Application Denied

Friends have asked me many times over the years, how often I had to jump down from the lifeguard chair for an emergency.

Thankfully, there were very few occasions.

One of the incidents I tell them about was when a baby, barely walking, fell, face-first, into the lake near the base of my chair.

I looked around and saw no parents approaching the baby, so I jumped down, lifted the baby out of the water and waited for the parents to show themselves.

I remember telling them lifeguards were not babysitters, then, like all well-equipped, negligent parents, they offered an excuse.

Negligent parents are not big on vigilance; they are big on excuses.

During my radio news shift Sunday morning, I wrote and read the story of Harambe’s killing several times. Off the air, it infuriated me that such a magnificent animal had been shot to death because of negligent parenting.

My feelings on the value of zoos are for another blog, another time, but whenever we went to Granby Zoo, I always spent more time at Mumba’s enclosure.

He was a fascinating, impressive and magnificent creature, and I was saddened to hear, in October 2008, the 48 year old silverback gorilla had died.

His death of natural causes was nowhere near as upsetting as 17 year old Harambe’s death Saturday at the Cincinatti Zoo.

Harambe (Photo courtesy: cincinattizoo.org)

Did the zoo make the right decision? Is there another way zoo staff could have handled the situation? None of those questions matter because none of those questions would have come up, had the boy’s parents done what parents are supposed to do.

Is it the zoo’s fault for failing to make the enclosure child-proof? It’s the first time a spectator breaches the enclosure since 1978, and no one would be talking about the issue had the boy’s parents done what parents are supposed to do!

I wonder how long it took the boy to work his way into the enclosure; 15 seconds, 5 minutes, 10 minutes or 15 minutes?

I bet his parents don’t even know, since they weren’t doing what parents are supposed to do.

The child’s parents ought to face justice, charges of criminal negligence; they are solely responsible for Harambe’s death.

I saw this on Twitter today

An online petition is circulating, demanding the parents be held responsible. I hope it leads to some kind of justice. Too often, negligent and blameworthy parents are excused, and everyone else pays.

It’s nauseating.

I’ve always liked the idea that parents should be licensed.

Years ago, two Nova Scotia academics argued children have rights and parents have responsibilities. Brian Howe and Katharine Covell of the University College of Cape Breton declared anyone who hadn’t finished high school and a parenting course, shouldn’t be having kids. Covell pointed out there are a lot of parents having children who have no interest in raising them.

I often see those parents.

The position suggested by Howe and Covell was prompted by the same steady stream of child abuse and neglect cases still making headlines today.

Prospective parents, suggested Howe and Covell in 1999, should have to complete a certified course on early infant development, and sign a contract agreeing not to abuse or neglect their child.

If, at any point during the licensing process, a prospective parent referred to the credo of the negligent parent, “Accidents happen”, the same words used by the mother of the boy who fell in Harambe’s enclosure, it would be - application denied.

No Apology Necessary

Pierre Trudeau answered to no one. As Prime Minister and party leader, he led. Canadians followed. He led with fierce conviction, inspired vision and heaps of attitude.

Much of that made him our greatest Canadian.

There was no question of polls, pundits, or pals; Pierre Trudeau was guided by Pierre - and Pierre alone.

Like the very best and worst of us, he answered only to life, with all its impossible joy and heartache.

He burst onto the scene in 1968, flamboyantly sliding down banisters! In February 1971, there came “fuddle duddle”, and no apology.

He pirouetted behind the Queen in May 1977.

He did only what he believed, whether it was passing controversial Wage and Price Controls in 1975, or invoking the ominous War Measures Act in 1970 with the words that dripped with defiance, “Just watch me”.

Even in 1988, he said it the way he believed it, and let Canadians know Meech Lake terrified him.

No apology necessary.

Justin’s already had moments of flamboyance; one of them would have to be when he unexpectedly won the Liberal candidacy for Papineau riding on the first ballot in 2007.

(Photo courtesy Wikipedia)

In 2012, in support of cancer research, he boxed against a senator. He’s had his own “fuddle duddle” moments.

Justin’s leadership is already attracting the attention of the world.

Now everyone’s clucking about the “Justin Jab”.

Is it acceptable for politicians to belittle parliamentary process by playing games and blocking fellow politicians from getting to their seats in the Commons?

I don’t think so. There’s work to be done and the dollars of hard working Canadians to account for.

That would tick me off, too.

Ruth Ellen Brosseau was accidentally jostled and, in the half-second that followed the initial contact, she appeared to dramatically amplify the jostling.

Judging by his performance in the playoffs agains the Raptors, rest assured, the headmaster and instructors at the LeBron James Acting Academy are beaming.

Please.

If Justin feels he must apologize, just do it once.

