Rising oil prices will end urban sprawl … or not?
A popular assumption about rising oil prices is that people will have to drive a lot less and use public transit a lot more. This, in turn, will lead to…
Bill Longstaff
Calgary’s RiverWalk gains international recognition
Two main ideas contend for how rivers should be treated as they flow through cities. One says they should be left as natural as possible, bordered by grass and trees…
Anti-austerity mood grows for better or worse
It seems only weeks ago that austerity opponents were crying in the wind. Their words were blowing away unheard. No more. The Greeks flatly rejected austerity in a recent election…
Are young revolutionaries bound to fail?
Demographer Richard Cincotta of the Stimson Center in Washington DC has compiled some intriguing facts about revolution and the age of populations. His analysis not only enables him to predict…
Egyptians still want democracy … and sharia
Since the Arab Spring of a year ago, support for democracy in Egypt has remained strong according to a recent Pew Research Center survey. Most Egyptians remain optimistic about the…
Can Canada not protect its workers from foreign predators?
That the new global economy is a corporate construction is not in doubt. It is arranged to benefit investors and employers, not employees. Canadian and American companies can freely enter…
Why poor Americans vote Republican
One of the mysteries of American politics is why so many of the poorer, government-dependent jurisdictions vote for the party that pushes for smaller government and reduced social programs. An…
Coming home: Khadr vs. Black
One Canadian and one former Canadian have wanted very much to come home to this country. Both are convicted felons—one, Omar Khadr, remains incarcerated at Gauntanamo, Cuba, the other, Conrad…
Would 42 months in prison make Harper a better Prime Minister?
I assure you that the title of this post is purely tongue-in-cheek. Heaven forbid I would want to see Stephen Harper behind bars. Nonetheless, another prominent conservative just spent 42…
Rupert Murdoch unfit for journalism
A British parliamentary panel has concluded that press lord Rupert Murdoch “is not a fit person to exercise the stewardship of a major international company.” They might equally have said…
Wildlife flourishes in human dead zones
We all know what the big problem with planet Earth is—people. Homo sapiens. The most destructive of species. Ever since we walked out of Africa 70,000 years ago, we have…
Co-operatives—the proven alternative to capitalism
In this, the International Year of Co-operatives, we cannot remind ourselves too often of the tried and true alternative to conventional capitalism. Co-operatives have for generations offered a more humane…
Albertans reject retreat
During her concession speech last night, Wildrose Party leader Danielle Smith stated that Albertans just needed more time to get to know her party. In fact, that was why Wild…
Dumbing down Canadians
It started, perhaps, with the Economic Council of Canada. The Council, a Crown Corporation whose role was to conduct a wide range of economic and policy research for the federal…
Will the Fraser Institute be audited?
Now that the federal government has allocated $8-million for the auditing of charitable groups ostensibly to ensure they stay within the Charities Act, one naturally wonders if this will include…
The Monroe Doctrine is dead
A new age has dawned in the Americas. The Monroe Doctrine, a policy established by the United States ostensibly to keep European imperialists out of the Western Hemisphere but which…
Albertans—more progressive than conservative
As Albertans face an election later this month and the Conservative Party is seriously challenged by an even more conservative party, the Wildrose Party, we might stop for a moment…
I know more about American political parties than 92 per cent of Americans
Don’t take my word for it. The Pew Research Center says so. All I did was take their quiz about the two major American political parties and answer all the…