I'm still alive but I'm over here ... Oreo Cookie Blues .... see ya... [Read More]

January 2009: The Con government in Ottawa decrees that not a dime of federal stimulus funding will flow if provinces and municipalities don't put matching funding on the table:Nearly $12-billion federal dollars will be made available for “shovel-ready” public works projects across Canada that... [Read More]

Since Kory Teneycke took over, Sun Media has become a laughingstock for turning itself into nothing more than a subsidiary of the Harper Conservatives.Since Kory Teneycke took over, Sun Media has chosen to poll leadership traits purely as a two-way contest between Stephen Harper and Michael... [Read More]

- There's some moderately good news on the climate change front, as key states and provinces within the Western Climate Initiative are planning to move forward with a cap-and-trade system. I'll be somewhat skeptical until the system actually gets put in place - but better to have Ontario, Quebec,... [Read More]

Might the Cons be hoping for their gutting of the census to simply fade into the background as an issue? If so, they may want to read...Haroon Siddiqui:Instead of Munir Sheikh resigning as head of Statistics Canada, Tony Clement should have quit the cabinet. It was his dishonest suggestion — that... [Read More]

The Harper Government of Vandals - now confirmed by Wikipedia!... [Read More]

The Libs have received plenty of due attention for their nicely snarky take on the census. But it's the NDP that's both tying the census into issues that affect voters directly, and making it easy for Canadians to send a message for the world to see. And if the effect on Stephen Harper's Twitter... [Read More]

A common, and at times quite legitimate, argument brought up by those dedicated to defending Israeli policy is one of fairness and consistency. Why is Israel singled out so often by so many people for so much criticism when there are so many states around the world that commit far more serious... [Read More]

Matthew Yglesias notes that driving a car is very likely to kill your child. Yes, you--you in the back, dangling your remote starter, waiting for the lecture to be over. This is actually a really important point: owning a car is basically the leading cause of death for children.Don't believe me? ... [Read More]

Niall Ferguson has an op-ed in The Australian musing on the possibility that the U.S., due to its difficult fiscal position, might be on the verge of a rapid, cascading decline in global influence similar to that of late Bourbon France or the 1950s British Empire. First, and this may be a minor... [Read More]

"Constructing a nuclear reactor in Saskatchewan could triple consumers' power bills and would not decrease greenhouse-gas emissions, said a report released Tuesday."It is an expensive option for Saskatchewan to pursue. It's not cost-effective," said Heath Packman, a former Saskatchewan government... [Read More]

Not surprisingly, Jane Taber can't avoid forcing "he said, she said"-style balance into a post which otherwise features a nice selection of columnists slamming Tony Clement. But it's worth noting how far she has to reach in order to find anybody on Clement's side:Mr. Clement, however, has his... [Read More]

The Sask Party seems to be hoping that if they keep making announcements about SCN being sold, nobody will notice the fact that there's still a serious risk of the network dying due to the Wall government's neglect. But with all parties still recognizing that the CRTC still hasn't approved the... [Read More]

Impolitical notes that Tony Clement seem to be hinting at modifying the short form census in response to the threat of litigation over French service delivery. But it's worth pointing out what Clement's declaration actually means in terms of the Cons' positioning.Aside from the prospect of the Cons... [Read More]

Presumably the Cons' goal in going along with yesterday's hearings on the census was to try to pretend that the census crisis is more a case of "two legitimate sides, we've chosen one" rather than "we have no clue what we're doing". But if there was ever any hope that a full day's repetition of... [Read More]

Scott Adams offers an interesting idea:One of the biggest problems with the world is that we're bound by so many legacy systems. For example, it's hard to deal with global warming because there are so many entrenched interests. It's problematic to get power from where it can best be generated to... [Read More]

Solar power now cheaper than nuclear, according to Marxists at the NY Times.Hey, the government killed an investigation in to pollution in the tar sands. Ho hum.CYBORG ARM. CYBORG ARM!Christ did not die on a cross?A professor contemplates how, and why, he punished a student he caught... [Read More]

DO NOT REMOVE MATTRESS TAG!... [Read More]

As a followup to the need for skepticism about spin intended to attack those who are bound not to defend themselves, it's worth pointing out another problem with the credence the media and other have offered to the Cons: it's useless to talk about compromise with somebody whose position is so... [Read More]

Susan Delacourt is absolutely right to note the danger when silence required as a matter of duty leaves the real story untold. And it's worth noting that Delacourt misses another obvious example - as the Afghanistan leaks that have made so much news lately would have been far less significant if... [Read More]

