FROLITICKS

Satirical commentary on Canadian and American current political issues

Sep 2

Where Has All The Humility Gone?

by bcurry

For those who are not familiar with the meaning of “humility”, the Oxford Dictionary describes being humble as “having or showing a modest or low estimate of one’s own importance.” Thus, humility represents a “humble view of one’s importance.”  This characteristic used to be a desired or appreciated one in Western cultures.  Not any more!  Today, world leaders, sports and entertainment celebrities, rich people, etc. are anything but humble about themselves or their perceived achievements.  This is not to say that one should not be proud about one’s achievements, but there is a limit to how much one should brag about them.

Today more than ever, social media unfortunately puts on display a ton of bombastic, narcisstic and macho personalities. We tweet out how great we are and how much we should be admired and replicated. While men tend to be pompous the most, many women in order to get ahead in their profession appear to be under the impression that they have to be just as macho if not more so than men.  Being humble is not seen as a strength but as a weakness.  I’m sure that all of us can think of persons who display these traits.  Indeed, most Western cultures now openly promote these characteristics, often leading to mind-boggling confrontations among such people.  The “mine is bigger than yours” mentality.

Why then is our lack of humility a bad thing? For one thing, believing that we are always right can lead us to ignoring other contrary facts or opposing view points.  We become selective about what we accept as facts and only select those facts which support our positions — also known a “confirmation bias”. Unfortunately, this can lead to bad or misguided decision-making.  The defence of our biases can also lead to a lack of “civility”.  “Humility” and “civility” go hand in hand.

Maybe, just maybe, it’s time that we bring back an admiration for those displaying humility. One should never be afraid to declare that one is or was wrong and be stigmatized by society as showing weakness.  Instead, as a society we should be promoting humility as a good quality to be encouraged and praised.  In every stage of our lives, a lot of people have contributed to forming who we are in beneficial ways.  One should never forget to recognize these past contributions and those of the people around us today.  This is what humility is all about.  Our role models in the public eye need to lead the “humility” way for the sake of future generations.

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Aug 26

Companies Are Suspected Of Targeting Youth For Products Containing Nicotine

by bcurry

A number of new products containing nicotine have come on the market in recent years. Many are flavoured and are more or less marketed at young people as well as older smokers.  These products include pellets made of finely ground tobacco with mint or cinnamon flavoring, e-cigarettes and various battery-powered devices. They are packed with nicotine, and studies have shown that they can poison children and lure young people to start using tobacco. As we know, nicotine is a highly additive substance.  A 2017-18 study, led by Professor David Hammond of the University of Waterloo, found that among those 16-19 years old, vaping increased by a stunning 74% from 2017 to 2018, from 8.4% to 14.6%. In Canada and the US the use and sale to older adolescents and adults of e-cigarettes and vaping products is legal.  In most cases, it requires the purchaser of such products to be at least 18 and does not permit buying them for anyone less than 18 years of age.  However, it is evident that younger people are obtaining or are being exposed to these products.

This August, it was reported by American public health officials that a patient in Illinois was the first to die of a mysterious lung illness linked to vaping. The death occurred as doctors and hospitals nationwide report an increasing number of persons suffering vaping-related respiratory illnesses this summer, most of whom were adolescents or young adults. To date, 193 cases have now been reported in 22 states, including 22 cases in Illinois.

The companies argue that e-cigarettes and vaping devices using nicotine help exiting tobacco smokers to cut down on their smoking. However, we know that such products are also being marketed as safer than tobacco products, a selling feature which is attractive to youth.  The recent outbreak in vaping related deaths and illnesses tends to support the concerns of health experts that these products contain other harmful ingredients besides nicotine, comprised of potential irritants including “ultrafine particulates” and some heavy metals such as lead. The health effects of long-term use are not currently known. We therefore need to study whether their use tends to lead young people to eventually become tobacco smokers.

The Canadian Cancer Society and American Cancer Society are calling for immediate government action to address a significant and troubling increase in youth vaping in both countries and recommend that every effort be made to prevent the initiation of e-cigarettes by youth.  The American Cancer Society encourages the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to regulate all such products, including e-cigarettes and vaping devices, to the full extent of its authority. It wants the FDA to determine the absolute and relative harms of each product, and to assess whether e-cigarettes really help to reduce tobacco-related morbidity and mortality. Most importantly, both societies are asking governments for an extensive study of the impact of marketing of e-cigarettes on consumer perceptions and behaviour, especially among youth.  It is now time that the companies marketing these products are fully held accountable by governments in both countries.

