Lynn Squance

World War I in Photos

Posted by Lynn Squance at 4:08 pm Politics

Nov 112015

I am the granddaughter of a WWI veteran, and the daughter and stepdaughter of WWII veterans. All have passed away now, but never their memories. When I saw this pictorial article in The Atlantic, I wanted to share it with you. For me it is very moving.

One hundred years ago, in the summer of 1914, a series of events set off an unprecedented global conflict that ultimately claimed the lives of more than 16 million people, dramatically redrew the maps of Europe, and set the stage for the 20th Century.

An Introduction

The Western Front, Part I

World War I Technology

Animals at War

Aerial Warfare

Soldiers and Civilians

War at Sea

Global Conflict

The Western Front, Part II, and Armistice

A Century Later

The First World War was the first truly global war because of the colonial influences of European nations around the globe. It was also supposed to be "the war to end all wars". Well that certainly didn't work out, did it!

Squatch’s Open Thread 11/11/2015

Posted by Lynn Squance at 1:34 pm Open Thread, Politics

Nov 112015

The visit to the doctor was good . . . I don't have bronchitis . . . yet! But I am on the verge so I do have to rest, not go out and take Tylenol and cough syrup. The doctor also nailed me for my flu shot. There was a new patient in the waiting room, an elderly lady in a wheelchair, with whom I struck up a conversation and reassured her that the doctor was very nice. Just before I was called in, I leaned over and told her the doctor was real eye candy. At 93 years, she was giggling like a school girl. Then she said her eyes were not good. When I told the doctor about this, he started laughing. I might have felt crappy, but at least I was able to make 2 people laugh. Interesting though, 2 other patients joined in with positive opinions of the doctor. I think he's a keeper!

Puzzle — Today’s took me 3:01 (average 4:23). To do it, click here. How did you do? For those that don't know, we always do the 48 piece classic.

Short Takes

Alternet — "So this is weird for me," Noah said. "The media is saying 'those rumors about you haveing a clean record and being an upstanding member of society are true', and Ben Carson is like 'Bullshit! I'm dangerous and I try to kill people and I'm a bad person who should be President."

The Daily Show host would save the worst bonehead moment for last: Carson's belief that the Egyptian pyramids were used to score grain and were not a tomb.

Click through for the rest. Unfortunately, I could not embed the video, partly because I am Canadian and partly because there is no embeding url. Also, I could not find it on YouTube. For Canadians click here for the Canadian version. Noah's monologue on Carson starts at the 1:48 mark.

Mother Jones — … the conservative American Action Network will run an ad opposing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the consumer watchdog agency that Warren created following the financial crash. Per Everett, the group is spending half a million dollars to run the ad during the debate and later this week.

The commercial paints the CFPB as a Kremlin-like bureaucratic nightmare, with Warren as the Stalinesque figure barring regular Americans from collecting loans. Warren's face is plastered on a giant red banner in the background, alongside that of CFPB director Richard Cordray. The Soviet imagery is not subtle.

Related to this is Warren's tweetstorm following the airing of the ad. I can just hear Elizabeth Warren following up with "And that's a promise! Make my day, punk!"

Think Progress — Three white supremacists plotting to bomb and shoot up black churches and synagogues were charged Monday with a felony after allegedly attempting to buy guns and explosives from an undercover FBI agent. The two men, based in Virginia, were preparing for a “race war,” according to the FBI, by buying up land and weapons.

This is domestic terrorism at its worst . . . preying on innocent people because of the colour of their skin. The Southern Poverty Law Centre says there are more deaths of Americans from domestic terrorism than from jihadi attacks. Shameful!

The New Yorker — Arguing that the voters have tired of “gotcha questions,” the Republican Presidential candidate Ben Carson said that he hoped Tuesday night’s debate would “focus on the real issues facing this country, like finding the lost city of Atlantis.”

“The American people don’t want to hear personal attacks,” Carson told reporters. “They want to know which candidate has the best plan for locating Atlantis and recovering its storied treasures.”

Carson said that finding Atlantis was central to his plan for reviving the U.S. economy. “We could start paying down the national debt with one jewel-encrusted trident,” he said.

Oh Andy that does so sound like Carson insanity. Click through for the rest.

My Universe —

Squatch’s Open Thread 10/11/2015

Posted by Lynn Squance at 12:04 pm Open Thread, Politics

Nov 102015

Well it seems that after several very late nights and very busy days, my cold is back with a hacking cough. Fortunately I see my doctor this afternoon. I wonder if he'll nail me with the flu shot? I get it every year but have not had this year's yet. Yesterday was all missions accomplished and then some. In a few days, when I am feeling up to it, I am going to be sitting down with the young lad who had problems last weekend and having a chat. There is never a shortage of things to do it seems.