"Facts are meaningless. You could use facts to prove anything that's even remotely true!"-Homer J. Simpson Federal Justice Minister Rob Nicholson spilled the beans in a recent interview on CBC Radio and let the nation know that our Conservative government does not consider relevant facts or... [Read More]

Since there seems to be plenty of agreement with the sentiment that the Cons' war on public services demands a strong opposition response. With that in mind, what should we be looking to in order to turn the admitted goal of sabotaging governments across the country into the defining public... [Read More]

Not surprisingly, the Saskatchewan NDP has been all over the apparent demise of the province's joint carbon capture project with the government of Montana. But it's worth pointing out just how remarkable it is that the Wall government has managed not to get any support from the Harper Cons. After... [Read More]

"Wyclef Jean has confirmed he is considering running for president of Haiti, according to CNN. It's premature to say whether he will be on the ballot in the Nov. 28 presidential election, the Grammy Award-winning artist said, but he has filled out the paperwork necessary to enter the race. Initial... [Read More]

I'll second Greg's take that Stephen Taylor's proud declaration that the purpose of gutting the census is to permanently undermine any future government program development should be considered a gift for the cause of removing the Cons from power. But there's an important flip side to that fact:... [Read More]

"Indeed in this country, there are two groups of people. In fact, some would call these groups the haves and the have-nots. This is an not inaccurate way of describing it, but those that would might have the two switched. Canadians form two groups: those that receive from the government and those... [Read More]

Shorter Lawrence Cannon:In keeping with our continued commitment to transparency on Afghanistan, we vehemently refuse to comment on documents which could possibly call our talking points into question.... [Read More]

In my listless bobbing about the doldrums of unemployment, I've tried to make it through a few IR "classics" that have somehow escaped my reading list to this point. One of these that I'm very much enjoying is Paul Kennedy's The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers. Even twenty-odd years after its... [Read More]

- For those who missed La Presse's brilliant take on the Harper Cons, here's Phillipe Gohier's translation:The controversy surrounding the terms of the census is typical of the pillaging the conservatives have engaged in since coming to power. Not only is their behaviour dictated by simplistic... [Read More]

The Hill Times tracks down exactly why the environment committee wasn't able to finalize a report on the tar sands, and notes that at least one of the members actually worked to develop a joint report despite the Cons' intransigence:"I listened to some other people the same day I spoke and I know... [Read More]

The Star Phoenix editorial board laments the fact that Canada has become an international pariah on a number of health and environmental issues, with a particular focus on asbestos exports:For Canadians still squirming over Canada's dubious honour of being named "Fossil of the Year" at the... [Read More]

Let's double back to Murray Dobbin's questions about what kind of progressive infrastructure we should be working to build in Canada:Without organizations committed to challenging these enormously powerful forces we are certain to suffer huge setbacks before cultural change begins to reflect itself... [Read More]

There are at least a couple of positives for 'Rider fans after last night's loss in Calgary: while his hang time left something to be desired, Eddie Johnson looks to have been a huge upgrade on the punting and kickoff performance the 'Riders have seen this year. And the team's group of receivers... [Read More]

In case there was any doubt, the litigation process over the Saskatchewan PC Trust Fund is still a few steps away from any great public revelations: even if Rick Swenson is able to force Brad Wall to testify as part of the discovery process, that evidence wouldn't generally go public until a trial... [Read More]

The International Court of Justice ruled this week that Kosovo's declaration of sovereignty in 2008 did not explicitly violate international law. The decision is being hailed in many parts of the West as a step forward in affirming the right of ethnic self-determination; Russia, China, and Spain,... [Read More]

Not to be overly anal about this, but this is a photo of U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Jerry Cannon giving a symbolic key of ownership to Iraq's minister of justice, Dara Nurredin, for Iraq's Camp Cropper prison. The photo appeared on the front page of the New York Times yesterday. Unfortunately, the name of... [Read More]

As a quick addendum to Matt Yglesias's post on Ernest Gellner, I have to recommend his Nations and Nationalism. It's one of the foundational texts of the contemporary study of nationalism, and still quite engaging and relevant.... [Read More]

Shorter Darryl Hickie:Of course we know Brad Trost and the federal Conservatives are completely wrong in their insulting portrayal of flooded-out municipalities as kids trying to avoid their homework. But who are we to try to set the record straight for our political bosses?... [Read More]

The Saskatchewan NDP has added one more candidate to its 2011 slate even during the normally-quiet summer months, nominating Bernadette Gopher in Cut Knife-Turtleford:Gopher, who is a member of the Saulteaux First Nation, currently owns and operates a small business just outside of North... [Read More]

