Daily Archives: March 8, 2022

The Liberal City Commission met Tuesday evening at the MaHuron Park Building and heard an update on the status of the Gun Range. Discussion was also held on UTV side by sides, and the Commissioners approved a rezone of property from Industrial 1 to Commercial 2. The address is listed as 371 E. Pancake Boulevard and is owned by Monalicia Arredondo.

The commission approved the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise and the advertising thereof for 2 projects at the airport. The Commission also held discussion on mya Quit Claim Conveyance with Park Properties and approved a temporary road closure during certain hours during the school day near MacArthur School.

The Commission was updated on the Lab Equipment and a Septage Receiving Station for the Wastewater Treatment Plant, amended an easement and maintenance agreement, and discussed a name change for Cann Creek. For legal purposes it will now be called Cann Ditch.

The City approved accepting a trust fund grant in the amount of $90,000.00 for repairs to the depot.

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Liberal City Commission Meets, Hears Update on the Gun Range - KSCB News.net

It's getting really expensive to operate a car as gas prices soar, but Ohioans have one big advantage over residents of most states, according to this NerdWallet analysis posted on MarketWatch.

NerdWallet examined car insurance rates in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., and found that the average cost is $1,630 per year with some significant state-by-state variations.

In the most-expensive state, Louisiana, it costs $2,839 per year to insure a car. Michigan is second, at $2,112, and Florida is third, at $2,082.

By contrast, Ohio was among the five least-expensive states, at $992 per year. Ever-frugal Maine led the way, at $858.

The analysis found that in general, "states with cheaper car insurance may have lower levels of required car insurance, more insurance company competition, lower crime rates, lower rates of uninsured drivers, fewer total claims from drivers, drivers who overall drive fewer miles and/or less extreme weather."

Ohio's a little hit-or-miss on those criteria, but we'll take the lower-than-typical rates.

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Does the Fed have a liberal bias? - Crain's Cleveland Business

Its designed to save the seat of the member for Brighton after he almost lost it at the last election. The Liberals support for coal and opposition to renewable energy is well known to Victorians, Ms DAmbrosio said in a written statement.

Mr Newbury is also likely to face resistance from some MPs in his own party who do not see climate as a natural issue for conservatives. At the 2018 election, the state Coalition proposed a new power station, to be fuelled by the cheapest alternative out of coal, gas or renewables. Peak body Environment Victoria lambasted the policies in 2017, arguing the Coalition had gone the full Trump.

Energy, Environment and Climate Change Minister Lily DAmbrosio.Credit:Joe Armao

On Monday, Mr Newbury criticised the Andrews government, saying it had spent years pursuing its renewable energy transition without sufficient focus on securing private sector funding or creating investment certainty for businesses.

The Liberal Party, which sees itself as the party for business, would work more closely with the private sector and accept targets because governments should set thresholds to measure their performance, just like a business would, he said.

Companies will say theyre investing in NSW because we feel theres more certainty thats a very regular comment, he said.

Professor Bruce Mountain, director of the Victorian Energy Policy Centre, said it had been a slow process to create a degree of bipartisanship on energy policy in Victoria. He said cross-party support for phasing out fossil fuels was well established in states including NSW, South Australia and Tasmania.

I havent seen an unequivocal Liberal Party position on decarbonisation, and it sounds like they have one now, he said, adding that it would be beneficial to enshrine interim targets in legislation.

Its good to see they intend to back net zero.

The Liberals will also need to manage the concerns of community groups in western Victoria who, along with a number of Victorian Liberal MPs, do not support a transmission line connecting renewable energy projects from Ararat to Melbourne. A protest against the powerlines will be held at state Parliament on Tuesday.

Mr Newbury has criticised the government for its handling of the transmission lines issue, and has called the government environmental frauds for its tax on electric vehicle drivers.

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The Coalition is shifting its environmental stance as Liberals around Australia grapple with the threat of well-funded independent candidates running on a climate change agenda. The Liberals Party is now facing the threat of losing support to independents campaigning on climate and integrity in politics. Simultaneously, Clive Palmers United Australia Party is pulling the Coalition in the other direction by appealing to suburban and regional voters disaffected by years of strict pandemic measures.

