The mess of thinking

Posted on January 18, 2021 by Robert Basil

Inaccurate interpretations of a particular data-point can nonetheless provide metaphors that describe a lot.

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Picturing the news

Posted on December 30, 2020 by Robert Basil

Peter Maass of The Intercept asks a really good question: “Why have Americans seen relatively little imagery of people suffering from Covid-19? While there is a long-running debate over the influence of disturbing images of death and dying — whether they actually move public opinion — the relative paucity of videos and photographs of the pandemic’s victims might help explain why Covid-19 skepticism has thrived as the death toll in America reaches the level of a 9/11 every day.”

The quick answer to Maass’ question is that the Trump administration has been enforcing a very strict interpretation of America’s HIPAA regulations, originally put in place to protect medical patient privacy.

Before letting journalists inside Covid-19 wards, hospitals needed prior permission from not only the specific patients the journalists would interview, but also other patients whose names or identities would be accessible. … The guidelines made it extremely difficult for hospitals to give photographers the opportunity to collect visual evidence of the pandemic’s severity. By tightening the circulation of disturbing images, the guidelines fulfilled, intentionally or not, a key Trump administration goal: keeping public attention away from the death toll, which has surpassed 300,000 souls.

Takeaway quote from a nurse in Seattle: “We’re all experiencing the most difficult working conditions we’ve ever faced. And everybody who is speaking out is doing so to advocate for patients, ultimately. It looks like hospital administrations tend to run to HIPAA for their protection, not so much patient protection.”

The Intercept’s entire discussion is really good.

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Being on paper

Posted on December 30, 2020 by Robert Basil

One of my favourite publishing ventures is the “Certain Days: The Freedom for Political Prisoners” calendars, “a joint fundraising and educational project between outside organizers in Montreal, Hamilton, New York and Baltimore, with two political prisoners being held in maximum-security prisons: David Gilbert in New York and Xinachtli (s/n Alvaro Luna Hernandez) in Texas. Founding members Herman Bell and Robert Seth Hayes were happily welcomed home from prison in 2018.” As a publication, it is simply beautiful, and the art and writing are marvellous. I purchase a bunch of calendars every year to give out during the holidays.

A publication like this reminds me, an old publisher and editor, how worthwhile it is to print such work on paper, to be able to hold and smell – and to really keep it.

This year’s theme is “A Generation of Support Through the Bars” and features art and writings by Grae Rosa, Herman Bell, Veronza Bowers, David Campbell, Saima Desai, Damon Locks, Tom Manning, Monica Trinidad, Nidal el-Khairy, David Gilbert, Gord Hill (aka Zig Zag), Eric King, Jaan Laaman, Paul Lacombe, Joy Powell, Richard Rivera, Laura Whitehorn, Linda Evans and Susan Rosenberg, Xinachtli and more!

While COVID-19 makes its way around the world, causing massive shut downs, prison officials make measly attempts at controlling the spread to the most vulnerable inside.  Let’s raise the voices of prisoners, now more than ever.

Proceeds from Certain Days 2020 were divided amongst Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association (Palestine), Release Aging People in Prison (RAPP), Civil Liberties Defense Center and the Rosenburg Fund for Children. This year’s proceeds will go to some of the same grassroots groups and more.

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Detail

Posted on December 13, 2020 by Robert Basil

I seem to have come to the point where I no longer recall the exact word but I do recall exactly why only that exact word will do.

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Road to improvement

Posted on November 8, 2020 by Robert Basil

Published in 1903. Found near Haro and Bidwell, Vancouver.

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Continued enchantment

Posted on October 10, 2020 by Robert Basil

I’ve lived in Vancouver for almost 25 years and I’ve never, not for one moment, gotten over my luck. Recently, finally, I found an easy way to convey my continued enchantment to people:

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Communicators identifying threats

Posted on September 15, 2020 by Robert Basil

These are the “ideal changes” we should be looking for in American political journalism going forward, according to No Contest favourite Jay Rosen:

* Defense of democracy seen as basic to the job

* Symmetrical accounts of asymmetrical realities seen as malpractice

* Use of the game schema seen as low quality, downmarket, amateurish, silly

* Bad actors with a history of misinforming the public seen as unsuitable sources

And don’t forget “threat modeling teams.”

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Scholar Strike Canada

Posted on September 9, 2020 by Robert Basil

Here’s the schedule of events to be broadcast live and then video-archived. And here are some very illuminating resources. My university’s president and my dean both support the scholar strike, as do my teaching colleagues, of course.

Scholar Strike originated in the U.S from a tweet by Dr. Anthea Butler who, inspired by the striking WNBA and NBA players, put out a call for a similar labour action from academics. The Canadian action is aligned with the one in the U.S., in its call for racial justice, an end to anti-Black police violence and it adds a specific focus on anti-Indigenous, colonial violence.

I will be attending numerous sessions. My class-work will be limited to fielding student queries about their upcoming studies as well as about this action.

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Another form of school caution during the pandemic

Posted on September 8, 2020 by Robert Basil

This semester almost all of my university’s classes are online. Because of that, students can participate in Kwantlen courses – indeed, courses at any British Columbia university – from anywhere in the world. This distressing caution comes from The Tyee:

Some University of British Columbia students starting online studies next week will see a new kind of disclaimer on course outlines — this course could be illegal and even dangerous to access, depending on where you are. …

“Some UBC courses might cover topics that are censored or considered illegal by non-Canadian governments,” [wrote] Andrew Szeri, UBC’s vice-president academic. “This may include … human rights, representative government, defamation, obscenity, gender or sexuality, and historical or current geopolitical controversies.”

While UBC is “strongly committed to academic freedom” it has no sway over international governments, the warning says, and students should “exercise caution” when choosing courses this semester.

The letter also includes a warning for students. “Students should be mindful that when they partake in class discussions or communicate to the members of the class, that for some students living abroad, sensitive material might result in repercussions,” it cautions. …

“I think the university is trying to help students be alerted to the possibilities and make sure that they’re cautious if they’re in a place where some subjects may not be OK to study,” she said, “and that, that might actually mean they want to think about postponing a course.”

In the letter to faculty, the university said it is working to broaden the acceptable reasons for dropping a course without academic penalty to ensure students are not forced to choose between a course they need to graduate and their personal safety.

Good mental hygiene requires that we explore worst-case scenarios. I teach that in all of my classes.

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The School Year

Posted on September 8, 2020 by Robert Basil


The day after Labour Day is always a wonderful day. My students rescue the best in me.

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