Yes, today is Bambi’s little treat in life. She will have the opportunity to
reply to Mr. Nasrallah ?. For those who do not
know him, he is the Chief/Leader (or Secretary General) of the Hezbollah
in Lebanon (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ideology_of_Hezbollah).
Further below, you will see a screenshot of the speech text, published in
the Naharnet.
Nasrallah: I will deliver another speech within days to talk
about the domestic Lebanese affairs, the governmental situation, the port’s
investigation and other issues.
Bambi
is eager to comment to your speech (and lies) then. Thanks for the heads up.
Nasrallah: Some suppose that Iran will rely on its proxies and
friends in retaliating to Soleimani’s assassination but this is not true…
Iran is not weak, Iran is strong and it can retaliate at the appropriate time.
Thank
you for reassuring Bambi on Iran’s strength. She can sleep better tonight!
Nasrallah: The commander of the Aerospace Force of the
Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran did not say that the resistance is the
frontline for defending Tehran.
We do
not care what he said. ENOUGH, Mr. Nasrallah. For God’s sake.
Nasrallah: If there is a chance to benefit from the oil and gas,
this will only happen through the blessings and missiles of the resistance.
“blessing
and missiles of the resistance”, everything is said in this sentence. No
further comment is needed.
Nasrallah: We are among the must independent resistance movements
in history.
“Independent”:
If you say so ?,
but Mr. Nasrallah, on which planet do you live? Planet Hezbolistan maybe? Who
died and made you a Farsi King?
Nasrallah: Iran’s support for the resistance in Lebanon is not
conditional and it is aimed at defending Lebanon’s land and sovereignty.
WOW.
How noble of them! Amazing their holiness and kindness toward Lebanon.
Nasrallah: It is true that we are a frontline and that Gaza is a
frontline.
You/your
organization are the frontline, but your country (Bambi means Lebanon, not
Iran) DOES NOT want to be a frontline for any foreign entity anymore!! ENOUGH!
Gaza is free if it wants to be an Iranian frontline, but
is this the wisest vision for the Palestinian people?
Lebanon has paid a huge price for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict/Palestinian cause, for Iran, for Syria, for every single problem in the world… Enough! Indeed, a few years ago, Bambi was chatting with her mom on the phone, she heard gunfire. She asked her mom to be careful. The latter checked her TV, only to learn from the breaking news that a man went on his balcony to fire some bullets for… Chechnya, it turned out. Can you imagine?
Nasrallah: Lebanese media outlets have distorted and falsified
the remarks of Iranian general Hajizadeh.
No
clue what you mean. Whatever.
Nasrallah: Since the year 2000, the resistance has been
protecting Lebanon against the Israeli enemy through the golden equation.
What do you mean by the “golden equation”? Bambi thinks you mean the trio of the population-the army-and the resistance or something both stupid and dangerous like that. In reality, this means the Iranianization of Lebanon ☹.
Nasrallah: I ask the Lebanese people who supported Lebanon in
liberating its land? Who stood by the Lebanese and protected and defended them?
Who supplied them with arms to achieve the 2000 liberation?
No
comment.
Nasrallah: Iran did not abandon Lebanon and Syria despite its war
with Iraq.
Wow. How noble of the Iranian regime. Amazing.
Nasrallah: In Lebanon, we are concerned with thanking and appreciating
the person who stood by us ever since the Israeli invasion.
Please
Mr. Nasrallah, give us a break…. He stood up by your side because you are his
proxy or you are him or his country before being a honourable citizen of your
own. As a reminder, it is the war among Iran (always by proxy, it is their
specialty), the USA, Israel, and your Hezbollah that destroyed Lebanon in 2006
and killed so many innocent people.
Nasrallah: We should honor these martyrs and offer respect and
gratitude to them.
OK. We hear you.
Nasrallah: We are loyal to our martyrs and greats. There is a
duty to be loyal towards these great two leaders.
