tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86571717718816918162011-11-20T02:16:10.406-05:00Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.comBlogger631100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-71525198349418412642011-11-20T00:12:00.003-05:002011-11-20T02:16:10.438-05:00

With the G20 debacle fresh in our minds, many Torontonians are shaking their heads at the efforts of American city authorities and police forces to break up Occupy protests. Police in some cities have been witnessed beating peaceful protesters, kettling groups, and using tear gas and rubber bullets. Police forces are now toning down the violence somewhat, after a public outcry and drop in their

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-72852351630514836402011-10-16T16:08:00.003-04:002011-10-16T16:20:27.947-04:00

Reading through Facebook posts and comments about Occupy Toronto, I came across this comment under a friend's post:"I would like to know how many of the estimated 3000 protesters voted on May 2, 2011 and on October 6, 2011."This is one of the right-wing's tactics: to portray the Occupy movement simply as a group of unemployed, disaffected youth who have no right to complain because they didn't

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-87057559407540837882011-09-11T11:45:00.003-04:002011-09-11T16:21:52.377-04:00

Today I am thinking of Chile. I am thinking of 3,000 dead and tens of thousands tortured. I am thinking of a US-backed coup. I am thinking of the the psychological damage done to a people by a dictator they didn't elect.Today I am thinking of 3,000 dead in NYC and hundreds of thousands dead in Afghanistan and Iraq. I am thinking of innocence, hatred, compassion, and retaliation. I am

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-40132579644242525012011-07-28T21:30:00.000-04:002011-07-28T22:17:20.185-04:00

"No service cuts, guaranteed!"- Mayor Rob Ford"No major service cuts."- Mayor Rob Ford"No service cuts in 2011."- Mayor Rob Ford"These are not service cuts but efficiencies."- Mayor Rob Ford

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-39125894466743835392011-07-05T17:50:00.002-04:002011-07-05T18:15:23.586-04:00

Dear Councillors: In light of Councillor Mammoliti's renewed calls for city de-funding of Pride Toronto, I want to make sure you are aware of his behaviour on Saturday. Of course, Pride is a diverse and inclusive event. But I am dismayed that an elected representative of the city attended apparently with the sole purose of looking for evidence he could use to call for the withdrawal of city

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-9653991326785358152010-11-09T21:40:00.001-05:002010-11-09T21:48:06.290-05:00

I used to be a schoolteacher, and every Remembrance Day, I would teach that we remember the brave people who fought for us, but also to remember the tragedies of history so as not to repeat them. This was particularly important, to ease children's fears of death brought on by discussion of war. I taught the children how to make their own poppies out of construction paper.Remembrance Day has

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-23970171691806905282010-06-29T14:03:00.010-04:002010-06-30T14:24:16.223-04:00

As I walked home alone in the dark after an event last night, I came to an odd realization. I felt completely safe on empty streets or where there were other people. The only time I felt in any danger was in the presence of police. Given the events of the G20 weekend, I was justifiably worried that I might be beaten or arrested, simply for being out in public. The horror stories of police

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-5773812397314383182010-06-09T23:17:00.008-04:002010-06-09T23:59:47.409-04:00

In 1981, Toronto police raided four gay bath houses. The gay community was accustomed to harrassment, but the scale of these raids pushed the community past a breaking point. As with the 1969 Stonewall riots in NYC, gays in Toronto finally stood up for their rights and fought back. Massive protests and rallies led to the annual Pride celebration which has become one of the largest of its kind

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-51727681861388150242009-12-01T02:09:00.002-05:002009-12-01T02:22:07.641-05:00

Toronto has become a city of film festivals. We have festivals focusing solely on documentaries, on the GLBT community, and many on specific ethnic communities. And now we have the Canadian Labour International Film Festival (CLiFF).When I first heard about this festival, I couldn’t understand why a film festival would focus solely on labour issues; attending the grand opening of the fest,

