From the Halifax Chronicle Herald
Democracy under assault: time to wake up
I HATE to be grim, but
there's this gnawing ques
tion in the air: Is democracy
in trouble? If so, what does it
mean? In both Canada and the
U.S., what's transpiring is as
tonishing.
In Canada, Stephen Harper
unilaterally shuts down Parlia
ment with an astounding ratio
nale: Parliament is just a both
er, an impediment to doing real
work, and people don't care if
it's shut down.
You'll remember that this is
the language used by gener
alissimos plotting coups: De
mocracy doesn't work - it's
just a bunch of squabbling fac
tions, scheming intellectuals
and protesting students - so
authoritarian measures are
needed to break the logjam and
get things done.
Even more disturbing is the
question ravening above it all:
Is Harper right in his calcula
tion? Will the outpouring of
outrage and protest aver after
a few distractions and photo
ops, leaving Harper to rise
again in the polls after the
Olympics and the budget, em-
RALPH SUREnE
boldened to go for another pow
er grab?
In the U.S., the picture is even
more mind-boggling. Despite
the unprecedented havoc
wreaked by the Bush-Cheney
Republicans - two lost wars, a
near-depression, unprecedented
deficits, the constitution and
due process grievously under
mined, the hurricane Katrina
bungle, America's reputation as
a world leader and the ultimate
can-do nation badly bruised
and despite being decisively
routed in the last presidential
election, the dregs of this party
are still having their way.
As in Canada, where the Con
servative party is no longer the
Conservative party but the
barely disguised derivative of a
right-wing fundamentalism, so
the U.S. Republicans are light
years away from the party of
Lincoln and Eisenhower ("I
despise those who go to the
gutter on either the right or the
left and hurl rocks at those in
the centre").
With Sarah Palin supplying
the sex appeal and Fox News
and Rush Limbaugh the bark
ing, the Republicans are now a
gutter party in which the rad
icals are cowing the rest. Thus,
no moderate Republican sen
ator, congressman or state gov
ernor dare break fundamental
ist orthodoxy and indulge in the
"bi-partisanship" so wished for
by President Barack Obama
without being the target of an
internal kneecapping.
So there's gridlock. The ef
fect, if it stays this way, is de
mocracy in crisis where noth
ing gets done and eventually
something cracks - and not for
the better. The ultimate purpose
of Republican obstruction, in
case you're wondering, is main
ly to serve the ends ofthose
financing it all, including those
anti-tax "tea parties" - big
business, in which the banks
have three times as many lobby
ists on Capitol Hill as there are
congressmen, not to mention
Big Pharma, Big Oil, Big Health
Insurance (the stock market
zoomed up when the Repub
licans won the Massachusetts
senate seat, on the assumption
health reform was dead), and so
on. It's crass and bare-knuckle.
Meanwhile, like the Liberals
in Canada, Obama takes the
high road, ignores the snipers,
and assumes that elevated ora
tory and civilized debate will
win the day. Will it? Or have the
disruptive forces shifted the
venue of political action perma
nently to the gutter where they
have a clear advantage?
Back in Canada, here's anoth
er unnerving thought. It's not
just because of Stephen Harper.
Anti-democratic concentration
of power in the prime minister's
office has been increasing since
Pierre Trudeau. We are now,
apparently, the most undemo
cratic of the British-derived
parliamentary systems.
Is there a deeper "structural"
dynamic of democratic disin
tegration at work beyond Har-
per's machinations? And is this
greater disintegration in part
because of our proximity to the
U.S.? After all, the Harper gov
ernment draws its inspiration,
if you can call it that, from the
Bush Republicans, having bor
rowed some oftheir electoral
operatives and tactics, and still
cultivates those contacts.
Are we down to desperate
measures in our democratic
life? Can Harper be made to pay
the ultimate price for shutting
down Parliament and other low
tactics, and the Liberals and
NDP actually manage to restore
democratic principle (and just
getting rid of Harper won't, in
itself, do the trick)? Meanwhile,
will a few brave Republican
souls defy the party warlords
and give Obama the votes he
needs to get some things done?
But even if all this happens,
properly functioning democrat
ic government shouldn't have to
depend on close-shaves and
last-minute rescues.
Ralph Surette is a veteran freelance
journalist living in Yarmouth County.
