FROLITICKS

Satirical commentary on Canadian and American current political issues

Sep 7

What’s Going On With All These Pollsters?

by bcurry

Pick up any newspaper today or read news articles online, and you can’t avoid seeing the most recent polls concerning the U.S. presidential primaries or the standings of federal political parties and their leaders in Canada.  The most interesting polls of course have to do with the potential impact of the recent indictments against former President Donald Trump.

However, support for Trump, may obscure a still varied Republican electorate. To better understand the party today, one pollster split Republican and Republican-leaning voters into groups, based on the results of its Times/Siena poll. The groups were defined by how Republican-leaning voters felt on the issues — not how they felt about Mr. Trump.  The results depict a Republican coalition that consists of different six groups.  Their support for Trump varies accordingly.

According to a poll commissioned by POLITICO Magazine and conducted by Ipsos in June, roughly half of the country believes that Trump committed the crimes alleged against him.  What should happen to Trump if he gets convicted?  The poll’s results show that forty-three percent said he should go to prison, but most were willing to spare him jail time.  Nearly a quarter of respondents said that Trump should incur no punishment at all (22 percent), while 18 percent said he should receive probation and another 17 percent said he should face only a financial penalty.  Interestingly, roughly one-third of respondents said that they are not particularly familiar with the allegations in the indictment cases.

Nationally, recent polls indicate that support for President Biden and Trump is about evenly split.  However, analysts note that should Trump win the Republican primaries, he would most likely loose to Biden. This despite voter concerns over Biden’s age and his low approval ratings.

In Canada, the political drama is far less evident than in the U.S.  Recent polls show that the current leader of the federal Conservative Party, Pierre Poilievre, has pulled ahead of Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau.  Moreover, an Ipsos poll in December 2022 indicated that nearly half of Canadians want there to be a federal election in 2023, although the official deadline for the next federal election is 2025.  In addition, the poll indicated that, after over eight years in office, a slim majority of those polled are hoping one politician won’t be running in the next election: Prime Minister Trudeau.  Fifty-four percent of those polled said Trudeau should step down as the leader of the Liberal Party in 2023, although just 27 percent said they actually believe he’ll do so.  The Prime Minister’s approval rating has been coming down when compared to Poilievre’s.  However, with an election still potentially two years away, anything can happen as indicated by recent polls, and much will depend on the regional distribution of votes.

Polls are powerful – they can influence emotions and shape political fortunes. They can be used to drum up support for campaigns and reveal how closely aligned (or far apart) the general public is on consequential presidential or prime ministerial policies.  Recent national elections have reminded us how problematic it is when we think of polls as forecasts of the future rather than a glimpse at where people stand at a given moment in time.  Also, not all polls include a margin of error, including non-probability polls such as those you can opt into online.  According to Pew Research Center, participants for these polls self-select, or opt in, and there is a risk that “these samples will not resemble the larger population”.

Polling is a huge industry.  All political parties and many third-parties, including media sources, use polls to get an idea where the voters stand on certain issues and how much support is out there for parties’ platforms.  Past history has shown that the closer one gets to an election date, the more accurate certain polling can begun.  Unfortunately, polls released just prior to that date can potentially influence the way in which certain voters, especially the undecideds, may consider voting.  After all, everyone prefers to support a potential winner, notably if they are voting as independents.  Prior to the next American and Canadian elections, I’d be closely watching the potential impact of polling and whether the results reflect the final outcome of the election.

Canada Donald Trump Federal Election Presidential Election 2024 Republican Party U.S. Primaries US US Politics

Leave a comment »
Aug 18

Environmental Crisis for Governments Only Heightened by the Impact on People

by bcurry

This has been a summer of extreme weather events followed by natural disasters such as flooding and wildfires — not only in North America but globally.  Whether we’re talking about wildfires near Yellowknife in Canada’s Northwest Territories or the devastation in Maui’s seaside community of Lahaina, everyone agrees that this year so far has been the worst one on record for wildfires.  In addition, one has the flooding throughout the American south and northeast, and the earlier floods that greatly damaged Halifax and its surroundings in Nova Scotia, Canada.  In several cases, we were not adequately prepared for the consequences of such extreme weather patterns involving droughts and severe storms, often a deadly combination.  Severe storms are frequently followed by or include tornado activity, which also has proven to be deadly in many cases.

