I posted a series of articles last summer on the theme of contraction in the U.S. newspaper industry, but it got to be an onerous, not to mention depressing, task.

Fortunately, this NYT article nicely wraps up how much things are sucking down there.

CanWest is suing the Tyee over an article that admittedly had errors in it.

Note the Tyee's Feb. 5 story:

Two days after it was published, the column was amended with the intent to correct errors and then, later in the day, removed from The Tyee. Tyee staff then worked with Google to remove the link from that search engine.

The Tyee has published three retractions of the column in question, the first on Dec. 27 and two more, by Tyee editor David Beers and Mair, on Jan. 17. Beers and Mair apologized “unreservedly” and stated they “sincerely regret any damage or harm that has been suffered by any of the individuals involved, including the Asper family.”

Here's an earlier post on this. Methinks this lawsuit is payback for earlier tweaks of CanWest's nose by the Tyee.

I've made some calculations to compare troop levels in Afghanistan's Helmand and Kandahar provinces. I'm trying to better understand what an additional 1,000 troops would do for the Kandahar mission.

Two weeks ago today, I asked the Radio Canada ombudsman for assistance in obtaining a copy of the 1999 report of former ombudsman Marcel Pepin into CBC's APEC/Terry Milewski affair. Still no answer.

From the Independent:

Afghanistan's President has promised justice for Sayed Pervez Kambaksh, raising hopes that the condemned student journalist will be freed.

I also offer a quick update on what Canada's foreign minister has had to say on this case, compared to U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

From Afgha.com:

Afgha.com has received a statement from the Afghan Embassy in Washington, D.C. regarding the government's position on jailed journalist Sayed Perwiz Kambakhsh.

Kambakhsh was jailed for allegedly downloading an article about the role of women in Islamic society and distributing it among campuses in northern Afghanistan. He was sentenced to death for charges of insulting Islam by a lower court on Jan. 22.

The statement is as follows:

 The Government of Afghanistan is fully aware of the gravity of the case of Mr. Sayed Perwiz Kambakhsh and appreciates the concern expressed on his behalf. Mr. Kambaksh’s case will be appealed to an appellate court and reviewed by the Supreme Court in accordance with Afghanistan’s Constitution, which guarantees all principles of human rights. The Afghan Parliament has withdrawn its initial support for the judgment against Mr. Kambakhsh. The office of President Karzai is closely monitoring the case and working with Afghanistan’s judicial system to find a just solution in accordance with Afghan law and our nation's international obligations.

From AP via globeandmail.com:

Conservative clerics and elders demanded Thursday that the Afghan government not interfere with a controversial death sentence handed down to a young journalist convicted of insulting Islam for distributing a report questioning polygamy.

   more »

From the Toronto Star's Antonia Zerbisias:

It was only after weeks of international outrage that Canada's House of Commons, in response to a motion sponsored by NDP leader Jack Layton, unanimously voted on Monday to condemn a death sentence faced by an Afghan journalist.

About time, too, although the Harper government still hasn't had much to say about the case, at least not for the record.

Why has it not been pounding on Afghan President Hamid Karzai's desk?

Why has it not led the world's protests?

Where is the accountability for Canadian blood and treasure?

I am sure I am not the only Canadian who would like to know why our troops are getting blown up to prop up a regime that has, despite fine words in its new constitution, no regard for women's rights – or the ability of journalists to discuss how the prophet Mohammed regarded women.

That's because, in Afghanistan, even long after the Taliban was toppled from power, if you suggest that women should be equal to men, you might as well book a cell on death row.

That's where Sayed Perwiz Kambakhsh is.

The House of Commons passed a resolution Monday night condemning the death sentence placed on an Afghan journalist for blasphemy.

Here's a feature I wrote for CTV.ca wrapping up Super Tuesday in the U.S. primaries and trying to look forward.

Update

I reworked the feature on Thursday to reflect the fact that Mitt Romney dropped out.

A few observations:

• CNN had free access to a live stream. Their video player allows access to four different streams: Main, weather in voting areas and two others (had shifted -- Clinton HQ, Huckabee HQ, L.A. voting stn. etc.)
• MSNBC had downloadable widgets for political junkies: A leaderboard and candidate/issue matrix. There was a host of services that would host it, but alas, not Blogware. There didn't seem to be an easy way to add it to Google Desktop either, just iGoogle.
• I find myself gravitating to the leader board on the NYT home page. If only it wouldn't crash my browser. :) I eventually launched Firefox just for nyt.com.
• I shouldn't sell washingtonpost.com short. Its interactive maps are much slicker than CNN.com's offerings. I'm not so crazy about CNN's overall home page.
• ABCNews.com allows you to pick the states you want to watch.
• MSNBC only gave up the top screen and change to the primary, then got you back into other news.
• Washingtonpost.com had live video of its own in-family experts (Bob Woodward, Newsweek's Jon Meacham etc.)
• wp.com also was janey-on-the-spot with e-mail alerts about major developments.

