Up early for an orange drink so gross only I could stomach it. I packed up slowly after a great hot shower. I took the Metro to the last stop and walked about a mile to the highway. The first ride was only for 15 kms but the next one was all the way to Tokaj near the Czech border. A nice young couple Urion and Katerina were going to Tokaj to drink some of its famous sweet wine of which they were very proud of. We had some wine in the village when we arrived. We then walked up some steps to the top of the hill where we had a wonderful view of the town and the vineyards and the muddy river running through it. We went to the cellars of a winery and had a glass of the famous sweet wine of Tokaj. They were nice enough to drop me off at the campground. I rented a “bungalow” for two reasons. It had been raining all afternoon and I did not want to get wet. Secondly I had Hungarian money I could not take out of the country so why not splurge a bit. The bungalow was something else. A corrugated steel roof. That roof leaked though. I feel like I am in a slum dwelling in Rio. I threw my stuff on the bed and washed my face noticing one pimple. All that crap that went down my throat in Budapest! I headed into town and it was a beautiful one as it is surrounded by rolling vineyards. Had bread, salad, fish soup and a pork cutlet with a glass of wine for $1.50. I walked around the town and found a place with live music and had a couple of beers. I made it home just as a vicious rainstorm struck. My roof was leaking. I am the only one in the campground and after having a rip-roaring time in Budapest with lots of people it felt lonely here with the rain pounding away. I am used to living the solo life on my voyage of discovery but I suppose I can feel lonely sometimes.
RKS Film: “Split at the Root”: An Examination of Zero Tolerance Policy and American Immigration Policy
“Split the Root”, which will be showing at Toronto Hot Docs Festival, examines the Zero Tolerance Policy and the cumbersome and inconsistent handling of asylum cases in the United States.
The Zero Tolerance Policy (ZTP) can perhaps be best understood as a reaction from the right to the continual and never-ending stream of Mexicans and Central Americans crossing into the southern United States. You may recall seeing coverage of “The Caravan” with thousands of Central Americans marching to the United States border. With images such as this one can understand the fear of many Americans. In fact very recently there was talk of American (Republican) governors about declaring this influx as an “invasion”. What is irksome to many is the sense those fleeing their country seem to have a sense of entitlement to enter the United States. As an American border officer said to my son when entering the United States that this was an important day in his life entering the best country on the earth so wipe that smirk off your face. Are all US Customs and Border officials equally idiotic?
The most loathsome component of ZTP was the separation of parents and children amounting it is thought to 4,368 children. One must question the lack of logic to this family separation. As a minor government official says in the beginning of this documentary that if you enter the United States illegally this is what you should expect so don’t come. In other words the logic of family separation can only be punishment.
Nobody can blame any country for having laws restricting wholesale immigration. But perhaps what is best to focus on are these laws humane. The documentary focuses on two Guatemalan women apprehended for illegal entry into the United States with the ZTP resulting in separation of mother and children causing obvious trauma to mothers and children.
Several mothers banded together to form Immigrant Families Together (IFT) to initially get bail money to free mothers from “detention centres”. But reuniting requires that the parents have adequate housing for their children which is impossible because these mothers are not permitted to work! So the IFT started arranging for lodgings and offering counseling.
And even after reunification of parents and children there is the asylum process which moves at a snail’s pace and is inconsistent in results with New York City judges being the most generous in granting asylum. As a judicial process requires evidence good luck on getting any assistance from corrupt Honduras and Guatemala police that demand bribes.
There are lots of tears flowing in the documentary as perhaps there should be considering the stupidity inherent in parent and child separation. Pardon me for being the elephant in the room but the documentary fails to question the veracity of the two Guatemalan women as it seems to assume there is no ruse or scam involved. The goal of an asylum process is to grant asylum to those who qualify and not to those who simply want a better life than in their crime infested societies. Having spent some time amongst hundreds of Syrians, Libyans and many from various African countries in a locale in Europe with a “refugee camp” it is no secret the NGO’s operating there coach these migrants on how to “win” an asylum case. My sense is that most of the people in this camp were economic migrants as opposed to legitimate refugees. Unfortunately the documentary skirts these issues of fraud and scamming. Otherwise it is a compelling look at ZTP which was revoked by executive order by the Trumpster himself. The documentary can’t be held to task for exposing the pain and suffering caused by ZTP family separation.
