Margin Notes: Pirates, Police, Duceppe, Calendar

TORONTO, ONTARIO - Just about everyone has heard about the increasingly bold attacks by Somali pirates to take over just about any type of ship off the eastern coast of Africa. What I cannot believe that I had not heard until reading an opinion piece by Katie Stuhldreher in the Christian Science Monitor was that the whole piracy crisis started with violation of local fishermen's rights by foreign fishing vessels. Of course, a Somalia with a functioning, legitimate, and adequately powerful government is a pre-requisite to returning the region to some degree of normalcy, but I had no idea how the pirates' self-legitimacy was traced to loss of fisheries.

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This exhibit at Toronto's Police Museum on 5-December-2008 introduced the visitor to cannabis paraphernalia

I checked out anti-crime measures on a much more local level this week by going to the Toronto Police Museum on College Street between Bay and Yonge. This was a worthwhile visit, as amongst other things I learned that the Toronto Police first used a one-way radio in 1935, and had two-way radios starting in 1946, which both struck me as quite early. Other highlights included an early semaphore-like traffic signal and a 1920's-era jail cell.

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Another thing I finally did in my third holiday season in the Toronto area was to take the Neighborhood Bus Tour of the Cavalcade of Lights. I don't recommend doing it--just walk down Yonge Street, through Yorkville, and around Nathan Phillips Square, and the majority of the lights on the tour will be seen. The tour guide I had didn't even provide any notable quotations.

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The quote of the week had to go Bloc Quebecois leader Gilles Duceppe, who may be the only leader who will come out of the current political crisis strengthened in any way. Asked about whether he would support a Conservative budget in January, Duceppe stated (in English), "Well, if my grandma had wheels, she'd be a tractor." Apparently, this is a French saying to point out the absurdity of a premise. Duceppe's grandmother didn't have wheels, and the Conservative budget won't be supported by the Bloc.

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Speaking of Duceppe, much has been made about the fact that Canadians outside Quebec do not have the opportunity to vote for his party. I would like to see someone run a poll to find out how many people WOULD vote for a Duceppe-led party outside of Quebec. I would not be surprised if there would be a measurable amount of people that would look past the separatist portion of his beliefs and decide that Duceppe is a more realistic and effective proponent for social justice than the Liberals or even Jack Layton of the New Democratic Party.

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Layton and Liberal leader Stéphane Dion appeared together at the pro-coalition rally in Toronto on Saturday. One wonders when Dion's final public appearance as a party leader will be. As Chantal Hébert stated on The National, "Cats may have nine lives, but Stéphane Dion has nine deaths." He might only be on number four or five, though my count is closer to twelve.

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Twelve, of course, being the number of months in a year. It's time to think about calendars for the year 2009. While I recommend supporting groups such as the Friends of the 4449 steam locomotive or the Swansea Historical Society in Toronto by purchasing their calendars, I do make my own railroad calendar each year with a photograph for each month that I took in that same month of the preceding year. My 2009 calendar is finished and a preview is available. If you'd like one, contact me and I'll make sure you're in on the less expensive bulk order. It was a little weird to find my 2008 calendar essentially everywhere I went on my November trip to Washington state.