Category Politics
Protest
What are the limits to peaceful protest in a democratic society? As the truckers’ convoy keeps downtown Ottawa snarled for a seventh day today, that is the question residents are asking. It is clear the truckers won’t accomplish their goal – the removal of the vaccine mandate on their industry. It is also apparent that […]
Help Me Understand
Canada’s Prime Minister is seeking support from the New Democratic, Bloc Quebecois and Green parties to support his plans to limit debate in the House of Commons (and accelerate the passing of his legislation). He says this is necessary because the Conservatives, the Official Opposition, are too partisan. According to Justin Trudeau: “We know and […]
Convoy
Some on the internet are calling it “Canada’s January 6 event,” likening it to the attempted insurrection in Washington D.C. last year. Thousands of Canadian truckers are descending on Ottawa to protest the federal government’s vaccine mandate on their industry. Earlier this week some suggested 50,000 trucks and a half a million people were on […]
No School Today
Public schools in Ontario are closed for the Christmas break (which they probably call a winter break, I haven’t checked). When they will reopen is a matter of some conjecture. The Premier said on Friday that it was too early to say if schools would reopen in January, given the COVID case count. Too me […]
Right Thinking Triumphs
Groupthink is a psychological phenomenon that occurs within a group of people in which the desire for harmony or conformity in the group results in an irrational or dysfunctional decision-making outcome. Cohesiveness, or the desire for cohesiveness, in a group may produce a tendency among its members to agree at all costs. This causes the […]
Where Is The Uproar?
I gave it a week to simmer, to allow my outrage to die down. It hasn’t. What concerns me though is that no-one I have spoken with recently has mentioned to me that we have been part of a military experiment. Do Canadians not care? I have been asked dozens of times since returning to […]
The Knives Are Out
I was confused when I answered the phone. Who conducts a political poll three days after an election? As the automated caller worked through its questions the purpose became clear. Did I think Canada was moving in the right direction? Press 1 for yes, 2 for no. Which party did I vote for? (I lied […]
Waste? What Waste?
Ottawa taxpayers are wresting with the big questions this week. Which was the bigger waste of money?Monday’s federal election cost more than $600 million to stage, and has left us with pretty much the same government we had before. That price does seem like a bargain though compared to the city’s light rail line. Built […]
And The Winner Will Be…
Canadians choose a new government today. In theory anyway. As I write this, the polls will be open for another few hours, and then the counting begins. Given how close the tally is expected to be, and with a million mail-in ballots that won’t be counted before Tuesday, it may be a few days before […]
A Matter of Responsibility
The Dutch defence minister resigned Friday after being censured by her country’s parliament over her handling of the evacuation of those who had helped Dutch forces in Afghanistan. The foreign minister had already resigned over the same issue. For this Caandian it was shocking to see a cabinet minister accept blame and resign over anything. […]
random thoughts from lorne 
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