It is possible to state that presently, open data is at its high water mark in the Government of Canada. Data.gc.ca has been refreshed, more importantly, the government has signed the Open Data Charter committing it to making data “open” by default, and a rash of new data sets have
Continue readingLeDaro: Former Fredericton MP Andy Scott Passes Away
At the age of 58, former MP Andy Scott has passed away after a battle with cancer. Very sad news. He was a very hardworking MP, dedicated to helping the poor and vulnerable. In his post-political career, he played a leading role in establishing the New Brunswick Social Policy Research
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: It’s Never Enough, Is It?
Forget for the moment that Macdonald’s is one of the world’s biggest corporations; forget for the moment that a steady diet of its food will likely shorten your life; forget for the moment that it is a minimum-wage employer whose workers make it possible for them to accrue their billions
Continue readingNorthern Reflections: Blatant Hypocrisy
Martin Regg Cohn calls Rob Ford’s bluster, after his meeting with Ontario Finance Minister Charles Sousa, exactly what it is — blatant hypocrisy. And Cohn provides a little historical context: Once upon a government, when the Mike Harris Tories downloaded social services upon Toronto (with Rob Ford’s father, Douglas, serving
Continue reading350 or bust: Global Warming: Right Here, Right Now
* I’m in Washington DC, attending the fourth annual Citizens Climate Lobby gathering. Monday morning, climate scientist and hero Dr. James Hansen addressed the crowd of 350. And today – big news! – President Obama is making an announcement at Georgetown University, just down the street from where we are meeting.
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: Does that mean he “Coyned” it?
It was National Post political columnist Andrew Coyne who used the term. He wrote that “Toryism, in its current incarnation, resembles less an ideology than a pathology.” If too many Conservatives look up those big words, Post Media Publisher Paul Godfrey will be getting demands to fire Coyne. Obviously this
Continue readingDead Wild Roses: Science and Beer? – On Biodiversity
One of the few times that adding beer to the equation will make things better – an analogy between competition and diversity in the forest, and the supermarket. And no, you may not have a Dude Beer. : ) Filed under: Humour, Science Tagged: Beer, Biology, Diversity,
Continue readingScott's DiaTribes: Amateur Hour
I’m not sure this should surprise anyone, given the way the PMO has acted recently: The Prime Minister’s Office orchestrated a protest earlier this month at which Conservative party interns mocked Liberal leader Justin Trudeau during an open-air news conference. It is the latest revelation about the lengths to which
Continue readingMorton's Musings: Mistake of fact and due diligence are different defences
R. v. Legrande 2013 ABCA 229 makes clear the distinction between mistake of fact and due diligence. For strict liability offences a reasonable belief in a mistaken set of facts that would render the act innocent is a defence. Due diligence, that is taking all reasonable sets to avoid the
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Rather Apt, Don’t You Think?
H/t The ChronicleHerald Recommend this Post
Continue readingmark a rayner | scribblings, squibs & sundry monkey joys: Fat cells galore, and what we can learn from them
Fat Fact Every part of the human body contains fat cells, except for: the eyelids parts of the esophagus the brain the penis. From this we can learn three things: the term “fat head” is grossly inaccurate, scientifically speaking; people … Continue reading →
Continue readingWarren Kinsella: Rob Ford is a liar
…and employs liars. Surprise, surprise. What do those boys get up to after dark, I wonder. Is someone ever going to write about that, I wonder.
Continue readingBigCityLib Strikes Back: The President’s Climate Action Plan
From the fact sheet:We have a moral obligation to leave our children a planet that’s not polluted or damaged, and by taking an all of-the-above approach to develop homegrown energy and steady, responsible steps to cut carbon pollution, we can protect our kids’ health and begin to slow the effects
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: The Saviour Lives… Again #nlpoli
With the polls looking bad for the Conservatives and good for everyone else, there’s no surprise at word over the long weekend that Dean MacDonald is thinking about a run at the Liberal leadership. Again. MacDonald bailed on the contest last November. He had business stuff to deal with. He
Continue readingCathie from Canada: Holiday road
Tomorrow we’re off on vacation for a couple of weeks — we’re going west and I will try to post a few photos along the way! In the meantime, enjoy some of the best Vacation scenes: I wonder if these guys know the Commodores? This is no longer a vacation,
Continue readingAnti-Racist Canada: The ARC Collective: Paulie’s Continues To Display White Supremacist Views in Public
Our readers (will not be at all surprised by the above headline) are well aware of Paulie's involvement with the virulently racist Council of Conservative Citizens in the United States. For those who are unfamiliar, here's a brief synopsis: The Council of Conservative Citizens (CCC) is the modern reincarnation of
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Privacy expert Michael Geist discusses government transparency
The demand for government transparency is heating up again after recent revelations about global secret surveillance programs, including the activities of ultra-secretive Canadian spy agency CSEC. Here’s Privacy Expert Michael Geist speaking to Steve Paikin about government secrecy and the need for transparency. To see the full video of the
Continue readingCanadian Trends: Alberta :(
I’m not sure how to express the remorse I feel for my province and everyone who lives here being affected by it. It’s a devastation which has and will continue to reverberate from people and those lost, to their pets, to memorabilia, to standard property, to the very infrastructure these
Continue readingAutonomy For All: The Resource Trap Explained
Canada is suffering from the Resource Trap, or Resource Curse. We don’t have it acutely yet, to the point of sterotypical corrupt petro-states, but we are suffering numerous symptoms from the list: Dutch Disease. Yes, Mulcair was right. Oil sales have driven up our dollar and made our manufacturing and
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