California prisons called cruel and unusual punishment

If you took the entire population of St. John’s and put us all into jail, you’d still only have about two-thirds of the number of people who are in jail in the state of California.

The US Supreme Court has just ruled that California's prison conditions are so bad that they violate the U.S. Constitution's ban on cruel and unusual punishment. In some cases, mentally ill prisoners are being housed (if you can use that word) in wire cages about the same size as the old telephone booths that you don’t see much anymore. So much for the enlightened society.

Here in Canada, we’re getting closer and closer to the notion of the mega-prisons that have become staples in the American justice diet. Many of them are run by private, for-profit companies.

With the new majority government, the Conservatives in Ottawa are moving ahead with their omnibus crime bill. Among other things, it will usher in new mandatory minimum sentences for drug crimes — growing five marijuana plants to sell the drug would automatically bring six months in jail.

There are other changes that will mean new jail time or increased jail time for similar offences. House arrest will no longer be a sentencing option for the courts in what are being described as “serious crimes”. Serious is a pretty broad word since five marijuana plants will now earn you six months in jail. I can only imagine what would have happened to “Mary” a former student of mine who used to shoplift Midol because she couldn’t afford to buy it to deal with monthly cramps.

Correctional Service Canada says existing legislation translates to a need for 2,700 new spaces at a cost of $2-billion. Parliamentary Budget Officer Kevin Page thinks that number is more like 4,200 prisoners at a total cost of closer to $5-billion — raising annual prison expenditure to $9.3-billion by 2015-2016.

It will be interesting to see the sweetheart deals the Tories arrange for their cronies to build those prisons and possibly operate them.  We know it will happen - the big question is who will get the kickbacks.  Maybe envelopes of cash?

The pimps nicknamed her Chutki

Sometimes we take life so much for granted. I’ve thought about it many times before, but it hit me tonight as I read an op-ed column in Wednesday’s New York Times by Nicolas Kristof. I’ve been reading Kristof’s stuff for a long time as he travels around the world contributing important pieces of work to the journalism archive.

Wednesday’s column talked about a night time rescue mission at a brothel in India in which he was invited to participate as a witness. The girl child that started it all was nicknamed Chutki … which means little girl because she was only about fifteen-years old. They were able to save the little girl and four others – one as young as five and another only ten-years old. It is modern day slavery of the worst possible kind.

According to Kristof, “India probably has more modern slaves than any country in the world. It has millions of women and girls in its brothels, often held captive for their first few years until they grow resigned to their fate. China surely has more prostitutes, but they are typically working voluntarily. India’s brothels are also unusually violent, with ferocious beatings common and pimps sometimes even killing girls who are uncooperative.”

The sex trade involving young children is so common in some of these countries that officials simply look the other way unless there is some mileage to be gained in terms of publicity by shutting down these operations. And there are many, many of them.

Kristof writes that “UNICEF has estimated that worldwide 1.8 million children enter the sex trade each year. Too many are in the United States, which should prosecute pimps much more aggressively, but the worst abuses take place in countries like Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Cambodia.”

Let’s not fool ourselves into thinking that it happens only in India and those other countries. In Canadian cities like Toronto and Vancouver, there are kids for sale on the streets. Any vice squad cop can tell you a hundred stories with hundreds more to be told. Sometimes, the kids get out and turn up at places like Covenant House, Canada's largest shelter for homeless youth.

We shouldn’t pride ourselves on being any better than the people in Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Nepal or Cambodia.  As we tuck into bed tonight for a good sleep in a warm bedroom, whether in Newfoundland or New Hampshire, we should spare a thought for those children – some may not live until the morning.

You can read Kristof’s article "Raiding a Brothel in India" by clicking here.

"Macho Man" dead at 58

Here’s one for the boys.

If you thought Randy “Macho Man” Savage was one of the coolest wrestlers around with one of the prettiest managers, hold up your hand! Almost unanimous!

The “Macho Man”, a pro wrestling icon whose fame reached far past the wrestling ring as a television pitchman with the phrase, “Snap into a Slim Jim, Oooh yeah” died on Friday morning in Pinellas County, Fla. after reportedly suffering a heart attack while driving, leading to an auto accident.

Randall Mario Poffo (his real name), was 58. While perhaps best known for his pro wrestling battles as Hulk Hogan’s major storyline rival in the late 1980s, Savage was also an actor and a one-time major league baseball prospect.