The increasing pressure to fill space in decreasing amounts of time has diluted journalism, claims Brit Nick Davies, author of Flat Earth News: An Award-winning Reporter Exposes Falsehood, Distortion and Propaganda in the Global Media.

From the Globe and Mail editorial:

Visiting Kabul last May, Stephen Harper spoke eloquently of the noble aims behind Canada's mission. "We are not daunted by shadows because we carry the light that defines them -- the light of freedom and democracy, of human rights and the rule of law," the Prime Minister told Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

Upon learning of the case of Sayad Parwez Kambaksh, however, some Canadians might reasonably question just how bright that light is shining -- not for lack of effort on the part of Canadian troops, but for a dubious commitment to freedom and democracy on the part of Afghan authorities. ...

NDP Leader Jack Layton has suggested he will ask Parliament to condemn the sentence and call on Mr. Karzai to intervene. That's a good start. But it is ultimately up to Mr. Harper to convey to the Afghan President that if Canada is to continue fighting for Afghans' rights, their own government must do its part as well. No country that would put to death a young man like Mr. Kambaksh can be said to be emerging from the shadows.

From AP via CTV.ca:

President Hamid Karzai is concerned about a death sentence handed down to a journalist in Afghanistan accused of insulting Islam, but he will not intervene until the courts have their final say, his spokesman said Tuesday. ...

The journalist, 23-year-old Sayed Parwez Kaambakhsh, was sentenced to death on Jan. 22 by a three-judge panel in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif for distributing a report he printed off the Internet to journalism students at Balkh University.

The article asked why under Islam men can have four wives but women cannot have multiple husbands. ...

"There is a judicial process ongoing," said Humayun Hamidzada, the spokesman for Karzai. "Of course the president is concerned. We are watching the situation very closely."

The government will act only after the courts make their final decision, Hamidzada told a news conference. Any action will be in line with the Afghan constitution, international obligations and respect for human rights, he said.

From a Globe and Mail editorial:

It is easy enough to understand why Muslims took offence in both instances (the Mark Steyn and Ezra Levant cases - BD). The Mohammed cartoons, which prompted violent protests elsewhere after their initial publication, were designed to test the bounds of tolerance. And the excerpt from Mr. Steyn was derided by The Economist as "an alarmist screed" that is "notable for its simplistic demographic projections."

It is perhaps even understandable that Muslim organizations, seeking to use all of the available channels to make known that they had taken offence, would file complaints with human-rights commissions, if only for the publicity. Less clear is why those commissions would take seriously, even for a moment, the notion that privately owned publications do not have the right to offend or that they are required to give equal space to both sides of every issue.

Neither Maclean's nor the Western Standard published materials that incited violence or other injustices against Muslims. They did not violate anyone's human rights. Recognizing this, the commissions should have immediately identified the cases brought to them as nuisance complaints and dismissed them. That they have not done so suggests a change in their mandates is much needed. ...

"It never occurred to us that this instrument, which we intended to deal with discrimination in housing, employment and the provision of goods and services, would be used to muzzle the expression of opinion," Canadian Civil Liberties Association founder Alan Borovoy recently lamented. Yet that is precisely what the commissions are doing - if not through their punishments (typically relatively small fines), then through the public shaming of those deemed to have caused offence, not to mention the legal costs of those who must defend themselves from complaints. It's time to rein them in before further damage is done to Canadians' right to free expression.

It would be interesting to find out how the Globe reacted to the 2002 Alberta Human Rights Commission decision in the case of Harvey Kane and the Jewish Defence League vs. Alberta Report. See the bottom of the Levant post for details.

From the NYT:

The “usual gang of idiots,” as the editorial staff of Mad magazine lovingly describes itself, produces cultural and political parody every month. For the next issue, however, the gang has recruited some very special help.

“Why George W. Bush Is in Favor of Global Warming,” a two-page spread that the magazine calls an exposé, has been illustrated by 10 Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonists. They try to offer reasons why environmental apocalypse might be a good thing for President Bush, with observations like, “His worries about how future generations will remember his presidency won’t matter if there are no future generations.”

Other potential upsides are that Iraq could literally be melted off the earth, and rising oceans could submerge lefty strongholds like New York, Boston and San Francisco.

From the NYT:

A serious discussion on pressing national issues may be good for the country. But it isn’t necessarily good television.

That was the prospect faced Thursday night by CNN, which broadcast what may be the final Democratic debate between Senator Hillary Clinton and Senator Barack Obama. While the candidates seemed to captivate the A-list crowd of Hollywood stars and power brokers in Los Angeles’s Kodak Theater, in CNN’s control room — inside a crowded truck parked behind the auditorium — the producers were exasperated and at times seemingly bored by their own broadcast.

From CP via CTV.ca:

NDP Leader Jack Layton wants Parliament to take a stand in support of an Afghan journalist sentenced to death for allegedly insulting Islam.

In an interview Sunday, Layton complained the Conservative government has been largely silent on the case of Sayad Parwez Kambaksh, convicted by a court in northern Afghanistan two weeks ago.