Puzzle — Today’s took me 3:44 (average 5:53). To do it, click here. How did you do? For those that don't know, we always do the 48 piece classic.

Fantasy Football

						Points
Rank	Team	W-L-T	Pct	Stk	Waiver	For	Against
1	Monster Mashers	7-2-0	.778	W2	10	912.10	646.92
2+2	BALCO Bombers	6-3-0	.667	W3	9	849.04	702.98
3+3	Progressive Underdogs	5-4-0	.556	W1	8	869.74	829.72
4-1	MittsMagicJock	5-4-0	.556	L1	7	841.32	737.42
5-3	Lefty Hillbillies	5-4-0	.556	L1	6	808.62	805.66
6+1	Size 9 Stompers	5-4-0	.556	W1	5	791.62	766.26
7-2	Playing without a helmet	4-5-0	.444	L2	4	763.60	882.54
8	Purple Demon	4-5-0	.444	W2	3	877.30	909.76
9	TomCat Teabag Trashers	3-6-0	.333	L2	2	807.78	912.54
10	endthegop	1-8-0	.111	L8	1	594.62	921.94

* Rank change shown is from week 8 – 9

Short Takes

Alternet — On "Last Week Tonight," Oliver broke down the almost insurmountable obstacles faced by ex-cons after release, which helps explain America's high rates of recidivism. Over 50 percent of released prisoners end up back in jail.

Click through for the rest of the short article but most is in the video.

Huffington Post — Speaking at the National Religious Liberties Conference in Iowa, Cruz joined other GOP presidential candidates for a discussion about the persecution of Christians in the U.S. and around the world. After some very extreme, very weird comments about homosexuality, right-wing pastor Kevin Swanson introduced Cruz to the stage to ask him how important it was for candidates to submit to Jesus Christ as "the king of the President of the United States."

Barf Bag Alert!!! Barf Bag Alert!!!

Unfortunately I cannot embed the video for you so click through to see the it.

Right Wing Watch — On her program last night, Maddow filled her viewers in on Friday’s Republican campaign event, showing videos of Ted Cruz, Bobby Jindal and Mike Huckabee engaging in question-and-answer sessions with extremist pastor Kevin Swanson, who then went on to say that he would smear cow dung over his body to protest a gay couple’s wedding and urged the government to execute gays in the future if they don’t repent.

As Maddow also pointed out, Swanson’s views on homosexuality were well-known even before he hosted the weekend’s National Religious Liberties Conference, and he wasn’t the only speaker at the conference who had called for homosexuality to be treated as a capital crime.

Barf Bag Alert!!! Barf Bag Alert!!!

Her remarks on the right-wing conference start at the 5:55 mark.

Unfortunately I cannot embed the video for you so click through to see the it. I did watch the video and as a Christian, I can say I have never seen such a display of raw hate. Swanson is NOT a true Christian, and in my opinion is inciting violence and murder.

My Universe — courtesy of the Animal Rescue Site

Now, if this had been one of my cats, there would be meowing into the receiver!

“Because it’s 2015”

Posted by Lynn Squance at 3:18 am Politics

Nov 092015

There is no shortage of interest in the outcome of the 2015 Canadian federal election. The election saw the defeat of the Conservative government of Stephen Harper, long touted as not representing Canadians adequately and Harper himself being controlling and secretive, by the Liberals led by Justin Trudeau.

Percentage of the Vote courtesy of Wikipedia

Overall voter turnout was 69.1%

Justin Trudeau	Stephen Harper	Tom Mulcair
Liberal	Conservative	New Democratic

36	159	95
184	99	44
148	60	51
6,930,136	5,600,496	3,461,262
39.47%	31.89%	19.71%

Gilles Duceppe	Elizabeth May
Bloc Québécois	Green

	2	2
	10	1
	8	1
	818,652	605,864
	4.66%	3.45%

The individual lines represent blue – seats before the election, green – seats after the election, pink – number of seats increase/decrease, gray – number of votes, orange – popular vote.

