The Citadel Nation – the Militarization of America
In his 2008 book “Climate Wars“, Gwynne Dyer foretold the militarization of the American-Mexican border. The American military, Dyer wrote, had plans to seal the border against a wave of…
August 2014
Why is Justin Trudeau dancing to victory?
Heather Malleck in the Toronto Star has a few good reasons why our next Prime Minister will be named Justin Trudeau: But what makes some politicians attractive and others repellent?…
What Vestige of Democracy Remains in the Age of Neoliberalism?
Henry Giroux argues that we must perceive democracy as a culture and shake off the cloak of neoliberalism by which it has been subverted. Excerpts from his essay, “Beyond the…
Your Daily Digital Digest for Monday, August 25, 2014
Your news links for today: How the web lost its way – and its founding principles – The Guardian How you can be tracked anywhere in the world – Washington…
Teach Your Children Well
They’re already facing some serious challenges coming their way before all that long, let’s teach them the difference between absurdity and reality, the gift of critical thinking. That’s been heavily…
The Double Bind of Climate Change
I’m still hopeful that we will see a workable, international agreement on climate change in 2015 but why does that have to feel like a pensive Charlie Brown with Lucy…
Monday Morning Links
Assorted content to start your week. – Robert Jay Lifton discusses the “stranded ethics” of a fossil fuel industry which is willing to severely damage our planet in order to…
“The Russian Aggression Prevention Act” (RAPA): A Direct Path to Nuclear War with Russia
By Steven Starr Global Research The Russian Aggression Prevention Act”, introduced to Congress by U.S. Senator Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), will set the US on a path towards direct military conflict…
Reused column day
For those wondering, my Leader-Post column was on hiatus last week, but will return this week. In the meantime, I’ll point back to this post and column as introductory reading…
Harper’s Reign Of Terror – A Closer Examination
While Stephen Harper’s attacks on charities have been followed here and elsewhere, the Star presents a good overview of how the offices of the CRA have been subverted by a…
In the Record Books
These are not happy days for the party which has ruled Alberta since before Happy Days ever aired, but the PCs had something to celebrate this weekend as they passed…
Wind Farms In Court: Ontario Leads The Pack
Condensed from Mike Barnard’s report: Interestingly, Canada is by far the most litigious, and Ontario had almost 30% of the cases by itself. Belief in health impacts varies substantially by…
finding our way out
So we’re somewhere, can’t even agree on how to characterize where, but what we do agree on is we want to get out. There’s paths leading in all directions, and…
The "sociological phenomenon" of Herr Harper. . . .
Herr Harper’s recent claim that the disappearance and murder of hundreds of Aboriginal women should not be viewed as a “sociological phenomenon” is an important reminder of what rightwing ideology…
Two-thirds of Ontario PSWs excluded from wage adjustment
It was clear from the start that the much applauded increase for Ontario’s Personal Support Workers was not going to apply to all. Back in April the government noted that…
Our Essential Illness
http://beachsideblues.com/ Murray Dobbins’ analysis is never superficial. He looks for root causes. In his latest column, he notes that two television shows — House
A Checklist for Rational Thinking
There exists a Center for Applied Rationality (as opposed to unapplied rationality?) and they have set out to make the world more rational. Their approach is questionable, as it’s unclear…
Michael Chong, the MP from naϊveté.
No, Naϊveté is not an electoral district in Quebec. The Hon. Michael Chong is the Member of Parliament for the Ontario riding of Wellington-Halton Hills. What Mr. Chong has not…