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Aug 14

Trump Greatly Underestimated China’s Resolve on Trade

by bcurry

The great negotiator, Donald Trump, has once again underestimated his opponents on the international stage. Recently, he threatened the Chinese with more tariffs on additional imports from China if they didn’t give in to U.S. demands. Now, the next worst thing to encountering a skunk is to back the Chinese regime against their proverbial wall.  That’s exactly what Trump’s administration has done.  In addition, he has often said that the tariffs would be paid for by the Chinese, not by the American consumer.  Alas, once again, Trump has reversed his latest tariff threats by claiming that he did not want to punish American consumers prior to Christmas with higher prices on imported Chinese products.  Americans apparently still want to purchase such goods as cellphones, clothing, TVs, video games, toys, etc., etc. at affordable prices.

Besides devaluing its currency, the Chinese administration has numerous other weapons in its economic arsenal. The last thing that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) wants to do is loose face in China. The CCP is having to deal with threatening situations in Hong Kong and Tibet, and is not reluctant to use force to quell such threats, despite the potential for international condemnation. Defending human rights is not the CCP’s forte.  The CCP is prepared to do whatever it takes to maintain its control and power.  This will not change anytime soon.

In recent years, China has expanded its economic and political influence in serious geopolitical moves. It is not only a formidable force in Southeast Asia, but has moved to directly influence events in Africa, the Middle East and South America. Its foreign policies include providing financial and technical aid for infrastructure and resource development in several countries.  It is always looking for new markets and resources. China wants to establish itself as a leading superpower on the world stage, and it will not be bullied by anyone, including the American President.

It’s time that the West stops underestimating the strengths of China.Inc.  China is a superpower and wants to be treated as an equal by the U.S.  Time is not on the side of Trump.  All that China needs to do is wait and watch for the coming global recession eventually and inevitably brought on by this trade war.

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Aug 6

White Extremism in North America is Very Worrisome and Dangerous

by bcurry

Back in March of this year, I published a blog entitled Extremist White Nationalist Movements Worldwide and the Attack on Mosques in New Zealand following the tragic massacre of Muslims at a mosque in Christchurch, New Zealand by a self-proclaimed white extremist. On August 3rd, the 22 people killed in El Paso, Texas, extended a series of at least five fatal attacks over the past year directed at targets selected for racial or religious reasons, including shootings at synagogues in San Diego and Pittsburgh. Authorities allege the El Paso shooter posted a racist manifesto online on 8chan, an anonymous message board, prior to the shooting.

The numbers of people killed in terrorist attacks linked to Islamist radicals or the far right in the United States since 2002 are now virtually equivalent. The most recent attacks have involved domestic terrorism committed by individuals influenced by or belonging to groups associated with white extremism.  As a result of the El Paso killings, President Trump denounced the alleged white nationalist sentiments of the suspected killer. But his presidency has come to be defined by policies that are aligned with aspects of the white nationalist agenda and his penchant for fanning racial prejudices and anti-immigrant sentiments. His very racist and long-standing xenophobic phrase “go back to where you came from” was a big hit among supporters at Trump’s rallies.

I became particularly concerned after white nationalists held a violent rally in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017, when the President appeared not to immediately denounce the neo-Nazi marchers. It’s as if the President and the Republicans are avoiding the obvious emergence of groups representing white extremists who select targets based on race and religion.  As in the case of the post-9/11 combined efforts by U.S. national security agencies to defend against Islamist radicals, these same agencies must now work closely together to prevent further attacks by followers of white extremism. It’s time for the administration to recognize this fact and act!

Canada is also not immune to white extremism. On January 29, 2017, a young Canadian white male fatally shot six people at a mosque in Quebec City’s Sainte-Foy neighbourhood.  This was seen by authorities as a hate crime against Muslims. The shooter was influenced one way or another by right-wing extremism portrayed in social media and on the Dark Web.  More frequent attacks involving vandalism of mosques and synagogues have taken place in the recent years.  However, the trend is much older.  Indeed, Statistics Canada reported that the number of hate crimes committed in Canada jumped 35 percent between 2007 and 2008, and black and Jewish people were the most targeted groups for the attacks. Again, I refer you to an earlier blog entitled Right Wing Extremism is a Growing Concern in North American Communities published in November 2018 for more background on Canadian and American white extremist groups.

