November 25, 2002
No one can ever accuse Evan Solomon, co-host of CBC News:Sunday of being consistent. In the program aired on November 18, a portion of the previous week’s interview with Toronto Police Association head, Craig Bromell, about the Toronto Star’s series of articles on racial profiling, was shown. Solomon gasped in horror at the thought that the number one priority of Toronto police is not political correctness.
Bromell: The first thing we’re going to tell them [police officers] is not to be politically correct. Do your job.
Solomon: NOT TO BE POLITICALLY CORRECT ?
Bromell: Look at the crime--don’t look at the race--look at the crime. We’ve been telling them that for 25 years now. We’ve told them not to change a thing. You’ve done nothing wrong.
While being PC seemed of high importance to Solomon as far as the police are concerned, it didn’t seem to be that important in another segment of the program. Solomon was seen interviewing journalist Christopher Hitchens, a previous media darling of the left. Hitchens, who used to write for the U.S. magazine, The Nation, and has argued that Henry Kissinger should be tried for war crimes, deserted the left when he began arguing in favour of a war against Iraq. Hitchens was interviewed in a bar where, not only was he sipping an adult beverage, but he was chain smoking.
Smoking!!! On a news segment! How politically incorrect can the CBC get? What next--Peter Mansbridge smoking a stogie on The National?
More Political Correctness
Robin Page, a 61-year-old columnist with the conservative Telegraph in the U.K. was arrested and detained on suspicion of inciting racial hatred in a speech that he made at a country fair last September.
The journalist was later called in to the police station and was told that there had been several complaints about his speech. When he got there he refused to speak to police without his lawyer present and was told that he would be detained. After spending about 40 minutes in a cell, he gave a statement without his lawyer present and was released on police bail.
In England, there is a controversial proposal to outlaw hunting, a way of life in rural areas but frowned upon by cities and built up areas. According to Page, while speaking at a pro-hunting rally, he said that Londoners have the right to have their own events, such as the Brixton carnival (similar to Toronto’s Caribana) and gay pride marches so people in the country should have the right to have their own events and the same rights that blacks, Muslims and gays have.
If this is in fact all he said, it is extremely scary. It is not that different than a statement that Prince Charles agreed with--that farmers have less protection from discrimination than blacks or gays. One wonders if Page would have been charged at all if he were not a journalist with a prominent conservative daily.
Gas prices
The media recently covered the news that gas prices have declined. Gas now costs about 65.9 cents a litre in Ontario, down from around 74.9 cents last month.
The reason given for the price decrease was the increase in supply from the OPEC countries in anticipation of a possible war with Iraq. It seems that every time gas prices fall dramatically, an economic explanation is given. But when prices suddenly rise, the increase in prices is always blamed on collusion between the large oil companies. It’s strange how the media never seems to report that market forces can account for increases as well as decreases.
Arthur Weinreb is a lawyer and author and Associate Editor of Canadafreepress.com
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