Category Leadership
Who Wants This Job?
Kevin McCarthy says he will not be a candidate for Speaker of the US House of Representatives. Can anyone else do the job? Certainly there will be a lineup to replace him. After all, the Speaker is in the line of succession should the President be unable to fulfil his or her duties. McCarthy was […]
Is She Serious?
Canada’s House of Commons chooses a new speaker today, and Green Party leader Elizabeth May has thrown her name into the hat. She won’t win. She may be the best qualified of the candidates, but qualifications don’t always mean much in an election. My question is more, why is she running? Party leaders aren’t normally […]
What Would You Do?
When is something unforgivable? I’ve been pondering that in the wake of Canada’s latest political scandal. If you haven’t been following it, here’s a capsule: After an address to the House of Commons by the President of Ukraine on Friday, the Speaker introduced a visitor who was watching the proceedings, a constituent who had fought […]
When Is It Enough?
I’ve been contemplating age. Not just my own. I’ve retired from the workforce twice so far. Once only lasted a few weeks, and indeed I hadn’t made a decision, I was just thinking about retirement. The second time I retired to move overseas and do volunteer work. In that case retirement was from the paid […]
The Housing Crisis
Housing might be the top political issue in Canada these days. More than wildfires, climate change or even food prices. Politicians are unanimous on the need for action and divided as to what the action should look like. Housing prices have almost doubled in eight years of Liberal rule, from $454,976 to $729,000. Average mortgage […]
Country on Fire
Canada is burning. There are hundreds of wildfires burning today, many of them out of control. There have been more than 5,000 so far this summer. Thousands have had to flee their homes. The smoke has drifted as far south as New York City. In this record fire season many people are concerned about climate […]
First Debate
Eight years ago he was the underdog, his candidacy somewhat of a joke. He’s still somewhat of a joke, but definitely not the underdog. As the first debate of the 2024 US presidential election gets underway tonight, Donald Trump is the frontrunner. So much so that he won’t bother to show up tonight to face […]
Trump On Trial
The indictments just keep on coming. As do the claims of political motivation. From outside the United States, the question has always been why Donald Trump hadn’t been asked to account for some of his actions that seemed to skirt the law. In a democracy, even the President (or the Prime Minister of Canada) has […]
Can’t Say It Now
Politicians today are subject to far more constraints than those of previous generations. People are quick to take offense, and God help you if you say something that doesn’t flow with the prevailing winds of society. It wasn’t always so though, as I was reminded on a visit to France in 2014. The words jumped […]
Today’s History Lesson
In elementary school and high school, my favorite subject was History. So it should come as no surprise that when I am on vacation I am on the lookout for things I learned about in school as well as new things. In this post from 2014 I saw firsthand something that I had learned about […]
random thoughts from lorne 
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