Blatchford could have learnt from Jack Layton

It's fitting his death is a public spectacle - National Post today.


What a pathetic, ill-timed, inappropriate, vainglorious piece of journalistic spectacle expectorated by Christie Blatchford. As I listened to the news today somebody was quoted as saying, "She has the right to write it, I have the right to trash it."  I couldn't agree more.

As someone who has cancer myself I have to ask what or where is the journalistic ethic of pitting one cancer sufferer against others? Or of comparing one grieving family against others? Her behaviour in writing this "piece" is common and completely lacking in the common touch - something she could certainly have learnt from Jack Layton. Stephen Harper himself could teach her a lot about largesse and a spirit of generosity - and regular readers of this blog will know that I am not a fan of his.

This sort of "journalism" is fit only for the garbage.

A Visit from Claire

Ingrid and I were favoured by a visit from our 13 month old granddaughter yesterday. We had not seen her in over a month and could see big changes. She was walking very confidently and making a lot of baby conversation with all the right adult intonation. In amongst the babble was a "wha'at?" accompanied by a finger pointing and, later, an "Eddie" while pointing at a print of a cat by Rosina Wachtmeister. This later turned into repeated utterances of "Eddie-ya-cat" when Claire kept returning to our bedroom where the picture is hanging. It was all very cute. For those who may not know, "Eddie" is the name of the Boothroyd's cat at home - a grey cat that looks nothing like the Wachtmeister depiction but the resemblance to a cat was enough to set Claire going.

Claire also kept us entertained by deliberately dropping some puzzle pieces off the edge of the couch, watching our reactions, and then climbing off to pick them up again. I'm sure it doesn't sound like much to the reader but Ingrid and I thought this was all very clever :-) I once read somewhere that grandchildren are the reward for not murdering our children when they were teenagers.

Claire Climbs up; Claire Climbs Down

Miriam sent us these videos of Claire this evening. I love Claire's chuckle of delight at her accomplishment.

Claire climbs up (YouTube)



Claire climbs down (YouTube)

The toxic politics of famine - The Globe and Mail

This is an excellent analysis and well worth the read. My only reservation is in the conclusion that the underlying problem is exclusively political. The 12 million people at risk of starvation are not exclusively Somalis.

The Globe and Mail: The toxic politics of famine - http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/opinion/the-toxic-politics-of-famine/article2119982/?utm_source=Shared+Article+Sent+to+User&utm_medium=E-mail:+Newsletters+/+E-Blasts+/+etc.&utm_campaign=Shared+Web+Article+Links
Sent from my BlackBerry