Happy Halloween

Last Week on The Gazette

There was a lot of comment on my post which dealt with the overreaction by police at both Phoenix and Vancouver airports which resulted in two unfortunate deaths. Excerpt:

It occurs to me that our society's appetite for security and control has given birth to a rapidly growing industry - consisting of both public and private institutions - that is increasingly incompetent in dealing with alleged breaches of security. Giant lapses in security occur without any effective response, while innocent passengers run the risk of being violently subdued in situations where other tools of conflict resolution would undoubtedly have done the trick.

And yes, China is firmly back on the agenda. The red carpet treatment that the Dalai Lama got at the White House last week deserves applause.

The End of the Affair

The embarrassing finale of the Hirsi Ali saga played itself out in Dutch parliament yesterday. My thoughts are summarized in my latest column here.