State governments including Victoria and NSW have made renewable energy a central plank of their reform agendas. Victorian Liberal MPs also took note of the recent byelection in Gladys Berejiklians former seat of Willoughby, where her successor suffered a 13.5 per cent primary vote swing and almost lost to an independent. Mr Newbury almost lost the blue-ribbon seat of Brighton at the 2018 election.

Mr Newbury also holds the partys equality portfolio, where he had the difficult task of gaining internal party support to halt proposed amendments of the governments gay conversion therapy ban. He was met with strong pushback from some MPs, including hard-right upper house MP Bernie Finn.

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Were not the party of 2018: State Liberals adopt net zero target - The Age

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) greets South African President Jacob Zuma (R) during their bilateral meeting at the BRICS 2015 Summit on July 8, 2015 in Ufa, Russia. (Photo by Sasha Mordovets/Getty Images)

South Africa's Constitution might espouse the very values that the Western-led liberal order now seeks to defend against Russia, but this country's leaders do not believe in it, writes Pieter du Toit.

On Monday, President Cyril Ramaphosa reiterated the ANC government's position on Russia's invasion of Ukraine by emphasising the need for "meaningful engagement" and "negotiation" between the two countries.

He did this amid Russian President Vladimir Putin threatening Ukraine with its very statehood, saying that the country's future as a legal entity is at stake should its government not comply with Putin's demands. And he did it without recognising that it is Russia who is waging this war of aggression and expansion and by pretending that both countries are somehow equal in this conflict. His argument and statement create the impression that it is merely the willingness to engage that is preventing a ceasefire and a negotiating process from commencing.

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Pieter du Toit | The liberal order is the problem, and that's why Ramaphosa and the ANC support a dictator - News24

With John Majors government in trouble, the Lib Dems threw everything into the by-election campaign. Chidgeys margin of victory would have been even greater had not Labours vote held solid, polling day coming less than a month after the death of the partys respected leader John Smith.

Arriving at Westminster as the Lib Dems 23rd MP, Chidgey criticised the Department of Employment for targeting Big Issue vendors as likely social security fraudsters, and complained that Hampshire, as the most defence-dependent county, had suffered unduly from cuts after the end of the Cold War.

After a spell as employment spokesman, in November 1995 Paddy Ashdown moved him to Transport. Chidgey urged renegotiation of rail privatisation to maximise improvements for passengers instead of benefiting lawyers and accountants, claiming that the process was driven by the manic belief that competition and market forces are the ultimate goal in trying to provide an efficient railway system.

He was not expected to hold Eastleigh at the 1997 election, partly because of adverse boundary changes, but defied the sceptics to win re-election by 754 votes as New Labour romped to power.

That September, Chidgey moved on to shadow DTI ministers, pressing for a crackdown on anti-competitive practices among funeral directors.

In 1999, Ashdowns successor Charles Kennedy made him foreign affairs and international development spokesman on Africa. When he left the front bench after increasing his majority at the 2001 election, he maintained that interest on the Foreign Affairs Select Committee. He also served on the Joint Committee on Human Rights and the Speakers panel of committee chairmen.

He stood down at the 2005 election, when Huhne held Eastleigh by 568 votes, and was immediately created a life peer. For his first two years in the Lords he was a defence spokesman, and in 2009-10 a delegate to the Council of Europe. But increasingly his focus was on Africa.

In 2007 Chidgey was appointed to the governing council of the Association of European Parliamentarians with Africa. The following year, he became chairman of the oversight committee for the Commonwealth Policy Studies Unit.

Later, he chaired or co-chaired the Lib Dems parliamentary committee on international development, and the all-party groups on Africa and the Commonwealth. He was a freeman of the City of London and the Borough of Eastleigh, and a liveryman of the Carmens Company.

David Chidgey married April Idris-Jones in 1965. She survives him with their son and two daughters.

David Chidgey, born July 9 1942, died February 15 2022

Read more:

Lord Chidgey, Liberal Democrat who captured Eastleigh from the Tories in a spectacular by-election victory obituary - The Telegraph

It is astonishing that the so-called intellectuals, progressivist and feminist writers, and human rights and social revolutionaries are completely silent on burqa and hijab

Thehijabcontroversy, which arose from Udupi, Karnataka, looks unlikely to stop. Such demands, which started from the last week of December 2021, are now gaining momentum in other schools and colleges of Karnataka as well. Slogans like No Hijab No Kitab are being raised. In protest against them, at some places, boys and girls of the majority society also started reaching schools and colleges by wearing saffronpatkasand scarves around their necks.