Those of us who live in regions which for the most part have avoided such calamities should be thankful for what we have, and not complain about poor vacation weather or extreme heat.  Even lengthy periods of extreme heat can be deadly as witnessed in the southern U.S. and west coast of Canada.  Yes, we will complain of smoke flowing in from our wildfires.  However, while poor air quality at certain levels can be hazardous to our health, we can do something ourselves to mitigate the impact.  The same cannot be said for those directly facing wildfires, flooding and tornadoes. 

Then there are the enormous costs to all of us as a result of natural disasters.  In the case of Maui, damage estimates already range in the 6 to 7 billion dollars U.S.  The current evacuation of Yellowknife’s population, some 20,000 people, involves the largest single airlift of people in Canadian history.  Fighting the wildfires across Canada will amount to hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars.  For individuals in high risk zones for natural disasters, the cost of insuring their property has gone sky high.  In some cases, insurers are even refusing to insure many properties in such areas.  Food costs will also increase as a result of the negative impact of climate weather on farming and agriculture in general.  Certain harvests will certainly be affected this year, including grain, fruit and vegetable crops.  Then there is the immediate impact on tourism dollars, such as in Lahaina where tourism represented about 70 percent of their local economy.  Nova Scotia has also seen a significant downturn in tourism as a result of the earlier wildfires and recent floods.

Let’s not forget the physical and mental toll on individuals facing such disasters.  Many are losing their homes and places of employment.  The consequential stresses will increase demands on our health care sector.  Then there are those on the front lines, especially those fighting wildfires.  In Canada, four individuals working in related fire services have already died this past spring and summer.  The health and moral of first responders is probably at an all time low.  There is also the impact on our military, who often are asked to help in rescue missions, flood prevention and with logistics for evacuations.  The Canadian military is already stretched thin because of international commitments, all this adding to additional costs that they have to bear.  

While many of us sit and complain about poor weather for vacations, we should remember that there are our follow citizens who are greatly suffering from the impact of natural disasters on their communities.  As I have argued in the past, governments, industries and non-profit agencies, such as the Red Cross, need to adapt in a timely manner in the face of continuing challenges associated with the eventuality of more extreme weather events.  Failure to do so will only result in more costs, both economically and on a personal level.  For now, affected communities will require our continuing assistance and support.  Those of us who are fortunate enough to avoid such disasters need to stop complaining and find ways to support these communities and their people.

Canada Cimate Change Climate Change US

Leave a comment »
Aug 14

American Media Under Attack By Local Law Enforcement, Now Physically

by bcurry

In June 2020, the arrest of a CNN news crew live on air in Minneapolis, where unarmed black man George Floyd died at the hands of police, first drew global attention to how law enforcement authorities in the city were treating reporters covering protests that had descended into riots.  At the same time, a reporter from Germany’s international news broadcaster Deutsche Welle was shot with projectiles by Minneapolis police while preparing to go live on air.  In September 2020, Los Angeles NPR station KPCC reporter Josie Huang was forced to the ground and arrested outside the hospital where two Sheriff deputies had been taken after having survived an ambush shooting.  Her press credentials were clearly visible in a recording of the incident.  At the time, the US Press Freedom Tracker, a non-profit project, said it was investigating in total more than 100 “press freedom violations” at similar protests. About 90 cases reportedly involved physical attacks. 

