Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - December 22, 2007, Winnipeg, Manitoba Comment editor Gerald flood 697 7269 Gerald. Flood free press. My. Ca v new fro the w est a n d b e y o n d a 15 Winnipeg free press saturday december 22, 2007 Winnipeg repress. Com t he worlds most expensive Cognac costs $ 216,000 a bottle. Its a limited edition offering and comes in a fancy Dewgaw Box that Hennessy the producer describes As a work of Art and one would certainly Hope that it is Given that the most expensive Cognac previously put on the Market sold for a Mere $ 48,000 a bottle which is cheap it seems at twice the Price. Several bottles of the Hennessy Issue have already been sold to people who one must assume have Way More Money than brains and perhaps in the spirit of that thought there is no shortage of advice for them on How to drink it. No its not after the big hockey game when you and your buddies have already tossed Back a dozen Beer each and think you should drink the Cognac straight out of the bottle. Some friends and i had a similar experience with a bottle of 30 year old scotch once and Trust me when i Tell you that everything involved was completely wasted in every Way. One wonders in fact if there can even be a proper Way to tipple a $ 216,000 bottle of what is essentially old porch climber. No one after All has Ever done it before. That does not Stop the snobs from putting in their two cents Worth. The Globe and mail for example headlined its Story dont mix it with Ginger ale. That will bring approving nods from lots of sophisticated folks but in this Case the globes it often does got it exactly wrong. If you like your Hennessy mixed with Ginger ale and ice although that is kind of hard to imagine that is precisely How you should drink it. At $ 216,000 a bottle you re going to want to get maximum enjoyment. If Ginger ale and ice is what that takes then Ginger ale and ice it should be. You dont have to Shell out close to a Quarter of a million dollars however to bring out the food and wine snobs. You can find them everywhere debating the merits of Mcdonalds Over Burger King in a fast food restaurant arguing Over arcane ways of cooking Angel pasta pontificating on the proper Way to Cook those Nasty Little things that crawl about the Ocean Bottom. The snobs know exactly How everything should be cooked How everything should be eaten and if you do not do it and eat it their Way you Are not fit to live in civilized society. Almost nothing in my experience brings them out like the smell of steaks cooking. I cant count How Many times i have heard people being corrected in restaurants by the Gnu Sonnati for daring to order their Steak medium Well or earths foundations flee asking for Ketchup with it. All my life i have been criticized for the Way i eat which i freely admit is not the Way most people eat. I am an exercise in frustration for enthusiastic Cooks you dont like i anxious aunts youve got to have More than that and weary wives make it yourself then. If i hear the expression eats like a Bird Ever again i will almost certainly become violent or at least pouty. I eat Only Small portions of very few foods which makes me an awkward dinner guest or it used to i am rarely invited anywhere for dinner these Days and am asked nowhere twice because i will not eat food that i dont like. Somehow in polite society this makes me rude but i dont see How my gagging on creamed carrots at your dinner table can contribute anything to the course of an evening. After a life time of being the object of culinary criticism and dietary ostracism i am finally getting my revenge. My doctor has Given me a licence to eat everything you cant which will come in particularly Handy at the Christmas table. I can eat anything fatty artery logging Salty sugary and above All fattening. In fact this doctor of ones dreams not Only gave me a licence to eat All this stuff he ordered me to eat it. He sends me to fast food joints to fill up on burgers and Fries ice Cream Parlours for milk shakes and sundaes. Its almost enough to make me wish that i did not in fact eat like a Bird. So i can have anything i want for Christmas dinner without fear while you on the other hand have to worry about what this feast is doing to your body How Many years it is taking off your life what effect each Mouthful is having on your heart your blood pressure your Long abused liver. That at least is my dream of revenge for All those years of abuse. But then the cold Light of reality creeps in. What fun is there in this everybody knows that a Little bit of guilt is the ultimate seasoning it makes everything taste better. I really says the Young woman confronted by a Box of chocolates before she rips into them with gusto that i could never manage. And so in the end you still get a better Christmas dinner than i do. Enjoy it have a merry Christmas and spare a thought for me still eating like a Bird despite my doctors licence. Tom. Oleson free press. My. Ca Tom Oleson c Christmas is associated with giving. This leads to the mind numbing trips to the mall where Many of us will notice the salvation a mys red kettles and throw in some change. It feels Good to help out. But if we Are being honest it is a very Small gesture in the face of some really big social challenges. To make action happen on a much larger scale we need a change in mindset. We need to think big. We also need to be much More compassionate and much More willing to give something up to see real change happen. Without a change in mindset we Are not going to get very far when it comes to addressing homelessness poverty addiction prostitution and the dealers and pimps who prey on the desperate and marginalized members of our communities. The results of the Canada West foundations looking West 2007 Survey Are both encouraging and discouraging in this regard. The Survey asked Urban residents in Winnipeg and six other Large Canadian cities their opinions on a number of Urban social challenges. First the encouraging findings. More than six in 10 residents of Winnipeg feel that reducing homelessness in the City is a High priority. This is quite a bit lower than the figure for keeping the roads in Good repair but it is still relatively High and suggests that Winnipeg residents care about people who do not have adequate housing. When asked what