Age Of Communication? Not When Catastrophe Strikes

I was just doing some daily silliness when I was drawn to a site, then got a message from Haiti regarding several people still alive, still trapped, with locations, phone numbers and even a small written map.

Today will be one of the last days that any of the search and rescue teams there will find people surviving, so I immediately tried to find any place that could get this vital information to Haiti.

I called the CBC locally and all they had were the phone numbers for the federal government SOS line, which I had already called, waited on, waited some more, then finally got a signal to either leave a message or hang up. DAMN!

I called again, managed to get someone to answer the phone, they gave me a number, which I immediately called. That one gave me another number to call, so I called it too. Then I got a call back to phone the Canadian Red Cross, so I did, and they gave me a number at the Winnepeg office, which, being Saturday, is closed. I tried again, and the only number anyone in the government had was one of the numbers I had already wasted time on.

I screamed in frustration, anger, and disbelief that there was no effective means of getting these vital messages through to the search and rescue teams in Haiti. I personally do not care who gets to these people, what team or person finds them, just that someone does.

I was so frustrated, so damn angry, so determined, and feeling so helpless, but I refused to give up. I went to the Armed Forces site here, read over different links, clicked and changed pages frantically. I finally got one number and called long distance to the disaster office there, and they immediately gave me a number that, finally, would connect me to someone who could use the satellite phones and call Haiti.

By this time, over 2 hours was gone, 2 precious hours for those people trapped in buildings. But, I also knew that there were teams and people looking, searching, and, like me, wanting to find someone to live, to have a longer life.

So much for the Age of Communication when it comes to governments, news media, and others who do try to get information out to people.

There MUST be a better way, given all the technology, the access, the people who are vastly interconnected, but today proved to me that unless you are composed enough, calm enough, to think straight, that getting vital information will not happen quickly enough to save lives.

I know the world is trying every single thing to relieve the pain, alleviate the suffering, and that there are people out there that never even get the opportunity I had to even try to save a life. But when time is ticking madly and lives depend on me, I do get very upset when dealing with inefficient and uninformed phone lines.

What would it have taken for ONE person in all those places I did call to take the initiative and put that information ahead, find the number that I finally did? Yeah, those places are manned by people who are just hired to “answer phones”, but dammit all, lives matter.

Well……………maybe not.

If anyone in my family were stuck, trapped and did manage to get a message out to a stranger, asking for immediate help, I would, perhaps foolishly, expect someone to be as persistent, as determined, to help.

Maybe my expectations are too high.

American Citizens Need to Give a Swift Kick to Louisiana State Government

Brad Pitt is working hard to get families back home, this is the site, click here.

This week there is a show on the television that shows how much the Louisiana State Government has neglected something long standing, and frankly an embarrassment to the entire country. Mike Holmes, a Canadian contractor and television personality, was asked by Brad Pitt to go and do something about this. While I know that Mike is one very excellent contractor, it begs the question, why?

There is FEMA monies sitting, waiting, in Louisiana to build or repair the homes in New Orleans’ Ninth Ward, yet the State of Louisiana has done NOTHING to get those monies to those who really need it. The point here? If the United States wants to have an image of a “do something” country that can solve some of the problems around the world, what better place to showcase this than New Orleans?

7000 families are STILL in trailers, waiting after so many years, for their homes again. Why the hell is the State sitting on these monies? Time is running out here. If the monies are not used within this year, FEMA will take it back.

It is long overdue that some of the people living in the US call, annoy, insist, be persistent, and generally give the State of Louisiana a swift kick in the butt to get moving! These people are your national neighbours, with kids who need to get to schools, reaquaint themselves with friends, and begin to have some semblance of normalcy. Maybe, just maybe, if enough people email, call, visit, and make this point to the people in the state powers, some small things just might get done.

Mike Holmes went from Canada to build a home, a renewal for one family, and he was appalled at the situation people STILL have to deal with. I agree! This is appalling.

What the people of New Orleans do NOT need is some scammers coming in. Those people have suffered more than I probably ever will.There is a woman in Bernard Parish who has managed to repair 200 houses, with volunteers, and if she can get this many people moved back into their homes, then what the hell is the problem with the State here?

I am proud of Brad Pitt for taking this on. He did not have to, had nothing, really to gain, and yet he did call in INTERNATIONAL help to get some housing built. Why the hell do other countries have to go there to get this done when there are people within the US that can do this well, do it with integrity, and those same people are sitting around waiting, just like the families of New Orleans?