In 1993, Pierre Trudeau yanked the fake beard off an annoying comedy reporter, gave him a light slap and aimed a kick at his groin. A year later, at the commissioning of the frigate “HMCS Montreal”, the former prime minister gave a heckler in the crowd the single-finger salute.

If you ask me, when push comes to shove, Justin’s on the right track.

Freedom of Choice

Count me among the 86 per cent of Quebecers who, according to a Leger-Le Devoir-Journal de Montreal poll released over the weekend, approve of medically-assisted death.

If, at some point, I am doomed to suffer irreversible, intolerable physical or psychological pain, and I am completely unaware of loved ones and oblivious to the beauty of life as I once cherished it, it’s pretty safe to say I would not want to go on living and I would choose to, as humanely as possible, end the game.

We recently made that decision for our beloved dog, believing in our hearts it was right. Certainly, humans are entitled to the same humane consideration, especially if the decision is, ultimately, their own. I fully realize the sanctity of human life takes the inherent issues to another level entirely, but some common principles apply.

Beginning June 7^th, patients with a “grievous and irremediable condition” will be able to request a doctor’s help to end their lives. I believe the legislation, as it is, though a valiant first step, falls grievously and irremediably short.

Bill C14 states a person must be a consenting adult of at least 18 years of age and “suffering intolerably” to be eligible for medically-assisted death. Furthermore, natural death must be “reasonably forseeable” and individuals must be in an “advanced state of irreversible decline” to be eligible.

Supreme Court of Canada (photo courtesy Flickr)

What constitutes "intolerable suffering", a "grievous and irremediable condition", "reasonably foreseeable", or an "advanced state of irreversible decline"? Many precedents will be set, broken and tested before allowable limits are legally defined.

There are no provisions for those who seek to die due to mental illness, or dementia. At the very least, the proposed legislation must be amended to include those competent individuals who choose to establish advanced directives for assisted suicide, or euthanasia, in the event they become no longer mentally competent.

The Netherlands was the first country to formally legalize medically-assisted death. There, as I understand it, the patient must be conscious and in either unbearable physical, or psychological pain. More than one person must be involved in the decision and the death request must be voluntary. The patient must be given alternatives to consider and there must be no other reasonable solutions to the problem. The patient’s death cannot inflict unnecessary suffering on others.

The Dutch decision to allow medically-assisted death is mostly about respecting an individual’s inalienable right to autonomy. That principle grants a competent individual the sole right to control their destiny and to choose to commit suicide if, in their considered judgment, they ought to do so.

The principle of human worth does not reconcile suicide except perhaps to argue that if, because of suffering or loss of coherent thought, a person is unable to live life to their fullest capacity, with a quality of living reasonable humans would value, then, as a morally worthy society, we ought to respect the voluntary choice of the individual to end their life.

The principle of utility takes into consideration the interests of all parties involved - the person seeking medically-assisted death, their caretakers, loved ones, relatives, dependents and others. If everyone concerned believes death would be a merciful release, then individuals should be free to determine their fate in the moment, or, in advance of the moment.

On the show I host, “Montreal Billboard”, I recently interviewed the Executive Director of the West Island Palliative Care Residence and, last month, accepted an invitation to visit the facility. I was impressed by the facility itself and the unwavering dedication of the staff, but it was explained to me that medically-assisted death is not an option there. Palliative care, by definition, does not hasten death.

I am unshakably pro-choice. In the name of dignity and respect, competent, but suffering Canadians, ought to be given the right and power to choose their end.

What gives government the right to control the final fate of a responsible and reasonable individual? People are dying to know.

Goldfinch Gold Mine

What’s with the Goldfinches?

There are so many at our feeders this year, it’s nuts!

I’m not complaining; it’s actually exciting. We rarely have yellow-colored birds in the yard. The American Goldfinches typically make an appearance for one or two weeks and then we don’t see them again until the next year.

This photo, taken in early March, shows moulting goldfinches

This year, it’s been at least two months that we’ve had clusters of Goldfinches crowded around the feeder all day!

Not being a super serious bird guy, I’m going to go out on a limb here by saying this is unusual.

I remember the Great Grey Owl invasion of 2005. I was working as the feature reporter on the Global television show, “This Morning Live”. Great Grey Owls had invaded the Greater Montreal area because of skimpy food sources in the boreal forests of the north. I arranged to have noted and popular ornithologist Dr David Bird take my cameraman, Gilbert Laporte, and I, out to see some of the owls.

Dr Bird took us to Ile-Bizard and sure enough, we found these amazing birds perched in the trees. It was a great morning because I had never before seen an owl in the wild! We taped the segments the morning of January 26^th 2005 and I aired them on the show a few days later on January 31^st.

