Category Society
Vimy Ridge Centenary
It was one hundred years ago today that Canada became a nation, or so the social historians like to put it. Nationhood is an elusive idea. Canada became a country on July 1, 1867. We were not completely independent though. It wasn’t until 1931 that our Supreme Court actually became supreme. Before that you could […]
The Phone Booth
I think they leave them up for the tourists to take selfies. It’s not like anyone uses them to make a phone call. These days everyone has a mobile phone. I didn’t even look to see how much a call costs. The red phone booths are prominent in downtown London. They are an iconic image […]
A River With Personality?
I hope they were only trying to make a point about our duty to the planet. When I read the news story I wondered. Maybe they had completely lost their mind. After all, we are talking about politicians here. Legislators in New Zealand have bestowed personhood on a river. I have a few problems with […]
The Guards’ Chapel – I
I am always uneasy at the relationship between church and state, especially when they become intertwined. Jesus said we should give the state the respect it deserved. Paul, a little later, urged Christians to pray for those in authority, which seems like a really good idea these days. No matter which country you are in, […]
Cult of Personality
Canada’s diplomats have received their orders: no more selfies with the Prime Minister. It is not that foreign service officers have been flocking to have their photo taken with the man dubbed “Prime Minister Selfie;” it is that some of our diplomatic missions have purchased life-sized cardboard cutouts of the PM that are being used […]
Christ’s College – Cambridge
No, Jesus didn’t go to school here, but Charles Darwin did. Darwin isn’t the only famous alumnus of Christ’s College, which is part of Cambridge University. Others include John Milton and Robert Oppenheimer. It does seem a bit ironic though that Darwin’s name would be the one most commonly associated with Christ’s, as many people […]
The Chapel
In my younger years I was a student at Carleton University in Ottawa, a relatively new institution which is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year. So I hesitate to make a comparison between Carleton and Cambridge University, which has been a seat of higher learning for more than 800 years. But I’m going to anyway. […]
Some Random Thoughts From This Past Week
Canada’s largest drugstore chain had a computer glitch. No credit or debit cards were being accepted. Who carries cash these days? What would we do if the system went down as a whole, not just one store but everywhere? We have as a society become so dependent on technology, who knows how we would react. […]
ABBA The Museum – I
Before leaving Canada I polled my friends and colleagues. The verdict was unanimous; I had to visit the ABBA museum in Stockholm. Of course, none of them had ever been there. I am not an ABBA fan. I have acquired over the years about 10,000 albums. (I know that sounds like a lot, but remember, […]
Thoughts On Survival
This showed up in my email this week. It wasn’t the first time I had seen it, or something similar. It usually doesn’t have pictures attached, which is what convinced me to share it here. I’d give credit, but a quick online search convinced me that authorship is unknown. I know I didn’t write it […]
random thoughts from lorne 
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