A question here for those in the government of Louisiana. Do you need people to come from Australia, Germany, England, Canada, Brazil, Egypt, India, Japan or any other place to come to New Orleans and get this done? If so, then put out the damn call and we will be there.

The City of New Orleans and the utility companies are sitting around instead of getting the utilities restored. What in hell is it going to take to get this done? Again, do you need some people from foreign countries to come and get this done?

I strongly suggest everyone get in touch with your federal representatives, Congressmen and Congresswomen, Senators, and raise hell until this state gets moving. This is a national sore that is still festering. Put some pressure on the State of Louisiana, the Federal Government, and the City of New Orleans to get moving! Time to heal New Orleans. If you need to have countries bring in people to do the job, then damn well call out for them.

Again, it is long overdue time to heal, repair and make New Orleans livable again for those families who went through hell.

Boxing Day, St. Stephen’s Day From Hell

I wanted to go out to one of the larger malls here on Boxing Day (Known in the UK sometimes and St. Stephen’s Day or the Feast of St. Stephen) for one item and to take a look at the mayhem most love to enjoy.  I managed to get my companions to be all ready fairly quickly, given that one of them is a three year old toddler. The trip to the mall was almost boring because it was so routine. We found a shopping cart at the patio entrance, so we put the three year old toddler out of harm’s way by putting her in the cart.

We got to the mall and watched as people lined up for each store! Some stores had security teams at the door, others just kept the doors open to allow one or two people at a time, and others just allowed the public to shop. Talk about goofy! Crowds walking around looking at all the signs, but not really a lot of them buying items, unless the item was marked way, way down.

I found one shop that had what I wanted, and yes, like a total goof I stood in line. We left there after I managed to get the item and headed off to eat. Even getting a table with chairs proved to be a marathon!

We picked up other items and headed for the trains to head home. Ohhh yeah, this is where hell’s doors opened wide. It was only about 3 PM, not anywhere near the closing time, so we figured it would be easy. Wrong, way wrong!

I need to explain a bit here, so hopefully this will be somewhat clear. There are actually two lines, one heading east, the other circles around from the city center, through two adjoining cities, then back to near the beginning (imagine a loop with a slight tag on it).

We paid our fares then headed up to get to the elevated train platform. First thing I noticed was the train heading on the alternate route was just sitting at the platform, not moving, and the system alarms were going off every thirty seconds or so. Hmmm not a good sign, but with the toddler along, the faster we managed to get home, the better.

Then an announcement put a chill on the idea. ” We are experiencing a problem with the switch near the station. We have a crew working on it, and the trains should be moving soon.” The switch in question is the one that separates the two routes. sending one train east, the other north then east.  We stood on the platform for ten minutes, then twenty-five minutes, then three-quarters of an hour with heavy snow and a breeze blowing. Nadda, nothing, the train we saw on arrival was still in the station!

Phooey, the toddler was getting cold, we obviously were not going anywhere, so I suggested we head back into the mall or a local restaurant to warm up and maybe get a cup of coffee at least. I asked the train security if they had any idea how long the problem would take, they had no idea.

Great.

We took our packages, which were now starting to feel like we had bought twice what we actually did, and headed for a place to sit, warm up, and maybe, just maybe, get some coffee. Nope! Every bloody seat in every local restaurant was taken, and the toddler was now getting chilled.  I suggested one restaurant that most seem to forget is there, and we did manage to get a table after a five minute wait.

Now to put a time line on this. We paid our fares at around three, waited for at least an hour, then headed off for coffee. We decided to order two meals and share with the toddler. Our thinking was to allow an hour, perhaps two, for the situation to be resolved. We ate leisurely, and the toddler curled up on the seat and slept for a bit.

Now, back to the train station. We got close to the station and saw one horrendous long line! No trains moving! A toddler that we are now alternately carrying while she slept.  Oof! So, we sat at a bench and watched to see if the trains were moving. Nope. By this time the mall stores are beginning to close or are closed, so the number of people has multiplied considerably. Now it is eight thousand! Yeah, eight thousand people all waiting for trains going east or on the circle route, and not one car is moving. Adding to the problem with the switch, a tree branch fell on or near the tracks so they shut the trains down to clear THAT!

We remained on the benches, holding the sleeping three year old child in the snowy wind, watching to see if even ONE train would move. One finally did, heading into the city center and if there was room to add even a toothpick on that train, I would be surprised. Nothing going our way, nadda.

Finally we did see one train head east, then after twenty minutes or so, another came into the station, stayed for ten minutes, and voila! One train did move east!

