could offer.
Anybody who has listened to the call to prayer and looked out on the Bosphorus knows that Turkey harbours dreams. It is time for Turkey to create lasting and meaningful realities.
April 9, 2010
Virginia, the Vatican and Palin: Time to Give Back
by Diane Wilson
Virginia's proclamation that April is Confederate History Month -- remember the good ol' days -- is mind numbing. The New York Times has weighed in on this strange turn of affairs. There have been debates. And then Gov. Bob McDonnell made a hasty apology for neglecting to mention slavery when he declared April Confederate History Month.
McDonnell explained that the failure "to include any reference to slavery was a mistake, and for that I apologize to any fellow Virginian who has been offended or disappointed," The Richmond Times Dispatch reports. He even suggested that slavery was a really bad thing that divided the nation and "left a stain on the soul of the state." He makes no sense. You don't just plain forget to mention slavery. And you don't want to wax romantic about the glory days of the slave states and their hateful relations with the Union.
Enter the Vatican, which is a long way from putting its house in order. According to The Globe and Mail, the Priesthood was aware of the priest who molested altar boys in the Ottawa Valley a full decade before the crime became public, but they sought to keep the issue secret due to their worries about the church's image.
Many people have weighed in on the Church. Maureen Dowd does so in the New York Times, and she does it effectively as a Catholic believer, who laments that Vatican II left out the rule about celibacy when they went about liberalizing the religion. Dowd notes that the vow about celibacy had to do with potential heirs making claims on church money and land: "But it ended up shrinking the priest pool and producing the wrong kind of candidates — drawing men confused about their sexuality who put our children in harm’s way."
Tacit acceptance of slavery remains incomprehensible. A moral body that acts immorally is frightening. We were riding so high after the election of Barack Obama. Now, the passage of the watered down health care bill has made people divided and angry. Listen to de facto Republican Leader Sarah Palin as she espouses the beauty of the Tea Party wanting to take back America. Darkness descends, and we know that for these people, the concept of giving back is forgotten.
Which brings us to CNN's Heroes. After Virginia, the Vatican and Palin, along comes a group of truly remarkable individuals who are busy doing great stuff for others. Their work is real, and people are paying attention. Heroes has become one of the hottest tickets of the year.
Goodnight Virginia.
Virginia's proclamation that April is Confederate History Month -- remember the good ol' days -- is mind numbing. The New York Times has weighed in on this strange turn of affairs. There have been debates. And then Gov. Bob McDonnell made a hasty apology for neglecting to mention slavery when he declared April Confederate History Month.
McDonnell explained that the failure "to include any reference to slavery was a mistake, and for that I apologize to any fellow Virginian who has been offended or disappointed," The Richmond Times Dispatch reports. He even suggested that slavery was a really bad thing that divided the nation and "left a stain on the soul of the state." He makes no sense. You don't just plain forget to mention slavery. And you don't want to wax romantic about the glory days of the slave states and their hateful relations with the Union.
Enter the Vatican, which is a long way from putting its house in order. According to The Globe and Mail, the Priesthood was aware of the priest who molested altar boys in the Ottawa Valley a full decade before the crime became public, but they sought to keep the issue secret due to their worries about the church's image.
Many people have weighed in on the Church. Maureen Dowd does so in the New York Times, and she does it effectively as a Catholic believer, who laments that Vatican II left out the rule about celibacy when they went about liberalizing the religion. Dowd notes that the vow about celibacy had to do with potential heirs making claims on church money and land: "But it ended up shrinking the priest pool and producing the wrong kind of candidates — drawing men confused about their sexuality who put our children in harm’s way."
Tacit acceptance of slavery remains incomprehensible. A moral body that acts immorally is frightening. We were riding so high after the election of Barack Obama. Now, the passage of the watered down health care bill has made people divided and angry. Listen to de facto Republican Leader Sarah Palin as she espouses the beauty of the Tea Party wanting to take back America. Darkness descends, and we know that for these people, the concept of giving back is forgotten.
