Author: Peter Lowry

We are all desperate. We have had an overabundance of Covid-19 news for the past two years. It has not gone away. Even the federal election in October last year failed to take the pandemic off the front pages. And you would think Toronto never had snow before, the way

It was sad to learn of the passing of Alexa McDonough the other day. She was one of the three federal new democratic leaders who have earned our respect and admiration over the years. They should be rated as number one, Alexa, number two, Tommy Douglas, and number three, David

It’s the greed that keeps on growing. Premier Doug Ford wants Ontario to step up its gambling. If the pandemic keeps the casinos closed, feel free to try your luck on-line. What is your pleasure? Casino games, blackjack, craps, poker, pai gow, roulette and slot machine simulations or new sports

Oh, how easy it is to cast aside our history. Don’t get me wrong but Ottawa is a nice city. That is all that it is. It is just a nice city. It has interesting neighbourhoods, burgeoning suburbs and some bad architecture. It just fails to impress anybody as the

Rod Phillips always struck me as a dilettante in business and in politics. I guess I thought of him as former Metro Toronto Chair and newspaper mogul, Paul Godfrey’s protégé. He was also always on the good side of the Lastman family. He piloted the late Mel Lastman through a

You have to admit, you pay more attention when Ontario premier Doug Ford or one of the other premiers tells you what to do to ward off Covid-19–Beta, Delta or Omicron. Ford got the idea from the prime minister. He just lacks the self-assurance to do a single such as

It’s that old Bruno Mars chestnut. It’s called ‘The Lazy Song.’ It was running through my mind as I poured some orange juice around 7 am. The song was trying to lure me back to bed. It was still dark and I had no excuse for being awake and wandering.

If Canada ever disassembles into its individual provinces, would you expect Quebec to be the first to opt for a dictatorship, or the last? In the province of Camillien Houde and Maurice Duplessi, it is a question. After all, it took Quebec 300 years to shake the shackles of the

He used to be Stephen Harper’s Boy Wonder but today he is supposedly guarding Gotham as sidekick to Ontario premier Doug Ford. His role is that of minister of education. He is probably taking a holiday from the criticism and condemnation he gets in that job. Maybe he took one

On average, about a third of the daily readers of BabelontheBay.com are referred to the site by an accumulator under the URL ProgressiveBloggers.ca. The site provides a long list of (maybe) progressive Canadian bloggers. It builds a following for us. We get interesting comments from Canada and around the world.

The Grand old Duke of York, he had an old-time friend.  He marched him up on top of girl too young, and marched him down again. The incident spells the end of the British monarchy. The fiction dies with Queen Elizabeth II. Her reign spans from the end of history

It is becoming obvious to most Ontario citizens that conservative political philosophy is not good for hospitals. And premier Doug Ford and his conservatives have doubled down.  Ford and his health minister Christine Elliott have crushed the system from the day they took over from the defeated Wynne liberals. They

It was good for a laugh. I was checking some political polls to find out what Ontario premier Doug Ford was reading. He seems to lack any understanding of polling. It is probably best to leave him believing polls taken five months before the election. This politico will decide in

Talking to Susan Delacourt of the Toronto Star late last year, prime minister Justin Trudeau complained about the “casual cynicism” of the left. He said we bugged him. Delacourt quotes Trudeau as saying the “You did nothing” refrain turns people against government altogether.   But that is the public perception

One of the least discussed aspects of politics in Canada is the inherent tribalism. It exists, it impacts societal norms, it influences our politicians and how we vote. The smart politician uses our tribalism against us. The major example of tribalism in Canada is the politics of Quebec. Some think

The other day, Ontario premier Doug Ford announced his conservative candidate in Durham for the June election will be a long-time law partner of health minister Christine Elliott. The gentleman, so named, made all the right noises at being so honoured. What he might possibly contribute to the well being

It has too often been said that the business of business is to make money. That is foolish and incorrect. The only rationale for any business is that it meets a societal want or need.  And, that being said, success can be dependent on the efficacy of matters such as

Canadians should be very concerned about talk of a divided America. There is nothing friendly about dividing up a country. The antipathy and rancor exist long after the deed is done. Americans tend to forget, that the American Civil War killed more Americans than any other conflict in which the

With the prospect of more covid to cure, there are those less enthusiastic about the year ahead. For a political junkie though, this is going to be an exciting year in Ontario. The political parade will be fascinating. The first, that all Canadians will be watching, is the provincial election

Somebody has to care about our neighbouring republic. It is being torn apart by strife and greed and ignorance. The Americans started 2021 by letting the zoo’s inmates attack the nation’s Capitol. The Trump is working from his lair in Florida plotting his return. And the only person we trust