Last month, the Northern Gateway pipeline was approved by the Harper government. In response, many First Nations people swore they would never support the pipeline being built through their lands. Many people accused the Aboriginals of being greedy and lazy, opposing the pipeline simply to wring more money out of
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Peace, order and good government, eh?: Reflections On Canada Day: The Impact Of Canadian History
I’m writing this on the morning of Canada Day 2014, thinking about all the fascinating things I’ve read about and seen, and all the people I’ve met. One thing I’ve come across is all the different parts of Canadian history I’ve studied, and how they’ve tied into many of the
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: The Wildrose Alliance: An Example Of Alberta Centrism
In 2012, it seemed as though Alberta’s long-running Progressive Conservative dynasty was finished. The Wildrose Alliance party, led by Danielle Smith, was set to form government. Hence it was all the more shocking that the Wildrose lost the election. In the aftermath of the election, Danielle Smith said that her
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: Surpluses, Taxes And Services: A Look At The Conservative Fiscal Record
The recent news that Canada posted a $5 billion surplus in February has been taken by some as an indication that we’re well on our way to getting the budget balanced, and that Canada’s finances will now be secure. Not everyone shares this feeling, however. Financial analysts Scott Clark and
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: Quebec Separation: Be Careful What You Wish For
As is so often the case when Quebec comes up in the news, the current provincial election has led to a lot of people calling for that province to simply leave Canada once and for all. However, I’m not sure that the people, both inside and outside Quebec, who want
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: The Charter Of Values And Criticism Of Quebec
The debate over Quebec’s secular Charter of Values has been a heated one. The proposed Charter would restrict public servants from wearing conspicuous religious items such as burqas and niqabs, which many critics say infringes on the rights and freedoms of religious minorities in Quebec. Quebecers who support the Charter,
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: Tax Cuts Come With A Price
Tax-filing season, everybody’s favourite time of year, is once again upon us in Canada. It’s that time of year that we get to see just how much of our money our provincial and federal governments are taking to spend on seemingly wasteful things that nobody is supposed to care about.
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: Poisoning The Wells In Canadian Politics
By now, we’re probably all sick of hearing about Toronto Mayor Rob Ford and everything to do with him. However, it’s worth considering just how he got elected in the first place, how things got so bad, and what its larger implications are for Canada. Even before Ford became mayor,
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: The Hidden Strength Of Red Toryism, Part Two
At this time, just over halfway through Stephen Harper’s first term as a majority government, it’s worth finding out if traditional Canadian conservatism, more popularly known as Red Toryism, is dead. B.C. scholar Ron Dart has analyzed eleven of the main principles of Red Toryism in an extensive article on
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: The Hidden Strength Of Red Toryism, Part One
It’s common these days to hear the claim that Red Toryism is dead in Canadian politics. Many observers believe that the demise of the older version of Canadian conservatism, popularized by the likes of John A. Macdonald, John Diefenbaker and Robert Stanfield, is gone for good. Canadian conservatism has supposed
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: The Reserve Paradox, Part Two: Telling A New Story
Aboriginal people in Canada today suffer from much higher rates of poverty, illness, dysfunction and incarceration than non-Native Canadians. Many non-Native Canadians believe that this is due to the Indian Act and the reserve system which set Aboriginals apart from other Canadians. When these non-Natives see protest movements like the
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: The Reserve Paradox, Part One: The Same Old Story
We have been fighting for so long that the original misunderstandings and differences that created this conflict have been forgotten. Various tactics have been tried by one side and countered by the other, emotions have taken over from reason; and the passions born of hatred have grown until neither fighter
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: The Reserve Paradox, Part One: The Same Old Story
We have been fighting for so long that the original misunderstandings and differences that created this conflict have been forgotten. Various tactics have been tried by one side and countered by the other, emotions have taken over from reason; and the passions born of hatred have grown until neither fighter
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: The Trudeau Paradox – Part III
In Part I of this essay, we discussed the origins of Quebec nationalism and how it developed into a desire by Francophone Quebecers to have their province recognized as a distinct society within Canada. In Part II, we saw how Pierre Trudeau sought to counter this as Prime Minister of
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: The Trudeau Paradox – Part II
Part I of this essay discussed the origins of Quebec nationalism and the desire of Francophone Quebecers to have their province recognized as a “distinct society” within Canada. This desire was fiercely opposed by Quebec political thinker Pierre Trudeau, who became Prime Minister of Canada in 1968. Trudeau was seen
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: The Trudeau Paradox – Part I
The results of last year’s provincial election in Quebec, which returned the Parti Quebecois to power, only reconfirmed the perceptions many Canadians in other parts of the country had of Quebec. They consider the province spoiled and entitled, still musing about separating from Canada despite having dominated the political agenda
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