The “normal” schedule for these trains is about seven to twelve minutes between trains, and often on busy days, every six minutes. Here was one train leaving one station every half an hour, with eight thousand people  lined up for the trains!

I walked over to one of the nearby buses at the nearby stop and asked if the driver knew what was going on with the trains. He had absolutely no idea, the company that is in charge of the trains had not contacted the bus company to let them know. Damn! “Were there any buses being used to shuttle passengers over the bridge to the east. so we could at least get on the train beyond the switch?” Nope, nadda, all the coaches were dealing with snowfall and running late too. That was evident from the huge lines for each bus, some of which “normally” run every ten minutes.  Damnation!

Back to the bench, watching almost in desperation at this point, for even two trains heading east, even if they were leaving every half hour. Nothing, and we are now being deluged with snow and a wind is rising.

Finally! We see two trains heading out, the crowd is moving, so we cross the street and try for the elevator. We had packages and a toddler to carry, so the elevator would save us a huge amount of time and energy. Damn and double-damn, the elevator (which we took when we  arrived) was out!

Back across the street, through the crowds waiting for the buses, and up the escalator, and into the long, long lineup. We paid fares again.  The total for the return trip was now up at ten dollars, plus our meal, plus at least four hours waiting time. Needless to say, my patience was shot!

We do get to the platform again, a train heading our way arrives, and we move as quickly as we could to one coach, find the seats, and sit. WE ARE NOT MOVING OFF THAT DAMN TRAIN!

Announcement. ” We are experiencing trouble with a switch on our tracks just past one station. We have a crew working on it.” Groan! It is now four hours and counting since we tried to board the train for the first time! We sit, in relative warmth, and the toddler curls up on the bench beside me to resume sleeping.  Ten minutes go by, then fifteen, then twenty, then finally we move!

The train is totally packed, not even room for some to put their bags or backpacks down on the floor, but WE ARE MOVING! The train pulls into stations along the way, weary shoppers shuffle off, and we go again. I sit with trepidation as the train nears that bloody, damn, switch. DO NOT SCREW UP NOW! I scream in my mind. We get past it, then over that bloody bridge and off to the east. We get within one hundred yards of our stop and the train stops. Arghhh! Announcement. ” We are having trouble with a switch near one station, our trains are being held up.”

No kidding! The trains are being stopped, held up on the tracks with no place to go! This is the system they want to use for the Winter Olympics? Who the hell are they kidding?

We get going again after about fifteen minutes, and by this time it is NINE PM! We get off that bloody train, get on the bus and head for home. Snow is falling all day, so we know it is going to be a tough slog through snow with weary toddler and packages, but at least we are heading there.

We get off the bus, head up the middle of the snowy roads which only have small ruts in the snow from cars driven through earlier. It is heavy snow, and some of the “drivers” ( I use that term loosely here) have created some huge patches of ice from spinning their tires endlessly, apparently, to get around. The toddler has to walk with us, otherwise we would fall on her. We watch for cars, move aside to let them pass, and trudge onwards. We are just about home when one car comes at us, so I wave to get the driver to stop long enough for us to get out of the way, but he keeps coming! I have no place to go, the toddler with her mother has no place to go, and he just keeps coming at us! The Mom is standing on glare ice, I know I am on nothing but ice underfoot, so she grabs the toddler and lifts her up.

I lose it totally, and yell, ” You stupid dipshit! Stop!” Nope, he keeps coming straight at me! His car literally comes within inches of me, so I raise my right arm and with full, furious force, slam my full arm on his rear window. WHAM! Or as the Mom said, ” Ker Whooompah!”  His car passes her with barely inches then stops! He backs up his car right at her! She bellows  “Hey! Stop!”  Then he starts ahead and pulls up about twenty feet ahead of us and yells at us. I bellow at him, ” You stupid dipshit, you damn near hit a baby! Fuck off! ”  He pulls off to a driveway, then pulls in, and looks back at us.

Just as we get our tempers back down from a high boil, a truck comes down the street towards us, and, without any place to go, heads at us! This driver uses their brains and pulls wide, gives us room, and keeps going.

Why were we walking in the car ruts in the first place? Because not ONE DAMN HOUSE had their sidewalks clear, not ONE!

The driver that used his car to threaten and damn near back over a child and mother was Indo-Canadian, driving a black two-seater with tinted rear windows, and it was a Chrysler Intrepid. If things had gone just one tiny bit wrong, there would be a dead or injured child and mother, and charges of dangerous driving causing either death or injury. My fury still boils up now.

