Factual perspective is neither newsworthy nor popular when people are in the midst of a mob mentality of fear but I’m willing to risk unpopularity in order to encourage people to be guided by science, reason, and logic. As you’ve heard me say so many times the key to finding the truth is asking the right questions. If we don’t ask the right questions we will never get the right answers. Irrational fear usually comes from asking the wrong questions or failing to ask the right ones. As I often point out it is not what we don’t know that poses the greatest danger, it is what we think we know that is false. We also must be aware of confounding factors creating self fulfilling prophecies. Sometimes fear is rational, sometimes it is not. Regardless, the most important thing is to ACCURATELY assess the threat and then identify an evidence-based, logical, reasonable, and RATIONAL response or course of action. Clearly this flu virus is a reality and clearly it can lead to illness. The most important question is what kind of illness. The FACT is that the type of illness associated with this virus in over 99.9% of CASES is mild to moderate flu symptoms which include fever, nausea which can include vomiting, and of course general malaise. Not very pleasant to be sure but is this any different than the symptoms associated with the flu viruses that have been the source of the seasonal flu for the past 50 years? No. Although not every seasonal flu virus is associated with vomiting the truth is that vomiting is not considered serious. Seriously uncomfortable – yes, seriously risky in terms of death or severe complications – no. But what about the deaths from H1N1? We all must admit and understand that even the thought of a child dying is enough to send any parent into hysterics. I can’t think of anything more frightening. So let me be clear. I am not suggesting that the threat of harm or death to my child or any child is not something to fear. What I am suggesting is that we RATIONALLY assess the threat and then assess our fear level to see if it is appropriate. Good decisions,...
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Since I saw quite a few friends there I certainly welcome any corrections or discrpencies with their experience. I tried to remain as objective as possible. I would estimate 50-75 or so noisy protesters were exercising their right to free speech outside the Shaw Conference Centre carrying unwelcoming placards & signs, ranging from calling Bush a war criminal to pictures depicting him as Hitler. A few protestors shouted insults to people entering the venue The lineup went on for quite sometime. The crowd had a definite white collar orientation. When Bush came on stage it was pretty hard for me to believe that he got a standing ovation. Bush comes across as a warm, likeable guy. One can certainly understand how people are captivated by his charm. He told some funny anecdotes. It was interesting hearing his humorous stories about inside the Whitehouse & adjusting to life afterwards, having to pick up ‘Barney’s’ business. Also when Bush referred to Russian leader Vladimir Putin as a small ‘monopoly piece’ of a man who ‘did not intimidate him at all’ it was quite a funny moment. I was quite impressed with Bush’s eloquent support of Barak Obama, it certainly made him appear as a gentleman. Bush evenseemed to well up when recalling British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s unwavering loyalty towards him regardless of the consequences to Blair. When Bush was interrupted, 4 times I believe, by loud protesters within the audience and he never missed a beat. The first interruption came almost immediately as he began to speak & the subsequent interruptions ranged from a man behind us who shouted ‘how can you applaud torture?’ As Bush explained his justification of the Republican’s ‘enhanced interrogation’ policy. To the last interruption when the protester began shouting that ‘Israelis are murderers’. To tell you the truth I was expecting more protest to come from within the auditorium. Regardless of your ideology there were some issues with some of Bush’s statements. Some were factually incorrect. Bush claimed that the Red Cross was in Guantanamo yet it is public record that US officials had a policy of denying access to the Red Cross Bush stated that the Americans are invited in Iraq which is not quite the way that situation...
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1. Be thankful everyday that we live in Canada, because we have ALL won the lottery simply by living here & it seems that the whole world still likes us anyway 2. Certain Jewish Canadian bar owners are quite passionate about the State of Israel 3. I love the Quran prayer chants 4. I actually like airline food 5. Anything attained by cruelty and oppression only creates ongoing pain and suffering 6. When travelling overseas rent the smallest car possible 7. Palestinians are the nicest people that I have ever met 8. Do not be afraid to ask nicely for the upgrade 9. Learn to say thank you in as many languages as possible 10. A month with no television is a wonderful thing 11. It is important to know present company when using the very similar terms Salam & Shalom 12. Tel Aviv has the most amazing beaches I have ever seen 13. I enjoy surfers & bodybuilders in all cultures 14. Smile when you speak even if you have no idea what the person you are talking to is saying 15. Polish people clap & cheer loudly when the airplane lands safely 16. You can never refuse a gift or invitation from a Palestinian 17. Do not ever take water or your basic freedoms for granted 18. Lake vacations, going to Vegas or whatever can be fun but to volunteer somewhere in a bad situation with people in need will enrich your life beyond your wildest expectations and be among the best things you have ever done, highly recommended 19. Sometimes you have to travel all the way to Tel Aviv to meet a teacher & her husband from Lamont 20. Not ALL Camels are cranky 21. Never ever put your head under the water of the Dead Sea 22. Rise early & you will have one of the Seven Wonders of the World all to yourself 23. Be very careful when you take pictures at military checkpoints 24. When in countries where there is great civil unrest and you ask too many questions you may be known as a ‘secret agent ’ 25. When you run, not walk, across the street, in a foreign country you really do look like a...
