Richard’s Rant

The Brackendale Farmers Institute held their 12th annual "Fall Fair" on Saturday, September 9, 2006.  This year is also the 91st anniversary of the Institute.  It was founded in 1915, and at that time was called the Squamish Farmers Institute.  The mission of the Institute was to "educate people in agriculture and to host yearly exhibits of local produce and products." 

I find the historic objectives interesting when you consider that the only way to get to Squamish until the mid to late 1950’s was by boat.  The historic objectives have been:

1. To improve conditions of rural life so that the settlement may be permanent and prosperous.
2. To promote the theory and practice of agriculture.
3. To arrange, on behalf of its members, the distribution or sale of commodities, supplies or products.
4. To act generally on behalf of its members in all matters incidental to agricultural pursuits and rural development.
5. To promote home economics, public health, child welfare, education and better schools.

This year the Fair was, in my opinion, quite the event!  There was live entertainment with local entertainers.  There was a Hootenanny, at the Brackendale Art Gallery and Tea House.  There were Llama rides, a mini putt and find the needle in the haystack for kids.  (I don’t think it was a real needle!)  There was a blacksmith.  There were antique farm implements and equipment ("Lefty’s old stuff").  I don’t know who "Lefty" is, but there was a whole passel of his "stuff".  And there were exhibits of local produce, livestock and products.  All in all some 15 categories including "canning and preserves".  The canning and preserves category had 16 different sub-categories, including "Jam, any variety, 1 jar" and  "Jam, blackberry, 1 jar". 

Since early August Ella and I have been hiking all around Squamish, picking lots and lots of succulent blackberries.  I have been baking pies, making jam and freezing them for the winter.  I also branched out and made a couple of other jams from local fruit.  Our neighbour Sheila encouraged me to enter some of my homemade jams, so Friday evening I traipsed over to the Fair Grounds and entered jars of both my Peach and Cherry jams in the "any variety", and a jar of my Blackberry jam in the "blackberry" competitions. 

I hardly slept a wink all Friday night.  I was tossing and turning and wondering how my jams would stand up in comparison to those of the Squamish locals who have been attending the Fall Fair for 12 years.  Did I put in enough pectin?  Did I thoroughly crush the fruit?  When they opened the jar would there be a ring of mold?  It was excruciating!  I woke early Saturday with what one could only compare to a hang-over, due to lack of sleep! 

Saturday dawned grey and overcast with rain falling.  Things were not boding well, but then the rain is needed here.  This was the first rain since I arrived back in mid-July.  Almost two full months of uninterrupted sunshine!  Gates opened at 10 a.m., and while Christine and I were not the first visitors we were among the first!  We arrived promptly at 10:45, and although I wanted to head straight to the exhibits, we strolled around the booths to see what could be seen.  Christine headed straight for the food concession, but then veered away.  We looked at the woodworking booth, the silver jewellery, the doggie treats (but we didn’t get any for Ella), the "Bear Aware" info booth, and the Pemberton coffee roaster.  By this time I’d had enough and sped off on a tangent towards the exhibitors tent looking for the "Preserves" section. 

My little heart was going pitter-patter…!  There was my Cherry jam, with a chartreuse ribbon!  Participant, it said.  Bummer!  Then I spied my Peach jam!  A red ribbon!  Wow!  Second place in the "any variety" category!  That’s pretty good!  I couldn’t find my Blackberry jam at first, but then there it was with a blue ribbon.! First place in the "blackberry" catagory!  I am the 2006 Brackendale Farmers Institute Fall Fair Blackberry jam making champion!

So dear friends and relatives, guess what you’re getting for Christmas!

"I learned the truth at seventeen…, We all play the game, and when we dare we cheat ourselves at solitaire…"  (with apologies to J. Ian for politicizing her lyrics.)

We Canadians learned the truth about the seventeen, didn’t we?  I haven’t heard too much in the press lately, so what gives? 

