The Cosmopolitan Blog

One of the things you need to know about me is that I am addicted to the Biography Channel. In fact, biographies are one of my favorite types of books too. And since I can be just as shallow as I can be “deep and meaningful”, I’ll take as much pleasure in watching a biography on Charlie Sheen as I do on Nelson Mandela (granted, i would probably not take the time to read Charlie’s bio…).

But since this post is not in the shallow “That’s Hot” category, my post is about Nelson Mandela. This man is definitely one of the great people of this century, a hero to his country, we all know how he spent 27+ years in jail for a cause he believed in, how the people of his country remembered him and continued fighting in his name, how he came out of jail and ended apartheid, became the country’s official leader and held the first free multi-racial democratic elections in the country.

What I found particularly striking and I find reflects on the core of who he is as a man and a human being, is the fact that the lifetime he spent in jail did not remotely make him bitter or angry. He persevered until he reached his goal, and he rarely used guerrila warfare and violence. With regards to this, I want to highlight the following from Wikipedia:

Mandela explains the move to embark on armed struggle as a last resort, when increasing repression and violence from the state convinced him that many years of non-violent protest against apartheid had achieved nothing and could not succeed. Mandela later admitted that the [African National Congress] ANC, in its struggle against apartheid, also violated human rights, and has sharply criticized attempts by parts of his party to remove statements supporting this fact from the reports of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

I don’t think there is anything I could say in this post that hasn’t been said before on this great man, but what I reflect on is how his struggle to end apartheid was not motivated by anger and hate, be it before or after his 30 years in prison. I believe THAT was the variable that allowed his struggle to be successful. So how does a man who sees such injustices not become bitter and enraged? The answer, I believe can be found in his childhood. Mandela was born in a very influential and important family in his region, his great-granfather was the King of the Thembu people, and his father was chief of his village. The point is, for the first 18-20 years of his life, he lived in regions of South Africa that were all-black, and therefore, he did not grow up confronted on a daily basis with racial hatred, he was never meant to feel inferior for the color of his skin. Anyone growing up in an environment of hatred, violence and racism can only end up bitter and angry. Mandela did not feel any of this growing up. THIS, i believe is the key to how Mandela chose to fight his struggle.

*warning: random thoughts ahead :)*

I find Mandela such a beautiful person. I am not someone who is very much into analyzing people’s auras (in fact, i know nothing about auras), but i believe that he must have the world’s most impressive aura. Mandela has often mentioned that one of his greatest influence is Mahatma Gandhi, and I believe this is very obvious. One of the contemporaries that he admired greatly too is ex-US President Jimmy Carter, someone I also admire for his stance on peace throughout the Middle East (yes, yes, I know, Jimmy wasn’t the world’s greatest US president, but I don’t believe this should take away from his amazing foreign policy).

So is Mandela perfect? No, i think not, and in fact, I think that anyone who could devote his entire life to his country’s struggle in such a steadfast and focused way, must be a very difficult man to live with (or without, considering that he spent most the life he shared with his 2nd wife in jail). I think he made a choice of which way his life would go, and that meant that the more time he spent struggling, the less time he spend being a private man, a husband and a father. Life must not be easy being the child of Nelson Mandela. I just think it’s important to acknowledge his family for the sacrifice they were asked to make for the sake of their country.

Last random thought: this man is now 89 years old, and he has retired from public life… Sort of… Last month, he created the council of Elders, which, I know, sounds like something out of Star Trek or Harry Potter, but is, in fact, an amazing way to unite all the great living men and women of this century who have knowledge, wisdom and experience to:

“speak freely and boldly, working both publicly and behind the scenes on whatever actions need to be taken. Together we will work to support courage where there is fear, foster agreement where there is conflict, and inspire hope where there is despair“.

I do believe that you probably have to be 70+ to join the club (i’m only 1/2 kidding, i think that to understand and share your perspective and wisdom, you can’t be 40-odd years old), and includes such greats as Desmond Tutu, Kofi Annan, Ela Bhatt, Muhammad Yunus and Jimmy Carter, each of these people having their own specialty and area of expertise.

I am thankful that there are people like Nelson Mandela in this world.

So in my continued quest to keep you coming back to my blog, i’ve decided to add polls, you should see them in the right column, and i think i will change them once a week, or sooner, depending on the number of answers…

Since today’s post was about religious views, it’s only fitting to have a poll on religion. So i look forward to seeing the votes add up!

…oh, and, on a side note, for those of you really paying attention, i’ve reworded the categories (same categories, less words).

ENJOY!

