In a parliamentary system, we usually hope for a majority for our preferred party because this gives them the power to implement their policies. However, there are several situations where a minority government is actually preferred such as I argued ought to be the case for the 2011 Ontario election
Continue readingTag: Canadian Politics
wmtc: media conference in support of war resister kim rivera
Please watch. It’s not the complete press conference, but it’s a good portion of it, and it’s worth seeing.
Continue readingwmtc: kim rivera, mother of four. let her stay in canada.
From today’s press conference, in the Toronto Star:
Continue readingAlberta Diary: Fiscal shocker! Redford Tories promise transparency but deliver opacity!
Secretive Redford Tory, left, moves to the right, while Wildrose transparency advocate, right, opts for a totally different course. Below: Doug Horner and Alison Redford, both smirking. This just in! Alberta’s Progressive Conservative government is secretive! Well… yeah! What’s astonishing is that the Alberta news media appears to be astonished
Continue readingCanadian Soapbox: That was one long walk in the snow Justin
If Warren Kinsella is right, and I have little reason to doubt him, then Justin Trudeau is going to run for the Liberal leadership. Given how long it took him to reach this decision I thought perhaps he was waiting for winter to arrive. That way he could follow in
Continue readingBurmese Junta removes over 70 Canadians from blacklist
The Junta in Burma has removed around 2000 people from its blacklist. These blacklists were created by the military regime to stop pro democracy and human rights activists from visiting Burma, during the peak of their oppression. The past two years has seen dramatic changes and progress under the leadership
Continue readingwmtc: harper government set to deport rivera family september 20
Canada Border Services Agency has declared that Iraq War resister Kimberly Rivera and her family must return to the United States by September 20. Rivera came to Canada in 2007 to avoid re-deployment to Iraq. She currently lives in Toronto with her husband and four children. If she returns to
Continue readingCanadian Progressive: To avoid sex assault, don’t dress “like a whore”: Krista Ford
As Toronto Mayor Rob Ford’s niece Krista advises women to avoid sexual assault – by not dressing like “whores” – a recent victim offers a personal response.
Continue readingBullshit in absolutes: or how ‘liberal’* economists argue with themselves
We can perhaps amend an old Ethiopian saying to read “absolutes are for infants and kings”. It is catechism worth remembering when arguing with liberal economists. For theirs is not a just sport. In fact, one should never mix sport with justice. As Berlin said long ago (1958): Everything
Continue readingCanadian Progressive: Stephen Harper is “the best Prime Minister ever!”: 4th grader
Is it possible that Stephen Harper’s uncompromising critics (myself included) are missing something about the prime minister? This 4th grader seems to suggests so. She believes Harper is the best PM. Ever! And Harper agrees. The girl’s drawing (below) made the list of photos of the day for August 2012 on the
Continue readingAlberta Diary: Hurricane Isaac makes landfall in New Orleans; Hurricane Joan hits Calgary
A prophet laments the unwillingness of the people to heed warnings from on high. Alberta political bloggers may not appear exactly as illustrated. Below: Nominated federal Tory candidate “Hurricane Joan” Crockatt. At the risk of going all Old Testament on readers, when Hurricane Isaac slammed into New Orleans last night,
Continue readingScott's DiaTribes: Some nervous Calgary Conservatives over Northern Gateway pipeline fate
Joan Crockett won the Conservative nomination for Calgary-Centre. That wasn’t what interested me – what was interesting was reading in this op-ed how nervous those Conservatives are about the fate of the Northern Gateway pipeline. Some exhibits of that include Joan Crockett herself: “Alberta needs some friends..We need to get
Continue readingSong of the Watermelon: Quebec’s Election: Endorsements and Analyses
Quebec politics are unique in North America because of the two distinct dimensions along which political battles are fought. In addition to the standard left-right dimension, there is the sovereignty-federalism one. For whatever reason, sovereigntists in the province have, as a general rule, tended to align themselves with the left,
Continue readingwmtc: war resisters campaign rebooted: resisters at risk: please donate if you can
After a period of calm in the cases of U.S. Iraq War resisters, things are quickly coming to a head. War resister Kimberly Rivera and her family will receive a decision in their case in a few days and they face imminent deportation to the United States. Another war resister
Continue readingCanadian Soapbox: Québec – What happens after a vote for independence?
For some, perhaps for most, the question of Québec separation is a dead issue. There are many who believe that the referendum in 1995 was the last kick at the can for those who want a sovereign Québec. And they’re probably right, maybe. For my own part I view separation as still
Continue reading350 or bust: Take Time To Renew Your Spirit
This is Stephen Lewis’s stirring eulogy at Jack Layton’s funeral, one year ago tomorrow. * “Another world is not only possible, she is on her way. On a quiet day, I can hear her breathing.” Arundhati Roy Read the full text on the Globe And Mail.
Continue readingCanadian Progressive: Radicals for our coast: New Democrat MPs and community reps (VIDEO)
A must-watch video on the ongoing fight against Enbridge’s cursed pipeline. The following New Democrat MPs visit Terrace, Kitimat and Kitamaat, British Columbia, and discuss the energy giant’s proposed Northern Gateway Pipeline: Deputy Leader and Environment critic, Megan Leslie (Halifax); House Leader, Nathan Cullen (Skeena-Bulkley Valley); Public Safety & LGBTT
Continue readingCanadian Progressive: Canada Politics News Roundup For Friday, August 24, 2012
The revelation that the Harper Government has authorized the use of information gleaned through torture is the highlight of our summary today.
Continue readingScott's DiaTribes: Should the religious left be as active as the religious right has been?
I wondered about that question as I read Ric Salutin’s op-ed on the United Church resolution to encourage their members not to buy goods produced from Israeli settlements in the occupied territories. I was interested in the column, but I was struck by this part that Salutin said: United churchpeople
Continue readingBurma Muslim organization announcement on recent incidents
Please see below joint announcement from Myanmar Muslim Organizations and also announcement from Burma’s Foreign Ministry on communal violence in Rakhaine State. This announcement comes after several fake propaganda has been posted on internet on Rohingya Muslims in Burma. Photos from Tsunami, earthquake, Tibet protests and even some from Iraq
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