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In 2009 the New York Times called the fight over Arctic territorial claims, The biggest land grab since colonial times, and said it was accelerating as nations scramble to claim writ over hundreds of thousands of square miles of ocean floor, much of it believed to be rich in natural resources.

Determining who controls the Arctic Ocean's seabed won't play out until a few years from now. Russia has decided to postpone its Arctic bid to 2013 while Denmark and Canada have until 2012 and 2013, respectively, to file claims of which Canada's are well supported by maritime law. Norway became the first nation to win control of Arctic territory, when the commission finished its review of Oslo's claims north of Svalbard, a region that lies far south of the North Pole. This leaves Russia, Canada, Denmark and the US to sort out the remainder of the Arctic riches.

What has all the maneuvering been about? The U.S.G.S. (US Geological Survey) has also run an assessment of undiscovered oil and natural gas reserves in the region and concluded that the continental shelves are a veritable treasure trove. Specifically, according to U.S.G.S. estimates, hidden within the continental shelves lies between 22 and 256 billion barrels of oil and as much as 2,990 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. These numbers are significant. The mean estimate of undiscovered oil reserves is more than double the amount of oil that has been previously found in the Arctic. Also, the median estimate of undiscovered natural gas in the Arctic represents about 30% of the world’s undiscovered reserves.

And there is the Northwest Passage. One day, the fastest way between Asia and Europe will be across the Arctic Ocean from the Bering Strait in the West to Baffin Bay and the Davis Strait in the East. There are a number of possible routes but the quickest and most likely to be ice-free for extended periods of time are those that traverse through Canada’s Arctic islands. The savings in time and cost will be enormous. For example, travel time from Japan to the Netherlands would be cut in half. Moreover, ships travelling through the Northwest Passage will not be limited to the maximum size currently permitted through the Panama Canal, the so called Panamax Ships.

Shelagh Grant  of the Globe and Mail asserts, Canada no longer has the luxury to dither and debate. If this government fails to take immediate action, Stephen Harper may well go down in history as the prime minister responsible for the nation’s loss of control over its Arctic waters – as will the Canadian people for allowing it to happen.

Back in January of this year, the Supreme Court of Canada  ruled that the constitutional rights of the young man from Toronto, protected by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, had been violated, but the same court turned down orders from lower Canadian courts to have the Conservative government of Stephen Harper request the return of Khadr to face justice in a Canadian court system. The Harper government was effusive in its' praise of the ruling: Canadian justice minister Rob Nicholson hailed the Supreme Court's ruling, reiterating his government's line that "Omar Khadr faces very serious charges including murder, attempted murder, conspiracy, material support for terrorism, and spying."

There are international laws concerning child soldiers and there are good reasons for them to exist. Obama's administration is engaging in the first prosecutions for war-crimes by a minor since WWII.

Glenn Greenwald asks the question that has never been fully explored in the Canadian news media: how can it possibly be that the U.S. invades a foreign country, and then when people in that country -- such as Khadr -- fight back against the invading army, by attacking purely military targets via a purely military act (throwing a grenade at a solider, who was part of a unit ironically using an abandoned Soviet runway as its outpost), they become "war criminals," or even Terrorists, who must be shipped halfway around the world, systematically abused, repeatedly declared to be one of "the worst of the worst," and then held in a cage for almost a full decade (one third of his life and counting)?

The facts of the case, the circumstances of his capture, how he came to be there and what has been done to him during, what must be for him, eight very long years. Khadr, then 15 years old, was taken to Bagram near death, after being shot twice in the back, blinded by shrapnel, and buried in rubble from a bomb blast. He was interrogated within hours, while sedated and handcuffed to a stretcher. He was threatened with gang rape and death if he didn't cooperate with interrogators. He was hooded and chained with his arms suspended in a cage-like cell, and his primary interrogator was later court-martialed for detainee abuse leading to the death of a detainee. On top of everything else, he was also subjected to severe sleep deprivation for a period of three weeks.

