Marriage one man/one woman? Not in the Bible
Although gay marriage seems to have settled into acceptance in this country, it still meets with virulent opposition elsewhere, including in the United States. Certain of the candidates for the…
Bill Longstaff
Americans increasingly support interracial marriage
At a time when Americans agonize over the shooting of Trayvan Martin in Florida, and racial tensions simmer, a Pew Research Center survey reveals at least one encouraging development. According…
My two cents on Calgary’s Peace Bridge
It’s finally done. Over budget and overdue, but it’s done. One of the most controversial pieces of infrastructure in Calgary’s history, the Peace Bridge, a pedestrian walkway over the Bow…
Co-op beats Spanish recession
As one of the PIGS, the four (or six) European countries whose dysfunctional economies are much in the news these days, Spain is perhaps not the place you would expect…
Alberta universities make illegal donations to Conservatives
Oh my, even the universities are doing it. According to the CBC, a number of Alberta’s post-secondary institutions, including Athabasca University and the University of Lethbridge, have been donating to…
Americans primed for Iran attack
According to recent surveys, Americans are in a dovish mood on Syria and Afghanistan, but that mood is tempered by a hawkish attitude toward Iran. Two-thirds say the United States…
The new capitalism—reward without risk
Royal Dutch Shell chief executive Peter Voser earned more than $15-million in pay and bonuses in 2011, more than double his remuneration for 2010. Last year also saw Shell increase…
The Alberta Advantage—for men only?
It seems the famous Alberta Advantage doesn’t apply to women. Alberta lags all other provinces except Newfoundland and Labrador in women’s wage parity with men. According to a report issued…
Peak oil? How about peak everything?
We are all familiar with the concept of peak oil. Oil is a non-renewable resource therefore at some point global production will reach its maximum capacity and then decline, creating…
Happy birthday, Douglas Adams
Today is Douglas Adams’ 60th birthday. Or it would be if he hadn’t been thoughtless enough to die in May of 2001, thereby depriving us of yet more of his…
Iran under siege … for 2,500 years
David Cameron hoisted himself onto the world stage once again, as he is wont to do, and declared Iran an international threat. This is rich coming from a British PM.…
Women win one, lose one … and so it goes
The good news is that the European Union is considering mandatory quotas to get more women on corporate boards. They have tried the voluntary approach and, as is so often…
Conservative war on truth escalates
The Conservative government made another assault on the gathering of facts with its announcement that it is closing the Polar Environment Atmospheric Research Lab (PEARL) in Canada’s High Arctic. Its…
Baroness Tonge, Israel and the pain of political correctness
Of all the various catalysts of political correctness, perhaps Israel is the most powerful. Anyone who seriously criticizes Israel or seriously supports the Palestinians is seriously in danger of being…
Americans prefer small government … or do they?
It is a practically a cliche that Americans prefer small government. A recent survey by the Pew Research Center would seem to confirm this. When asked if government regulation did…
Are political donations and Alberta’s persistent condo problems related?
Justice should not only be done, but should manifestly and undoubtedly be seen to be done. — Lord Hewart, Seventh Lord Chief Justice of England The same might be said…
How Wall Street buys Washington
Oh, those fickle Wall Street bankers. In 2008, Barack Obama was their man for president. They lavished $71-million on the Democratic candidate, $10-million more than on his Republican rival. Goldman…
Al Jazeera’s Bahrain doc wins another award
For a definitive record of the 2011 protests against the kleptocratic Al Khalifa family, rulers of Bahrain, one cannot do better than the Al Jazeera documentary “Bahrain: Shouting in the…