Very nicely done:... [Read More]

The drug holiday hasn’t been as long this time. I just hope, as my specialist said the first time, that I still have “horseshoes up (my) ass” (medical-speak for good fortune) with no irreversible consequences. No doubt there’s a reason my blogging hasn’t been as... [Read More]

Massive flooding in Saskatchewan this spring and summer has delayed work on numerous municipal infrastructure projects that are receiving Federal dollars. As a result a large number of projects will not be completed when the March 31, 2011 cutoff for Federal money occurs. Saskatchewan Premier Brad... [Read More]

Praying over bread and wine (or grape juice) used to make them the body and blood of Christ – literally, according to the faithful. Then someone dressed Jesus in a white wafer and, poof, a melt-in-your-mouth Christ. And, while I could see how it would upset the modern-day Pharisees, such a... [Read More]

John McWhorter's column today about the shift (or not) from "liberal" to "progressive" as the preferred moniker of the American center-left is an interesting little jaunt, and worth a read for those with a minute to spare. His claim that "We must simply accept that liberal, as the result of a... [Read More]

Catelli writes:"A common theme for defenders of the Afghanistan mission is that we have to stay to impose Western (or "Universal Human") values on an ignorant population.Has any society successfully occupied another and imposed its values without a revolt or reversion after the occupiers leave? If... [Read More]

Not much of one, to be fair. Blackburn Hamlet and back - 53km all in. But considering I had to brush the cobwebs off the spokes of my road bike, I think it was a reasonable one. Yes, it's been a long time since I got on my bike and rode, sans child.... [Read More]

"While TD Bank had previously forecast 3.2% real GDP growth in 2010, the new forecast of 2.1% represents a one-third reduction, or 1.1 percentage points, off the earlier forecast. [...] But the 1.1-percentage point reduction drops Saskatchewan’s real economic growth forecast from the “middle of... [Read More]

Hey, nobody told me Chet was back! And I'd like to entirely endorse his argument here: Harper is trashing the long-form census because facts have a well-known liberal bias. No, I'm not kidding--look at the conservative reaction to the Statscan report 2 years ago which showed that income... [Read More]

Here's the first.Here's the second.Now, these are two graphs that concentrate a lot of complicated variables into very simple graphics. The first is the Keeling Curve, basically a measure of CO2 concentration in the atmosphere. It has ticked upwards basically as long as we've been measuring it. ... [Read More]

Fascism is a state of mind. It starts simply enough as an attitude of superiority. It grows into self righteousness with a bullying edge. If left unchecked it grows and spreads like weeds in a society. It allows for the killing of the 'Robert Dziekanski's' of the world. It generally ends in this.... [Read More]

12 million acres of prime Saskatchewan farmland are under water and no crop will be harvested this fall. Add to that, the massive flood damage in Yorkton, Maple Creek and Saskatoon. Then there is tornado damage and a host of other environmental disasters which currently are hurting... [Read More]

"What Do They Want, Highways Or Health Care?"Dan D'Autremont, MLA Sask Party Gov't House LeaderAfter some of the worst budget errors in the history of Saskatchewan, and short on cash and creative ideas, the governing Sask Party is obviously feeling some stress out in the rural constituencies that... [Read More]

Fox News has made the unusual decision to report...on some actual news. Who knew they had it in them?... [Read More]

With the launch of CYBERCOM in May, an agency within the DOD designed to defend the military against cyber attacks, there has been a clear sharpening of focus by the Obama administration about what some have classified as the "fifth domain" of warfare (after land, sea, air, and space). Obama has... [Read More]

"When it comes to softening his public image as someone who is cool and remote, Prime Minister Stephen Harper never misses an opportunity to miss an opportunity.Thursday's flying visit to the flood-ravaged Yorkton area was a classic Harper "photo op", with handlers steering newspaper and TV cameras... [Read More]

1.) The bazaar as a new source of opposition to Ahmadinejad's rule?This week, the bazaar -- situated on the southern tip of Tehran's vast city center -- forced the government to backtrack on a plan to increase income tax on traders by 70 percent after many vendors closed their doors, slowing... [Read More]

Dalton McGuinty, Premier of Ontario:“He told us, ‘Just remember, the same guy who gave us the Charter also gave us the War Measures Act,’” said one startled MPP, noting the premier also refuted calls from several members to strike a public inquiry into the G20 debacle.McGuinty’s... [Read More]

2010 has been declared 'The Year of The Metis' in recognition of the 125th Anniversary of the Northwest Rebellion in Saskatchewan. The following is a post which appeared on 'Next Year Country' blogsite this morning:"After many successful meetings with Robert Doucette, President of the Saskatchewan... [Read More]