(rsurette@herald.ca)
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
The Super Grid
Getting connected: Europe's green energy 'supergrid'By Matt Ford, for CNN
January 31, 2010 -- Updated 2350 GMT (0750 HKT)
From wind to waves, European countries are planning a multi-billion dollar grid for renewable energy.STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Nine European countries agree to 'supergrid' connecting renewable power sources
Grid planned to connect wind and tidal power sources across the North Sea region
Advocates say it is essential for EU to meet emission and renewable energy targets for 2020
Laying of high-cables and updating grid estimated to cost $40 billion
Energy Technology
(CNN) -- It is a criticism frequently leveled at those promoting wind or solar power as an alternative to fossil fuels: what happens when the wind doesn't blow or the sun doesn't shine?
Well, now there is a smart answer, at least in Europe -- we'll simply and instantly switch to another source of clean, green power.
Plans for a massive electricity grid dedicated to uniting the varied sources of renewable energy available in northern Europe have taken a step forward in January as nine countries formally agreed to work together on the project.
Using thousands of miles of high-tech undersea cables the 'supergrid' will unite wind farms on blustery British coasts with Dutch and Belgian tidal power, the vast hydroelectric potential of Norway fjords and Germany's massive solar arrays.
The gird should mean that when one source falls short, another takes up the slack to ensure continuity of supply.
"A North Sea grid will connect offshore wind to our electricity supply, enabling Europe to exploit its largest untapped energy source," Justin Wilkes, policy director, European Wind Energy Association (EWEA), told CNN.
"It will connect grids across northern Europe -- bringing more competition into the market and reducing electricity prices. Europe's dependence and spending on imported fossil fuels will be reduced."
The countries signed up -- Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Denmark, Sweden, Ireland and the UK -- hope to have the grid working within the next decade. It is seen as an essential step towards the European Union's pledge to source 20 percent of its electricity from renewables by 2020.
"Without extending and upgrading the grid Europe will not be able to make the emissions reductions it wants, or achieve the level of renewable energy it has set as a target," says Wilkes.
There are currently around 100 gigawatts of offshore wind projects being developed in Europe, which could meet 10 percent of the EU's electricity needs. But existing grids aren't capable of fully taking advantage of this potential.
"Europe's grids are built around large fossil-fuel plants near large urban areas and nuclear power stations," says Wilkes.
"Wind and other renewable sources of energy are often best tapped in other places -- so the grid needs to be extended and upgraded to deliver electricity from where the renewable energy sources are to be found -- where the wind is blowing, where the sun is shining and so on."
Advocates of renewable energy believe that moving away from fossil fuels will create thousands of high-quality "green jobs" and provide a boost to the European economy.
"A North Sea Grid would be a boost for the wind energy business -- it would enable Europe to build a new multi-billion Euro offshore wind industry -- and provide new markets for on-shore wind too," says Wilkes.
"[But] a North Sea Grid would not just be a boost for the wind industry but for all renewable energy sources, including wave and tidal power, and for consumers. It would be good news all round."
Of course, none of this will come cheap. The EWEA estimates the cost for building a grid connecting countries across the North Sea region including the Baltic Sea, Irish Sea and English Channel would cost in the region of $40 billion. A report by Greenpeace in 2008 came in lower, putting the price of building a similar grid at $20-30 billion.
"Transmission of energy from wind and other marine resources that are a long way offshore is expensive," Tim Russell, grid expert for the Renewable Energy Association, told CNN.
"Interconnectors between different power systems separated by long distances and water are also expensive -- but can have considerable advantages in terms of increased trade thereby providing economic benefits.
"It is anticipated that increased wind power will increase the benefits of greater interconnection between power systems."
Any investment would certainly be a step closer to the idea of a pan-European "supergrid", a scheme that would unite renewable power across the continent with proposed African and Middle Eastern solar farms, and already has political support from UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown and French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
"The North Sea region grid would be a very important first part of an eventual European supergrid," says Wilkes.
"But such a supergrid would also require better connections across the borders of France, Germany, Sweden, Greece and across southern Europe and the Mediterranean in general."
None of this will happen overnight, but EWEA believe it is feasible for 100 percent of Europe's electricity to come from renewable sources by 2050.
"There are technological barriers for some renewables, but in wind we have proven technology that delivers competitively," says Wilkes.
