Some consider the Nation’s Capital as “Fantasyland on the Potomac”. Other outsiders are “Fed Up” with the Federal City. It's better to consider D.C. as “the District of Calamity” (sic).
President Donald Trump left the G-7 Summit in Charlevoix, early to get to the summit with North Korea in Singapore. After Air Force One took off from Quebec, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau gave a press conference which seemed to go after the aggressive trade positions of President Trump.
President Trump loves to counter punch and used his favorite medium Twitter to get his message out.
During a townhall meeting, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau interrupted a constituent pleading for religious liberty to serve underprivileged Canadians to ensure that politically correct language was used. Helping mankind was considered to be a micro-aggression, so Prime Minister Trudeau offered that "Peoplekind" was preferred politically correct speak. Really? Not even humankind? Does that include canines, as dogs are people too (sic). How about corporations? Well, our neighbors in the Great White North have determined that the free speech in the Charter of Rights can overridden, especially for corporations, where the need can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society. Then again, Canadians have a reputation for priggishly protecting minority rights, as was humorously parodied in Michael Moore's romp Canadian Bacon (1995).
Post Scriptus 02/07/2018 - Several days after the "Peoplekind" comment went viral on social media, The UK Daily Mail reports Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was just kidding about the comment. Sure, he did...check the videotape--NOT! It seems that he'll use the excuse of allegedly making a dumb joke than being considered dumb during a tour in the United States. The problem with Trudeau's apologia is that his humor relies on a is a reductio ad absurdum. If we are to respect minority rights, should an over-exaggeration be a laughing matter?
A family tradition in my youth was worshiping at a Vigil Mass on Christmas Eve and driving around nearby neighborhoods with wonderful holiday light displays while listening for NORAD reports on Santa Claus' whereabouts. As a jaded grown-up, I presumed that these reports were performance shtick on a long media night. Little did I know that the reports were real and that a typo and the good cheer of an Air Force colonel brought joy to the world.
During the 1950s, America was engaged in a Cold War with the Soviet Union which threatened to become hot at any moment. School children of the era was raised to be prepared to duck and cover at any given moment due to a sneak nuclear attack from the enemy. Soon, Sputnik's successful launch made watching the skies even more important.
In Colorado Springs,Colorado at the Continental Air Defense Command a.k.a. CONAD (the predecessor to the North American Aerospace Defense Command or NORAD), there was a red telephone on the commander's desk which had a secret telephone number known only by a four star General at the Pentagon, which would have been used to convey news of an enemy aerial attack.
However, in December 1955, the CONAD commander's red phone rang and the voice on the other line was a little voice which asked "Is this really Santa Claus?". At first the Colonel was upset at what he thought was a crank call, but when he heard crying, the straight laced Colonel changed his demeanor. The CONAD commander ho-ho-hoed and asked the caller if he had been a good boy. Afterwards, the Santa Colonel asked to speak to his mother.
It seems that a copy for a Sears Roebuck newspaper ad had a misprint, so "Santa's private phone" number not connecting to Toyland but was actually the secret military number for what is now NORAD. Colonel Shoup delegated a few airman to act like Santa Claus for kiddie red phone callers.
Col. Shoup's daughter, Terri Van Keuren, recounted: "It got to be a big joke at the command center. You know, 'The old man's
really flipped his lid this time. We're answering Santa calls". So much so, on Christmas Eve 1955, airmen modified the big glass board used to track air flights and included a drawing of a sleigh and eight reindeer coming from the North Pole.
When Col. Shoup saw this modified big board, he exclaimed: "What is this?". His subordinates apologized and insisted that they were just making a a joke. Shoup pondered the predicament for a bit and then telephoned a radio station with the message: "This is the Commander at the Combat Air Center, and we have an unidentified flying object. Why, it looks like a sled.". Hence the tradition began.
Now kids can call 1-877 HI-NORAD (1-877-446-6723) to talk to NORAD staff about Santa's exact location. The internet tracker for the big man in red began in 1998 with the SantaCam. At noradsanta.org, people can view the SantaCams from around the world as well as understand NORAD's main mission. Last year, "Operation Feel" had F-18 fighter jets escorting Santa and his sleigh, which led CNN reporters questioning if the US military had taken possession of Santa Claus. Of course, these reporters failed to report on "Operation Noble Eagle" with the Royal Canadian Air Force escorts over their territory or how these videos infuse some of NORAD's primary mission to girls and boys along with the spirit of the season.
Colonel Shoup died in 2009. But even in his 90s, Shoup proudly carried a briefcase which he treated like had top secret information that contained letters thanking him for having a good sense of humor in allowing NORAD to track Santa.
Three weeks after the launch of Obamacare open enrollment, President Barack Obama held an event in the Rose Garden regarding the so called Affordable Care Act.