"For too long now, Wall has allowed Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the local Conservative MPs to take this province for granted -- largely because what Saskatchewan has requested from Ottawa has always been considerably less pressing than the disaster relief that is needed.This is something... [Read More]

Noam's post on the reasons it's so difficult to begin direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority is worth a read. His basic point is that what the PA wants from Israel is territory and other material goods, whereas what Israel wants from the PA is legitimacy. Israel gets the... [Read More]

'Fiscal conservatism' is a myth perpetuated by the Right Wing. It does not exist. Right wingers love to spend, spend, spend public funds. "OTTAWA — The federal government failed to disclose $869-million in contracts to preferred suppliers, raising questions about the reliability of the... [Read More]

"All those senators don’t miss many opportunities… Some of the gadflies do nothing but circumnavigate the globe. I really do wonder why we tolerate that."Pat MartinNew Democrat Member of ParliamentCnews... [Read More]

It is clear that Russian-American relations are rapidly improving, and Medvedev's trip to Washington late last month appears to solidify this trend. A chummy visit by Obama and Medvedev to a local burger joint in DC indicates that the personal relationship between the two leaders is also becoming... [Read More]

I'm trying to make sense of this whole diversity of tactics business. And I can't. I'm going to earn the enmity of a lot of folks who might normally consider me an ally, but what the hell. I understand the phrase to mean: deliberate property damage as a protest tactic is okay.... [Read More]

This is NOT Canada .... ... [Read More]

The Tyee has published my article Democracy Died (Again) at G20 Toronto. Excerpt:In effect, the G20 leaders and the anarchists were co-dependents, each side exploiting the other. The leaders have spent the previous decade either committing war crimes or failing...... [Read More]

Things have changed! ... [Read More]

Unless you are a certain 'age' you won't remember this ..... [Read More]

Sponsored by 'Mothers Against Canada' ... have a nice day ... ... [Read More]

I love being a Canadian! It's a great country ... flaws and all!... [Read More]

Jake notes that Israel's toothless commission set up to investigate the flotilla incident (but with the more likely aim of just getting all those damn critics of Netanyahu's back) is demanding more authority.Well, Jacob Turkel, the 75-year-old chair of the commission, does not appear to be ready... [Read More]

The Tyee has published my article Ho Hum, They're Rioting in Toronto. And a couple of days ago, it also published The CSIS Affair: What Were They Thinking?... [Read More]

A smart, smiling, committed delegation from my union was on hand in front of Queen’s Park Saturday to carry a message about the priorities we believe the world’s leaders should be pursuing. Among these, there should be a place for art and for artists – for building “village squares” in... [Read More]

de·ba·cle (dĭ-bä'kəl, -bāk'əl, děb'ə-kəl) n. 1. A total, often ludicrous failure. 2. A sudden, disastrous collapse, downfall, or defeat; a rout.The level of stupidity involved in $tephen Harper's G20 is almost unbelievable. In his arrogant mind, looking and playing the part of a... [Read More]

Natalie Angier has a worthwhile piece in the Times examining international whale and dolphin hunting practices in light of cetacean cognitive and social complexity. While I'm not sure I'd agree with Dr. Hal Whitehead (quoted in the article) that whales and dolphins meet "the philosophical... [Read More]

That's all I can think when I read this:ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan is exploiting the troubled United States military effort in Afghanistan to drive home a political settlement with Afghanistan that would give Pakistan important influence there but is likely to undermine United States... [Read More]

It's not entirely fair to say that General McChrystal got fired because of a culture of insubordination to the president or a contempt for civilian leadership that he had supposedly fostered amongst his staff. Military and political leaders are not angels, and they can be expected to say the... [Read More]

Though you’d scarcely think that possible given where we’ve been.... [Read More]

The firing of McChrystal is worrying because it is symbolic rather than substantive: it symbolizes a change in military leadership but not a change in policy. For supporters of the move, Obama's decision to sack McChrystal -- in response to a now famous article in Rolling Stone magazine -- was an... [Read More]

$tephen Harper is NO 'fiscal conservative'!... [Read More]

Middle Earth here meaning, roughly, "places that aren't rich & white, or Japan." Three data points.1) Sometime in 2002-2003, African GDP started going rapidly upwards in a way it had not for some time. This is easily attributable to the commodity boom sparked by the Chinese economy. Whether this... [Read More]