A little over a month ago, what did we Canadians do?  We went and arrested 17 individuals, and charged them with terrorism.  Most of them are still teenagers, or in their early twenties, the youngest being 15.  They were arrested because they bought fertilizer from the RCMP.  They were tracked down because they were sending inflammatory messages back and forth over the internet.  Very little has been told to the public about these individuals, or about the charges, all in the name of state security. 

As a citizen of Canada I’d like to know more.  The problem is that the public is not allowed to know, in the name of "public security."  We are being kept in the dark and told that this is a serious matter.  Trust me, says the Prime Minister.  Trust me, says the Minister of Public Safety.  It reminds me of what the world was told in February and March 2003, just before the "coalition of the willing" invaded Iraq to neutralize "weapons of mass destruction."  I understand that the "weapons" have yet to be found.   

Are there really 17 terrorists living in the Toronto area?  Everything that I have heard about them, and our security services, reminds me of the title of a book, namely, "The gang that couldn’t shoot straight."  What I have read in the press leads me to believe that this was more of a set-up by the "security services" then an actual conspiracy.  If it was a conspiracy, then the conspirators were incredibly naive. 

We are all aware that the Internet is an open book, so to speak.  Virtually anything you view or say on the ‘net can be traced.  The Canadian press reported that much of the "evidence" against the conspirators was gleaned from visits to chat rooms.  I think that if I were planning a terrorist attack, my communications would use a much more discreet media.

The press also reported that the conspirators bought 3 tonnes of fertilizer, the ingredients to construct an explosive device, from the RCMP.  Sounds to me like a "sting" operation.  If this group was under surveillance, why sell them the ingredients?  Why not keep them under surveillance until they make the purchase on their own?  Maybe this has more to do with "security" budgets then anything else.  Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada is certain to get a humongous increase in their budget next year. (Note that this is the ministry that oversees the RCMP, CSIS, etc.)

The press also talked about the age of the conspirators, 5 of whom are under the age of majority.  One of them is 15, and I understand that his crime was to go and play paint-ball.  Well, it seems to me if he were affiliated with a right-wing WASP group (oh! we don’t have any of those in Canada!) and went and played paint-ball, nothing would be done.  Maybe he was practicing for a career in the Canadian Armed Forces!  There’s no life like it!  

I was also quite amused with some of the individuals that the press interviewed.  There was one religious Muslim who went on about all the youth wearing camouflage fatigues to local mosques.  He professed that wearing this type of garb somehow makes them radical, or suspect.  With that logic, we had better start checking what is being worn in all places of worship.  I saw no less than four teenagers wearing camouflage fatigues at the United Church last Sunday.  What is worse, we had better start checking our police wardrobes.  I saw a constable in Gatineau dressed in camouflage fatigues a couple of weeks ago.  She really stood out because the two other constables with her were in jeans!

But what is the upshot of all this hoopla?  We, in Canada, are buying into the fear-mongering tactic that is prevalent south of the border.  We are buying into the "state security" bull roar.  We are going to cut back on social programs, and spend more on the implements of murder and mayhem, all to make the world a safer place.  And again we give in to the entrenched views of the military-industrial complex.  They are the ones that need these "conspiracies"…. 

Maybe we should stop with the paranoia and talk openly and honestly with our fellow Canadians, rather than incarcerate or kill each other.

August in Squamish means blackberries, and plenty of them!  The blackberry canes are abundant, and they produce a plethora of big, ripe, sweet, juicy, succulent berries!  They have replaced raspberries as my favourites!  I must confess that this is because I’ve never before experienced such an abundance of blackberries!  There are some blackberries around the cottage at Luskville.  However I recall only small stands of canes and they only ever seemed to produce meager quantities.  The cottage area is a better producer of wild strawberries and raspberries.  In fact, in Aylmer there was a big stand of raspberry canes in my back yard.  Here in Squamish, the blackberry is king.