Lanny Poffo, his brother and also a former pro wrestler under the handle “Leaping” Lanny Poffo, said that Savage suffered a heart attack behind the wheel while driving. He veered across a concrete median, past oncoming traffic, and collided head-on with a tree. He was rushed to the hospital where he died from his injuries.  His wife who was in the truck with him survived.

Savage was intense and driven in everything he did. He played minor league baseball from 1971-74 in the St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Reds and Chicago White Sox farm systems.

An outfielder, after he blew out his right shoulder, making him unable to throw with any force, he taught himself to throw left-handed in an attempt to continue his career. “I saw his tryout with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1971,” remembered one observer. “Man, he could hit. He was a little squirt, I don’t think he was more than 165 pounds at the time.” He batted .232 with nine home runs and 66 RBIs in his final season of pro ball, with Tampa of the Class-A Florida League, before turning his attention full time to wrestling.

This sickens me

My gosh, talk about pouring it on thick!

Fabian Manning, the former and now reappointed senator to the pig trough in Ottawa says he’s quite happy that Stephen Harper put him back in the senate. No surprise, eh?

I’ve talked before about Stephen Harper’s variable values and this is another shining example of say one thing and do another, but it’s what we’ve come to expect of Harper. His integrity hit rock bottom with the senate reward he gave his buddies for running and losing in the last election. I have to wonder though what separates the ones who got appointed to the senate from the ones who didn’t. Not loyal enough? Didn’t say Mr. Prime Minister often enough? Well, at least we know what they are … just took a little negotiating with the price.

Here’s an excerpt of the CBC story recounting the interview with Fabian Manning.    You can read the complete story here.

Content warning: take your anti-nausea pill before reading this.

"I was absolutely delighted when the prime minister called and invited me back to the Senate."

"I get a charge out of some of the people that are complaining. I resigned my Senate seat on March 28. My plan at that time was to seek election in the riding of Avalon. We did that, we fought a good campaign — close to 15,000 people voted for us, but we came up short," he said. "If it had of been the other way around on May 2, we wouldn't be having this conversation — I'd be the member of Parliament for Avalon."

Manning said his priority upon returning to the Senate is to push  for reform — something he said Harper and the Progressive Conservative party have been trying to do for years, but have been snagged by the Liberals.

"We tried on two occasions to bring reform to the Senate, to bring legislation to the Senate, and the Liberals that dominated the Senate at that time rejected our overtures," said Manning. "We look forward now to bringing in legislation to the House of Commons and to the Senate to make some needed reforms."

"I strongly believe that the people that make the decisions that affect the day to day lives of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians are not those that sit in opposition, are not those that sit in the third party in Parliament and are not those that sit in the Senate. They are the people that are elected to the House of Commons in the government of Canada," he said.

"I tried to do that on May the second with the campaign team that I had. That opportunity wasn't there. The second part of that now is the opportunity to sit in the Senate."

Barf.  The people of Avalon didn't want you then.  They don't want you now.  Any questions?

One lucky catch ... or was it? :-)

Here's a viral video that has been making the rounds over the past week: Maybe you've seen Tampa Bay Rays star third baseman Evan Longoria(notes) saving the noggin' of a distracted television reporter with an unbelievable grab?

The video, of course, is about as real as Longoria hanging from a helicopter while looking for his lost cap last year. Looking at the banners in the background, it's not hard to decipher which of Longoria's sponsored companies coughed up for the CGI either. The subliminal message sent by Gillette here? Smooth move.

Still, it's a pretty slickly produced spot and one that's fun to watch and replay, so no problem here with passing it along. Maybe the next installment can feature Longo shooting the ball out of the air with his lost AK-47?

'Fill-A-Truck' event

You are invited to participate in the first-ever 'Fill-A-Truck' event hosted by the Canadian Diabetes Association's Clothesline® program! Help support the 47,000 people in our province who live with diabetes by making a donation of reusable clothing or household items.   You can help make a difference with your spring cleaning this year by keeping items from landfills!

Saturday, May 21st

Canadian Diabetes Association

Suite 862, 860 Topsail Road

Westbrook Plaza

10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.

Prizes, refreshments and enter for a chance to win an Apple® ipad!

