Amnesty International’s Guide to Safe Messaging
Thanks to the bravery of whistleblowers we know that the Five Eyes are monitoring all internet chatter regardless of who’s talking. This is a big concern for people who care…
politics
IT Problem At Saskatchewan Government
What’s going on? Trying to communicate with #skpoli gov't?Don't bother. E-mail server, website all still down. — Murray Mandryk (@MMandryk) December 7, 2016 server down all day. No gov't news…
Rafe: Trudeau, Notley’s defence of Kinder Morgan doesn’t wash for BC
Justin Trudeau is greeted in Alberta by Rachel Notley (Premier of Alberta/Flickr CC licence) I listened to Alberta Premier Rachel Notley on CBC with Rick Cluff this week and must…
December 6th – day of mourning for victims of men’s violence against women.
Today is December 6th. In Canada we remember the women killed this year in a massacre at École Polytechnique. Women were killed because they were women seeking training and jobs…
December 6th: Constant progress, constant retreat
We take consolation in disasters from the idea that society might learn something and that the horror might never recur. The war to end all wars, the massacre to end…
Standing Rock Sioux Achieve a Victory
This is proof that direct protest action works. The US Army Corps of Engineers has decided to not grant permission to allow the Dakota Access pipeline to be built as…
Yes, Change is Hard and Requires Math, That is Why We Elected You
So it seems that the response about the electoral reform committee (EMME) process is that there are lots of committed, organized, focused, passionate people who want to make this country…
Rafe Mair to Justin Trudeau: BC is not yours to give away
Justin Trudeau speaks at the Paris climate talks – flanked by Canadian premiers (Province of BC/Flickr) “They hang the man, and flog the woman, That steals the goose from off…
47 Developing Countries Leapfrogging to Renewables
At the tail end of the Marrakech UN conference on the climate 47 countries formed the Climate Vulnerable Forum to share the one goal: getting to 100% renewable energy as…
Pitting “identity politics” against class struggle is backwards, and the path to self-defeat
I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that one of the first things America’s political left would do during the 2016 election post-mortem is to attack minority groups like trans* people,…
Uncomfortable Dinner
Canada’s federal Minister of Health has just slapped Saskatchewan’s hands for offering pay-to-use MRIs, prompting the Saskatchewan Minister of Health to thumb his nose at the Feds, in an act…
I used to like him; not so much now…
Back in the ’70s when he ran for mayor and we both lived in Toronto, I voted for John Sewell. And when he won, I was a big supporter of…
THE PROBLEMS OF CARDING: Excising the Discriminatory Police Street Check Process
Over at Academia.edu, I have posted an updated public policy analysis of the police practice of carding, also known as “street checks” that I did as part of my Master’s…
Don’t Throw Away Our Shot
For the first time, we find ourselves not as a reflection of another power. Our politics is not a derivation of Westminster or Washington anymore. Our politics is specific to…
Water as a Human Right
In a recent article in my local paper, Peter Shawn Taylor says that anyone who wants to stop Nestle from draining aquifers doesn’t understand economics and is hostile to capitalism.…
Elections – Why Bother, They’re Awful ( #Pickering #pickpoli )
There are a lot of people out applauding Pickering City Council's decision to appoint rather than hold a by-election to fill the vacant Ward 3 council seat because - as…
Elections – Why Bother, They’re Awful ( #Pickering #pickpoli )
There are a lot of people out applauding Pickering City Council’s decision to appoint rather than hold a by-election to fill the vacant Ward 3 council seat because – as…
Elections – Why Bother, They’re Awful ( #Pickering #pickpoli )
There are a lot of people out applauding Pickering City Council’s decision to appoint rather than hold a by-election to fill the vacant Ward 3 council seat because – as…
Predictions That Aren’t Fun
“Asia ramping up coal use. US returning to coal. Lets focus on tech like CCS not tax harming econ w/o real GHG impact” – Premier Wall This tweet from the…
Canada to Phase Out Coal Power Plants
The Canadian government has decided to end the use of coal for electricity by the year 2030. To make up the lost production the provinces which still use coal will…