The Boxing Day of Hell is over, but definitely NOT forgotten.

Vancouver Woman Burns To Death, She Was One of Thousands of Homeless

I am so saddened by the needless death of a human being when it was totally preventable. The woman was outside, the temperature was at least -10 C. or about 15 F with a wind blowing. She just wanted to find some way to keep warm under her meager belongings, and asked for a candle. Instead of finding an alternative to an open flame,  people told her “No, you cannot have a candle, and I will not give you any matches either.”

Somehow, that woman did find or get a candle, then borrowed a lighter, lit the candle and tried to sleep.  She was huddled under her grocery cart, with cardboard and other covering over that, and yes, the candle caught the material on fire, the woman burned to death.

One time when someone may have used some brains, maybe just gone out of their way to find her some way of getting some flameless heat, and that woman would be here today. But, no, people won’t go that extra step, even the people who worked for the local police. Yes, the police did TELL her to get to a shelter, but unless you know someone who has experienced the local homeless shelters or seen photographs of people sleeping on wooden benches and matresses that even gymnasts would avoid, as well as hearing about the theft and mentally ill people crying out all night because they have not had medication, you too would tell the homeless to get to one of these hellish places.

Some of the local agencies try their hardest to give some semblance of decency and respect to the shelters, some of the places are clean and afford a mimal amount of privacy, but the carts are the lifeline, the possessions, the entire storage for any food, socks, and other goods these people have, and the shelters refuse to allow the carts inside the buildings, and there is no means to securely store the carts anywhere.

Burning to death is a very harsh sentence for anyone, but when it comes from the very basic need for warmth on a very cold, humid night, it becomes tragic. Someone saw this, went in to call the local emergency and they were basically given a cold shrug, the same cold shrug that most of those living on the streets where millionaires walk during the day. Yes, the woman burned to death on a corner where the condos sell for over half a million dollars, there are boutiques and designer shops nearby.

This will just be a passing note, not even worthy of concern to our governmental agencies here, mostly because they figure the poor, those who are so impoverished that they become sub-human, non-existent in any monetary or political power, that this type of death can and will be dismissed.

The 2010 Winter Olympics are getting billions, the city is putting millions into window dressing, the province is pumping out ads that call this place, “The best place on earth”. There are millionaires here that will  lobby the government to reduce the purchase taxes on high cost property, yet every person who has volunteered for charity knows very well, they give much less than the poorest. Why? Because they all just do not give a damn, and the impoverished do not have monetary or political power, and certainly don’t have lobbyists working for them.

I guess the ugly truth is that the government will ignore this death, maybe count the money they might save now, and just carry on.  That is why British Columbia is nicknamed “Bring Cash”, because if you don’t have it, you will not survive here.

If anyone does give a thought to those who live on the streets, in Vancouver the agency that helps out these citizens is:

• Blankets
• Bus tickets
• Winter coats
• Long-sleeved shirts and thermal underwear
• Wool socks
• Sleeping bags
• Tarps (preferably small)
• Hygiene items (combs, toothbrushes, soap, shampoo, nail clippers, etc)
• Boots

Donations can be made to Gather and Give, a non-profit charity. It is open Tuesday-Saturday, and is located at 105-418 East Kent Avenue South — just east of Main and south of Southwest Marine Drive. Or visit their website: www.gatherandgive.org.

India Deals with Terrorism from the World, Not Just Pakistani

After watching the news, and taking in all the possible outcomes, I realized the Indian Government has dealt with groups from within it’s own borders as well as those from the neighbouring countries. There are so many factions, so many outlets for frustration and desperation, it makes me wonder if the Indian government is, perhaps, more busy than most of us realize, including our own government leaders.

One example is present in Canada, of all places. There is a Sikh faction here, active and connected world-wide that has been connected to the Air India bombing. They often have “glorified” the ” martyrs” in parades here, much to the consternation of our own civic, provincial and federal governments. Actually,  make that two factions, both working and funding a drive for an independent Sikh country or area, I am not sure what they plan for. What I do know is that the leader of one of these was about to be charged with the deaths of several people and fled to India. He was shot by the Indian police. The co-leader is still here, and from all I can gather, the group is very militant, trying to organize the younger members of the community to join in. Sound familiar? It should, after all, this is what the Indian government seemed to be dealing with this week.