The Karnataka High Court has banned this type of dress (hijabor saffron scarf) in educational institutions till the hearing of the case and advised students to go to school in uniform and educational institutions to start classes. Surely, the court will give its final decision keeping this in view as to what and how much justification is there for such demands in the temples of education. It is not that such cases have come before the court for the first time.

File image of Karnataka High Court. WikimediaCommons

In a similar case, on 15 December 2016, the Supreme Court, while rejecting the demand of Mohammed Zubair, who was serving in the Air Force, to have a beard on the basis of religious beliefs, had said: The regulations and policies in regard to personal appearance are not intended to discriminate against religious beliefs nor do they have the effect of doing so. Their object and purpose is to ensure uniformity, cohesiveness, discipline and order which are indispensable to the Air Force, as indeed to every armed force of the Union.

The Supreme Court in this judgement had upheld the plaintiffs expulsion from service while rejecting the argument that it was mandatory to keep a beard in Islam. Legal experts are also of the opinion that schools, colleges, offices or any institution has the right to decide its dress code. And the students studying in it and the staff working there also have the option not to attend the concerned institution. Everyone has complete freedom in their respective homes, places of worship or prayer to follow the religious beliefs, but since the person goes to the institutions voluntarily, it is necessary to follow the dress code, rules and discipline applicable there.

In a free, sovereign, secular and constitutionally governed country like India, the customs or practices of a particular religion or sect cannot be imposed on institutions. This will create a state of anarchy there. Such a situation will also hamper and affect the spirit of national unity, equality and fraternity. Moreover, in many Islamic countries,burqaandhijabare banned in various institutions. According to Arif Mohammad Khan and other Islamic experts,hijabandburqaare not mandatory in Islam. OnlyKalma, Namaz, Roja, ZakatandHajjare mandatory.Hajj, too, is mandatory only for those who are financially capable.

An Indian Muslim woman holds a placard during a protest against banning Muslim girls wearing hijab from attending classes at some schools in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. AP

The insistence and obsession of wearingburqaandhijabin educational institutions are regressive ideas. These young girls, who are being used as weapons to permeate the politics of religious bigotry and separate identity, may not know that these demands will become their fetters some day. It should be noted that the story of Talibanisation of Afghanistan also started with similar demands and the women and girls there had to pay the highest price. In the name of Sharia law, not only in Afghanistan but also in many other Islamic countries, women and girls have to go through many restrictions and inhuman conditions.

The student-organisation 'Campus Front of India', which is mobilising support for demands likehijabandburqain schools in Karnataka and running the hashtags, is associated with radical Islamic organisation 'PFI' involved in anti-national activities. Organisations like Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind and All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen coming out openly in support of the agitating girl students, sharp reaction by the Pakistan government, the issuance of statement by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and now advocate of the petitioners Devdutt Kamat's recommendation to postpone the hearing till the elections in five states all this is a strong indication of the forces and the conspiracy behind the scenes. Till today, Muslim girls continued to go to school and college withoutburqaandhijab, why did they suddenly feel its necessity? Rather, by the end of the 20th century, thehijabwas almost negligible in India. It is ridiculous that some people are justifying this by citing the issue of security. What danger do they have in their school-college classrooms, from their teachers and classmates? Such a weak and lame argument!

***

Also Read

Interview | Hijab is akin to chastity belt that turns women into sex objects, says Taslima Nasrin as she bats for Uniform Civil Code

Karnataka hijab controversy: Indian democracy enters uncharted territory of grave danger

Opinion | On Hijab Day, the only choice is to drop the cloth for No Hijab Day

Karnataka hijab controversy: Why Modi government should seriously think about Uniform Civil Code

History will not be kind to liberals cheerleading for hijab and burqa

The planned Udupi hijab spark and the need for Uniform Civil Code

Udupi hijab row: A pre-planned move to stoke communal tension in Karnatakas sensitive coastal belt?

