We are what we eat

I was going to start this week's blog post with a great phrase I heard from a guest speaker on CBC's The Current: "We are all equal before the law, but not under the skull."

It was, I thought, a rather fitting way to voice another complaint about the rapid, downward spiral of intelligent options in Canadian politics. In particular, the news that Olympic snowboard gold medalist, Ross Rebagliati, would be seeking the Liberal nomination in the B.C. riding of Okanagan-Coquihalla. Maybe the Liberals are thinking that, if Stockwell Day can get elected, Rebagliati has a fighting chance? Maybe party officials are keen on having Rebagliati snowboard up to a lectern to give a press briefing in a tight, multi-coloured body suit to make a mockery of a similar stunt pulled by Stockwell Day in a jet ski some years back? I must be over-thinking it. I'm sure the Liberals are focussed on the match-up of some of the greatest debating wits ever -- nothing like refuting an opponent's point starting with: "Dude, I disagree."

At any rate, this was just a taste of my thinking until I saw Food Inc. this weekend. And Food Inc. came on the heels of a radio documentary I heard earlier in the week, again on CBC's The Current, called The Philosophy of Pig. If the old adage is true, that we are what we eat, we are in very big trouble, folks.

The way in which food is produced has changed more in the last 50 years, than it has in the last 10,000. Food Inc. takes viewers on a candid tour of industrialized food production, starting with the coop of a Perdue chicken supplier, explaining how a chicken is now fully mature 45 days from hatching, as opposed to 60 or 75 days, and is engineered to yield larger-than-normal breasts (white meat) thanks to genetic engineering, growth hormones and antibiotics. The bodies of the chicken develop so quickly, their internal organs can't keep up -- the chickens take a few steps, and have to sit down again.

A quick walk around a stock yard, which has cows standing ankle deep in their own feces, serves as the spring board for a discussion about how the rash of deadly e-coli outbreaks in the North American food supply over the last 15 years, has come about.

It's pretty scary stuff, particularly when you consider the relentless pace of modern life -- people don't have the time to think about food safety. Naturally, it's presumed that enforcement of governmental standards protects us. But the food lobby and the power of massive multinational corporations has politicians eating out of their hands -- pun fully intended -- which essentially means the connection between regulation by government and food safety standards are tenuous at best.

Food, Inc. is a US-based documentary. But it would be dangerous to assume that its concepts are not applicable in Canada. In the context of free trade and a globalized world, and our growing addiction to cheap, fast, sugar-and-salt-laden food, Canadians are just as removed from understanding their food supply and implications of their changing diet.

The explosion of obesity and type-II diabetes in the United States is a public health epidemic. All across America, the poor are locked into a spiral of death -- without health insurance, cheap food saves them the money they need to buy the drugs they need to stay alive. But the food is killing them, and without the drugs, certain death is guaranteed -- pure genius if you subscribe to a system that sees individuals as profit centres.

From a Canadian perspective, it is imperative that we learn from this, as food is intimately and critically tied to our public health, too. But there are also more serious implications. Because of our nationalized health care system, the same explosion of obesity and diabetes costs ALL of us money and strains the ability of our system to cope. So just as we are obliged to help people treat their disease, Canadians are mutually accountable for making wise dietary choices. Without such a responsibility, it might just be easier to stop funding health care and send money to fast food corporations, because that's essentially what's happening.

A last point. Industrialized food has fundamentally shrunk the diversity in our food chain. One breed of chicken, engineered to grow fast, is being used to produce all fast food chicken. One breed of cattle is used to ensure consistent hamburger taste from Victoria to Charlottetown. One type of hog is used in breakfast sausages, again to give consistent texture and taste. The Food and Agriculture organization estimates that 45 per cent of farm breeds are extinct, or on the verge of extinction. Some of these animals have been with us -- humans -- for 1000 or more years.

There is a cornucopia of taste and choice in our food chain we no longer have, and the radio documentary, The Philosophy of Pig, gives listeners a decidedly Canadian perspective on the fight by one Ottawa, Ontario woman to preserve diversity. She lost her job as an environmental policy advisor, started a farm, and re-invented herself as a pig farmer dedicated to saving a dying breed.

There are others all over Canada working to keep local, healthy food on our tables. Let's support them, our economy, and our health, all the while enjoying the delicious tastes of diversity. It is the intelligent choice.

A potpourri of thoughts

I hope readers will forgive me. I hate nothing more than inconsistency and -- worse yet -- missing deadlines. The last few weeks, between my post-Executive Board reporting crunch, the useless creation of last-minute lobbying reports and meeting minutes, and responding to an avalanche of emails, have kept me off-line with Canadiuns. That doesn't mean I haven't been thinking about blogging; I can't tell you how good it feels to get back behind the keyboard in support of the Great White North.

There's so much to write about. The past four weeks have seen a flurry of political activity in Canada, notably the complete avoidance of the collapse of the Conservative minority government. The soap opera around it has been just as fascinating -- the terrible Liberal Party playbook and revelation that Ignatieff is anything but Prime Minister in waiting, the disgustingly blatant politics of NDP leader Jack Layton, the parachuting of Elizabeth May into a riding almost as far away from her home in Cape Breton as the chances of winning her seat... the list goes on.

It has crossed my mind however, that I sound like a broken record -- over and over again with the critiques and over and over again with what might be perceived as sour grapes. To be honest, calling attention to the sorry state of our country is far more important than concerns that I sound like a broken record. We need progressive, intelligent, informed change, and we need it now. This sometimes requires relentless hammering.

