Briarpatch articles from February 2005

Briarpatch archives from February 2005

Antibacterial = antilife = antihuman.(Openers)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... An antibacterial chemical, commonly found in soaps, deodorants, toothpastes, cosmetics, fabrics and plastics, has been repeatedly shown to cause health and environmental effects, while promoting the emergence of bacteria that are resistant to...

Test tube troubles.(Steven Kurtz, Critical Art Ensemble under trial)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Dr. Steven Kurtz, still faces USA bioterrorism-related charges after eight months of investigation by the FBI and USA Joint Terrorism Task Force. His science equipment, identical to that contained in a grade ten science lab, was stumbled upon...

Bad drug hotline.(adverse drug reactions, mandatory reporting)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Federal Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh recently announced changes heralding the introduction of mandatory reporting of adverse drug reactions by physicians and other health professionals. This is an important step toward the regulation of...

Holocaust survivors after Bush.(George W. Bush)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Czech people who survived the Auschwitz Nazi concentration camp have asked George W Bush for $400 million USA in compensation. His grandfather Prescott Bush, who possessed a steelworks factory, made deals with the Nazis during World War II to...

Penny for your thoughts on crime.(police departments, salary hike)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Regina mayor Pat Fiacco has announced a pay hike for the city's police officers of close to 11 percent. This comes at a time when most provincial government and crown corporation workers are being forced to accept a 0-1-1 wage cap. ...

Back off, Yanquis!(Bastion 2004, Cuban military drill)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... For several days in December, Bastion 2004 was engaged to prove the Cuban people's unity, defence capacity and readiness to deal with foreign military aggression. The military drill, which exceeded high expectations, involved regular troops...

Ooops!(Openers)(Correction Notice)
February 1, 2005... In the December 2004 issue we published a list of shameful statistics about social assistance in Saskatchewan. They were fine, but we got the credit wrong. The list was actually compiled by Peter Gilmer and the other good folks at the Regina...

Cops as criminals: Saskatoon Smokies are not alone when it comes to misconduct.(Saskatoon City Police)
February 1, 2005... A mid all the concern about and condemnation of the activities of the Saskatoon City Police, it should be remembered that they are no different from any other police force in the country. To illustrate the deep problems that beset police...

Cops are people in your neighbourhood: who's really to blame for the death of Neil Stonechild?
February 1, 2005... The findings and report by Justice David Wright following a recent public inquiry into the freezing death 14 years ago of Neil Stonechild, a Saskatoon Aboriginal youth, have recently been published. In 1990, the Saskatoon City Police...

Devon Floyd: writes and performs music as his method of reflection and communication on political issues in Canada and around the world. Floyd is in conversation with Chelsea Jones.(Artist's Voices)(Interview)
February 1, 2005... Chelsea Jones: Why do you choose music as your medium of political expression? Devon Floyd: I've always been musical and I feel like it's a good way to get messages across to people. They might not listen if you're standing there...

The Tale of the Battered Few.(Poem)
February 1, 2005... The Tale of the Battered Few They rotted in like the thunder Their mission, straight from above They claimed to save the people from themselves Like the stories of the blessed one And many chose to believe...

Tattered genes: for scientists and regulators, the precautionary principle goes out the window with the wave of a cheque from Monsanto and we find ourselves guinea pigs in the GMO experiment.(genetically modified organisms)
February 1, 2005... New technologies that allow scientists to transfer genetic material across species boundaries are being widely used, but the potential risks are either ignored or downplayed by government regulators, corporate investors and the scientists...

Poisoning ourselves: pesticides prove to be the number one cause of the onset of Multiple Chemical Sensitivity.(Pesticides in Our Bodies/A Toxic Legacy, conference)
February 1, 2005... With trepidation, I recently attended a conference in Montreal, Quebec on Pesticides in Our Bodies/A Toxic Legacy. The room for 450 people was almost full, and the coverage of the conference by Quebec media was remarkable, outstanding, and...

Canadian compassion.(local sufferings ignored)
February 1, 2005... There was this mother and father of several children. Most of the time the parents kept the children locked in the basement, fed them scraps and dressed them in rags. The parents worked very hard at maintaining an appearance of normalcy to...

Ethanol ethics.
February 1, 2005... Provincial governments are rushing to build ethanol plants to turn grain into fuel. Proponents claim that ethanol production will create jobs and economic development, and help raise grain prices. Others dispute these alleged benefits. A...

Petroleum's reign: when Henry Ford introduced the first of his Model T cars in 1908, ethanol was the fuel used.
February 1, 2005... The Oil Age began quietly in the 1850, when it was shown that crude oil deposits could be tapped by drilling through rock, and crude oil could be refined into purer hydrocarbons. Before the mid-1800s, coal and biomass fuels served as the...

On the road to somewhere: the story of recovered factories in Argentina.(Cover Story)
February 1, 2005... December 2001. The hatred, the poverty, the sadness and despair that had accumulated in Argentina for years exploded onto the TV sets of the whole world for a couple of days. People running around on the streets, fires, police, tear gas, five...

Canada's complicity in the ongoing massacre: Haiti's a mess. That's about as much as we get from Canada's dominant media.
February 1, 2005... Many Canadians know that on February 29, 2004 Haiti's democratically elected president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, was sent into exile. But few of us realize that most Haitians believe Aristide was overthrown by a coup d'etat orchestrated by the...

What if ...? Canada rejects Christ as "failed" refugee claimant. Jesus to be deported on national security grounds despite fears of persecution.
February 1, 2005... On December 20, 2004, a few days shy of his birthday, a young man by the name of Jesus Christ had his refugee claim rejected by Canada. Christ, who had already been locked up in a solitary confinement cell for many months, now faces...

Two Worlds Colliding.(Movie Review)
February 1, 2005... Two Worlds Colliding Saskatoon, January 2000. It's a bone-chilling -20 C when Aboriginal man Darrell Night finds himself dumped on the city outskirts by two police officers. Night survives the elements by making it to a nearby power...

Don't skip the meat: take the sane agricultural challenge.(My Opinion)
February 1, 2005... My name is Ranald MacFarlane, I am a livestock farmer, and I fear that society has lost it's sanity when it comes to agriculture and food. I was watching TV one day and there was a short information spot in the show with Dr. David...