Musical interlude
Spiritbox – Constance
2021
Relief
I can now reveal the big news: my mom has gotten her first shot of the Pfizer vaccine at Michael Garron hospital! She, and we, are pretty happy. Heading back…
Welcome to the two per cent.
Checking the score cards on vaccinations the other day, I found I am in the top two per cent of Ontario residents. It is embarrassing. Ontario only has about four…
Happy Coronaversary!
Happy Coronaversary, everyone! Yes, it has been one full year since the Coronavirus – eventually renamed the much catchier COVID-19 – first landed in Alberta. The Edmonton Sun welcomed our…
On breaking solidarity
After nearly a year of a declared pandemic (and several months of inaction before that), far too little has changed in Saskatchewan’s political discussion of our response to COVID-19. In…
The NDP must be a party of workers, not small business
The NDP must be a party of workers, but that doesn’t mean showing undying reverence to the interests of Canada’s business owning class. Image by Canadian Dimension. This piece is…
Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week. – Kenyon Wallace reports on new modelling showing a real risk of yet another wave of COVID spread in Ontario – even as widespread…
Musings on Making Pizza
I have to admit that I like pizza a lot. Well, I guess most of us do. I like cheese, and I liked cooked cheese even more, and I like…
Neanderthal Thinking
Wearing a mask during the pandemic is not an impossible burden. Paul Krugman writes: We’ve made a lot of progress against the pandemic over the past couple of months. But…
Talking Erin O’Toole’s Woes as Conservative Leader & Jagmeet Singh’s Rise as NDP Leader with Rob Snow
Back on Wednesday I joined Rob Snow on CityNews Ottawa radio’s “The Rob Snow Show” along with Kate Harrison for the “Political Fix” panel. We talked the about the current…
Patsy Cline: She holds you in her heart when she sings
On March 5, 1963, 30-year-old singer Patsy Cline was killed in a plane crash – one of the first musical losses I can remember, though far from the last. Here…
Amid pandemic chaos, CFNU President Linda Silas ends bid to lead Canadian Labour Congress
Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions President Linda Silas, an engaging and articulate public voice for a national drug insurance plan, enhanced public health care, and the rights of all working…
What’s Next?
Humans crave certainty. We want reliable. We want predictable. We pay a premium for that, if we can afford it, and it’s going to become increasingly costly. Like it or…
The Cancer Diaries, Part 26
Cancer changes everything — and nothing at all. Rabbi Skillman That’s a profound comment, coming from a TV character. The “rabbi” in question is a fictional patient in hospital, played…
NEW RELEASE: Remembering the Armed Struggle: My Time with the Red Army Faction
Available for pre-order. Shipping in late March. Margrit Schiller was an early member of the Red Army Faction, the West German urban guerrilla group. In 1971 she was captured and…
Biden and Trudeau continue Trump-era aggression against Cuba
Recently, the Biden administration signaled that it will continue Trump’s aggressive approach to Cuba, and Canada seems to be going along for the ride. Photo by Enrico Strocchi/Flickr. Progressives have…
Act Now: Second Group of Detainees on Hunger Strike at the Laval Migrant Prison!
From Solidarity Across Borders. #FreeThemAll #StatusForAll #HungerStrikeLaval On Monday, March 1, 2021, a second group of detainees launched an indefinite hunger strike to demand their immediate release from the Laval…
Declaration of the Inmates on Hunger Strike at the Laval Detention Centre
From the Solidarity Across Borders. Seven inmates of the Laval migrant prison are continuing the hunger strike they began on March 1, 2021. The strikers have launched a declaration to…
Prison Covid Newsletter (vol 2, no 4), March 2021
The Prison Covid-19 Information Project provides COVID-19 news and resources for prisoners and their families and loved ones on the outside. Their latest newsletter is here. They have also added…
Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading. – Laura Spinney writes about the debate as to whether to eliminate COVID-19 or control its continued spread. And Carl Zimmer reports on…