"Other obstacles for wind are administrative in getting planning permissions and grid access. There is also currently a financial obstacle caused by the lack of credit following the financial crisis, but EWEA is optimistic that this should not be a long-term problem."
Whatever the future holds, for the moment green campaigners are delighted.
"International support for a supergrid is fantastic -- it will secure plentiful, clean and reliable sources of energy such as offshore wind, and help slash carbon emissions," Friends of the Earth's energy campaigner Nick Rau told CNN.
"Now we need the funding and industrial strategy to put words into action."
January 31, 2010 -- Updated 2350 GMT (0750 HKT)
From wind to waves, European countries are planning a multi-billion dollar grid for renewable energy.STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Nine European countries agree to 'supergrid' connecting renewable power sources
Grid planned to connect wind and tidal power sources across the North Sea region
Advocates say it is essential for EU to meet emission and renewable energy targets for 2020
Laying of high-cables and updating grid estimated to cost $40 billion
Energy Technology
(CNN) -- It is a criticism frequently leveled at those promoting wind or solar power as an alternative to fossil fuels: what happens when the wind doesn't blow or the sun doesn't shine?
Well, now there is a smart answer, at least in Europe -- we'll simply and instantly switch to another source of clean, green power.
Plans for a massive electricity grid dedicated to uniting the varied sources of renewable energy available in northern Europe have taken a step forward in January as nine countries formally agreed to work together on the project.
Using thousands of miles of high-tech undersea cables the 'supergrid' will unite wind farms on blustery British coasts with Dutch and Belgian tidal power, the vast hydroelectric potential of Norway fjords and Germany's massive solar arrays.
The gird should mean that when one source falls short, another takes up the slack to ensure continuity of supply.
"A North Sea grid will connect offshore wind to our electricity supply, enabling Europe to exploit its largest untapped energy source," Justin Wilkes, policy director, European Wind Energy Association (EWEA), told CNN.
"It will connect grids across northern Europe -- bringing more competition into the market and reducing electricity prices. Europe's dependence and spending on imported fossil fuels will be reduced."
The countries signed up -- Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Denmark, Sweden, Ireland and the UK -- hope to have the grid working within the next decade. It is seen as an essential step towards the European Union's pledge to source 20 percent of its electricity from renewables by 2020.
"Without extending and upgrading the grid Europe will not be able to make the emissions reductions it wants, or achieve the level of renewable energy it has set as a target," says Wilkes.
There are currently around 100 gigawatts of offshore wind projects being developed in Europe, which could meet 10 percent of the EU's electricity needs. But existing grids aren't capable of fully taking advantage of this potential.
"Europe's grids are built around large fossil-fuel plants near large urban areas and nuclear power stations," says Wilkes.
"Wind and other renewable sources of energy are often best tapped in other places -- so the grid needs to be extended and upgraded to deliver electricity from where the renewable energy sources are to be found -- where the wind is blowing, where the sun is shining and so on."
Advocates of renewable energy believe that moving away from fossil fuels will create thousands of high-quality "green jobs" and provide a boost to the European economy.
"A North Sea Grid would be a boost for the wind energy business -- it would enable Europe to build a new multi-billion Euro offshore wind industry -- and provide new markets for on-shore wind too," says Wilkes.
"[But] a North Sea Grid would not just be a boost for the wind industry but for all renewable energy sources, including wave and tidal power, and for consumers. It would be good news all round."
Of course, none of this will come cheap. The EWEA estimates the cost for building a grid connecting countries across the North Sea region including the Baltic Sea, Irish Sea and English Channel would cost in the region of $40 billion. A report by Greenpeace in 2008 came in lower, putting the price of building a similar grid at $20-30 billion.
"Transmission of energy from wind and other marine resources that are a long way offshore is expensive," Tim Russell, grid expert for the Renewable Energy Association, told CNN.
"Interconnectors between different power systems separated by long distances and water are also expensive -- but can have considerable advantages in terms of increased trade thereby providing economic benefits.
"It is anticipated that increased wind power will increase the benefits of greater interconnection between power systems."
Any investment would certainly be a step closer to the idea of a pan-European "supergrid", a scheme that would unite renewable power across the continent with proposed African and Middle Eastern solar farms, and already has political support from UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown and French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
"The North Sea region grid would be a very important first part of an eventual European supergrid," says Wilkes.
