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5:49 p.m. - 2004-01-11
Music Man
Interesting story about sky halos tonight with great photos in one of my e-zines today. SpaceWeather. Easiest seen in eastern Canada and the US where an arctic front has created the perfect conditions for them and rare to boot. Truthfully most people wouldn't wish to see them too often since one of the requirements is sub-arctic air. But hey, what the heck, if that's already a condition and one has to be outdoors, then one has to find one's pleasure where they can. Personally hot chocolate and a good book while curled up under a comforter is where I prefer to be on such days. Ocassionally I even get to do that. On a similar note, one of the big controversies in the news here is about the placement and use of firepits in residential areas in our city. Often the evenings are chill enough that having a firepit is considered a necessity for being outside by a lot of citizens. However, too many uncontrolled fires and wild behaviour, evoked by the feeling of the "primal man", while outside in the dark of the night with a fire blazing has convinced our city fathers and mothers that some controls need to be imposed to secure the safety of unsuspecting neighbours. It's unfortunate, but having had to sit up all night watching just such a blaze fueled by drunken renters until the wee hours of the morning every night one summer I support their efforts to find a balance.

Music was a strong and positive theme running through the week last week. The day I had the spat with my supervisor over the tampering with my timesheet, I actually went and got my coat. I was so upset, I felt I couldn't stay in the building. Had I actually left the building at that time, I don't think I would have returned to the job at all. Only the thought of my empty bank account kept me there, but only just. I was so distressed that I needed something that would allow me to cope until I could calm down. Soooo, up on my discman came Ashley MacIssac's newest CD. There is a piece on there called "The King's Reel" that I think is what the Scottish pipers and drummers traditionally played during a battle. Stirs the blood of this chid of the Gaels (gaels - good definition of our temperament too, on occasion). It got turned up full blast and I "watched" those battles fought out before me for quite a while. Too bad but all these warriors had their kilts on - no pre-Christian scenes where just body paint was used. Much more colourful, but I didn't get that deep in the collective psyche. When I had calmed down enough, I switched to Natalie McMasters CD and listened to "The Drunken Piper". More fiddles and pipes but a different feel, more that celtic "In Your Face and I Don't Care" Attitude. I was laughing by the time I was done watching other scenes from ceilidhs playing out inside my head. Now one of my nephews says there is actually a whole group of youth who love and buy ska music - bagpipes. Confused me because I always thought ska referred to that uniquely Jamaican genre, but maybe there's a fusion going on. Far out!

The days I was feeling overwhelmed, I put on Dinah Washington sings Bessie Smith. My oh my she was a cheeky lady, wasn't she? I bet a lot of her songs might still be considered a little too harsh for some poor males' sensibilities. I sat and giggled through a few of the pieces - lucky there was no one in the records center at the time. Singing along was not optional right then. Switched over to Etta James gospel CD. Now I already have a cut of "I'll Fly Away" on the "O Brother Where Art Thou" that I like because it is delicate and ethereal. The version on Etta's CD is more true to the conditions under which it was likely written, visceral, digging down deep to find strength when nothing else was left. Spiritual in that it moves one into that last reserve of faith for sustenance. A lot of other cuts that were almost as inspirational.

The day I tackled the bureaucracy of Elections Canada? My sons had given me the CD "Ones" by Michael Jackson. I was working all day in the stacks where the only way I could be seen was if someone came and stood at the end of the row. Sooo, yes I did move a bit in time to the music - preventive medicine you see - one isn't supposed to stand immobile for hours on end if one has circulatory problems. Right? Could have been worse - I could have had my belly dance music on, but it's a little more difficult to explain the act of "shimmying" to someone who comes by unexpectedly. And yes I know full well about the charges pending, and if they are found to be true then the full force of the law should be applied as penalty. But quite frankly, I am tired of the media assault on public figures being tried and convicted because of their place in society without being given equal time.

Two similar stories playing out in our media here. The first is about a letter Princess Diana is supposed to have written accusing Prince Charles of intending to have her murdered prior to the accident that took her life. How can he defend himself at all? In some ways the very powerful are in the same position as the powerless in that case in that they will never have the resources or the credibility assigned to them by the general public to respond to such accusations. Let's face it, Diana was the fairy tale image of an average human being lifted out of obscurity to the impossible goal of a future Queen. Hadn't happened since Grace Kelly became the wife of Prince Ranier. Only one icon to a generation and she was it. Sought after as a figurehead by every charity or cause celebre with the knowledge that just her endorsement was enough to rocket their efforts into the center of public consciousness and support by affiliation.

Yet, especially as one who has spent a lot of years dealing with the "politics of power" as a volunteer and who has witnessed the reality of the real work required for humanitarian efforts to help those who can't help themselves, I can attest to the fact that it is more likely that the behind the scenes workhorse efforts of Princess Anne who spends all her time working on family and childrens' issues, Prince Philip, whose focus is the environment and education, and Prince Charles whose focus had been on health, art and social conditions in his own country are the activities that actually have gotten the results that really helped the most people. All three have been involved in their activities ever since the 50's and none have ever sought the public eye; in fact they have avoided it.

In Calgary, I've sat on several committees whose membership included some of the most influential people in this province. In each case, they have adopted similar profiles, below the public glare, partly so that they can act freely and without a lot of people showing up on committees to see what they could get out of it for themselves. For example, one thing we learned on volunteer boards is that about six months before every election for any level of government, there is usually a crop of individuals who will show up, fight fiercely to take on a position with a title and then - a couple of months later - will send out election literature claiming long term involvement and leadership on said committees, when all they have really done is undermined both the cohesiveness of the group and its work, while these predators created their illusion of community mindedness at its expense.

The second story in the media right now is about the efforts of Robert Kennedy Jr and the celebrities who support the efforts of the "Waterkeepers" organization. A group of them have been visiting Banff - just a few miles away in the Rocky Mountains - hosting a major fund raiser to support the efforts of water conservationists world wide. Worthy of a lot of praise - right? Not according to our Provincial environment minister or the one for British Columbia either. According to them their efforts are just grandstanding at best and meddling at worst, in areas where they have no understanding. Now I work in an industry where water pollution and/or contamination is a major problem. They are not off base at all. In fact it is those two ministers, who keep removing legislation to protect our water and air quality and who quietly ensure that certain industries are exempted from any control in their activities who are the problem. I'm grateful Mr Kennedy and his organization are willing to publicly "beard the lion in his own den". Could people in the local community not speak for themselves? Yes of course they can and have. However, ask Martha Kostuch, a veterinarian and environmental specialist what has been done to her reputation and her life by our provincial government for taking them to court when said government willfully violated those very laws they enacted. Ask Wiebo Ludwig what has happened to his family. Now he has overstepped the line too by taking a weapon and using it in what he felt was his family's defense when oil companies ringed his farm with critical sour gas wells. The problem was he had already tried going through every hoop set for him. I heard the same comments over and over at the workshop at our university last year from the 40 or 50 farm families who attended and one lawyer who had acted as a whistleblower after working for one oil firm trying to cover up what they were actually doing. Ask Milton Born With A Tooth what happened to him when he protested the building of a dam on reserve land on behalf of his tribe. And the list goes on. There may not be torture chambers or middle of the night murders of citizens here but economic sanctions and character assasination are the first line of "defense" used by the political parties if one comes too close to blocking any of it's major sources of revenue. Besides that, anything that brings Robin Williams for a surprise visit has to be a good thing. Right?

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