QuickNews, Friday, Nov. 20.

Everybody's Business is a Sarah Palin-free zone.

CANADA'S AFGHAN DETAINEE SCANDAL

OTTAWA CHOOSES TO SHOOT MESSENGER

SIMILAR ALLEGATIONS BY NGOS DATE BACK TO 2007

 

Top photo: Canadian Afghan detainees. Below, right: Richard Colvin, former Canadian diplomat in Afghanistan, since reassigned to the U.S., who testified this week that Canada is complicit in abuse, even torture, of detainees handed over to the Afghan National Army, and that Canada's highest military and diplomatic officials have known this for years. Below, right, Peter MacKay, defense minister during the period of abusive treatment described by Colvin, sought yesterday to discredit Colvin. "His entire testimony is suspect," MacKay said. Yet in harsh Commons questionning, MacKay acknowledged it was Colvin's many secret cables warning of abuse that triggered Ottawa overhaul of hand-over procedures.

AFGHAN DETAINEE SCANDAL | Ottawa rejects widespread calls for public inquiry. Ex-diplomat Colvin's explosive allegations touch MacKay, former chief of defense staff Rick Hillier, top Foreign Affairs department mandarins. Tories better hope Colvin is a fantasist, as they yesterday depicted him, otherwise we have a government-defeating cover-up conspiracy on our hands. This is not a new development. Canadian officials discussed torture issue as early as 2006. Amnesty International among NGOs sounding early alarms, back in 2007, about abusive treatment of ISAF detainees, including those handed over to Afghan army by Canadian forces.

Harry Reid, Senate majority leader, and Nancy Pelosi, House Speaker. The House has narrowly passed a healthcare reform bill. Now it's the Senate's turn. 

CLIFFHANGER | Historic U.S. Senate healthcare reform vote set for tomorrow. Will be a close thing. First vote scheduled for 8 p.m. Reid is recounting heads every few hours as blue-dog Dems and moderate Republicans waver. Dem pollster Mark Mellman, in session with Senate Dems, reminds them of Dem loss of Senate after 1994 healthcare initiative died. Quoting Ben Franklin, Mellman says: "We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately." Call for party unity hasn't worked so far, not likely to this time either, even in rebuke to party's leader, Obama. Will come down to individual conscience - a chance to make history, or set back healthcare reform another 15 years.

OPRAH TO QUIT SHOW | Will announce today end of talk show in 2011, 25th year. World's first African-American woman billionaire wants to focus on entrepreneurial interests. LA Times has speculation on biggest winners and losers from long-rumoured decision. If nothing else - and she's done a great deal of good - Oprah will be remembered for popularizing reading with Book Club. And GM will miss her for all those free Pontiacs she gave away to entire first-day audience awhile back.

EUROPE'S FIRST FULL-TIME PRESIDENT | Meet Herman Van Rompuy, Belgian PM. EU chooses obscure figures for first president and first European foreign minister. Drives me nuts. Tony Blair's a lightening rod, I get that. But these two compromise candidates - neither of them widely known in Europe, never mind world stage - won't be the dynamic figures to rally Europe as a scold on Darfur or Iranian nukes, to create first pan-European armed forces so America needn't intervene in Balkans and other parts of Europe's backyard, or to contend with strong egos of a Sarkozy or Merkel.  

OBAMA REJECTS MAMMOGRAM REPORT | Will still fund tests for 40+. Government-appointed panel had recommended no mammograms for under-50s, finding them - and even self-examination - a pointless source of anxiety. Panel has since backed off own counsel, buckling under controversy. WaPo columnist bemoans missed chance to cut healthcare costs. NYT column on ritual of self-examination. Meanwhile, pap smears should begin at 21, OB-GYN group says.

SWINE FLU SNAFUS | Americans annoyed about vaccine distribution. So Canadian media not alone in playing up alleged Canadian concern about line-ups. Complaints flooding into CDC HQ in Atlanta.

CHINA BUBBLE | U.S. bond maven Bill Gross warns China economy overheating. Stimulus and rapid infrastructure spending will drive up prices, already triggering irrational exuberance. Consumer spending a disconnect with real incomes.

SACRAMENTO, NEW CAPITAL OF ONTARIO | Energy-hog big-screen TVs to be discouraged here too. Once green-conscious California does it, Ontario officials acknowledge, we're obliged to follow suit.

HIZZONER'S HIGHER AMBITIONS | Rudy to run for U.S. Senate. Will he represent Empire State or War on Terror State?

WHO KNEW? | New Yorker's Calvin Trillin on "Canada's national dish," poutine. Huh? Okay, the goopy mess is migrating west from Quebec, but Timbits still rule, no? Magazine also spends quality time with hyper-picky Michelin arbiter of restaurants and hotels.