Correction here: You are Lebanese. Why is your loyalty to
Iranian “martyrs” and “greats”? Why not be loyal to your own country, for a
change? Whilst at it, can you also perhaps offer your condolences and loyalty
to your own people (some toddlers) who died during the Beirut port explosion of
August 4, 2020, who are struggling to feed their families, or to find
medication to ease their ailments?
Nasrallah:
I offer condolences to the family of the martyr Qasem Soleimani, the Iranian
leadership and the family of the martyr Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.
OK. No problem with offering condolences. Their families will appreciate it. May everyone rest in peace in life, including them. The problem is when we keep seeing their ugly pictures everywhere in Beirut and when Lebanon pays the price of their murder. Lebanon does not care, Mr. Nasrallah. Lebanon must honour its own generals, not foreign ones (in this case, Iranian ones). So why don’t you stop imposing their huge pictures to your fellow LEBANESE citizens?
Isn’t it sad to see the level of collective stupidity
in today’s Western societies?
In the UK, “a teacher with a Mediterranean and Jewish
heritage is left bewildered as his trade union insists he is
black – despite him telling them he is not”:
In an article by the CBC entitled “Québec artists band together to confront systemic racism through music”, we get to read a rather silly article trying to create another (false) narrative about systemic racism of Québec.
The article focuses on so-called
black Québeckers (who by the way are simply Québeckers or neo-Québeckers like
everyone else, including Bambi and many of her loved ones).
As shown below, the music and the video promote the agenda of radical movements like Black Lives Matter (BLM). The production shows pictures that make reference, using people with a black skin, to the OKA crisis (of 1990) and the Canadian Armed Forces (without its intervention, God knows what bloodshed would have occurred then). Some even wave the Mohawks flag. Others pray in the Muslim way. The underlying message being on how Québec oppresses these people.
Why those stupid yet
racist clichés and slogans?
Why the disrespect of Indigenous, Muslim, cultural minorities, an entire province-nation, and even country (i.e., Armed Forces)?
What is happening South of the border is no longer about the Republicans (i.e., Mr. Trump) or the Democrats (i.e., the duo of Mr. Biden-Ms. Harris). What is unfolding under our eyes is about democracy (or lack of) and it is sad, if not worrisome.
Bambi can understand when such behaviours occur in third
world countries (yes, including her own birth country), but not the USA. She does
not understand. Even if we dislike Mr. Trump, what he is denouncing (fraud) is
SERIOUS and deserves to be addressed with as much objectivity and decency as
possible.
It is not about the Republicans. It is not about this
odd President. It is about democracy. Period.
Bambi is saying so, after having watched a couple of
hearings about those claims of fraud.
She is saying so and she is not a Mr. Trump supporter.
She is just observing from far.
For her, all the phenomenon resembles more totalitarianism
than anything else. It is even scary.
For example, we read Canadian media titles and
articles deviating our attention from what is unfolding, but telling us gossips
about how Mr. Trump and his wife argue about their renovations (https://nationalpost.com/news/world/trump-moody-and-angry-over-melanias-mar-a-lago-renovations).
Honestly speaking, does anyone care about a couple’s conversations or fights, assuming
it is authentic information?
Plus, are we reading silly media in countries in the
third world during civil war times? Or are we reading serious articles?
Is it normal not to see any single article explaining us the two versions and the debate and letting use our own judgment, to come to the conclusion that Mr. Trump is out of his mind or not.
Yes, Mr. Trump may not have the most assembling
personality in the world. How could you when you would likely score so high on narcissism
tests?
Let’s be fair to him also, the media has not treated him well since Day 1. He is not one of the elite and he is vulgar, which does not help his case. Yet, he is followed by many on his Twitter (even Bambi reads him, especially lately. She even laughs at his style ?. For instance, she heard his Christmas message. A nice message with Ms. Melania minus the part on Christmas. It was a turn off for Bambi and yet she has the same Christian faith in her heart. He insisted on reminding us how much Jesus is the Messiah, the savour… he referred to the Bible, and blahblahblah…).
