Today I will write the Blake Newsletter as I forgot to do it on the 1st of October. Life can too busy sometimes and I did dip in and look at the news which has occupied me somewhat. I wonder sometimes am I missing something with this oil business. Why do we not press forward with more concrete thoughts on a pipeline to the east. I think that the First Nations do want to make something of Port Churchill in terms of an international port and they have the railway to go with that so that anything that arrives can be shipped across the country and once the high speed rail is in that can be really fast and very large items can move on the rail. This could be a win win for the First Nations in terms of setting up jobs for the youth of the First Nations right where they live (and good jobs). Ports bring in money that support the local infrastructure, builds better schools and increases business but the opportunity is there for the First Nations to dominate how this proceeds. The distance to Europe (their main ports are in the north just opposite us and lots of ports of call on the way there - Greenland, Iceland, the British Isles) is considerably less than the distance to Asia (the Pacific is a huge ocean to cross especially when you are talking about going from the north to south). Oil and Gas are going to be very important for a very long time in this world; solar energy is great but oil and gas have dominated and will continue to do so (I also love the environment but failing to take advantage of our natural products at this time is a mistake I think). I fail to understand why the Eastern pipeline is being ignored (or at best sidelined). The distance from Alberta to Hudson Bay is across terrain that is flat (no huge mountains to cross) and has been burned over many times in the past few years making it very passable. Also Ontario is a huge purchaser of gas and we need to get that four lane highway built since it has been talked about since the 1960s (and a pipeline could be run straight down to a refinery somewhere north of Toronto and supply the biggest guzzler of oil in Canada (the province of Ontario). Quebec can make their own decision and we have the St Lawrence Seaway which can be used to move refined oil to the east if Quebec refuses a pipeline (plus all the highways). Also we do have oil in the Maritimes. We do not need more highways in the Greater Toronto Area right now it just encourages people to buy more cars. Rapid Transit is the answer to Toronto just as it is here in Ottawa once that train is complete and it is taking much too long. Why is it not running to the east from Blair? Surely it can open soon. But back on the subject: Hudson Bay is a very protected harbour if one looks at it with that aspect in mind. The problem though remains how we affect the natural environment but can we do it safely; is there a way? The natural environment everywhere gets affected but somehow we need to find a way to get around that - more input from the First Nations who have a good handle on the natural environment in the many areas of Canada (particularly Hudson Bay). Hudson Bay is ice bound for a good period which could be limiting but a lot of oil and gas can be shipped out during the season and stored up which is what they do in Europe as they spread it out around their countries in their storage locations. They need their storage locations to be full for the winter long before the ice will block up Hudson Bay. I think rather than a heated political discussion we need to sit at the table and come up with a plan that keeps us economically afloat and independent. Scurrying back to the safe apron (and this apron is into drill drill drill for their present governance and their is no reason to think that that will change to any degree (every administration has put tariffs on soft wood lumber and other items) plus we sell it to them at a discount) is not always the answer in the long run. We need to build up new partnerships in our external trading to maintain our independence on this continent. I still maintain increasing the GST to 7% or even 10% as the way to go as it is the people who can afford to pay it that will pay it for the most part. This in a way is a choice time and we need to make the right choice for the Canada that we love and especially for the First Nations who provided us with this wonderful homeland in the first place. It is easy to just settle back and say it will all be fine in the morning but I do not think that is necessarily the case this time. We need to make changes to benefit Canada totally and absolutely.
I actually did finally take the bus to Blair one day and then the train to Bayview and transferred to the train to South Keys and met my daughter there who had arrived on the Airport train. It was marvelous and just one bus ride. Mind you it is shorter to take the bus from Hurdman to South Keys but the train ride was pleasant and it was busy. Lets get that train running out to the east to get that traffic off the highway; it is always glutted and took 30 minutes to travel perhaps 5 kilometres the last time we made that outing.
Today is a work day and I shall not watch the news I must get my work done. I had an interesting email from a Blake researcher in England which included a family tree that I had seen before actually. But it was a good reminder and it has added a lot of people since the last time I looked at it. They take it back to a Richard Blake born in 1645 and it includes as descendants the family of John Blake, publican, who left his will in 1796 at Abbotts Ann where he names all of his close relatives (which are now in that chart) and names my 3x great great grandfather Thomas Blake at Upper Clatford as a relative but I know he is not a close relative of this particular line in the Blake line but rather in the Carter line. I believe these are Robert Blake's descendants (he left his will in 1521 - all of them actually). Robert names his children Richard (eldest), Robert and Thomas. Robert has six sons according to Charlou Dolan and I would agree with her descent from Robert except for a couple of items. I do not think that my Richard is descendant of this line but rather he is the youngest son of William Blake (son of Nicholas Blake). So we have Richard (likely) father of Robert, Nicholas and Elizabeth mentioned in their mother's will and only Robert and a son and daughter were mentioned in Richard's will left in 1522. Robert already mentioned with his six sons and Thomas had a daughter Margaret that I believe married Nicholas Blake (2nd cousins); he also had other children that are on my other computer so not that important at this time as they are not mentioned in this family tree at all nor is Nicholas. That is really the crux of what I am trying to draw together with the various records that are available. All of these trees are interesting mostly because they bring together family lore which can be mistaken; can be missing the mark on dates particularly and sometimes get distracted by missing information. So I did have a look at the tree that she sent and filed it away just for reflection on plus I am also a member of Ancestry where it appears.
So tea all drank, breakfast done, solitaire puzzles completed and it is collection day which I thought might be a day later but wasn't which was a surprise since Wednesday was a Stat Holiday for some of the country perhaps and it was decided not to move the Collection Day I guess.
Newsletter for Blake must be next.
No comments:
Post a Comment