China—Lying flat confronts consumerism … and Communism?
Young people in China are channeling the 60s and it worries their Communist overlords. They are rejecting consumerism, hard work and all that other middle class stuff. They are lying…
China
The China dilemma—global warming or human rights?
If anything scares China’s formidable president, Xi Jinping, it’s probably democracy. The idea of the Chinese people choosing their own president must be nightmarish to the new emperor. His current…
Biden-led U.S. to power global economy
According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Covid shrunk the global economy by 3.3 percent in 2020, the worst downturn since 1980. Almost 100 million people slipped into severe poverty.…
Do we have a prime minister or a mouse? Canada doesn’t need U.S. permission to call China and bring the Two Michaels home
It appears China has thrown Canada an unexpected lifeline, offering us a chance to redeem our relationship with the world’s No. 2 economy and save the Two Michaels. Is Justin…
Canada has only a few hours to play the only decent card it holds to free the Two Michaels – but that would take courage
News media reported yesterday China has announced the espionage trials of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor will go ahead swiftly this week and next leaving official Canada with only a…
Why did China’s government pluck the Two Michaels from among 300,000 Canadians in China?
Soon after Huawei Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou was arrested by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Vancouver two years ago at the behest of U.S. authorities, Chinese state security…
A New Wave of Hate: Anti-Asian Sentiment on the Rise
Share this article: The second wave of Covid-19 is here in Canada and many questions loom as to how the future of the pandemic will play out. One thing that…
China has a soft power shortage
Now would seem to be the moment for China’s star to shine. It has gained control of the coronavirus pandemic rapidly and effectively, and it is the only member of…
Mother Mushroom, blogging and freedom of speech
As I post pearls of wisdom on my blog, including righteous criticism about this country’s follies, I rarely stop to think how fortunate I am to be able to do…
Democracy embarrassed
As a committed democrat, I would dearly love to be able to convince doubters of democracy’s superiority by pointing to its leaders. And in the past that has often been…
We still need the U.S.
Reading The Guardian last week, two articles captured my attention. Set side by side were “A ‘tyrant-clown’ has destroyed my love affair with America” by Robert McCrum and “‘Chairman Xi’…
CHINA VS THE WEST? No, it is freedom vs empire – of any kind
“Delegates from American companies, including ADM, Cisco, ExxonMobil, FedEx, Warner Bros, Xcoal, General Motors, and PepsiCo, were told by Ning Jizhe, a vice-chairman of the commission, that China always welcomed…
Importing From China, Part Two: We Need A Green New Deal, Not An Orwellian Police State
What is the state of China and the West? Here is a brief synopsis and overview. This much, at least, should be perfectly clear: switching off fossil fuels – with…
The sun sets on Hong Kong
Once an enterprise Canadians went to war for, the British Empire is now in disgrace. And no wonder. It owns many sins. The Atlantic slave trade, the Kenyan gulag, the…
When Jason Kenney Told Off China and It Backfired
Covid-19 upended everything. No one knows whether the world will snap back to “normal” like an elastic band or be gone forever. Economists, futurists, and historians are all over the…
Will the "Red Menace" Work in the 21st Century?
During the Cold War, conservative politicians could always be relied on to trot out the “red menace,” accusing opponents of being soft on communism. It was usually good for a…
Coronavirus & Common Sense
“We were once distressed by crimes: now, by laws”, wrote Tacitus. How relevant is that today? Extremely so; but the sheep are trained not to think; and see, therefore, only…
The Decline, Decay, Death and Rebirth of Democracy and Freedom
The two greatest threats to democracy and freedom in the West, or to peace, justice, equality, or even a viable future for humanity, are without question, the currently reigning…
Conspiracy Theory Revisited
We should remember that the cult of authority, the cult of obedience, and the cult of conformity, are profoundly anti-intellectual, anti-science, anti-empirical, and anti-democratic, as well as extremely dangerous. And…