Apart from the magnificent owls themselves, what I remember most about that morning is that Dr Bird’s student, Marcel Gahbauer, now a senior wildlife ecologist with an environmental consulting company, was wearing dress shoes!

It must have been -25 Celsius and there he was, in dress shoes in the snow! Gilbert, who always filmed bare-handed, was freezing, and I was also in pain because of the cold. I kept exclaiming all morning about how Marcel's feet must be frozen!

I went on the internet a few minutes ago to see if there was some sort of documented Goldfinch invasion underway, but found nothing.

It’s super busy at the bird feeder lately. I’m refilling the light-colored seed every two days! I’m refilling the sunflower seeds every three or four days. Sparrows, wrens, juncos, goldfinches, purple finches, cardinals, blue jays, hey, the more the merrier!

We've also had robins, downy woodpeckers and pileated woodpeckers in our backyard. Mallards have been under our feeder and, this spring, I found myself staring at a wild turkey in our yard for the first time ever!

I’ve explained in this space ("Feeder Fodder" November 30, 2010) how I was reluctant to hang a bird feeder in our yard because I knew I’d get stuck with buying the seed and filling it. I also explained in this space how nice it has been to observe such a variety of birds in our backyard!

Thanks again to Brome Bird Care for the squirrel-proof feeders.

My wife, Susan, has been snapping great photos and I’ve been using them here in my blog and on my Instagram, Twitter and Facebook accounts.

 

Susan snapped this picture this morning

Goldfinches are the state bird of Iowa and New Jersey, where they are referred to as "eastern goldfinch". They're also the state bird of Washington, where they're called the "willow goldfinch". 

In response to this blog, Marcel agrees the goldfinch situation is unusual. He says in his e-mail, numbers were "through the roof" this winter, as researchers at the McGill Bird Observatory banded 434, compared to a previous winter record of 228. He suggests researchers can't really explain why numbers are up.

I actually remember banding birds with Marcel one morning for a "This Morning Live" segment and the research team allowed me to release one of the birds after it was banded.

Amazing stuff!

Don of Detergent Dumbfounded

I am by no means obsessive-compulsive. On the other hand, I am far from being an outright slob. However, there are simply times when life’s busy pace causes me to leave wholly inoffensive articles of clothing on the bedroom floor. 

The end of the world, it is not.

My wife will sometimes spontaneously pick up my strewn clothes and fold them, leaving them in a neat pile on the dresser.

Helpful, indeed.

And point taken.

Last week, she added a new twist.

The spontaneously folded clothes on the dresser somehow looked familiar and unfamiliar. That is to say, some looked like clothes I had left on the floor with definite plans to wear them again in the near future, while others looked like they had been freshly washed.

Impossible. No one would deliberately stack clean articles of clothing together with unwashed ones!

Intrigued and unsettled by the prospect, I began to sniff the various articles of clothing in the stack, only to conclude someone had, indeed, folded washed and unwashed articles of clothing and stacked them together.

What could the possible motivation be? Inquiring minds demanded to know.

After animated discussion, I decided Susan plainly had no intention to mislead; she sweetly insisted it just happened that way.

More to pile of laundry than meets the eye

Satisfied she had no surreptitious intent, I asked whether she could at least understand how her mixed pile of folded clothing might be confusing. She denied she understood. I persisted, stifling exasperation and patiently explaining, I had to separate the pile of clothes by using my nose!

My nose, not being nearly as reliable as the ones at the end of our dogs’ snouts, could lead to detection errors, causing me to wear something unwashed under the assumption it had been washed.

She did not see a problem.

I, being the Master of the Maytag, the Don of Detergent, the Laveur of Laundry, the Specialist of Spotless and Wise Man of Wash, decided I should fight fire with fire!

I do most of the laundry in the house (see September 2, 2011 blog "Inside-Out Privileges").

When I leave a stack of clothes for someone, rest assured the articles are all freshly and authentically cleaned and appropriately folded. There’s no “partially clean”! There’s no “unwashed”! There's no question what you see is what you get! I suggested to my wife that, in an effort to help her understand how disconcerting a mixed stack of clothing could be, I might just mix some of her washed and unwashed articles into the same pile of folded clothing.

She seemed completely unfazed.

Her being unfazed, has me completely fazed! Has she trained the dogs to separate washed and unwashed articles of clothing for her? Is her nose that much more sensitive than mine?

It’s preposterous to think she'd stack washed articles of clothing together with unwashed ones in the hopes I would tuck them all away into their drawers and closets, thereby limiting messiness and killing two birds with one stone - although the frightening deviousness of such a plan verges on sheer genius.

Hmmmm. Maybe I should train the dogs.