For more information visit www.diabetes.ca/clothesline or phone 1-800-505-5525

Oink, oink

It’s times like these when I’m reminded of that famous quote from former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, "there's no whore like an old whore".

What else needs to be said about Stephen Harper’s decision to reappoint Larry Smith and Fabian Manning to the pig trough of Ottawa, the Canadian Senate?

There's an excellent editorial in today's Saskatoon Star Phoenix.  You might want to check it out here.  Stephen Maher, writing in the Halifax Chronicle Herald puts it into perspective for the Avalon voters: "The people of the electoral district of Avalon had the poor grace, stunned baymen that they are, to twice defeat Manning at the polls."  You can read his entire article here.

Fire red crocs and return to blogging

I always thought early winter was when those of us inclined to hibernate took off our boots, climbed under the buffalo robe and settled in for a long snooze. Seems like May-month is hibernation time for many of us in the blogging world – especially moi. Looking over the “Blogs of interest” list on the right side of the page, it seems that many of us are taking well-deserved siestas between postings. Right & proper thing as my uncle used to say.

There’s been a lot going on since my last post and vacation time. I got off the rock to the warmer climes in Ontario visiting with some friends and family. One day this past week, it was 27 degrees and sunny, prompting me to pull out the shorts and t-shirts I had nearly forgotten. Even invested in a new pair of fire red crocs. As my sweet little cousin is fond of saying … “watta crock!”

Returned to a glorious day here yesterday – nice & sunny with a warm day. Dug out the shorts and went for a walk to get some salt air back into my system. Amazing how you can suffer withdrawal in such a short period of time.

Did a little updating to the blog today – adding a few new blogs to the interest list and re-adding a few that I had dropped awhile back. Nice to see the old friends back on the list and some new ones I discovered over the last while. Take a minute and check out some of the titles listed there. It’s wonderful to be able to ramble through their musings, ponderings, pontifications, postings and prognostications.

Have a few topics planned for the upcoming days including reflections on the Bin Laden story, a few thoughts about the St. John’s psychiatrist who was writing prescriptions over the Internet and the results of the election, especially in Quebec. Enough about that stuff later. Appreciate hearing/seeing any comments you might have to offer.

Pettiness is going to be the mode in Ottawa

Well so much for the change in Stephen Harper’s attitude now that his party has a majority government in Parliament. A story in the Globe & Mail notes that Harper and his flock are pissed off at Michael Ignatieff for not calling on election night and offering congratulations on the win. Ignatieff apparently made the call on Wednesday afternoon, but after all the shit that Harper and his crowd dished at Ignatieff, how could anyone, including Dimitri Soudas (Harper’s main flack) be miffed at no call? Turns out they were, which tells me even more about what we can expect from the tory government. Pettiness is going to be the mode in Ottawa. Read on …

Tories pout after Ignatieff opts against congratulatory phone call to Harper
So much for bonhomie in Canadian politics. Despite the huge Conservative win Monday night, there are Tories who are miffed Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff did not even bother to call Stephen Harper to congratulate him on his victory.

They know it sounds petty. But it gets their goats a bit, according to one Conservative source, that the a leader who spent so much of the campaign saying he was an honorable guy, while criticizing their guy for being found in contempt of Parliament and for disrespecting democratic institutions, didn’t call.

The Tory added that “24” – referring to 24 Sussex Drive, the Prime Minister’s official residence – was not impressed.

It shows, too, the level of animosity between the Conservatives and the Liberals that this did not go unnoticed.

“I can confirm that Mr. Ignatieff and Mr. Harper have not spoken,” Liberal spokeswoman Leslie Church said Wednesday morning. “Mr. Ignatieff very publicly congratulated Mr. Harper in the opening lines of his concession speech on Monday night but there has been no private contact.”

The first few lines of Mr. Ignatieff’s election night address did, in fact, acknowledge the Tory win.

“I want to first of all offer my open-hearted congratulations to Prime Minister Stephen Harper,” he said. “I want to offer my congratulations also to the new Leader of the Official Opposition, Jack Layton. Offer to him, on behalf of my party, sincere congratulations to two opponents, who have had the better of the night.”

Mr. Ignatieff resigned his post as leader Tuesday.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/ottawa-notebook/tories-pout-after-ignatieff-opts-against-congratulatory-phone-call-to-harper/article2009716/

The quagmire that is Libya

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I wonder how many other people are feeling increasingly uneasy about the western led intervention in Libya?

