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…
politics
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…
Rafe: Trudeau will have hell to pay in BC if he approves Kinder Morgan
Recent Vancouver rally against Kinder Morgan (Photo: David Suzuki Foundation/Facebook) None should be in the slightest surprised at the anti-British Columbia stance of Justin Trudeau and the Liberals. As Talleyrand…
Clark’s big loss to teachers is an opening for NDP’s Horgan…at last
BCNDP Leader John Horgan (Flickr/BC NDP) and Premier Christy Clark (Flickr/Province of BC) You have to feel sorry for John Horgan, the BC NDP leader. He has had a hell…
Celebrating Resiliency
The Rockefeller Foundation has produced a new documentary celebrating areas humans live in that are designed to be resilient to climate change. By building our cities and countries around the…
Paved Paradise Because Parking Was Already There
July 5th, 2016, after years of a mud pit following the rip-out of the previous playground: Now it looks like this again: Reasoning given: A project of this scale requires…
responding to those who voted for Trump
I’ve been thinking a lot about the questions of what it means to vote for Trump and who the Trump supporters are. I’ve seen lots of posts about how Trump…
The Trump Election #nlpoli
All you will ever need in order to understand the recent American presidential election is contained in this little chart. It appeared within about 24 hours of the polls closing…
Charles Taylor on the Crises of Democracy
Charles Taylor gave a lecture on the “Crises of Democracy” two years ago, as part of a “Civic Freedom in an Age of Diversity” program where he explores the very…
Too Bold A Halloween Costume
The University of Regina has quite a few exchange students. They pay more than a bit to study here in Canada too. One picked a stereotype to make fun of…