Steve Hill, Solo Recordings Volume 3

As the first notes of  “Rhythm All Over” explode from the stage, audience members rub their eyes, convinced they hear a band, but see one man. It’s like being pummeled by the hot exhaust of a jet engine as Steve Hill, singlehandedly, blows the audience back into their seats.

This is the launch of “Solo Recordings Volume 3”.

The new album by Steve Hill

The audience is quickly reminded Steve Hill is an exceptionally coordinated man. While his hands work the guitar, his mouth sings and plays harmonica, his right foot plays the snare and his left foot is busy with a bass drum. As the guitar neck crazily rocks up and down so the drumstick attached to the end can smash a cymbal, there are moments when he appears to be gigging aboard a fishing trawler on choppy seas. Through the impossibly hectic performance, Steve Hill doesn’t miss a note.

If there were no sound at all, his concerts would still amaze.

Amazing too, is that Steve Hill insists he is a far better musician on “Volume 3” than he was two albums ago. Chatting moments before his album launch, he explains his guitar playing, harp playing and drumming have all improved by virtue of the massive number of shows he’s done since the release of the first album in the trilogy. He will tell you that because he quit smoking, even his voice has improved, although to fans, it’s hard to imagine his rugged and roguish voice sounding better than it always did.

He says compared to Volumes 1 & 2, the new album “rocks more”. It does that; the opening track, “Damned”, is hard-driving. It’s followed by “Dangerous”, which has a solid rock groove. 

Last Thursday's launch at Le Verre Bouteille

He’s been garnering heaps of attention for his blues playing, but just as Lynn Anderson never promised a rose garden, Steve Hill never promised blues exclusively.  He did promise solo recordings and while “Volume 3” delivers thick, straight ahead blues tracks like “Smoking Hot Machine”, it also churns out songs built on both genres, like, “Walking Grave”.

The unplugged tracks on “Volume 3”, including “Slowly Slipping Away” and “Going Down the Road Feeling Bad”, deliver the clean, calming, more intimate sound his fans are so fond of.  “Emily”, co-written by Hill and Joshua Parlett, packs a carefree kick.

Winner of the 2015 Juno Award for Blues Album of the Year, Steve Hill, is the winner of multiple 2016 Maple Blues Awards. Just as he did in 2015, he has been recognized as Entertainer of the Year, Electric Act of the Year and Guitarist of the Year. 

Whether they’re buying his albums or attending his sold-out shows, people are listening to his music, which, according to Steve Hill, is better than ever. People are talking about his music, giving him all the more reason to do what his fans are doing, going down the road feeling good.

Smoking Out Cozy Conformists

Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the roar of a crackling fireplace pouring forth generous warmth as much as the next person, but not at the expense of the planet!

I wish I was exaggerating when I say on brisk, crisp nights walking the dog, I’m choking on thick clouds of acrid smoke. 

Neighborhood fireplaces and wood-burning stoves are churning out a veritable fog of so-called fine particles!

Most people of decent intelligence, including cozy fireplace and wood stove owners, seem to recognize the urgency of reducing emissions that are not only harmful to the planet, but harmful to our health. Yet, within the confines of their homes, they’re seemingly oblivious to the reality they’re pumping out pollution!

Older models of fireplaces and wood stoves typically emit 10 to 20 grams of fine particles every hour. These particles, which penetrate deep into the lungs, contribute to 900 premature deaths in Montreal every year. 

Whaaaat!

Transportation, responsible for 45 per cent of the fine particles released into the Montreal atmosphere, is the main source of this dangerous pollution. The approximately 85 thousand fireplaces and wood-burning stoves on Montreal island are second, responsible for 39 per cent of the fine particles in the air.

By October 2018, fireplaces and wood stoves on Montreal island will have to prove they release no more than 2.5 grams of fine particles per hour.

In the US, the standard set by the Environmental Protection Agency is 4.5 grams per hour. The Montreal city committee that drew up the regulations was pushing for a limit of 1.3 grams per hour.

 

Enjoying the fresh winter air

The limit being enforced in Montreal is better than nothing.

Modifications to existing fireplaces and wood stoves will whack the wallet to the tune of between $2,000 and $8,000. That’s pretty expensive! Fines for using illegal stoves and fireplaces can go as high as $2,000.

Stoves that don’t meet the required limit cannot be used, unless, stipulate the regulations, the power has been out for more than three hours. Last Thursday, on what thankfully was a mild winter day, we were without power for 12 hours. A heat-generating fireplace or wood stove would be a welcome treat when Hydro Quebec falls flat.

I don’t own a fireplace or wood-burning stove but, if I did, I would certainly hope it conformed to standards deemed reasonable for the health of the planet and humans.

I long to breathe fresh, cold air on night walks again and our poor beasts will no longer wonder nervously why I’m salivating when I smell their fur.