03:41 - 03.06.07
Blessed Are the PeaceMakers
I tried making that really wonderful East Indian dish butter chicken tonight. There was a packet at the grocery store that contained the trickier spices to work with and a recipe on the back that looked reasonable. Turned out tasty enough that my youngest gave it the thumbs up. One of the ingredients was a choice of yoghurt or heavy cream. I thought the yoghurt would be closer to the traditional recipe, so I tried it this time. Personally I like the version that is a little smoother. Next time I think I'll use the cream instead. Still yummy though. One of the young women I worked with years ago was marrying into an East Indian famiy that was higher in the pecking order than her family. One of the conditions for being allowed to marry into that other family was that she had to learn to cook exactly the way they did - centuries old traditions. I'm guessing that maybe they came from different parts of India. There is a significant variation by region with respect to the preparation of a specific dish as well as which spices are included even though some dishes have identical names. One of the things she told us - she brought her experiments in for us to taste - was that cooking onions were so valuable for East India cuisine that riots would break out in the markets if that bit of produce was missing. Who'd a thunk.
See what one learns when one is willing to try something new? For example, our Canadian cousins "down east" are trying a new way of measuring ambient air pollution so that the impact on human health and productivity can be reduced. Not only that, but the costs to the health care system and industry as well can be reduced by millions of dollars per year if that one little experiment works. On the other hand maybe the idea of using nuclear power should be reconsidered given this revelation about the state of affairs in other countries.
It was confirmed that Prince Harry has arrived in our province with his army unit. It appears that he is training to go to Afghanistan instead of Iran. I still wonder, though, if every parent taught their sons and daughters to refuse to be soldiers if there would be anyone left to go to war. Yes I know it sounds naive and some conflicts are so intractable that it appears that the fighting will never end. That said the most peaceful country in the world right now, measured by international standards, is Ireland. Yes, Bloody Sunday Ireland. It can happen. I admire our troops when they go into a country to act as a barrier between two groups who are fighting. Peacemaking is and honourable and difficult art. Torture and murder are not acceptable under any circumstances, based on the laws brought down from Mt Sinai by Moses which are all contained in Christian, Jewish and Muslim scripture. I am thoroughly tired of politicians and corporations who try to dupe their fellow citizens into violating those moral codes for power and profit. Failure to find peaceful and fair solutions should come with fines and removal from office, not body bags filled with the youth of our countries. Use of violence in the home or in daily activity is illegal. Why is there an exemption when a nation sends its citizens to other countries? Instead of sending armies to destroy more lives, why can't armies of healers or builders be sent to help set up the infrastucture that is necessary for a local population to become a stable, healthy, economy that we could then trade with on an equal footing. If sovereign nations and the UN are capable of mustering up armies of fighters then they must also be able to muster up armies of builders. Are we so afraid of a level playing field? The Marshall Plan did demonstrate the value of rebuilding economies - maybe too well. Since then the European Common Market as well as both Germany and Japan have flourished as economic powers with the help given. Is the only way our countries can do well is to destroy or subjugate others?
Don't know. Hopefully young Prince Hal will be a leader in rebuilding a devastated nation, rather than just facilitating another wave of invaders that breeds more hate. He seems like a strong personality. Maybe he can turn things around. You never know.
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