What I do know is that the local Sikh community have some practices that I have real trouble with. If a family wants to build a home here, they will NOT hire anyone other than Indo-Canadian workers, suppliers, and often use their own community to supply the money, going outside the commercial banks and lenders. The practice of hiring based on their religion or ethnicity, here, is called discrimination, period. I have been living long enough here to see other practices that are, otherwise, breaking laws. No hard hats, no protective footwear, no security or tethers for anyone working on the roofing, high walls, and there is often few journeyman level workers on site.

The Sikh community behaves much like the Jewish community did in Europe before world war 2, keeping within their own enclave, buying from their own stores, working within the Sikh-owned businesses, and running their own schools. This is not objectionable to me at all, but when it comes to raising funds for groups within that are named internationally as known terrorist organizations, then I do have trouble with that!

When the news mentioned the possibility of foreign gunmen, I thought for a moment, then realized it would be entirely possible for a Canadian to become part of the same type of amoral event. The last few years here, there have been increasing incidents of violence involving Indo-Canadians, most of them younger, and using guns. I am NOT saying these people are directly involved in terrorism, but the attitude of using violence, particularly guns, and the general dismissal of the value of human life is worrying. Add in the known membership in the organizations designated as terrorist based and it becomes unsettling.

I do not want any person, no matter what ethnicity or race to use my country for fund raising, organization and especially recruiting to be allowed to continue. I do not want or need anyone from Canada to make the lives in India, Pakistan, Europe, or anywhere else “collateral damage”. I have no time for anyone who wants to use airplanes, guns, or anything else to kill people from any place on this earth.

There is a temple here that is known to be a gathering place for the Sikh movements, and I have to speak out against any member of that temple who want to abuse their own country to kill someone in India or anywhere else.

If you have a problem with India, talk, not shoot. If you want to have a “homeland” then negotiate, not shoot or bomb. If you want to recruit, raise funds etc. to enable the deaths of anyone else, then realize something. You are not welcome to do it here.

Yes, I know you are connected internationally with your organizations, and I also know you are quite willing to send money overseas to other countries too. It is about time you understand that your activities are NOT the Canadian way.

Members of the International Sikh Youth Federation have worn shirts proclaiming their goal of having a Sikh “homeland” or country, Khalistan. If you want that, then negotiate, not shoot. Recuiting should go elselwhere because the information I have is that you want to have this end gained by violent means.

Parmar and Reyat were not peaceful men, they put bombs on a plane and in an air terminal and caused the deaths of 329 people. It was Khalistan separatists that planned this and carried it out. Parmar is not a martyr, legallly, he was a murderer and terrorist who was shot in India.

Talwinder Parmar was the founder of the Babbar Khalsa, internationally recognized as a terrorist organization.

I know the Indo-Canadian community has some very fine people, and I also know there are some within the community that have not understood that old grievances, old grudges, are to be left behind when you become a member of another country. I don’t want to see my country become a breeding ground for trouble for anyone else.

Unfortunately the Indo-Canadian community is often put under the ugly black cloud that these few have created, and this leads to suspicion, mistrust and a general attitude of uncertainty among the people living as the neighbours in Canada. What is also tragic is that a lot of very good, very decent people in the Indo-Canadian community are faced with dealing with the suspicions and mistrust.

Yes, I know this is partly cultural, but regardless, it is time the Indo-Canadian and general Canadian community start to talk about this, expose it, and get these people to either stop or face some pretty strong questions.

Mumbai Death and Disaster Totals Rise

Another Canadian has been confirmed dead in Mumbai, which makes two families here grieve along with the staff at a Montreal medical center. There are other families who lost family relations there, and they are grieving too.

The loss of life is often seen with road accidents, murders, and natural causes, but when there is a huge sense of hopelessness attached to deaths by gunmen in a foreign country the questions of “why them? why Canadians when the gunmen were looking for British and American citizens? who would do this?” all seem to ring louder.

The Doctor from Montreal was originally from Great Britain, but lived and worked here to heal, to help, to make other lives just a bit better. The same goes for the Jewish family all killed in the Chabad. When people who chose to make our lives better are killed, it takes more from all of us than just a name or personality, it takes a tiny bit of the goodness and humanity too.

There are hundreds of people who worked in the two hotels, the train station, the Chabad area, and in the restaurant that worked with skill and grace, making lives just that much better too. There are some of the people in the hotels, the Chabad, and the train station that performed well beyond their ordinary roles in life, blocking bullets, taking others out of harm then being shot themselves, and making the situation just a bit more tolerable during the very long waits.

I hope the hotels, the employers of all these marvelous people remember this. Maybe we can send funds to help out families who now have the breadwinners gone, maybe we can just think of them as more than just numbers in a death tally.