QUOTE OF THE DAY | "The English instinctively admire any man who has no talent and is modest about it." -James Agate, British theatre critic.

Courtesy The New Yorker.

 

Please consider joining me as an elf this holiday season by participating in the Toronto Star's Santa Claus Fund, a century-old Toronto tradition. The Star uses donations to assemble and distribute gift boxes to thousands of less-financially advantaged children throughout the GTA. Each box contains a book, clothing and a toy. You can read all about it, including first-hand accounts of Toronto families in need, at http://www.thestar.com/santaclausfund. I'm counting on your kindness to help put smiles on thousands of young faces this December 25th! Many thanks, David 

Comments

[pogge]

"Americans annoyed about vaccine distribution."

Before this strain of H1N1 surfaced, the conventional wisdom was always that it would be six months from the time a novel virus was discovered to the first shipment of a vaccine. If governments here and south of the border had stuck to that instead of promising they could deliver more quickly, they wouldn't be getting near as much static. But they over-promised so now it looks as though they're under-delivering.

[wascally wabbit]

Thank you David - for making your blog a Palin Free Zone - and thereby keeping your standards high!
I love today's cartoon - almost a facsimile of my desk at the moment!
As to the EU leadership - well we didn't know much about Ban Ki-moon UN Secretary-General before he was elected - and he seems to be doing a pretty good job. Since Belgian has been the site of EU HQ since it was established - just maybe Mr. Van Rompuy will do a creditable job - while Mr. Blair continues to try and straighten out the mess in the Middle East that he himself was partly responsible for creating.

[David Olive]

Hi Pogge: Yes, exactly. I think this strain was perhaps even more unusual than the average novel virus, and caught everyone off-guard. Yet, as you say, if they'd said we'll treat this just as we do routine novel strains, the powers that be wouldn't have the over-promising dilemma they put themselves in. The obvious quandary is that you want to reassure the public, and ASAP. Which meant looking before leaping in this case. BTW, I'm enjoying your own blog insights. Cheers for now, David

[David Olive]

Hi WW: Many thanks, but actually it's not a Palin-free zone (!) because that line is hyperlinked to a regional U.S. newspaper columnist describing why she's "sick of Sarah Palin." But I wasn't going to say that, or help promote her "book" (ghost-written three ways to Sunday).
On the EU, all those thoughts ran through my mind. There's never been a U.N. secretary-general of global renown. Usually the first we hear of these folks is when they're appointed. I too have been impressed by Ban Ki-moon. And I did think, well, picking someone from the EU's hometown is the inaugural full-time president probably makes sense, someone who won't ruffle feathers. It's just that we need a generation of dynamic leaders on the world stage. Japan's on autopilot, I think Cameron will continue with Blair-Brown's policies under a different name, Harper and Iggy won't trailblaze, Merkel is strong but undermined by the recent election and in any case not a ball of fire, I think Medvedev means well but Putin's still pulling the strings. Lula's good but he's retiring soon. So we have all this undue focus on Obama, like one man is supposed to solve climate change, Mideast tensions, nuclear ambitions in North Korea and Iran, and a plateful of issues at home. I think back to what a luxury it was for Clinton to say in 1992 he'd focus on the economy "like a laser beam," which he did and America enjoyed its biggest economic boom in history in the 1990s. That's not an option for the U.S. today, and I'd argue it isn't one for the EU leader, either, given the Eurozone now has the world's biggest economy. (We get excited about China and India, but for all the blazing growth in India, its economy is still a tad smaller than Canada's.)
But we're on the same page, especially in wishing for the best for Van Rompuy. Cheers, DO

[wascally wabbit]

A few afterthoughts. From the little I've read in the last few days - Mr. Van Rompuy has an excellent reputation as a consensus builder - and that camel aka the EU needs such a leader for sure...
I grew up in post WWII England, and consensus builders did best in that world. When I think of "strong" leaders - in England and here in Canada - Maggie Thatcher and Mike Harris come immediately to mind - and I don't think either of them left a legacy to be proud of. Thatcher in effect created a lost generation by her policies. For Harris, I had as a good friend / mentor for a few years before she died 2 years ago a former GTA mayor and high up in METRO politics, who was a socially active fiscal conservative. She told me she'd either moved or seconded Mike Harris for Tory leader back in the early 90's. In return, he'd made her co-chair of a commission looking at amalgamation. The commission recommended to leave well alone - there were no benefits of scale to be garnered. Harris apparently tossed the recommendations and went ahead creating that particular camel that first Lastman and now Miller tried to ride - and my friend told me she finally saw Harris for what he was - a not very bright guy - just bright enough to know when to let his functionaries think things out for him...

[wascally wabbit]

And finally PPS - since you admitted to breaking your own rule - here's a piece about Sarahcuda that might amuse...

http://www.thenation.com/blogs/notion/499337/palin_as_the_church_lady