You can see the trailer here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIM-laheP9A
It shows on April 29 and May 4th at Toronto Hot Docs Festival. It is directed by Linda Goldstein Knowlton.
Why the title “Split the Root”? One of the women from Guatemala explains the term meaning she is not really part of Guatemala nor of the United States.
RKS Film Rating 74/100.
“Travels to a Different Time” :31May1975: Budapest, Hungary: Marian Acts Snooty
Up at 09:00 and returned some bottles for a deposit refund. I then went to IZBUZ to change my remaining Austrian schillings. They like roast chicken in Budapest so I went to one of these chicken places where you stand and eat it. Half a chicken and a Pepsi for $1.25. The skin was too salty but otherwise it was tasty and the fries as well. Back home at 3 to read for a couple of hours and then back to the same self serve I ate at yesterday. As arranged I met Alzam. We were at the floating disco at 8 and as there are lines of people waiting to get in I greased a palm and we skipped the line. There was Marian sitting with friends. Last night we got along so well now I get the cold shoulder. She acted very snooty. Being a bit peeved we didn’t stay that long. We met a couple of Alzam’s friends one who was Nigerian and the other a rather plump Hungarian. We found a cozy little tavern with only locals. We went to another club which had live gypsy music. We caught the last tram home and boy were they ever speeding along. I guess the conductor was in to return home and get some sleep. There certainly is some night life in Budapest! This spending must cease as I am averaging $10 a day!
“Travels to a Different Time” : 30May1975: Budapest, Hungary: A Megaton Nuclear Blowout in Budapest; Bribery, Booze and a Brothel?
The day commenced in orderly fashion but it was going to end in a way it may never end for the rest of my life. Up early I read two books. Less weight to lug around. It is almost a fetish reading and dumping the too many books I have brought along. But better than television which is not so easily encountered in the Iron Curtain. Went to Elemizer to pick up breakfast supplies. I read some more and for lunch a bottle of peas and a room temperature beer. This time it was off to the old town which reminded me of Salzburg. There are more tourists in Budapest than I expected. The old city is walled and lies on a hill overlooking Budapest. I went into the military museum which was moderately interesting. Yes the communist soldiers were the bravest ever! The old guy taking the admissions let me in free if I taught him how to count from 5 to 10 in English. He already knew 1-5. A bit strange as we could only communicate in German. I bought some mineral water and chocolate wafers on the way home. I took the Metro to the Astoria station. I arrived home and ate the wafers I had not consumed along with the mineral water. I sat out on my regal balcony for awhile and had a stupendous non-meat dinner for 65 cents. On my long walk home near the river I crossed the bridge and I heard rock and roll music coming from a boat docked on the river. A big line up to get in which was solved by giving an American dollar. Drinks were $1 each and the place was hopping, “The place to be seen”! I met a guy Alzam from Tanzania here on an exchange programme. I met a nice-looking chick named Marian who spoke flawless English. Her dad is a big politico and next week they are moving to Belgrade where he will be working in the Hungarian Embassy. I danced with her most of the night but at 1 a.m. she had to split due to the Mom and Dad complex. I stayed with Alzam until the boat disco closed and he said he knew a great club that was still open. We walked forever and approached a residential area. He walked up to a house and knocked on the door and a bar slid open and we were inspected and let in. I think the meanest criminals and lowlifes were here. Dark lighting, red lush furniture, bottles of Champagne and many heavily made-up ladies. Never ever has this poor innocent Canadian seen something like this! What we drank I am not sure as my mind was not in the glass but on the bizarre movie set in front of my innocent eyes. Is this a brothel? A den of spies and snakes. Was Maid Marian on the boat a spy? I did have a man approach me on the disco boat and whisper in my ear, “I am a Capitalist”. We left at 5 in the morning and swiped a couple bottles of delicious milk on doorsteps. Took a taxi home and thundered in the door at goodness knows what time to a surprised landlady!
RKS Wine: An Australian Old Reliable: D’Arenberg
Years ago I worked in the east end of Toronto near a Chevrolet dealership called “Robertson’s Old Reliable Chevrolet”. That “Old Reliable” stuck with me although at the time Chevrolet’s were never that reliable!