"We have every right as a country to speak out on this issue," said the NDP chief.

"We have soldiers who have lost their lives on a mission that was supposed to be helping to build democracy. It doesn't get much more fundamental than this."

Neil Hrab, a spokesman for Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Bernier, said diplomats at the Canadian embassy in Kabul have expressed their concern to the Afghan government about the sentence meted out to Kambaksh, and Ottawa continues to "actively pursue" the matter.

"Canada frequently stresses the need for the Afghan government to fulfil its obligations to promote and protect human rights, including freedom of expression and religious belief," said Hrab.

Layton, however, maintained that a more public expression of Canadian sentiment is needed.

He said he's hoping to get all-party support for a resolution being prepared for tabling in the House of Commons that will condemn the death sentence and call on Afghan President Hamid Karzai to intervene in the case.

From a Wall Street Journal commentary by Khaled Hosseini, author of The Kiterunner, on the case of Sayed Parwez Kaambakhsh, the Afghan journalism student facing a possible death sentence for blasphemy: (h/t to Jim Bobby)

This case is about much more than the fate of Mr. Kaambakhsh. For the past seven years, Afghan leaders have sought to enlist the help of the international community in the efforts to rebuild a country still reeling from nearly three decades of war, anarchy and extremism. President Hamid Karzai has repeatedly, and quite rightly, called for a genuine and long-term commitment on the part of the world's wealthy nations, a plea that I, among other Afghans, have echoed publicly. But Afghanistan must show the world that it has broken from its recent past of zealotry and intolerance.

In 2006, the country had such an opportunity with the case of Abdul Rahman, a 41-year-old Afghan man who was put on trial and faced a death sentence for the crime of converting to Christianity. His case came to an end when, under tremendous international pressure that included a plea to President Karzai from Pope Benedict XVI, Afghan lawmakers allowed Mr. Rahman to flee to Italy where he was granted asylum. At the time, I thought that moderate Afghan leaders had wasted an opportunity to stand their ground and demonstrate their regime's respect for freedom of thought, religion and expression -- the pillars of any democracy.

Mr. Kaambakhsh's case presents another opportunity for Afghanistan to demonstrate that ruling by the strict word of Shariah -- at the expense of tolerance, compassion and freedom -- is a thing of the past. It is a chance for Afghanistan to show the world that it will abide by the fundamental principles of democracy, and to validate its repeated calls for financial support from the international community. ...

Should Mr. Kaambakhsh be executed, it would be a tragedy not only for him and his family, but for all of us who hold out hope for a freer, more prosperous, more enlightened Afghanistan.

It remains to be seen whether Mr. Kaambakhsh is executed, but one thing Hosseini didn't mention is how many Afghans expressed support for the notion of executing the apostate.

See this March 29, 2006 post for background on Abdul Rahman.

Here's an earlier post about creeping fundamentalism: Afghan province bars male tailors from measuring women

That is happening in Takhar province in northeastern Afghanistan. Kaambakhsh's troubles are occurring in Balkh province, in the north. And here I was thinking all the Islamic fundamentalists are in the south.

At Ossington Street, waitin' on the TTC:

Mormon missionary: Excuse sir: Would you like to learn about the Book of Mormon?

Me: No

MM: Do you know anyone who would?

Me: And I should tell you because ...?

MM: Okay, thanks.

Nice lady: How long have you been waiting for the bus?

Me: About six hours.

A study inspired by a Seinfeld episode finds that double-dipping -- using the same chip to dip twice -- does indeed transfer bacteria from the mouth of the double-dipper to other dippees.

But first, some history on the episode.

CBC just ran a clip of Sgt. Cam Woolley from the Ontario Provincial Police talking about this morning's snowstorm.

"We're getting a lot of calls from people in distress," he said.

However, there's one problem in helping them: These people have no idea where they are.

"Try and remember the last exit you drove by," Woolley suggested. But he also said it's getting sufficiently nasty that people won't be able to see roadmarks from the highways.

When I worked in Regina, I remember one early 1990s blizzard where people were using their cellphones to call for help -- after the highways had been closed by the RCMP. We could overhear the conversations using our police scanner. For context, this was about the time cellphones started coming into wide use.

"Can you help me?" someone would ask the cops.

"No," would be the terse response, usually met with a stunned "Wha-a-a???!!!" in response

"The reason we closed the highway is it's too dangerous for us to be out there," the RCMP would say.

The advice was for the unfortunate individual to stay alive until morning, and the Mounties would come pick them up then.

From AP via CTV.ca:

A U.S. federal judge has denied fallen press lord Conrad Black's long-shot request to remain free on bail pending appeal of his fraud and obstruction-of-justice conviction.

Black, the former chief executive officer of Hollinger International, has until March 3 to report to prison and begin his 6½-year prison term.

U.S. District Judge Amy St. Eve, who presided over Black's trial, said in her order Thursday that Black is not a flight risk or danger to the community but his lawyers failed to show his grounds for appeal are likely to result in a reversal or new trial.