Regardless of this funny video, she does not know
about you, but for Bambi, what matters the most in solving the world’s problems
must be the actions of politicians, not their taste in renovations or in women
(or men!). Not even their direct and often awful words about colleagues.
Policies affect people’s lives, domestically and worldwide.
Taste in decorating one’s home does not.
To come back to the issue of claims of elections’
fraud, regardless of the winner, we must be concerned. Why? Because countries
matter more than one single leader or one single political party. Countries
must always come first and be above. Bambi has seen what happens to a country
when partisanship, pandering, corruption, and militia rule. The whole world has
an example of not-to-do in politics: Please do not Lebanonize the United
States, with or without Mr. Trump.
First, here is an article by 961 from which we learn that “The United States Senate passed a resolution that highlights Hezbollah’s responsibility in the tragic Beirut Port explosion that left more than 200 dead, thousands more injured, and billions in damages.”
Is Hezbollah responsible?
And if so, what about the criminal negligence of ALL those Lebanese politicians who knew about the ammonium nitrate at the port since 2013 and remained silent.
Why is the US Senate now passing this resolution, and not earlier?
Do they have access to new information we do not have?
Or is it related to all the military tension in the region?
Second, here is a tweet by Lebanese-Canadian journalist Roula Douglas informing us that the Lebanese Caretaker Minister of Information, Ms. Manal Abdel Samad, is suggesting the creation of an annual prize to honour the victims of the Beirut port blast.
Pathetic, to say the least… Thank you, Ms. Douglas, for your straightforward comment: “We need a conviction first. We need the truth. We need to see those responsible behind bars. It was a crime. Not a natural catastrophe”.
On which planet does the Lebanese political elite live?!
If the Lebanese politicians’ memory is too short, here is song for them by Algerian singer/musician Cheb Khaled that he kindly released to pay tribute to Beirut in the weeks following this disaster. It is entitled “Elle S’appelle Beyrouth” (= Her Name Is Beirut). He dedicated the revenue of his music to the Lebanese Red Cross. Bambi had the chance to thank him in a earlier post (below).
May 2021 bring better days for Beirut… and for all our planet!
First of all, Bambi would like wish you a Happy/ier
2021!
Second, she would like to take the opportunity to
thank her readers for being faithful. Some even take the time to post comments
on this blog or write to her directly.
You may sometimes agree. You may sometimes disagree.
Of course, she does not pretend to even be right.
Of course, her opinion is never set-in stone (only the
principles). The rest can and would change, according to new data/updates,
according to more thought into a topic, etc.
She just reassures you that, whatever she is posting on this blog, she is doing it with authenticity. She loves writing and she loves people. This blog allows her to enjoy both. Communicating with her readers a pure selfish pleasure. It is as simple as that. This is why she does it on almost a daily basis, despite tight schedules most of the time.
For her, being direct in life and speaking our mind is
what matters the most (of course, if you want to know more about the motivation
behind this blog, you can refresh your memory with the “About” section).
For Bambi, being genuine (i.e. via direct communication) is what she does/hopes she does in her relationships. For her, this is a sign of respect of people and she cares for the latter, both those she may agree with at times or disagrees.
Third, all this being said, Bambi would like to share a funny video of Best Wishes for 2021. Thanks to Robert (her father-in-law) for emailing it to her:
Last but not least, she will now share a scientific article,
very well translated into lay language, by Dr. Richard Béliveau, published
today in the Journal de Montréal. It gives us hope about the pandemic.
Thank you Dr. Béliveau!
OK, now, if you want to trust Bambi’s own quick
translation, here you go!
“5 reasons to
be optimistic with the arrival of 2021
Scientists
have made extraordinary progress in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.
The year 2020 was marked by an unprecedented effort by the international scientific community to better understand the coronavirus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic, to adapt drugs already available so that the mortality due to this disease decreases, while developing in parallel vaccines and new therapeutic agents capable of neutralizing the virus and putting an end to the pandemic. It is quite a program! But the good news is that science has achieved some real successes and there are at least 5 reasons to be optimistic about the year 2021.