It’s strange, as women, when we hear of other successful women, we feel an extra desire to cheer them on… I’m pretty sure men don’t do this, I mean they don’t cheer other men on just ‘cuz they’re men, I guess we’ve just come that much further…

So i feel the need to acknowledge 2 woman that i greatly admire: Oprah and Christiane Amanpour, the CNN Chief International Correspondent… which, in itself, is funny, because Oprah called Christiane one of her personal heroes when CA appeared on O’s show.

*warning, tangent ahead*

Don’t get me wrong, there are many women i admire, i admire women everyday, my sister for representing the modern multitasker: 2.5 kids, 2 jobs, a spotless house, a successful marriage and an active social life. My best friend for having grown from a reckless teenager to a responsible, independent, profoundly well balanced and happy individual. My aunt for having made a name for herself in a fundamental Islamic country and having single-handedly taken the rights and options available to women miles forward. My mom for representing that older generation of women who believes in long term commitments and the true meaning of “’till death do us part”, standing strong in the face of adversity and dealing with the hard blows life can give you with perseverance and humility.

*end of tangent*

So I’m watching “God’s Warriors” on TV, a 6-hr series that looks at Jewish, Christian and Muslim fanaticism, Christiane took over 8 months to prepare this documentary. It’s a great documentary, and of course, i have tons of opinions on its content, but this post is about Christiane. She is originally Iranian, but she is Christian. She grew up in London and married a Jewish man. She’s a wife and a mother, but she’s also a reporter, and she puts herself in danger (she admits that she has become more cautious now that she’s a mother), but still, she searches for the truth, and looks to always put a human face to any situation… I found that “God’s Warriors”, amongst other things, helps us understand the Israeli-Palestinian conflict so much better because she brings it down to stories of ordinary families and the challenges they face. She makes us understand how it is that a family, a person could have ended up in such a state of despair or such a belief that they can commit such violence and feel it’s the only way forward.

Christiane is not the only wonderful journalist i admire, there are many more, many, in fact, in my family, but she makes me proud to be a woman. As i watch the Muslim segment of “God’s Warriors”, i watch her sit there and interview men that tell her to her face how they think women are inferior, i watch her be respectful and listen intensely, bringing a mix of class and honesty to every interview. Above all, she lets you draw your own conclusions, she doesn’t force her opinion on her viewers.

I found this great quote from Christiane on Wikipedia:

“There are some situations one simply cannot be neutral about, because when you are neutral you are an accomplice. Objectivity doesn’t mean treating all sides equally. It means giving each side a hearing.”

She said this specifically when speaking about the Bosnian conflict in the 90s, but i can see this belief applied to all her pieces. It represents very much what I feel.

My apologies if you thought this post was about Oprah. I love Oprah, and i think she’s wonderful, and next time i feel inspired, i will devote a post entirely to her as well.

Does no one write a blog these days, just for the sheer fun of it? It seems everyone is trying to make money from it. Case in point: me I would love to tell you that i started this blog in the hope of making the world a better place. After all, i preach all this stuff about pacifism and going green, right? Surely that means that i’m a vegetarian, i take in strays, i don’t wear leather, i go on hunger strikes… ok, ok, fine, i’ll stop, i won’t give in to clichés

Here’s the sad truth: I started this blog with an ulterior motive…. or 2… First, well, i was given the task of starting a corporate blog at my workplace, and so, i wanted a testing ground and started this blog as a marketing experiment. I figured, well, how difficult could it be, right? I’m opinionated, passionate, i watch a lot of movies, read a lot and go out for dinner a lot, so surely, that’s enough content for a blog.

Then, shortly after, someone pointed me to Steve Pavlina’s site, this guy writes great articles about personal development, things like: “how to train yourself to get up right away as soon as the alarm rings” (c’mon, be honest with yourself, you can relate!), “lessons we can learn from star trek” (ok, don’t laugh, i agree this one’s a bit more of a stretch, but hey, i’m a trekkie, so sue me!), the latter suddenly upping my respect for the man (steve, that is). All this led me to this post of his: “How to make money from your blog“. Not that this was a revelation, obviously, i knew people did, but i figured, well, if it’s a low effort job, surely it’s not a bad thing to get paid for doing something you enjoy, right? So this was my second ulterior motive, to see if i could make money from it. I’ll report back on the progress of this later on.