This is what the national map looks like. Interesting to note is that in the Alberta provincial election earlier this year, the conservatives were soundly defeated by the NDP. But in the federal election, it went almost exclusively Tory. And Saskatchewan, home to Tommy Douglas' CCF, the forerunner of the NDP, went predominently Tory. These are farm and energy centres. — courtesy of Wikipedia

But what accounts for such a big change?

electors fed up with Harper's watch which I heard one person refer to as "a reign of terror" — controlling, secretive, acrimonious relations with the civil service, lack of respect for First Nations (think Attawapiskat, Idle No More, Murdered and Missing Aboriginal Women);
the Senate scandal;
Bill C – 51 which broadened the authority of Canadian government agencies to share information about individuals and expanded the mandate of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS);
Bill C – 24 Strengthening Canadian Citizenship Act which created a two tier citizenship system (this the one that the Coultergeist references below) which the Liberals plan to scrap because it does not add to the safety of Canada;
Harper's dictatorial approach to oil pipelines etc (he didn't care who he stepped on to get his way);
Harper's lack of participation in election debates and less than satisfactory interface with the media;
Harper's snubbing of the United Nations;
Harper's very hawkish approach in joining in the bombing in Syria;
Harper's perceived anti-Muslim pro-Israel stance.

This certainly is not a complete list, but it is more than enough to send Harper and his harlots packing!.

So where is Canada going from here?

I had to laugh at the inanity of US Republican Ann Coulter. This from the Huffington Post

"It could never have happened without immigration," Coulter said matter-of-factly. She admitted she thought for years she'd have to move north of the border, but has since discovered Canada has been "wrecking" its country with immigration, as well.

Please USA, you keep the Coultergeist! Canada does NOT want her! Although the Coultergeist seems to attribute the Conservative defeat to "rampant immigration", she couldn't be further from the truth . . . a position she knows too well. In this election,

Indigenous peoples were mobilised more than ever before. This resulted in the election of 10 (8 Liberals, 2 NDP) with 2 indigenous persons named to the Cabinet . . . the Minister of Justice and Attorney General and Minister of Fisheries, Oceans, and the Canadian Coast Guard;
There were a lot of first time voters, some of which would be immigrants, but most, as I understand, were young people. In my polling station, when a first time voter cast their ballot, it was announced and everybody applauded. That did not happen everywhere, but it is a sign that every ballot counts.

The swearing in ceremony (one of several videos here) was long as the Prime Minister and each Cabinet Minister is sworn in individually. You might notice that as each Minister approaches, they bow. This is in deference to HRM Queen Elizabeth II in the person of the Governor General, His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston. However, there are some notable accomplishments in the formation of the new Cabinet:

gender equality with 15 women and 15 men in Cabinet "because it is 2015";
21 new comers and 10 experienced political veterans;
a wide scope of ages;
diversity with 2 indigenous persons, a refugee, 2 Sikhs, disabled minister, and more;
many fluent in both French and English, with additional languages spoken;
many very educated persons with PhDs and a lot of involvement in communities and the world.

What is very noticable in the swearing in ceremony is the participation of First Nations. A young drummer lead the procession into Rideau Hall, two Inuit throat singers demonstrated their skills, and Métis jiggers lead everybody from Rideau Hall.

In a change, there is no one designated Deputy Prime Minister but rather a group of the Cabinet Ministers who will make decisions if Trudeau is unable to for some reason. Likewise, Trudeau has stated that running the country is a team effort which is a complete dichotomy to Harper's rule.

The Cabinet will get down to work right away as Parliament reconvenes on 03/12/15.

As Trudeau remarked, he thinks of his father, Pierre Elliott Trudeau, the 15th Prime Minister, but his focus is in looking forward for his children and all children.

I hope I have been able to give you a sense of the changes afoot here in Canada. I am very excited and watching these videos again brings tears to my eyes.

Squatch’s Open Thread 09/11/2015

Posted by Lynn Squance at 3:18 am Open Thread, Politics

Nov 092015

What a weekend! After confirming that the teen I mentioned yesterday was OK, I settled in to do some research and finished off today's lead article. Then it was off to see my mother. I left home at 4 pm and didn't return until 10 pm. She ate well but then proceeded to doze. When the aids got her ready for bed, she came wide awake and didn't want me to leave. Tomorrow I have physio and teaching followed by a trip to Costco with my friend. I think I shall surely sleep Monday night. Fortunately, there is nothing on tap again until Tuesday evening.

Puzzle — Today’s took me 3:24 (average 5:42). To do it, click here. How did you do? For those that don't know, we always do the 48 piece classic.

Short Takes

Huffington Post — Former Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) has an urgent message for Christians everywhere: convert as many people as possible, especially Jews, because Jesus is "coming soon."

“We recognize the shortness of the hour," she said in an interview with right-wing radio host Tony Perkins last week. "That’s why we as a remnant want to be faithful in these days and do what it is that the Holy Spirit is speaking to each one of us, to be faithful in the Kingdom and to help bring in as many as we can — even among the Jews — share Jesus Christ with everyone that we possibly can because, again, he’s coming soon."

