Laurier LaPierre Dead at 83
Quite an obituary – Canadian broadcasting pioneer, gay rights activist, Canada’s first openly gay Senator, academic and educator – Laurier LaPierre has died at age 83.
The Mound of Sound
Tofino’s Humboldt Squid Mystery Solved?
It was mid-August, 2009 that hundreds of Humboldt squid, the terror of the Sea of Cortez, suddenly washed up on beaches near Tofino on the west coast of Vancouver Island.…
Britain’s Norman Legacy – One Thousand Years of Inequality
I first became aware of the Norman impact on Britain post-1066 when I learned of its effects on the English language. Normans, effectively Vikings or Norse from France, settled in…
Europe’s CCS Contest Falters – No Winner Emerges
The European Union is actively encouraging development of CCS or carbon capture and sequestration technologies. The goal is to find a way to strip CO2 emissions from energy production, especially…
An Issue Tailor-Made for a Second Term President
Barack Obama can’t lose on gun control. The Newtown massacre has coalesced support for a crackdown on America’s free-for-all gun trade. Even the NRA is now lurking in the shadows,…
Former Oldest Canadian Dies, New Title Holder Awaits Same Fate
As a newspaper reader it’s grating when, every three or four months, there’s an article published with a photo announcing the oldest Canadian has died. You look at the photo,…
Harper – Damned If He Does, Damned If He Doesn’t.
Harper has a choice. He can transform Athabasca into a state-controlled, state-run fossil fuel resource or he can kiss goodbye to his twisted dream of fossil fuel superpowerdom. The Athabasca…
What Would Diefenbaker Make of Steve Harper?
I was just writing a Conservative friend about the Nexen/Athabasca fiasco when a terrible thought crossed my mind. I imagined what it would be like if “The Chief” John Diefenbaker…
Time to Face the Music – Only the Communists Can Keep Athabasca Afloat
Canada’s Tar Sands heavy-crude oil is uneconomical. The proof is that there’s not enough investment money coming in to keep the Athabasca house of cards from collapsing. Joe Oliver says…
The F-35, Should Canada Sit This One Out?
Maybe Canada should just give the F-35 a pass and wait for something a lot better. Like the Aussies and US Navy we could opt for a proven, capable, reliable,…
They’re Back For More
Knock, knock, knock. It’s the Chinese again and they’re back for more Canadian energy resources, this time shale gas. Oh I know it’s barely a week since Harper supposedly promised…
Harper’s Cabinet Barely Literate
Just kidding. I’m sure they can all read and write at some level but there’s an interesting piece in The Tyee revealing how many Harper ministers have no post-secondary education…
NDP Never Passes Up a Chance to Show How Small-Minded It Can Be
Bank of Canada governor, Mark Carney, and Liberal finance critic, Scott Brison, are personal friends. Last summer Carney took a week of vacation time that he and his family spent…
Canadian Pols "Naive" on China
Canadian pols like Steve Harper and BC’s unelected, unelectable and outgoing premier, Christy Clark, are “naive” in their dealings with China. That assessment comes from a University of California economics…
Vancouver Region Bracing for Storm Surge, King Tides and Flooding.
The next couple of days pose a serious flooding threat to the Lower Mainland, particularly Vancouver’s low-lying suburbs. Sunday and Monday are expected to see the strongest of the seasonal…
Freedom of the Press, Freedom From the Press
Western mass media have long been deservedly criticized for having an “if it bleeds, it leads” attitude to news. At one point sensationalism was seen as the sizzle that sold…
What If The Peasants All Start Talking Like This?
In Washington the Social Security narrative has been captured by the political classes and stood directly on its head, the better to tear it to shreds. So powerfully has this…
Obama’s Fried Fish
Anxious folks in Washington and Colorado may have gotten an early Christmas gift from their president. When it comes to simple possession and recreational use of marijuana in their states,…
Why No Competition?
Lockheed Martin has a number of F-35s built and flying. Surely it’s got more than enough to get a few up to the Cold Lake air base to strut their…
Why Let the Air Force Decide What We Want?
It’s up to Parliament to tell the Air Force what Canada needs from the RCAF, not the other way around. What the Air Force wants and what the country needs…