I, like many others, do not like Gwyneth Paltrow. She was definitely the weakest lead in the movie “Shakespeare in Love”, and yet she won the Academy Aware for Best Actress – yet another example of how bogus those awards truly are. She’s someone who, as one of my brother’s friends used to say about badContinue reading “A Woman’s Place”
Category Archives: Uncategorized
American History X
Nelson Mandela’s government came to power in South Africa in 1994. He and his advisors were aware that something had to be done to expose and redress the many government sanctioned wrongs that had taken place during the almost 50 years of institutionalized racial segregation known as apartheid. They decided to convene a Truth andContinue reading “American History X”
Walking in My Shoes
Earlier this week a woman was attacked in the park where I regularly walk. It was a bright, sunny day, and at 9:30 a.m. there were lots of people in the area jogging, biking, or walking their dogs. None of that stopped the assailant from snatching a lone female off the trail, dragging her intoContinue reading “Walking in My Shoes”
Days of Future Passed
My son recently called me on the phone and read me this quote, “I have a foreboding of an America in my children’s or grandchildren’s time – when the United States is a service and information economy; when nearly all the key manufacturing industries have slipped away to other countries; when awesome technological powers areContinue reading “Days of Future Passed”
Body Politic
Media take a very different tact when reporting on women and men, even when the gist of the story is essentially the same. The actor John Goodman has struggled with his body size since his career began almost 40 years ago. His weight has gone up and down, but he has mostly been obese. GoodmanContinue reading “Body Politic”
Trans Substantiation
Political correctness has made public discourse an absolute minefield. People who say the “wrong” thing are facing swift and sometimes devastating consequences. Right at the beginning of the “MeToo” movement, Matt Damon said, “There’s a difference between patting someone on the butt and rape,” and that while both behaviours definitely need to be eradicated “…theyContinue reading “Trans Substantiation”
The Harder they Fall
I am a unionist. I was a member of three different unions throughout my working life, spending the last 19 years of my career in the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario. I paid my dues, used my benefits, and now draw on a pension sufficient for my needs. Unions are by and large a veryContinue reading “The Harder they Fall”
Turkey (not) in the Straw
The first place Douglas and I visited in Turkey after Istanbul was the ancient city of Ephesus. Ephesus had a population of some 225,000 people in its heyday. The largest temple ever built to the Greek goddess Artemis – currently one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient world – is located just outside theContinue reading “Turkey (not) in the Straw”
Istanbul (not Constantinople)
Turkey is a geographically diverse and historically significant country. It is home to Troy, the setting for Homer’s timeless epic “The Iliad”, and the city of Ephesus, whose Christian population received a letter from St. Paul which later became “Ephesians” – the tenth book of the New Testament. Turkey straddles Asia and Europe with theContinue reading “Istanbul (not Constantinople)”
It’s a Man’s World
No thinking person could deny that we live in a patriarchy. Men have been in charge of the world for pretty much all of recorded history, with a few fleeting exceptions where women held slightly more sway in a couple of countries for a short period of time and yes, all of those equivocations areContinue reading “It’s a Man’s World”
Random Samplings 