Star readers have much to say: Harper downplays concerns about trade deal, Sept. 27 It’s a dangerous world but Big Oil, multinationals, banks, the wealthy and his party’s masters can rest easy in the knowledge that Secret Agent Stephen Harper has their collective backs. He knows how to keep a
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Politics and its Discontents: The Harper Attack On Canadian Values
As I have written elsewhere in this blog, for various reasons I have never believed that democratically elected governments are necessarily a reflection of the values or the will of the electorate. I have also written of my strong belief that governments do, however, have a potentially huge impact on
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: More on The Harper Betrayal of All of Us
I wrote a recent brief post on the Trans Pacific Partnership that Canada recently signed onto, the price of admission being the surrender of much of our sovereignty over the environment, working conditions, etc. A new article published in The Nation paints a grim portrayal indeed of the future we
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Canada Day? Really?
In my non-virtual life, I like to think that I am a reasonably pleasant fellow who enjoys the small pleasures life has to offer, has a decent sense of humour, and can see the good as well as the bad of this world. I sometimes fear, however, that in my
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Trans-Pacific Partnership: Harper To Surrender More Of Our Sovereignty To Corporations
As has already been reported, the price of admission for Canada’s entry into the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations is the acceptance of everything thus far negotiated. Although all of the talks are secret, with corporations but not citizens privy to its contents, this much is known: the TPP enhances corporate rights
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Two Recommendations For Monday Morning
Since I have a bit of a busy day ahead, I will be brief and recommend two sources for some Monday morning edification. The first comes from a link provided by the redoubtable Dr. Dawg, who continues to go where angels and the mainstream media fear to tread. The second,
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: It’s Time To Show Some National Self-Respect
When I was a child, I was afraid of many people: my teachers, who believed in strapping and slapping us as early as Grade One, school bullies who periodically picked on me, and some of the thuggish people residing in my working-class neighbourhood who enjoyed verbally assaulting those even more
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Gated Democracy? – Protesting The Harper Omnibus Budget Bill – Part 2
Yesterday I got a glimpse of the kind of democratic expression that is considered acceptable under the Harper regime. It is one that I found profoundly disturbing. Almost a week ago I wrote a post describing a march organized by Leadnow.ca to the constituency office of my Conservative M.P., David
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Protesting The Harper Omnibus Budget Bill
I wrote a post the other day about a Leadnow.ca campaign promoting nation-wide demonstrations at the constituency offices of Conservative M.P.s to protest Bill C-38, the Harper government’s omnibus budget bill that changes over 70 laws, eroding further our democracy, our labour laws, and our environmental safeguards, to name but
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: The Economy And The People
Several years ago, while he was still writing for Canada’s self-proclaimed ‘newspaper of record,’ Rick Salutin wrote a column entitled something like, The economy is doing fine, the people not so much. In it, he made some trenchant observations about how, over time, the well-being of the economy and the
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: An Opportunity To Send Harper Inc. A Message
I received the following email message last evening from Leadnow.ca: Since the Harper Conservatives announced their Omnibus Budget, more and more Canadians are rallying against a bill that would put a black mark on our democracy. Now, we’re writing to invite you to join a national day of action at
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: A Journalist Writes About A Pattern
The other day I wrote a post about detecting patterns in political behaviour, opining that most media spend a disproportionate amount of their considerable resources covering trivia like celebrity gossip and acting as shallow and lazy supporters of government propaganda. The Toronto Star, I asserted, is one of the few
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Patterns
Something that occurs just once is mere happenstance; twice is a coincidence, and three or more times is part of a pattern. – Anonymous Being able to detect patterns, whether in the lab or in the crucible of political behaviour, requires time, intelligence, and access to extensive sources of information.
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Canada For Sale
At least that’s all I can conclude given that the ineffectual Investment Canada Act is about to become completely impotent thanks to changes announced today; in a short time, the government will not even bother reviewing foreign investments in or purchases of Canadian companies worth less than $1 billion. National
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Harper Omnibus Bill To Cede Some Of Our Sovereignty
Everywhere we look, more and more evidence of Stephen Harper’s intention to betray Canadians through Bill C-38, his omnibus bill which covers a multitude of sins. Recommend this Post
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