OK, who let the dogs out? The silence from the Bachmann corner of late has been blissful! But now she returns with her barking mad pseudo Christian idea of the imminent rapture! . . . pure insaniTEA!

The World Bank — A new World Bank report shows that climate change is an acute threat to poorer people across the world, with the power to push more than 100 million people back into poverty over the next fifteen years. And the poorest regions of the world – Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia – will be hit the hardest.

But the report – Shock Waves: Managing the Impacts of Climate Change on Poverty – also points to a way out. This requires that poverty reduction and development work continue as a priority while taking into account a changing climate. It also means taking targeted action to help people cope with climate shocks – such as developing early warning systems and flood protection, and introducing heat-resistant crops. At the same time, efforts to reduce emissions should accelerate, and be designed to protect the poor.

" We have the ability to end extreme poverty even in the face of climate change, but to succeed, climate considerations will need to be integrated into development work. And we will need to act fast, because as climate impacts increase, so will the difficulty and cost of eradicating poverty. "

John Roome, Senior Director for Climate Change at the World Bank Group

Click through for an excellent graphic and a copy of the World Bank report. If we in North America and Europe think that this climate change – poverty cycle will only affect sub Saharan Africa or places like the Seychelles and not affect us, guess again. Think of the significant weather disruptions that have resulted in the California drought and the loss of crops etc. What about the rising sea levels and floods in areas like New Orleans, the Fraser River delta (Metro Vancouver) or the polders of the Netherlands, just to mention three. I agree that we need to act NOW and coördinate with the best ideas.

The New Yorker — Presidential candidate Ben Carson has issued a dire warning that President Obama’s cancellation of the Keystone Pipeline has left the United States with “virtually no place to store grain.”

Ben Carson! Ben Carson! Ben Carson! I am so tired of Carson's inanities. But even I have to think that Andy is doing straight reporting again. Click through. Barf Bag Alert! There is yet another picture of the idiot.

My Universe —

In Flanders Fields

Posted by Lynn Squance at 12:21 pm Holiday

Nov 082015

flanders fields Wild poppies grow on the verge of a Flanders field near Passchendaele as dawn breaks on the centenary of the Great War. Getty

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae, Canadian physician

flanders fields

The setting sun creates long shadows at Sanctuary Wood Military Cemetery in Ypres. Getty

flanders fields

The morning sun falls on the fortified Advanced Dressing Station, near Essex Farm Cemetery in Ypres, where Canadian doctor Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae treated the wounded and is believed to have composed his famous poem 'In Flanders Fields' after burying his friend, Lieutenant Alexis Helmer, on 3 May 1915. Getty

ypres trench

A preserved WWI trench system is pictured in Sanctuary Wood in Ypres. Getty

ypres bomb craters

Bomb craters scar the woodland floor in the preserved Sanctuary Wood. Getty

ypres A surviving tree, damaged in the Great War, is covered in tributes. Getty

Ypres was the centre of five battles between German and Allied forces from 1914 to 1918. The deadliest of these was the Third Battle of Ypres or the Battle of Passchendaele, between July and November 1917.

Casualty numbers are disputed, but it is thought that around 325,000 Allied and 260,000 German troops lost their lives.

1917 ypres 5 January 1917: Soldiers march past the ruins of St Martins Church and Cloth Hall in Ypres. Getty

1917 ypres 5 October 1917: Australian troops march towards the front line to relieve their comrades, who had won Broodseinde Ridge the previous day, during the Battle of Passchendaele. Getty

1917 ypres 11 November 1917: Soldiers pose for a photo near the ramparts at Ypres the day after British, Canadian, ANZAC, and French forces finally recaptured the Passchendaele Ridge east of Ypres. Getty

1918 Ypres 19 April 1918: Soldiers lie dead in the mud on a battlefield during the Lys Offensive, also known as the Fourth Battle of Ypres. Getty

With respect for those who fought & Died in Two World Wars

For all the victims, and for the victims of all wars past & present

Remembering the human cost of war, not the financial or political cost of warfare.

Remembering every animal not given a choice, each one a tragic victim

of wars past and present

Lest we forget

A big thank you to Wendy Kelly, Coventry, UK, a Care2 member who sent me the pictures and captions

5 Ridiculous Right-Wing Moments This Week

Posted by Lynn Squance at 12:21 pm Politics

Nov 082015

Almost every week, Republicans join a competition to see who can say the most outlandish things, and in the process, they push the envelope on just how nutty InsaniTEA can become. I trust that you will believe it, when I tell you that last week was no exception. The sarcasm is excellent!