The political blame game is about to start in ernest, and with all that grandstanding, maybe we all should make a point of reminding those who want to make political points that those points just may come from deaths. Phooey, I have no tolerance for anyone trying to make political hay from disasterous situations when those points are based on the deaths of people who went well beyond any expectations of humanity and service.

The international terrorist blame game is started, too. Some desperately want to make even the most tenuous connections to groups like Al Quaida, etc. Get a grip! Just because someone is Muslim and is from that area does NOT mean they are even remotely connected with Al Quaida! Yes, the gunmen were cold, calculating, definitely capable of making some gruesome choices, but this means that there is more to this story. This action to me is far more than some petty political statement, far more than just a gruesome joy ride, but there is an underlying reason why these gunmen did this, something that motivated them very strongly, otherwise they would have given over after 12 hours, maybe less. THAT is what international specialists need to find out, the motivation that kept these gunmen going, and as of this hour, still going. It must be something very powerful!

The Pakistani Government is trying to work with the Indian Government, so this time, let them. Work this out without all the petty political crap. Unless there is some kind of communication, some kind of working together to find out WHY this happened, we all lose. We lose lives, we lose trust, we lose international friends, we learn hopeless and a sense of powerlessness.

Governments and people who have a sense of hopelessness, powerlessness, and inferiority often are the very ones who go to war, make far more misery for everyone. This is the time to stop that path and make a bridge, an international bridge!

Mumbai in Chaos, Canadian and 17 others escape!

There is a woman, a Canadian, who is now safe (hopefully it will stay that way) along with 17 others who fled from the restaurant in the Trident Oberoi Hotel, just as the gunmen opened fire.

Way to go Mauela T.! I am not going to fully disclose her name right now, because she had to leave her purse, phone, and likely her identification behind as she and many others fled, with the gunmen following, shooting. Manuela and others did have rooms at the Taj, so she cannot even go to her rooms. The Taj Mahal Palace, at this time, still is under siege with hostages reported to be there, along with at least 2 gunmen.

The Trident is also facing a huge armed force as the army and other forces try to get the hostages there out.

But, back to those who had their wits about them and ran. Well done! Manuela is supposed to fly home today, on a flight just after noon today, Mumbai time. Why am I posting this? Her family may just find this blogging and be relieved to know she is well, alive, and safe for now. Talk about guts! She called out to a news service and sounded calm, collected, and definitely tired, but very composed too.

For those with her, my own wishes for your safety are flowing right now. Hang in there!

Manuela, when you get home, you have at least one person who is so very proud of you!

There are some foreigners who have been killed, by accounts, and I wish to send my condolences to those families.

Australians want out, now!

BBC coverage as of 4 PM Pacific Time with video clips Taj and Oberoi

Late update, there are 7 British Citizens injured, some hostages still understood to be held, and over 100 people killed, including one woman who was a manager at one of the hotels with relatives living close to where I live.

Consternation is evident from the way this all happened because this is a massive attack. There appears to be at least 20 young men, aged between 18 and 20 who were the ones who used guns, grenades, and some very proficient planning to carry this out. Experts have speculated on almost every possible gang, terrorist organization, etc., but with no real knowledge yet, there is no complete understanding of who this particular organization is, or if they are backed.

What is known is that the ones who entered the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel were speaking a language that was not understood by people there, so that does rule out some of the most commonly known languages such as Hindi, Punjabi, English, German, French and a few others, as well as local dialects.

For now, Mumbai is basically in a state of shock and schools, colleges and business is being put off until there is some semblance of stability.

Until all the people who had rooms booked in the hotels are accounted for, and those who were killed and injured identified, the total devastation will not be clear.

India is one country that has had a complicated history, a complicated society, and several factions who try for power. Leaders in that country have been assassinated, deposed and threatened, as well as various groups, such as the Sikh community, trying to create a separate state for each of them.

I hope peace will return to Mumbai, India, and those families who are worried. I send my thoughts to those, like my neighbours here, my thoughts as they grieve.

Update:

This is the Manuela above, I could not reveal any information until I heard she is safe.

Manuela Testolini, the ex-wife of the musician Prince, was in Mumbai for business and said she was eating dinner at the Trident-Oberoi Hotel when she heard gunshots.

Good news amid chaos is always welcome!

Ontario, Canada Government Doing Everything to Block Green Energy!