With all of the reports of problems with the Obamacare launch, there was some expectation in the Lamestream Media that no drama President Obama would get mad about what Time called "His Broken Obamacare Website". Maybe the President would act like a leader and fire those in charge of the bureucratic bungle, such as HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.
Unfortunately, the press availability in the Rose Garden seemed like an extended 25 minute Shamwow commercial. The only element missing was the pitch line "But wait, there's more."
The big news per Jake Tapper at CNN is that the website malfunctions were not called glitches but were upgraded to kinks. So after funneling $500 million to Quebec's CGI to set up the fatally flawed web portal Healthcare.gov, President Obama suggested using the call center, or letting health navigators assist them in signing up for the mandatory coverage lest they be taxed.
Despite the $54 million which HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius has earmaked for health care navigators , they had no background checks and the staffing contracts were awarded to Seedco in Georgia, Maryland, Tennessee and New York. Seedco is the same company which settled a civil fraud lawsuit in 2012 for faking at least 1,400 of 6,500 job placements under a $22 million federal contract.
Signing up for Obamacare involves revealing all sorts of personal information that is rife for identity theft. There are already reports by Watchdog.org in Tennessee that scam artists are posing as navigators who coax medicare recipients for their information. But there also shady characters who are designated as ACA Navigators. Rosilyn Wells, the only Obamacare navigator in Lawrence, Kansas had an outstanding warrant for check kiting and has a $1700 state tax deficit. This makes USIS's flawed background checks on Wikileaker Edward Snowden and Navy Yard shooter Aaron Alexis look thorough.
But such factual side shows take the focus away from the center stage in the Rose Garden rally. One of the stalwart arguments against Tea Party Conservatives efforts to attach defunding Obamacare to the Continuing Resolution was the mantra that "It's the law". Listening to the Celebrity-in-Chief's sales pitch, he soft peddled the kinks but felt compelled to sell stories to the American people of why it was a good deal for you. If Obamacare were a good deal, the White House stenographers pool known as the elite liberal media (a.k.a. the Lamestream Media) would have plenty of positive stories to buttress the ACA. Instead, Mr. Obama had to try to channel the spirit of Billy Mays or imitate Vince Shlomi, the Shamwow Guy, to sell his already passed public policy.
If that was not enough, it just so happened that a person prop in back of President Obama fainted and the President caught her.
This was a phenomenon quite prevalent when candidate Obama was running for President in 2008. It seemed to have mostly disappeared during the first term, but made some reappearances while on the hustings for his Re-Election campaign in 2012.
Considering the content of the Presidential high pressure pitch for "the law" despite its evident early shortcomings, fainting seemed apropos for the Rose Garden feint.
Kudos to Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield who performed and produced an out of this world music video redition of David Bowie's 1969 hit "Space Oddity" while aboard the International Space Station. The music video was made with the full cooperation of the Canadian Space Agency and has gone viral as it has been played over 11 million times.
This was the third time that the 53 year old former Royal Canadian Air Force officer has been to space. This time Hadfield was ISS Commander of the Soyuz capsule as part of Expedition 35's five month mission orbiting the Earth.
ISS Expedition 35 landing
Even though Hadfield landed in Kazhakstan on May 13th, it may take months for him to enjoy his cosmic celebrity status on the world-wide-web, as Hadfield will require a couple of months of physical therapy to recover from effects of weightessness on bone density and muscle mass.
Crew of ISS Expedition 35 after landfall.
A small price to be paid for sitting in a tin-can far above the world and cutting a music video which truly makes Hadfield a renowned Starman.
The Bank of Canada has generated some controversy at the release of their new $20 note. The new polymer bank note features a maple leaf which is not native to Canada.
(L) Norway Maple, (R) Sugar Maple
Botanists believe that the outline of the leaf on the right hand side of the $20 bill is a Norway Maple Leaf rather than Sugar Maple, which is the leaf depicted on our neighbor to the north’s flag. Since the Norway Maple is an invasive species displacing native flora, it is a dubious choice to be on the national currency. The Bank of Canada claims that the leaf featured on the bank note was a stylized blend of Maple Leaf, but botanists scoff at such a suggestion as an after the fact fig leaf.
It is tempting to dismiss this as being par for the course in the Land of the Loonies (sic). But due to sound economic policy, at least Canadian currency will still be worth something after the next Quantitative Easing.
Perhaps the Apocalypse is approaching. Not only did Michael Moore make an astute as well as objective political analysis, I can agree with him on something other than Canadian Bacon (1995).
If you wondered how far political correctness run amok can lead, consider the case of Allain Eintoss, a Toronto resident who was arrested for walking his dog in a public park with his licensed therapy dog because it offended the sensibilities of a Muslim.
