...Speaking of No Clout

Paul Martin is visiting civil war-torn Sudan today, expressing words that will no doubt convince the international community that the trampling of individual rights and the slaughter of tens of thousands of innocent persons in Sudan's Darfur region must end:

Martin noted that "war is not the norm and that some day peace will come to their country."

How profound.

To be fair, Martin was speaking to a group of schoolchildren, but this empty rhetoric quite possibly is the best description of our country's say-nothing-offend-no-one foreign policy over recent years. In Sudan's instance, the Martin government has contributed NOTHING of substance (beyond the typical "humanitarian assistance" and promises to "support" African Union troops) towards achieving the peace he purports to desire.

Given that sending African Union troops into Darfur was a token gesture (so far failing to end the conflict), the democratic community of the world must do more to force the hand of Khartoum. Leaving the job of halting genocide to the United Nations will only perpetuate the suffering with its dithering and inaction.

On Ukrainian Turmoil and the Canadian Reaction

The opposition has increased the stakes in the dispute over Ukraine's presidential election results, with presidential candidate (and likely the democratically-elected President) Viktor Yushchenko calling for a general strike.

While I normally am not sympathetic to those who actively attempt to shut down the economy, a general strike is a logical progression enabling the opposition to illustrate its strength and popular support without degenerating into violence.

Interestingly, Canada (for once) has taken a definitive stand with respect to a foreign affairs controversy:

"The government of Canada calls for a full, open, transparent review of the election process and Canada will have no choice but to examine its relations with Ukraine if the authorities fail to provide election results that reflect the democratic will of the people of that country," said Deputy PM Anne McLellan in the House of Commons.

It's too bad, given our track record over the last decade, that we have lost the moral clout for the world to actually give a damn.

More Maritime Statism, Or Why Atlantic Canada Needs a Dagny Taggart

Today, the CBC reports that members of Nova Scotia's legislative assembly are asking for the government's intercession to prevent a portion of a rail line from closing, despite the fact that it is privately-owned.

But the government's view is irrelevant, you say? Not in Nova Scotia. According to the article:

The Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway has applied to the provincial regulator for permission to abandon the service, citing a lack of traffic.

Unlucky is he who operates a railroad in Nova Scotia--you are unable to decide whether to eliminate an unprofitable area of your enterprise without government sanction.

Yet another example of the Maritime model of economic efficiency, perhaps?

On the Moral Bankruptcy of the United Nations

This blog is fast becoming centred around Yasser Arafat, as most of the posts of the last week so clearly illustrate. At the risk of glorifying the life of a man who has done lasting harm to his corner of the world, I promise that this will be the last post I compose related to this subject.

Western leftists and the United Nations have always had a soft spot for Arafat, especially after his 1974 address to the UN General Assembly, which thrust him into the spotlight as a presumptive statesman despite the orchestration of the Munich Massacre only two years prior by a group under the Arafat-led PLO umbrella.

But today's show of support (solidarity?) by the UN towards Arafat was tactless. The Globe reports that "[o]n the instructions of Secretary-General Kofi Annan, the flag at United Nations headquarters in New York was lowered to half-mast, as it would have been for the leader of a nation."

Yes, on 11 November, the UN flag was not lowered to commemorate the sacrifices of the liberators of Europe, but to honour the death of a terrorist.

How pathetic.

On French Contrarianism

French President Jacques Chirac had this to say upon the passing of his confrere Yasser Arafat:

"...Chirac called Arafat as a 'man of courage and conviction,' but others were more tempered, reflecting the vastly different images of the Palestinian leader."

It's remarks like this that drive France further into international irrelevance, being sustained only by the ego driven by the anarchronistic veto it posesses at the UN Security Council.

Leftist Linda McQuaig Slides Further Into Abyss of Intolerance

Easily the most socialist columnist at the Toronto Star, Linda McQuaig frequently peppers her columns with anti-American, anti-Bush, and-Halliburton drivel, much of which could be characterised as puerile ranting rather than reasoned commentary.

Her columns are usually good for a laugh, or to make one's blood boil, and this week's tome was no exception. Here is a priceless excerpt from the column, which centred around her rejection of some Canadians' desire for further integration with the United States:

And we don't have to abandon what we believe in just because clever Republican strategists managed to get a few million extra God-fearing, gay-hating, anti-abortionists to the polls.

I wrote the following email to her in response:

Ms. McQuaig,

Until President Bush's re-election, you frequently dismissed his presidency as
illegitimate, because it was settled in the courts and he failed to win the
popular vote.

This time, the President has won a clear victory, but you conveniently dismiss this fact by engaging in ad hominem attacks on his supporters, characterising them as "...a few million extra God-fearing, gay-hating, anti-abortionists to the polls," as if those votes are worth less than those cast by the effete and enlightened Northeastern American electorate.

The irony is brillant. Week after week, you lecture your humble readership
about "tolerance" and "openness", values which you refuse to embody when you discuss those who happen to possess a different value set than your own.

How do you reconcile this contradiction?

-[Patronus Rationis]

I eagerly await her response, though I suspect nothing is forthcoming.

ARAFATWATCH: The Wife Snaps

Apparently Suha is a tad upset that Palestinian officials are travelling to Paris to check on her "husband's" status (I use quotation marks because they hadn't seen one another since 2000).

