Scribbles and Bits

President Yahya Jammeh has vowed to cut off the heads of those who practice homosexuality in Gambia. He maintains that Gambia is a nation of believers, a Muslim country, and homosexuality will not be tolerated. As of today he has given homosexuals “24 hours to get out of Gambia” and has ordered all landlords to evict all homosexuals. Those giving homosexuals lodging will be punished and commercial establishments will be closed down. Afrol News notes that many gays had already moved to Mauritania after a previous crackdown.

Some members of his government are reportedly, albeit quietly, wondering whether he is insane. Even quiet wondering is a bold move in a nation whose despotic star is just beginning to ascend, and where the press has uniformly (and safely) praised him for his medical marvels such as the time last year when he had declared that he had devised a cure for aids (Read “The Quack in Gambia”).

What are we to make of this man’s approach?  Some might feel that while extreme, Jammeh’s approach is typical of religion, inflexible, intolerant, and tyrannical.  I would argue that not all “people of the book,” share his view and that most would soundly condemn his viewpoint.  A Christian approach for example, must always begin its address to a serious issue with the good news.

A new Canada West foundation study has been published this month concerning public spending priorities.

When Canadians in the four western provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and manitoba were asked to rate their priorities for public spending according to a 5 point Likert scale, their top 3 for increased spending were in the areas of healthcare, the environment, and reduction of poverty.  Healthcare was the only area to be awarded a “very high” rating by a majority of Western Canadians.

Interesting findings include greater support for creating employment opportunities for aboriginal peoples than for importing foreign workers. Sixty percent agree that the economy should be left to the free market and of these, only around 16% felt strongly so.  Eighty percent felt that some sort of protections should be in place for rural economies. Ninety per cent support increased government spending for research and development but only 40% felt strongly so.

A PDF copy of the Canada West foundation study is available here.

Click on this text for a link to a question and answer article interviewing Canadian guitarist Randy Bachman about his experiences with late guitar legend, Jeff Healey.

One of Canada’s best kept secrets is a folk singer/country singer named Stompin’ Tom Connors.  Fiercely Canadian, he returned a number of Juno awards one year in protest of those artists who had shifted their emphasis to the “south of the border market.”  Stompin’ Tom earned his name for the way that he kept his beat by rythymically stomping his foot as he played.  After receiving complaints about wearing down stage floors he began to bring his own sheet of plywood to stomp on.  Generally ignored by pop radio, Stompin’ Tom nevertheless acquired a huge, inter-generational following and along with Don Messer, Tommy Hunter, Hank Snow, and others, has become an icon and source of national pride.

Here’s a recent snow sculpture of Stompin’ Tom that was an entry in a snow sculpture contest and below it is Stompin’ Tom’s response.

“To Abram, Asher and Ben Waterman, and Team Prince Edward Island. All I can say is WOW! And Congratulations on the great job you guys did on the Snow Sculpture “Stompin’ Tom & the Hockey Song”. Your theme could not be more “Canadian” and I hope you win the competition. It’s awsome!”

I just managed to lose a few posts in noodling around with themes.  So, if it seems like it was here last time you looked but now it’s gone, it really is gone.

Eric