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Jul 15

Is Donald Trump “Xenophobic”?

by bcurry

The Oxford English Dictionary defines xenophobia as “intense or irrational dislike or fear of people from other countries.” For some time now, President Trump has been accused of being a “racist” and more recently as showing signs of xenophobia.  These allegations arose once again because of his tweets on July 13-14 in which he asserted that certain Democratic congresswomen should “go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came.”  Without naming the congresswomen, there is little doubt that he is referring to Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan. All four are women of colour and American citizens, while only one was not born in the U.S.

One must remember that the phrase “go back to where you came from” has been a standard refrain mostly used by disgruntled white men or women, and certainly by white supremacists. It would appear that Trump’s statements are aimed at a particular element of his base support.  Indeed, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said that Trump was trying to “gin up his base” by “keeping Americans divided”.  Trump appears to have forgotten that the above-mentioned Representatives were legally elected by a majority of their constituents.  In addition, in a democracy, people have the right to express their views.  Once expressed, people then have the right to openly agree or disagree with them.

I defend the right of the President or anyone else to express their views. Indeed, knowing one’s views is a good way of determining what are their core values and beliefs.  This is a good thing.  How else would one know that Trump is obviously xenophobic!  What is sad that America was built on the blood, sweat and tears of immigrants. Remember as well, the only peoples who can rightly say that this was originally their land are the indigenous peoples of North America. Today, America is a country based on diversity and inclusion. It welcomed people of different races, religions and ethnic backgrounds from many places to participate in the so-called American dream.  This represents the real “greatness” of America.

What Donald Trump is doing is political manoeuvring by a desperate man focused on one thing alone — getting re-elected. He is even willing to undertake this shameful campaign at the expense of some admirable and fundamental American values.  Let’s hope and pray that he is unsuccessful!

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Jul 8

Should Canada Get Into a Trade War With China?

by bcurry

Andrew Scheer, leader of the opposition federal part Conservatives in Parliament, has come out on the national campaign trail swinging against China. He has called for placing tariffs on Chinese imports in retaliation for China’s recent blockage of Canadian agricultural products such as pork and canola. Much of China’s actions have to do with current extradition hearings, requested by U.S. authorities, against Huawei Technologies Co. Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou. Ms. Meng is being held in custody in her Vancouver mansion awaiting the start of these hearings which could take months. In retaliation, China has charged two former Canadian diplomats with espionage and they are being held in detention.

Next to the U.S., China is Canada’s major trading partner. Canada has been pushing for entry into the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement, negotiations for which the U.S. withdrew from under President Trump. The TPP would allow Canada to strengthen economic ties with Asian countries and reduce its reliance on the U.S. markets. Then there is Canada’s current relationship with China’s Huawei corporation which is a world leader in wireless technology. Pressure is being put on Canadians by the Americans to limit the involvement of Huawei in their telecommunications sector due to national security concerns.

Prime Minister Trudeau has to be very careful in his government’s approach to China given the potential negative impacts on the Canadian economy. With respect to the two Canadians in Chinese custody, he has correctly obtained the support of Canada’s major allies to put diplomatic pressure on China. However, getting into a trade war with China would not be advisable at this time given that billions of dollars of trade would be at risk. Canada would be better off looking to diversify its trade with other Asian countries such as Vietnam. Vietnam has been Canada’s largest trading partner in the ASEAN region since 2015. In 2017, two-way merchandise trade between Canada and Vietnam reached $6.2 billion, up from $5.5 billion in 2016. In 2017, Canada’s merchandise exports to Vietnam in 2017 amounted to approximately $1.1 billion. India is another country to be seriously considered for trade expansion as Canadian exports to India were over $3 Billion (US) during 2017.

