Saturday, May 12, 2018
"religious freedom" is not a trump card, or some special pass that means you don't have to follow the laws, or some grounds for special treatment.
it's simply the idea that the government isn't supposed to pick on you.
i'm actually of the view that it is a law giving sikhs special status at the airport that would be unconstitutional, not that they have some constitutional claim to special treatment because they hold to some specific superstition.
it's simply the idea that the government isn't supposed to pick on you.
i'm actually of the view that it is a law giving sikhs special status at the airport that would be unconstitutional, not that they have some constitutional claim to special treatment because they hold to some specific superstition.
at
20:07
when i go through customs, i'm sometimes asked to empty my bag or my pockets.
being fully rational about the situation means recognizing that it is, indeed, possible that there might be an object inside the turban: a weapon, some drugs. i guess the easiest thing to do is put the guy through a metal detector. but, if there is not one available, i actually think it's fair game that he be asked to remove the turban - and that he's being unreasonable in complaining about it.
i don't know what the government intends to accomplish by filing a frivolous complaint of this nature. and, frankly, it's a little embarrassing.
what i would tell sikhs is that the country's security is more important than whatever superstitions that they insist on holding to, and i'm not remotely upset if they find that insulting or demeaning.
sorry.
https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2018/05/10/after-a-liberal-minister-was-told-to-remove-his-turban-at-a-us-airport-the-canadian-government-sent-a-letter-of-protest.html
being fully rational about the situation means recognizing that it is, indeed, possible that there might be an object inside the turban: a weapon, some drugs. i guess the easiest thing to do is put the guy through a metal detector. but, if there is not one available, i actually think it's fair game that he be asked to remove the turban - and that he's being unreasonable in complaining about it.
i don't know what the government intends to accomplish by filing a frivolous complaint of this nature. and, frankly, it's a little embarrassing.
what i would tell sikhs is that the country's security is more important than whatever superstitions that they insist on holding to, and i'm not remotely upset if they find that insulting or demeaning.
sorry.
https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2018/05/10/after-a-liberal-minister-was-told-to-remove-his-turban-at-a-us-airport-the-canadian-government-sent-a-letter-of-protest.html
at
19:43
you'll find that there are some exceptions.
jews & arabs hold strong to identity, as their religion & ethnicity are seen by them as the same thing. further, the question of the effect of african-american identity on black canadians (most of whom are carribbean in origin, or straight from africa) is a complicated thing, as some will adopt it and others won't. the japanese are weird like this, too. but, these are small groups in canada.
more broadly speaking, people coming to canada are coming from big, complicated countries.
china & india & russia are all ethnic confederations, rather than nation states. they're not exactly "multicultural societies", so much as they are coalitions between what are at times rather disparate groups. and, together, they're both half the world's population and the biggest ethnic groups in the country. if you grew up in india, you're used to co-existence, however tenuous, between sikhs & muslims & hindus & buddhists & jains & parsees & ....; when you show up here, you're not going to cling to some narrow concept of what you were, you're going to try and determine where your values best align - if you're religious or traditionalist, you'll align with the conservatives and if you're secularist or progressive you'll end up a liberal or a new democrat. of course, your financial well-being will have something to do with that, as well. & similarly for a chinese immigrant, who is used to existing in a stew of ethnicities brought together by a lingua franca - it's not that different than here, really.
& all i've been saying forever is that if we want a liberal society, we need to attract liberal immigrants or at least stop attracting conservative ones - because the conservatives have figured out that their best shot at avoiding irrelevance is bringing in more conservative immigrants.
which is what we're seeing happen here, in ontario.
and which is what is short-circuiting our premier.
what identity politics does is create unnecessary divisions in the body politic, and that does not help the left. ever. if anybody wants to roll this shit out, it should be ford; the left needs to knock it fucking off.
jews & arabs hold strong to identity, as their religion & ethnicity are seen by them as the same thing. further, the question of the effect of african-american identity on black canadians (most of whom are carribbean in origin, or straight from africa) is a complicated thing, as some will adopt it and others won't. the japanese are weird like this, too. but, these are small groups in canada.
more broadly speaking, people coming to canada are coming from big, complicated countries.
china & india & russia are all ethnic confederations, rather than nation states. they're not exactly "multicultural societies", so much as they are coalitions between what are at times rather disparate groups. and, together, they're both half the world's population and the biggest ethnic groups in the country. if you grew up in india, you're used to co-existence, however tenuous, between sikhs & muslims & hindus & buddhists & jains & parsees & ....; when you show up here, you're not going to cling to some narrow concept of what you were, you're going to try and determine where your values best align - if you're religious or traditionalist, you'll align with the conservatives and if you're secularist or progressive you'll end up a liberal or a new democrat. of course, your financial well-being will have something to do with that, as well. & similarly for a chinese immigrant, who is used to existing in a stew of ethnicities brought together by a lingua franca - it's not that different than here, really.
