Author: Bill Longstaff
Ceci forced to slap Harper’s wrist
In the midst of this tiresomely long election campaign, Stephen Harper appears to find attacking his NDP and Liberal opponents isn’t enough to occupy his time. He has decided to pick fights with a couple of provinces as well, recently assailing the Alberta government for raising taxes and not coming
Continue readingThe NDP stumbles over Palestinian political correctness
Morgan Wheeldon, NDP candidate for Kings-Hants, Nova Scotia, has been pressured into resigning over comments he made on Facebook. The comments, now deleted, included “One could argue that Israel’s intention was always to ethnically cleanse the region—there are direct quotations proving this to be the case. Guess we just sweep
Continue readingToo long to live in fear
Seventy years ago, on August 6, 1945, the United States unleashed the most massive terror attack in history when it dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. At least 75,000 people died within hours. By December, 1945, around 140,000 were dead; 200,000 by the end of 1950. Today, the world
Continue readingLinda McCuaig does us all a big favour
Last week the NDP candidate for Toronto Centre, Linda McQuaig, stirred the tar sands pot, telling a CBC panel discussion that for Canada to meet its climate change targets, “a lot of the oil sands oil may have to stay in the ground.” As an Albertan, I suppose I am
Continue readingAre we reaching a critical mass on climate change?
Convincing people that anthropogenic climate change is real is a tough slog. Quite aside from the difficulty of selling inconvenient truths, powerful interests have been arrayed against the science. Nonetheless, people around the world are coming to recognize the reality. A recent Pew Research Center survey found that publics in
Continue readingHealth Canada—another Conservative mouthpiece?
The Conservatives have started early on their advertising campaign for the upcoming election. We are, for example, being told ad nauseam that Justin Trudeau isn’t ready. With their large war chest, the Conservatives can afford to lay it on thick. But they’re not only relying on their own funds, they
Continue readingGoing to jail for words
One morning in early June, Aaron Driver was walking to his bus stop in Winnipeg’s Charleswood neighbourhood when a white, unmarked van pulled up, armed men got out, forced him into the van and drove away. This is Canada, so of course the men were police officers and they were
Continue readingI know you have to say that stuff, Rachel, but still ….
At a recent speech to international investors in Calgary, Alberta Premier Rachel Notley described the tar sands as “a tremendous asset” and an “international showpiece.” Hearing my premier and the leader of my party describe the tar sands as a tremendous asset makes me cringe. They are indeed an international
Continue readingCalgary’s CTrain—embracing green
Fortunately, while our federal government remains a persistent laggard on global warming, the provinces and cities are stepping up. Calgary is no exception. In 2012, the city committed to meeting all its electrical needs from renewable sources. One result was the construction of two wind farms totaling 144 megawatts. The
Continue readingWhy Britain is culpable for the slaughter of its citizens
British Prime Minister David Cameron is enraged at the massacre on a beach at the Sousse resort in Tunisia last week. And well he should be: thirty of his countrymen and women were slaughtered. He has pledged a “full spectrum” response, whatever that means. But while Mr. Cameron is engaging
Continue reading"Canada has an American president …"
For the occasion of Canada Day, CBC News, aided by the International Council for Canadian Studies, surveyed 7,000 or so academics outside Canada who teach courses about our country. They printed the responses of 15 of them in the recent online article “How Canada is perceived around the world.” The
Continue readingThe Pope, the Prime Minister and Naomi Klein
Pope Francis has made it very clear that he is profoundly concerned about what we are doing to life on our planet. He has particularly made it clear to Canadians. Earlier this month he gave an audience to our prime minister. It lasted all of 10 minutes and ended with
Continue readingOaths, niqabs, and respecting the rules
Immigration Minister Chris Alexander made a curious statement recently when being asked about the government’s proposed Bill C-75 which states that a person taking the oath of citizenship must “swear or affirm the oath out loud and with their face uncovered,” and furthermore, “If a person is required to take
Continue readingFor black Americans, 239 years of terrorism
The United States is obsessed with terrorism these days. In a Pew Research survey, Americans ranked defending the U.S. against terrorism as the top policy priority for their federal government, ranking it even above the economy. At home, they have built a bureaucracy second only to the Pentagon for homeland
Continue readingMr. Trudeau brings more good news on the democracy front
This is shaping up to be a good week for democracy. The new Alberta government’s banning of political donations by corporations and unions has been followed with a surprising and very welcome announcement by Liberal leader Justin Trudeau of major democratic reform if his party wins the October election. Some
Continue readingThe Trans-Pacific Partnership—never heard of it ???!!!
The above headline is plagiarized directly from a CBC article. I added the punctuation gratuitously to convey my horror that a proposed “trade” agreement that could have major effects on Canadian lives is largely unknown to those same Canadians. The agreement is the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and it involves 12
Continue readingPope Francis and the moral imperative of dealing with global warming
It’s no surprise that Pope Francis only gave PM Stephen Harper 10 minutes for his interview earlier this month. And no surprise he looked constipated in his photo op with the Prime Minister. Ten minutes with Harper would freeze the bowels of anyone concerned about global warming, and, unlike the
Continue readingRead my lips—it doesn’t trickle down
It has been the heart and soul of capitalist market economics since day one—the ultimate justification for an unfair society. If we ensure that the rich get richer, the benefits will trickle down through the economy benefiting all. According to a new and exhaustive study released by the International Monetary
Continue readingDemocracy wins one in Alberta
The new Alberta government has announced it will, as promised in its election platform, ban political funding by unions and corporations. Alberta will join the provinces of Manitoba, Quebec and Nova Scotia, as well as the City of Toronto and the federal government, with its ban. The government has also
Continue reading