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-64483032893309774492009-12-01T00:50:00.002-05:002009-12-01T01:00:16.674-05:00

Being a supporter of American war resisters in Canada, I heard about André Shepherd's case a year ago, and sent him a letter of support. I got this email just today. It's a great summary of his past year and the status of his case, but more than that, it's a great summary of all that is wrong with American military strategy. It gives me hope for a positive outcome in his case - and in the

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-77197903179680180662009-09-04T16:52:00.001-04:002009-09-04T16:54:12.995-04:00

District 9 is one of the rare summer blockbuster films with some depth. It is a fantastical account of a period in earth’s history, beginning 28 years ago, when a giant alien ship appeared over Johannesburg, South Africa. A comparison with Independence Day (1996) is tempting, but beyond the ship and its gruesome, slimy aliens, the parallels soon disappear. District 9 is much more realistic,

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-60412952820160024702009-06-24T15:58:00.005-04:002010-10-08T22:40:03.620-04:00

Last Saturday, I watched a woman die. It was not something I set out to do, and had I known what I was going to see, I probably would have opted not to watch. But I was checking FaceBook updates as usual, and clicked on a link posted by a friend, urging me to "watch before the video was deleted". I hadn't scrolled the entire post into view; had I done so, I would have seen his warning that

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-89155410545144927272009-06-16T23:27:00.010-04:002010-06-10T13:12:10.745-04:00

As our headlines have turned to the turmoil in Iran over concerns about election fraud and the resulting protests and violent action to suppress the dissent, I have watched with increasing concern the distress of my neighbour, who is Iranian. Normally very quiet on FaceBook, she was suddenly posting frequently throughout the day - photos, video clips, news reports and politcal analysis, and

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-86793362166115842472009-05-16T01:09:00.002-04:002009-05-16T01:12:40.330-04:00

Since the Tamil protests began, there has been much confusion over whether they deserve support from the rest of the population. I can't tell you how many times I have read or heard, "I support them, but..."• "They are flying those red flags."• "Aren't the Tamil Tigers terrorists?"• "They shouldn't block traffic."• "Isn't there some other way they can protest?"• "This has nothing to do with

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-20536766317930602822009-05-16T00:52:00.003-04:002009-05-16T09:10:06.389-04:00

Papers, blogs, Facebook, and all manner of online sites are abuzz with discussion of the Tamils' plight. I'm encouraged to read that while many Canadians remain uninvolved in the struggle, they are at least aware (or becoming more aware) of the situation. But of course, there remains a stubborn group which insists that Tamils should not be supported because of the actions of the Tamil Tigers (

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-22027744303884513542009-05-10T20:04:00.004-04:002009-05-10T20:33:51.054-04:00

I just got home to read headlines about Tamil protesters blocking Toronto's Gardiner Expressway, in both directions. If you need attention, that's a pretty good way to get it. Pretty good trick, but you need the numbers to pull it off.Fortunately for the Tamil community, they do. Weeks ago, as I walked home from work, I came across one of the earlier protests in which the community did a march

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-67497355344648569592009-03-17T23:24:00.001-04:002009-03-17T23:26:35.238-04:00

The erosion of Canada's reputation as a diverse country, welcoming of immigrants, took another step backward today as Immigration Minister Jason Kenney appointed an anti-gay conservative to the IRB. Doug Cryer, former director of public policy for the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada, says churches have the right to denounce homosexuality.I have very dear gay friends who have immigrated to

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-58477195586376436042009-03-16T00:40:00.002-04:002009-03-16T01:59:22.783-04:00

Remind Stephen Harper that we live in a democracy! A decisive majority believes that American Iraq-war resisters should be allowed to stay in Canada. A majority in the House of Commons voted to allow them to stay as well. And Harper said himself (on April 13, 2005), "The Prime Minister has the moral responsibility to respect the will of the House."So why has Harper not acted on his

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-79099767707238532882009-03-04T18:28:00.002-05:002009-03-04T21:35:32.393-05:00