2. Ben Carson may not be able to discern when he is lying anymore.

Republican frontrunner Ben Carson’s dissociative state appears to be complete. On Friday, he told Fox News: “Lying, I believe, is a grave sin and there’s just no way that I would be sitting here lying about something like this.”

That statement came on the heels of revelations that Carson lied about having been given a scholarship to West Point, something his campaign admitted never happened, and then retracted its admission. Carson told another whopper in front of the huge national audience for the third Republican debate when he denied any paid association with dubious supplement company Mannatech. His campaign confirmed he’s been a paid spokesman, but still Ben Carson manages to believe himself. It’s possible he just cannot tell the difference between truth, and to put it charitably, untruth, when it emerges from his own mouth.

It’s weird, amirite? Or maybe it isn’t for a man of science, who asserts pyramids were built for grain storage and evolution is wrong.

Among the Carson biographical details that are currently looking pretty shaky (even to the Wall Street Journal) are an anecdote about being the lone Yale student honest enough to take a revised final while classmates walked out; and being featured in the Yale newspaper for his bravery. (No record of this anywhere in the Yale archives. He does know people can look this sh*t up, right?) Even his favorite story of trying to stab a friend, being lucky enough to miss and then successfully praying his anger away, is looking wobbly. Frankly, when a man blames mass shooting victims for just sitting there and letting themselves be shot and proudly recounts a story of being held up in a Popeye’s and directing the gunman to the poor counterguy, we’re a little unconvinced that those anger issues have been completely laid to rest.

Oh, and that unflattering Popeye’s story may not be true either. Has anyone ever talked to the conjoined twins this former neurosurgeon supposedly separated? Just wondering.

If Ben Carson's mouth is open and moving, he's lying! The man has no shame. IMO, the RNC should pull their support from him. Click through for the other 4 Ridiculous Right-Wing Moments This Week and don't forget the popcorn!

Squatch’s Open Thread 08/11/2015

Posted by Lynn Squance at 12:21 pm Open Thread, Politics

Nov 082015

I am light on short takes today as this evening took a difficult twist. I enjoyed the pizza night with the kids, but after mum arrived home, there was a call from police saying that her 16 year old son had been beaten and robbed and was being taken to hospital by ambulance. Because of mum's lack of English and unable to drive, I took point this evening. The teen was discharged from hospital and I don't know where he went. I hope he got on a bus home, but I wanted to go get him and see him safely home. I just finished my last call with the police at 2:38 am so I am going to bed. Please keep this teen in your thoughts and prayers until we can ensure he is OK. I appreciate it very much.

Update — I confirmed this morning that the young man made it home safely just after midnight.

Puzzle — Today’s took me 3:24 (average 5:27). To do it, click here. How did you do? For those that don't know, we always do the 48 piece classic.

Short Takes

The Guardian — Malala Yousafzai has told Emma Watson that the actor’s speech to world leaders made her change her mind about not describing herself as a feminist.

The 18-year-old human rights and education champion from Pakistan met the film star at the premiere of a documentary about her, called He Named Me Malala.

Yousafzai, a Nobel peace prize winner, said she initially thought feminism was a “tricky word” but now believed everyone should be a feminist.

Watson, a UN global goodwill ambassador for women, gave a speech to the UN last year to launch her “He for She” campaign, aimed at encouraging men to speak up for women’s rights.

Click through for the remainder of the article. Also, NPR had an interview of Malala which follows.

This has implications for all people, no matter the country. It would be great if Republicans could be called "feminists" but I am sure that hell would have to freeze over first.

The Nation — “From coast to coast, Americans are taking action to reduce the influence of wealthy and well-connected special interests on our politics and on our democracy,” says Congressman John Sarbanes, the Maryland Democrat who has emerged as one of the most innovative thinkers in Congress when it comes to election reform issues.

“Nearly 70 percent of Americans feel that our political system is broken because it works for wealthy donors and special interests at the expense of everyday Americans,” says Sarbanes, who suggests that members of Congress should “take the [cue] from state and local efforts that fight back against big money in politics and pass sensible reforms at the federal level to take power away from wealthy special interests and return it to everyday people.”

Here in Canada, change was the word that electors sought. And we did it by dumping Harper and bringing in a majority Liberal government. It sounds like Americans are seeking change too. Keep at it and don't accept 'no' for an answer. Click through for thr rest of John Nichols' piece.

My Universe — The cone of shame!

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