1. AT THE TISSUE LEVEL: the mechanisms responsible for the aggressiveness of this virus have been identified
From the first months of the pandemic, it became apparent that COVID-19 presented an atypical clinical profile very different from common respiratory infections. Of course, the lungs are the main organs affected by the infection, but the virus also causes the appearance of extremely bizarre clinical disorders for this type of infections, including failures of several other vital organs (heart, kidney, brain). which greatly increase the risk of mortality.
One of the main factors responsible for these peripheral attacks is the very dangerous inflammation-coagulation duo. In some patients, the inflammatory response elicited by the infection becomes so disproportionate that it causes more harm than the virus itself: this is commonly referred to as the cytokine storm, a phenomenon characterized by the fact that immunity becomes anarchic and no longer manages to correctly distinguish the enemy to be fought (the virus) from the cells of the individual.
In addition to causing damage to the lungs and other organs, inflammatory shock can also lead to the formation of abnormal blood clots (thromboses) which block the flow of blood to vital organs (lungs, heart, brain, kidneys) and can cause several serious accidents (heart attack, stroke, pulmonary embolism, kidney failure) which increase the risk of death.
A positive point: The importance of the inflammatory and coagulation reaction in the pathogenicity of the coronavirus means that the damage caused by the infection can be substantially reduced by specifically treating these disorders, even without effective drugs against the virus. It is for this reason that very common anti-inflammatory drugs like corticosteroids have been shown to be among the most effective in reducing mortality in patients with severe forms of COVID-19.
2. AT THE POPULATION LEVEL: we better understand the risk factors for clinical complications of Covid-19
It is now clearly established that the severity of COVID-19 varies widely from person to person and that certain factors can significantly accelerate the development of serious illness.
Age
Age is by far the main risk factor for severe COVID-19: in Québec, 73% of deaths caused by COVID-19 have occurred in patients over 80 years old, while these deaths are extremely rare in young adults and children.
Only 0.5% of deaths affected those under 50, or 45 people out of more than 8,000 deaths, for all of Québec and for the duration of the nine-month pandemic; Remember that cancer alone kills more than 60 people a day in Québec.
The constant decrease in the effectiveness of the immune system as we age contributes greatly to this increased vulnerability of older people to the virus. This is especially true for men, whose immune response is weaker than that of women and also declines more rapidly with age. In Québec, the data collected to date show that the standardized death rate is approximately 30% higher for men than for women.
A positive point: The effectiveness of basic non-pharmacological interventions (mask, ventilation, basic hygiene, social distancing) is now well demonstrated and these very simple actions are now adopted by the vast majority of the population. The arrival of a vaccine should not cause relaxation, but on the contrary, encourage us to redouble our efforts for a few more months to protect this vulnerable population.
Comorbidities and obesity
A recent analysis by the National Institute of Public Health of Québec (INSPQ) reveals that 97% of deaths caused by COVID-19 occurred in patients with comorbidity, that is to say that they already had another disease at the time of infection.
Since aging is often associated with a significant increase in the incidence of several chronic diseases (diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular, respiratory and kidney diseases, among others), there is no doubt that these diseases contribute to the rate. high mortality from COVID-19 observed in the very old.
These comorbidities also affect some younger people and can increase the risk of developing life-threatening complications of the disease.
This is especially true when it comes to obesity: several studies carried out around the world indicate that obese people are more likely to be infected with the coronavirus, to be hospitalized to treat the infection and to die from the disease.
In adults under the age of 60, a segment of the population that should not normally be at high risk for complications, the risk of developing a severe form of COVID-19 is twice as high in obese people than in patients of normal weight.
