August 11, 2001 - Slippery Jim

Well, I after the picket today I promised to report if I saw Scientologists at the "Taste of the Danforth" event, and the short answer is no.

To back up a bit for those new to this conversation, in past years I have sometimes seen the clams set up a table with an e-meter at the Taste of the Danforth (a festival that for 2.5 days turns a chunk of Danforth Avenue between Broadview and Jones Ave. into an large pedestrian mall). During the Taste of the Danforth many of the restaurants along the route set-up tables offering their specialities cheap, and given the make-up of the neighbourhood the emphasis is on Greek food (though things are not by any means exclusively Greek, there were sushi places, an Indian restaurant, etc.). Because of the large crowds that normally come to this event I saw a number of other vendors who had arranged to set-up booths in the middle of the street or at otherwise vacant spots along the side of the street (such as Bell Mobility, 7-Up, Pepsi, Shopper's Drug Mart and Krinos (a Greek food importer)), so Scientology would not appear on the surface to be too far out of place.

In any event, if you like cheap Greek food, and can live with large crowds, I would strongly recommend a visit to the Taste of the Danforth, but at least this year it would appear that the only clams to be seen are not worth picketing (eating is a different matter... :-) ).

Also, I would like to briefly draw everyone's attention to a song by the Irish Celtic-Pop band The Corrs (founded by Jim Corr along his sisters Andrea, Caroline, and Sharon) titled "Secret Life" off the album "All Forgiven Not Forgotten". The full lyrics of "Secret Life" can be found at http://www.thecorrs.org/disco/lyrics/lyrics_s.html#sl , but for our purposes the following verse is of interest:

Evangelists, scientologists, and others I won't mention,
Offer lessons in codology to all with good intention,
Listen at your peril, put your soul in detention,
Resensitise yourself to this incredible dimension,

Ok, so not a big slap at Scientology, but every bit helps.... :-) . Also, hey, I liked most of The Corrs songs I had heard before "Secret Life", and this song merely reinforces my fondness for the band....

"Slippery" Jim diGriz