The death of a Polish man at Vancouver International Airport has created quite a fury, both in Canada, and abroad. Robert Dziekanski, 40, of Pieszyce, Poland, arrived at the VIA and spent 10 hours waiting - appearantly waiting for his mother to meet him. Toward the end of his 10 hour wait, he began to act a little strange - by the accounts of onlookers. Airport security showed up and proceeded to notify the RCMP. What happened just before RCMP arrived, to the point when Mr. Dziekanski lay dead, was captured on video.
The video shows a very distressed man who was speaking a language that was not English. Three RCMP officers arrive, exchange a few words, proceed to encircle the man and ultimately taser him to the ground - not once but twice. Moments later, the man dies.
This is an unbiased view of the video tape of the death of Mr. Dziekanski. I would encourage you to view the video on YouTube and make your own observations.
The job of a law enforcement officer is a difficult one. They are faced with dangers everyday. Just like any job, there are rules regulating how the job is to be done. As with most jobs, personal safety is first and foremost, most things are secondary. Law enforcement personnel are given tools to help them do their jobs. These tools include, but are not restricted to: Pistol, mace, attack dogs, baton and taser.
Certain situations require a different 'tool'. It seems that the preferred 'tool' in the case of Mr.Dziekanski was the taser. I'm not an expert on the taser, but I do feel that it was extreme in this case. Mr. Dziekanski was visibly agitated and acting strangely, but not aggressive toward people. When three RCMP officers addressed him (in a language that he could not understand) it appears he did not seem to be a threat to the officers. It's not like he openly resisted or defied police orders - whatever they might have been. So why make such a quick decision to taser him? I'm not quite sure why 3 RCMP officers could not have 'jumped' him in order to subdue him. If they wanted to employ a 'hands-off' method, how about pepper spray? Here we have a man that gets off a plane, unarmed, so why is he thought of as being a threat requiring subduing from a taser? Why not wait to see if you can get a translator? Why not try...
The use of the taser appeared to be aggressive, and ultimately caused the death of a man who did not appear to be a threat. The 3 RCMP officers involved in this case should be held to account according to the laws by which they are governed. It would seem that many things went wrong on that day at the VIA, and I do anticipate positive changes within the law enforcement community that will minimize the chances of anyone else dying at the end of a taser.
Peace
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Saturday, September 29, 2007
A Day Out
Mom's Cape Breton Kitchen
So we started our day out having breakfast at Mom's Cape Breton Kitchen on Estevan Rd. in Nanaimo. We first arrived and tried to find a clean table. After our fifth table search, we had found a reasonably clean one. We ordered breakfast. One order of eggs over hard, bacon and white toast and one order of eggs over medium, bacon and white toast. The wait was your typical wait. The food arrived. The over hard eggs looked over done, but examination of the yolk showed otherwise. The over medium eggs were not too far from the over hard eggs. The toast wasn't hot, but the bacon and hash browns were alright - my wife did not like them. All I can say is that we felt that the breakfast was not all great - mediocre at best.
Alice's on Nichol
Now there is a place where you get value. You get service, you pay reasonably, and you get get a decent portion, the place is clean - and the food tastes good! What more do I have to say? The place may have the feel of a cafeteria, but is that really so bad? The two occasions that I've been there have been great. I like to see that effort gets rewarded.
How about Mrs. Riches?
I'm not quite sure who there interior designer is, but it looks like whomever it is likes the BC bud! Just kidding. The place is a cross of a tasteful junkyard, entertainment nostalgia and photo album. My wife and I had coffee and a piece of pie. Not really anything to talk about, so I'll let you know about the food when I actually have some! I'm looking forward to it! Oh - Mrs. Riches is also the site of the monthlt Philosopher's Cafe. The next meeting will be on October 22 - 2007 -from 7pm to 8pm. You can show up for dinner at 5pm. I'll probably show up, but I want to find out what the topic of discussion will be. I'll keep you all posted when I find out.
Till then,
FMF
So we started our day out having breakfast at Mom's Cape Breton Kitchen on Estevan Rd. in Nanaimo. We first arrived and tried to find a clean table. After our fifth table search, we had found a reasonably clean one. We ordered breakfast. One order of eggs over hard, bacon and white toast and one order of eggs over medium, bacon and white toast. The wait was your typical wait. The food arrived. The over hard eggs looked over done, but examination of the yolk showed otherwise. The over medium eggs were not too far from the over hard eggs. The toast wasn't hot, but the bacon and hash browns were alright - my wife did not like them. All I can say is that we felt that the breakfast was not all great - mediocre at best.
Alice's on Nichol
Now there is a place where you get value. You get service, you pay reasonably, and you get get a decent portion, the place is clean - and the food tastes good! What more do I have to say? The place may have the feel of a cafeteria, but is that really so bad? The two occasions that I've been there have been great. I like to see that effort gets rewarded.
How about Mrs. Riches?