should be done about homelessness More than four in 10 Winnipeg residents say that the support programs available to people in need should be increased. This suggests that a fair number of people in Winnipeg see the problem As More than just a question of bricks and mortar although providing More affordable housing is clearly critical. When it comes to drug addiction five in 10 Winnipeg residents Point the Finger at the dealers and want to see the police target them rather than those suffering from addiction Only four per cent support a police crackdown on addicts. When this is combined with the finding that five in 10 Winnipeg residents feel that governments should treat illegal drug use As a health Issue rather than a criminal Issue it is Clear that there is at least some support for helping people recover from their addictions As opposed to Locking them up and forgetting about them. The Public cos views on prostitution Are similar to How it sees drug addiction. Almost a third of Winnipeg residents suggest providing More social services to sex Trade workers and 20 per cent suggest licensing and regulating Street prostitution a change that would provide at least some Protection for those working in the sex Trade. While not an overwhelming majority these numbers suggest that there is a significant subset of Winnipeg residents who appreciate that sex Trade workers Are part of our communities and deserve society yes help and empathy. Now the less encouraging results. Three quarters of Winnipeg residents report that they Are scared to set foot in parts of the City. Part reality and part perception this finding Points to a Barrier to increasing Public support and by Extension government action for thoughtful and compassionate approaches to Urban social challenges. If people feel unsafe in certain areas they will avoid those parts of town and As a result will not get to know the people who live there will not appreciate the challenges they face and will be More Likely to accept solutions that simply keep problems and hardship contained to those areas or swept away someplace else. Part but Only part of the solution lies in increasing real and perceived Public safety in our inner City and downtown communities. Safe streets Are vital and interesting streets. The bulk of the solution however lies in consciously deciding not to abandon the bad parts of town and committing to understanding respecting and helping the members of our communities who face barriers to fully enjoying and participating in the High Quality of life our cities provide. Our governments will not take the bold Steps necessary to address challenges like homelessness addiction and the exploitation of women and children involved in the sex Trade if the Public is exclusively focused on cracking Down on crime or if it fears or forgets about the people and communities that Are in need. This Christmas lets All take a few minutes to Ponder the human dimension of the problems our cities face and see this As a first step to some truly powerful forms of giving. Robert Roach is an economist with the Canada West foundation. A copy of caring cities Public opinion and Urban social issues in Western Canadian cities can be downloaded at no charge from the Canada West foundations website wow. Cwt. Ca. Robert Roach How caring is Winnipeg Survey findings Are both encouraging and discouraging by Robert Kelly Goss e Lizabeth City n. C. Yes Virginia there is a Santa Claus. Those Are famous words written by Francis Church in 1897, about an equally famous character that has brought a lot of Joy to children and adults Over the years. Thing is most adults might read this with a Wink and a nudge. You know As if were in the know about such things because were Well adults and Santa is just a myth right maybe maybe not. It just depends upon whom you ask i suppose. If you ask my youngest daughter or my two boys they might Tell you the Jolly old Elf Isnit a myth. My daughter after All sat on his Lap and tugged on his Beard. Not too hard Honey i said cringing As she gave the Long White Beard a Good tug. But Santa just smiled and waved his hand signalling to me that it was just Fine with him. Daddy Izzy exclaimed later he really is Santa i smiled and said indeed it seems he is Santa. Of course Santa Claus is a name that traces its roots Back to the fourth Century. He was Bishop Nicholas of Myra in modern Day Turkey who loved children and cared for the needy. He became a Saint eventually and has been known by Many names including sinter Klaas in dutch which would later become Santa Claus. So yeah there really was a Santa Claus. And As the original Story goes he really did leave gifts. But what about the Jolly old Elf we know today i mean does he really exist funny thing is i suppose i would be hard pressed to Tell you that on some level i did not believe in Santa. I would be hard pressed to Tell you that i dont believe in the excitable magic and spirit of giving and Joy that old St. Nick brings to the Christmas table each year. And then i would be hard pressed to Tell you that i did not see him As a child flying across the night sky like a Flash of Light. You see i have this funny Little memory of something like that. It was the Middle of the night and everyone was asleep. I awoke excited to see what was under the tree. No one would awaken so i crawled Back to bed and heard a sound. I scrambled to the window and looked at the sky. There against the cold dark sky a Flash of Light shot upward and away from the House. Santa i yelled and my aunt who was asleep next to me moaned. But it was him. I saw him and so yes i was certain that i witnessed Santa leaving the roof of my grandparents House. To this Day i can Tell my children with certainty that i saw what i believed to be Santa. You see what a child believes no matter How unreal to an adult is just As real As the most tangible object. Those monsters under the bed the bogeyman in the closet or the imaginary Friend Are to them magic that lights their Way and they Are very real. So yes Virginia or Johnny or Sam or Aidan or Izzy or Pearl there is a Santa Claus As Long As you believe. I know this because Well i suppose i believe too. Robert Kelly Goss writes for the daily Advance in Elizabeth City n. C. Its not hard to believe in Santa Claus eats like a Bird and Waters his whine ;