& all i've been saying forever is that if we want a liberal society, we need to attract liberal immigrants or at least stop attracting conservative ones - because the conservatives have figured out that their best shot at avoiding irrelevance is bringing in more conservative immigrants.
which is what we're seeing happen here, in ontario.
and which is what is short-circuiting our premier.
what identity politics does is create unnecessary divisions in the body politic, and that does not help the left. ever. if anybody wants to roll this shit out, it should be ford; the left needs to knock it fucking off.
at
18:34
if local politicians claim they need skilled workers, then you train local workers, you don't bring in foreigners.
that's socialism 101.
that's socialism 101.
at
17:59
this entire discourse exists in the realm of fantasy.
it is in fact current provincial (& federal) policy to ensure that resource development projects prioritize local employment opportunities over temporary workers, which are even banned in many circumstances. and, the controversy has generally stemmed in the other direction: when companies want to bring in tfws to displace local workers.
so, imagine a state-owned company from china coming in and opening a mine here (why don't we have our own state-owned companies, anyways?), and wanting to bring it's own workers in to work in it. there are strict restrictions on this, and it really isn't controversial. that's something that almost everybody will support.
so, ford floats a goofy comment to try and peel off ndp supporters, and wynne reacts equally delusionally with a lame attempt to smear him as a racist. they both deserve contempt for this.
but, the most disappointing reaction is from horwath. wynne is a liberal, so you ultimately expect her to work for bay street. you expect her to be beholden to the interests of shareholders. that's her job. but, horwath is supposed to represent workers, and supposed to be there to stand up to foreign multinationals that want to bring in tfws to displace local workers. she should have clearly stated her support for local workers.
if i was in the north, i wouldn't vote for any of them, as they're all in the pockets of the banks. but, it is really the left that needs a revitalization, here. the north could be the right place to start it.
https://globalnews.ca/news/4204511/party-leaders-ontario-election-day-4/
the error that i'm talking past here is the idea that the comments had to do with identity, rather than with class.
ford did not mention an ethnic identity, he suggested that local workers deserve priority - and, as mentioned, that is not going to be controversial anywhere outside of these bogus pseudo-science psychology lectures that the liberals & ndp seem to be getting. it is existing policy.
wynne is just acting like a dummy, at this point; in a confused and desperate attempt to appeal to the ethnic votes she is losing due to differing values, she's attacking potential voters that may share her values because they don't have the right identity. it's like she's collapsed into the ultraparadoxical phase, or she got some kind of ideological cancer that's led to her attacking herself. perhaps foucauldianism is best described as a cancer...
& horwath reacted with identity, when she should have reacted with class.
voters in northern ontario will interpret the comments through the prism of class, not the prism of identity. they will hear wynne say that she wants to take away their jobs, and horwath agreeing with her. and, they will react terribly to this. this is a problem of their own doing, as ford's comment was pretty innocuous, as a statement of existing policy.
then, these foucauldian pseudo-scientists will complete the circle in their backwards logic and call the people that live there racists for standing up for themselves when they hear politicians from toronto come in and threaten to take away their jobs.
and, if they keep it up, ford will win the election because the left keeps following the advice of these quacks pushing identity as a voting decision, and keeps attacking it's own voters as a result of it.
there was no reason that this election should have had anything to do with the 2016 presidential election - except that the canadian left seems intent on following the same failing strategy that clinton used.
and, we're all going to have to suffer for their idiocy, in the end.
