Oil spills, oil schmills
So the Cons have announced they’re raising the penalty for offshore oil spills – from $161 million to $2 billion ($400 million for the actual offence, the rest for environmental…
BlastFurnace
Arkansas sees the light; who next?
Four states in the South (via the courts) have now recognized gay marriage: Virginia, Texas, Oklahoma … and now Arkansas. The latter three are actually quite conservative, which is one…
Federalism wins with Senate decision
When Stephen Harper tried to go about his ideas about Senate reform, his belief was that one could have Senate elections and fixed terms without the consent of the provinces.…
With the new Québec government, the provinces should push back
Monday’s landslide win by Phillipe Couillard and his Québec Liberal Party is a great sign that the idea of sovereignty may have been set aside for a long time. But…
RIP Spousal privilege
One of the oldest principles in law is the spousal privilege. Considered even more sacred than the privilege between a lawyer and client, physician and patient, or cleric and penitent,…
What in the world is Eve Adams?
When I was a kid, I was known for throwing hissy fits on just about anything that didn’t go my way. Now a lot of us adults probably were like…
Another rebuke against PMS
0 and 4 so far for Stephen Harper. First, he lost the InSite decision, which now allows safe injection sites. Then he lost the prostitution decision, which all but legalizes…
Two steps forward in America, one step back in Uganda
Another good (and bad) week for common decency. 1) Freedom of religion. That’s the excuse a lot of business owners used well into the 1970s when they refused service to…
Finally, the Confederacy gets on board — well, one state does
In a decision that surprised me, a Southern federal judge overturned Virginia’s constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. Judge Arenda L. Wright Allen also ruled that the state also had to…
Future posting
I haven’t gone away, I’m still very much here. Sometime in the next few days, I’ll be making a very personal diary entry. But it’s something I’ve wanted to say…
Doing right by sex trade workers
Due to multiple technical issues I haven’t been able until now to comment on the Supreme Court’s decision in Attorney General of Canada v. Bedford on December 20th but all…
Is that all the post office could come up with?
Since the post office department (literally part of the government) became the Canada Post Corporation in 1982, its mandate has been to deliver the mail but to do so on…
Should Worker’s Compensation be a shared responsibility?
We all know the reason for workers’ compensation. We give up the right to sue a company for injuries that happen at the workplace (although it is possible to sue…
"I’ve got more than enough to eat at home," Ford says
You couldn’t get the best scriptwriters in Hollywood or Broadway to come up with this line. Rob Ford, responding this morning to numerous allegations that he hired a call girl…
Take a time out already, Rob!
So Rob Ford has actually admitted it. He’s bought illegal drugs during the last two years. Notwithstanding that concession, 30 of 44 councillors on Toronto City Council voted to ask…
As always, it’s the coverup (if that’s what it is)
At this point, I really don’t give a damn if Toronto Mayor Rob Ford did drugs. If he did it certainly hasn’t impaired his performance as a politician. What I…
See, we told you so (Senate reform edition) — and what I’d like to see
Finally someone has told the Prime Minister he can stuff it on his brand of changes to the Senate of Canada. It comes courtesy of the Québec Court of Appeal…
Senate or Star Chamber?
Barring a last minute change of minds, it looks like Senators Brazeau, Duffy and Wallin will be effectively impeached from the Senate. I think there are a lot of questions…
Where’s the draft text?
Today, Harper and EU President Jose Manuel Barroso initialled a trade and labour agreement between Canada and the world’s most powerful trading bloc. Like I said in my last post,…
Harper picks CETA over H of C
I couldn’t believe it when I heard it on the radio this morning. On the first day of the debate regarding the Reply to the Speech from the Throne, Stephen…