Several factors explain this negative impact of being overweight: 1) the lungs of obese people do not function optimally (the rib cage of obese patients is compressed by excess fat), so they are more susceptible to lung infections; 2) obesity causes several imbalances in the metabolism (insulin resistance, hyperglycemia, chronic inflammation) which favours the development of pathologies (hypertension, dyslipidemias, type 2 diabetes, kidney and liver diseases) which are all important factors risk of mortality from COVID-19; and 3) Obesity disrupts the immune system and makes it less effective in fighting infection.
A positive point: The pandemic clearly shows that infectious diseases preferentially target the most fragile people and are therefore inseparable from the general state of health of the population. If there is one positive lesson that the coronavirus could teach us, it is that our society is surprisingly passive in the face of the alarming rise in obesity and several resulting chronic diseases that are hitting our population hard, including youth. Much more can be done to encourage the adoption of healthy lifestyles that can reduce obesity and improve healthy life expectancy, while reducing the disastrous impact of infectious diseases like COVID-19 on society.
Vitamin D deficiency
Several recent studies indicate that vitamin D deficiency is associated with an increased risk of developing severe forms of COVID-19 and of dying from it. This association is particularly problematic in winter, as shorter hours of sunshine cause an increase in the number of people deficient in vitamin D in the midst of a period when there is an increase in transmission of the coronavirus.
A positive point: Taking supplements containing 1000 IU of vitamin D daily is certainly a simple way to decrease the risk of complications from this infectious disease, until the vaccine is widespread.
3. ON THE MOLECULAR LEVEL: our better knowledge of the biochemistry of the coronavirus makes it possible to neutralize it effectively
Science advances by accumulating a set of discoveries which, taken together, allow us to better understand a phenomenon and identify its main characteristics.
In the case of the current coronavirus, it was the accumulation of these small advances on similar viruses that made it possible very quickly to make giant strides in understanding the main stages involved in its infectious action.
New drugs
Studies on the structures of two coronaviruses responsible for smaller epidemics (SARS in 2002 and MERS in 2012) had indeed shown that the peak-shaped structures on the surface of this family of viruses are absolutely essential to allow their entry into the cells.
It was quickly observed that an identical phenomenon was at work for the current coronavirus, that is to say that a protein present at the level of its spicules (the S protein) has a very strong affinity for a receptor called ACE2 present on the surface of cells (especially those of the respiratory system and blood vessels) and that the interaction with this protein facilitates the translocation of the virus inside the cells where it can reproduce.
The very high-resolution molecular structures of the proteins involved in this interaction have already been determined by electron cryomicroscopy and, in the longer term, they should enable a whole new generation of antiviral drugs to be designed to block the entry of coronaviruses.
A positive point: Even though the virus was unknown only a year ago, we could immediately focus on what was to turn out to be the molecular Achilles heel of the virus, the S protein, without which it cannot succeed. infect and reproduce in our cells. The majority of vaccines target this virus protein, suggesting that other phase 3 vaccines will be just as effective.
4. IN THE IMMUNE LEVEL: the immune response to the virus is excellent
Globally, the death rate associated with COVID-19 is estimated to be around 1%, indicating that the immune system is successful in neutralizing the virus in the vast majority (99%) of cases.
This is also supported by several studies showing that the infection causes the production of antibodies capable of neutralizing the virus by blocking the S protein, which is absolutely essential for its entry into cells.
Pillars
The other pillars of the immune response, in particular the two types of T lymphocytes (CD4 + and CD8 +) which eliminate infected cells, are also strongly activated, which allows a coordinated immune response and above all the development of a lasting memory that will allow rapid neutralization of infection upon repeated exposure to the virus.
Moreover, although cases of reinfection have been reported, these situations seem extremely rare and are not associated with the development of severe forms of the disease.
A positive point # 1: Very efficient antibodies, capable of neutralizing the virus even in very low concentrations, have been isolated from patients who have survived the virus. These antibodies have been used as a springboard for the manufacture of synthetic monoclonal antibodies, and one of these drugs (bamlanivimab) is now approved in Canada to treat patients with mild or moderate COVID-19 an whose health condition is at high risk of progressing to a severe form of the disease and / or leading to hospitalization.