==
critical race theory is not a science.
political science is not a science.
social science is not science, either.
quackery, the lot of it.
it is in fact current provincial (& federal) policy to ensure that resource development projects prioritize local employment opportunities over temporary workers, which are even banned in many circumstances. and, the controversy has generally stemmed in the other direction: when companies want to bring in tfws to displace local workers.
so, imagine a state-owned company from china coming in and opening a mine here (why don't we have our own state-owned companies, anyways?), and wanting to bring it's own workers in to work in it. there are strict restrictions on this, and it really isn't controversial. that's something that almost everybody will support.
so, ford floats a goofy comment to try and peel off ndp supporters, and wynne reacts equally delusionally with a lame attempt to smear him as a racist. they both deserve contempt for this.
but, the most disappointing reaction is from horwath. wynne is a liberal, so you ultimately expect her to work for bay street. you expect her to be beholden to the interests of shareholders. that's her job. but, horwath is supposed to represent workers, and supposed to be there to stand up to foreign multinationals that want to bring in tfws to displace local workers. she should have clearly stated her support for local workers.
if i was in the north, i wouldn't vote for any of them, as they're all in the pockets of the banks. but, it is really the left that needs a revitalization, here. the north could be the right place to start it.
https://globalnews.ca/news/4204511/party-leaders-ontario-election-day-4/
the error that i'm talking past here is the idea that the comments had to do with identity, rather than with class.
ford did not mention an ethnic identity, he suggested that local workers deserve priority - and, as mentioned, that is not going to be controversial anywhere outside of these bogus pseudo-science psychology lectures that the liberals & ndp seem to be getting. it is existing policy.
wynne is just acting like a dummy, at this point; in a confused and desperate attempt to appeal to the ethnic votes she is losing due to differing values, she's attacking potential voters that may share her values because they don't have the right identity. it's like she's collapsed into the ultraparadoxical phase, or she got some kind of ideological cancer that's led to her attacking herself. perhaps foucauldianism is best described as a cancer...
& horwath reacted with identity, when she should have reacted with class.
voters in northern ontario will interpret the comments through the prism of class, not the prism of identity. they will hear wynne say that she wants to take away their jobs, and horwath agreeing with her. and, they will react terribly to this. this is a problem of their own doing, as ford's comment was pretty innocuous, as a statement of existing policy.
then, these foucauldian pseudo-scientists will complete the circle in their backwards logic and call the people that live there racists for standing up for themselves when they hear politicians from toronto come in and threaten to take away their jobs.
and, if they keep it up, ford will win the election because the left keeps following the advice of these quacks pushing identity as a voting decision, and keeps attacking it's own voters as a result of it.
there was no reason that this election should have had anything to do with the 2016 presidential election - except that the canadian left seems intent on following the same failing strategy that clinton used.
and, we're all going to have to suffer for their idiocy, in the end.
==
critical race theory is not a science.
political science is not a science.
social science is not science, either.
quackery, the lot of it.
at
17:56
blaming the problem on parents doesn't solve it, though, i agree.
it's a cultural problem - and this is not something you can fix with a tweak. it's the media we consume. it's the attitudes we inherit. as a culture, we have a hostility to learning, and we're teaching it to our kids.
sports and fashion and propaganda and mass consumerism are cool; math and science and literature and independent thought are not.
they keep you doped on religion and sex and tv; then, they hate you if you're clever.
you can try to get to the kids young; i don't have much use for traditional families, or see much value in raising people together based on arbitrary considerations like bloodlines. but, i'm not expecting a fundamental shift in the way we exist to be a ballot issue in the next provincial election. that's not up for vote; we have to do that.
in the mean time, the reality is that the system is intended for ruthless competition, and that, with math and science, the kids really need to sink or swim in terms of taking an initiative on their own.
that michelle pfeiffer movie is not real life; you can't teach kids that don't want to learn. you can try subtle mind tricks to try to get them to learn, but then they magically teach themselves.
see, a corollary of this perspective is that i actually don't have a lot of use for teachers, either, because i realize that the kids that want to learn don't need them, and the kids that don't want to learn are a waste of time.
but, the math curriculum, specifically? i don't know that there's a problem with the curriculum. if there is, let's get somebody other than doug ford on that.
it's a cultural problem - and this is not something you can fix with a tweak. it's the media we consume. it's the attitudes we inherit. as a culture, we have a hostility to learning, and we're teaching it to our kids.
sports and fashion and propaganda and mass consumerism are cool; math and science and literature and independent thought are not.
they keep you doped on religion and sex and tv; then, they hate you if you're clever.
you can try to get to the kids young; i don't have much use for traditional families, or see much value in raising people together based on arbitrary considerations like bloodlines. but, i'm not expecting a fundamental shift in the way we exist to be a ballot issue in the next provincial election. that's not up for vote; we have to do that.
in the mean time, the reality is that the system is intended for ruthless competition, and that, with math and science, the kids really need to sink or swim in terms of taking an initiative on their own.
