Ozone Layer is Recovering
Many years ago a bunch of countries decided to take action to stop damaging the ozone layer in the hopes that it will eventually recover. It’s great to see that…
politics
There Are Homeless People in Saskatchewan?
How is this even possible? How could a Minister of the province of Saskatchewan not realize there are homeless people, and others struggling to pay rent right here in Regina?…
Our Loss, Not His
The problem when you commit to “politics in full sentences” is you find out how many people don’t read. David Soknacki’s campaign was best known for well thought out, detailed…
The Country That Does The Most Good
Many countries claim they are making the world a better/safer place, but how which ones are actually making the world better? Simon Anholt asked himself the same question and came…
Ragging the puck #nlpoli
The Conservatives will have a new leader this weekend. Tom Marshall will resign as Premier not long after and the new guy will take over. Terry French announced last week…
Tell your city council that you care about the homeless.
I saw this tweet today while watching my city council meeting being live-tweeted by various reporters: There’s something horribly sad about it. I have no doubt it is true. There…
Charlie’s War
Saw “Charlie Wilson’s War” which explains the background behind the Soviet’s failure in Afghanistan, and paved the way for the Taliban to later take over. Today I saw “Cars 2″…
The Road to Employment
Exaggeration has always been part of story telling, particularly of days long past. My father would grumble of ‘kids these days’ not knowing real difficulty if it bit them in…
Harper’s politics of cynicism….
… and an empty shelf in the pantry where “ethics” used to be… Wandering around the Interweb, I found this cutting piece that brilliantly sums up the CPC modus operandi…
Coffee with Cicero
Can you imagine what it would be like today to be able to meet the Roman philosopher, Cicero, for coffee and spend an hour chatting? Or meeting up at a…
Rob Ford’s Political Body
Toronto’s Rob Ford lives a political life. Both his bare existence and his public personae have taken on a politicization since he entered municipal governance. Plainly said, his weight and…
Common Sense
When men yield up the exclusive privilege of thinking, the last shadow of liberty quits the horizon. Thomas Paine, 18th century political activist and political philosopher, wrote that line. It…
Chomsky’s Forward to Albert’s Realizing Hope: Life Beyond Capitalism
In full: (The book is here.) “Throughout much of the world there is growing resistance to the severe harm that has resulted from the neoliberal policies of the past generation.…
Green initiatives for next term
Collingwood should be in the forefront for green initiatives in Ontario, not lagging behind. There’s no reason we should not be leaders in exploring new ways to reduce greenhouse gases,…
Taoist Lessons for Politicians
Those who look down upon this world, will surely take hold and try to change things. So begins verse 29 of the 4th century BCE Chinese classic (Jonathan Star translation*),…
Piketty’s Capital in the Twenty-First Century
I feel like I don’t have to read this one with all the press it’s getting. Maybe next summer. This is the gist I’ve gotten so far: Michael Rozworski wrote…
On Ethos – a 2011 Documentary
“Our ethos is all that we currently hold to be true. It is what we act upon. It governs our manners, our business and our politics.” – Howard Zinn Directed…
Machiavelli and Xenophon
Another piece posted on The Municipal Machiavelli this week; this time a short comment about Machiavelli and Xenophon, the ancient Greek writer who Niccolo referred to in The Prince and…
Progressively Worse
Toronto seemed gripped in a mix of terror and disbelief yesterday. Rumours Wednesday night were a new poll would show Ford in the lead. Yesterday the poll while having Tory…
How to Run a Country
I’ve posted a review of Philip Freeman’s book, How to Run a Country on the Municipal Machiavelli site, here: ianchadwick.com/machiavelli/how-to-run-a-country/ Freeman’s work is a short (132 pages in a small…