Harmony Update

On Monday, I posted an item about Dr. David Ho, the owner of Harmony Airways, in which, quoting a third source, I said that Dr. Ho had been "busted over the weekend for solicitation and drug possession."

This was not correct.

As it turns out, no charges were laid.

Migrant Workers Murdered in B.C. on Int'l Women's Day

Today is International Women's Day.

All over the world, people are gathering in groups large and small to declare one heroic thing or another.

Here in B.C., we are following the so-called "tragedy" of a car crash that has killed 3 women and left many others injured.

Connection?

Simply this: 17 women, aged 20 to 60, travelling in a van at 6:20 in the morning (I was comfortably asleep in my warm and safe bed. Where were you?), in a van with wooden benches for seats and no seat belts. Camping trip? Religious retreat? Social work conference?

No. They were on their happy, happy way to pick berries.

The driver, a woman, lost control of her vehicle, the van flipped and now this.

The speeches will be made about the plight of women around the globe. And the speeches will be right, no doubt.

But we have unions here in British Columbia. And we have an intelligent and caring administration. Don't we? And we have regulations? And protections for workers. And inspectors. Don't we? Don't we?

Seventeen women. One van. Wooden benches not locked in place. No seat belts.

Go ahead. Make a speech.

Carol Lawrence sings George Gershwin and Leonard Bernstein

Yesterday's post of Thelonius Monk was so well received, I thought I'd give you another one to enjoy.

Here is Carol Lawrence, the original Maria in West Side Story, singing first what many of us consider th greatest love song ever written - Gershwin's "Someone to Watch Over Me," followed by Bernstein's "Could Be," usually song, of course, by Tony in West Side.

THELONIOUS MONK QUARTET - 'ROUND MIDNIGHT

Among the many great jazz players, living and gone, there are but a handful of singular geniuses. Here on stage in Norway in 1966 is pianist/composer Thelonius Monk, along with Charlie Rouse,Larry Gales and Ben Riley.

Dig it, and then dig it all over again...and again.

The Master Has a Birthday

Edward Albee is described universally as America's greatest living playwright, and he is having a birthday on Monday, March 12th.

He was born in 1928, so he's getting on. Good enough reason to celebrate the life and work of a man who has won, among many other accolades, the Pulitzer Prize 3 times.

You can read his bio and check out his list of plays here and here.

But if you really want to get into it all, dash down to the Jericho Arts Centre and revel in Terry Kelly and Anna Hagen leading a first rate cast in Albee's "A Delicate Balance."

Terry and Anna are both actors with credits several miles long, and, playing the long-wedded, long-suffering couple, Tobias and Agnes, they bring to their roles not only their finely tempered skills but also the dangerous and exciting and knowing fact of being partners in Life for several decades now.

Get off the couch and GO SEE this funny and sad and exhilarating piece in a wonderful intimate setting. It may just refresh your marriage, or, at the very least, remind you why you love the English language.

False Messengers

NBC has appointed a new boss for their evening Newscast.

They are in deep shock since losing a ratings week to ABC.

As usual, they've missed the point entirely.

Aside from the fact that so many former viewers are too busy to sit down at 6pm every week night, and so many former viewers, regardless of age, are getting their news from dozens of alternate sources on the web, the problem isn't the Wizards of Oz behind the curtain.

In this case, the problem is the anchor, Brian Williams.

Has there ever in the history of broadcast been a more manufactured construct than this robotic impersonator of a news anchor?

Last night, Mr. Williams was in Iraq. Perhaps he was "imbedded." I couldn't tell, because he wasn't in his nighties or his pj's. Instead, looking exactly like a glossy magazine spread for L.L. Bean, Mr. Williams was wearing a positively gorgeous buff New England-Maine-Vermont jacket and a fabulous half-zippered dark sweater/shirt underneath. The only thing that was missing was Mr. Whathisface from Seinfeld describing his trek through the Malaysian jungles and concluding with the price, "$179.99 in half sizes."

Mr. Williams has a nervous tic. He's had it from Day One. His head lops over to one side or the other all the time. He should see a doctor. Except that this is an affectation, a design. And it's bullshit. We're supposed to be drawn into his "casual sincerity and deep concern." Except that we are not, because we are either wondering about his clothing account or when he will see his chiropractor.

No doubt "News Anchor Idol" is the coming big hit.

The Emperor Never Says, "I'm Sorry."

You've heard, by now, of people being "in denial." Of course, you have. It's been the stuff of late night comedians for decades.

Well, meet Shinzo Abe, the recently elected Prime Minister of Japan.