"But such a supergrid would also require better connections across the borders of France, Germany, Sweden, Greece and across southern Europe and the Mediterranean in general."
None of this will happen overnight, but EWEA believe it is feasible for 100 percent of Europe's electricity to come from renewable sources by 2050.
"There are technological barriers for some renewables, but in wind we have proven technology that delivers competitively," says Wilkes.
"Other obstacles for wind are administrative in getting planning permissions and grid access. There is also currently a financial obstacle caused by the lack of credit following the financial crisis, but EWEA is optimistic that this should not be a long-term problem."
Whatever the future holds, for the moment green campaigners are delighted.
"International support for a supergrid is fantastic -- it will secure plentiful, clean and reliable sources of energy such as offshore wind, and help slash carbon emissions," Friends of the Earth's energy campaigner Nick Rau told CNN.
"Now we need the funding and industrial strategy to put words into action."
Events from Destination SW Nova Association
• Rally for CAT Ferry - 1 Government Place, Granville St, Halifax, Feb. 4th at 10am
• Southwest Nova Scotia Transportation Study - still time to provide your input!
• Moncton Lifestyles Show, April 16-18 - book your space!
• Tourism Marketing Opportunities Program - deadlines March 31st, 2010:
- Festivals & Events Assistance
- Products & Experiences Marketing Assistance
• Visitor Information Kiosk Program - deadline April 30, 2010
• Canada Summer Jobs Announcement
• NS Tourism, Culture & Heritage Updates:
- Supplier Development Reverse Tradeshow - February 16, 2010
- Facts Flash Update: Meetings with Finance Minister
- CTC Image request
• Festivals & Events Submissions
• Important Updates to Partners Listings
• Southwest Nova Scotia Transportation Study - still time to provide your input!
• Moncton Lifestyles Show, April 16-18 - book your space!
• Tourism Marketing Opportunities Program - deadlines March 31st, 2010:
- Festivals & Events Assistance
- Products & Experiences Marketing Assistance
• Visitor Information Kiosk Program - deadline April 30, 2010
• Canada Summer Jobs Announcement
• NS Tourism, Culture & Heritage Updates:
- Supplier Development Reverse Tradeshow - February 16, 2010
- Facts Flash Update: Meetings with Finance Minister
- CTC Image request
• Festivals & Events Submissions
• Important Updates to Partners Listings
Labels:
DSWNA tourism nova scotia
Castro Coming to Canada?
Cape Breton lawyer helping Castro’s son with national photo exhibition
By The Canadian Press
Tue. Feb 2 - 4:53 AM
SYDNEY — A lawyer from Nova Scotia with connections in Cuba has been asked by an agent for one of Fidel Castro’s sons to help provide exposure for a proposed Canadian tour of Alex Castro’s photographs.
Castro has been known to sell some of his pictures, said Tony Magliaro, but that’s not the main reason for the proposed tour.
"I don’t think he’d be adverse to that, but I think it’s more for exposure," the lawyer said.
"I think getting his work recognized, that’s more important."
Magliaro grew up in Sydney’s Whitney Pier neighbourhood, but his wife Ileana De La Torre is Cuban.
He said his family visits Cuba regularly, and the husband of his wife’s family doctor is acting as an agent for Alex Castro Soto del Valle, one of Fidel’s sons.
The agent, Rogelio Puentes Valdes, knew Magliaro was Canadian and sought his help organizing a Canadian tour, pressing him to look at an album of photographs last fall.
Magliaro said the pictures were nice, but he didn’t immediately recognize Alex Castro’s name.
"I was a little skeptical at first, but the skepticism soon vanished," said Magliaro, adding he met the younger Castro last fall in Havana.
Castro had always wanted to be a photographer, Magliaro said, but at his father’s insistence he studied engineering in Moscow. According to one media report, Castro worked as a computer programmer.
"There’s no question he’s a proud and loving son, but I think he’s also his own man and he loves to take photographs," said Magliaro.
Castro likes taking pictures of scenery and models, Magliaro said, and has captured images of famous people and world leaders including Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, and Hu Jintao, general secretary of China’s Communist party.
Magliaro also said he’s impressed with the quality of Castro’s photographs.