Maher Arar who was held and tortured by the Americans for nine months, says that the express purpose of the military commission: to convict.

Stephen Harper and his government have fought any and all attempts to repatriate this Canadian citizen.

The trial has been suspended temporarily while defence lawyer Lt.-Col. Jon Jackson convalesces. Jackson, who had gall bladder surgery six weeks ago, was to be airlifted to a U.S. medical facility after collapsing in court.

UPDATE:

The military judge presiding over Omar Khadr's war-crimes case has ruled today that there is no credible evidence that he was tortured by his American captors or interrogators.

The testimony given by Khadr’s primary interrogator nicknamed "the monster" for the three months the teenager was detained at Bagram, before his transfer to Guantánamo in October 2002 is at odds with the judge's ruling: Referred to only as “Interrogator One,” he said he interrogated Khadr about 20-25 times, more than anyone else, totaling about 50-100 hours of interrogation. He added that he first interrogated Khadr when the 15-year-old was sedated and lying handcuffed on a stretcher, about two weeks after he was brought to Bagram with multiple gunshot and shrapnel wounds.

In 2005, Interrogator One pled guilty to prisoner abuse at Bagram, in connection with the death of a detainee two months after Khadr was transferred to Guantánamo. He was convicted of forcing a detainee to roll around on the ground and kiss interrogators' boots. He also pled guilty to twisting the bottom of a hood around another prisoner’s neck and forcing him to drink a bottle of water, causing him to gag and choke. He was sentenced to five months' imprisonment.

At the hearing for Khadr, ...Interrogator One replied, “I don’t specifically recall” to most of the defense’s questions about abuse he may have inflicted on Khadr.

Jennifer Turner of the ACLU, an observer to the testimony says of what she saw, ...that his (Interrogator number one) evasiveness and fading memory probably thwarted a full accounting of Khadr’s treatment at Bagram. The chances of Omar Khadr receiving a fair trial see diminished.

CJLO presents the very first edition of Disorientation! A series of very special events that students and non-students alike can participate in to make that fall grind a little less painful and a little more fun!

Thursday, September 16th:
11am-4pm

BBQ and Live Broadcast with local artists performing at the Loyola Campus. Cheap beer brought to you by the CSU, cheap food brought to you by us, veggie stuff available. Just $1 for all food and non-beer items and tunes by CJLO DJs. Thanks to the Concordia University New Student Program!

8pm:

Blue Skies Turn Black & CJLO Present CARIBOU live at Le National (1220 Ste Catherine E). For more info visit the BSTB website.

September 21st:

Screening of THIS IS SPINAL TAP at the Dollar Cinema (6900 Decarie). $2 entry, free popcorn. 8:30 show time.

September 23rd: SUPERCHUNK!

SUPERCHUNK + Kurt Vile & The Violators + Little Scream
September 23rd at Le National (1220 Ste Catherine E)
Doors 7:00, Show 8:00
$23.50 Regular, $10 for Concordia Students, First 50 people with a CJLO t-shirt get in for FREE!

Tickets on sale August 23rd via National box office, CJLO offices (email manager at cjlo dot com for appointment), l'Oblique, Cheap Thrills, Sound Central and Atom Heart. Only regular tickets will be sold via Admission. Tickets will also be available during Orientation on September 15th, 16th and 20th in the Hall Building Mezzanine at the Kiosk to the side of Java U between 12pm and 5pm.

Valid Concordia ID required at point of purchase and at the venue at entry on day of show for student tickets. Anyone without valid ID at the show will be asked to pay the balance of the ticket cost at the box office.

Special thanks to our sponsors: Montreal Mirror and Blue Skies Turn Black!

CJLO will also be DJing at all CSU events during Orientation, so come on down and get your chance at one of those coveted t-shirts.

More info to come, keep it locked to CJLO 1690 AM or online at www.cjlo.com or on iTunes Radio.