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Tag Archives: people

Language and words

23 Thursday Apr 2020

Posted by larrymuffin in life

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

Canada., Communism, Feminist, language, Nazi, PEI, people, vocabulary, words

For some time now I have notice and am sure you have noticed also that on social media and in society at large there is an insidious agenda being promoted by so called Social Justice warriors about words and language and how to use them as part of the promotion of the ideology of political change in society.

In Canada we see discussions on what words to use (you should use) and what words you should not use. Words that should be purged from the vocabulary. Recently the Canadian media and here in PEI in particular describe the work of nurses, hospital staff, first responders and doctors dealing daily with patients and Covid 19. You will hear the word Hero to describe these people it is part of the general parlance. Our Chief Medical Officer in PEI is Dr Heather Morrison, a brilliant woman, well spoken, calm and she has the ability to describe difficult topics in simple terms every one can understand. She is highly respected and the Media and people in general describe her a Hero.

Words also used to describe the Covid 19 pandemic is the word War, we are at war with this virus and must defeat it to save ourselves collectively. Many heads of Government have use the war terminology to attract the attention of the public to the seriousness of the matter, there are still doubters out there.

Another term is Victory Garden, which historically were planted by urban populations to grow food during the second world war and afterwards when rationing was still on.

Now here in Charlottetown population 36,000 we have quite a few activists whose agenda is to change the world which usually means imposing their world view as the only correct one. They see this pandemic as their chance to transform and change the world. These same people want certain words banned from our vocabulary. Vocabulary is described as either Patriarchal or Masculine, oppressive and anti-women. They describe the word Hero as a masculine patriarchal word and should not be used when speaking of women in action as in a health care setting. What should we call such women?  What term or adjective should we use to describe their work or actions?

War on the virus is also wrong according to these same activists because it implies that there is a looser, in this case the virus. But this word War is a masculine word and expresses the violent aggressive nature of all men, they say. The idea being promoted here is that women do not engage in War and are not aggressive, they are bold, nurturing, compassionate. Girls and women can be bold, the term is used to described women in life as bold. So the lady cashier at the grocery store is bold in the face of this pandemic. The nurse is bold in her action in the ICU, but do not call them heroes.

As for the word Victory garden well again the phraseology is masculine and should not be used. Women achieve success by convincing, reach consensus through respectful and inclusive communication. So a garden you plant is just a garden to nurture and nothing else. How about Community garden, would that be ok as long as you make sure to indicate that women are leading.

The list goes on, Cisgender also appear now in describing in social punditry, you are a cisgender male which denotes or relates to a person whose sense of personal identity and gender corresponds with their birth sex. You cannot be, when speaking, just male.

All this jargon is political and we are encourage strongly by activists who seek to change the world to use such phraseology when speaking. If you don’t you will be shamed aggressively either in public or on social media. All this reminds me of the Cold War and the type of Marxist, Maoist or Stalinist ideology, people were cosmopolitan (not a good thing) bourgeois hoarders, revisionists or reactionaries. Are these activists the heirs of the Cold War diatribes and its sickening phraseology?

Another terms which use to be in vogue prior to 1989 was Third World countries to describe a country going through economical development but not having achieve the same level of economic prosperity as a country like Canada or other countries in the Western World. The term Third World was coined by Mao Tse Tung the Chinese dictator who died in 1976. He was describing a world following a Marxist dialectic. So the First world was all Western Imperialistic countries enemies of Communist China. The term “Second World country” was used during the Cold War to refer to the industrial socialist states that were under the influence of the Soviet Union. Second World countries were the Eastern bloc of communist-socialist states and Mao’s China. Third World countries were any other country not aligned with either power.

Now I was told that you cannot use the term Third world countries anymore it being a masculine pejorative word and instead use Developing or emerging nations. When it was pointed out that Mao had invented or coined this term, there was much confusion, Mao who? I also hope that no one is under the illusion that Mao was a feminist, according to his personal doctor and people around him, he was more a Harvey Weinstein kind of sexual predator with poor hygiene.

So what I see here is an effort to control language and how people express themselves in order to direct how society should be transformed along the ideological lines.