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The night before we left for Poland we went to Old Jaffa, where it was still in the high 30’s even at night. The ocean breeze at night in Jaffa was so so nice. Jaffa is just south of our hotel, a mostly Arab part of town with a very different feel to Tel Aviv. Tel Aviv with the most beautiful beaches, beach bodies & resorts I have seen, is hustling, bustling & very cosmopolitan, while Jaffa is a sleepy, quaint ancient place with narrow cobblestone streets, historical architecture, restaurants & markets. Not unlike Petra where we just were, Jaffa has changed hands many times throughout history. The city is mentioned all the way back in 1400’s BC where it was conquered by the Egyptians and it is also mentioned several times in the Bible. New contemporary buildings are often built on ancient foundations so you also have a mix of new architecture with ancient history, pretty neat. In Old Jaffa the Palestine-Israeli conflict doesn’t seem to exist. Although there was an older man walking around with a handgun visible to see on a holster. Arabs and Jews seem to live in peace, here and walk side by side. It was a nice walk from Jaffa along the Mediterranean to the skyscraper hotels that face the beach in Tel Aviv . The restaurants & bars have their tables right in the sand of the beach facing the crashing waves. We finally got home only to get our 2:30 am wake up call that came far too quickly. On the way to the airport the boardwalk was still very busy with people walking along the sidewalks even at this hour. Leaving Ben Guirion airport was like the other times entering or leaving Israel, it is an exercise in patience. It is really organized chaos with massive crowds of people even this early. We were at the airport about 3 hours before our 5:50 am flight. Besides the six, I think we counted ,security stations where the questioning is quite thorough and some people were pulling apart all of their luggage there is also always the presence of weapons, ranging from M-16’s to pistols. But we made it really all things considered without much hassle comparatively...
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What an insane crazy day. We were up & had the nicest breakfast that anyone could imagine at the Carleton overlooking the Mediterranean. Then we headed off in our rental car. After struggling to find our way out of Tel Aviv with the worlds worst road map (but the worlds best navigator!) & toiling just as much to find our way into Old Jerusalem I was amazed that we did it. Christie & I made it through Mid-Eastern traffic without arguing even once! Remember guys its not back seat driving, its called navigating! We entered Old Jerusalem through King Herrod’s gate, the Arab Quarter. The streets were crowded, small, with many smells wafted through the air ranging from barbequed chicken for kabobs, to the sweet smokey smells of burning incense, the sounds people pedalling their wares and the hypnotic chants of the Quran in the background all in Arabic. Lost through the maze of small cobblestone streets often covered with ancient rock archways we accidentally stumbled onto the Wailing Wall. I went out with my little cardboard yarmulke provided there & tentatively walked out to the wall & hoped that I was not offending anyone & said a prayer for Lesley. Afterwards standing back in the huge square, it was odd to see men (who are in a separate section from the women) praying with M-16’s on their backs. The Wall was not as large or as busy as I was anticipating. From there we waited for mid-day prayer to end & we lined up to see the Temple Mount or Dome of the Rock where the prophet Mohammed ascended into heaven. The Temple Mount square was beautiful & since we were among the first to arrive the square was basically empty other than a few Muslims walking around after prayer and a handful of tourists. Unfortunately I was not allowed into the Mosque. From there we drove across the checkpoint with no trouble and we were on our way to The Church of the Nativity. I was quite confident that I knew my way there but I was not counting on Fatah’s conference right next to the Church. Between the lines up of vans with TV cameras & satellite dishes and soldiers in...
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Tel Aviv is nice, lots of back backers here from all over the world. Actually there are quite a few hobos down here by the beach too. Tel Aviv at least down here by the beach reminds me an awful lot of South Beach in Miami. It really is nice. In short as soon as I crossed the checkpoint coming into (it is still weird having guys approach your car with M-16’s) Israel I couldn’t help but notice it is so incredibly beautiful it is quite amazing. I thought we were rich in Alberta but driving through the countryside I can not recall a nicer area I have been. The country side reminds me so much of Northern California or the Okanagan. Lots of forests, massive incredibly well paved highways & I couldn’t help but think am I in the same country? It made me wonder with it being so beautiful here why the settlers would choose areas in the West Bank. It is bizarre really the West Bank is basically all desert & the standard of living obviously is far lower than here. The weather and beaches are remarkable, it is at least as affluent as any US city I would say there is a bigger gap between the richer areas here & the poorer ones than Canada. Today I decided to get a nicer hotel than where I have been staying since Christie arrives Tuesday morning after 30+ hours in the air. I am a bit sun burnt after walking the beach yesterday. I decided to rent a car today. I tried to rent a motorcycle for the week but that is impossible here. I did almost buy a bike but thought Christie might kill me if I did that! The car rental guy seems to think I will not be able to get into Bethlehem but we’ll see. I took the car & went to Moshav Gan to see SAFE HAVEN FOR DONKEYS IN THE HOLY LAND a non-profit animal rescue site. I was so impressed with myself that I not only overcame bad directions, I overcame bad directions with the signs in Hebrew! I finally arrived in Moshav Gan Yoshiyya, where a British ex-patriot Lucy Fensom & her husband have...
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