Fifth Estate Documentary on German Ingenuity Green Energy

I am totally incensed now! Germany is working toward creating an entire country using green technology, devising ways to make the country virtually free of any hydro-carbon use in producing electricity or heat, even paying a Canadian company to move there to make solar panels. Yet, there are farmers in Ontario that have invested over 1.5 Million dollars by themselves to produce electricity and access the grid and the Ontario Power have blocked those farmers! What the hell is going on here?

Instead, the Ontario government has looked at building a highly expensive nuclear system, when there is no place that can safely store the spent rods! They are thinking of putting 30 Billion dollars into that, but not willing to pay farmers who already have power available to the grid? Insanity!

Germany has developed a huge industry with green technology, even paying companies to move there! Watch this video and see if you can figure out what possible argument Ontario has for being so damn stupid!

GM had even built an electric car, yet crushed them all and stuck the carcasses in the dessert? They have made electric cars! Where are they? Not on the market, that is for damn sure, but crushed! They chose to go back to gasoline instead, building SUV’s!

Why mention this? Well, yes, GM is now begging at the US federal doors for money! GM CHOSE to build gas-guzzling vehicles, as if the supply of oil was going to be infinite!  Tesla Motors has an electric car, there are cars made in England, for crying out loud, that run totally on electricity, but the major car makers won’t? Phooey, this is stupidity!

Oh, and the company that Germany paid to move there? It was Canadian! What in hell is wrong with this society that the small producers of heat, electricity, are being blocked by those who want to build nuclear plants that have such massive expense? I remember Three Mile Island, which damn near caused a disaster that would have made Chernobyl look small, because Three Mile was so close to cities and towns!

Please, if you agree with this opinion, email the Energy minister of Ontario, the Premier, the head of the nuclear association, and the Ontario Power.

I may not live in Ontario, but damn it, this IS my country! I cannot see others making a bigger mess of it, just because they “cannot control” the smaller producers!  The nuclear industry is trying to convince other provinces to build nuclear plants too, and I am going to do whatever I can to stop this! There are so many other choices out there. It is long past time that the governments got their heads out of the last century and looked at the world they are demanding the grandchildren will inherit.

Time to clean up their act, literally!

Ontario Power Authority

Canadian Nuclear Association

AgriEnergy Producers Of Ontario

Hermann Scheer, Green Energy Site

Some would say that using oil, coal, with carbon filtering, capturing, is just as beneficial. I happen to think this is complicating the whole process, especially when there are what I would call non-invasive forms of energy production available now.

When our world is facing energy black-outs, grey-outs, why would any form of clean energy be the ones nixed? If someone is willing to pay huge amounts of money to put energy supplies onto the grid, why block them? This does not make sense, no matter what your own belief in what constitutes clean energy.

Tax the School Property, then Give 50% to Business?

It seems the plan here is to cut taxes for the wealthy and take 50% of the taxes on school property and give that away to business! Stupid idea! It will impoverish the schools, already underfunded, and do nothing to make our kids learn or be safer in crumbling buildings, teachers so over-stressed the good ones quit, and leave the money in the hands of people who are running businesses?

If this is passed here, I am going to be very very pissed off! Schools are already dealing with huge class sizes, violence from dealing with kids who need access to counselling and programs after school, and teachers dealing with a government that has absolutely no concern for families living on third world incomes. Rents are high here, probably the highest in the country, yet there is nothing here for any kind of support for low income earners at all!

As I put in another post, society grows from the bottom up! Apparently the bottom of this society starts at the line of business, not families, not children (find reports on the neglect here by the department dealing with abused and murdered children) or those who have to live in rooming houses infested with cockroaches, drugs and filth.

Does this sound like some place you would want to come to? Well, guess what? The 2010 Winter Olympics will show you homelessness that is growing by 50% each year with our government doing nothing whatsoever. Food banks are being drained faster than they get ANY food, with people coming more and more from working poor families. Sure, come, but know that you will find a place with underpinnings of misery.

Tax cuts are in the announcement, but only for those who have work that is higher paid, nothing for those who need to get a leg up and get onto solid ground. Phooey! Damn Stupid plan!

Other measures outlined in the premier’s 10-point plan include:

• Unlimited deposit insurance for deposits to credit unions in B.C.
• Rebate of 50 per cent on all school property taxes to light and heavy industry.
• Doubling the commission paid to business for collecting the provincial sales tax and hotel room tax.
• Speeding up public investments in capital infrastructure projects.
• Re-evaluating spending priorities and scaling back unbudgeted increases.

Differences in Mortgage Lending and Credit Cards

I live in one of the countries world wide that have gone way over the limit on personal debt. Credit cards and mortgages far over the ability to repay and savings basically non-existent. There will be repercussions coming. When? I don’t know.