that michelle pfeiffer movie is not real life; you can't teach kids that don't want to learn. you can try subtle mind tricks to try to get them to learn, but then they magically teach themselves.
see, a corollary of this perspective is that i actually don't have a lot of use for teachers, either, because i realize that the kids that want to learn don't need them, and the kids that don't want to learn are a waste of time.
but, the math curriculum, specifically? i don't know that there's a problem with the curriculum. if there is, let's get somebody other than doug ford on that.
at
16:28
just to be clear: i was in the last class to take grade 13/oac.
i did not experience the changes that harris made to the curriculum, although the students in the grades below me did.
and, i have no understanding of this "new math" they speak of, or whether it's good or bad.
i don't think doug ford is the guy to fix the math curriculum, though. curriculums can't be glowered at. and, his own skills of arithmetic don't seem to be very good.
i would not be opposed, a priori, to implementing the recommendations of a study on the topic.
but, there is no royal road to geometry. the fact is that math is hard work, and if kids are failing then the problem is at home.
i did not experience the changes that harris made to the curriculum, although the students in the grades below me did.
and, i have no understanding of this "new math" they speak of, or whether it's good or bad.
i don't think doug ford is the guy to fix the math curriculum, though. curriculums can't be glowered at. and, his own skills of arithmetic don't seem to be very good.
i would not be opposed, a priori, to implementing the recommendations of a study on the topic.
but, there is no royal road to geometry. the fact is that math is hard work, and if kids are failing then the problem is at home.
at
16:12
liberals are liberals. they're often a lesser evil, but they're the bourgeois party, and we all know it. even when we vote for the liberals, we know what we're doing.
but, we don't expect a nominally socialist party to support foreign capital flooding local communities with foreign labour, at the exclusion of local populations.
that is shocking.
that is a scandal.
that needs a reaction.
but, we don't expect a nominally socialist party to support foreign capital flooding local communities with foreign labour, at the exclusion of local populations.
that is shocking.
that is a scandal.
that needs a reaction.
at
13:20
where is the political movement towards self-ownership over natural resources, and putting an end to selling it off to foreign capital, then begging them to hire locally?
ironically, it's in the conservative movement towards loosened regulations, as the companies are essentially operating offshore to avoid canadian law. but, it's naive to expect a positive outcome.
i'm an anarchist. that means i want worker self-ownership, rather than state control. but, these regulations were designed with an intent that was never carried through with. if you're going to heavily regulate everything, you can't expect a market to work under those regulations. it's logically a step towards eventual nationalization.
the result is that the conservative position of cutting red tape is at least consistent (to a point; a totally 'free market' always collapses into a monopoly), even if i'd prefer the nationalization of natural resources. but, the liberal position just shifts the corruption outside of the country. and, the ndp don't seem to want to be the ndp - they're just the same as the liberals.
if i was in northern ontario, i wouldn't support any of these parties; i'd realize the need for a local worker's party to actualize the self-interest of the region's inhabitants. the conservatives are telling you what you want to hear, but all three of the parties are beholden to the interests of shareholders ahead of the interests of local populations.
local disappointment around the ndp's position on this should not be let go, but exploited to create a new party. the ndp has been a dead vessel for years. the left needs to build a new ship to sail...
ironically, it's in the conservative movement towards loosened regulations, as the companies are essentially operating offshore to avoid canadian law. but, it's naive to expect a positive outcome.
i'm an anarchist. that means i want worker self-ownership, rather than state control. but, these regulations were designed with an intent that was never carried through with. if you're going to heavily regulate everything, you can't expect a market to work under those regulations. it's logically a step towards eventual nationalization.
the result is that the conservative position of cutting red tape is at least consistent (to a point; a totally 'free market' always collapses into a monopoly), even if i'd prefer the nationalization of natural resources. but, the liberal position just shifts the corruption outside of the country. and, the ndp don't seem to want to be the ndp - they're just the same as the liberals.
if i was in northern ontario, i wouldn't support any of these parties; i'd realize the need for a local worker's party to actualize the self-interest of the region's inhabitants. the conservatives are telling you what you want to hear, but all three of the parties are beholden to the interests of shareholders ahead of the interests of local populations.
local disappointment around the ndp's position on this should not be let go, but exploited to create a new party. the ndp has been a dead vessel for years. the left needs to build a new ship to sail...
at
13:15
"i became premier of ontario to stand up for the rights of foreign capital to exploit ontario for it's own benefit."
da fuck...
da fuck...
at
12:14
"we at the liberal party of ontario want to stand up for the rights of foreign capital to bring in foreign workers to displace local communities and disrupt local economies. because shareholders."
