And Iran, Iran So Far Away

Couldn't resist the Flock of Seagulls reference.

As the events in Iran unfold, and Iran accuses western influence on the unrest in the country, I can't help but think of a book I read last summer: The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein.

The Shock Doctrine follows the application of these ideas though our contemporary history, showing in riveting detail how well-known events of the recent past have been deliberate, active theatres for the shock doctrine, among them: Pinochet’s coup in Chile in 1973, the Falklands War in 1982, the Tiananmen Square Massacre in 1989, the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Asian Financial crisis in 1997 and Hurricane Mitch in 1998.

In particular, the book notes how in the past, the U.S. has been the puppeteer in staging coups in other countries in order to unseat an unfavourable leader or government. It makes you wonder how much the U.S. might be fanning the flames of protest to get rid of Ahmadinejad. The CIA admittedly has covert agents in Iran and it just seems like this is a convenient opportunity for the U.S to create change in Iran by getting rid of Ahmadinejad.

Food for thought.

Read the book, it's an interesting read.

Public Pools

Took my daughter to the wave pool yesterday as part of our Father's Day festivities.
I'm not a huge fan of public swimming pools, and this experience only cemented that tendency. Of note:

1)To the teens/adults congregrating in the heated hot tub/pool section, the warm water and smell of chlorine is apparently an aphrodesiac that awakens their nether regions and roaming hands, because several handsome couples decided this public venue was a great place for them to grope each other and have a pretty serious makeout session. I threw up in my mouth a little each time that these productive members of society locked in their douchebag embrace.

2)The general level of douchebaggery in the pool. The chap sporting the faux-dogtag necklace (methinks someone spent $50 or more at Randy River recently), the girl with mall-bangs and "Tamara" tattooed across her midsection. The guys walking around like hard-rocks, demonstrating their dominance over the families and children splashing in the water.