Listen up, my broke and miserly city: licensing cyclists is not the answer. Licensing cyclists will not prevent the highly unfortunate accident that took place yesterday, in which a pedestrian was hit in Kensington Market and is now in critical condition. Why? Because the problem with that cyclist, among thousands and thousands of others, is … Continue reading »
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the reeves report: Canada’s Military: J.L. Granatstein doesn’t get the irony
Now, I’m a student of history by trade. This has always been my bread and butter – Canadian history especially. In a third year history class at the University of Toronto, Prof. Adam Chapnick (who is now the Deputy Director of Education at the Canadian Forces College in Kingston) once told me that a paper … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: Thespian as Politician ≥ the Political Theatre Press Conference
It is amazing the lengths that politicians will go to in order to give a rather mundane message a twist, a hook, a pull, some pizzazz, or often, a point. Sometimes they can do it all – and sometimes the assembled media are left scratching their heads while the political hangers-on clap wildly at the … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: Army 2040: First Look moves away from humanity vs. The Environment outlook
I feel as though every decade in North America another article, report, or paper emerges in which The Environment (note the capital letters) is pitted as public enemy number one. The latest of such reports was issued just recently by the Canadian Armed Forces entitled Army 2040: First Look, which sounds like an awful Michael … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: Feature: Questions remain on the future of eco fees in Ontario
It’s not often I sympathize with Tim Hudak and the Conservative Party of Ontario, but on the future of eco fees, they have their work cut out for them. To recap, last summer, the Liberal government in Ontario introduced an eco fee on select electronics and household hazardous materials, which was Phase 1 of a … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: RCMP finally investigates Muskoka’s G8 ‘Legacy Infrastructure’
Uh oh – time for Tony Clement to get all huffy and defiant again because dammit, we just wont go away with the questions about how $50M was distributed throughout Muskoka! Circle the wagons, ’cause the RCMP are coming, Tony! First off, it’s about damn time someone looked into this! Chances are when something looks … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: Weekly Round-Up: June 12 to June 18
Sunday, June 12 | National Post – First Nations ‘seeking clarity’ in a new name “Only a couple weeks into the Harper majority government, Aboriginal relations already seem off to a rocky start. On May 18, the Canadian government made the announcement that the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs will be changing its name to … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: Layton swears allegiance to Marx, vows to crush capitalism: just kidding…
I think before any journalist sits down in front of their computer to write something, they must ask themselves the following question: will what I am about to write constructively improve the dialogue on that topic? Or dig deeper: will it speak rationally to those who disagree with me, and/or passionately to those who may … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: NDP wakes up to hypocrisy of asbestos mining and export from Quebec
CBC is reporting through the Access to Information Act, that the Harper government rejected a 2006 recommendation from Health Canada to support a global ban on asbestos. Health Canada suggested that the government reverse their previous commitment to keep asbestos off the UN list of banned hazardous materials, and Harper refused. The 2006 Rotterdam Convention … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: New study indicates dramatic reduction in Rocky Mountain snowpack
A report released this past week from the U.S. Geological Survey found that over an 800 year period, the past 30 years indicate a dramatic break from the typical snowpack patterns in the Rocky Mountains. The report stated that “over the past millennium, late-20th-century snowpack reductions are almost unprecedented in magnitude across the northern Rocky Mountains,” … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: Weekly Round-Up: June 5 to June 11
Sunday, June 5 | Globe and Mail – Harper’s Throne Speech delays dealing with hard decisions “Financial crises are a real drag. They pull down economies very quickly, but recovery is prolonged, tough and uncertain. That tough recovery provides the context for Friday’s Speech from the Throne and, more important, Monday’s budget.” Monday, June 6 … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: On Senate reform, Rae should choose his battles more carefully
For the record, I am still trying to figure out how I think Canada could best tackle the problem of a 19th Century Senate in the 21st Century. I am not convinced that outright abolishing it would be wise, nor am I certain that half-measures like fixed-terms and fixed-seats is the way to go. I … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: US Dept. of Transportation orders TransCanada to halt activity on Keystone I
Effective immediately, the US Department of Transportation has ordered TransCanada to suspend all activity on the Keystone I pipeline. According to the New York Times, the order was issued by the Transportation department’s Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. “Effective immediately,” the PHMSA claims, “this order prevents TransCanada from restarting operations on their Keystone crude … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: No one can deny DePape the courage of her convictions
That was one way to start a conversation! In a country with an electorate difficult to fire up (livid over raccoon abuse in Toronto, indifferent to Canada’s involvement in Libya, according to the National Post), Senate page Brigette DePape has certainly got people talking, and not only to condemn her actions, or at least the … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: Weekly Round-Up: May 29 – June 4
Sunday, May 29 | The Hill Times – Full Cabinet hardly meets, P&P is Harper’s real Cabinet “He may not have received a coveted new ministry but Immigration Minister Jason Kenney is now at the helm of the second most powerful decision-making body of Cabinet, the Operations Committee. It’s one of only two executive committees … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: Re-imagining Canada in the World: Start by tackling Tall Poppy Syndrome
The Globe and Mail has been choc-a-bloc lately with guest columnists (academics, NATO ambassadors, think-tank CEO’s) talking about where the debate over Canada’s foreign policy has gone. It was conspicuously absent in the recent federal election campaign, as noted by Jeffrey Simpson back on April 6 when he wrote that “there is plenty to talk … Continue reading »
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