Hail the King!

Donald Trump has appointed himself King of the World.  However, he is not behaving as a constitutional monarch.  He and his most ardent followers believe that he rules by the divine right of kings, that he is some kind of messiah, sent by God to save America.

Trump has compared himself to a king on social media.  On Monday, March 17th, amid numerous posts on Truth ("Lies") Social,"  the wannabe king showed a screenshot of an Artificial Intelligence generated meme by a Trump supporter on Elon Musk's X  (formerly Twitter).  The meme was captioned "Kings!"  It included a lion dressed in a tuxedo and a crown with the acronym MAGA emblazoned on its chest.

We all know that Trump enjoys being flattered.  He enjoys being the centre of attention.  He also enjoys bullying and making people fear him.  Thus, he behaves like a mob boss.  Many flatter him and many fear him..  I've said it before and I will say it again.  Trump is no different from any bully.  He is weak inside.  He is insecure.  He is jelly.  He is mush.  He reminds me of the Wizard of Oz and the emperor who wears no clothes.

Trump is so insecure that he needs to knock people down in order to build himself up.  He doesn't have the moral fibre to admit his weakness.  Nor does he have the humility to acknowledge his own mistakes.  Even when he loses, he always declares victory.   He lost the 2020 election to Joe Biden, but will never admit it.  He lost the 2024 presidential debate to Kamala Harris by a long shot, but still claimed victory.

Under King Donald (or maybe we should refer to him as Emperor Donald), the United States has rejected its traditional allies in North America, Europe and Asia.  It is aiding Trump's friend, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, a war criminal, in Putin's quest to destroy Ukraine and its people.  The latest outrage is that the Trump administration has ended the tracking of kidnapped Ukrainian children in Russia.  According to the New York Times, Democratic and Republican lawmakers have sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio asking whether a data base on thousands of children has been deleted.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration is also waging economic war against my country, Canada, threatening to make it, in Trump's words, "the 51st state."  Trump also wants to add Greenland to his imperial conquests. Never mind that Greenland is an autonomous territory of Denmark and that Greenlanders do not want to become part of the United States.  King Donald feels no need to consult the people of sovereign jurisdictions.  He doesn't care what they think.

Donald Trump is a one-man wrecking crew.  He is determined to impose tariffs.  His tariffs will create an unnecessary trade war, causing recessions and possibly a worldwide depression.  He doesn't care about ordinary Americans or people in other countries.  He has no empathy for the suffering his policies will cause.  He only cares about making life better for himself and his billionaire friends.

On July 4, 1776, the Declaration of Independence was ratified by the 2nd Continental Congress, establishing the United States of America.   The new republic rejected the idea of monarchy,  Now, almost 250 years later, the U.S. has a president who considers himself a king.. Trump even has a court jester.  Elon Musk, the wealthiest person in the world, who stands beside the king's throne.  Nobody elected Musk to anything.  Despite his great wealth, Musk's job is to slash government programs which actually help the poor and the downtrodden.

Poor Elon doesn't understand why people aren't purchasing his Tesla cars.  He complains that they are being mean to him.  Never fear, though.  King Donald has came to his dear friend's recuse.  The super salesman president has appeared on the White House lawn alongside Musk and a line of shiny Tesla vehicles.  Words cannot express how reprehensible and unconscionable it is for the White House lawn to be transformed into a Tesla showroom.  Join the resistance.  Don't buy a Tesla.

- Joanne

Americans, send me emails of support for Canada!

Hey America

In the name of decency, I appeal to you to support your northern neighbour as it faces an existential threat from Donald Trump and his followers.  How would you feel if another country treated you the way Trump is treating us?  Canada has done absolutely nothing to deserve this.  It's a slap in the face to a good friend. and it hurts.  It stings.

The majority of us, including myself, have relatives and friends who live in the United States.  We want to be America's ally, but we do not want to be part of the U.S.  America must respect our sovereignty.  We should have a say in our future.  I can tell you without hesitation, if a referendum were held, Canadians would overwhelmingly reject a merger with the U.S.  We are just different.  We have a parliamentary system of government, and we don't have a deep distrust of that government.  Most of us prefer sensible gun control laws and we don't want automatic weapons.  We have a French-speaking province and we have two official languages. 

Let me remind you that, along with your country and others, Canada helped fight the scourge of Nazism.  We have always been by your side.  In 1979, it was Canada that played a central role in rescuing six American hostages in Iran.  The late Ken Taylor, then the Canadian ambassador to Iran, was instrumental in saving the hostages.