Chinese companies provide Canadians with many affordable goods (just think of Walmart and Dollarama) and trade opportunities. Any move to imposing tariffs would only hurt the average Canadian through increased costs for such goods.  The China-U.S. trade war, which is hurting average Americans, has only further complicated matters.  Yes, there are political and humanitarian concerns with China’s domestic policies, but so are there similar concerns in other industrialized countries. Throwing more gas on the fires is not going to help resolve anything at this time.  As a middle power caught in a dispute between the world’s two largest economies, I would suggest that the Canadian government continue to take a slow, calculated and cautious approach to these issues.

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Jun 30

Senator Kamala Harris Would Make a Good President

by bcurry

Well, a presidential election is scheduled to be held in the fall of 2020. Already, the debates have started among a boatload of Democratic hopefuls in preparation for the upcoming primaries.  Who is going to run against Donald Trump?  Hopefully not the likes of Joe Biden or Bernie Sanders!  It would be nice to see a President who isn’t over the age of 75 and who didn’t carry a lot of baggage.

Right now, I believe that Senator Kamala Devi Harris would be an excellent candidate for a variety of reasons. First and foremost, at 54, she is part of Generation X (those born between 1965 and 1980) which helped to bring in the twenty-first century.  Secondly, she is a woman of  Jamaican or Indian ancestry, reflecting the new diversity with the U.S. population. Although she has no children, she has two adult stepchildren through her marriage making her aware of parental issues affecting today’s youth.

Her professional qualifications provide her with a good foundation for dealing with today’s issues. Since 2017, she has been California’s third female U.S. Senator. Prior to that, Senator Harris served as the San Francisco District Attorney for seven years and as the Attorney General of California for six years.  As a prosecutor, she dealt with numerous high-level cases.

With respect to her progressive policies, she has supported single-payer healthcare, actions on climate change, education reform, federal descheduling of cannabis, municipal protection for undocumented immigrants, the DREAM Act, and lowering the tax burden for the working and middle classes while raising taxes on corporations and the wealthiest one percent of Americans. She is someone who would not rely solely on the military to formulate foreign policy, as is the case now.  Her positions are in sharp contrast to those of President Trump and the Republicans.  Americans need to have a clear choice between two platforms and two visions of what kind of country they want, with no mudding of the waters by the centrists.  Such a contrast was not evident during Hilliary Clinton’s campaign.

If I were Donald Trump’s campaign team, I’d be a lot more concerned about Senator Harris as an opponent than either Sanders or Biden. While he represents the past and the status quo, she represents the potential for a dynamic and new prosperous future for America.

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Jun 16

Trump Administration Puts Us on the Brink of Another Middle East Conflict

by bcurry

The U.S. has blamed Iran for recent attacks on two oil tankers in the vital oil shipping route south of the Strait of Hormuz, a major transit route for oil from Saudi Arabia. However, exactly how and by whom the tankers were attacked has yet to be confirmed.  Iran’s administration denies any involvement, although such proclamations have to be taken with a grain of salt given past Iranian operations in the Middle East and the Gulf. Pending further independent investigation and clarification, we all need to take a deep breath.

The problem is that Trump’s actions employing sanctions on Iranian oil and his other economic pressure tactics has made it difficult for Iran to negotiate or back down by reducing its activities elsewhere in the region. Instead, Iran has responded with its own campaign of maximum pressure. It has threatened to start stockpiling low-level, nonweapons-grade uranium and to close off oil tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.  Iran is acting like a rattlesnake that is cornered with nowhere to go.  Unless one wants to get bit, one normally would back away slowly and allow the snake to peacefully go its way.

Unfortunately, some hawks in the Trump administration, including National Security Adviser John Bolton, appear to be itching for a military strike on Iran.  Big mistake!  Iran is no Iraq and is quite capable of defending itself militarily.  Sure, military action by the U.S. would be backed by Israel, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.  However, other nations, including those in the European Union, have urged caution and called for restraint. Indeed, France and other European signatories to the nuclear deal with Iran have said they still want to save the accord despite the withdrawal of U.S. support.

The Trump administration’s “all-or-nothing” negotiating approach is rendering Iran more aggressive, not less — with Iran wanting American sanctions to be immediately lifted before proceeding with any negotiations. Trump’s approach to Iran is completely at odds with that taken with respect to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un who, unlike Iran, already has an arsenal of nuclear weapons.  The Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is depicted as the “devil” and the dictator Kim is described by Trump as being a “nice guy”.  Go figure?  Regardless, let’s hope that we’re not once again on the brink of another Middle East conflict!

