It would be an act of monumental self-deception for Canadians to believe that our country is an island set above the rage bubbling across the world.
Continue readingTag: Canada
Dead Wild Roses: Should Drag Queens Be Reading to Children in the First Place?
From the CBC: “A group of religious protesters interrupted a drag queen story-telling event for children in Ottawa on Saturday, claiming the event was “child abuse.” Organizers say the interruption was “hateful” and “bigoted” and called the police. No one, however, was arrested. About 100 parents and children attended the
Continue readingDead Wild Roses: Not Marching in Pride Now Transphobic – David Cavey Stands for Freedom and Freedom of Speech
The VPS is not allowing both UBC and the VPL to participate in the parade because both institutions allowed controversial speakers to hold events at their venues on the basis of free speech. However, the VPS deems both speakers—anti–SOGI activist Jenn Smith and Feminist Current founder Meghan Murphy—as discriminatory and
Continue readingDead Wild Roses: Life or Oil
Gerome Irwin writes on Canada’s fateful choice to continue down the path of environmental ruin. “It’s a trite cliché to say the time has long since past the critical tipping point when humanity can no longer have it both ways. Every human must, sooner or later, once and for
Continue readingSaskboy's Abandoned Stuff: Moe Promotes Car With Racist Flag
The Premier of Saskatchewan has posted a Confederate flag on his Twitter account. One whole day later and he still hasn’t deleted this. — Michael Poos (@michaelpoos) July 23, 2019 Your position now would seem to suggest that ReTweeting the Premier was a mistake? pic.twitter.com/dCUOMC0hI8 — Saskboy (@saskboy) July 23,
Continue readingDead Wild Roses: On Free Speech.
Free speech, or the ability to speak one’s mind in public without physical/material consequences, is one of the hallmarks of democratic society. Now if everyone was nice, and peace ruled the world, I think the concept of free speech would be less problematic. I’d like to talk about three ideas
Continue readingSaskboy's Abandoned Stuff: VIA Train from Melville to Winnipeg
VIA is advertising a $15 child fare. That’s for kids under 12 years of age. Still, it’s $516.60 to go to Winnipeg for four days with the family of four, from Melville, SK (the closest train station to Regina). We’d have to rent or borrow a car to get there.
Continue readingSaskboy's Abandoned Stuff: VIA Train from Melville to Winnipeg
VIA is advertising a $15 child fare. That’s for kids under 12 years of age. Still, it’s $516.60 to go to Winnipeg for four days with the family of four, from Melville, SK (the closest train station to Regina). We’d have to rent or borrow a car to get there.
Continue readingSaskboy's Abandoned Stuff: CBC, Change the Debate
CBC has a history of providing a substandard democracy experience for its owners, the Canadian public. Over a decade ago I organized a Regina protest in front of CBC Saskatchewan to object to the broadcasting corporation’s exclusion of Elizabeth May from the leaders debate. Years later she managed to win
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Canada finally accedes to Arms Trade Treaty
Ottawa has finally announced that Canada will become a party to the UN Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) later this year. The government has introduced Bill C-47 which amends the Export and Import Permits Act to ensure full compliance. In a press release on June 19, Chrystia Freeland, Minister of Foreign
Continue readingSaskboy's Abandoned Stuff: Greens Hire a Political Strategist Some Don’t Like
I don’t much care for his strategy most of the time, but the Greens can’t keep doing the same thing when the other parties are playing to run out the clock. We’ve less than eleven years left to maybe, hopefully have enough time to get emissions to a point where
Continue readingSaskboy's Abandoned Stuff: Greyhound Sucks
And the feckless politicians who haven’t replaced Greyhound are sucking too. Officially one full year of stewing about governments ignoring Greyhoundexit! There's literally *no excuse* not to fund public long distance transport in a time of MMIWG, climate emergency, and escalating inequality & I wrote about it here: https://t.co/0qowNrrscw #cdnpoli
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Electrification and Climate I: Scale of the Challenge
Many elements have to come together if Canada is to significantly reduce its greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions. There is now a technical consensus that “electrification” – the replacement of fossil fuels with electricity as an energy source – is a necessary condition for decarbonization, and that electrification will require that
Continue readingDead Wild Roses: Thanks UCP Voters #5
So the UCP just passed Bill 9, better known as the we’re too scared to negotiate so we’re going to legislate new wages for our public sector employees. This, of course, is a clear violation of charter rights to collective bargaining and flies in the very face of good faith
Continue readingSaskboy's Abandoned Stuff: Conservatives Exceeding Election Spending Expectations
NEW: Elections Canada says it will monitor provincial government interventions in the federal campaign https://t.co/J8UfrINIlR #onpoli #abpoli #cdnpoli — Marieke Walsh (@MariekeWalsh) June 13, 2019 What’s that mean? You’ve heard the Con Premiers like Ford and Moe and Kenney are all threatening Trudeau, saying if he doesn’t do impossible things
Continue readingThings Are Good: Canada set to ban Single-Use Plastics by 2021
The Canadian government announced plans this week to ban all single-use plastics by 2021. This is a great step in protecting the environment from the wastefulness of stars and plastic bags. The Canadian federal plan is to try to get manufactures of the plastic items to foot the bill and
Continue readingDead Wild Roses: Electoral Politics in the United States – Rob Urie
Why would people vote against their own interests? Why do so many people choose not to vote at all? Some of the answers lie with the very structure of the American political system and the ideological rules that are currently being followed. Noam Chomsky has always said that the
Continue readingThings Are Good: 100 Debates About the Environment
Canadians are heading to the polls this year to elect a new federal government and GreenPAC wants everyone in Canada to engage in a debate about the state of our environment. On October 7th, 2019 they’re running non-partisan all-candidates debates in 100 ridings across Canada from St. John’s to Victoria.
Continue readingSaskboy's Abandoned Stuff: Speaking The Truth
CBC and other media need to recognize the following as true if we’re going to advance as a society. It’s likely to make them, and you, uncomfortable. Growth isn’t automatic and easy. – Canada has committed genocide against First Nations people. I wrote for @washingtonpost about the failure of the
Continue readingDead Wild Roses: Canada’s National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls
The CBC has a leaked copy of the Inquiry, some highlights: “The inquiry officially began on Sept. 1, 2016, and was given a two-year mandate to examine systemic causes of all forms of violence against Indigenous women and girls. The government granted a six-month extension in 2018, with the final
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