For the CBC on June 12, 2018 Many of us experience a heaviness in the early morning hours; a feeling that the Swedish word vargtimmen perfectly encapsulates. Robert Macfarlane, author of The Lost Words, writes that this term translates to “wolf-time; the menacing transitional hours of night into dawn.” How fitting that during
Continue readingTag: Op-Ed
A. Picazo: Of flawed men and dangerous ones
For the CBC on November 30, 2017 In early November, Breaking Bad star Bryan Cranston weighed in on the stunning allegations of sexual misconduct levelled against Hollywood icon Kevin Spacey — one of the early casualties of the so-called Weinstein effect — in an interview with BBC Newsbeat. Cranston suggested Spacey was
Continue readingA. Picazo: Confronting prejudice and changing minds
For Maclean’s on August 31, 2017 One year ago on C-SPAN, Heather McGhee—an African-American woman and the president of Demos, an equality-focused public policy organization—was the featured guest of a call-in program in Washington. Half an hour into the broadcast, a caller introduced himself as Garry from North Carolina, and made a
Continue readingA. Picazo: She’s someone.
For the Ottawa Citizen on October 12, 2017 In the wake of allegations swirling around Harvey Weinstein, a powerful, dominant figure in Hollywood, where the emerging picture suggests decades of sexual predation, many women are finding their voice in this rare window for candid dialogue and raw confession. The response
Continue readingA. Picazo: (Un)civil discourse
This column appeared on the CBC on July 31, 2017 “It is simply impossible to overestimate the love, bordering on worship, that reporters in Washington long had for McCain, and to a great degree still do,” Washington Post contributor Paul Waldman wrote Tuesday as Senator John McCain, diagnosed with an aggressive form
Continue readingMind Bending Politics: NDP Could End Up Winning Ontario In 2018
(Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath Could Be the Strongest Leader In Contention For 2018) With the next provincial election coming into view in Ontario, have the Liberals made a fatal mistake on keeping Kathleen Wynne at the helm? Recent polls put Ontario Progressive Conservative leader Patrick Brown up front, however
Continue readingA. Picazo: On assisted death and psychological suffering
This column was published at Maclean’s on March 28, 2017 In 2015, a landmark ruling by the Supreme Court of Canada struck down the federal ban on physician-assisted suicide, solidifying the charter right of competent, consenting adults who are “suffering intolerably as a result of a grievous and irremediable medical
Continue readingA. Picazo: Carleton’s unbalanced approach to wellness
This op-ed appeared in the Ottawa Citizen on March 14, 2017. It’s hard to overstate the naïveté at the heart of Carleton University’s initial decision to remove the scale from its fitness room at the athletic centre. The move, ostensibly “keeping with current fitness and social trends,” sought to promote a “more holistic” approach
Continue readingA. Picazo: On Homeopathy, Health Canada Must End The Double Standard
This column appeared on the CBC on December 11, 2016. Until recently, homeopathic remedies sold in the United States enjoyed many of the same privileges — including the freedom to claim they could treat or cure specific ailments or diseases — as real, science-based medicine. The difference? Peddlers of homeopathy
Continue readingMind Bending Politics: Ministry Staffer Claims His Boss Mislead Public On Restoring Autism Funding in Ontario
(Ontario’s Minister Of Child and Youth Services Michael Coteau (above) And Premier Kathleen Wynne called out on false statements regarding Autism funding by Ministry staffer) A few months ago, the Ontario Ministry of Children and Youth Services announced plans to “restore” autism funding for intensive therapy. On the Ministry’s own website and press releases […]
Continue readingA. Picazo: Undignified Death
This column ran in The National Post on January 20, 2016. The Supreme Court hearing that granted the Liberals a four-month extension to review assisted-dying legislation last week brought out the usual coterie of critics, many of them religious. We are…
Continue readingMind Bending Politics: Did The Liberals Cave on Anti-Terror Bill C-51?
From the Paris attacks to last week’s mass shootings in California, like many in the civilized world over the past month I’ve been trying to wrap my head around these attacks, and why under mass surveillance are they continuing to happen with greater frequency. Last week the 42nd parliament resumed with no word or mention […]
Continue readingMind Bending Politics: Arab Countries Need To Be Doing More On Syrian Refugees
(Arab League Flag) Like many Canadians I had a very heart felt response to the picture of the three year old who laid face down dead after trying to cross the Mediterranean for the EU escaping the Syrian civil war. What I found more disturbing was Immigration Minister Chris Alexander’s cold response to the story […]
Continue readingTHE CAREGIVERS' LIVING ROOM - A Blog by Donna Thomson: My Name is Donna Thomson and I am an Expert…
Yesterday, I had the pleasure of attending a workshop for women in leadership positions who want to learn the ins and outs of writing Op-Eds for national newspapers. Shari Graydon is the founder of “Informed Opinions“, the organization that offers this service as part of its social enterprise. Shari is
Continue reading