The US consumer is not perhaps the worst, but with the way the banking and lending practices are allowed to be basically unregulated or very seldom watched, this makes it a highly volatile situation. What is remarkable in history is that the US is the ONLY country to go through this type of crisis, not once, not twice, but three times and a few lesser crises in between.

Why? Well, from what I can see, the government is seen as an enemy and regulations are seen to bind banks, lending and mortgages to unfavourable levels. Well, if unfavourable is the watchword here, then I would say the current situation is that.

JPMorgan just bought Washington Mutual, after the government seized it. One of the largest banking buys in history. The Treasury and Federal Reserve are trying, maybe in vain, to get a very unfavourable bailout of the lending industry passed using a very vaguely written bill.

Try looking at other countries, and see if those business practices would work for personal lending, mortgages and compare the differences.

In France, for example.

The BBC’s Emma Jane Kirby asks if other nations should take a leaf out of the thrifty Gallic book?
French credit cards are little more than debit cards, so there is no question of simply sticking a couple of flat screen TVs on your credit card and hoping to pay for them later – if there are insufficient funds in your account, your bank will immediately block the transaction.
“People here don’t believe you can just put your debts together and get them refinanced… But in London… it was as if wealth was something you could get from a bank, it’s a sort of miracle people seem to believe in England.
But France still believes in strict rules and regulations,
Finance Minister Christine Lagarde says.
“Expect two conditions – a down payment of 20% of the value of the house plus mortgage [repayments] which will not exceed 30% of income.
“You already have a pretty good safety net there and clearly no real estate financing similar to the sub-prime market that has existed in the US and which has hurt the financial system so much,” Ms Lagarde says.

Here, in Canada, all mortgages must be insured, must be registered and the banks insist on at least a 10% downpayment. This used to be lower, but with the way properties were selling to people who were noticeable way over their limit on the ability to repay, the regulatory agent, CMHC chose to change the qualification level and changed the amortization time. Just a short time ago, mortgages could be repaid over 40 years, now they are limited to 35 years.

Credit cards are still one of the highest risk debts out there, with up to 29% interest, and a lot of people here have done what is considered very high risk. They have put the debts into one consolidation loan, then started charging again on the cards.

North Americans, U.K. residents, are all very high consumers, with extremely high debt levels. This is now coming home to roost, unfortunately.

History has lessons, and I am not going to reiterate all of them. No point. But some of the historical commentary from people living during the Great Crash in 1929 ring ominously.

1929 Here is what happened.

“In August of 1929, the Fed began to tighten the money supply continually by buying more government bonds. At the same time, all the Wall Street giants of the era, including John D. Rockefeller and J.P. Morgan divested from the stockmarket and put all their assets into cash and gold.

Soon thereafter, on October 24, 1929, the large brokerages all simultaneously called in their 24 hour “call-loans.” Brokers and investors were now forced to sell their stocks at any price they could get to cover these loans. The resulting market crash on “Black Thursday” was the beginning of the Great Depression.

The Chairman of the House Banking and Currency Committee, Representative Louis T. Mc Fadden, accused the Fed and international bankers of premeditating the crash. “It was not accidental,” he declared, “it was a carefully contrived occurrence (created by international bankers) to bring about a condition of despair…so that they might emerge as rulers of us all.”

On Sunday, December 23, 1913, two days before Christmas, while most of Congress was on vacation, President Woodrow Wilson signed the Federal Reserve Act into law. Wilson would later express profound regret over his tragic decision, stating:

“I am a most unhappy man. I have unwittingly ruined my country. A great industrial nation is controlled by its system of credit. Our system of credit is concentrated. The growth of the nation, therefore, and all our activities are in the hands of a few men. We have come to be one of the worst ruled, one of the most completely controlled and dominated governments in the civilized world – no longer a government by free opinion, no longer a government by conviction and the vote of the majority, but a government by the opinion and duress of a small group of dominant men.”

Sound familiar? It is long overdue that the American policy makers, the guy on the street, called for regulation, freedom from the “duress” of a small group of men in Wall Street and the credit markets.

I, personally, would love to see the American voter, worker, business man, corporate CEO outside Wall Street, all demand that regulations be put in place and the funds provided to make sure those regulations were obeyed. Right now there are over 50 different agencies, and consolidating those into a few lesser number would make the whole situation far more effective, far more efficient, and maybe, just maybe, the american taxpayer WOULD find themselves never, ever again facing another meltdown.