There are those poor benighted souls wandering the darker corners of the earth who would have us believe that the Nazi Holocaust is a fiction, a dream, a fabulous P.R. campaign devised by those wily Jews who, by the way, control all the banks and all the money in the world.

Well, they've got nothing on good old Shinzo Abe.

In spite of the overwhelming files of evidence and thousands upon thousands of personal testimonials documenting the enforced prostitution of Korean and Chinese women by Japan during WWII, the Prime Minister is not only unwilling to offer some token apology, but he denies that any of this happened at all!

This is happening before our disbelieving eyes in a modern society ruled apparently by intelligent, elected representatives.

The shame of the "comfort women" is bad enough. To multiply it by pretending this is mere narrative is to rub enormous towers of salt into deep - and real - wounds.

Wake up, Japan. Find a new captain to steer the ship.

LOW FLYING CLOUDS

We were first made aware of this rather intriguing and bizarre story 2 days ago. We sat on it because we couldn't really verify the story through the customary 2 reliable sources.

But here it is as revealed through an airline website known as "Plane Buzz."

If true, Dr. David Ho, the owner of Harmony Airlines and whose family made an enormous fortune selling cigarettes in China, was busted over the weekend for solicitation and drug possession, asked to speak to his friend, the Chief of Police, and then had Global and CKNW drop all further news reports.

If this story is untrue, then why it did surface ever so briefly in the first place on these two well-respected news desks?

Are Justice and Journalism for sale?

The Games People Play

Soccer is the world's most popular sport, is it not?

Hasn't British soccer star, David Beckham, just been given $200,000,000,000,000 to play for 4 minutes in South Los Angeles, or something?

O.K.

So FIFA (which I'm starting to think should be renamed "FeeFee") and its governing body, IFAB (which I thought was a modelling agency), have decided that Maria Monsour that 11 year old bandita, major criminal, and world's most wanted may NOT wear her Muslim scarf on her head if she wants to continue to kick a leather orb around a grass field in Montreal or anywhere else on this round earth.

No word yet, however, on what FIFI or IFAB or HOOCARES are going to do about human beings killing each other in mad crowd rampages at soccer games. After all, those "tragedies" are "regrettable" while clearly this hijab lunacy is something we can deal with right now.

So there.

Valuing Our Health care System

Do we have problems with our health care system in Canada?

Yes, of course we do. And we are right to remain vigilant in our pursuit of BETTER.

But, just to put our situation in perspective, check out how our wonderful neighbors to the south are doing in their land of plenty and opportunity.

Herewith is a chilling story of a 50 year old real estate agent, who like 47 million of her fellow Americans is without health care insurance.

Read it and weep for her, and then be happy and grateful for yourself, Canucklehead.

Daily Number

On Saturday at about 5:45 pm, I heard an author of The Jim Rome Show reveal that shortly after Barry Bonds began using steroids on a regular basis, his shoe size went from a 9 1/2 to a 13!!!

Also his head size increased dramatically from a 6 something to a major 7 something.

The author explained that our up and down bones mature at a certain age and we are basically set, but that the "extremities" can be affected by a number of things, including, apparently the growth hormones meant originally for horses and cattle.

What, if anything, these lovely additives might do for other favorite body parts was not indicated.

Offending Sex Offenders

While the mayors of various communities in the local forest chase some poor creepy loser from one rented room to another, the Yanks are at least trying to find some answers to this ancient dilemma. Not always successfully, but, as we said last week, at least they are trying.

On the other hand...

My friend, Bob, says, "If we think these guys are such a terrible risk - and they may be - why not just sentence them properly in the first place...like to life or something very close?"

Works for me.

Suspending civil liberties randomly, which is what we appear to be doing or trying to do here at home, is rarely, if ever, a grand idea.

Sshhhhhh....

Apologies to the loyal blog-addicted.

Running a workshop all weekend for Leede Financial and running outta steam means I'll just have to shut her down for the weekend.

But I promise to be back on Monday with the customary brio and bromo.

Cheers, mates!

DAVID AT THE MOVIES

Well, kids, the Fire Chief had to come by and warn us again. The mail bags are overflowing into the corridors and down the stairs, each one chocker-block full of letters begging, imploring us to LIGHTEN UP! "Take a break, Dave. You're starting to come off as a cranky old geezer."

Well, let me say to all that, "Nobody calls me 'Dave!'"

However...I get the message.

Thus, let's go to the movies for a prolonged weekend. (I'm teaching a workshop on Saturday & Sunday and may not add a post again until Monday.)

