Daily Musings Jan 26th.

I am very excited about being able to watch this film for free this weekend.  The NFB site is putting it on the 25th and today only, accessible to everyone in canada for free. 


  You can watch it at: www.nfb.ca/myprairiehome 

 I was so upset at Harper's visit to Israel this week and the position that he suggested Canadians have/take that Israel is all right and the Palestinians all wrong. . .  a couple of articles came up later,  in analysis that I appreaciate: 

First Rick Salutin`s piece that complained that fawning over any country other than Canada this way is an embarrasment to Canadians everywhere.  He goes so far as to say:

"As for that arms-crossed campfire moment when he sang “Hey Jude,” even Bibi (Netanyahu) looked perplexed. But Bibi’s a guy who’s spent his life feeling paranoid about everyone else being determined to get him. The undiluted adulation might’ve thrown him."

And then there is  Scarlett Johansson and the Soda Stream boycott.   What an idiot.  "Soda stream building bridges between Palestinians and Israeli`s. . ."  yeah right. . .  so I enjoyed this peice called:   Scarlett Johansson's naive SodaStream Defense. 

One of the things I had not thought of previously about SodaStream is,  it was people like me that bought them (yes some years ago we bought one - still sitting in the kitchen though we no longer use it as we can no longer buy gas cylinders for it that are not purchased from SodaStream.)  We bought it because we were going through a ton of club soda cans and wanted to reduce our recycling.   It is not cheaper than PC Club Soda in cans,  but it felt like we had stopped a bit of production and that was a good thing.  However, when we discovered that we had purchased something made in an occupied territory/illegal settlement, we were aghast.  I think that is why the backlash against Soda Stream is so big -- it is progressive people that had an interest int he state of the planet that bought it,  and that now find themselves (like me) on the wrong side of a human rights issue.  I got on the right side as fast as I knew about it!

I enjoyed this --  Kumi Naidoo Executive Ditrector of Greenpeace Int'l posted this picture with the caption:
Young members of the Swiss Socialist Party organize a zombie walk in Davos to protest against the lack of substance of the discussions at the World Economic Forum.

You can read  more  about the coverage in Davros here where you can watch a clip from John Stewart and which says:  

The Daily Show's Jon Stewart did his best to make a mockery of the media's fawning coverage of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where the so-called correspondents there from the Fox Business Channel and Bloomberg looked more like some teenagers thrilled to meet their favorite rock star than anyone who is supposed to be doing some actual reporting on financial matters -- or heaven forbid, income inequality -- which was one of the topics being discussed there by the one percent attending the conference.

 And, another piece from Huffpo, talking about the essential uselessness of the "world economic Forum"  (and which I cannot shorten as all of this info/comparison is shocking) says in part: 

But world military expenditure now stands at $1.7 trillion a year -- yes, that is trillion with a T. And according to the IMF global fossil fuel subsidies (oil, gas and coal) combined with electricity subsidies total a staggering $1.9 trillion a year. (As an aside, why are governments worldwide subsidizing the most profitable industry in the world and driving climate change?) Combined, this $3.6 trillion a year equals 5 per cent of global GDP.

What could the world do with $3.6 trillion a year, or roughly $10 billion a day? What chronic problems could be solved?

Solving the climate change crisis will only cost 2 per cent of global GDP according to Nick Stern -- in other words 40 per cent of the annual military budgets and fossil fuel subsidies!

Staggering Facts:

The world could meet basic human needs for everyone on earth with $80 billion -- equal to stopping military spending and fossil fuel subsidies for just for just eight days, according to UNICEF in 2000.

Oxfam estimates that to ensure that every child could go to school, it would take an additional $6 billion -- just over one day of global fossil fuel subsidies and military spending.

Providing reproductive health care for all women in developing countries: cost $12 billion (just over one day)

Providing safe drinking water and sanitation for all people in developing nations: $9 billion (one day)

Providing basic health and nutrition needs universally in the developing world $13 billion (just 1.3 days)

What other bad news has capitalism brought me today? oh yeah. . . there is this little nugget. . . 
that the CEO of Bayer has defended their drug prices for cancer medicines by saying that they were developed for Westerners who can afford it and were not developed for Indians who cannot. 

http://www.msfaccess.org/content/msf-response-bayer-ceo-statement-medicines-developed-only-western-patients