D’Arenberg, a McLaren Vale winery, has also stuck with me for many years as a reliable producer of red and white wines at a fair price that have a capacity to age in the medium term. So is the D’Arenberg still “Old Reliable”?
On the nose lots of blackberry, cassis and black currant. Some blueberry, purple plum and lavender. On the palate tannins are moderate and there is some Chambord, olive tapenade and licorice. McLaren Vale wines can be jammy and overdone, which on occasion can be fun but this is a restrained Cabernet Sauvignon good for sipping and for summer barbeques of chicken, lamb, and pork (no lemon marinade please!).
A good wine at a fair price. It will hold until 2025 and will improve over this suggested limited ageing. How does this differ from a California Cabernet Sauvignon? Actually not much except that it outperforms California Sauvignon in the same price point.
Some of the grapes are food trodden. I haven’t heard much of the foot stomp out of Portugal. The oak used is French and it is not new.
(D’Arenberg The High Trellis McLaren Vale Cabernet Sauvignon 2018, D’Arenberg, McLaren Vale, Australia, $19.95, Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 943456, 750 mL, 14.5%, RKS Wine Rating 91/100).
“Travels to a Different Time” : 29May1975: Budapest, Hungary: Living and Eating Like a Royal: Love Those Hungarian Dumplings!
Finally a nice sunny late spring day. Did a little wash of clothes and hung them out on the balcony. Yes sir I have a balcony with a view of the city. A low budget Ritz-Carlton! Went out to purchase my supplies for breakfast and I ate like an aristocrat on my balcony. I did find milk but it wasn’t that good. I walked around Budapest for at least 4 hours and the more I see the more I like it. It reminds be of a crumbling Vienna. I stopped for an orange drink in a café and it was 50 cents. The cost of living here is about half of Vienna’s. The pollution is bad here with thick smog. I took the subway close to home which was a railway station and walked 10 minutes from there. I had a hot shower for 50 cents. I had a bottle of peas for a snack and read for a bit. Opened a beer and sat on my balcony watching life below. I walked to the self service nearby and had some sort of meat with Hungarian dumplings which are very tasty! The cutlery was the cheapest I have seen and you place your dishes on a flimsy aluminum tray. I wanted to go see a movie called “Sleuth” with Michael Caine but it had been dubbed in Hungarian so I decided not to see it. Home at 8:30 and off to bed after reading for an hour.
RKS Wine: Valle de Uco Site of The Best Argentinian Malbec?
I recall when living in Montreal at the corner depanneur you could buy a gallon of a red wine called “Malbec” bottled by the SAQ. Goodness knows if it was even made from Malbec grapes and what country it came from. Those corner store wines were never very good.
Of course, such could not exist today? Most of the world’s Malbec is produced in Argentina although some still is grown in France and some say the best Argentinian is from Valle de Uco made up of three well known wine districts Tupungato, Tunuyán and San Carlos.
Zuccardi is a well-known producer. The grapes for this wine are grown at altitudes equal to or exceeding 3,600 feet. The altitude should substantially cool down the grapes at night ensuring no flabbiness.
In colour expect a purplish wine. As soon as you open the bottle you know it must have a powerful nose! Dense notes of blueberry, black cherry and boysenberry and assorted black fruit. A true sense of plush and lush. On the palate there is enough acidity to corral the exuberant fruit. There is most definitely a raging backdraft of blueberry pie and blackberry jam. The tannins sneak up on you but they are not excessive. There is a purity of fruit perhaps because 70% was aged in concrete and only 30% in oak. I may be wrong but lately there seems a slow drift away from oak towards stainless streel and concrete. Aside from a classic match of grilled flank steak with chimichurri sauce vegetarians might think of pairing with a zucchini and carrot julienne thrown into a pan with onion, garlic, mushroom stock and thyme served over bucatini.
The wine may settle down and improve over the next two years.
(Zuccardi Q Malbec de Uco-Mendoza 2020, Familia Zuccardi, Mendoza, Argentina, $20.95, Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 723748, 14%, 750 mL, RKS Wine Rating 90/100).
“Travels to a Different Time” : 28May1975: Vienna, Austria and Budapest, Hungary to the Land of Goulash and of Revolution Against the Soviet Empire!