More recently, a small town in Kansas has become a battleground over the First Amendment, after the local police force and county sheriff’s deputies raided the office of the local newspaper, The Marion County Record.  A search warrant for the raid was issued by a judge roughly an hour before the search, which in itself was highly unusual.  As the New York Times reports, the advocacy director at Freedom of the Press Foundation, Seth Stern, noted that federal law allowed the police to search journalists when the authorities have probable cause to believe the journalists had committed a crime unrelated to their journalism.  That exception does not apply, however, in the above case where the alleged crime is simply gathering the news.  The Foundation is a nonprofit that advocates for the rights of journalists and whistle-blowers.  Mr. Stern also noted that, although news organizations are sometimes the targets of legal actions by government officials including subpoenas seeking interview notes and other records, the search and seizure of the tools to produce journalism are rare.  Normally, when journalists are suspected of committing crimes as part of news gathering, the government’s option is to serve a subpoena, which can be challenged in court before it is actually enforced.

For this reason, raids of news organizations are exceedingly rare in the U.S., with its long history of legal protections for journalists.  However, in recent years, particularly those under Donald Trump’s former administration, the mainstream media has come increasingly under attack for what Trump called “fake news”.  If he felt that the coverage was negative towards him, he immediately accused the reporting as being biased and inaccurate.  Often Trump refused to take questions from certain journalists known to report what he perceived to be negative news about his administration.  However, he never had any problem supporting right-wing media sources, such as Fox News, as presenting the truth, including his belief that the 2020 presidential election was stolen and illegitimate.  Conservative authorities appear to have been given the green light to increase their attacks on journalists and news outlets, especially in cases such as that in Marion County.

Whether at the local level or nationally, it is extremely dangerous that legitimate journalists can be attacked or threatened, physically or otherwise.  In addition, it’s becoming very difficult to keep newspapers in businesses and journalists employed.  According to a new report from Northwestern University’s journalism school in 2022, over 360 newspapers in the U.S. have gone out of business since just before the start of the pandemic.  The last thing that journalists need right now is to be threatened with legal action or physically while covering news stories.  What one particularly needs at this time is a strong mainstream media comprised of ethical and credible journalists willing to get the facts by following up and verifying their sources.  They should never be subject to intimidation for simply doing their jobs, which is the backbone of any democracy.

This most recent attack by local authorities on The Marion County Record is just the latest example of the inappropriate use of the judicial system to intimidate publishers and journalists.  It may only be a local incident, but it represents a much greater threat to the free press.  For this reason, it should be taken seriously as demonstrated by national support given to the publisher by more than 30 news organizations and press freedom advocates, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Dow Jones and the publisher of The Wall Street Journal.

Mainstream Media US

Leave a comment »
Aug 9

Political Polarizations Has Increased Mistrust in Many of Our Public Institutions

by bcurry

The New York Times in a very recent article (August 7th) notes that Republican (G.O.P.) contenders in the presidential primaries are bent on feeding voter distrust in public institutions such as the courts, schools and the military.  Obviously, most appear to be following the lead of Donald Trump who, for example whenever he has the chance, publicly attacks the U.S. Justice Department and the F.B.I.  During the pandemic Trump even disparaged the Surgeon General, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Department of Health and Human Resources.  Now, facing a barrage of indictments by the Justice Department, Trump has further accelerated his personal attacks on these major institutions.  Unfortunately, several other G.O.P. candidates have followed suit in an apparent attempt to appease Trump’s core followers.

All of the rhetoric, including that disseminated by social media and right-wing media, has created an environment where recent polls show that Americans’ trust in their institutions has apparently fallen to historical lows.  Feeding on voters’ already deeply embedded scepticism might have once been seen as politically risky, but social media and the right-wing media have helped change that.  The Republican governor of Florida and a candidate, Ron DeSantis, has led the charge against what he sees as a biased and liberal-influenced education system in his state.  Not to be outdone, another G.O.P. candidate, Vivek Ramaswamy, has gone on record that he would shut down the F.B.I. and the I.R.S. as part of his fight against the so-called “deep state”.

My primary question is what would replace all these important institutions in a democracy that claims to need independent bodies to deal with issues like law and order, public health, the environment, new technologies and the role of the military?  In a modern society, freedoms are important, but there still has to be some oversight of those matters as they relate to the public good.  Campaign rhetoric perpetuating conspiratorial themes does not help to ensure a rational and knowledge-based debate on many of the challenges that, as a democracy, we face daily.  It’s easy to argue that things should be eliminated, but no one Republican has yet rationally put forward any ideas about how one would go about replacing these institutions — and with what.