So, the answer is, yes, i’m sure there are people out there who do it just for the fun of it, and all the more power to them. But the bottom line is, if your content is compelling, people won’t mind if, next to this riveting content, they see a few ads. I’m not posting for the hell of it (trust me, i would get bored so quickly, this blog would already be over), i am actually, truly and genuinely opinionated and have things to get off my chest…

Anyway, since this is in the “Blogging Around” category, i wanted to just follow up on this whole “making money” business… There’s this guy, One Man, who i find a lot easier to read than Steve Pavlina (although, back when Steve started his site, there was probably less info, and easier to follow than now, where i’m reading his stuff 2 years after it was written, so lots of catching up to do). So One Man has this goal, to make $100,000 in one year from his blog. Check out his site: http://www.oneyeargoal.com/welcome-to-oneyeargoalcom/, he only started in July of this year, so it’s great to track his progress. And proof that making money can have an altruistic spin to it, he shares everything he does, step by step, with you… There are some really interesting tips, and this is easy stuff. So i’ll let you know what i find interesting and will probably be implementing some of it too…

Well, i saw Michael Moore’s movie “Sicko” about 2 months ago, and i had so much to say that the post became a beast of a post in my head, and i never actually poured it out….

Until now, where i just read the best critical review of the movie, and so, i’ll just let you go read it after i say my peace. You’ve all probably either already seen the movie or heard about it, so i won’t detail it up. Here’s the way i see it… Michael Moore is SO biased, that the parts of the movie that are ACTUALLY worth learning from, are lost on me because he doesn’t try to paint a fair picture…

I haven’t had much experience with the US healthcare system in the 5 years i lived there, but I’m so happy that he chose to speak of England, France and Canada, because i’ve lived in England 22 years, I spend 4 months a year in France every year for 18 years, I’ve lived over 3 years in Canada and my sister has lived in Canada 20+ years… so i can talk about this FIRST HAND.

And i can tell you this, what he says about these countries is only 1/2 the story. That’s a fact.

Look, it doesn’t make the stories he tells of the US less despicable. If they are true, these are some terrible stories. For sure, 100% agreed. But Michael, if you’re going to hide the truth during 3/5 of your movie (British, French and Canadian stories), then how am i supposed to take your word for it with respect to the other 2/5 of the movie (US and Cuban stories)? If you’re only telling me the good stuff about the British, French and Canadian systems and ignoring the bad sides, then obviously, i’m going to believe that conversely, you are only telling me the bad side about the US system and leaving out the good!

How does Michael Moore expect to make a point if everything in his world is black or white, good or evil? Oh, yes, right, i forgot, he’s not actually trying to make a point, because that would require him to be objective. No he’s just going for the cheap sensationalism… oh, well, if he had just told me that this was a work of fiction, then, well, then i would just shut my brain off and appreciate the funny moments of the movie.

ok, again, this is becoming a huge post, so i’ll shut up and just point you to Kyle Smith’s movie review. It’s soooo much more than a movie review, like he says, it’s a rebuttal. If anyone’s seen Sicko, that you HAVE to read this, it’s like the other side of the story. I can personally vouch for the stories he tells about the British, French and Canadian systems. If you need proof, come and ask me, i’ll show you news stories, facts, figures, statistics. He also comments at length on the Cuban stories, which, unfortunately, I can’t comment on. But i’m somehow just willing to take this guy’s word over MM’s anyday, you know?

It’s a bit of a lengthy article, but look! It has funny lines like: “I know Cuba is actually a prison nation where nobody’s gotten a new car since Fredo betrayed Michael” (Godfather movie, Michael, Fredo, long time ago, get it, haha?)

anyway, enjoy: http://kylesmithonline.com/?p=306

I’ve been searching for other “cosmopolitan” related blogs, and so far, i hadn’t had much success, i found the twist on cosmopolitanism a little disturbing on so many blogs, very “agenda-pushing”. But Juan at Global Culture takes his globalization efforts very seriously, and they are extremely commendable. I’ve subscribed to his feed and will report back when i get a chance to read more about his blog.

In the meantime, he reports here on the top 10 most liveable cities, with criteria such as infrastructure, airport, crime, education and health. Munich in Germany is no1, which, having been there for a few days, makes a lot of sense (but I wasn’t there long enough to be able to critically comment on this).