The past week I have spent some time exploring, seeking out stands of blackberry canes, and picking the ripe fruit.  I note that at the local grocer, a small pack of berries costs $4.00, and it seems to me that the price in Ottawa is that or more!  Whenever I find a half-decent stand of canes, I can pick that amount in a matter of minutes!!!  And the canes are everywhere. 

Each morning I take Ella for a walk over to the corner store to buy the newspaper (The Vancouver Sun).  We then go on to the neighbourhood park for a little romp.  They have swings and slides for the kids, and a tennis court without a net.  There are hockey nets on the tennis court, but I’ve yet to see anyone playing.  Almost completely surrounding the tennis court is bush, full of blackberry canes.  A couple of times I have taken a 5-cup container with me, and filled it in about twenty minutes! 

One of our favourite places to walk is Nexen Beach.  This is an area on the Squamish waterfront that was formerly industrial lands and will be redeveloped in the future.  It is also in the area of the recent oil spill, however it has not been directly affected.  There is a trail that circles the area that many locals visit to walk their dogs.  All along the trail you can find lots and lots of blackberries.  This has meant that each time we take Ella to Nexen Beach for a romp, we take along containers to pick blackberries!  The other evening Ella and I went to the beach, and I took along three containers.  In about an hour Ella and I had a good stroll, and I filled all three containers. 

Each afternoon, Ella and I go to pick up the mail.  The P.O. boxes are located at a little mall close to where we live.  I hadn’t really been paying too much attention, until one day Ella decided that she had to go behind the mall.  Well!  There is a parking area there for the merchants, and just off the pavement is a huge blackberry bush!  It didn’t take me very long to fill that 5-cup container…!  In fact, I was almost able to fill it without moving, there were so many ripe berries within easy reach! 

As you may note, Ella and I spend a certain amount of time berry-picking.  And, Ella has learned how to pick them herself!  Imagine that, a dog that picks blackberries.  She finds any low-hanging ones, and sort of curls her lips as she picks them off one by one.  She usually doesn’t get too many, as the canes do have their prickly protection.

Picking blackberries does have its challenges.  These are, for the most part, the prickles and thorns that seem to reach out and attach themselves to every part of your clothing and anatomy!  One evening I was picking on a rather steep side-hill.  I lost my footing and down I went.  I would have slid down the hill into a ditch, but the blackberry canes decided otherwise.  As I slid, they carved their imprint into any uncovered flesh (my arms and legs) and locked themselves into my clothing, effectively halting the effects of gravity.  I managed to extricate myself, with numerous scrapes to remind me of my mishap.  But I didn’t lose a berry from my container!

Something has to be done with all the berries that I pick.  The first batch went into a blackberry pie.  Was it ever good!  And since then, I have also been making blackberry jam!  I am toying with the idea of selling my "pastries" and "preserves" at the local Farmer’s Market.  I don’t think that I’ll become rich, but it wouldn’t take too long to make enough pie and jam to earn a couple of hundred bucks!  Dream on…, Squamish pie and jam king!  My neighbour has asked me to enter a jar of my jam in the 12th Annual Brackendale Fall Fair, and I think that I will.

This Christmas, dear friends and relatives, you might just get a jar of Squamish Blackberry Jam!

A few weeks ago I heard Stephen Harper, the Prime Minister of Canada say, "Make no mistake about it."  This is a phrase I have heard before, many times.  Usually I hear this line when it comes to George W. Bush trying to make a point.  That’s right.  It is patently a George W. Bush saying.  It is also my opinion that when spoken, it immediately precedes or immediately follows an untruth.

I must question the Prime Minister of Canada.  Is he trying to emulate George W. Bush, or is he just trying to flatter the President of the United States?  I hope that other Canadians see this copycatting for what it is.  An attempt to move Canada further towards the American model of government.  In doing so, Mr. Harper is not only proposing American ideas, he himself is acting like an American.  Worse, he is emulating one for whom I hold little faith, little respect and entirely no hope for humankind.