The Republican Party, just as the Conservative Party in Canada, has long stood for “smaller government in size and role” going back to the days of Ronald Reagan in the 1980s.   However, the current G.O.P. extreme rhetoric goes far beyond the past political stances of Republican presidents, from Richard Nixon to the Bushes.  As the Times article notes: “The proliferation of attacks has alarmed both Republicans and Democrats who worry about the long-term impact on American democracy.  Public confidence in core institutions — from the justice system to voting systems — is fundamental to a durable democracy, particularly at a time of sharp political division.”

Just as I am certain that there are a good number of moderate Republicans in the U.S. and conservatives in Canada who oppose such extreme rhetoric, I am hoping that cooler heads will prevail among our electorates in both countries.  Our democracies are closely watched by countries around the world, and defending our democratic institutions has never been more important in the face of the growth of autocratic regimes globally.  These institutions are essential to defending our democratic values and promoting the public good.  We need to strengthen them rather than knock them down as the result of excessive political polarization.  It’s one thing to push for smaller government influence in our lives, it’s another to suggest that one can simply eliminate or emasculate its influence in highly complex modern societies.  Doing so would just replace democracies with autocracies by centralizing political and economic powers under one regime.  We now have checks and balances, including the courts and justice system, to prevent this from happening.  Unfortunately, the Republicans appear more than willing to minimize such oversight.  Ultimately, the current split in their party, led by Donald Trump’s extremism, could greatly weaken their platform in the eyes of the American electorate, and particularly those of independents.

Donald Trump Judicial System Media Populism Populism in Canada Republican Party Social Media US Politics

Leave a comment »
Jul 14

Severe Weather Patterns Topping News Headlines This Summer

by bcurry

Never have I seen as many news headlines about the weather both in Canada and the U.S. then this summer.  Severe droughts in Arizona and California, flooding in the Northeast states, tornadoes throughout the mid-West, extreme heat waves through the southern states, extensive flooding in Vermont and New York State, etc., etc.  A day doesn’t go by when some form of extreme weather event occurs in both countries.  Dry conditions throughout British Columbia and Quebec led to a record number of wildfires during the spring, creating clouds of smoke which not only permeated Ontario and Quebec, but also as far away as New York and Chicago. 

For most governments — local, state/provincial and federal — the consequences of extreme weather events have been enormous.  Not only are people dying as a result of extreme heat, flooding and wildfires, but homes, businesses and infrastructure have been severely damaged or destroyed.  This has resulted in the insurance industry having to re-examine the impact of an increasing number of compensation claims, often in the billions of dollars.  In the near future, insurance companies will be withdrawing from more high risk areas.  Where insurance continues to be offered, the premiums will be such that few people will be able to afford them.

Most scientists are attributing the extreme patterns as being a consequence of “climate change” and the continued warming of the planet.  Most would also agree that it would take extraordinary measures by countries to slow down the current progression of subsequent impacts.  For the time being, societies will have to make significant changes in order to adapt to this new reality.  Such adaptation will not take months, but years and possibly decades.  Every day, targets developed through bodies such as the United Nations become less and less credible.  Rapidly moving away from our dependence on fossil fuels to more green energy sources is increasingly becoming an illusion. 

Countries continue to argue that the transition can only be made if economic impacts are taken into consideration.  However, they also continue to understate the costs associated with weather extremes, especially when it comes to assessing those associated with such sectors as agriculture, tourism, transportation, housing, etc., etc.  The costs of many essential inputs to maintain a viable industry are going to keep on increasing exponentially.  One only has to look at the impact on freshwater sources due to annual droughts.  Demand is outstripping supply in several regions.  Access to water is critical to one’s survival.

