There is a common assumption that Adolf Hitler was elected to the position of Chancellor of Germany. That isn’t strictly correct. In 1933, the Nazi Party held the most seats in the Reichstag (although not a majority) and traditionally that meant its leader was appointed Chancellor. However, President von Hindenburg
Continue readingTag: United States
Views from the Beltline: The cluster bomb curse
The United States recently took a step towards civilizing war, if war can be in any way termed civilized. Last Friday the US Defence Department made history by destroying the last chemical weapon in its military arsenal. The US Senate ratified the Chemical Weapons Convention in 1997 and it began
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Happy birthday, US of A
Today our good neighbours to the south are celebrating their country’s birthday—its 247th. Two hundred and forty seven days of democracy, the longest ever. The second most famous democracy—ancient Athens—lasted a mere 185 years. Like Athenians, the Americans began their democracy with some rather serious omissions. Slaves and women weren’t
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Preaching misogyny
The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is the biggest Protestant denomination in the US, descending from Baptists who settled in the American colonies in the 17th century. The southerners broke away from their northern brothers and sisters in 1845 over the issue of slavery. Supporters of slavery then, they are supporters
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Johnson, Trump and contrasting ethics
Boris Johnson and Donald Trump are two buffoons who embarrassed two major democracies by their election to national leadership. Both are now gone and much good riddance. Both are also now in disgrace and facing punishment for their sins. On Monday, the UK House of Commons ratified a parliamentary committee
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Canada smokes New York
Good neighbours share. But what Canada is sharing these days with its good neighbour to the south is not appreciated. I refer to the dense plumes of smoke from our manifold wildfires which are darkening skies and smothering cities across the continent, in our country and theirs. On Tuesday, New
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Republican trans phobia
People generally like to keep things simple. Black and white, right and wrong, men and women. But of course things generally aren’t all that simple. More often than not there are annoying shades of grey. Gender would seem simple. It’s all determined by our sex chromosomes. Women have two X
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: The secret is equity, not wealth
No society has ever created wealth like the United States. And no other society does today. Its dynamic capitalism with freer markets and smaller welfare states than other industrial nations puts its economy consistently in the lead. In 2022, the U.S. accounted for a full 58 percent of the GDP
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Americans aren’t so American anymore
A recent survey funded by The Wall Street Journal showed some dramatic changes in the attitudes of our neighbours to the south. For example, two of Americans’ most cherished institutions, religion and patriotism, have suffered a major decline in their popularity. Since 1998, those saying religion was very important to
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: How Americans came to love pot
Reading a Pew Research Center study about Americans and marijuana, I was surprised how rapidly support for legalization rose, and to what heights. From 16 percent support in 1989 edging up to 32 percent at the turn of the century and then soaring to 89 percent by 2019. Fifty-nine percent
Continue readingSaskboy's Abandoned Stuff: Debunking A MAGA Video Against EVs
I got a mass email two days ago with a video attached of the Republican McClintock spouting lies and misdirection about EVs, oil, climate change, and his place in history. The sender apparently didn’t realize how they were being manipulated into sending misinformation to their contacts. “Harry sent this to
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: More good news from down south
Starting with the election of Joe Biden in November 2020, U.S. election results have been looking rather good. The midterms in 2022 were predicted to produce the usual midterm result—a rout of the incumbent president’s party. To the delight of the Democrats and progressives everywhere, it didn’t happen. The Republicans
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: More good news from down south
Starting with the election of Joe Biden in November 2020, U.S. election results have been looking rather good. The midterms in 2022 were predicted to produce the usual midterm result—a rout of the incumbent president’s party. To the delight of the Democrats and progressives everywhere, it didn’t happen. The Republicans
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: America may be broken, Canada not so much
Americans long had a reputation for being the world’s greatest flag wavers. According to a recent cross-border study by the Angus Reid Institute, that may no longer be the case. At least not relative to Canadians. Judging by a number of criteria, Canadians are a lot happier with their country
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: America may be broken, Canada not so much
Americans long had a reputation for being the world’s greatest flag wavers. According to a recent cross-border study by the Angus Reid Institute, that may no longer be the case. At least not relative to Canadians. Judging by a number of criteria, Canadians are a lot happier with their country
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Iran and Saudi Arabia make nice
The Middle East has been an ugly place for some time. It has become humanity’s favourite region for killing each other although Vladimir Putin is attempting to return that honour to Europe. It was good news therefore to hear that two of the region’s major belligerents have decided to kiss
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Iran and Saudi Arabia make nice
The Middle East has been an ugly place for some time. It has become humanity’s favourite region for killing each other although Vladimir Putin is attempting to return that honour to Europe. It was good news therefore to hear that two of the region’s major belligerents have decided to kiss
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Jimmy Carter—a noble life
I was saddened to hear that former U.S. president Jimmy Carter has gone home to die. A statement from The Carter Center read “After a series of short hospital stays, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter today decided to spend his remaining time at home with his family and receive hospice
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Finally—Democrats romance the working class
Early in the 2016 U.S. presidential election campaign, Donald Trump was the subject of much mockery. No way this buffoon could win said the pundits. Michael Moore, left-wing rabble-rouser and and film-maker, disagreed. To put it in his words, “This wretched, ignorant, dangerous part-time clown and full time sociopath is
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: The welfare state and the American dream
The American founding fathers had a vision of a roughly equal society. At least for white people—others didn’t count in either the Declaration of Independence or the Constitution. Equality was to be based on the economic asset that mattered most in those pre-industrial days—land. Even the poor would have a
Continue reading