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Jun 2

Now Trump Has Gone Too Far With His Tariff Strategy

by bcurry

U.S. Vice-President Pence just visited Ottawa this week to discuss the ratification of the proposed new North American free trade agreement, which includes Mexico. In order to encourage Canadian ratification of the agreement, the U.S. just lifted its tariffs on Canadian and Mexican steel and aluminum products. Tariffs that should never have been implemented to begin with given the President’s use of ‘national security’ as a justification.  No sooner had these tariffs been lifted, President Trump’s administration placed new tariffs on Mexican imports.  Only this time, Trump is using these tariffs to try to force the Mexicans to do something more about stopping Central American refugees from crossing into the U.S.  Most would agree, including some of Trump’s own advisors, that this tactic will have little effect with respect to the border issue.

Instead, the new tariffs on Mexican products will cause as much economic harm to the Americans as it will to Mexicans. Many goods, including vehicles assembled in Mexico and agricultural goods, will cost American consumers even more. Combined with the recent increases in tariffs on Chinese imports, Americans can be expected to pay even more for consumer products of all kinds.  Remember, at one time about eighty percent of Walmart’s sales inventory involved cheaper Chinese imports.

Recent headlines in The New York Times (May 31, 2019) read: “Things Were Going Great for Wall Street. Then the Trade War Heated Up.” Basically, the article notes that up to now the U.S. economy was going fairly well. However, since the introduction of further tariffs on Chinese goods, the benchmark index of the stock exchange ended down 6.6 percent in May, its first monthly decline of the year and its worst drop since an ugly sell-off at the end of 2018. As well, stock markets in trade-dependent economies such as Canada, Japan, South Korea and Germany also saw steep losses in May. In addition, government bond markets have been sending some of the strongest warning signals.

I have been warning for some time that we could be heading for another major global recession if the U.S. continues its protectionist policies. The President’s use of economic threats and a trade war appears to be unravelling. Many economic indicators in the American economy are showing a growing weakness, despite the current low unemployment rate and high corporate profits. As indicated in the above article, investors are becoming increasingly fixated on any signs that growth is flagging. Consumer debt is high and consumer spending is on the decline in both Canada and the U.S. It just may be that Trump’s tariff strategy has gone too far. There is little doubt that ordinary Americans and Canadians will pay the price under his economic policies.

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May 16

With Friends Like the U.S., Who Needs Enemies!

by bcurry

Well, President Trump is at it again. This time he has launched an all out trade war with the second largest economy in the world — China. As of next week, virtually all of the imports from China to the States will be under increased or new tariffs. In turn, the Chinese will retaliate by placing new tariffs on American imports to that country worth billions of dollars.

What does this mean for Canada? The Bank of Canada predicts that the U.S.-China trade war will shave 0.8 percentage points off the Canada’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Already, various Canadian agricultural exports to China, such as granola and soy beans, are down or non-existent because of an extradition request by the Americans and subsequent arrest in Vancouver last December of the Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou of Huawei Technologies Co. The decision to proceed with the extradition process sets in motion proceedings that could drag on for months and possibly years, inviting further retaliation measures by the Chinese government and costing Canadian suppliers billions of dollars. The American request has also resulted in the questionable arrest of Canadian citizens in China by its government.

As a result of the trade war, it is estimated that the U.S. itself could lose a full percentage point off its GDP, possibly costing some 1.5 million jobs. In turn, due to Canada’s close reliance on trade with its partner to the south, the Bank of Montreal predicts that some 150,000 Canadian jobs could be affected down the road by the resulting decline in economic activity between the two countries. In addition, the U.S. continues to refuse to eliminate the existing tariffs on steel and aluminum coming from Canada and Mexico. To date, U.S. refusal to do so has prevented both countries from ratifying the proposed new North American free-trade deal which would benefit all three countries.

Good political, defence, cultural and economic relationships between Canada and the U.S. are longstanding. Hundreds of thousands of Americans and Canadians work and live on both sides of the longest border in the world.  Together, we have made a robust and viable North American economy, with 70 percent of Canada’s trade being with the U.S.  However, this relationship has been damaged by the recent actions of Trump administration, although hopefully not beyond repair.  Under the current circumstances, all one can do is reiterate that with friends like this, who needs enemies!

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