These are the Canadian Progressive’s Canada and U.S. news headlines November 9, 2012. CANADA: The ugly truth about Stephen Harper’s foreign policy – Rabble.ca Disabled vets, ‘struggling’ widows line up to vent frustrations…
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Politics and its Discontents: Just Another Day’s Work At The Star
Yesterday I wrote a post expressing real pleasure that The Toronto Star is enjoying such a wide readership and profitability, given the important work that it does on a number of levels. Although evidence of that work is found in pretty much every edition of the paper, today’s seems particularly
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: A Sage Observation
Paul Kahnert of Markham has an uncommonly apt observation in this morning’s Star, one that I’m sure the ideologues leading us both federally and provincially will choose to ignore: Re: Canada’s idle threat, Business Aug. 25 It’s time to reverse corporate tax cuts. David Olive’s article was proof positive that
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: An Update on Sayed Sharifi
After many setbacks, Sayed Shah Sarifi, the brave young Afghan interpreter who recently arrived in Toronto thanks to his own tenacity and the efforts of people of goodwill, has landed his first Canadian job. You can read this good-news story here. Recommend this Post
Continue readingCanadian Progressive World: Toronto Mayor Rob Ford’s Official White Supremacist Portrait: PHOTO
Our Ford, the (Lord) Mayor of Toronto is rabidly right-wing. No doubt about that. After all, he recently proposed exiling Toronto’s convicted criminals, most of whom tend to be persons of color. Fellow Conservative and immigrant-bashing minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Jason Kenney, endorsed the idea. Still, I would never
Continue readingSong of the Watermelon: Referendums: The Perils and the Possibilities
Direct democracy is to representative democracy what extra-virgin olive oil is to refined olive oil. The latter is more cost effective and, perhaps according to some, just as good. But to the connoisseur, there is no substitute for the real stuff. In the fourth article of his ongoing series on
Continue readingRedBedHead: Mayor Ford Is Mad. Mean Mad. And, Oh Yeah, A Racist.
I’m mad, really mad! Mayor Ford wants to clarify his comments from the other day, following the tragic shooting in Scarborough. Here’s what he said at the time: Asked how he planned to force gangsters out of Toronto, Mr. Ford said: “I don’t know and that’s what I’m going to sit
Continue readingSong of the Watermelon: Rick Salutin on Democracy, Parties, and Electoral Reform
“Democracy,” as Winston Churchill famously stated, “is the worst form of Government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.” Somewhat less famously, he also remarked that “The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter.” Notwithstanding this somewhat anemic endorsement,
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Is This Really Negotiating?
While I have sometimes been critical of my former union, The Ontario Secondary Teachers Federation, both in this blog and my other one, I have always been a supporter and advocate of unions. I was particularly surprised and pleased that yesterday, in contrast to the Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Another Award For The Star
Despite my general disaffection with the mainstream media, I continue to be heartened by one of the few bright spots on the journalistic landscape, The Toronto Star. Awarded a Citation of Merit on Tuesday evening at Rideau Hall for the work done by investigative reporter Kevin Donovan that uncovered the
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: The other shoe: Why the Globe’s ‘temporary leaves’ are likely to become permanent for some
One of the Globe and Mail’s senior copy editors writes a headline while a Pagemasters NA trainee looks on. Globe editors may not be exactly as illustrated. Below: Globe Publisher Phillip Crawley. In the 21st Century, corporate bosses aren’t opposed to journalists making a fortune – as long as they
Continue readingFive of Five: Friday Night
Liza Minelli and Joel Grey explain the surprising results in the 2012 Alberta Election. Also, the Toronto Star won five National Newspaper Awards.
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Police Who Lie Under Oath
The following suspects have walked free after officers lied in court: an accused pimp of a teenage girl, possessors of child pornography, a major ecstasy manufacturer operating out of a Scarborough house, members of an international data-theft and fake-credit-card ring, marijuana growers, and drug dealers carrying loaded handguns. Judges have
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Albertans should worry when Calgary becomes the city Canadians love to hate
How other Canadians see the typical Albertan: rich, smug, condescending and irresponsible. Below: What they think of us as a result; Alison Redford; Dalton McGuinty. We won the lottery. Now we won’t stop telling everyone else how to run their financial affairs. And guess what? They don’t like it! I’ve
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Are there really 287,000 law-abiding farmers, trappers, hunters and fishers in Toronto?
A strong market in central Canada for raccoon coats like the one worn by this man accounts for the large number of urban trappers who live in Metropolitan Toronto, law-abiding gun owners who account for some of the 287,000 long guns in that city. Or something like that, anyway. Below:
Continue readingCowboys for Social Responsibility: Establishing motive
Why are the Harper Tories hell bent on destroying data from the life saving long gun registry? A high profile Toronto lawyer thinks he knows why: It’s like throwing a bomb into a crime lab because they didn’t want any evidence left there.We couldn’t have said it any better.
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: At Least They Don’t Discriminate According to Gender
For those who might have been concerned that the animus, hatred and paranoia of the Harper government is directed almost exclusively at men, The Star’s Tim Harper sets the record straight by pointing out how three fairly prominent women have run afoul of our overlords; however, unlike the stereotype of
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Mayor rips Star in Hogtown pulp slapdown as hicks, slicks trade kicks
Toronto Mayor Rob Ford squares off against Toronto Star Board Chairman John Honderich in a cage fight. Actually, Hogtown politicians and media personalities may not be exactly as illustrated, but the picture really does come from a story about Toronto politics on the front of the Star’s website. Below: Mayor
Continue readingMayor Fordzilla Is Being Tormented–By a Real Newspaper
Poor Mayor Boss Hogg, He just can’t take it anymore! He looks like he’s about to go a cryin’ to his big bro, Doughnut Dougy. I mean, just take a look at how pathetic he is! Oh yeah! Since ol’ Angie Perischilli left the Toronto Star, the paper’s journos and
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Apparently They Don’t Hold With That Readin’ Thing Either
Or that might be the easy inference to draw about Mayors Rob and Doug Ford. As reported yesterday, The Toronto Star is filing a complaint with the City of Toronto’s ethics commissioner over the lads’ embargo of The Star of all official notices and pronouncements from the mayor’s office. Today,
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