Ken Taylor

In 2001, during the 9/11 terrorist attacks, it was Canada that provided a safe haven for almost 7,000 stranded airline passengers, many of them American.  The good people of Gander, Newfoundland welcomed them with open arms.  There is a wonderful musical called Come From Away based on what happened during that crisis.

America, please send me emails of affirmation.  Let me see how much you care.  Restore my faith in the decency of the American people.  Let me know how appalled you are that Trump is friendly with Vladimir Putin, and hostile to Canada.  Let me know how disgusted you are that the land of the free and the home of the brave is aligning itself with a brutal dictator, a war criminal.  Putin does not accept the sovereignty of Ukraine and Trump does not respect the sovereignty of Canada.  They are two peas in a pod.

Trump is imposing tariffs in order to destroy Canada's economy.  In so doing, he is also hurting the American economy by igniting a trade war.  It's a no-win situation.  Many Americans will pay the price for Trump's folly.  Canada's survival is on the line.  We have to stand up to the bully who threatens us.  

Trump is driving both Canada and the United States into a recession.  He and his billionaire friends certainly don't have to worry about paying their bills and putting food on the table.  Trump's buddy, Elon Musk. the richest man in the world, wants to inflict economic pain.  Who elected Musk?  Who voted for him?  Yet he is behaving as co-president.  

On January 20, 2025, when Trump was sworn in as president, he was surrounded by billionaires - Tesla's Musk, Amazon's Jeff Bezos, Meta's Mark Zuckerberg and Google's Sundar Pichai. were all seated at the inaugural platform.  Their goal is to further enrich themselves.  They don't care if they cut government jobs and make life more difficult for ordinary Americans.  Talk about chutzpah!

Sadly, Trump and his billionaire cronies are causing chaos all over the world, at a time when stability is needed.  I would like to hear from you.  Please email me and lend your support for Canada, the true north strong and free.  My grandparents were immigrants from Sicily, Italy.  They came to this country for a better life.. They worked hard and raised their children here. As proud Canadian citizens, they instilled in me a sense of pride and gratefulness for this land.

- Joanne

Reflections and Quotes on International Women's Day 2025

 

"Woman are like tea bags.  You never know how strong they are until you put them in hot water."

A quote often attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt without an original source in her writings, as in The Wit and Wisdom of Eleanor Roosevelt (1996), p. 199. But archivists have not been able to find the quote in any of her writings,

"One is not born a woman, one becomes one."

- Simon de Beauvoir (1908-1986), French philosopher, writer and feminist - From The Second Sex [1949]

Despite the misogyny of Donald Trump, JD Vance and the Taliban, there have been some recent advances for women.  I am going to focus first on two major advances. 

* Mexico elected it first female president, Claudia Sheinbaum, 61.  Sheinbaum on October 1, 2024.  She has had to face the bullying of Donald Trump and deal with his disastrous tariffs.

Claudia Sheinbaum

  * On January 6, 2025, Pope Francis appointed the first woman to head a major Vatican office.  Sister Simona Brambilla, an Italian nun, was named was named to lead the Vatican office that oversees religious orders for both men and women, including one quarter of the world's priests.

Sister Simona

Woman by John Lennon

Woman, I can hardly express

My mixed emotions at my thoughtlessness

After all, I'm forever in your debt

And woman, I will try to express

Mu inner feelings and thankfulness

For showing me the meaning of success

- From the song Woman, lyrics by John Lennon (1940-1980)

- Joanne

Canada and its European allies must remain steadfast in support of Ukraine

It's hard to believe, but the United States of America, under King Donald, has aligned itself with tyrants and authoritarians around the world.  Donald Trump has forged an alliance between the U.S. and his good buddy, the cruel Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.  In fact, Trump is envious of Putin's raw power.  He has nary a bad word to say about Putin, yet he and his government have have abandoned America's closest democratic allies.  Trump has had  the unmitigated gall to blame Ukraine for being invaded.  Almost every incomplete sentence that comes out of his mouth is a lie.  He is the king of mendacity.  He is the poster boy for bullies.

At Trump's bidding, the U.S. has insulted and threatened Canada, its  good friend and neighbour  As a proud Canadian, I cannot remain silent when the sovereignty of my country is under attack.  I cannot remain silent while Trump starts a trade war, imposing tariffs on Canada and Mexico.  It's a trade war that will benefit no one.  It is a lose-lose situation for all involved.  The American economy will take a hit, too.

