Going to be a long 4 years (for Conservative supporters)
You might have caught a while back that interim Conservative leader Rona Ambrose promised her party would use a “new tone” now that they were in opposition, implying the nasty…
Canadian Politics
Open Mandate Letters
The newly elected Government of Canada made its ministerial mandate letters available to the public last week. They are absolutely worth checking out both for their content and as a…
Pacific Trade Deal Will Test Trudeau’s Resolve
Photo by Day Donaldson Justin Trudeau has proven to be much more bold in his first couple of weeks than almost anyone imagined. Unlike Jean Chrétien and his 1993 election…
In Flanders Fields? It’s time to encourage another generation of school kids to read some better poems from the Great War
PHOTOS: In Flanders Fields? The reality of the Great war’s battlefields: squalor, incompetence, mechanized industrial death. Below: John McCrae, and a Great War poet still worth reading, Wilfred Owen. A…
If you win the wars at home, there’ll be no fighting anymore
Photo by Benoit Aubry But the hardest thing I'll ask you, if you will only try Is take your children by their hands and look into their eyes And there…
Succession planning: what do we do when the great Canadian newspapers die off?
PHOTOS: Never mind the world. Who will save Canadian democracy now? With apologies to Superman. Below: Joseph Howe in his prime, and with his ottoman; the author, holding forth while…
Proportional Representation in Canada
Another Canadian election has gone by where the majority government is formed by a party winning only 40% of the popular vote. This has political watchers and pundits increasingly vocal…
Message to the Wildrose Party: The NDP won and you’re going to need breakfast!
PHOTOS: The Wild Rose Breakfast Special. Just one of the many compensations of getting an early start on your day. Below: Infrastructure Minister and NDP House Leader Brian Mason, the…
So long, Suns? Frank Magazine says Postmedia will merge dailies in Edmonton, Calgary and Ottawa
PHOTOS: The Edmonton Journal Building in downtown Edmonton, home to both the Edmonton Journal and the Edmonton Sun. At least until March … Below: A sign of the (end) times?…
Rona Ambrose, disciplined Harper loyalist, to lead the Opposition
PHOTOS: A typical constituent of Interim Conservative Leader Rona Ambrose searches their Sturgeon River-Parkland riding northwest of Edmonton for a sign of his MP. Actual constituents of this Alberta MP…
A Story of Help and Transformation– Yonatan Shapir–VIA Cowichan Campus-November 6th 10:30AM-Room 140-Admission Free
On Friday November 6, at 10:30 a.m., Yonatan Shapira, a Jewish Israeli activist for peace and justice for Israelis and Palestinians, will speak in Theatre 140, the ground floor…
Brown shoes may not make it, but Justin Trudeau’s cabinet choices seem pretty sound
PHOTOS: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, members of his cabinet and ordinary Canadians walk toward the swearing-in ceremony yesterday morning at Government House in Ottawa. (Vancouver Observer photo.) Below: Mr. Trudeau’s…
Today’s NDP, Socialism, and the Party’s Legacy
Photo by Matt Jiggins Canada’s New Democratic Party (NDP) in recent years has been engaged in internal debates about the party’s legacy, path to victory, vision of society, and role…
Pierre Berton Instructs Us How To Roll A Joint
Now that Justin Trudeau is about to be sworn in as Canada’s new Prime Minister marijuana legalization is just around the corner. To all those God fearing law abiding Canadians…
Canada’s election: Voters defeat Harper, but elect another Trudeau
Photo by Renegade98 Canada’s federal election October 19 was effectively a plebiscite of voter opinion on the decade-long rule by the ultra-neoliberal Conservatives (Tories) led by Stephen Harper. With some…