February 2012
Mining, at home and abroad
Big Mining is at it again. In Ontario, you’d think that Dalton McGuinty had learned his lesson by now. In 2008 the provincial government was offering carte blanche to mining…
LabourStart Conference Looks at Social Media to Aid Workers’ Struggles
LabourStart, the union movement’s premier international news and campaigning service, held its annual global solidarity conference on November 18–20 in Istanbul, Turkey. Titled “From Global Networks to Global Revolution,” the…
New Criminal Proceedings Rules (Rules) for the Superior Court of Justice (Ontario)
There are pending changes to the Criminal Proceedings Rules (Rules) for the Superior Court of Justice (Ontario). The new Rules will be published in the Canada Gazette on February 29,…
Prop 8 struck down again
I have only had enough time to skim through the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling in California’s Proposition 8, the gay marriage ban. As we all know, the appeals…
RailGate Remembered….The FOI Fallacy
Stonewalling WithoutWallyVille Remember when Gordon Campbell told Joy McPhail to go FOI herself after she raised the possibility that BC Rail and CN Rail and Mr. Campbell’s government were getting…
Greetings from the Centre of the Universe
Since my last post a dog’s age ago, I have moved to the City that Never Shuts the Hell Up – Toronto, Ontario. I’m not exactly on the coast, or…
Seniors Occupy Conservative MP Offices To Protest Changes To OAS Eligibilty
“Scores of labour activists and seniors started occupying the offices of Conservative MPs in Ontario Thursday afternoon to protest possible changes in the retirement income system. Supporters of a so-called…
Honey, I Scalded the Kids
I don’t care for coffee. I don’t make this a secret, even though I probably should, since non-coffee drinkers are often looked at as some sort of aliens who are…
Redford Signals Alberta’s Intent to "Clear a Path" for Tar Sands Through BC
I wasn’t surprised and what Alberta Premier Alison Redford recently said, namely: “The Alberta government is looking to clear a path for the oil sands through British Columbia by upping…
Maybe we should have let Ford win
As the 2014 Toronto municipal election campaign wound down to a close, opponents of the mayor wondered what went wrong. Once again they had underestimated Rob Ford, the big guy…
Financial Post: Canadians needs wireless competition
Canadians pay too much for telecom service; we can see that in the response to our Stop The Squeeze campaign. In order for Canadians to obtain fair pricing there needs…
Homo sapiens, a classic misnomer — Excerpts from "New World New Mind" – Robert Ornstein and Paul Ehrlich, 1989
This book was written 23 years ago and the problems facing humanity have shifted slightly in the interim, mainly because even more critical crises have emerged. Also some of the…
Homo sapiens, a classic misnomer — Excerpts from "New World New Mind" – Robert Ornstein and Paul Ehrlich, 1989
This book was written 23 years ago and the problems facing humanity have shifted slightly in the interim, mainly because even more critical crises have emerged. Also some of the…
How MPs voted on Opposition Motion to Protect OAS
The motion to maintain the age requirements for OAS at 65 was defeated. The motion read: That the House reject calls by the Prime Minister to balance the Conservative deficit…
Inspiring new album from performer Rodney DeCroo – Vancouver-based roots rocker releases new album of poetry and jazz
A new recording from one of my favourite performers Rodney DeCroo is always a treasure, especially coming as this one does in the midst of Winter’s least cheery days. DeCroo’s…
Supreme Court Justice says U.S. constitution is dated
This will set the teeth of right-wing Americans on edge. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, in an interview on Egyptian television, said she wouldn’t recommend using the U.S.…
Alliances: Re/ Envisioning Indigenous non- Indigenous Relationships
From movement organizing to individual relationships, Lynne Davis’s new anthology, Alliances, explores the tensions and possibilities of coalitions between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples today. Exploring the links between Indigenous struggles…
The Myth About Pipeline Jobs and the True Ownership of the Alberta Tar Sands
As many economists have pointed out, and our PM who claims to be an economist refuses to hear, every petro-state has an inflated value to their currency. We already know…
Florida judge orders man charged with domestic battery to give wife flowers, take her to Red Lobster, then out bowling
Aw the south, Florida in particular. Mmm, smell the get away with murder, or at least beating one’s wife, aroma about the place. Judge John Hurley handed down this ruling…