It was a mad rush to see as many of the Oscar contenders as possible, not to mention a few that, although not nominated, we just plain wanted to see. Every movie except "Children of Men," a strong and fascinating piece, which was offered at Tinseltown, was playing at one of Leonard Schein's Festival Cinemas.

Easily at the top of this or any other list I can imagine is the film that won the award for Best Foreign Movie, "The Lives of Others." How often do you see a movie that you know you will be watching with complete attention again and again each year for the rest of your life? Like "Lawrence of Arabia" or "On the Waterfront," this is such a movie. An East German Stasi spy listens in on the colorful and passionate lives of a playwright and his actress lover. Everyone's life changes. Every change is a surprise or a shock. The movie appears to end..and then it doesn't. And then it appears once again to end...and then it doesn't. When it does end, it ends on 5 simple words and we, the audience are left astonished and in tears.

If you miss this movie, you don't like movies.

"The Queen" and "The Last King of Scotland," gave us the King and Queen of the Oscars, as Forest Whitaker and Helen Mirren took home the gold. Both deserved these awards unreservedly. Their performances are unforgettable. Both of these wonderful actors have been amazing and entertaining us for years in dozens of great performances. But these two assignments were gifts from the casting gods.

And with respect to "The Queen," it was in the running for best picture and was a much more worthy film than that stupid gun-toting piece of nonsense that won. Stephen Frears, the Director, was also a much more worthy recipient of the award than Marty, Marty, Marty. "The Queen" is also one of those marvelous entertainments that you will be watching annually as it shows up on your TV set.

"Venus" didn't win any awards and Peter O'Toole was clearly disappointed when he lost the Best Actor prize to Mr. Whitaker, but none of that should stop you from seeing this wonderful, small film. O'Toole is great, as always (Has ever been less than wonderful?) and the movie is charming and funny and a real tear-jerker - in short, everything you could ask for on a rainy Vancouver Sunday afternoon. See it; you'll like it.

Notes on a Scandal is not to be missed either. Judy Dench and Cate Blanchett tear up the screen in an intense and bizarre story of love and sexual shenanigans in a London High School. When was the last time you saw a gorgeous major motion picture star servicing a 15-year old boy in a shed? Yikes! As if that isn't enough, the musical score by Philip Glass is brilliant and, well, breath-taking.

Finally, any movie by Pedro Almodovar and starring Penelope Cruz and Carmen Maura has to be seen and savoured. This is Volver. The Spanish genius, Almodovar, has been for many years now an Original, and Volver doesn't disappoint. Simply to see and hear Penelope Cruz sing a quiet love song is to pretty much melt right through your seat and be left on the floor with the popcorn.

It's been a great run, these last few weeks. Unlike the onslught of the Summer Blockbusters, there have been no hordes of imaginary creatures racing across New Zealand or Caped Crusaders turnng the world and Jack Nicolson on their ends. Just beautiful, thoughtful movies about real people in real relationships and real circumstances.

Sure, food. Sure, sex. Sure, friendship, love, companionship. Sure, all that and more.

But, come on...what's better than the movies?

The Daily Number

3.

Now, THIS is Marketing with a capital Muh!

The most successful team sports business in America, The National Football League sees a potential BILLION new fans in China.

So, what are they doing about it?

Training 3 Chinese young men to kick field goals!!! Read the entire story here.

MAJOR SAM SLAM IN HOUSE

Abstinence-Based Residential Drug Treatment Programs
Hon. Gerry St. Germain: Honourable senators, the crime, disorder and illness associated with substance abuse is gripping the people of Vancouver with a horrible sense of despair, anger, confusion and doubt. The people of Vancouver are in search of solutions. No one doubts the complexity of the problem. The addicted are people whose human dignity has been erased. Many suffer as well from mental illness and from other effects of society's abuse.
Our response to date has failed them. It has been inadequate, unfocused and lacking in compassion. A city as prosperous, modern and beautiful as Vancouver can no longer turn its back on the victims of substance abuse. No longer can we write off an entire neighbourhood, warehousing people in one district with the hope that the problem will be invisible to most. A new strategy is needed urgently.
The federal government can play a new role in implementing a strategy that not only addresses Vancouver's problem but one that is consistent in its approach to the problem across the country. A strategy must have its ultimate goal: a society living free of the harm associated with substance abuse. Achieving that goal must involve a complex, multifaceted approach.
In recent years, some have advocated a four-pillars approach, combining harm reduction with more traditional strategies of prevention, treatment and enforcement. I will not argue the merits of each of those four pillars. Suffice it to say that the ultimate goal is successful treatment of an addict, where, at full recovery, abstinence from substance abuse enhances the lifestyle of the abuser and eliminates the human toll associated with the illness.
Given this kind of logic and practical thinking, honourable senators, how could one support a drug strategy that embraces legal drug substitution as a so-called treatment for drug addiction? The "Inner Change" proposed response to Vancouver's widespread drug problem is at worst, ill-conceived, founded on unsound research and at the least, a risky proposition. This drug substitution program further advances a drug culture, reinforcing the notion of socially acceptable drug use. The program also fails to demonstrate compassion for those suffering from the addiction illness by dismissing abstinence-based treatment as the preferred medical option.
The "Inner Change" proposal is one further step in an insidious campaign to change cultural attitudes and to label those afflicted with substance abuse disease as somehow permanently disabled and incapable of ever making lifestyle changes. Such a policy direction offers no compassion, little hope and huge risk.
Honourable senators, I urge the Minister of Health and the federal government to adopt the national drug strategy that includes increased federal support for abstinence-based residential treatment programs in Vancouver and elsewhere — a strategy that is founded on hope.