A positive point # 2: Research has also identified genetic variations (in interferon proteins, our first line of defense against viral infections) that decrease the immune response in 15% of severe cases of COVID-19. These people are at greater risk of being hospitalized, even if they do not have any apparent risk factors. Synthetic interferons that have been used for several years to treat other diseases (multiple sclerosis, hepatitis C) are already available and could be used to treat these very sick patients.
5. AT THE VACCINE LEVEL: vaccines against the virus have extraordinary efficacy
There are currently 61 different vaccines in development and 14 that have reached phase 3 clinical studies, the last step before approval.
Two of these vaccines, manufactured by Pfizer / BioNTech and Moderna, have already been approved in Canada and are starting to be given to people considered most at risk. This is a mind-boggling scientific success considering the fact that the virus was not even known just a year ago, and the structure of its genetic material was only determined last January.
Nanoparticles
These two vaccines consist of nanoparticles containing messenger RNA (mRNA) that dictate the synthesis of the virus’ protein S. When injected into a patient, cells use this mRNA as a springboard to make a fragment of this protein, which allows immune cells to come into contact with this antigen and develop an immune response to neutralize it. Data collected during phase 3 clinical trials indicate robust immunity that results in a 95% reduction in the incidence of COVID-19, a remarkable protection, comparable to some well-established vaccines such as measles.
It should also be mentioned that this viral RNA-based approach allows great flexibility if mutations in the virus modify the structure of the protein targeted by the vaccine and prevent it from inducing an effective immune response.
The production of a new vaccine could then be quickly restarted simply by modifying the mRNA to produce the mutated form of the protein.
This possibility of rapidly counter-attacking in the event of an antigenic drift of the coronavirus therefore represents a huge advantage of this type of vaccine.
Obviously, vaccines will not immediately end the current pandemic. As a first step, the vaccination of the elderly, who are more vulnerable, should rapidly reduce the number of deaths (91% of deaths were over 70 years old); the vaccination of front-line staff should also ensure that we maintain our hospital response capacity.
As a second step, several million doses will be produced, circulated and administered to as many people as possible to achieve group immunity.
It seems very likely that by 2021, enough people will have been vaccinated for the virus to have difficulty finding a vulnerable host to infect.
In this case, even if the virus continues to circulate, the outbreaks will be very small and of short duration and a return to normal life can be anticipated.
CONCLUSION: WE CAN BE SERENE
2020 has been a very difficult year, but
advances in science allow us to look to the future with serenity. What we have
learned from this pandemic will serve us in the future battles against other
viruses. Humanity is emerging from this ordeal and will be better prepared
scientifically, but also at the pharmaceutical, political, decision-making and
logistical levels. The year 2021 will mark the victory of human genius in
overcoming the challenges it faces, as it has done so well throughout its
development!”
Canadians can swallow anything when it has “climate change” attached to it, even an increase in the carbon tax, as per the post below.
This is why Bambi will honour Mr. Trudeau with the above assembled picture, using the green colour (for his fake “Green” colour).
Bambi will allow herself to use the words of Mr. Maxime’s Bernier’s PPC platform from last year and which was one of the reasons she has chosen to vote for his new party during the last elections: “… But a carbon tax won’t do anything to protect our environment. All it will do is increase costs on business and kill jobs. Increasing the price of fuel and the price of electricity will put the price of everything up. Businesses will be forced to choose between keeping employees on payroll or paying the hydro bill.”