Yes, that's me at the wheel of a Hummer. And if you look closely, I am showing you some disrespect with a hand gesture. Not that it's needed! By driving one of these things, you are basically saying, "Fuck the environment, and fuck YOU".Who the hell drives these things? It's 2009. There's talk about whether it might be too late to reverse the damage we've done to the environment. There was

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-29226706702805064142008-11-29T09:56:00.002-05:002008-11-29T20:57:04.205-05:00

For those who have grown up in a country like Canada, it's difficult to imagine what things must be like in Mumbai at the moment. For the families of the victims, there is anguish and anger - at the loss of their loved ones, at the perpetrators, and at the politics of terrorism which punishes the innocent. Unlike 9/11 in the US, terrorism in India is an ongoing phenomenon, yet because the

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-55760328360519847052008-11-13T23:12:00.004-05:002008-11-13T23:26:44.479-05:00

On November 3, Jane Currie and her partner, Anji Dimitriou, were assaulted by a man as they were picking up their children after school. The same man had verbally abused them on previous occasions. This time, the man swore at Anji, accused her of talking to his child, spat in her face, and then attacked her without warning. When Jane intervened, she was hit as well, until other parents

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-54736986189042621362008-11-11T21:52:00.002-05:002008-11-11T22:00:29.916-05:00

Remembrance Day takes me back to my teaching days. I could never ignore such an occasion, with everyone walking around wearing poppies, and soldiers in uniform on the streets, on tv, and in newspapers. As a grade one teacher, it was an opportunity and a duty to introduce an important concept and start a foundation for further learning. I maintain that there is almost nothing you cannot teach 6

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-6612330088947818692008-11-02T23:55:00.003-05:002008-11-03T00:14:56.294-05:00

There's so much to blog about, with the US election days away and the Republican clown-car/horror-show drama in the news daily. It's been difficult to decide what to blog about: Republicans purging Democrats from the voter lists, Republicans claiming the misspelling of "Obama" on ballots as "Osama" was a typo, Republican racists using the word "nigger" at McCain rallies...But I've been short

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-37881144080583312242008-10-23T18:41:00.005-04:002008-10-23T19:07:04.112-04:00

If you're running for the vice-presidency of the US, but are too stupid to understand (or bother finding out) what the job entails, you'd better at least look good in front of the cameras. Sarah Palin understands this - if nothing else. So lest the common American think they can be like her - or dress like her, think again. Joe the Plumber will need to raise his rates if he wants to be able to

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-5262139332951228302008-10-19T22:24:00.003-04:002008-10-20T12:56:13.763-04:00

Before the 2008 federal election fades into memory, I need to document an issue that cannot be forgotten. It is the scandal over CTV's coverage of the Stephane Dion interview, and more importantly - how CTV used the footage to attack Dion and the liberal campaign.For the record:Steve Murphy, CTV's interviewer, asked a hypothetical question about what Dion might have done had he been prime

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-59094674437830545762008-10-19T19:29:00.002-04:002008-10-19T20:19:52.751-04:00

Q. Faced with the depressing prospect of another term with Harper - what to do?A. Get out on the streets and demonstrate.Four days after our election, demonstrations were held across the country to demand that Harper honour the wishes of the majority of Canadians. In Toronto, we rallied at Queen's Park, and then marched through the streets to voice our thoughts. Bring the troops home now!