I'm not quite sure who there interior designer is, but it looks like whomever it is likes the BC bud! Just kidding. The place is a cross of a tasteful junkyard, entertainment nostalgia and photo album. My wife and I had coffee and a piece of pie. Not really anything to talk about, so I'll let you know about the food when I actually have some! I'm looking forward to it! Oh - Mrs. Riches is also the site of the monthlt Philosopher's Cafe. The next meeting will be on October 22 - 2007 -from 7pm to 8pm. You can show up for dinner at 5pm. I'll probably show up, but I want to find out what the topic of discussion will be. I'll keep you all posted when I find out.
Till then,
FMF
Some Good Eats In Nanaimo
Hi all:
For any of you out there in the digital domain who are not familiar with this site, I do like to throw in the odd layman food critique. So, here I go...
A few Sundays ago, I had the pleasure of spending some of my time in downtown Nanaimo. The bunch of us stopped by a couple of cafe's, but the one stop that grabbed our attention was a little place called Pirate Chips. Aside from the place looking a little worse for wear, the food that we had was not too shabby. Since I was a kid, I've grown to dislike Cod fish, but the stuff i got at Pirate Chips was awesome! The chips/fries were really neet too! The breading on the fish is light and tasty and the chips/fries seemed double crunchy - really good all around. To finish our experience, we had a deep fried chocholate bar and some ice cream - great for the sweet tooth in some of us. The prices are reasonable, but the seating arrangements have a little to be desired - there is a small row of seats inside and a couple of spots outside. It would suit a take-out application just fine if it wasn't for the lack of parking. I still give Pirate Chips a good grade.
Cheers,
FMF
For any of you out there in the digital domain who are not familiar with this site, I do like to throw in the odd layman food critique. So, here I go...
A few Sundays ago, I had the pleasure of spending some of my time in downtown Nanaimo. The bunch of us stopped by a couple of cafe's, but the one stop that grabbed our attention was a little place called Pirate Chips. Aside from the place looking a little worse for wear, the food that we had was not too shabby. Since I was a kid, I've grown to dislike Cod fish, but the stuff i got at Pirate Chips was awesome! The chips/fries were really neet too! The breading on the fish is light and tasty and the chips/fries seemed double crunchy - really good all around. To finish our experience, we had a deep fried chocholate bar and some ice cream - great for the sweet tooth in some of us. The prices are reasonable, but the seating arrangements have a little to be desired - there is a small row of seats inside and a couple of spots outside. It would suit a take-out application just fine if it wasn't for the lack of parking. I still give Pirate Chips a good grade.
Cheers,
FMF
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Open Letter To Theists Of Any Ilk
Hello All:
My title should read "Open Letter to Theists Who Think That They Need To Do god's Work On Earth". The one common attribute that is given to any "god" is that they are "all powerful". So why is it that all of you "faithful" are busy trying to take care of god's justice? Are you implying that he is NOT as powerful as you say? You say god created the universe, the stars, the earth and everything else, so, if he wanted to condemn a person (a puny little person) why are you doing it for him? I get a kick out of all you god loving yahoo's out there who think that you're doing god's work. If he is a powerful as you think/say - why do you intervene? What's even funnier is if something bad should happen to me you would say that "god is punishing you". There is nothing more stupid that a person could say or think something like that - but that is exactly the way so may theists think.
I could go on and on. You should have the idea by now, if not, you should probably watch some TV evangelist to make you feel all better.
The truth is that god was an invention of the human mind. An invention to first explain things, and now an invention to suppress humanity.
My title should read "Open Letter to Theists Who Think That They Need To Do god's Work On Earth". The one common attribute that is given to any "god" is that they are "all powerful". So why is it that all of you "faithful" are busy trying to take care of god's justice? Are you implying that he is NOT as powerful as you say? You say god created the universe, the stars, the earth and everything else, so, if he wanted to condemn a person (a puny little person) why are you doing it for him? I get a kick out of all you god loving yahoo's out there who think that you're doing god's work. If he is a powerful as you think/say - why do you intervene? What's even funnier is if something bad should happen to me you would say that "god is punishing you". There is nothing more stupid that a person could say or think something like that - but that is exactly the way so may theists think.
I could go on and on. You should have the idea by now, if not, you should probably watch some TV evangelist to make you feel all better.
The truth is that god was an invention of the human mind. An invention to first explain things, and now an invention to suppress humanity.
Ok, call me a dud:(
It's been a while. So? Shoot me.
I haven't been reading as much as I'd like, but I still have something to say about something. I just finished reading a few essays by Ayn Rand (Objectivist philosopher). I have to say that much of what she proposes makes a lot of sense to me - and obviously many others. But it does lack appeal. I'll give you some of my observations and opinions at some other time, it's late and I need my beauty sleep!
See ya
M
I haven't been reading as much as I'd like, but I still have something to say about something. I just finished reading a few essays by Ayn Rand (Objectivist philosopher). I have to say that much of what she proposes makes a lot of sense to me - and obviously many others. But it does lack appeal. I'll give you some of my observations and opinions at some other time, it's late and I need my beauty sleep!
See ya
M
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