A term used by the media currently is the word vulnerable. Persons who are vulnerable to Covid 19 because of certain characteristic are more at risk of becoming seriously ill. However these activists seek to correct the media in general by insisting that the word vulnerable can only be used for women who are single parent or single women, who are poor or oppressed by the male patriarchy in society, victims of social inequalities, etc. The word vulnerable should not be used to described people who are sick with the virus, they do not fit their ascribed definition.

Finally the extremely sad case of the past weekend in the Province of Nova Scotia where a mad man killed 23 people and set fire to 5 houses and some cars while dressed up as a police officer driving a car that looked like a police cruiser. The worst mass murder incident in Canadian history. The media gave a description of the man and is background who he was in an effort to inform the public.

The media was attacked in an article in Now Magazine by Pam Palmater a known Native activist/feminist for giving a description of the murderer and his background, her argument was that doing so the white male dominated media was glorifying white male aggression and downplaying what he had done, in a way excusing it all. She then went on to say that all violent crimes in North America are committed by White males and linked it to Timothy McVeigh the Oklahoma City bomber.

It seems that in periods of crisis like the one we are going through right now bring out the social justice warriors and their change agenda. The world may very well be different after this pandemic or if history is any guide, very little will change, because humans in general do not like change.

Is it not better to listen, to seek a plurality of points of views and to use a wide vocabulary in everyday conversations? Should we not be firmly against this idea of dictating to others how to speak or think and what words to use or not use to suit the  political agenda of the moment. This type of activist agenda is nothing more than thought control, more common with Authoritarian regimes like North Korea and China.  Unfortunately such activists believe that their way is the correct one but in the end all they actually do is divide society in times of crisis.

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Stay HOME!

27 Friday Mar 2020

Posted by larrymuffin in Rome, Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Covid 19, Health, home, Italy, message, people

This little film is basically saying to all people living in Rome, don’t be stupid tonight just stay home. This way Rome will remain the Rome we know and love and we will all be safe. A simple message for all easy to follow. Italy has been hit very hard. Not all people have been careful. Enjoy this gentle poetic video addressed to us all.

 

Change of plans

16 Monday Mar 2020

Posted by larrymuffin in life

≈ 10 Comments

Tags

Covid 19, Ego, French, language, people, Quebec

Today Monday 16 March the Prime Minister J. Trudeau informed Canadians that our borders are closed to all with the exception of Canadian citizens returning home who are not sick nor have symptoms of Covid 19. American Citizens can still come in if on essential travel, read Trade/commercial trip, but this could change at any moment. Also only four airports will be allowed to screen international flights, Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto/Pearson and Montreal/P.E.Trudeau. All goods and services coming in are not affected under Trade/Commerce.  Here in PEI just a few moments after the PM spoke our Premier Dennis King declared a Public Health Emergency meaning that the Chief Health Officer can enforce mandatory self-isolation at home, close down a business and not allow public gatherings. Funerals may also be forbidden meaning no wake or gathering for a service. Here in Charlottetown PEI the streets are very quiet, no traffic and only one or two persons walking. People are conscious of the situation but often see the problem in the other not themselves, thus calls to close the border to exclude foreigners.

Many businesses have already announce they are closing for the time being, my barber is one and my favourite Coffee shop and the Art Gallery, this also includes theatres, sports complex. All Canadian ports are closed to cruise ships until July. Health Services are focused only on Emergencies and Essential services, anything non essential or elective is deferred until a later date, this includes dental offices. This is not surprising given the limited ability of PEI Health which now is stretched due to this Pandemic. We only have one confirmed case but 120 people have been tested because they met a criteria for such a procedure. You cannot be tested for Covid 19 because you would like to, you must have symptoms and the authorities are strict about that. In total in Canada some 25,000 persons have been tested and only 4 have died out of 424 cases, all death occurred in one nursing home in Vancouver, B.C. Also tonight across Canada many bars and restaurants are closing.

This means that our trip to Quebec City in May is postponed faced with all these restrictions. We can go in the early Fall which is just as nice. Our friends from AZ have been advised and I am told that our Dr Spo is hoping to learn more French this way. He already has a penchant for Foie Gras, Champagne and big Baguette, Oh lala! I see that I will have my work cut out for me. As for Monsieur Quelqu’un I am not sure what is penchant is but I am sure we will find out. I seem to remember that it is for exotic French Cocktails.