Up bright eyed and bushy tailed and on the road at 07:30. My knapsack is bursting. Two trams took me close to the highway so I had a half a kilometre walk. Getting rid of my last Austrian coins a beer at 09:00. I really lucked in with a businessman going all the way to Budapest in a big BMV. Pleasant countryside similar to Romania. Through the border in 20 minutes. A very beautiful city although far from the grandeur of Vienna. Buda is one side of the river and Pest on the other. I ended up finding a room for $4.50 in an old bourgeois mansion. The communist booted out the owners and converted it into housing for multiple families. It is a beautiful old district here! I have a spectacular view of the city below. There was even a hot water shower. I went to a store called Elelmzer for a big salami sandwich which I ate in a nearby park. The prices for food seem very low like Romania as I look at the menu of a nearby restaurant where the most expensive dish was $1.25. I was no fan of Serbian Goulash hopefully Hungarian is better. After my lunch I walked around for a few hours giving some thought to the bravery of the Hungarians in the 1956 revolution against the Russians. I bought some bread and sliced meat for a dinner with a can of beer. Out like a light at 20:00.
Russia Suspended from United Nations Human Rights Council (7 April 2022)
The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution on Thursday calling for Russia to be suspended from the Human Rights Council.
The resolution received a two-thirds majority of those voting, minus abstentions, in the 193-member Assembly, with 93 nations voting in favour and 24 against.
Fifty-eight abstained from the process.
Russia, China, Cuba, North Korea, Iran, Syria, Vietnam, were among those who voted against.
Those abstaining, included India, Brazil, South Africa, Mexico, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, Iraq, Pakistan, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Cambodia.
The meeting marked the resumption of a special emergency session on the war in Ukraine and followed reports of violations committed by Russian forces.
This past weekend, disturbing photos emerged from the city of Bucha, a suburb of the capital, Kyiv, where hundreds of civilian bodies were found in the streets and in mass graves following Russia’s withdrawal from the area.
Prior to the vote, Ukrainian Ambassador Sergiy Kyslytsya urged countries to support the resolution.
“Bucha and dozens of other Ukrainian cities and villages, where thousands of peaceful residents have been killed, tortured, raped, abducted and robbed by the Russian Army, serve as an example of how dramatically far the Russian Federation has gone from its initial declarations in the human rights domain. That is why this case is unique and today’s response is obvious and self-explanatory,” he said.
This is not the first time that a Member State has had its membership of the Human Rights Council suspended. Libya lost its seat in 2011, following repression of protests by ruler Muammar Gaddafi, who was later overthrown.
Gennady Kuzmin, Deputy Russian ambassador, in remarks before the vote, called for countries to “vote against the attempt by Western countries and their allies to destroy the existing human rights architecture.”
Parallels with Rwanda
The vote took place on the anniversary of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, and the Ukrainian ambassador drew parallels with this dark page in recent history.
“The genocide in Rwanda was largely due to the indifference of the world’s community, when the UN did not respond to warnings in the UN Security Council and in the General Assembly, a year before the tragedy that we commemorate exactly on this day,” said Mr. Kyslytsya.
“Today, in the case of Ukraine, it is not even a year, because the tragedy is unfolding right now before our eyes.”
UN Photo/Manuel Elías
Sergiy Kyslytsya, Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the United Nations, presents the draft resolution during the 10th plenary meeting of the General Assembly Eleventh Emergency Special Session on Ukraine.
Grounds for suspension
The UN Human Rights Council consists of 47 members and is based in Geneva.
Russia joined the body in January 2021 as one of 15 countries elected by the General Assembly to serve three-year terms.
Under the 2006 resolution that established the Council, the General Assembly can suspend a country from membership if it commits gross and systematic violations of human rights.
Russia quits Council
Speaking after the adoption of the resolution, Deputy Permanent Representative Kuzmin, suddenly stated that Russia had already decided that day, to leave the Council before the end of its term.
He claimed the Council was monopolized by a group of States who use it for their short-term aims.
“These States for many years have directly been involved in blatant and massive violations of human rights, or abetted those violations,” he said, speaking through an interpreter.
“In spite of their membership as members of the Council, they are not ready to sacrifice their short-term political and economic interests in favour of true cooperation and stabilizing the human rights situation in certain countries.”