Currently, the Canadian government is a minority government, so the party in power has to govern with a modicum of respect for the views of other political parties, and those of the Canadian public.  However, this has led to a certain number of what I would describe as "fluff bills" being brought forward in the House of Commons.

To start, let’s have elections every four years, just like in the good old USA!  What a concept, elections every four years!  Fixed election dates!  What is wrong with our homegrown five year term?  What is wrong with a bit of gamesmanship in government, the Prime Minister having the ability to dissolve Parliament and call an election?  No.  Look how well the American system works.  Let’s be just like George. 

One of Mr. Harper’s "platforms" is to get tough on crime.  So, he has decided that he will lower the age of trying youth in adult courts.  Another of his platforms is to be more "moral" and cater to the religious right.  So he has decided to raise the age of consent.  So, a fifteen year old is not old enough to understand enough to consent to procreation, but is old enough to understand that when committing a crime, he or she will be charged, tried and convicted as an adult.  Makes sense to me!  You can’t fuck ‘cause you’re too young to understand, but we’re going to crucify you ‘cause you’re old enough to know better. 

Mr. Harper’s "get tough on crime agenda" seems to be striking a chord with the public, at least in Ottawa.  A young homeless man was murdered just steps from Parliament Hill a couple of weeks ago.  I was dumfounded that this tragedy was used as an argument by many, proposing to close a pedestrian underpass where many homeless teens sleep.  Close it!  Get them from our sight!  If we can’t see them, we don’t have a problem. 

It seems to me that there are two issues here….  One, a murder case, that I trust will be dealt with in the courts.  Two, a societal issue, that of the homeless and all the reasons that so many youth feel like outcasts in our society.  And our response is to sweep them out of the way where they can’t be seen.

And our government, in its wisdom, decides that the real important issue for Canadians is "street racing" and has tabled a bill that will stiffen penalties for people caught racing their cars on public highways.  In Canada, the provinces are responsible for licensing and policing of motor vehicles and drivers.  The Highway Traffic Act of each province sets out the rules and penalties within provincial jurisdiction.  I have checked several of the provincial statutes and found each to have penalties for "street racing".  Perhaps the penalties are not stiff enough, but this is an issue for provincial legislators.

Yeah.  Let’s get tough on crime.

Just over a year ago, the Canadian Parliament voted to "legalize" gay marriage.  Now, this question will be reopened in parliament during the fall sitting.  Mr. Harper has decided that there will be another vote….  Will this vote resolve this issue?  No.  If lost, it will just be brought back for another debate and vote.  If won, it will just be brought back for another debate and vote.  I think that there are more important issues to debate than not allowing two adults to get hitched, regardless of their sexual preferences.

This government is really in tune with the Canadian public, and is pushing an agenda that the public wants.  Make no mistake about it!

Hi all.  This is just a brief post to "check in" and say that the journey is over.  Ella and I arrived in Squamish at about 10:30 p.m. local time last night.  I have much to say, and much to comment on, so stay tuned!

I recieved a call from a member of my Union local this morning.  She has been in an acting position for an extended period of time, which will be completed on June 2nd.  She recieved a copy of an e:mail message dated April 29, saying that she will not be extended in her acting position.  This is good, and as it should be.

However, the topic of her call was somewhat different.  On Tuesday she was not in the office.  When she returned to work on Wednesday, her supervisor met with her to tell her that as of Tuesday, a message had been sent to pay and benefits, stopping her acting pay and appointment effective immediately. 

This clearly goes contrary to staffing guidelines, which spell out a modicum of decency in dealing with employees.  In fact, if the acting period was for more than a year, then the employer is required to give notice of 1 month.  If the acting period is for 1 year or less, the required notice is 2 weeks, or the balance of the specified period, whichever is less.  These notice periods are outlined in Schedule 2 of the Public Service Employment Regulations (2000).