"I’m not trained in that area, I have no expertise in that area, but in my opinion there’s something that stands out," he said. "I think this is his chosen career. He has a passion for this and I think it shows in his work."
Magliaro has started contacting some art galleries and is trying to gauge interest in a Canadian tour for Castro and his pictures, and possibly a U.S. tour as well, "although that might be a little more difficult, given the politics," he added.
By The Canadian Press
Tue. Feb 2 - 4:53 AM
SYDNEY — A lawyer from Nova Scotia with connections in Cuba has been asked by an agent for one of Fidel Castro’s sons to help provide exposure for a proposed Canadian tour of Alex Castro’s photographs.
Castro has been known to sell some of his pictures, said Tony Magliaro, but that’s not the main reason for the proposed tour.
"I don’t think he’d be adverse to that, but I think it’s more for exposure," the lawyer said.
"I think getting his work recognized, that’s more important."
Magliaro grew up in Sydney’s Whitney Pier neighbourhood, but his wife Ileana De La Torre is Cuban.
He said his family visits Cuba regularly, and the husband of his wife’s family doctor is acting as an agent for Alex Castro Soto del Valle, one of Fidel’s sons.
The agent, Rogelio Puentes Valdes, knew Magliaro was Canadian and sought his help organizing a Canadian tour, pressing him to look at an album of photographs last fall.
Magliaro said the pictures were nice, but he didn’t immediately recognize Alex Castro’s name.
"I was a little skeptical at first, but the skepticism soon vanished," said Magliaro, adding he met the younger Castro last fall in Havana.
Castro had always wanted to be a photographer, Magliaro said, but at his father’s insistence he studied engineering in Moscow. According to one media report, Castro worked as a computer programmer.
"There’s no question he’s a proud and loving son, but I think he’s also his own man and he loves to take photographs," said Magliaro.
Castro likes taking pictures of scenery and models, Magliaro said, and has captured images of famous people and world leaders including Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, and Hu Jintao, general secretary of China’s Communist party.
Magliaro also said he’s impressed with the quality of Castro’s photographs.
"I’m not trained in that area, I have no expertise in that area, but in my opinion there’s something that stands out," he said. "I think this is his chosen career. He has a passion for this and I think it shows in his work."
Magliaro has started contacting some art galleries and is trying to gauge interest in a Canadian tour for Castro and his pictures, and possibly a U.S. tour as well, "although that might be a little more difficult, given the politics," he added.
Labels:
Canada Castro photography
Too Little Revenue Generated
From the Bluefield DAily Telegraph West Viriginia
Published: February 02, 2010 10:21 pm
No to windmills: Board blocks turbine project
TAZEWELL, Va. - The passage of a tall structure ordinance Tuesday by the Tazewell County Board of Supervisors has left the fate of a wind turbine farm for East River Mountain in Limbo.
The supervisors voted 3-2 to approve the so-called ridgeline protection ordinance, which essentially prohibits the development of structures more than 40 feet in height along certain protected ridgelines, including East River Mountain and Burkes Garden.
Ryan Frazier, a spokesman for Dominion, said the company will evaluate its options.
Mike Hymes, the board's Southern District supervisor, cast the deciding vote Tuesday.Hymes said the wind turbines have generated too much controversy and will create too little public revenue.
For a complete report of the meeting, see Wednesday's Daily Telegraph.
Published: February 02, 2010 10:21 pm
No to windmills: Board blocks turbine project
TAZEWELL, Va. - The passage of a tall structure ordinance Tuesday by the Tazewell County Board of Supervisors has left the fate of a wind turbine farm for East River Mountain in Limbo.
The supervisors voted 3-2 to approve the so-called ridgeline protection ordinance, which essentially prohibits the development of structures more than 40 feet in height along certain protected ridgelines, including East River Mountain and Burkes Garden.
Ryan Frazier, a spokesman for Dominion, said the company will evaluate its options.
Mike Hymes, the board's Southern District supervisor, cast the deciding vote Tuesday.Hymes said the wind turbines have generated too much controversy and will create too little public revenue.
For a complete report of the meeting, see Wednesday's Daily Telegraph.
CBC Program Sunday Feb. 14
CBC's Land and Sea program that will air on Sunday Feb. 14 is said to be about, at least in part, Digby County
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