December 2011
Richard Branson calls on influential figures to fight Nigerian anti-gay law
Through his blog on Monday, English business magnate Sir Richard Branson urged everyone with influence in Nigerian affairs to help stop the country’s discriminatory anti-gay bill from being legislated: “Too…
Durban: “Down With Canada”
Concerned citizens from around Africa and the globe have gathered in Durban South Africa to “Occupy Cop17″, as hopes for a global agreement to address the climate crisis fades. As…
Irony abounds in Canadian politics these days
A couple of instances of irony I see today – one slightly amusing, one not so. The first is there is at least one Canadian at the Durban conference on…
Space Lunchbox would be a great name for a band
Sad Spaceman contemplates lunch. Alltop would be a great name for a humor blog aggregator.
Rogers, Nissan Lead in Christmas Crassness Sweepstakes
Oh, I like Christmas. I’m lucky to live in a place where there’s often snow at Christmas, and I like the lights, the crowds, and so on. Sure, the commercialism…
Rogers, Nissan Lead in Christmas Crassness Sweepstakes
Oh, I like Christmas. I’m lucky to live in a place where there’s often snow at Christmas, and I like the lights, the crowds, and so on. Sure, the commercialism…
Vic Toews will get way more than your phone number
John Ibbitson had a piece last week, Tories Have Yet to Prove Case for E-Snooping, that raised the temperature on the lawful access debate. A key excerpt was this quote…
The Wheel of Fish #nlpoli
Remember that thing about not being able to slide a sheet of paper between the three political parties on major issues? Well, it continues to play out on the fishery.…
Yo Andrew Cash!
Your robo-call, forwarding me to Joe Daniel’s constit office when I pressed 1 so I could bitch about the long-gun registry repeal, would have worked better if I had received…
Séries dramatiques – TVA veut réduire son contenu canadien
TVA asks the CRTC to reduce its Canadian content obligations.
Taking the estimates seriously
What’s this? A group of MPs – including a backbench government MP – realise that they’re not spending enough time scrutinising the estimates, and that an hour with the minister…
Autism and Dr. Allen Frances’ Question 5: Will Autism Research Be Possible After the DSM-5?
Dr. Allen Frances, chair of the DSM-IV Task Force and principle investigator on the DSM-IV Field Trials The last major changes to the “autism section” of the DSM occurred in…
Denial Of Facts Is No Way To Understand Science
On Thursday December 1st, Globe and Mail columnist Margaret Wente declared herself a defender of scientific integrity by calling upon the scientific community to replace the “rhetoric” of climate change…
Dec 6: Time for men to start speaking up about violence against women
On this day in 1989, a terrible act of violence was perpetrated in our country against a group of young women. So we use this National Day of Remembrance and…
History never repeats?
Germans could tell you differently: “To know the risks and side effects of Nazi uprisings, just read a history book or ask your grandparents.” (Translation mine.) According to my source…
A note of thanks to readers
I began Northern Insights in April 2009 as an exercise to develop writing skills. Early on, I heard a joke about how most bloggers would double the audience if they…
MP Peter Goldring refuses to blow, job in jeopardy
The Prime Minister’s Office has confirmed Edmonton MP Peter Goldring has voluntarily withdrawn from caucus after the MP for Edmonton East was charged with refusing to take a breathalyzer test…