Today at 2 p.m., I attended an extraordinary rally at Queen’s Park organized by the Citizens for Clean Air (C4CA). Thousands of people protested the proposed construction of a 900-megawatt natural gas power plant in Oakville, slated to be one of the largest in Ontario. They arrived en masse in
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Andy Lehrer's Firebrand blog: Ignatieff and Israel
Which federal party leader said this about Israel back in 2002? When I looked down at the West Bank, at the settlements like Crusader forts occupying the high ground, at the Israeli security cordon along the Jordan river closing off the Palestinian lands from Jordan, I knew I was not
Continue readingRailroaded by Metrolinx: We Need Heroes in the Davenport Riding
“Toronto will commit suicide if it plunges the Spadina Expressway into its heart… our planners are 19th century men with a naive faith in an obsolete technology. In an age of software, Metro planners treat people like hardware‚ they haven’t the faintest interest in the values of neighbourhoods or community.”
Continue readingAndy Lehrer's Firebrand blog: Gerry Caplan satirises the Rights & Democracy affair
Gerry Caplan’s column in the Globe and Mail has taken on the Harper government’s patronizing attempt to pander to the Jewish community for several months now. Stephen Harper and the Jewish question published in December examined the irony of Jewish neoconservatives cozying up to evangelical anti-Semites, the Tory 10%ers accusing
Continue readingHaldimand's Unheard Voice: Haldimand "Dunnville are there any Unheard Voices Out there"?
Have you ever asked yourself any of these questions? Why should I vote? Will my vote really make a difference? Does my one vote really count? Have you ever felt like an Unheard Voice? Well I hope that in the upcoming months I can inspire you to go out and
Continue readingAndy Lehrer's Firebrand blog: Adam’s fall
So this is what I can piece together. NOW magazine writes a glowing article on Giambrone and erroneously claims he’s gay. Giambrone “laughs over” the story, light-heartedly corrects the record but then goes a step further and makes public the fact that he’s in a relationship with a woman named
Continue readingSeeing Red in the Southwest: Sparks
Sparks moments from which memory creates life!Sparks are the beginnings that light a raging fire. In our hearts and in our souls.2009 was a year with many sparks and many fires – these are the blessings that will light the way – my way into 2010. Caleb ignited parts of
Continue readingNDP Ideas: Radical Approach to Cancer
Traditionally, David Agus explains, cancer treatments have had a short-sighted focus on the offending individual cells. He suggests a new, cross-disciplinary approach, using atypical drugs, computer modeling and protein analysis to treat and analyze the whole body. My question is this – how can public policy help facilitate this new
Continue readingRailroaded by Metrolinx: Fighting the System: Congratulations West Toronto Diamond Community Group
On February 3rd, the West Toronto Diamond Community Group received a ruling in their favour from the Federal Court of Appeal regarding their opposition to GO’s request for a Stay of the Canadian Tranportation Agency ruling, which regulates the use of quieter methods for piledriving. Their initial request was simple
Continue readingLiberal Political Musings: Harper continues to be unconstitutional
University of Ottawa law professor Errol Mendes told opposition MPs the Tories’ refusal to hand over documents on Afghan prisoners makes a “mockery” of Parliament and is unconstitutional.
Continue readingRailroaded by Metrolinx: NEWS ALERT
THE STAY OF THE CTA RULING WAS NOT GRANTED BY THE FEDERAL COURT OF APPEAL, and diesel impact hammers have been halted. For more information, go to http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/transportation/article/760276–court-upholds-order-for-go-to-halt-heavy-hammer-use
Continue readingAndy Lehrer's Firebrand blog: Hypocrisy from the Canadian Jewish Congress’ Marilyn Shapiro
The letters page of today’s National Post includes a submission by one Marilyn Shapiro of Thornhill. She responds to a previous letter by Professor Yakov Rabkin which defends Independent Jewish Voices against attack by the Canadian Jewish Congress. After falsely describing IJV as made up of “anti-Israel Jews and non-Jews”
Continue readingAndy Lehrer's Firebrand blog: The Canadian Jewish Congress and the National Post’s double standard on Independent Jewish Voices
Last week, the National Post published a screed yet again attacking Independent Jewish Voices and its former chair, Diana Ralph. Several years ago, prior to joining Independent Jewish Voices, Ralph wrote a chapter for a book called Hidden History of 9-11 in which her thesis was that the Bush Administration
Continue readingRailroaded by Metrolinx: Irreparable Damage? Whose Irreparable Damage?
On Thursday, January 28th, social rights lawyer, David Baker, of Bakerlaw, represented the West Toronto Diamond Community Group in the Federal Court of Appeal. He was beyond eloquent, he was gracious. He was a force of natural justice. The opposing argument by the lawyer, representing GO/Metrolinx, maintained that they will
Continue readingThe Wheatsheaf: An Open Letter to Taliban Steve
Dear Steve (you jerk), It is with dismay and disgust that I write these words. I thought you were a leader cut from a different clothe. Your cold steel blue gaze that suggests a disregard for humanity, your tight-scripted signature on the letter promoting Albertan separatism, your campaigning on accountability
Continue readingThe Wheatsheaf: The mens rea of pie
Like an actor misquoting Shakespeare, Liberal MP Gerry Byrne stumbles through a legislative interpretative dance. In an interview with radio station VOCM in St. John’s on Tuesday, Mr. Byrne said he thinks what happened should be reviewed under the legal definition of terrorism. “When someone actually coaches or conducts criminal
Continue readingA. Picazo: A Coalition of Nonsense
“It doesn’t have to be true. It just has to be plausible and it strikes me as plausible.” This statement was made back in September of 2009 by Tom Flanagan, a University of Calgary political scientist and former adviser to Stephen Harper, in reference to the sudden resurgence of the
Continue readingHaldimand's Unheard Voice: Haldimand "Pitcher First to File for Elections"
I want to thank Cathy Pelletier for a great article! For the past ten months I have been writing for the Dunnville Chronicle covering Haldimand County Council meetings and local politics. It has been a great learning experience for me and I am very fortunate that Bob Liddycoat (past editor
Continue readingNDP Ideas: The Story Behind Haiti
In case people were wondering exactly why Haiti is the poorest and can never get their act together, this story in Foreign Policy is a must read. The Unluckiest Country The second-oldest republic in the Western Hemisphere has been wracked by coups, dictators, and foreign interventions throughout nearly its entire
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