Tag along on this Blog and the McNeill Life Stories Facebook as Garth, Esther, Lynn and Harold embark upon a new adventure that extends from Barcelona, Spain to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.
It seems a few hardy souls have backed away from this voyage into antiquity because of perceived dangers, but their choice was our good fortune. Our research suggests most parts of the Middle East is as safe to explore as most other travel destinations, including our friendly neighbour south of the ‘forty-ninth’, the United States of America.

Exploring the Empires of Antiquity

After departing Victoria on November 9, we kick things off in Spain by spending several days becoming acclimatized to the seasonal average temperature of 22 – 26 C. (a little warm for Canadians, but we shall persevere). After savouring the sites, sounds and wines (we have long since learned that wine helps one to acclimatize) of Barcelona, we then join the Oceania Liner  “Nautica” for a 24 day of cruise that will see us meandering across the Mediterranean with stops in Italy and, after passing through the Strait of Messina and crossing the Ionian Sea, will check out Greece, Turkey, and Cyprus.   

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“For goodness sakes” (mom’s saying), the Times Colonist, (as reported by columnist Jack Knox) choose not print a copy of the the Duffy Dollar cartoon after another Canadian newspaper apparently received a written warning from the Bank of Canada advising it was against the law to publish images of fake Canadian bills.

Now, if the Times Colonist is so meek they can be cowed by such a mindless threat, it makes one wonder how they might handle a real exposé involving influential political or business persons suspected of wrong doing if those persons threatened with a law suit.

As far as this fake bill is concerned, it is hard to image that someone might be fooled into believing it is real. If that was the case, I know of an awesome second hand bridge on the Interstate 5 in Washington State, just south of the US-Canada boarder, that is up for sale. $90,000 might do the trick.

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But then again, one man got it right…

Leading up to the recent BC election I was reading a book by Nate Silver, “The Signal and the Noise – Why so many predictions fail – but some don’t. The book provides an excellent outline on a variety of prediction issues.  After reading a good portion of the book and then seeing how badly the mainstream pollsters failed, it made wonder if they had obtained their results using outmoded methods. CEOs of the polling companies, when interviewed on TV, dodged and weaved as they tried to explain the inexplicable results. It seems their margin of error was something in the order of (+) or (-) 100%, 20 times out of 20.

Following the election I continued the book, then happened upon an article posted on the CBC BC News  web site about one pollster, Dimitri Pantazopoulos, who got it (the BC election) almost bang on. Working behind the scenes for the Liberal Party, he confidently projected a Liberal win of at least 48 seats. An outline of his work was covered in a number of other media reports.

Mr.Pantazopoulos had been hired early on in the election to give the Liberals a realistic assessment of their chances as they were not thrilled (an understatement) with the mainstream polls whose results (predicting an NDP landslide) seemed to fly in the face of what they were hearing on the ground. Pantazopoulos’s information, which provided a much different story, was shared only among party insiders and candidates involved in close contests (where most of the polling took place).

Two weeks out from election day, the party machine kicked into overdrive and drove hard to the finish line. This included several hard hitting ads targeting Dix and the NDP party platform.

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Note: May 27, 2022:  This post contains background and statistics on mass shootings in the United States of a type similar to recent events in Uvalde, Texas and Buffalo, New York.

The Boston Bombing of 2013

The tragic bombing in Boston demonstrates again how quickly and completely media, government and law enforcement can spin the terrorist card. Along with the deployment of well over a thousand City, State and Federal police, mass transit was shut down, businesses were closed and nearly a million residents of the area told to lock themselves in their homes until the suspects could be captured.  During the depth of the manhunt, the situation was best described by a Boston police officer who stated, “we are operating in the fog of war”.¹

Boston: “The Fog of War” (Photo: MetroDCPhotography)

The hunt was on for two inept, ideologically driven brothers, both US citizens suspected of having set off crude bombs that killed three and seriously injured dozens more, created a media frenzy that quickly spead around the world. The difference in these killings from the tens of thousands of killings which occur each year in the United States is that the Boston suspects were Muslim, their weapons of choice were crudely made bombs, and, the event being defined as an act of terror.

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Portrait of Gery Lemon and Graham Hill taken by long time family friend Rebecca Kirstein. This note by Gery: “Rebecca is like a daughter. She is a very accomplished photographer and over the years shot our wedding, Kelsey’s wedding – all kinds of family gatherings and reunions. This picture was presented in preparation for Graham’s campaign in 2011 – for his fourth term as mayor. It’s in front of the rock wall across from the Four Mile – beautiful work of public art. The shot was to go on his brochure and website …..I think we look in love.”

