I think this is a great idea

Our GG eating a piece of seal's heart raw is still very much in the news. I find it encouraging that so many Canadians have expressed positive responses, even if they disagree with the seal hunt. Personally, I'd love to try seal, but it's just not available. So it's no surprise to me that others have had similar thoughts.

The premier of Nunavut hopes more southerners follow the lead of Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean and add to their diet what the locals call "country food" - not just seal, but Arctic char, caribou, and muskox.

I think there would be a definite market for Arctic meats, if only in the high-end, gourmet demographic. It would be a great place to start. There is one obvious problem, though.

There's one big obstacle in getting the food down south: there are no roads to these Arctic communities, and shipment by boat or plane is painfully expensive.

The local butcher we bought our Christmas tourtierre meats from (our traditional recipe is a blend of meats, including game) carries muskox. They also carry boar, ostrich, kangaroo and camel. We've only tried boar so far, as the cost is very prohibitive (sort of like the $21 chickens to people in the North!), but it seems silly to me that we can get camel or kangaroo, but not seal or caribou. There is almost no infrastructure in the northern communities. The combination of engineering challenges to build infrastructure in such a harsh environment and a very small, dispersed population means it just isn't a high priority.

It's interesting to look at history and see that our north had once been viewed as where our future lay. Even the Golden Boy statue topping Winnipeg's legislature faces north, symbolizing that this was where future prosperity lay. Instead, people settled and congregated in the south, with the vast majority of Canada's population living in a wide belt near the Canada/US border. This makes sense from an agricultural and commercial perspective. Longer growing seasons, warmer climates, and proximity to our largest trading partner would make this a natural progression. The territories, however, are opening up more as mining companies discover new sources for things like diamonds (no blood diamonds in Canada!), and technology allows them to overcome the challenges of working in such extreme conditions. A reliable, affordable infrastructure is necessary to support these ventures.

Maybe, some day, people living in the north will actually be able to buy a frozen chicken or a gallon of milk at reasonable prices.

I don't think I could do it! - updated

As someone who enjoys shows like Iron Chef and other cooking shows, one thing I've never been able to get a handle on is how much raw flesh is touted as a delicacy. Each to their own, I guess, but I just don't think I'd be able to take a piece of raw beef, even if it's Kobe, and eat it. Not my thing.

Which makes me both grossed out and impressed by this...

GG shows solidarity with seal hunters

Hundreds of Inuit at a community festival gathered around as Jean knelt above a pair of carcasses and used a traditional ulu blade to slice the meat off the skin.

After repeated, vigorous slashes through the flesh the Queen's representative turned to the woman beside her and asked enthusiastically: "Could I try the heart?"

Within seconds Jean was holding a dripping chunk of seal-ticker, which she tucked into her mouth, swallowed whole, and turned to her daughter to say it tasted good.

*shudder*

Of course, the descriptive language in the article is pretty graphic. Where, in the cooking shows, raw meat is described in all sorts of glowing, delicious sounding terms, you just don't hear things like "... the bleeding heart pulled out of its furry, flabby carcass..." or terms like "oozing organ."

I wonder what sort of language would be used if Bobby Flay or Mario Batali were preparing a seal carcass on one of their shows?

Interestingly, it sounds like seal meat is healthier than more standard fare, such as beef or poultry. I'd love to try it - cooked!! - but it's not exactly available in the grocery stores. ;-)


update: Well, that didn't take long...

Gov. Gen's actions offensive: animal rights group

Note that this article quotes a spokesman from the Humane Society International. The Canadian Humane Society, which is a separate organization, regularly looks into the seal hunt and has declared the methods used and the hunt itself as humane.

Michaelle Jean, the Sarah Palin of of Canada?

This rather bizarre blog post is amusing, if ignorant. For starters, apparently there's something wrong with the GG wearing patriotic colours. Heaven forbid! The writer doesn't seem to know the difference between a Governor and a Governor General. In a nutshell, the GG is Canada's head of state, second only to HRH, Queen Elizabeth, and our military Commander in Chief, among other titles and roles. It's a non-partisan, appointed position. Largely ceremonial, the GG serves 5 year terms, though I don't know that there are any limitations to how many terms one person can be GG, and outranks our PM. Where a Governor actively governs and is politically partisan, the GG stays out of the day-to-day activities of running the country, but has the final say in various areas.