Trudeau’s future—past as prologue?
According to a recent Angus Reid study Prime Minister Trudeau’s approval rating while low is still better than most of his recent predecessors. It currently stands at 40 percent, not…
Bill Longstaff
For Alberta, sovereignty; for Calgary and Edmonton, supplication
One might think that Alberta’s provincial government would have the greatest respect for its subordinate level of governing—the municipalities. One might expect that to be especially true for the two…
Global warming—news old and new
I got up this morning in semi-darkness even though the sun had risen at 5:45 a.m. and the forecast was for sunny and warm. I looked out my window and…
Generative AI—threat or opportunity?
“No contract! No content!” and “Here’s a pitch: Pay us, Bitch!” Thus the Hollywood members of the Writers Guild of America colourfully voice their views during their strike against the…
Electoral reform—to be or not to be?
Once again our hopes rise. Or do they? At their recent national policy convention the Liberals voted to back a citizens’ assembly on electoral reform. Specifically, the convention resolved that…
Are we on a path to sustainability?
Humanity’s biggest challenge is sustainability. How does our avaricious species live within the natural constraints of the planet? Certain global trends suggest we may inadvertently be answering that question. Superficially…
Climate change—we make progress
Each spring, Canada submits The National Inventory Report to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The report holds Canada accountable to targets it is committed to under the…
Republican trans phobia
People generally like to keep things simple. Black and white, right and wrong, men and women. But of course things generally aren’t all that simple. More often than not there…
Election manna: Calgary gets a new arena
The on-again, off-again project for a new arena in Calgary is on again. At twice the cost. Earlier this week The City of Calgary, the Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation…
Off with his head!
Canadians, it seems, are not particularly enamoured of Charles Philip Arthur George Windsor. According to an Angus Reid survey, 60 percent of us do not want Charles III as head…
The secret is equity, not wealth
No society has ever created wealth like the United States. And no other society does today. Its dynamic capitalism with freer markets and smaller welfare states than other industrial nations…
Americans aren’t so American anymore
A recent survey funded by The Wall Street Journal showed some dramatic changes in the attitudes of our neighbours to the south. For example, two of Americans’ most cherished institutions,…
Religion still making mischief
In a rapidly changing world, some things do remain the same. One such thing is religion’s capacity for mischief. Examples are legion. The mullahs of Iran, who as religious leaders…
How Americans came to love pot
Reading a Pew Research Center study about Americans and marijuana, I was surprised how rapidly support for legalization rose, and to what heights. From 16 percent support in 1989 edging…
Murdoch/Fox called to account
Rupert Murdoch is a man whose lack of ethics should preclude him from being within shouting distance of journalism. Yet he is the world’s most powerful media mogul. He owns…
Two Albertas … or three?
Alberta has long been a politically divided province. The north inclines progressive, the south conservative. Edmonton currently only has one UCP MLA out of 20, and Calgary only three NDP…
Two Albertas … or three?
Alberta has long been a politically divided province. The north inclines progressive, the south conservative. Edmonton currently only has one UCP MLA out of 20, and Calgary only three NDP…
More good news from down south
Starting with the election of Joe Biden in November 2020, U.S. election results have been looking rather good. The midterms in 2022 were predicted to produce the usual midterm result—a…
More good news from down south
Starting with the election of Joe Biden in November 2020, U.S. election results have been looking rather good. The midterms in 2022 were predicted to produce the usual midterm result—a…
A healthy competition
Our federal government brought down its 2023 budget last week and it was very green. Dealing with climate change was front and centre. There were other good things, such as…