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22:18 - 15.05.05
Renaissance
Last night I watched a rock show - in Urdu and Hindi I think. The videos weren't much different than those here, only there is a sense of humour in them that is sadly lacking in North American products. One scoffed at both cultural paradigms - see the gentleman in the navy turban, orange t-shirt and proper Scottish kilt complete with sporran properly placed. Actually he looked really cool. Then they shot a scene in what appeared to be New York and spoofed the Rap /Hip hop scene. Quite refreshing. Humour and subtle sensuality instead of the in your face stuff that seems to be the one note offering of most North American productions. An audience of a couple billion people can't be wrong now can they?

Quite honestly I am really tired of anything that promotes hate or violence. The need for a mock chemical attack exercise in one of Canada's major cities wouldn't even have occurred to me five years ago. The blurring of what is presented in the media and what is acceptable in regular social behaviour is most evident in the so-called reality shows and issues such as school bullying. While our local media did a special on how bullying causes an inordinate amount of teen suicides, this controversy in Manitoba when a teacher gave the class bullies a dose of their own treatment demonstrates clearly that there are a lot of people who really don't understand that what they are doing is wrong, even when it is reflected back to them. The reader responses are fascinating. Another fascinating story was of the Black Panther reunion occurring right now, with the intent of teaching the next generation social activism. I was very small when the original Black Panthers were active and all I remember is being afraid that they would shoot my family - that was how they were portrayed in the media at the time. It was quite a revelation to read about them setting up hot lunch programs, health clinics and dealing with housing issues for the most vulnerable of their community. Why was that never shown. It just illustrates so clearly how divorced from reality perceptions created by those holding all the power and terrified of losing it are of those they choose to demonize.

I was e-talking with my aunt today and the topic of the environment arose. I found it interesting that cities in the US are starting to realize how powerful they can be even without the sanction or permission of the federal or state authorities. The power of municipal governments is that they are the front line, down and dirty deliverers of most essential services to their constituents. The fact that they would see the value and implement the guidelines of the Kyoto Protocol is heartening. In Renaissance times it was the city state that led the way in innovation and efficiencies in science, art and government because there was so little separation between decision makers and their populace. It's hard to be uncaring about the effect of your decisions when it is your next door neighbour who calls you to account. Given the blossoming of society under renaissance conditions maybe it is time to revisit that model of social interaction. After all all we have to lose is a da Vinci, a Shakespeare, a Galileo, a Descartes, a Marco Polo, a Magellan, a Titian, a Raleigh, a Machiavelli and a Michelangelo.

The other topic we dealt with was - what else - elections. Apparently lawn signs are already going up in her SW community. I think that is actually illegal until an election is called, but I'll have to check my latest version of the Elections Act. Maybe there was an amendment. What I found interesting in the news yesterday was the announcement of a multi-candidate election in another Middle Eastern country. This time it is Egypt. There appears to be a desire by the ruling oligarchy to make their country more democratic. Then there is the Sudanese government that apparently wants no witnesses at all. Ditto for Burundi which is forcibly expelling Rwandan refugees. It is hard to stand in judgement though. Burundi is very poor and maybe can't afford the cost of looking after the numbers of people needing help. It could be the camps are being used as hiding places for guerilla intent only on extending the violence and mayhem in their own country.

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