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-81931178211373005982008-10-09T22:15:00.002-04:002008-10-09T22:25:10.914-04:00

Come on, people, we need a good adjective. Or a noun. I'm so tired of reading about all of the offensive things he's said and done, and getting more and more frustrated. The idea of another term is discouraging, but in the event we get another tory govenment, let's be well-prepared. Can you contribute a good descriptor?This is not a contest; we should amass a nice inventory of words and

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-55031030513367314402008-10-05T23:50:00.003-04:002008-10-06T00:28:05.425-04:00

Toronto's 3rd annual Nuit Blanche, a celebration of contemporary art, was held Saturday night, from dusk all the way to dawn. I was out with friends - and hundreds of thousands of other people. There were a few problems: technical glitches, mistakes on official maps that were widely distributed, a couple of exhibits that didn't make it through the night. But the worst problem was overcrowding

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-30569832155386306122008-09-30T18:31:00.004-04:002008-09-30T18:51:09.532-04:00

I had heard all about Tina Fey's parody of Sarah Palin on SNL. I saw snippets and finally went to NBC.com to watch the entire skit. It's hilarious even if you haven't seen Palin herself. Then I kept searching the web, and saw (1) a clip of the Palin interview by Katie Couric, and (2) Tina Fey's second SNL appearance recreating the Couric-Palin interview.This is not parody or satire. It is a

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-66311091330593503282008-09-28T23:36:00.002-04:002008-09-28T23:42:15.963-04:00

As our election draws near and I hear more and more political discussion, it keeps occurring to me that it would be handy to have a political dictionary. I'm sure there is one already, but I'm thinking more along the lines of how the terms actually function, not what historians, politicians, or grammarians dictate as what you should believe. Here, then, are my first two submissions for such a

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-37962738650390416102008-09-22T20:09:00.002-04:002008-09-22T21:27:43.080-04:00

Jeremy Hinzman, the first Iraq war resister to go public with his fight to stay in Canada, today won a stay of deportation, along with his wife, Nga, and their two children (one of whom was born here recently). The War Resisters Campaign held a meeting to discuss the decision this evening, and the mood was jubilant, although there is still a tough fight ahead. With Harper ignoring his obligations

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-5267356577699509672008-09-21T22:02:00.002-04:002008-09-21T22:31:02.333-04:00

Remember the above headline? It was also posted under the phrase: "Harper to Cities: 'Drop Dead'". Although Harper may never have used the more colourful phrasing, the point is clear. Billions of tax dollars leave our major cities. Think about the millions of people in Toronto alone, and the tax dollars they generate. Then think about our transit system (the most poorly funded in North

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-70327922146482107882008-09-17T13:47:00.004-04:002008-09-17T14:10:02.961-04:00

My friend at wmtc posted this morning about the "sacrifice medal" which is being awarded to Canadian soldiers who are killed in Afghanistan. In the news is a Regina man who was told his son would not be awarded the medal, because he was accidentally killed by a fellow soldier. Apparently, the medal only goes to soldiers killed or wounded as a direct result of hostile action. Although I don't

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-65530911006656155882008-09-11T20:11:00.002-04:002008-09-11T20:27:15.371-04:00

Once again, the facts:1) The majority of Canadians want the American Iraq war resisters to be allowed to stay in Canada.2) A majority in the House of Commons voted to allow the war resisters to stay.3) Harper himself stated (on April 13, 2005), "The Prime Minister has the moral responsibility to respect the will of the House."4) Harper and the conservatives have continued to ignore the above

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-83686636301838255112008-09-07T23:25:00.002-04:002008-09-07T23:33:03.416-04:00

A week ago, I was trying to plan a trip to Ottawa to celebrate my friend's husband's birthday. Moe turned 40 in August. Unfortunately, he was unable to attend his own party. The authorities would not allow it. Why? Because Mohamed Harkat is a Muslim, and has been accused of being a terrorist.Never mind that those behind the accusations have never charged Moe with any crime. He spent 43

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-157460328353458632008-08-31T12:20:00.002-04:002008-08-31T13:28:01.082-04:00

Having been born and raised in Canada, I've experienced my fair share of anti-American-ism. We live in the shadow of the elephant, and we resent it. No one pays attention to us. Other countries think we are part of the US. We are mistaken for Americans when we travel.There are plenty of negative stereotypes of Americans (Americans are fat and obnoxious!), and we help perpetuate them. Yet we