Trump's actions must please Vladimir Putin a great deal.  The Russian war criminal must have sipped some vodka in celebration when Trump was returned to the White House.  If Putin is allowed to run roughshod and annex Ukraine, expect him to set his sights on other sovereign nations.  He will be emboldened and his ambition will know no bounds.  He and Trump may well be the 21st century version of Hitler and Mussolini.  A hard rain is gonna fall if those two septuagenarian Alpha males achieve their territorial ambitions.  

- Joanne

Number 16 Oscar Quiz 2025

The 97th Academy Awards will be held on Sunday, March 2, 2025.  The show will air live at 7 p.m. Eastern Time. on ABC and will take place at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California.  It will also be live-streamed on the ABC app, which requires a cable subscription.  For the first time ever, the awards will be streamed live on Hulu.  Other streaming services such as YouTube TV, DirecTV Stream, FuboTV, Sling TV and DirectTV Stream will also provide access to the event through ABC on their platforms.  This year's Oscars will be hosted by Conan O'Brien.  As you prepare for the big night, why not challenge yourself and try Number 16's 13th annual Oscars quiz. There are 11 questions. Good luck!

NUMBER 16 OSCARS QUIZ

1. British actor Ralph Fiennes has been nominated for a Best Actor Oscar this year or his performance as Cardinal Lawrence in Conclave, a film that explores the intrigue behind the election of a new Pope.  Has Ralph Fiennes ever won an Oscar?

Ralph Fiennes

A,  Yes, for The English Patient

B.  Yes, for Schindler's List

C.  Yes, for In Bruges

D.  Yes, for Quiz Show

E.  He has never won an Oscar.

2.  Jack Nicholson has won three Academy Awards.  He won an Oscar in the Best Actor category for his roles as Randie McMurphy in the psychological drama One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975).  He also won a Best Actor Oscar as a man with obsessive-compulsive disorder in As Good as It Get (1997), a romantic comedy in which he co-starred with Helen Hunt.  Nicholson's third Oscar was in the Best Supporting Actor category.  For which film did he win an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor?

Jack with Oscar in 1998

A.  Easy Rider

B.  Chinatown

C.  Terms of Endearment

D.  Five Easy Pieces

E.  Prizzi's Honor

3.  Which movie is the most decorated Oscar winner of all time (counting both wins and nominations)?

A.  Ben-Hur

B.  All About Eve

C.  La La Land

D.  Titanic

E.  The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

4.  Ben-Hur (1959) won 11 Academy Awards at the 1960 Oscars.  It only lost in one of the categories for which it was nominated.  What was that category?

A.  Best Adapted Screenplay

B.  Best Sound

C.  Best Art Direction (Color)

D.  Best Special Effects

E.  Best Film Editing

5.  Which is the only animated film to win an Oscar for Best Picture?

A.  Frozen

B.  Shrek

C.  Toy Story

D.  Up

E.  No animated film has won an Oscar for Best Picture 

6.  How many times has Emma Stone been nominated for an Oscar.?

Emma Stone

A.  Five times

B.  Two times

C.  Three times

D   Once

E.  None of the Above

7.  Citizen Kane (1941) is Orson Welles' masterpiece.  Along with Casa Blanca, it is considered by many as one of the finest films ever made.  However, Citizen Kane did not win an Oscar for Outstanding Motion Picture from the films of 1941 (at the awards ceremony in 1942).  Which film won the Best Picture Oscar, beating out Citizen Kane?

A.  The Maltese Falcon

B.  How Green Was My Valley

C.  Hold Back the Dawn

D.  Suspicion

E.  Sergeant York

8.  Who is currently the oldest person to win an acting Oscar?

A.  Jessica Tandy

B.  Christopher Plummer

C.  Anthony Hopkins

D.  George Burns

E.  Melvyn Douglas

9.  Bob Hope hosted the Oscars a record 19 times.  In what year did he first host the Academy Awards?

Bob Hope hosting the Oscars

A.  1939

B.  1949

C.  1942

D.  1941

E.  1940

10.  Angelina Jolie has won two Oscars.  She received her second Academy Award in 2014, but it was not an acting award.  It was the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.  For which film did Angelina Jolie win an acting Oscar?

Angelina Jolie

A,  Changeling

B.  Girl, Interrupted 

C.  A Mighty Heart

D.  The Tourist

E.  In the Land of Blood and Honey

11.  Adrien Brody has been nominated for an Oscar this year for his performance in The Brutalist (2024).  For which movie did he win an Oscar for Best Actor?