It is a stressful time in many ways, you do not want to get sick with the virus and being constantly careful is wearing on the mind. It is also a boring time since what you would usually do is restricted to your home or taking a walk, reading books, surfing the internet, cooking.  Not listening to the news also helps because the news is bad all the time and social comments is dominated by people who understand nothing because it interfere with their personal plans or lifestyle. People have to think in terms of community not self and that is difficult to do in a society which for the last 50 years has been pushing self above all else. At least for now we are not assign to residence like 170 million Europeans.

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The tree is up

14 Saturday Dec 2019

Posted by larrymuffin in Christmas

≈ 15 Comments

Tags

decorations, Food, happiness, HoHoHo, Holiday Season, people, Tree

Will and I have put a lot of effort in having a wonderful tree each year. We carefully collected ornaments from all the place we lived around the World, it is all very personal and full of memories. As we decorate we think of friends gone long ago and those still with us to this day.

Will has always like doing something special at Christmas and he puts an awful lot of effort in preparation and our yearly traditions. This year it is all the baking from Christmas pudding to the many little special treats prepared with care. Then the table for Christmas day with our Christmas good quality crackers, special little bags for each luncheon guest full of imported chocolates and sweets. We have our formula and we follow it all those many years. And one special tradition is to invite people who are on their own on that day for lunch at home with us.

Will we have a White Christmas, that is anyones guess, today 14 December it is pouring rain with high winds and tomorrow it will be 12 C. The Winters on the Atlantic are very different from central Canada, Ontario and Quebec. I do prefer a mild Winter more in keeping with Northern European climes.

So here are some pictures of our tree and goings on at our house in preparation for the Holiday Season.

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Our little Nora, who is back from the groomers and is ready for the Holidays. She is now 11 yrs old but still feisty.  Typical wire hair Dachshund.

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This is a neighbours house, it is quite large and occupies a large lot, C. 1830. Typical Island style, Prussian blue in colour, candles in the windows for Christmas.

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Our 2019, Xmas tree, all decorated with its 42 year old Star on top. Who knew that a gold aluminium star would last so long.

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This year I did the honours of shining the silver balls for the tree.

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I also cleaned those Silver Floral Ornaments made by Towle.

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Wishing everyone Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!

Utrecht

22 Sunday Sep 2019

Posted by larrymuffin in Travel

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

Canada., Holland, Hudson's Bay Co, Mayor, people, Philip Brown, Treaty, Utrecht

While in the Netherlands we decided to visit Utrecht which is 20 minutes from Amsterdam and served by an efficient modern train service. We took the train at Amsterdam Centraal, the train station serves 162,000 people per day, everything is  automated, you buy your ticket from a machine, present said ticket at the automatic wicket and go to the platform. We stored our luggage in the vast storage area of Amsterdam Centraal, again all automated, interaction is with a computer screen, you pay by the day or hour. There is an attendant to help if a problem occurs. There are also attendants at the Information booth to direct you if you are not sure where things are in this vast train station.

The Netherlands, population 18 million is a collection of Provinces,

Drenthe
Flevoland
Friesland (Fryslân)
Gelderland
Groningen
Limburg
North Brabant
North Holland
Overijssel
South Holland
Utrecht
Zeeland

The King Willem Alexander and Queen Maxima live in the Royal Capital of The Hague in the province of South Holland.

Utrecht in the history of Canada plays a role which influenced the political evolution of what was then New France. The Treaty of Utrecht was signed in 1713 and brought to an end the War of Spanish Succession between England and France. The immediate aims of Britain were achieved when the France were driven from the Spanish Netherlands and Italy, and the crowns of Spain and France would not be united.

The treaty recognized Queen Anne as the legitimate sovereign of England and officially ended French support for the claims of the Jacobite party to the British throne. France agreed to restore the entire drainage basin of Hudson Bay to Britain and to compensate the Hudson’s Bay Co for losses suffered during the war.