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-61920656262361958782008-08-27T19:28:00.002-04:002008-08-27T20:27:41.978-04:00

I was alerted to the picture above by a friend who is currently living in Switzerland. It's an anti-immigration poster. To North American sensibilities, it is shocking how blatant the racism is, even after hearing about anti-immigration sentiment (directed largely at Muslims) all over Europe.Of course, this is not to say that we don't have racism over here. We often have to look harder to find

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-82353088545160886572008-08-20T07:41:00.005-04:002008-08-22T16:23:40.902-04:00

The WWII internment of Canadians and Americans of Japanese descent was deplorable. In 1988, the governments of Canada and the US both apologized (albeit belatedly, long after many of the victims had died) and provided monetary compensation - although nothing comparable to the value of the victims' material losses (especially in adjusted dollars), to say nothing of the emotional suffering.Wartime

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-44534059387250357222008-08-16T10:23:00.003-04:002008-08-17T17:59:40.935-04:00

Dear Ms Finley:I just watched the video on YouTube in which a man walks into a meeting to confront you about the IRB decision to deport Iraq war resister Jeremy Hinzman. First of all, it is regrettable that any Canadian citizen should have to interrupt you in a meeting in order to get a response. You have continually refused to meet with war resisters and their supporters on this important

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-19120808337774867362008-08-14T07:39:00.005-04:002008-08-15T21:34:47.963-04:00

The photo above of the Spanish Olympic men's basketball team, taken for Spanish courier company Seur, shows the entire team stretching their eyes in an attempt to look more Asian. The ad is running only in Spain. The action was the idea of the photographer. Another photo shows Spain's women's team doing the same thing; last week, a photo appeared of four members Argentina's women's football

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-34142339724381515752008-08-07T07:54:00.003-04:002008-08-07T08:06:00.117-04:00

So says the title of today's article in the Toronto Star. Once again, and as with all of the accusations of terrorism against Muslims, I wanted to see the evidence. Here is the only elaboration of "evidence" in the article:Lead prosecutor Howard Piafsky told the court that the Khadr patriarch Ahmed Said Khadr, who was believed to have close ties to Osama bin Laden and many of those charged in

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-17881639410920680852008-08-02T12:24:00.006-04:002008-08-03T08:54:24.927-04:00

I've long been puzzled by a particular advertising strategy: the one in which the advertiser purports to know about someone's life and/or history - specifically, your Dad's. Buick used this strategy, claiming to have been "your father's car", thus appealing to a sense of tradition and brand loyalty. Great: I should ignore consumer reports and recall records, and blindly buy a car just because

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-64490420830331435142008-07-27T17:51:00.003-04:002008-07-27T17:55:14.835-04:00

It was all over the news on Friday: a Qantas jumbo jet flying over the South China Sea makes an emergency landing in the Philippines after explosive decompression. Upon landing, a large hole is discovered on the underside of the plane, from the cargo hold. From the Toronto Star's article, here is the fourth paragraph:"An official at the US Transportation Security Administration, who spoke on

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-17029333552492780252008-07-27T02:37:00.003-04:002008-07-27T02:39:04.024-04:00

Saturday's rally in Toronto for Omar Khadr was a success. It drew a large and diverse crowd, despite some heavy rain and a severe thunderstorm watch. It was nice to see the Muslim community so well represented, as they are the community being targeted worldwide, but it made me feel good to see so many non-Muslims out in support. And as speeches by a number of prominent speakers finished, the

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-77129817571641810382008-07-21T17:01:00.003-04:002008-07-21T17:10:04.865-04:00

My frequent and numerous calls for justice come from a desire for peace, kindness, compassion, and happiness for victims - and for all of us. That said, I balance my activism with as many positives as possible. I would hope that everyone would. Take a break. Laugh loudly and often.Accordingly, here is a brilliant and inspiring little video, passed on to me by my Spanish teacher, Abdel. The

