It is wonderful to be proven right. Sometimes being wrong is nicer. In this case, wrong would be the prediction from this corner that the Great VO Muskrat Falls debate would be like tossing kittens off the overpass into oncoming traffic. The reaction to the hour-long radio program seems to
Continue readingThings Are Good: Why You Should Talk to Yourself
Talking to yourself is a good way to reason through problems, so there’s no reason to feel awkward about your big debates you have with yourself while walking down the street. At least according to some new research from a few universities. This new research in questions stems from Talking
Continue readingRecreating Eden: Guess Whose Appointment Won’t be Renewed: Kevin Page Contradicts Harper with the Facts about Funding Pensions
Don’t have much time today to go into this in detail because I’m involved in setting up an interesting conversation about jobs and the economy, “Working in Canada Today: A Real Challenge.” As I wrote yesterday Tom Mulcair will talk about his economic plans after a couple of union reps
Continue readingTracking down an internet troll, courtesy of BBC
Ever wonder what kind of person leaves all those disgusting, ill-informed comments on blogs and news sites, mostly it seems at least in North America, in support of the Conservatives and Republicans? These right-wing taunts and insults dominate most of the media sites on the web. What kind of a person becomes
Continue readingCanadian Dimension Feed: Black Gold or Fool’s Gold
It was a text-book case of misdirection. Like snake-oil salesmen of old warming up their marks with a shell game, Prime Minister Harper and Joe Oliver accused radical environmental groups of using “foreign money” to “hijack” Canada’s regulatory process on the Northern Gateway pipeline. And the Prime Minister’s Office labelled
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: Dear John Baird
You recently suggested that Israel has no better friend than Canada. So perhaps you would be the best one to have a chat with our friends and suggest that this kind of thing is generally frowned upon. Deadly attacks on Iranian nuclear scientists are being carried out by an Iranian
Continue readingTrashy's World: Harper and the abortion issue…
…or non-issue… depending on where you stand. I had an extensive back and forth with some conservative friends the other day on FB. I was referring to a piece by WK on how the abortion issue is NOT really off the table for the CPC. I don’t cut and paste
Continue readinggay persons of color: Living gay under Gaddafi in Libya
A must-read for the week is the two-part interview featured at Gay Star News of Khaleed, a 31-year-old LGBT activist in Libya who gives us some perspective on being gay in the North African country, both before and after the overthrow of Muammar el-Gadaffi. An excerpt: Kahleed says: ‘My personal
Continue readingTHE FIFTH COLUMN: Winter Bike Final Modifications & Mid Season Review
When I first bought my new winter bike in October I wrote “It’s a bit small for me, but was about the largest they had in stock and with some adjustments to the handlebar and seat height I have it set up about the same as my mountain bike, which
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: "People are turning up dead in detention at an alarming rate"
The outcome of the NATO intervention in Libya has been touted as a “political victory” for Stephen Harper and a vindication of his foreign policy. In a ceremony held last November, Harper himself spoke about “honour” and the Governor-General talked about our commitment to international law and “the rights and
Continue readingROAR!: Access on PEI = Empowering Women
One of the organizers of PRRO (PEI Reproductive Rights Organization) has been nominated to become an Active-8 Ambassador, one of 8 young adults from Atlantic Canada working to bring about positive change, at home and across the country. They are participating in a contest to see who can get the
Continue readingThe Sir Robert Bond Papers: Jumpin’ Jack Flash #nlpoli
It’s-uh gas, gas, gasAn 824 megawatt combined cycle gas turbine electricity generator plant would cost roughly CDN$950 million. The gas to power the plant is readily available from the local offshore. It can be landed using a conventional gas pipeline that would cost around CDN$500 million to build. That’s based
Continue readingwmtc: action alerts on physical environment and digital environments
My inbox is flooded with action alerts from all different groups, which I feel obligated to pass on, even though many (most?) people who read this blog probably get these petitions through multiple sources. So in the spirit of just in case… • David Suzuki asks: If a panel of
Continue readingBigCityLib Strikes Back: On Living With The Consequences Of Your Decisions
Today’s CP story about pro-lifer Trifon Haitas’s bid to represent the LPoC in Toronto-Danforth is particularly interesting for the connection it draws between Haitas and the Campaign Life Coalition, who have in fact endorsed him for the position. WK thinks this means the Libs new “supporter” category is a bad idea. In
Continue readingBlunt Objects: To Toronto-Danforth Liberal Members….
When you vote today for your Liberal candidate, please consider this: While others, including people I respect deeply, have attacked Trifon Haitas for his anti-choice (or pro-life, whatever you’d like to call it), I ask that you consider the wider fact that he does not appear to be a single
Continue readingNorthern Reflections: The Rules Have To Change
Tom Walkom writes that, as things stand, not much could have been done to keep the doomed Electro-Motive plant in London. He points out that Bombardier no longer manufactures locomotives in Canada. It buys them from a Catapillar plant in Mexico. The problem lies not so much with Caterpillar or
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Haper’s Trade Deal With China: Less Than Meets The Eye
Stephen Harper’s pending foreign investment protection agreement with China, hailed as a breakthrough that will one day make a “very practical difference” for Canadian companies seeking to invest here, (more outsourcing?)has been summed up very nicely by an astute Star reader: We get the pandas. They get the manufacturing jobs.
Continue readingWise Law Blog: 140 Law – Legal Headlines for Thursday February 9, 2012
Here are the leading legal headlines from Wise Law on Twitter for Thursday, February 9, 2012: Mississippi pardons to be challenged at court hearing Reining in the rhetoric on copyright reform ‘Legal services are not to be bartered for sexual favours’ | Canadian Lawyer 2 Former TSU Law Students Sue
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: New column day
Here, on how the evolution of labour rights under Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms can be traced directly to anti-labour overreach by right-wing governments – and how Brad Wall seems determined to push the limits yet again even as his first effort proved unconstitutional. For further reading…– The two
Continue reading350 or bust: Harper Government Does Not Have The Right To Declare Canada Open For Business
From the Union of B.C. Chiefs, Coast Salish Territory/Vancouver, Canada – February 8, 2012: Close to 100 Chiefs and representatives from Indigenous Nations in BC along with 400 Chiefs from across Canada attended the Crown-First Nations Gathering in Ottawa on January 24 2012. The Crown-First Nations Gathering was an opportunity
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