Upon verbal notice, which stated that the acting was cut effective immediately, there were two weeks and three days of the acting appointment remaining.  I just find this bizarre, and I must say that without hearing the managers side of the story, mean spirited.  Is there more going on here?  If so, what?  Perhaps this is a situation where there is need for informal conflict resolution.

I would note that the situation described happens far too often.  Regretably, many employees do not know what is contained in the Public Service Employment Act and the Public Service Employment Regulations.  But then, neither do many managers.  And, they get away with this type of action because noone ever complains.

Bob Marley said it so eloquently, "Get up, stand up, stand up for your rights!"  Because if you don’t, who will?

Just a couple of days before Ella and I get in the truck and start driving.  All 4718 kms.  Upon completion of the trek, I will post the exact milage (kilometrage) between Hinton Street (Ottawa) and Westway Avenue (Squamish). 

I am looking forward to the drive.  It will be a close-up view of this great expanse we call Canada.  I will have a chance to revisit some places that I visited some years ago.  It will be a journey across country, a journey in time, and an emotional journey through my memories.

I used to work for both the Museumobile Programme and the Canadian Exhibits Program.  These were initiatives of the Canadian Government, and they took exhibits housed in tractor-trailers into the great Canadian hinterland.  Rather than people coming to Ottawa to visit cultural institutions, the federal government took some aspects of Canadian culture to the people, where they lived.  The idea was to visit smaller communities that would not have their own museum.  As such, I traveled to every province and territory.  (I would note that since the creation of Nunavut, that statement is no longer true.)  Name a small town in Canada, and I have probably been there….

So, this trek will afford me the opportunity to return to my youth.  I will allow myself to meander along the highways and biways of Canada, and meander along the highways and biways of my memory.  I intend to take my time.  I intend to stop often and stretch my legs, to smell the air, and to pee in the bushes to mark my passing there.  I plan to take the roads less traveled.  No highway 1 for me.

I am especially interested in stopping in Calgary.  I lived there during some boom times.  I lived there when I was a young adult.  I fell in love there, more than once.  I even asked a women there to marry me.  There is much to ponder….

I am confident that Ella will agree with my proposed itinerary.  In fact, she will be the perfect companion to accompany me on my emotional journey.  I know that she will listen, she will be empathetic, and she will not comment no matter how stupid and irrational any of my comments are.  She is after all, a dog!

First the roses.  A young Canadian women died today in Afghanistan.  16 and a 1/2 years ago, 16 women died at l’Ecole Polytechnic in Montreal. 

Today marks the debate in the House of Commons regarding the Canadian military presence in Afghanistan.  May our Members of Parliament remember the price that will be paid should they decide to extend the commitment of Canadian troops for an additional two years.

Another debate will soon commence, that of the gun registry.  I am a hunter, and I really don’t like the cost to me personally for the registry.  By that I mean the fee I have to pay to register my rifle and shotgun.  However, I am not opposed to firearms registration, nor the requirement to procure a firearms acquisition certificate or firearms possession certificate in order to purchase or carry a firearm.  I just don’t like the cost…, to me personally, and to all Canadians with respect to cost overruns in building the registry.

Now that it is built, the government of the day seems to be planning to dismantle certain parts of the registry.  Don’t.  I don’t want to sully the memory of 16 young women in Montreal. 

Why do we have Canadian boys and girls dying in Afghanistan?  Quite soon after September 11, 2001, and at the behest of the United States of America, Canada sent military personnel to Afghanistan.  I disagreed with the decision and continue to oppose it, and this week Member’s of Parliament will debate and vote on maintaining a Canadian military presence there.  This debate comes some four years too late.  Further, when the original decision was made, it was seen by many as a way to not get involved in the occupation of Iraq. 