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-74929211575254656792008-07-15T00:17:00.003-04:002008-07-15T00:38:05.023-04:00

Ok, so it's not that I didn't know Bill O'Reilly was a wingnut. But I hadn't known the depth of it. In surfing links from friends' blogs, I just came across mediamatters.org, and these choice quotes (just a selected few of many):• On the September 13, 2005, broadcast of The Radio Factor, O'Reilly claimed that "many of the poor in New Orleans" did not evacuate the city before Hurricane Katrina

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-9456269684366887212008-07-11T23:42:00.002-04:002008-07-11T23:58:39.166-04:00

... kicking and screaming.A firefighter-style calendar featuring shirtless mormons has created controversy in the mormon community (surprise!). Does their bible state that men can't pose in calendars? Are they not allowed to take their shirts off? Are mormon women not allowed to view their husbands as sex symbols when they make love? Are mormons only allowed to take personality into

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-17303789586669457202008-07-10T22:10:00.002-04:002008-07-10T22:44:56.792-04:00

As part of a day of action across Canada, I took part in a war resisters demonstration this evening. In Toronto, we formed a human chain along University Avenue, all the way from Queen Street to the US consulate. I'm keen to hear an estimate of the numbers who turned out; standing as part of a human chain, you can't really get a feel for how large the crowd was. But it was clear to me that

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-29978412655164318382008-07-06T21:14:00.002-04:002008-07-06T21:41:48.646-04:00

Dear Mr. Harper/ Ms Finley:Polls consistently show that the majority of Canadians want the American war resisters to be allowed to remain in Canada. As you are well aware, a majority in the House of Commons also voted to allow the war resisters to stay.Mr. Harper, did you not once state (on April 13, 2005), in the House of Commons, "The Prime Minister has the moral responsibility to respect the

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-65142589176671794152008-07-01T12:36:00.002-04:002008-07-01T16:51:28.205-04:00

As one of my first jobs, I bussed tables at a busy restaurant downtown. Although never a server myself, I worked closely with the servers, and as part of the payment structure of this particular restaurant, received a cut of the servers' tips, which - during a lunch rush with seven servers - was often substantial. In Ontario, restaurant servers can be paid below minimum wage because they

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-21167101254499022972008-06-28T08:57:00.003-04:002008-06-28T22:47:28.547-04:00

The majority of Canadians support the Iraq war resisters' bid to stay in Canada. The majority in parliament voted to allow them to stay. Yet Stephen Harper has not moved to implement the motion. Doesn't he believe in democracy?It was our actions - phone calls to Stephane Dion and Liberal MPs - which finally got the Liberals onside in this fight, which led to the victory in the House of Commons

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-19838530620186657422008-06-26T13:42:00.002-04:002008-06-26T13:56:52.076-04:00

For those of you like me - for whom any tv appearance by American Republican politicians necessitates changing of the channel to anything else (even desert-island reality tv) - you may not have listened closely to John McCain. One thing is certain: if McCain gets into the white house, depite the damage he'll do, he will provide us with four more years of Bush-style amusement. Take a look here

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-28826788136955118682008-06-22T12:16:00.009-04:002008-06-23T00:19:53.783-04:00

As Pride Week begins in Toronto, I have to comment on a recent incident in the music world. Last week, at a concert in Norway, a spectator threw a shoe at Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme (is that really his name?). He responded by calling the spectator a "chicken shit fucking faggot". After news media labelled him "homophobic", he released a statement which the media referred to as an

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-34950828033035470872008-06-17T21:47:00.002-04:002008-06-17T22:55:03.147-04:00

Canada's current, sensational "Paintball 18" case of alleged terrorism continues to look more and more like the Project Thread fiasco (outlined in my previous post). It looks less like a (gasp) sleeper cell every day, and more like an excuse to create headlines.Police mole paints altered picture at terror trialCrown will have a tough time arguing campers were serious threatJune 17, 2008 Thomas