There are those who argue that new technologies need to be factored into future adaptations.  However, there are those who believe that the introduction of new technologies may not be adequate and timely enough.  In the meantime, news headlines about severe weather patterns and their impact on affected communities and scarce resources will continue to appear on an almost daily basis.  Whether we react in a constructive manner and on an urgent basis, only time will tell?  Whether such regular reported events will change the minds of the ‘Nay Sayers’ is another matter.  Is humanity prepared to make the necessary sacrifices to effectively tackle the enormous challenges before us, is the biggest question of them all?

Canada Cimate Change Climate Change Climate Change US

Leave a comment »
Jun 24

How We Are Taught Is What We Become

by bcurry

Recently, a friend of mine, who is a retired teacher in Canada, made a very interesting point about the influences of teacher hiring on students at all levels of our schools.  The just of the position is that teachers are not always hired for their qualifications and teaching abilities, but are instead hired primarily on the basis of their core beliefs.  This is particularly true where religious beliefs are considered a primary criteria for hiring.  Now, such criteria do play an important role in religious-based schools where religion plays an central part in the curriculum and extracurricular activities.

In some states and provinces, teachers with certain values and beliefs are expected to promote those same values to their students.  As a result, students can often be indoctrinated into certain belief systems which will form the basis for their future abilities to critically think.  Even at the university level, there may be a tendency on the part of administrators to seek out professors with similar beliefs to those promulgated by the faculty at large.  Unfortunately, such beliefs can most often reflect antiquated value systems which are regressive and unresponsive to the changing value systems reflected in a twenty-first century society.  For this reason, young people leave these institutions with preordained and out-of-date biases and a fundamental lack of critical thinking capabilities needed in modern society.

Under these circumstances, the danger is that the affected young people will not be able to easily adjust to the ever changing value systems associated with the majority of people in North American society.  They will continue to have difficulties in dealing with such issues as inequalities, racism, sexual orientation, discriminatory practices, diversity, etc., etc.  While everyone has a right to commit to certain beliefs and opinions, they cannot extend that right to promoting intolerance and extremism.  After all, values affect opinions and attitudes which then subsequently lead to actions.  Such actions can often have negative consequences and contribute to greater divisions within societies.  Sometimes, they can even lead to violent actions.  The result is a more closed society or certainly a less open one.

Many challenges face today’s youth, and they cannot afford to be hard-wired.  They will need open minds to deal with tomorrow’s issues and to be able to quickly adjust in light of those very same issues.  Parents along with teachers and elders can play an important role in inspiring our young people without handicapping them with antiquated extreme beliefs, religious or otherwise.  We inherit our value systems from our parents, and develop our capacity for critical thinking through thought-provoking education institutions.  Hiring the right teachers to help provide them with the tools needed to function within a modern society is of utmost of importance.  Allowing young people to explore, without rigid restrictions, all facets of our histories, culture and governance is a must.  Maybe by doing so, we will then be able to narrow the evident divisions and intolerance existing today within North American society.

Canada Education Education US

Leave a comment »
Jun 12

The Rise of Conspiracy Theories in the U.S. and Canada

by bcurry

The Oxford English Dictionary defines a “conspiracy” as a secret plan by a group to do something unlawful or harmful.  “Conspiracy theory” is defined as a belief that some covert but influential organization is responsible for an unexplained event.  Of course, in 2017, influencial QAnon surfaced with its origin in the American far-right political sphere.  QAnon centers on fabricated claims made by an anonymous individual or individuals known as “Q”.  According to Wikipedia, the core QAnon conspiracy theory is that a cabal of Satanic, cannibalistic child molesters were operating a global child sex trafficking ring, led by the Democratic Party and in particular former President Barack Obamak Hillary Clinton, and George Soros.  They were alleged to have conspired against former U.S. President Donald Trump prior to and during his term in office.  According to Media Matters for America, as of August 20, 2020, Trump had amplified QAnon messaging at least 216 times by retweeting or mentioning 129 QAnon-affiliated Twitter accounts, sometimes multiple times a day.  An article in The Atlantic in February 15, 2022 wrote that QAnon followers came to refer to Trump as “Q+”.  QAnon followers also had emerged in Canada, often accusing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and members of his Liberal government as part of the same global movement.