UN Photo/Manuel Elías
The General Assembly Votes to suspend Russia from the Human Rights Council. Pictured at the end of the row on the right, is Deputy Permanent Representative of Russia, Gennady Kuzmin.
‘Dangerous precedent’: China
China was among the countries that voted against the resolution. Ambassador ZHANG Jun, feared any hasty move in the General Assembly would be like “adding fuel to the fire”, as it would aggravate divisions, intensify the conflict, and jeopardize peace efforts.
“Dealing with the membership of the Human Rights Council in such a way will set new dangerous precedent, further intensify confrontation in the field of human rights, bringing a greater impact on the UN governance system, and produce serious consequences,” he said.
EU commends ‘rare decision’
For the European Union (EU), the scale and gravity of Russia’s violations in Ukraine, and of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the country, call for a strong, united international response.
“The rare decision this Assembly has taken today sends a strong signal of accountability and hopefully will help preventing and discouraging more violations of human rights,” said Ambassador Olaf Skoog, head of the EU delegation.
A step in the right direction: USA
The United States was the last country to speak during the day-long meeting.
Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield described the adoption of the resolution as “an important and historic moment”. It was not only about accountability for Russia, she said, but also about standing with the people of Ukraine.
“Today, the international community took one collective step in the right direction. We ensured a persistent and egregious human rights violator will not be allowed to occupy a position of leadership on human rights at the UN,” said Ms. Thomas-Greenfield.
“Let us continue to hold Russia accountable for this unprovoked, unjust, unconscionable war –and to do everything in our power to stand with the people of Ukraine.”
United States Prohibiting New Investment in and Certain Services to the Russian Federation in Response to Continued Russian Federation Aggression
APRIL 06, 2022•PRESIDENTIAL ACTIONS
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA), the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code,
I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, in order to take additional steps with respect to the national emergency declared in Executive Order 14024 of April 15, 2021, expanded by Executive Order 14066 of March 8, 2022, and relied on for additional steps taken in Executive Order 14039 of August 20, 2021, and Executive Order 14068 of March 11, 2022, hereby order:
Section 1. (a) The following are prohibited:
(i) new investment in the Russian Federation by a United States person, wherever located;
(ii) the exportation, reexportation, sale, or supply, directly or indirectly, from the United States, or by a United States person, wherever located, of any category of services as may be determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, to any person located in the Russian Federation; and
(iii) any approval, financing, facilitation, or guarantee by a United States person, wherever located, of a transaction by a foreign person where the transaction by that foreign person would be prohibited by this section if performed by a United States person or within the United States.
(b) The prohibitions in subsection (a) of this section apply except to the extent provided by statutes, or in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may be issued pursuant to this order, and notwithstanding any contract entered into or license or permit granted prior to the date of this order.
Sec. 2. (a) Any transaction that evades or avoids, has the purpose of evading or avoiding, causes a violation of, or attempts to violate any of the prohibitions set forth in this order is prohibited.
(b) Any conspiracy formed to violate any of the prohibitions set forth in this order is prohibited.
Sec. 3. Nothing in this order shall prohibit transactions for the conduct of the official business of the Federal Government or the United Nations (including its specialized agencies, programs, funds, and related organizations) by employees, grantees, or contractors thereof.
Sec. 4. For the purposes of this order:
(a) the term “entity” means a partnership, association, trust, joint venture, corporation, group, subgroup, or other organization;
(b) the term “person” means an individual or entity; and
(c) the term “United States person” means any United States citizen, lawful permanent resident, entity organized under the laws of the United States or any jurisdiction within the United States (including foreign branches), or any person in the United States.
Sec. 5. The Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, is hereby authorized to take such actions, including the promulgation of rules and regulations, and to employ all powers granted to the President by IEEPA, as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this order. The Secretary of the Treasury may, consistent with applicable law, redelegate any of these functions within the Department of the Treasury. All executive departments and agencies of the United States shall take all appropriate measures within their authority to implement this order.
Sec. 6. (a) Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:
(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or
(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.
(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.
(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.
JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.
THE WHITE HOUSE,
April 6, 2022.
A Bird's Eye View of Fashion, Food, Travel, Culture, Beverage and Curiosity 