By Mark Taliano
I remember a local doctor protesting hospital cuts, exclaiming that the government is psychotic. Good point.
A banner displayed in Fort Erie, Ontario last year in response to the closing by the Niagara Health System of that community's hospital emergency room.
People who care about themselves are more apt to care about others, something about self-esteem. If Canada were a patient then, we’d have low self-esteem. How else to explain the self-destructive mistake of closing Emergency Departments? We know that the experiment was tried and failed in Saskatchewan; we’ve seen local tragedies, and yet we continue to pursue this “illusion” as if it were true that the closings will improve health care in Niagara. Diagnosis: poor self-esteem, possible psychosis.
The psychiatric analogy might also explain why we treat the rest of the world so horribly.
We care so little about the world that we continue to subsidize the manufacture of gas guzzling automobiles, even though Third World countries such as India rightly see it as criminal. Worse yet, despite the anthropogenic waning of the Halocene period, we blindly exploit the Tar Sands. It’s no wonder that The Security Council rejected Canada’s shameful application for inclusion. Diagnosis: neurosis, with a hint of psychosis.
Our neurotic tendencies extend to future economic projections as well. We spend a fortune on Tar Sands developments, earning the international reputation as an environmental pariah, while at the same time spending relatively meager amounts on Green Energy Technology. We have a Prime Minister who warns of job losses with regard to NOT developing Tar Sands, rather than emphasizing Job Gains with regard to developing the better alternative of Green Industry and Technology. Self-sabotaging behaviour patterns?
Our isolationist sabotaging, despite the international need for cooperation, gets worse: Prime Minister Harper is featured dancing on the front cover of Maclean’s, singing the Beatles, and conflating the Beatles’ music with his agenda. We know that the Beatles’ message is anathema to Harper’s international message of environmental non-cooperation, but still, many Canadians will support the Conservatives because of his association with them. This manipulation of the public suggests Machiavellian strategies with a hint of megalomania.
Blithely spending a fortune on F-35 fighter jets is nothing short of megalomanic posturing. The fighter jets came about because of the tacit understanding that Global Warming will continue to open the Arctic and the North West Passage, thus creating the perceived need to protect what is ours, all the while creating fear of the Russians (remember the flag planting?) In fact, according to Gwynne Dyer in Crawling From The Wreckage, the Northwest Passage is not nearly as good as the North East Passage for ships, and the boundaries for resource exploitation in the Arctic are well delineated. Furthermore, the Americans are more of a threat to these boundaries than the Russians. So this begs the question. Do we really want to threaten the Americans with our jets? Diagnosis: crazy
But tis the season, so some of the craziness can be temporarily forgiven. But what will we do when more people in Niagara die in time-critical emergency situations? And what will we do when climate refugees have no place to go, and desertification creates wars and countless deaths?
I’m reminded of a more magnanimous, less self-centered Canada, when hitchhikers abroad emblazoned Canadian flags on their backpacks to guarantee a warm welcome; I doubt it would work as well now. Can shame be a pre-condition to depression?
Mark Taliano in a Niagara resident and contributor to Niagara At Large
(Visit Niagara At Large at www.niagaraatlarge.com for more news and commentary on matters of interest and concern to residents in our greater binational Niagara region.)
Niagara At Large 
These overpriced F-35s is the weapon that the United States, strongarmed the Norwegians to buy, according to the dialogue from Wickileaks, and it was so successful they in their glee in getting one over the European plane, that was cheaper and a better plane, plan to do that tactic on other nations, was Canada strongarmed to buy an inferior and more expensive plane. Harper sold out our independence to the USA this all started with lyin Brian Mulroney with NAFTA and now the coup de grace by Harper. Trudeau must be rolling in his grave over this betrayal.
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“We care so little about the world that we continue to subsidize the manufacture of gas guzzling automobiles, even though Third World countries such as India rightly see it as criminal.” I take exception with this statement. India has had and still does have a substantial energy subsidy on gas, diesel, LP, LPG and kerosene (Global Subsidies Initiative) that in 2009 was 4.5% of the countries budget. In the last decade the Indian demand for automobile has hit double digits annually and these fuel subsidies help dream of automobile ownership alive. It is incredibly disingenuous for India to criticize let alone consider Canada’s actions, comparatively speaking, criminal.
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India, like other Third World countries, wants what we have: cars, cars, cars, and why shouldn’t they? Unfortunately, the current First World countries, thanks to their early Industrial Revolution, have brought atmospheric carbon levels past the 350 per million threshold. So the Third World’s aspirations will be curtailed by our excesses. It’s not fair, but that’s the way it is. What’s even less fair is that countries like India and Bangladesh will (and already are) be hit harder than most by Global Warming. Bangladesh is very prone to flooding, and it won’t get better, so they’ll have refugee issues compounding their already significant poverty issues. Again, not fair, but that’s what’s happening: our pollution is endangering their lives. So, if an Indian Environment Minister says that German SUV’s are criminal, I agree with his sentiment, even though it isn’t legally criminal.
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Yes, but that argument only holds water if you believe in the theory of global warming , which I remain utterly and totally unconvinced. Bangladesh flooding is explained easily by overpopulation and abysmal land use on their coastal areas. An Indian Environmental Minister making any statement such as the SUV one is talking through his hat. He’ll have his hand out to take our filthy lucre to assuage our guilt then keep building coal generating plants and cars so fast it will make your head spin.
A very large topic for another day, I should think.
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I hesitate to discuss global warming because all of the best scientists concur that it is a fact. It’s simply a scientific fact. The results of ice-core scientific analysis is irrefutable.
It’s up to the First World countries to provide high technology solutions to the Third World countries so that clean, efficient power is used worldwide. The earth can’t tolerate anything less.
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Too big an issue with too much at stake to not to continue discussing. Its time for the Third world to step up and take responsibility for their problems as well.
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I know somebody that just spent her entire hospital stay 4 days in the emergency area, as there were no beds available,she stated to me the place was Bedlam. like an insane asylum , she just wanted to get to hell out of GNGH she feels that she recovered , dispite the treatment, for a near stroke attack. We are a third world country when it comes to health care, let;s boot the Mc.Guinty people out this year, they are bad for our health.
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The neo-conservatives and neo-liberals would have us believe that the hospitals are under-funded because of money issues and/or the economy. It’s a Toxic Myth. Public health care is far less expensive than private health care. If we continue to take money out of the public system and privatize (i.e P3 hospitals) we, the tax payers, will end up paying much, much more.
Too bad your friend didn’t have some kind of recording device to film the bedlam and possibly put it on the internet.
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