Which brings us to CNN's Heroes. After Virginia, the Vatican and Palin, along comes a group of truly remarkable individuals who are busy doing great stuff for others. Their work is real, and people are paying attention. Heroes has become one of the hottest tickets of the year.
Goodnight Virginia.
January 6, 2010
Income Taxes and You Can't Take it With You
January 2, 2010
Stand By Your Man
The Importance of Supporting President Obama
by Diane Wilson
President Obama arrived at his office at a most unpleasant hour, when the economy was a shambles with credit frozen, banks failing, companies faltering, and people losing homes and jobs. President Obama assumed his high office with two wars well underway, and terrorists on the doorstep. Moreover, he took office with a middle class under seige and a political divide threatening the country's greatness.
Today's Globe and Mail characterizes the current state of American politics: liberalism versus libertarianism or put simply, Glenn Beck versus Rachel Maddow. Obama vs. Palin or Cheney, take your pick. The Globe carefully articulates the history of the current culture of paranoid speak, indicating it has a long history south of the 49th parallel.
Given this current state of meanness and paranoia, one could almost forget that Obama was airborne upon his arrival. He brought fresh thinking to a government yearning for ideas and clarity and morality. He assembled a fine group of people around him, and they have not let the country fail. Far from it! They have injected money into the system and they have boosted the economy. The stock market has come back. The President and his team have thought long and hard about wars and committed more troops to Afghanistan. They are taking homeland security seriously. And, they are about to create some sort of national health care system, which is the most important new legislation in decades.
This is the work of a progressive western democratic nation of which all Americans should and could be proud. It is not perfection. The current level of American debt is scary. However, we rarely hear any positive ideas from those who seek to diminish the current Presidency. How would the critics win the wars at home and abroad? President Bush didn't find it so easy. Why do Rush and Glenn pretend otherwise?
Clearly, there is very legitimate pain among those without work and those without homes. More work must be done. However, it is inconceivable that Americans would seek to diminish the stature or the work of the current presidency out of animosity alone, thus undermining America.
America proudly elected Barack Obama and change one year ago. President Obama saw the opportunity for greatness in the darkness of America's night. Today, America must stand by its collective decision and support President Obama in a constructive forward thinking manner. That kind of rededication is sorely needed because without it, America risks losing its star status as the strongest nation on earth.
by Diane Wilson
President Obama arrived at his office at a most unpleasant hour, when the economy was a shambles with credit frozen, banks failing, companies faltering, and people losing homes and jobs. President Obama assumed his high office with two wars well underway, and terrorists on the doorstep. Moreover, he took office with a middle class under seige and a political divide threatening the country's greatness.
Today's Globe and Mail characterizes the current state of American politics: liberalism versus libertarianism or put simply, Glenn Beck versus Rachel Maddow. Obama vs. Palin or Cheney, take your pick. The Globe carefully articulates the history of the current culture of paranoid speak, indicating it has a long history south of the 49th parallel.
Given this current state of meanness and paranoia, one could almost forget that Obama was airborne upon his arrival. He brought fresh thinking to a government yearning for ideas and clarity and morality. He assembled a fine group of people around him, and they have not let the country fail. Far from it! They have injected money into the system and they have boosted the economy. The stock market has come back. The President and his team have thought long and hard about wars and committed more troops to Afghanistan. They are taking homeland security seriously. And, they are about to create some sort of national health care system, which is the most important new legislation in decades.
This is the work of a progressive western democratic nation of which all Americans should and could be proud. It is not perfection. The current level of American debt is scary. However, we rarely hear any positive ideas from those who seek to diminish the current Presidency. How would the critics win the wars at home and abroad? President Bush didn't find it so easy. Why do Rush and Glenn pretend otherwise?
Clearly, there is very legitimate pain among those without work and those without homes. More work must be done. However, it is inconceivable that Americans would seek to diminish the stature or the work of the current presidency out of animosity alone, thus undermining America.
America proudly elected Barack Obama and change one year ago. President Obama saw the opportunity for greatness in the darkness of America's night. Today, America must stand by its collective decision and support President Obama in a constructive forward thinking manner. That kind of rededication is sorely needed because without it, America risks losing its star status as the strongest nation on earth.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)