On Sunday, NATO missiles hit a compound where the Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi is known to live. One of his sons and three of his grandchildren were killed in the attack, but the NATO representatives continue to insist they’re not trying to kill Muammar Gaddafi. In my opinion, their credibility is completely shot. If Muammar Gaddafi is killed in the next one of these attacks, are they then going to say it was accidental? Would anyone believe them? Assassination of a head of state is illegal under international law, and forbidden by various US presidential orders.

Are the deaths of the three grandchildren just an unfortunate consequence of NATO forces having fired missiles into the compound?

As I noted in an earlier post, the Libyan situation is far from easy to understand. There are significant tribal and religious issues involved in the conflict and there is some serious question as to what unseen entity is funding the so-called “rebels” in the eastern part of the country, around the city of Benghazi. The rebels began the campaign in mid-February. Since last month they have been aided by an international coalition acting on a so-called UN mandate. That coalition now includes ground troops.

Gaddafi's overarching strategy has never been to win a conventional war, but to induce symbolically prominent casualties, drive a wedge between more committed and more ambivalent members of the coalition, and knock away the pillars of political support on which this intervention was built.

Thus far, the coalition had sought to purchase coalition longevity at the price of campaign intensity. If that balance continues to shift towards the latter, NATO runs the risk of playing into the regime's hands.

More importantly, perhaps it’s time for a serious conversation as to why member states of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization are conducting an air and ground war in Libya.

elsewhere in the news last night, Conan's beard was shaved by Will Ferrell ...

When I read the results of the election online this morning, I thought back to 1993 when Elsie Wayne and Jean Charest were the only two tories elected to the House of Commons. Yesterday, 167 tories were elected to the House, giving Stephen Harper the majority government he appeared prepared to do just about anything to achieve.  Harper’s victory worries me because the nastiness which he approved in the election campaign tells me more about the man than anything he says from a teleprompter. I don’t trust him and never will.  I don't think that will cause him too many sleepless nights.

I’m happy to see the bloc quebecois nearly gone and I can only hope by the next election, they will be gone completely. I found it repulsive that a group of politicians committed to the break-up of Canada could be getting federal pay cheques and qualifying for those wonderful gold pension plans that our federal politicians enjoy. Good riddance to the former communist Gilles Duceppe.

Elizabeth May finally won her trophy seat in Ottawa. I talked earlier about May being the best example I could think of in terms of a political opportunist – prepared to contest an election anywhere as long as it got her elected. I still believe her goal is personal glory and she cares little for the electorate. She talks a good line as long as you don’t disagree with her.

Ignatieff got what he deserved. His attempt to portray himself as the common man reeked of political opportunism as well. I don’t know if his handlers were hoping for a reincarnation of Pierre Trudeau, but that’s not what they got. Justin Trudeau was re-elected in Quebec. Maybe the grits will crown him as the next grit prince or something. Something about style and substance comes to mind.

Finally, the new ndp official opposition is a rag tag band of experienced parliamentarians and some new ones who got there simply as default candidates. The best example is ndp candidate Ruth Ellen Brosseau who won the Quebec riding of Berthier-Maskinongé despite her well-publicized vacation trip to Las Vegas. So she now will get an annual salary of $157,731.00 just for putting her name on the ballot. From her place on the ndp website, her claim to fame is rescuing stray animals. That should come in handy as a member of the official opposition.

Congratulations to Ryan Cleary and Peter Penashue for winning their seats in St. John’s and Labrador. Both appear to be well-meaning guys who appear to have important constituent issues on their agendas. It will be interesting to see if Harper gives Penashue any role in government. Cleary would seem to be a natural choice for fisheries critic for the ndp although I wouldn’t expect to see any movement on his call for an inquiry. Harper can do what he wants now he has his majority and Newfoundland is not likely to benefit from much.

There are bound to be some questions about Premier Kathy Dunderdale’s effectiveness as a vote-getter for the federal tories. The provincial and federal tory parties are different creatures, even with different names. Dunderdale can’t help but be wondering this morning what the results of yesterday’s election might mean when she goes to the polls on October 11, 2011.

And, for anyone who missed it in the high stakes drama of election night, American actor Will Ferrell shaved off American comedian Conan O’Brien’s beard on television last night. It sort of puts things in perspective.