Most recently, an ecoterrorist conspiracy theory emerged that accused environmentalists of setting recent wildfires in Canada in order to make a point about the impact of climate change in North America.  While totally ridiculous and contradictory in nature, this conspiracy theory emerged in social media and notably among certain ultra-right groups.  Maxime Bernier, a former Conservative federal foreign minister-turned fringe party leader of the People’s Party of Canada, said in a June 5 tweet: “I bet a good portion of the wildfires raging across the country were started by green terrorists who want to give their climate change campaign a little boost.” This conspiracy theory is nothing new as, for example, in California in 2021 some people claimed online that arsonists were behind several wildfires — but there was no evidence that environmentalists were pushing a climate change agenda.  Moreover, officials of provincial agencies investigating the causes of wildfires in Quebec, Nova Scotia and Alberta have more or less determined such theories are bogus.  They note that there are several which are caused by humans, but these are almost always accidents and that recent lightning strikes were to blame for many of the wildfires.  Unless lightning is involved, a blaze classified as human-caused normally can be accidental, intentional or undetermined.  This does not exclusively mean arson.

Most recently, former President Trump is facing numerous federal charges that include willfully retaining national defense secrets in violation of the Espionage Act, making false statements and a conspiracy to obstruct justice.  Trump has repeatedly characterized the investigation as being politically motivated, and in recent weeks his lawyers have sought to raise what they say are issues of prosecutorial misconduct.  His defence is implying that there is a conspiracy within the Justice Department and the F.B.I., spearheaded by the White House and the Democrats, to go after him in order to prevent him from running for president in 2024.  Trump continues to refer to the investigation by federal officials as a “witch hunt”, for which there is currently no evidence to support his claims.  Although the evidence against Trump appears to be overwhelming, a majority of his supporters state their belief that there is a conspiracy against the former president aimed at preventing him from running in the next presidential election.

Unfortunately, Donald Trump is the main culprit purposely promulgating conspiracy theories and continues to have the support of a large base of rank and file members of the Republican Party.  Even some notable members of the Party, including Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, Republican Representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Matt Gaetz of Florida, have backed Trump’s conspiracy theory regarding what is often referred to as “the weaponization of federal law enforcement.”  When it comes to governance today, there appears to be no shortage of conspiracy theories, ludicrous or not.  What’s worst, a large percentage of Americans and Canadians appear to be accepting such theories as gospel.

Canada Elections Judicial System Republican Party Social Media US US Politics

Leave a comment »
Jun 1

Why Government Advisory to Canadians Warns of Gun Violence Awareness in U.S.

by bcurry

Wow!  You knew it was just coming.  The Government of Canada is now warning its residents about mass shootings and the high rate of guns in the U.S.  We are all familiar with the high degree of gun violence in the States, but one is increasingly seeing random shootings in public places often visited by tourists.  These shootings tend not to be targeted, such as those in schools and religious institutions.  A study by the non-profit Gun Violence Archive shows where public mass shootings have been taking place between 1966 to the present.  Top of the list is retail locations — which are known to have high and uncontrolled foot traffic — followed by restaurants and bars.  The same organization notes that there’s been an upward trend of mass shootings and gun-related deaths in recent years, with more than 200 mass shootings having occurred in the first five months of 2023 alone. 

According to the Gun Violence Archive, in each of the three last complete years in the U.S., there have been more than 600 mass shootings which are when there are at least four injuries or fatalities. That’s almost two a day!  In 2022, there were 20,200 deaths as a result of guns and 38,550 injuries.  Even these stats could be an underestimation.  The worst of the mass shootings, such as the very recent one in a Dallas-area mall which left nine people dead including the gunman, and last year’s shooting in Buffalo at a supermarket in a predominantly Black neighbourhood killing 10 people, made headlines worldwide.  All adding to the fear and validity of the advisory.