Theres a good case to ban hijab in schools, but Congress cheers orthodoxy

***

Whereas common, liberal and progressive Muslim women themselves should think that only by resorting to such customs and practices, obstacles have been kept in the way of their progress till date. Their high flights have been shunned and dreams strangled. It would be ironic that on the one hand, the chains of holdback are melting all around, the dirt that has accumulated in the repressive hearts and minds over centuries is being cleansed, the walls of the thresholds are being traversed, and millions of daughters of India have achieved new records of success. On the other hand, in the liberal, modern and today's scientific era, this kind of stubbornness and passion is being nurtured, encouraged and motivated.

It is astonishing that the so-called intellectuals, progressivist and feminist writers, human rights and social revolutionaries and all the advocates of change, who in the name of women's freedom and rights, issue a statement against wearing veils orpurdahsystem, against wearingmangalsutras, against wearing abindior vermilion, bangles, anklets, toenails and fasting, etc; they are completely silent onburqaandhijab. Many eminent stars and actresses have seemed oblivious to the tradition ofKanyadan, they have had a strong objection to this use of the word, but they do not get tired of telling people that wearingburqaorhijabis a freedom of choice and fundamental right.

Such intellectuals and pseudo-secularists must read the following excerpts from Bhimrao Ambedkar's famous book,Pakistan or Partition of India, published in the 1940s: Muslim women lag behind women of other castes because of the system of purdah. They are not able to participate in any kind of outdoor activities, due to which a kind of slavery and inferiority complex remains in them. They do not even have the desire to acquire knowledge because they are taught that they should not take interest in anything else outside the boundary wall of the house. Being deprived of a healthy social life leads to a wrong tendency in them. Being completely isolated from the outside world, their attention remains entangled in petty family disputes. The result of this comes in the form of narrow thinking and narrow outlooks. Thepurdahsystem is a real problem among Muslims whereas it is not so among Hindus. There is no evidence that Muslims have ever tried to end it. Social evils are also present in Hindus, but the good thing is that they accept their mistake and are running a movement against it. But Muslims do not even believe that there is any evil in their society.

In the above statement of Babasaheb, along with the illustration of the problem, the solutions are also embedded. It is true that in Hindu society too many evils flourished and spread at some point of time, but later some saint or social reformer started reformist movements against them and those movements also got wide public support. As a result, Hindu society has become almost free from all the evils like the practice of sati, purdah system, child marriage, mismatched marriage, untouchability, prohibition of widow marriage.

Unfortunately, Indian Muslim society not only shows an apathy towards liberal and reformist movements, but also often agitates in their resistance. Many people while simplifying the problem, explain illiteracy and poverty as the reason for the orthodox thinking and bigotry of Muslim society. They forget that Osama bin Laden was the engineer, Afia Siddiqui was the neuroscience specialist, Al Zawahiri a surgeon, Al Baghdadi had a PhD, and Hafiz Saeed was a lecturer. Even the youths who have joined Islamic State have also been highly educated.

The real problem of Muslim society is that it is not ready to change according to time and era. The stubbornness and obsession of any society to accept the things written thousands of years ago is neither practical nor suitable for today's civilised, liberal and scientific era. If not today then tomorrow, they will have to accept that time passes by leaving that society behind which keeps the dead bodies of orthodox ideas and customs.

The writer is aneducationist, columnist and writer. Views expressed are personal.

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Hijab row exposes double-standards for Left, liberal intellectuals and what they can learn from Ambedkar - Firstpost

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Will the Ukraine invasion be enough to end our governments bland aversion to financial planning that includes serious allowances for the uncertainties that are a simple fact of life?

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It will be interesting to see what sort of document Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland delivers when she gets around to unveiling her 2022 budget, which would normally be in the next few weeks.

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In the early years of the second Trudeau dynasty, we were told the government had no choice but to spend heavily, because Canada was on the cusp of a social revolution that required bold new spending programs to fill the needs that were long delayed by less visionary leaders. Wham! The deficit went up, taking national debt with it.