I lived in Kabul back in the early ’70s.  I was 13.  (In fact my old high school has an active website at www.aisk.org which I encourage you to visit.)  Living in Afghanistan has given me insight that I believe the average individual might overlook.  I remember a country of savage beauty.  I remember people who were friendly and welcoming, but life itself was hard and had little value.  I seem to recall that one description of the country was that of "a noble pagan mounted on a steed galloping into the 14th century," and I heard it said that an Afghan would as soon stick a knife into your gizzard as befriend you.

One should understand that Afghanistan is a tribal conglomeration.  Pashtuns, Hazaras, Pathans, Uzbeks, Tajiks, Turkmenis, Aimaks, Balochis….  There is much suspicion between the tribes, and even within the tribes.  There are many "strongmen" who control local areas, often described as local warlords.

Historically, Afghanistan has been occupied several times, and I would like to point out what has happened to two of those occupiers.  At the time of the occupations, the occupiers were considered to be among the most powerful regimes in the world.  Do you recall the British Empire, that occupied Afghanistan in the 1800s?  They had the latest in technological development to wage war at the time.  Booted out by the Afghans.  Do you recall the Soviet Union, that occupied Afghanistan in the 1970s?  The power to destroy all life on earth several times over.  Booted out by the Afghans.

Since the 1950s, Canada has a proud tradition of peacekeeping.  We are often called in to police areas of the world in turmoil.  Much like Afghanistan.  There is a difference this time.  We are at war with the Taliban, the duly elected Afghan government in 2001.  We are not there as peacekeepers, rather we are there as a foreign occupying force.

But then, who are the Taliban?  Weren’t they the allies of the west when the Soviet Union was an occupation force?  I seem to recall that the west provided the Taliban with weapons.  Correct me if I’m mistaken.  Canada, in Afghanistan as an occupier, not as a peacekeeper. 

In fact, the Taliban was a loose coalition of radical right wing religious idealogues.  Their power base was in the Kandahar region, but they were all over the country.  They come from many of the different tribes, but again the power base was centred in the Pashtun tribe.  Ultimately, they proved to be quite popular, despite some of their archaic ideas, especially with respect to women.

The Taliban was nothing more than an idea, a coalition, in a splintered society.  And just as quickly as they came to power, they disappeared.  Afghanistan has reverted to its former structure, a loosely allied tribal society.  And here we are, fighting an "enemy" that no longer truely exists.  There are however, Afghan patriots, who in small groups are doing what Afghans have done from time immemorial.  They are going to boot us out!

Is it war or is it a police action?  That really isn’t the question.  The answer to our Afghan dilemma is, however, found in history.  We, Canada, must look at history.  We must debate what is really happening in Afghanistan.  Our Members of Parliament must take a deep breath and make the right decision.  We must leave Afghanistan now, before we too get booted out.

Christine and I are currently in the midst of moving.  For the past three years we have been living together in Ottawa, the capital city, with all it has to offer…, the canal, outdoor activities, festivals, and high drama (tragedy and comedy) on Parliament Hill.  In the next few days we will be making our way to Squamish, about halfway between Vancouver and Whistler on the Sea to Sky highway.  At little trek of some 4718 kms from Ottawa.  Christine will fly out, and I will drive with Ella, the soon to be "pan-Canadian" dog.

Squamish, city of 15,000 souls.  Situated on Howe Sound at the mouth of the Squamish River.  0 to however many feet above sea level.  It is the home of the Chief, a monolith that is world famous for rock climbing.  That has never been my cup of tea, but perhaps it is an acquired taste.

I am a hockey aficionado, a left winger, and I play once or twice a week.  I no longer have dreams of playing in the National Hockey League.  Those dreams went up in a puff of smoke, and disappeared when my last growth spurt stopped at 5′8" and 150 lbs.  At the top levels it is not a game for those small of stature.  The Martin St. Louis’ and Marcel Dionne’s of the game I love are few and far between.