Here is an interesting article in the Toronto Sun entitled “OPINION: Trudeau’s gift of higher heating bills and gas prices“:
To conclude this post, how odd the timing of this increased so-called carbon-tax in the middle of a pandemic where airlines are running at very low capacity, where some airports in the world are completely closed (e.g., Kuweit, Saudi Arabia, etc.), where other airports are almost empty, and where airline companies are going bankrupt around the globe:
From a strictly climate-related perspective, the current pandemic sad times may be a perhaps good pause from pollution when it comes to the quality of our air worldwide… but what is the point of all this advantage if it comes at the expenses of our (and the world’s) economy as well as everyone’s physical, mental, and financial health? You may not agree with Bambi on this topic, but in all honesty: Do you like paying more taxes… and do you appreciate political hypocrisy? She does not know about you, but Bambi prefers authenticity in life… and if she has the choice, she prefers to pay less taxes, if at all possible, even if they are sugar-coated with the word “carbon” or “climate“. In the end, they are still taxes, regardless of their beautiful name.
She read his article immediately after listening to a French CBC interview of Mr. Stéphane Bureau with Dr. Gaad Saad who told us about his thoughtful book entitled “The Parasitic Mind: How Infectious Ideas Are Killing Common Sense”:
It nice to hear Dr. Saad expressing his ideas in French and it is VERY refreshing to see the French CBC publishing/posting such a beautiful, smart debate in our collectively stupid (and dangerous) times.
Whilst listening to the interview, and every time she reads/hears about a story of cancel culture (or censorship), Bambi cannot help not to think about the contrast between our own cowardice in Canada (or resistance to silly or “pathogenic” ideas, to use Dr. Saad’s own words) and the courage of people who live under unfair situations, oppression, or occupation elsewhere in the world. Of course, she thinks of Lebanon and the courage of citizens like her own dad who did not fear militiamen or all the occupiers of Beirut. She thinks also of her own attitude during civil war. She specially thinks of the current courage of the people of Beirut and Lebanon who dare to express their opinions and dare to defend other citizens and the truth/principles, knowing that they risk jail or the ultimate cancellation (= murder).
So, please Canadians, be courageous, especially those of you in positions of power. Do not surrender to the few who terrorize the silent majority in the name of social justice or of this or that.
Be like the host that Dr. Saad interviewed once (and mentioned in his interview above). The person is from Irak and dared to stand up to ISIS! So why can’t we stand up to a couple or a few triggered individuals? What are we afraid of?
Anyhow, as you can see immigrants/refugees, both older and newer ones, do not usually fall into the trap of “pathogenic ideas”. They have the utmost respect for the Western world that has opened its arms wide open for them. They know it is far from being perfect… but it remains like heaven compared to the wars and armed conflicts they have escaped.
So, if Mr. Trudeau, ever falls on an article like the one below or on an interview/article like the one above, it would be a good idea to keep the above observations about newcomers in mind. They may even decide not to vote for his party anymore because they tend to be true classical liberals like Dr. Saad and Bambi (the latter is even a past Liberal voter). Please Mr. Trudeau stop endorsing our world’s stupid ideas and keep doing the good work you do from time to time. Thank you.
To conclude this post, here is a quick translation of Dr. Facal’s article for you:
“Rest assured, I will not inflict another column on the pandemic on you.
What has not been said on the subject?
Sophie Durocher wrote yesterday that she wonders, at the end of each year, which word best sums up the last twelve months.
I spontaneously thought of “censorship”. Then, I changed my mind in favour of “cowardice”.
Triggered?
2020 will have been a year in which restrictions on freedom of expression continued to escalate.
Buried under the number, I stopped compiling cases of shows or works of art withdrawn due to complaints, of schools suppressing a book, of professors suffering the wrath of susceptible students or of directors who fall into the camp of wolf packs.
At the root of all these censorship cases are people in positions of authority who have refused to stand up and explain why they would not bow to calls for suppression.
They preferred to buy peace on the back of an unfortunate man and a fundamental principle.
It is in this sense that cowardice paves the way for censorship.
You have to admit that we are living in strange times.
You can invoke your individual freedom to go party in an all-inclusive [resort] and turn into a walking viral bomb.
But it becomes problematic to invoke your individual freedom to express an opinion if it offends the sensibilities of just one person in the audience.
You don’t even have to be guilty of anything anymore.