Goodbye, Mr. Fix

No, it's not another musical.

But, maybe it should be.

The needle exchange in Victoria will be moved because it has become "a war zone."

But who didn't know that?

Apparently all those Four Pillars geeks who still "believe" in this kind of monstrosity.

Let them - and you - read the story and weep.

CHRISTY HAS $PECIAL NEED$

Maybe Christy Clark should stay out of politics.

First she left her post as Minister of Education in the B.C. government to pay more attention to her new son. Then, a few months later, she ran unsuccessfully for Mayor of Vancouver. She was a Port Moody resident at the time.

Now she wants to save all the "special needs" children by opening a private school with your money.

Christ and a friend of hers named Wendy Cocchia have had a meeting with the current Minister of education, Shirlely Bond, to this questionable end. Cocchia is owner of something called The Absolute Spa Group.

First question: If Cocchia is such a good business woman, why doesn't she pay for this school herself and run it like the private business that it is clearly meant to be.

Next questions: When and how did Cocchia and Clark suddenly become so concerned about the welfare of "special needs" children? Do they have one or two? Does their cousin? Or is this what we call in the world of entrepreneurs, "an opportunity?"

It is crucial that special needs children not be isolated from the rest of the world. The ideal and reasonable response to the needs of such children and their families is what I would call "Half and Half." Half days they are in regular classrooms. Half days they are in special needs classrooms. It is essential not only for these kids that they are an important part of the mainstream, but almost as important for the other children to learn to love and help others.

Leave us not return to the days of Woodlands. And leave us not consider for a moment publicly funding a private enterprise in what should be a public concern.

Maybe Christy would like to do some volunteer work?

The Daily Number

Today - a bonus!

Two numbers!

17.

That's the number of cops Vancouver City Council has agreed to pay for. The police wanted over 100 originally and then settled on asking for 65.

This decision was all politics and no brains or heart. Shame on this administration.

50%

That number represents 2 factors having to do with visible minorities in the Canadian workforce. First, 50% of visible minorities today feel that their employers do not recognize their "foreign" credentials on a par with "Canadian" diplomas and degrees.

Second, in only a few years hence, half the working population in Canada will be visible minorities.

Which raises the question: How many more doctors and civil engineers will be sorting and stacking mangoes and snow peas at your local green grocer before Canadian governments wake up?

Action vs. Inaction Canada & New York

Two Lower Mainland districts are understandably alarmed that known and convicted sex offenders are now living in their neighbourhoods. What can they do? The guys have served their time, "payed their debt to society," (Don't these tired old saws ring hollow after all these empty-promises years?) and they are free to live as citizens - albeit citizens who are almost assuredly moments away from another rape and assault.

British Columbia's endlessly charming and constantly do-nothing Attorney General Wally Oppal (a man who never saw a public meeting or a store opening or a rally that he couldn't attend) shrugs his shoulders. He offers his deepest and most sincere concern to the families of the murdered and the attacked, and then heads back to office to do...what? Who knows?

This is in stark contrast to leadership in Albany where the New York state legislature is considering exactly how to deal with such dilemmas: a man is clearly a public danger and he is also a free citizen. Not an easy one, and the New York solution raises many issues. But give them credit for at least making a legitimate effort to find a reasonable response to an important community issue.

Perhaps someone could give good old, friendly old, smiling old, do-nothing shrug-the-shoulders Wally a New York paper to read from time to time.