“We the North” and the “Marketing of Blackness”
The Raptors are hot. Toronto’s professional basketball team sits atop the Eastern Conference and are arguably the NBA’s most exciting team to watch. But on-court swagger has been paired with…
Culture
Happy Talk
A recent study proved an old notion – the Pollyanna Hypothesis – that there is a “universal human tendency to ‘look on and talk about the bright side of life’”…
Weaponized Aryan Jesus?
The term “weaponized Jesus” comes from an article I read on politicsusa.com, from November 2013, titled “The Religious Right With Their Weaponized Jesus Are Not Christians.” It’s worth a read,…
Internet TV and Roku
I picked up a ROKU streaming stick this weekend at the local Staples store to get access to some internet TV. The box advertises 500+ channels, while the boxes for…
Art Has to Fight for Justice
Alberto Bruzzone, oil on canvas, 1976 • Located in Mar Del Plata (Buenos Aires) It was 30th May, deep autumn in Argentina. The streetlights had been turned on an hour…
Revised CPLUG Ukulele Song Book
I spent the past couple of weeks diligently working on updating and expanding our Collingwood Public Library Ukulele Group (CPLUG) songbook. I’m happy to announce it is completed – and…
Charlie Hebdo murders show some speakers are freer than others
Image from the Office of War Information The shocking murder of nine journalists and three others in a brazen, coordinated attack in the offices of French satirical publication Charlie Hebdo…
The Book List Game
In a recent story titled “Neil deGrasse Tyson Selects the Eight Books Every Intelligent Person on the Planet Should Read,” the eminent astrophysicist listed his top eight book titles –…
47 Ronin Reviewed
This week, after watching the 2013 film, 47 Ronin, starring Keanu Reeves, I had to wonder why Hollywood felt it necessary to take a powerful story, a great historical drama,…
Heart of Darkness
Heart of Darkness can be a difficult read. Not just for its brooding setting and the sense of morbid inevitability. Conrad’s semi-autobiographical 1899 novel is replete with racism and breezy…
Dialectics of Santa Claus by Karl Marx
Image from United States Library of Congress An undiscovered text by Karl Marx. titled, Dialectics of Santa Claus: Critique of Santa Claus is Coming to Town. Here is Marx’s analysis…
The Popular Front: An Alternative “Year in Review” of Pop Culture
Photo by TampAGS Most “Year in Review” lists of popular culture are pretty predictable. Such lists are jam-packed with consensus contenders for big industry awards such as the Oscars and…
Falling Skies: Aliens as Metaphor
We watched the last of Season Two of the Falling Skies series last night. After a bit of research this morning, I learned I have two more seasons to watch…
Misogyny at Dal: When we are sick of being forced down the middle road of apology and contrition
Photo by Anton Bielousov My mother was a Dentistry graduate at the University of Toronto in 1943. As I look at her class graduation photo, I count 44 men and…
A Few More Uke Arrangements
Lately, I’ve been redoing all the arrangements of songs I put together for the Collingwood Public Library Ukulele Group (CPLUG) this year, as well as arranging some new pieces for…
Ghomeshi Redux: Where do we go from here?
Photo by Damien D. Now that Jian Ghomeshi has been charged with five criminal offences, including sexual assault and choking, what can we learn from this case, and more importantly…
Gravity: A Review
While watching director Alfonso Cuarón’s film, Gravity, this weekend, I was struck by how powerful the mixed themes of isolation and survival can be. I was reminded not simply of…
Ferguson?
If there’s anything you can learn from Ferguson this morning, it’s that we need to check our race- and class-based social, political and economic entitlements. It’s the least we can…
Julius Caesar: Best of the Bard?
For my money, Julius Caesar is simply Billy Shakespeare’s best ever play. I mean, what’s not to like in it? It has some stonking great speeches in it – including…
Canada: The Eternal Rebuilding Project
Personal relationships enrich us, work makes us feel useful, and goals give us purpose via Lecture 1 – Belonging: The Paradox of Citizenship | Ideas with Paul Kennedy | CBC…