Moreover, it’s not just Canada that has issued an advisory with respect to travel to the U.S.  Other countries such as New Zealand and Australia have also advised their citizens to exercise increased caution while visiting, directly pointing to the gun violence issues.  While the U.S. is still a relatively safe place to visit, Global Affairs Canada does recommend that Canadians research the locations where they are planning to visit and be constantly aware of their surroundings.  In Canada, Canadians are not use to having mass shootings on a regular basis as they are very few and far between.  For this reason, they need to understand the serious differences as they relate to gun possession and right to carry laws in certain states in particular.  Let’s face it.  A bullet doesn’t distinguish a target between an American and a Canadian victim.

The need to take specific safeguards when visiting the U.S. has never been greater.  Tourism between our two countries has continued to be strong, particularly since post-COVID restrictions on travel have been increasingly removed in both countries.

In 2017, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security actually issued an official Active Shooter Reference Guide providing people with more information on how to protect themselves in an active shooter situation.  I would suggest strongly that Canadians travelling or working in the U.S. obtain a copy as a preparedness initiative.  The same advice would of course apply to Americans themselves.

Canada Gun Control Gun Laws Tourism US

Leave a comment »
May 23

State Bans on Legal Abortion Having Other Effects on Affected Women and Their Doctors

by bcurry

In 1969, the federal court of appeals (Third District, California) in Jessin v. County of Shasta ruled that “voluntary sterilization is legal when informed consent has been given, that sterilization is an acceptable method of family planning, and that sterilization may be a fundamental right requiring constitutional protection.”  The increasing number of restrictions and effectively bans on abortions by certain states is having a major impact on remaining choices by women, including increasing the number of requests by women for voluntary sterilization.  Since Roe v. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court, some women have considered or are considering permanent sterilization.  Sterilization is a serious matter which is not easily chosen by women who do not want children, often considered by women who believe strongly that they want autonomous control over her body.  Moreover, as the future of medication abortion remains uncertain, more and more women are opting for surgical fertilization.

Considering sterilization is however very expensive without private health insurance.  In addition, it has been reported that some people seeking sterilization procedures across the U.S. are being turned away.  Patients who don’t have children and are in their childbearing years are reporting difficulties finding physicians willing to sterilize them.  Some reluctance by physicians may stem from studies that suggest patients who are sterilized at age 30 or younger are about twice as likely as those over 30 to express regret after getting the procedure. However, other studies had mixed results and found that some women feel less regret over time.

Believe it or not, some observers are even anticipating that there’s going to be attacks on other forms of “contraception”.  In 1965, the Supreme Court ruled in the Griswold v. Connecticut decision that banning contraceptives violates a married couple’s right to privacy. However, Justice Clarence Thomas opened that door by suggesting in his concurring opinion in Dobbs that other precedents, such as this ruling, should be revisited.  Where does it all end?

More recently, Republicans used their new power in the House of Representatives to push through legislation that could subject doctors who perform abortions to criminal penalties, underscoring their opposition to abortion rights even as they stopped short of trying to completely ban the procedure.  Fortunately, the bill has no chance of passage in the Democratic-controlled Senate.  However, in several states there are already laws which could end up in doctors being charged with a criminal activity when an abortion is performed, even in cases where the pregnant woman’s life in jeopardy.  In the past, the vast majority of abortions in the U.S. occurred in the first trimester, before the point of fetal viability, which is currently at about 23 weeks.  Now, several states, including more recently Florida, have passed legislation prohibiting abortions after six weeks of pregnancy.  In the case of Florida, the law ends Florida’s long-held role as a destination for women from across the Deep South seeking abortions and will force them to travel farther, to states such as North Carolina or Illinois, for care.

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, the new Florida law also prohibits doctors from prescribing medication abortions through telehealth and prevent the dispensing the pills by mail. This makes Florida’s six-week ban even more restrictive than Georgia’s.  The law also bars state funds from being used for a person to travel outside of Florida for an abortion, except for when it is a medical emergency or when federal law requires it.

