Referenda have stature not status.
A reader took a few minutes yesterday to remind Babel-on-the-Bay that referenda are not legally binding on governments in Canada. And neither, for that matter, are opinion polls. But the…
Federal Politics
Electoral reform help is happening.
You have no idea how good it felt to see someone else carry the can for first-past-the-post voting the other day. It was a professor from Toronto’s Ryerson University and…
Proportional politics for paranoids.
There are people who believe that first-past-the-post (FPTP) voting does not work for them. And they really do seem paranoid about it. Since paranoia can be a serious mental condition,…
Trudeau takes strike one on Senate solution.
He has to admit he was warned. The only people cheering the current dumb idea are the sycophants around him. Prime Minister Trudeau cannot use elitism to choose elites. Canadian…
New Democrats search for substance.
They have tried it provincially in Ontario and then they did it again federally. It does not work. Our New Democratic Party cannot change its spots just at election time.…
Surely the media can do better!
We know the news media are desperate to find something to complain about with our new prime minister. They are just missing by a mile with their silly ‘nanny-gate’ huffing…
Can you recant an oath you haven’t given?
This does not sound fair. This is concerning a guy who recanted his oath to the queen after becoming a Canadian citizen. What some people might suggest is that he…
The death of the news.
On February 2, 2011, a brief speech was posted in this space instead of our usual commentary. It was a speech to the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC). It…
They want the show and substance too.
“My candle burns at both ends; it will not last the night; but ah, my foes, and oh, my friends – it gives a lovely light!” Edna St. Vincent Millay…
A tale of two finance ministers.
It was the best of times–for the provincial government. It was the worst of times–for the federal government. A blogger ahead of his time from the 19th Century, Charles Dickens…
Pay yourself first.
It is a rule that the rich have to follow. They are taught that you always pay yourself first. It is how they stay rich. Take the situation of Chief…
“Justin, Justin, Where have you been?”
“I’ve been to London to see the Queen.” And that was it. Our fealty assured, Prime Minister Trudeau went on to Downing Street to meet the guy who really runs…
No apology was necessary.
Immigration Minister John McCallum sounded a bit testy with the news media the other day. They had probably forced him to give the same answer to the same question more…
Would they also kill the first-born?
It seems many liberals were outraged when somebody suggested that we only accept Syrian women with children as refugees. Now we find out that fathers are included. Maybe we should…
Can the provinces keep the money?
It seems that the point has been made about climate change: Industry can destroy the environment if they pay a tax on it. And that is why the provinces are…
Is the media the measure?
Commentator Chantal Hébert worries that Justin Trudeau lacks the gravitas of former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien. Thomas Walkom fears Trudeau is out of touch with the world leaders who have…
Don’t have a cow DiManno.
Toronto Star writer Rosie DiManno is the reason better publications have the best editors. And the reason many people do not waste their time on her stuff is that the…
Canada’s new PM is entitled to a victory lap.
When the victor in a gruelling race gets up from the finish line and gamely trots around the track one more time, nobody begrudges them their victory lap. It is…
Marc Garneau blots his copy book.
Why is it the people you like who can really screw things up? And what could be a safer job for MP Marc Garneau than Minister of Transport? You would…