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-60148660400702039612008-06-15T20:33:00.004-04:002008-06-22T23:10:24.415-04:00

In August 2003, 24 Muslim men in Toronto were arrested by Canadian law enforcement in a joint RCMP/CIC operation dubbed "Project Thread". The police alleged that the men, all students of the Ottawa Business School (actually in Scarborough, a Toronto suburb), were linked by a common "thread", hence the not-so-clever name (not so clever, as the "thread" would quickly unravel).News media in Canada

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-22154182764473217392008-06-12T23:08:00.004-04:002008-06-12T23:58:52.205-04:00

The headline above is from today's Toronto Star. It seems every month or so, a headline like this comes up again. These days, I don't even bother looking into the story. Why? Because the story never changes. Police officer kills civilian with gun. SIU (Special Investigations Unit) investigates. SIU finds officer innocent of any wrongdoing. The SIU has never found a police officer guilty

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-21628760277749731922008-06-10T23:11:00.007-04:002008-06-10T23:45:58.762-04:00

In Canada, every time a Muslim is accused of terrorism (and let's face it: these days, no one else gets accused of terrorism), his human rights are violated, his legal rights are denied, and he is imprisoned - usually indefinitely and without charges. Of course, the rest of Canada is assured that this is all being done for the good of the country and our personal safety. Our authorities are

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-78529012512067432612008-06-08T22:42:00.003-04:002008-06-10T14:57:17.436-04:00

Wow. That was fast. I've already had to delete a couple of comments. Next thing you know - I'll be switching to comment moderation...The purpose of this blog is to keep a record of events, and hopefully to be able to educate some Canadians as to the real facts behind some of our most important issues today. The purpose of this blog is not to provide a place to get into arguments with people

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-10251517810930164992008-06-08T15:12:00.002-04:002008-06-08T15:42:40.565-04:00

I sometimes think it's a shame that most Canadians didn't experience a world war. Not that I want one now - it's just that most of us don't know real hardship. We have never had to ration goods, see a spouse or family member off at the airport with the likelihood that they may return in a coffin, or consider the loss of our freedom. Every single one of us is aware of political problems, social

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-38467239117166245572008-06-03T22:33:00.003-04:002008-06-04T00:34:23.813-04:00

Today is a happy day - the happiest in a long time.For the first time in my life, I rushed home from work, to turn on... CPAC. Promptly at 3:00 PM, the House of Commons voted on the motion to allow American war resisters to stay in Canada. Although we knew going in that we had majority support for the motion, it ain't over 'til it's over. We simply needed more votes than the bad guys, and the

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-22060164797011796672008-05-31T19:06:00.008-04:002008-06-01T09:05:22.767-04:00

On Tuesday, June 3, the House of Commons will vote on the motion to allow US war resisters to remain in Canada. This is it - this could be the turning point. The campaign suffered a blow when one of the resisters, Corey Glass, was recently informed he is to be deported in a couple of weeks.People say, "but they volunteered". And this is supposed to make all the difference between the Vietnam

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-45443339885729722892008-05-31T18:01:00.006-04:002008-06-01T22:49:44.958-04:00

The case of the "Toronto 18", or "Paintball 18", or "Toronto 11" now that charges against seven have been stayed, has many parallels to the "Project Thread" case which initially got me involved in activism. In that case, "evidence" which looked rock-solid fell apart within a week. In this case, the more we hear, the less reasonable the case appears to be.Some things don't change, though. The

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8657171771881691816.post-4800909857069375262008-05-31T08:13:00.000-04:002008-05-31T09:33:27.046-04:00

I've toyed with the idea of blogging for a very long time, after stumbling across a couple of blogs that amused me, and after seeing that a number of friends were doing it. But all of the successful blogs I've seen have a devoted audience which reads and responds regularly. Part of the fun of blogging is the discussion that ensues. There is nothing that is more dismal in the blogging world than a

Kim_in_TOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06204297974869073245noreply@blogger.com2