August1991

I paid $4.50 for the ride back to Montreal. The view is remarkable. If you are a tourist to Montreal, do the ride. You are on the bridge but higher than any truck driver. You will see Montreal in a different way. Noisy, but it works.

The federal government paid for the bridge - it was part of the US-Canada federal Seaway. In fact, Harper made all this possible. And Charest. And Sabia. It is extremely hard to get things done. Charest and Sabia did it. ===== BTW, my mother took the REM today. For free! (She stayed in Zone A and she's over 65.) It reminds me of the Moscow new Ring - or Bangkok's metro.

Now is the time to get out bad news. Biden's son. Trump's indictment. Trudeau divorce.

Our federal House of Commons has some 300 people. The popular vote of these people determines our federal Prime Minister. This is what I meant. ==== But this federal Prime Minister is restricted by our provincial prime ministers (depending on our federal Supreme Court). But ultimately, this Canadian federal Prime Minister dictator is restricted by religion and language. This was my point.

Robosmith and reason10, Knock it off. This is a Canadian forum. We get along

I have never been to Haiti - or the Dominican Republic, for that matter. How such societies fall into such dysfunction? Dunno. But the "do-gooder foreigners" have probably caused more problems in Haiti. The "tourist foreigners" have probably helped the Dominican Republic.

Capitalism? Capitalism is "this piece of paper means that I own that real thing over there". Capitalism is symbolism. It is a deed. A share. A bond. It is gold. I have a way to claim something real. I don't need to have the real thing; I merely to have the claim on the real thing. ==== Creative Destruction? It is part of life.

People in Quebec through forced savings paid for this building. (IOW, I had less food so someone else could eat while building this REM.) The REM was paid from the RRQ - my savings. I frankly think this is a good way to organise a society for public infrastucture. This is how the Americans organise their Social Security. It is pay as you go. At issue, how best to build this REM.

To understand better my thinking: -while the workers/builders were building this infrastructure, they (the builders) produced nothing of use -but everyone else had to feed these builders/workers

All politics is local.

Apparently, this Ottawa rapid transit has been a disaster. I live in Montreal. My mother, over 65, now rides the STM with a simple swipe - no cost to her. I have a Bixi fob - about $100 per year. It works. ==== I have not used the REM. I walked around the long queue on Saturday. Quebecers love new.

Australia, New Zealand? Perhaps as a place to live in peace - but raise children and give them potential? The UK? France? ===== Canada - like Switzerland - is remarkable because we have different languages, different religions - and we get along. But in Canada, unlike Switzerland, and Europeans, we Canadians teach -show- foreigners how to be like us. We Canadians get along. On s"entend.

Helsinki? The Finns have no idea how to teach foreigners. Like Norwegians, they are Lutherans - clueless . Americans - it is their way, or the highway. Guns. China? Gimme a break. We Canadians are a civilised society. We are rich - but we get along. ===== Unlike in Oslo, Stockholm or Helsinki, in Canada, different people get along.

Corrected again. The Brussels of 2020s is no Montreal, let alone what Lemberg (Lvov) once was.

I am a Canadian. We are divided by language. (In the past, we were divided by religion.) ===== IMHO, you Americans are now seriously divided. Please, for the good of the world, get along. Be Canadian.

Good point.

I have been to various places in Ukraine. In Lebanon. Sri Lanka. This war - death and destruction - could have been avoided.

Obama: don't screw this up Trump: best for me Bush Jnr: my dad was wrong, I win Biden: I win

This forum is wonderful. I can post links for posterity ==== BTW, there were seven more episodes.

It is no joke. You Americans are clueless. ==== Obama and Trump avoided all this, in their own way. Bush Jnr and Biden are stupid, differently.

I strongly disagree. We must be a society of life. ===== The world does not lack for children. It lacks educated children.

WTF?

China? The military-industrial complex? The Oligarchs? Big Pharma? ==== I am no defender of Putin. He is a tough thug in a country of tough thugs. This awful war that started in early 2022 could have been avoided. I blame the US federal bureaucrats/politicians - even our Canadian bureaucrats/politicians could have done something. They all could have done something to avoid the terrible death and destruction.

The US media: NBC etc? No, I don't. I have been to these various places that they describe. What they say is false. ===== Look. I understand the Shirley Valentine point that Americans always talk about themselves. That's a given. I have no problem with the fact that Americans are loud, self-centred, direct every question to themselves. My problem is that most of the American media have decided to do the same with America itself. As a foreigner, it was normal. Biden and the Democrats have become the husband in Shirley Valentine.

This war in Ukraine is nothing like World War II -defeating Nazis or Tojo. It is not like the Cold War either. To me, this is like a stupid Balkan War that could engulf us all in much worse. ==== In various treaties/understandings immediately after 1945, we created a structure of peace. It worked until the late 1980s. Now it is being severely tested. If I looked for a European parallel - as an optimist, it would be 1848 or 1870. As a pessimist, it would be the Balkan Wars.