The talk around my family's Thanksgiving table made that obvious. The discussion turned to the way in which technology, specifically 'e-books' have created an amazing opportunity to reduce the amount of paper necessary to publish traditional books. Someone even mentioned that e-books may supplant libraries in the future, alluding to an Internet and e-reader approach.

While transitioning quickly to a society galvanized more strongly by technology is no doubt important, I had to also draw attention to the fact that the concept behind the creation of public libraries was to ensure access to knowledge was exactly that, 'public' and open to all. Until such time as access to the Internet across Canada becomes as ubiquitous as a public utility -- something my readers know I have advocated for strongly -- it will be difficult to transition away from past models of knowledge access and knowledge dissemination. Another logical impediment is owning a computer or e-reader, which is affordable (or unaffordable) in relative terms.

The transition we need in order to be competitive and relevant beyond simply selling our oil and timber commodities must be swift, but it has to be nuanced and multifaceted because, building a just society requires as inclusive an approach as possible. That's the driving idea behind universal healthcare; it is as much an issue of public health as it is an issue of access. Preventive medicine for all Canadians, rich and poor alike, often pays back dividends not easily measured or understood, but which reinforce a collective mentality in our society -- we're all in this together. In the same vein, the responsibility rests with each of us to safeguard our system from dismantling or dilution, making informed improvements free of political influence and that preserve universality and fairness, while ensuring relevance in a rapidly and constantly changing context.

This surely must have been the prevailing thought in the late 1960s and 1970s when our Government provided young, cutting-edge Canadian talent with unfettered support to achieve great things for the benefit of all citizens. On a recent visit to Vancouver, MD walked me around the exterior of the Arthur Erickson-designed Provincial Law Courts, with its waterfall terraces and cantilevered walkways. The brilliance and whimsy of its design was evident immediately, and the discussion quickly turned to whether such a design would have even made the grade in the current fiscal accountability, value-for-money, era. "No," we both agreed, in the same way the modular, pre-fabricated public housing works in Montreal (Habitat '67) -- commissioned as part of Expo '67 and designed by an amateur at the time, Moshe Safdie -- would never have seen the light of day.

Brilliance needs a patron. In the United States, visionaries like Frank Lloyd Wright or Eero Saarinen were nurtured by private/industrialist capital and, for that reason, their genius was allowed to blossom. Canada is a different place, our relatively small society and modest personal incomes make for a society less apt to spending imprudently or superfluously -- perhaps that's the reason we don't have our own Kentuck Knob or Falling Water. Today, only through the kindness of individuals and an $18 entrance fee, can one tour Falling Water. Work commissioned by and for the Government is, by its very nature, owned by the people for all to enjoy.

Talent begets talent. Imagination begets imagination. Wise investment in today's young Canadians is not unlike planting seeds for a future harvest -- it is imperative for our well-being, for our souls and ultimately, to strengthen Canadian culture.

Red Canuck, in memoriam

My dear friend Red Canuck, the inspiration for having started my blog, passed away this afternoon, October 13, 2009, in Vancouver. He died peacefully, surrounded by his family.

May he rest in peace in the full knowledge that he touched so many with his biting wit, uninhibited humour, and incredible logic and persuasion skills.

Let me be the first to say that Canada has lost a great Minister of Health.

You are missed already, RC. But Zahra and I will take up the cause to build a just society in Canada, in your name and in the name of those like you, who never wavered in your support for this great land, who want nothing more than to see Canada a haven for thoughtful, intellectual policy and populace, and whose vision of Canada is to be a beacon of fairness, moderation, and tolerance for the world to envy.

Thanks for everything, RC.

Letter to staff from the Secretary-General, 1 October 2009

This week's blog post is being put aside to instead feature reports from inside the UN on Climate Change and General Assembly happenings. With this letter of thanks from the Secretary-General however, the Canadiun blog will resume next week to provide commentary on important happenings back in my home and native land.
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1 October 2009

Dear colleagues,

Thank you for your hard work and dedication during the opening weeks of the new General Assembly session. We are still in the early stages, but already many have observed that this was one of the most active and engaged openings in years. We saw leader after leader reaffirm the relevance of the United Nations and our work in tackling the many challenges before us.

The Climate Change Summit drew the world’s attention and has created solid movement towards sealing a deal at the UN conference in Copenhagen in December. The Security Council Summit, only the fifth ever and the first on disarmament and nuclear non-proliferation, has likewise improved prospects for progress in a critical area.

As these and other events unfolded, on food security, health and other challenges, we also faced the surprises that typically accompany this annual gathering. Through it all, you performed with your usual flexibility and grace. I was truly moved to see the many ways in which you contributed to our common endeavour. You bring great honour to yourselves and the Organization.

There are many weeks to go, of course, with work in the committees about to commence. This being a budget year, we can expect many long hours as Member States negotiate the allocations for our next biennium. But I wanted to thank you right away for making the past weeks such a success. You have helped the world see the United Nations doing what it does best: bringing people and countries together; finding solutions to the big issues of the day; leading the way in promoting peace and positive change.

In the weeks ahead, we will all be focusing on the many challenges that were highlighted in recent days. And as the Capital Master Plan proceeds, I will be visiting many of you as we get settled in our new working environments. I also look forward to connecting with colleagues at other duty stations.

Thank you again for your support and for your abiding commitment to the purposes of our Charter.

With admiration and respect,

BAN Ki-moon