Horrendous impacts are being revealed daily on women being denied access to abortion.  There is little doubt that the “right to choose” in under attack in America, literally taking away the rights of women wanting autonomous control over their bodies.  The latest impact, somewhat more extreme than others, is one where young women are increasingly choosing surgical fertilization due to this evident lost in choice.  Doctors who base their decisions on the needs of their female patients are also caught up in this environment, trying to discern what is legal or not instead of what’s best for the patient’s health, both physical and mental.

Abortion US

Leave a comment »
May 15

Investigation Into China’s Meddling In Canadian Politics Could Lead to Witch-hunt

by bcurry

There is little doubt that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has attempted to meddle in Canadian politics over several decades.  Conservative foreign affairs critic Michael Chong wrote in a recent statement. “It’s long past time for the Trudeau government to come forward with a robust plan to counter Beijing’s foreign interference operations here on Canadian soil.”  Recently, we learned that the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) informed Mr. Chong that they were aware of a Chinese diplomat’s threats to his family in Hong Kong.  This alleged intimidation created further outrage among the opposition members who continue to call for a full public enquiry into the CCP’s attempts to interfere in Canadian politics at the local, provincial and federal levels.  The federal government is currently looking into the matter through an independent review as to whether a full public enquiry is needed.

However, anyone and any organization that has had dealings with or received funds from Chinese sources is now under greater scrutiny, whether deserved or not.  The first instance of note was related to donations apparently given to the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation, which of course can be indirectly connected to his son, current Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.  However, the Foundation is an independent non-profit organization whose mandate is to provide generous financial support for doctoral research by outstanding Scholars, and to support the development of future engaged leaders who inspire innovative approaches as they blaze new trails in the Social Sciences and Humanities.  Being devoted to educational endeavours and scholastic research, there is no proof of any direct influence on the federal government attributed to previous Chinese funding to the Foundation.  However, the optics are not great!

Now, it has been reported that Toronto mayoral candidate Olivia Chow, and a veteran New Democratic Party politician, has won support of a group aligned with China.  However, Chow has been defending democracy activists in Hong Kong and was among a handful of federal MPs who stood in the House of Commons and commemorated the Tiananmen Square massacre and attended Tiananmen vigils.  Toronto has a large Chinese community, so Chow has had meetings to reach out to Toronto’s community of mainland-China immigrants, some of which unfortunately were organized by the CCP branch that spearheads Beijing’s influence and interference efforts worldwide.  In fact, she’s not the only prominent Toronto-area politician to have rubbed shoulders with the group.  Current Liberal Trade Minister Mary Ng posted pictures of her celebrating the lunar New Year with the same group in 2019, praising its efforts to promote “diversity and inclusion.”  As for Vancouver, CSIS reportedly noted that Chinese diplomats tried to get sympathetic candidates elected in last year’s municipal vote, in part by using groups that represented Beijing’s interests.  Ken Sim, who won the mayor’s race in a landslide, has denied that such interference played any part in his victory.  It would now appear that no Canadian politician of Chinese descent is immune to being investigated by the media over possible support received from CCP-affiliated organizations in Canada of which there are several.

The case of Michael Chong has led to the expulsion by the federal government of the Chinese diplomat accused of attempting to intimidate him as a Member of Parliament and outspoken critic of China’s regime.  This is the first high profile case acted upon involving findings by CSIS, and there could potentially be others.  The danger is that, under the current environment, more Canadians of Chinese descent could unjustly become the targets of the media and security agencies simply because of their ethnicity.  One commentator compared the current situation to that of the McCarthy era in American history that saw U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy produce a series of investigations and hearings during the 1950s in an effort to expose supposed communist infiltration of various areas of the U.S. government.  Numerous Americans suffered unfairly and severely simply from investigations by his Senate committee and its widely publicized indiscriminate allegations.  One can only hope that we will not see a similar witch-hunt taking place in Chinese communities across Canada.  Chinese Canadians have every right as citizens not to be unjustly targeted.  Cooler heads need to prevail during these difficult times.

Canada China China's Influence China's Relations US

Leave a comment »
«Older Entries
Newer Entries »
Blog at WordPress.com.