The good news is that Montreal is no12. At first, i was surprised that it wasn’t in the top 10, but now that i think about the criteria, which seems very fair to me, i realize that there is a lot that we can do to improve… yes, for sure, repairing our highways come to mind (anyone living here will know what i mean, with the trouble we’ve had lately), but i was thinking more along the lines of a switch in mindset which i wish most fervently for this city. I can’t imagine that Montrealers wouldn’t want to become a city with an even greater cosmopolitan reputation, but i fear that they don’t understand what this involves and why the city’s growth is stunted right now… I mean, we could have the speediest and most efficient healthcare system (I wish) and the world’s most pleasant airport, but until english-speaking tourists don’t feel like they’re been frowned upon for speaking English (yes, i was in Old Montreal the other day, and saw how a frowning Tim Horton’s waitress spoke rudely to my english-speaking cousin until I spoke French and watched her whole attitude change) or laughed at for attempting to speak French (i never knew the true meaning of “condescending” until i came here)

Francophones need to be proud of the culture of Quebec, but not in an arrogant insecure way of feeling they need to impose it on each and every individual. Anglophones need to shut up and listen a little more and start appreciating the francophone culture for what it is and understand that it’s the francophone element that makes this city truly unique, so they should stop trying to make it resemble the rest of Canada, it doesn’t, and that’s a great thing. I realize i’m going on a tangent here but i wanted to point out that i am still waiting (yes, open invitation here) for a francophone separatist to sit down with me and explain to me clearly how Quebec as an independant country would work, and i mean, i want facts, figures, economic plan, and no emotional propaganda about how it’s all about the culture. Aaaah, now i remember why i use a pseudo, the joys of anonymity (not an invitation to out me, i’m pretty sure it’s not that hard to find out my real name).

Ok, back from my tangent… Congrats Montreal for being no12. This is an amazing city. Most of the time, whether you’re a tourist or a resident (francophone or anglophone), Montreal is one of the most pleasant cities to be in, for it’s culture (museums, theaters, yearly opera subscriptions that are affordable for everyone), for it’s social aspect, restaurants, bars, nightlife, green parcs, water sports… Now, if anyone’s interested, why not try to make the top 10 next year?

Hello girls and boyz! Yes, i’m still alive… went under the radar for a while as a restaurant superspy which is why i’ve been so silent (ok, fine, that’s a lie, i was just lazy!!)…

so i’m back with a couple quick reviews, first, this restaurant, A Taste of India, was recommended to me by at least 2 people.

So, let’s be structured here, first, the positives (absolutely outweight the negatives, BTW):

- Very nice decor, not over the top, but still, there’s a design feel, which is more than I can say for many restaurants in this price range, nice size, quiet and intimate, but bright for summer, with a nice patio on a wide sidewalk.

- I went on a Wednesday night, so I will concede that this was probably not their busiest night, but still, we were greated immediately, with a smile, given a table for 4 even though we were 2, we got our water and little munchies right away, and the menus

- Munchies were poppadums and a little onion relish, very yummy.

- Menu had all the classics, a good 8 pages. The best thing about it? The last page, if you’re not a connaisseur, they put together combination menus for 1 or 2 people. For 2 people, you get 2 appetizers, 2 meat dishes, one veg dish, rice and naan bread, all for a total price of max $32 (there’s cheaper), which, really, if you added all the individual items together, you’re saving anywhere from $5 to $15! And it saves you from trying to figure out what to order… There are 8 combination menus possible in total i think. Oh, and they each have complimentary dessert!!

- The service was awesome, great smiles, everything was “yes of course”. Also, the manager is this nice much older gentleman, he comes to check if everything is ok, and just generally adds an extra touch of “genuine” to it all

- Excellent food, not too spicy, not too bland. The main courses come on a little heater thing, so they stay warm.

Honestly, you want a great place to eat “mainstream/North American” Indian food? This is the place to go, there’s nothing to say against it…

So negatives? Well, if you read carefully, they’re really not… Like i said, you want mainstream food, this is the place to go. BUT, well, i’m biased, because indian food is what my family makes at home (well, one side of my family, anyway!!) so i know what real “homey” indian/pakistani food is… So i’m not going to list negatives, I’m going to say, if you want authentic cuisine like you would get in any house in india/pakistan, i can tell you were to go, but it won’t be as pretty a place, you won’t get help picking your dishes, you won’t find butter chicken on the menu, and well, the spices will have a whole different dimension to them… but it’s not for the faint hearted!

So you want a pleasant evening, entertaining and eating indian food in a perfect setting and not have to worry about the service? I recommend A Taste of India, it’s the best i’ve had in Montreal yet, and the reason i know this is because, contrarily to other places, even when you’ve stuffed yourself with more food than you can handle, you don’t feel like you want to curl up in a ball and sleep under the table… proof that the ingredients are not just filling cornstarch, instead real skill and authentic ingredients go into it…

Happy eating, Montreal!

A Taste of India / Goût de l’Inde: 6127 Monckland, corner Beaconsfield. Average $15-$30 per person. All info can be found here: http://www.tasteofindiarestaurant.com/