From AP, a choice excerpt from a telephone interview aired on Al-Jazeera:

"Let it be known to the honest Palestinian people that a bunch of those who want to take over are coming to Paris tomorrow," [Suha Arafat] screamed in Arabic over the telephone.

"You have to realize the size of the conspiracy. I tell you they are trying to bury Abu Ammar alive," she said, using his nom de guerre. He is all right and he is going home. God is great."

If the Palestinian leadership can't keep Arafat's delusional wife restrained, how the hell will they be able to maintain order when his death is officially announced?

On Popular Demand...and Arafat

...we have added some links to your right.

Also, here is the latest from PLVQ's ARAFATWATCH:

Reuters: Arafat's Condition Critical, Militants Seek Powers

Let the posturing begin, folks. I can only hope that a peaceful transition within the Palestinian Authority ensues upon Arafat's death, instead of the nightmare scenario of Hamas exerting even greater control over the Palestinian Territories.

On Yasser Arafat, the Father of Modern Terrorism

PLVQ is pleased to present ARAFATWATCH, a regular feature which will follow the last moments of Yasser Arafat's existence, while reflecting on the havoc he, the Palestine Liberation Organisation, its factions, and their followers have wreaked over the course of nearly forty years of terrorism.

The vigil currently being held in France in celebration of this man conveniently ignores some of the more repugnant achievements of the PLO under Mr. Arafat's leadership. This is an organisation which is responsible for, during the course of its history:

-- Destablising both Jordan and Lebanon
-- Helping to precipitate the 1973 Yom Kippur War
-- Popularising airline hijackings
-- Contributing to the horrific 1972 Munich Massacre
-- The murder of thousands of innocent civilians through suicide attacks
-- Rampant corruption and personal enrichment among officials in the West Bank and Gaza, despite that tens of thousands of Palestinians live in poverty

Click here for the Arafat wire. I shed no tears for a man who is directly responsible for the suffering of so many.

Election Aftermath, or, How I Told You So

It's not often that candidates I support are victorious (given that classical liberalism is generally anathema to Canadians) so I have reserved the right to gloat. My colleagues at the law school frequently approached me this week exclaiming "[Patronus], are you happy now?!?", to which I simply smiled.

I must say that I am amazed at the near flawless execution of the Bush campaign. They did not stray from their key campaign message--that President Bush was the only candidate capable of leading the war on terror--while ensuring that "values" issues were the election's main undercurrent, mobilising hundreds of thousands of voters who otherwise may have stayed at home. While I am no social conservative, I admire the ability of the Republicans to mobilise this component of its base, and, for good measure, ensure that anti-gay marriage initiatives were on the ballots in key states such as Ohio to give even greater impetus for their base to come out to the polls.

Given the thumping that the Democrats took in the Senate, including the loss of their leader, the GOP has increased its stranglehold on American politics. It will be interesting to watch the minority party rebuild over the next few years, and if they want to get anywhere near the presidency over the next decade they should dispense with the notion that Hillary Clinton could be their nominee in 2008.

In fact, given the state of the American electorate, I don't think a Democratic northeasterner could ever again contest, let alone win, the presidency.

On a Tie in the Electoral College

One of the interesting scenarios from today's election is the potential of a tie in the electoral college. If this occurs, the most plausible scenario resulting in a tie is such (presuming that Kerry takes all of Maine's college votes and that Colorado will vote to maintain its winner-take-all system) :

Swing State Victors:

BUSH: WI IA OH NV NM CO
KERRY: PA FL MN MI HI NH

RealClearPolitics is reporting poll averages that show Bush is leading in all of states assigned to him above, while Kerry leads in all his assigned states, save Hawaii and Florida, where Bush has a 1 point advantage.

In WI and HI, Bush leads by 0.9%, and in IA, he leads by 0.3%. Kerry has a lead of less than a point in only one of the states in his column (NH).

If those numbers hold, this scenario could conceivably happen.

In the event that there is a tied college (and each elector follows the will of his state's vote), the House convenes to select the President, with each state delegation receiving one vote, while the Senate selects the Vice-President. Bush is likely to maintain his presidency in this scenario, but the fate of the Veep is less certain--if the Democrats gain a Senate seat, and all Senators vote on party lines, then a tie will result, and Senate President Dick Cheney would be responsible for casting the deciding ballot (presumably for himself). Of course, if the Dems achieve a net gain of two Senate seats, then John Edwards (!) will be serving as Bush's deputy.

Electoral reform, anyone?

Current Prediction: Bush to Continue Leading Free World

PLVQ readers can examine my presidential prognosticative effort below, based as much on polling as on instinct and unscientific observations.

My prediction is more optimistic than Bellator Libertatis'sentiments in these last 48 hours; I encourage both him and Domina Sceleris to post their predictions as soon as they return from class this afternoon.

College Vote Totals:

BUSH 289
KERRY 249

Swing State victors:

BUSH: MN, OH, NV, NM, CO, FL
KERRY: PA, MI, IA, WI, HI

Included in this count is the presumption that all four of Maine's college votes go to Kerry (even though it's conceivable that Bush could win Congressional District II, and thus, one college vote) and also, that the ballot intiative to end Colorado's winner-take-all college vote system--which would take effect immediately and likely split the state's college votes 5-4--fails.

I reserve the right to revise my prediction prior to the opening of the polls on Tuesday, of course.