Then COVID-19 hit and we were told there was no choice but to dramatically escalate the already-expanded level of spending because the pandemic meant we couldnt afford not to. It was an emergency! It couldnt have been foreseen. It was essential that Ottawa obey its responsibility to protect the health and livelihoods of the population. True enough. Unfortunately, that would mean even greater borrowing to levels unprecedented outside of wartime but sorry, it couldnt be helped.

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Having toiled through two years of unanticipated costs, it must have looked to Freelands Finance Department that the way was finally opening to a period of recovery and rebuilding. In January, she announced pre-budget consultations that would allow the government to hear the best ideas from Canadians about how the budget can support Canadians and businesses and ensure a strong economic recovery for everyone.

A departmental release stated: As we look to the years ahead, the governments focus will continue to be on jobs and growth and making life more affordable. Presumably, that would include getting a handle on the governments spending binge, a goal Freeland signalled when she pledged in a fiscal update late last yearthat, We remain committed to reduce the federal debt-to-GDP ratio over the medium-term and to unwind COVID-19-related deficits.

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Of course, that was before Russian President Vladimir Putin launched his invasion of Ukraine and threw the world and its economy into another pit of uncertainty. Canada has, quite rightly, joined in the international effort to inflict as much economic pain on Russia as possible, in the hope that it somehow helps bring a halt to Putins mad war. This was yet another unforeseen development, which prompted Freeland to warn usthat her previous expectations would have to be altered.

I have to be honest with Canadians that there could be some collateral damage in Canada as a result of sanctions on Moscow, she said last week. In order to really be effective, in order to really have an impact, we are going to have to be prepared for there to be some adverse consequences for our own economies.

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I think were all in favour of a maximum effort to curtail Moscow and the rain of death it has mindlessly unleashed, even at the cost of some financial discomfort to ourselves. But I have to be honest with Canadians and admit Im a bit distressed that it has taken six long years for this government to grasp the fact that the future is a very uncertain place, that unpredictability is one of the few certainties in life and that a responsible government takes that into account when it sets out to rebuild society in an image it would very much welcome if only everything goes according to schedule and nothing unexpected takes place to spoil its plans.

Indeed, as far as I understand it, a big part of government should involve protecting what we have, as well as adding to what wed like. This government has shown little if any belief in that responsibility. If it has been consistent in anything, its the prime ministers conviction that finding the money is someone elses responsibility. As long as there are entities willing to lend, and advisors willing to attestthat Canada can afford it and will continue to be able to afford it in the future, hes good with it. Spend away.

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So now its Freelands job to take all those plans shed been assembling since January, and no doubt well beforehand, and somehow make them fit with a world that looks nothing like it did at the time. The Ukraine invasion has changed assumptions at the most fundamental levels.

The notion that fossil fuels can be happily choked off in deference to green energy ran aground on the realization that most of Europe cant operate, or even keep warm, without the fuel it gets from Russia. Inflation, which was supposed to be just a passing annoyance, has become a serious and burgeoning concern.

The supply chain, which was supposed to sort itself out once COVID was corralled, has a new crisis to contend with. The greatest risk facing global supply chains has shifted from the pandemic to the Russia-Ukraine military conflict and the geopolitical and economic uncertainties it has created, wrote Moodys Analytics economist Tim Uy.

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Canadian firms, large and small, cant find workers. Wages are being hiked to lure applicants, which pushes up prices as a result. Try filling your tank without grimacing, then try again when the carbon taxincreases on April 1. Try buying a house, or even groceries.

The Ukraine war has demonstrated for all to see how depleted Canadas military capability has become thanks to many years of government neglect. Will it finally embarrass the Liberals enough to accord it the priority a serious and self-respecting country should expect?

Freeland may be uniquely suited to overcome the traditional Liberal disdain for such things: her background puts the sincerity of her support for the Ukrainian cause beyond question. Its just a guess, but the unusual intensity of the Liberal response might just possibly be the result of Freeland putting some rare heat on a prime minister whos usually satisfied with virtuous posturing.

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Will it also be enough to end this governments bland aversion to financial planning that includes serious allowances for the uncertainties that are a simple fact of life? Or will Freeland go on pretending its reasonable to make risky wagers on a future that is so easily disrupted by pandemics, wars and other crises that wont be pushed aside to please progressive aspirations?

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Kelly McParland: Putin's war is another obstacle to Liberals' wishful budgeting - National Post