A.  The Thin Red Line

B.  Detachment

C.  The Pianist

D.  The Jacket

E.  Midnight in Paris

ANSWERS:

1.  E.  Ralph Fiennes has never won a Oscar.  

Ralph Fiennes in Conclave

Ralph Fiennes received a Best Actor nomination for his performance in Schindler's List (1983), but did not win.  He was also nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for The English Patient (1996), but did not win.  Conclave represents his third Academy Award nomination.

2.  C  Terms of Endearment

Nicholson in Terms of Endearment

Jack Nicholson won Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of former astronaut Garrett Breedlove in Terms of Endearment (1983).

3.  D.  Titanic

1997's Titanic won 11 Oscars and earned an additional 3 nominations.  Ben-Hur and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King also received 11 Academy Awards.  Ben-Hur swept 11 of the 12 categories for which it was nominated, including Best Picture and Best Director.  The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King won all 11 Oscars for which it was nominated.

La La Land was  nominated for 14 Oscars, but took home 6, including Best Director and Best Actress.  All About Eve also won 6 of its 14 nominations.  

4.  A.  Best Adapted Screenplay

At the 32nd Academy Awards in 1960, Ben-Hur won 11 Oscars in the following categories - Best Motion Picture, Best Directing (William Wyler), Best Actor (Charlton Heston), Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Hugh Griffith), Best Music (Music Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture),  Best Sound, Best Cinematography (Color), Best Film Editing, Best Costume Design (Color), Best Art Direction (Color) and Best Special Effects.  The film received in an Oscar in every category it was nominated for, except Best Adapted Screenplay.

5.  D.  Up

Scene from Up

The 2009 animated film Up received the Best Picture Oscar at the Academy Awards ceremony in 2010.  Up is a comedy-drama adventure film featuring the voices of Ed Asner and Christopher Plummer.  Produced by Pixar Animation Studio for Disney Pictures, Up is the first and only animated film to win the coveted Best Picture award.

6.  A.  Five times

Emma Stone has received five Oscar nominations.  She has one two Academy Awards for Best  Actress, for her roles as Bella Baxter in Poor Things (2023) and Amelia "Mia" Dolan in La La Land (2016).  In 2024, she was also nominated for a second Academy Award as the producer of Poor Things, which she did not win.

In 2015, Emma was nominated For Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her performance as Sam in Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance (2014).  She lost the award to Patricia Arquette for Boyhood.

In 2019, Emma was nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her performance as Abigail Masham in the satirical comedy-thriller The Favourite.  She lost out to Regina King, who won the Oscar for her role in If Beale Street Could Talk.

7.  B.  How Green Was My Valley

Citizen Kane lost out to How Green Was My Valley, John Ford's film about a hard-working Welsh mining family.  It starred Maureen O'Hara and Walter Pidgeon.  The Maltese Falcon, Suspicion and Sergeant York were also nominated the same year as Citizen Kane.

8.  C  Anthony Hopkins

Anthony Hopkins

Anthony Hopkins was 83 years old in 2021 when he won the Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of a man diagnosed with dementia in the film Father.  The Welsh actor was born on December 31, 1937.

In 2012. Christopher Plummer (born December 13, 1929)  was 82 years old when he won the Best Supporting Actor award for his role in the film Beginners (2011).  The Canadian-born actor was also nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his role in All the Money in the World, a 2017 crime thriller.  Plummer was 88 years old when he received the nomination, but did not win.

In 1990, at the age of 80, Jessica Tandy won Best Actress Oscar for her performance in the 1989 film Driving Miss Daisy.  At the time, she was the oldest person to win an acting Oscar.  She remains the oldest woman to win an acting Oscar.  (In 2014, Maureen O'Hara received an Academy Honorary Award at the of 94).  

9.  E  1940

 Beginning in 1940, Bob Hope hosted the Academy Awards 19 times, either by himself or with cohosts.  In 1953, he hosted the first Oscar broadcast on television.  In 1966, he hosted the first Oscar show televised in colour.  In 1978, Bob Hope hosted the Oscars for the final time.

10.  B.  Girl, Interrupted

In 2000, Angelina Jolie won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the American drama Girl, Interrupted (1999).  She was nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her performance in the 2008 mystery crime drama Changeling, but did not win.

11.  C.  The Pianist  

Adrien Brody won a Best Actor Oscar for his performance in the 2002 biographical film The Pianist, directed by Roman Polanski.  Brody played Wladyslaw Szpilman, a Polish-Jewish pianist, composer and Holocaust survivor.  He was only 29 when he won his Oscar at the 75th Academy Awards on March 23, 2003.

Brody also appeared in The Thin Red Line (1998), Detachment (2011), The Jacket (2005) and Midnight in Paris (2011).

- Joanne