00:53 - 23.05.05
Diversions
We've had to establih a "bad Kitty" cupboard. My policy for human children and cats is the same. Ahimsa. It is a sanskrit word that means no violence. That includes thoughts as well as behaviour. The former is incredibly difficult to attain 100% of the time, but one can strive for the other in the meantime. The cupboard is in the kitchen under the sink. Warm, with a towel placed inside; it serves well enough as a time-out place for errant felines.
Mostly that's the males, whose behaviour is testosterone driven. The females rarely get baggy, except when the males are hitting on them. Now that we separate the genders all day long, the girls are quite content. When we open the door to the computer room to let the males out from their evening shift, the girls rush in and curl up for their naps. The males, on the other hand, are busy trying to do the dominance game - setting their territorial imperatives both by spraying and by fighting. There is usually just one instigator, although it varies each time as to which of the boys is most aggressive. Under the sink they go if a couple of squirts from the water pistol won't cool them down. The odd thing is that the other males - even the one who was the target of aggression - will wait until we aren't paying attention then will spring the culprit from their incarceration. Magilla isn't caged in this zoo.
Today was a day of rest for me. Danced with the cats, then climbed the stairs to build up some strength. Read to my youngest. Did dishes and logic puzzles. Tried to watch the Earthsea Chronicles, but failed in that, because the adaptation is just too far from the original books. some of the filming is extraordinary, but I can see why the author - Ursula LeGuin - was upset. Too much liberty was taken with the text and it is almost unrecognizable. That's too bad since it is a great, although rather dark, story. I did watch Oliver! though and that was good.
In the news today a series of disturbing articles all discrete from each other, all dealing with the facade of protecting community safety and the environment, but in fact doing the opposite. The most upsetting was this one that demonstrated how vulnerable chemical producing plants are to any security breach. Why have they not been required to meet the same standards as other high risk facilities? Next is the issue of plants that use bitumen either from coal or heavy oil as a fuel to create energy. The problem is that even though the clean technology exists to reduce emissions significantly, the companies are using old technologies that are major sources of air pollution. Alberta accounts for 80% of the coal/bitumin used in Canada and also has one of the highest rates of respiratory disease in the country. No surprise - particulate matter is a major source of lung damage. The World Health Organization measurements of that substance in parts of Alberta show the levels as extremely dangerous. Then there is the issue of contaminated water. The trial for negligence and abuse of public trust in Walkerton, Ontario where several people died when officials refused to spend the money needed to maintain the treatment facilities for the town's drinking water has just ended, but nothing appears to have been learned. Finally there is the increasing loss of the right to privacy and the right to be assumed innocent until proven guilty, with Canadian authorities showing negligence is terms of enforcing our privacy laws. Given that we are locked into international trade agreements - especially with Europe - where the guarantee of the protection of privacy is mandated, the liability that the country has been exposed to on several counts is very disturbing. Our whole trade structure could be compromised because of the neglect.
On a more positive note, there was this story about closure with respect to four Canadian servicemen killed overseas in Afghanistan. The next interesting piece was about an initiative to create zones of peace using an ancient cultural symbol in key power spots in North America. I recall this initiative being launched in Calgary about 15 years ago, but it never really gained much ground. It might now after several years of watching our peace keepers being sent into very volatile situations. The final story was a book review. Might be worth taking a look through just to see how policy in the US is being influenced by one person's upbringing.
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