Jesus, I'm a lazy blogger.Pseudo-science deployed against wind power is crap.You know how I knew that the National Post's Lawrence Solomon wrote a crappy hit piece that dishonestly portrayed a legit science article? Because it was written by the Post's Lawrence Solomon.The Republican Party faces a... [Read More]

"Many Canadians have been cringing at the ballooning $1.1bn (US$1.1bn; £730m) bill to host this week's G8 and G20 summits. While a staggering 90% of the summits' budget is for security, it is a "fake lake" which has come to symbolise what many critics see as Prime Minister Stephen Harper's... [Read More]

Now that we have exposed the MYTH that $tephen Harper is a 'fiscal conservative', we can now also demonstrate how he 'supports' Canada's troops by using millions of our tax dollars to fight their legitimate health claims in court. Who are you people who actually keep VOTING for $tephen Harper??!! ... [Read More]

Glenn Greenwald has been engaged in a long-running debate/tiff with "Obama apologists" who tend to write off the Obama Administration's failures (at least from a progressive perspective) as a function of the structural weaknesses inherent in the American presidency. This is an argument that's been... [Read More]

The Times has an interesting piece up about a group of scientists in Uganda who have identified distinct patterns of warfare among a large band of chimpanzees there. The article notes that scientists have observed more than just individual fights or competition for status among the chimps. War... [Read More]

Bob Rae has called upon Jack Layton to fire Libby Davies.  Indeed, it  seems that the NDP House Leader has crossed the line that separates personal opinion from party policy, since her criticism of Israels' long occupation "since 1948" appears to call into question the legitimacy of... [Read More]

John Cole makes life worth living:Uttering anything more complicated than “Drill, baby, drill” makes you an elitist. Apparently Obama should have grabbed his balls and said “Don’t worry, ‘Murica. We’re gittin ‘er done!”Context here.... [Read More]

John Stewart had an epic eight-minute segment on Wednesday night tearing apart the Obama administration's record on executive power. As Glen Greenwald notes, it's not just that Obama has continued the dodgy policies of his predecessor. No - it's that he has embraced and adopted these policies as... [Read More]

A highly entertaining short documentary. Worth checking out.... [Read More]

All-news networks are killing broadcast journalism. So, of course, we need this. Watch Newsworld CBC News Network or CTV News Channel and you’ll see what I call news jockeys – personalities, like the disc jockeys of radio days, who intro and extro songs news of the moment, as told by... [Read More]

John McCain has published an article in The New Republic arguing that the United States needs to take a more firm stance in support of Iran's Green Movement. Yet the notion that we should "stand up for the Iranian people" by making "their goals our goals, their interests our interests, their work... [Read More]

Matt Yglesias has a post up today noting some really ridiculous remarks that Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) made to the Orthodox Union earlier in the week. Yglesias highlights the (obviously very important) fact that Schumer wholeheartedly supports a policy of economic strangulation and collective... [Read More]

I agree with the gist of Andrew Sullivan's take on the alleged "stupidity" of the current Israeli administration. I have a relatively minor quibble, though, with this passage:...it has long been Netanyahu's plan - and that of his coalition partners - to permanently coopt the West Bank. This is... [Read More]

It's nice to see that all this nonsense about this being an arms blockade is really starting to break down.As Israel ordered a slight easing of its blockade of the Gaza Strip Wednesday, McClatchy obtained an Israeli government document that describes the blockade not as a security measure but as... [Read More]

..but before I get to that, I'd like to take a purposeful digression to Dan Arnold's Mark piece about rebuilding the Liberals out west:But there’s no reason the Liberal party can’t compete in large- and mid-sized cities in the four western provinces. The same types of people who vote Liberal... [Read More]

1) While I still think the idea is basically a non-starter, the idea of a Liberal-NDP merger just keeps getting kicked around. Especially funny is the idea that the Liberals, in courting the NDP, would demand that it renounce socialism and embrace the mixed economy and accept Michael Ignatieff as... [Read More]

1) The existence of the Playstation 3 makes me resent the fuck out of young people today. If I had the kind of free time today I did when I was 13...2) Speaking of, I've now reached the age where putting aside enough time to finish even one level of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 feels like a real... [Read More]

Was radio silent because I got married on May 29th. There were Stormtroopers. And the officiant used the words "by the power of Grayskull", as previously agreed.Aside from that, I can't really remember much.My wife is already well on the way to winning the marriage, with the following quote: ... [Read More]

Elections for Egypt's upper house, the Shura Council, took place yesterday amidst widespread fraud. No surprise there -- it is Mubarak's Egypt, after all. The ruling NDP won heavily, with opposition groups winning only a smattering of seats. Unfortunately, the Shura Council elections are not a mere... [Read More]