SpankyMcFarland

Tax havenry undermines public trust in the rule of law at home and abroad. In the West, it leaves the road open for Trumpism and, in the developing world, it strengthens the jihadis and other nihilist forces. A large chunk of money from poorer countries in these havens has been stolen or represents the proceeds of other crimes like bribes. This creates deep cynicism about our intentions. Unfortunately, the country at the heart of this murky trade is Britain - in particular, the City of London, Dependencies (e.g. Channel Islands, Isle of Man) and Overseas Territories (e.g. the British Virgin Islands). Without a hint of shame, Dave Cameron is happy to lecture others about aggressive tax planning while his own family benefited from an offshore vehicle (sounds like a Mercedes) set up by his father.

If China fails to rein in North Korea, I would see Japan going nuclear and possibly South Korea too. They cannot tolerate increasingly brazen missile flights across their territory indefinitely. China is also becoming more assertive and at some point the US may no longer have the stomach for a confrontation far away. Under such circumstances, there's nothing like having your own deterrent ready to go.

It should be implemented ASAP here and across the Western world. The cartels would take a big hit.

Who is that question for? I support legalization. Marijuana is safer than alcohol on nearly all fronts which doesn't mean it's completely safe. No drug is.

It's well to approach this topic wth humility. We don't know for sure what would happen with legalization. As usual, there will be unexpected problems. Some of the ones we know of are: 1. Lung disease. 2. Psychological and neurological effects on teenagers. 3. Problems operating machinery and cars. 4. Assessing the blood level of the drug in drivers. Apparently, handheld devices are coming out.

They should leave him in place for a few years. JT will probably be less popular by then and may have had to move rightwards fiscally, creating more space on the left for a fresh face to contest the next election.

The performance of Canadian teams looks worse in recent years. It would be nice to see a statistical analysis.

I don't mean to sound like a Leaf hater. It's a bit unfair to pick on them. My impressions were formed as an immigrant in Alberta in the golden days of the Oilers and Flames and I've kind of stuck with that ever since. And I do understand that a basic reason for pro sports everywhere is to make money. I just think there should be a greater connection between profit and performance at the team level as there is in pro soccer in Europe. Some good things about the franchise system for fans are that it levels the playng field and ensures an even spread of teams across the continent but its anti-meritocratic approach to losing is a flaw. Very rich owners pay no serious penalty for failure. It is just odd to me that most people in North America don't seem too concerned about that aspect.

The Leafs just seem like outstanding offenders. They have the most resources of any Canadian team and have done very little to justify their inclusion in the league of late.

A while back I got all the Floyd albums on iTunes and found the pre-Meddle stuff a lot harder to get into.

OK, five. 1. Live and Dangerous - Thin Lizzy 2. Dark Side of the Moon - Pink Floyd 3. Ziggy Stardust - D. Bowie 4. Led Zep II 5. Argus - Wishbone Ash

Marc Bolan died the same day as Maria Callas.

I find trophy hunting repulsive but that doesn't stop me eating meat. Properly managed hunts can assist in conservation efforts. One problem is the elimination of dominant males from the gene pool and another is law-breaking loons like this dentist. One minor peeve - shouldn't that be 'phenomenon of public shaming? I fear the singular form may go the way of the great beasts before long.

Trump's recent blunder on abortion was extraordinary for a Presidential candidate. He seemed to be figuring out his policy position as he spoke to Chris Matthews. You can't do that with abortion.

Oh dear, we are going to have one of those conversations. I think the President still has a role in nuclear weapons policy? The button reference is shorthand because my posts rarely go beyond five lines. Trump's statements this week about possibly using nukes in the ME and Europe were noted across the world. His ignorance of the nuclear triad was picked up by Bush at the debates. The guy is not competent for the job he seeks. He gets attention because he is a complete jackass.

He is completely unpredictable. There was a concern about Reagan and nukes at first but he turned out to be more reasonable than he let on. With Donny it really is impossible to know what button he might press in a fit of pique. Witness his casual discussion about nukes for Japan and South Korea his week. Any other candidate from either party would be less worrying from that point of view. He would probably behave sensibly in office but I hope we do not have to find out.

I was here a few weeks ago: http://taphousegrill.com 160 beers on tap and good food too. My only small complaint was the large number of IPAs - German wheat beer is more my thing - but I bravely persevered with a few of the hoppier local brews and survived the experience.

Hockey has a lot going against it these days - time, cost, safety. Add to that a chronically bad team in the biggest market and it's not hard to see why other sports are being chosen.

I just spent ten days in Seattle. What a great city, to visit at least, surrounded by mountains, sea and lakes, and friendly too. Admittedly, the hobos are numerous but they can be hard to distinguish from the hipsters who tend to dress down. Lots of excellent beer on tap, although I'm not a massive fan of IPA.

Go on, as Jon Stewart used to say. It's a pretty spot with decent weather, a bit far from my relatives and friends. I had always assumed it was out of my price league. Earthquakes wouldn't be a big worry.

Interesting division of opinion among pathologists on whether Scalia required an autopsy: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/21/health/antonin-scalia-autopsy.html Autopsy rates are declining across North America.

The dispute combines multiple elements. It's the new cause after the end of Apartheid involving a member of the western club. I am not saying it is Apartheid but merely that our journalists have easy and comfortable access and there are lots of English-speakers on both sides. Many similar fights in Africa go unnoticed because they are much harder to cover.

Rue, you may want to condense those posts a bit. My attention span runs to about five lines before I shut down. Linkies help. War crimes by Palestinians, Arabs, Muslims? Sure, lots of them. If you're looking at Muslims in general, the slaughter of Communists in Indonesia really leaps out in its magnitude. Lord knows what is happening in Nigeria right now. For Arabs, Iraq and Syria come to mind. I think war and war crimes are inseparable. By international standards, Israeli war crimes are small beer. In my book, the biggest 'crime' by Hamas is continuing the war. They don't seem interested in governing and will bring their people nothing but misery.

It has a great deal to do with the thread topic - antisemitism is often now given as the sole reason for Palestinian actions - and I have excluded NOTHING from the discussion. I am not saying it is the ONLY reason but to claim that land is not part of the cause of the conflict between Arabs and Israelis is utterly and wilfully absurd and yet it appears more and more in North American narratives. Of course, when anybody in the West points out these truisms, there are also shrieks of antisemitism which intimidates a lot of people into silence, that being the intent. It's funny how the right has embraced this particular form of political correctness hook, line and sinker. I put to you a simple question - is land not central to this dispute.

Fee-for-service physicians should be on the list. At the moment, people think some salaried physicians on he list are the high medical earners which is definitely not the case. By all means, get an accountant in to calculate the benefit of billings after real expenses but publish what they go home with. For some cardiologists, radiologists and ophthalmologists, the sums going into their personal corporations are colossal, way more than general surgeons who confront a wider range of challenging procedures.