Moreover, Acadia, whose capital of Port-Royal (Annapolis Royal) had been captured by a New England expedition in 1710, was to pass to Britain, although France continued in possession of a part of the territory (modern New Brunswick) because of differences of interpretation in the size of the territory. Lastly, France retained Cape Breton, where it began to construct the fortress of Louisbourg and Ile Saint-Jean (Prince Edward Island).

Utrecht has preserved its old town with its canals, it is very small area with beautiful houses and mansions, old churches and a cathedral.

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This old church has been converted into condominiums and we lived in a small beautiful hotel just next to it.

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View of the canal from our room. I highly recommend this little hotel in Utrecht, just charming and so well appointed. The bathroom was modern and big with a beautiful slate floor.

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Again hundreds of bicycles parked along the canal. A city designed for people not cars.

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The cathedral steeple under scaffoldings, it is the same height as an Apollo rocket or 112 meters high and dates from 1274 it is separated from the main body of the church because a storm 1674 collapsed half of the cathedral building and it was never rebuilt. Unlikely to be rebuilt now the Dutch are not a church going people.

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In its original complete form c.1294

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Today you can see the missing part separating the Church bell tower from the Nave main back part of the church. It was once the largest church in The Netherlands, it became a protestant Lutheran church in 1580 at the time of the Reformation.

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City Hall of Utrecht next to St-Martin’s Cathedral.

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At the time of the Reformation the iconoclast movement defaced and destroyed all religious images within many churches seen as idol worship. Here we see God the Father, Virgin Mary, baby Jesus and Apostles defaced.

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The Utrecht Train Station area in the modern part of the city. Hudson’s Bay has a large store in Utrecht.

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I took this picture for our Mayor Philip Brown to show him that you can have bicycle parking for more than one bicycle.

Utrecht also has wonderful restaurants, great cuisine. It is a peaceful city and very pleasant to walk around.

We returned to Amsterdam the next day by train but wished we had spent more time in Utrecht.

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The inter-city train comfortable and clean took us back to Amsterdam Centraal in 20 minutes and we collected our luggage and walked over to the Cruise ship terminal next door. Again Amsterdam a city designed for people not cars.

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What to bring to someone’s House as a gift

19 Wednesday Aug 2015

Posted by larrymuffin in Uncategorized

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

Friends, Gift, Millenials, people, rude, Sloppy, Wine, wine gift

You know the old way of doing things, you get an invitation to a dinner party or someone’s house and you think, I have to bring a gift, it is simple courtesy and the polite thing to do.

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When I was a kid in the 20th Century, my Mom would bring flowers and my Dad a bottle of wine. Something he had chosen and by the label the Host and Hostess would see it was quality. My Mom always seem to know which flowers to chose for her bouquet usually something the hostess would like. It always had to be flowers who were not heavily scented, a light fragrance and soft colours. Never roses or white lilies being attuned to the meaning of what some flowers might represent in various cultures.

Usually today people bring wine, a bottle of wine. I never could understand people who  brought nothing at all, especially if it was the first time you visited someone’s home. That is thoughtless and rude and says you do not think much of the host who invited you.

Crowd crossing a street in the night

If you bring a bottle of wine, a little research ahead of time is a good idea, does your host like Red or White Wine. Some people do not drink one or the other, they may have likes for one kind of wine and not for another. There is also the question of how much to spend, here in Ontario where wine prices are well known, you have to be careful, your host may notice that the wine you brought is supermarket quality. There is no need to go overboard in choosing a wine but just a little thought before hand can go a long way.

Experts+Judge+Annual+International+Wine+Challenge+DuD3KXhHrkll

I feel sometimes that those little things in life are lost on people, either people don’t think or say ”it does not matter”, but it does. It is those little things in life that make the whole difference in inter-personal relationships. If you care about people, it will be noticed. Often it is the thought that counts most. It says I care and thank you for inviting me. If you do not want to give wine for various reasons, other gifts like a book, nice chocolates, flowers, a gourmet food item is also good.

The overly relaxed, informal approach to life we see today everywhere leads increasingly to careless attitudes and that is very unfortunate. Better to surround oneself with friends who are caring and cultivate them.

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