"and, if you disagree, you're racist! the ndp is always on the side of taking away economic opportunities from local communities and giving them to foreigners. that's what settler colonialism is all about!"
what a couple of fucking retards.
now, i happen to know that this issue is actually a key aspect of these agreements, especially regarding the question of indigenous workers. this is political. but, it's completely backwards. and, the only person that benefits from this discussion is doug ford.
of course ontarians are going to put their own interests ahead of the interests of foreigners.
duh?
"and, if you disagree, you're racist! the ndp is always on the side of taking away economic opportunities from local communities and giving them to foreigners. that's what settler colonialism is all about!"
what a couple of fucking retards.
now, i happen to know that this issue is actually a key aspect of these agreements, especially regarding the question of indigenous workers. this is political. but, it's completely backwards. and, the only person that benefits from this discussion is doug ford.
of course ontarians are going to put their own interests ahead of the interests of foreigners.
duh?
at
11:56
kathleen wynne wasn't hillary clinton 6 months ago, but she seems to wish she was, doesn't she?
that's exactly the kind of stupid mistake that cost her the election.
that's exactly the kind of stupid mistake that cost her the election.
at
11:48
i think it's fairly obvious that he was suggesting that existing canadians should be given priority over people in other countries when it comes to analysing who benefits from employment opportunities in canada.
so, for example, if a chinese company wants to come in and set up a mining project, it should be forced to hire people that live in the region, rather than bring it's own workers from china.
and, trying to pick a fight over this is absolute stupidity, on wynne's behalf. literally nobody is going to argue this point, except foreign capital. even recent immigrants are going to see the injustice in bringing in foreign workers.
this can't be controversial....?
so, is a vote for the liberals a vote for foreign capital? i think a lot of liberals are going to push back on that.
but, this is backwards. the left is supposed to support local workers. it's the right that is supposed to be in the pockets of foreign capital. and, the irony here is that i don't expect ford to protect those jobs, anyways.
the ndp position on this is particularly disappointing. liberals are flaky on this kind of thing. the ndp literally can't be if it wants to compete - it needs these votes.
https://globalnews.ca/news/4204511/party-leaders-ontario-election-day-4/
so, for example, if a chinese company wants to come in and set up a mining project, it should be forced to hire people that live in the region, rather than bring it's own workers from china.
and, trying to pick a fight over this is absolute stupidity, on wynne's behalf. literally nobody is going to argue this point, except foreign capital. even recent immigrants are going to see the injustice in bringing in foreign workers.
this can't be controversial....?
so, is a vote for the liberals a vote for foreign capital? i think a lot of liberals are going to push back on that.
but, this is backwards. the left is supposed to support local workers. it's the right that is supposed to be in the pockets of foreign capital. and, the irony here is that i don't expect ford to protect those jobs, anyways.
the ndp position on this is particularly disappointing. liberals are flaky on this kind of thing. the ndp literally can't be if it wants to compete - it needs these votes.
https://globalnews.ca/news/4204511/party-leaders-ontario-election-day-4/
at
11:41
ok, i'm through february.
the air quality in here is horrendous, but there's not any use in pretending i can do anything about it until the court date. it's not just the marijuana, it's the cigarettes. and, it's enough that it is physically making me sick - i have a brutally sore throat, which is a condition that i'm not used to at all.
i'm only still awake because i haven't eaten in 36 hours. it's time to eat....
i will have to call on monday or tuesday to ask about the other room, and i'll point out that there has been no change in habits. i don't expect a response, but whatever.
i can't articulate how disgusting the situation is, or how profoundly negatively it is affecting me. it's just constant. she simply doesn't stop smoking. ever.
the air quality in here is horrendous, but there's not any use in pretending i can do anything about it until the court date. it's not just the marijuana, it's the cigarettes. and, it's enough that it is physically making me sick - i have a brutally sore throat, which is a condition that i'm not used to at all.
i'm only still awake because i haven't eaten in 36 hours. it's time to eat....
i will have to call on monday or tuesday to ask about the other room, and i'll point out that there has been no change in habits. i don't expect a response, but whatever.
i can't articulate how disgusting the situation is, or how profoundly negatively it is affecting me. it's just constant. she simply doesn't stop smoking. ever.
at
05:31
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)