Worse, it is no longer even required to verify the motivations of the one who says he/she is shocked.
If the person says he/she is upset, that’s enough to prove him/her right. He/she holds virtue.
His/her emotion creates a new rule of conduct that he/she wishes to see applied to all who follow.
Since there will always be someone who complains, imagine a society that bends over every protest.
We would be, in the words of jurist Pierre Trudel, “drawn into the wringer of arbitrariness”.
If all it took was a complaint from one person or a small group, it would also spell the end of irony, innuendo and subtlety.
A screed of lead descended on people’s minds, reducing us to talking about the weather and the next supper.
However, the law exists precisely to limit arbitrariness, and our laws, let us repeat, already contain multiple limits on freedom of expression.
If this right needs to be adjusted, let it be discussed and done, but right now it is the selective indignation of a handful of loudmouths that too often sets the limits of what is acceptable.
A wake-up call
Basically, it’s less complicated than you think: if something offends, but cannot be sanctioned by an existing law, it must be allowed.
It is therefore up to the authorities seized of the censorship request to explain why they will not comply.
Yes, that takes courage, the complete opposite of hypocritical, sugar-coated and puritanical cowardice before our eyes.
May 2021 be the year of the wake-up call [“du sursaut”]”.
The findings of the systematic review above suggest that “older age, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus conferred a significant increased risk of mortality among patients with COVID-19. In the multivariate analysis, only diabetes mellitus demonstrated an independent relationship with increased mortality. Further studies are needed to ascertain the relationship between possible risk factors with COVID-19 mortality.”
Indeed, the authors of the study concluded the following:
“Among the demographic factors, age is one of the most important factors
affecting mortality, and in our study, age was significantly associated with
increased mortality. Studies have shown that the age-related defects in immune
cell function and increased production of inflammatory cytokines may play a
role”.
Another important demographic factor seems to be the male
sex. Indeed, the studies that they included in their systematic review, which
were assessed for the quality of their methods, showed that “the male gender
is also a risk factor for severity and higher mortality”.
From where is Ms. Harris getting her data? If she is thinking of urban deaths, perhaps yes, more of the groups from the ethnic background she is referring to, live in dense households or urban centres? Perhaps seniors live with younger family members?
Given the above, is “race” (Bambi prefers a term like “ethno-linguistic background”) the closest proxy to the above?
Mind you, it is also likely that some groups (i.e.
African-Americans) may tend to have hypertension or other medical comorbidities
(or co-occuring compromising health conditions) such as obesity or (related) diabetes
mellitus, which may increase the mortality risk.
Perhaps they will be reluctant to seek medical help (i.e., high costs), but are the United States that bad that they do not treat their poorer citizens? Even bankrupt Lebanon is offering public health care to covid-19 patients and all the vaccination (starting only in February) will be free of charge.
Anyhow, to come back to Ms. Harris’s tweet, when we
hear or read her saying the “climate crisis is an existential threat to all
of us—particularly poor communities and communities of color who bear the greatest
riks from polluted air, polluted water, and a failing infrastructure” and
that this is what Mr. Biden “will be tackling on day one”, how can we
trust she is genuine on that one too?
Maybe it is just Bambi who is skeptical about the authenticity
of this politician?
Maybe Bambi is wrong?
Wrong or right, had she been American and with her as a choice to vote for, Bambi would have skipped as she is allergic to identity politics.
BOTH Iran and Saudi Arabia are now ahead of Lebanon, when it comes to the equality between men and women. Can you imagine the irony and the insult to the Lebanese women and the injustice to their children, especially in a supposedly secular and much more open-minded country!?
Indeed, Saudi Arabia has a citizenship law and Iran has just improved its more recent law, allowing Iranian mothers to give the citizenship to their offspring:
Good for both Saudi Arabia and Iran for these reforms. Bravo for this step forward.
Sadly, in Lebanon, up until today, only fathers married to non-Lebanese citizens can give their citizenship to their children. Not mothers! How logical and fair is that?