Saturday, April 6, 09:30, Dear Reader:  The original story was somehow deleated last Monday when work was being completed on a server transfer. The new story is posted below. If you note any errors in names, please email me a note at harold@mcneillifestories.com

 

A recent story about Gery and Graham may be linked here: Graham and Harold’s Christmas Adventure

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In Praise of Volunteers

The Purple Team strain toward a Gold Medal Finish as the crowd in the background go wild. The other winners on this day were the individuals and organizations who depend upon the efforts of Volunteers to raise awareness and funds for those whose lives have been affected by the onset of Epilepsy.

Victoria International Airport
Sidney, British Columbia

Have you ever suffered from a debilitating illness? If not, it is almost certain a family member or close friend has faced or is currently facing a serious medical challenge. The fight to eradicate the many forms disease can take is one that requires not only continuing dedication to the cause, but tremendous amounts of money – far more than can be provided by government and business through direct funding, research and other grants.  To make up the shortfall, individual volunteers, often those having a close connection to a specific disease or medical challenge, devote thousands of hours of their time and tons of energy towards helping fund the battle.

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Note: Times Colonist, February 3, 2013.  Smart Meter foes fume at Coleman   Updated comments in the footer.

Note:  A copy of the following letter, purported to have been circulated by the President and CEO of BC Hydro, was sent to me by an anonymous source. I accepted and reproduced it at face value. Is it possible someone was spoofing me?

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Photo: While everyone attending the Seaside Magazine celebration was a winner, Sue Hodgson, assisted by Editor-in-Chief Allison Smith and Seaside Photographer Jo-Ann Way, drew business cards for several special gifts handed out during the evening. (Link in footer for additional photos of the celebration).

A Seaside Celebration

A wonderful time was had by all last night at the Mary Winspear Centre in Sidney as publisher Sue Hodgson and team members of the Seaside Magazine (formerly the Times) welcomed family, friends and business associates to share in an evening of celebration of their new magazine format.

In the words of Sue Hodgson:

“Think of our publication as an extra dimension of our community space, a place where the West Coast culture is treasured and celebrated. We’re here to give you a glimpse of our people, places and ideas and unleash the vibrant energy that our local paradise has to offer.

To ensure we attain the highest level of excellence in serving our community, we want to stay on top of what’s happening. Please let us know when local events are sprouting up or when any other little seeds of local interest might be germinating. It is truly a pleasure and an honour to publish Seaside, and we would like to thank everyone who has welcomed us into their lives with open arms.  (Quote from the Seaside Web Page)

For those yet to savour the pristine photographic and print qualities of this local publication, take a few minutes to link to the Homepage of Seaside Magazine where you will be treated to a taste of the West Coast Lifestyle. For scenes that will entice you to delve a little deeper – Link Here  

With a sip of complementary local wine and an array of succulent morsels catered by the Spitfire Grill, we were treated to musical arrangements by the Archers – Ethan Caleb, Sandy Hughes, Liam McLaren, Liam Moes and Robert McMullen. 

I only managed to catch three of the five in this photo, but it seems certain these talented young men from Brentwood Bay area are well on their way to producing their first record.  Take a a few moments to link to their Crowd Funding Campaign and lend your support as they challenge for their place alongside the Rolling Stones Cover Band, Sheep Dog, and new young voices such as Kristin Hays, Jared Newton and Craig Strickland.
 
On an environmental note, one of the guest speakers, Dave Allan of Rhino Print Solutions, took a few minutes to acquaint the audience with the rapidly changing world of Print Media which has become, perhaps contrary to a widely held public belief, amongst the most eco friendly of industries. If you have an opportunity to listen to Dave speak about the changing status of Print Media, take a few minutes to do so.  Perhaps we can encourage Dave to prepare a U-Tube presentation!
 
Exhibits were provided by several community business owners and representatives, including our very own Lynn McNeill (Expedia CruiseShipCenters, Sidney),  Alysha Yakimishyn (YakimishynArt), and Lucas J. Copplestone (LJCArt). Another family member, Sean McNeill, was on a business trip to Toronto or he would have been present to display his new line of Burg travel watch/phones, a perfect gift for the frequent traveller. For further details link to Burg Canada.
 
A networking event for professionals, by professionals.  Thank you for a great evening.

Harold McNeill
Victoria, BC

Link Here to the Seaside Magazine celebration photos: Facebook Photos

Other Adventures in Sidney and the Saanich Peninsula

Island View Beach: Camping Close to Home

2012 Canada Day Parade Link

 

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