Paul Krugman, Nobel laureate for economics, has been trying to convince policy makers everywhere that austerity is bad for economies. In his column in The New York Times today he…
This morning, underneath a banner story in Le Devoir about continuing conflict between student groups and the Quebec government over tuition fee hikes, I was encouraged to read a report…
A friend sent me this link, and I’m charmed by the idea of so many people on one side of the word singing a work written by someone from a…
Okay, the Harperites are going to close prisons because their crime-fighting measures (which are just taking effect) have made the country safer, or so they say. Nowhere do they mention…
Having spent more time than I care to say marching in demonstrations that most frequently brought together only small groups, I’ve been very impressed by the crowds that have been…
Several times over the last decade we’ve been in the middle of preparing to go to France for a while. I’d love to be doing that right now, but there…
Parking on our street is a topic of hot discussion at the moment. I won’t go into the details–too boring for those of you who don’t live here–but suffice to…
Yes, it was a hot month. I don’t remember ever wearing sandals in Montreal in March, but I did. And despite the fact that temperatures dropped after the incredible week…
Consultation is extremely important in planning our future: witness the way that the Harperites have just undermined environmental reviews by changing the rules. But one thing I didn’t expect to…
Joyce Carol Oates is the grand winnter of this year’s Blue Met prize for a lifetime of literary creation. The Blue Met festival is gearing up at the moment, with…
This is a story that I haven’t seen in the English-language press: researchers at the University of Sherbrooke report that for every $100 Quebec has invested in inexpensive childcare, it…
Google informs us today that it’s the 100th anniversary of photographer Robert Doisneau. His emblematic photos of France, particularly of Paris, have been favourites of mine. Not that I’d ever…
This was book group week, and an engagaing tale by Quebec writer Denis Thériault was the subject in the original French (Kirkland library) and in English translation (Atwater Library. Le…
We’re almost to the point when the trees will leaf out, two weeks or more ahead of usual. The importance of trees has been unlined this week in two stories…
What a waste of time, all this stuff about the 10th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. Is it because it seems so gratuitous? Three years later another big…
Countering the bad news: Introducing Tom Mulcair in English and in French
Frank Bruni has an intersting appreciation of Craig Claiborne, his legacy and his life today. Claiborne was one of the big three inmid-20h century American cooking, the others being James…
Mrs. Ikvilds’ eggs are the best. I couldn’t believe how lovely the mottled red colour was. She says she sometimes puts celery leaves on hers, so the dye doesn’t enter…
