Clearly, one of the main reasons the Liberals recruited Michael Ignatieff was for nostalgic and pragmatic purposes. They wanted another Pierre Trudeau. With polls suggesting the Liberals under Ignatieff are hemorrhaging support and the Conservatives are gaining support, this bold initiative seems to have withered into a false start.

Those bright, bookish types sometimes have it hard. When they are rising in the polls, their articulate communication and serious demeanor are used for favourable comparisons with charismatic leaders like Obama, Trudeau, and John F.Kennedy. When they sink in the polls, those same traits are used for disparaging comparisons to diffident, “egghead” leaders like Adlai Stevenson and Stephane Dion.

It does appear to be true that intellectuals generally do not do well in politics. According to psychologist Martin Seligman, their tendency to ruminate and their lack of optimism turns the electorate off. Canadian Political Scientist Stephen Clarkson agrees and cites Trudeau as an exception to the rule. But is he really an exception? I believe that Trudeau deserved his intellectual reputation, but he often did not behave like most intellectuals. A lot of his writing for example was polemical and argumentative in style, which does not mean he was a lightweight, but is a very different approach from most academics. Furthermore, during election campaigns, his gunslinger pose and his visionary and optimistic speeches were not anything like the staid, quiet lectures of an Oxford don. On those occasions when he did appear professorial (most notably his Philosopher King campaign of 1972), the results were near disastrous.
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I recently had the opportunity to visit a Waldorf school. I was intrigued by the earth friendly curriculum and surroundings: natural beeswax crayons, other supplies made with natural fibre, the chemical free garden, and the holistic and artistic approach to learning. However, although I am not one who likes to challenge other people’s personal beliefs, I found the mythical and spiritual thinking a little disconcerting. I don’t believe that there are little gnomes living in the forest. I have always been a bit of a party pooper. Even as a child, I did not believe in things like Santa, the Easter Bunny or the Tooth Fairy, although my skepticism did not prevent me from accepting gifts from these mealy-mouthed fraudsters.

We all have knowledge that others consider fantasies, whether we are adults or children. As a child, I did not believe in Santa or fairies, but I knew that there were giants who strode across the countryside. I saw them occasionally on television, in newspapers and magazines, in school auditoriums, and in the streets. They were our political leaders who seemed like supreme parents who commanded even our parents. In effect, they were guardians of our country. I still see them that way.
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S. 13 that CHRC!

Yesterday the Montreal Gazette ran a great piece on free speech pogroms masquerading as legitimate government tribunals. I don’t deny that they were created by proper legislative authorities and passed through proper channels but I will say that general Canadian ignorance and laziness has allowed them to transmogrify in the horrendous apparatus they now are. The article in the Gazette was outstanding, and sadly it echoes much of what I had intended to say, so to avoid plagiarism, I will refer you all to it and echo only this one key point its author so carefully addressed. Canadians are a tolerant bunch. We are, for the most part, proud of our multiethnic nation and proud to live in a tolerant society. As such, when something is called the “Canadian Human Rights Commission” – it sounds good, we like it, and we are suspicious of persons who would be dragged before it. I mean wouldn’t you have to do something obviously intolerant to be brought before one? You would think (read the article then come back to mine).
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We may have escaped a general election this fall, but four ridings are going to the polls November 9 for by-elections. The two Quebec ridings will likely remain BQ, but the other two ridings, one each in British Columbia and Nova Scotia, are in play, largely between the Conservatives and the NDP. The outcomes won’t shift the balance of power in Ottawa, but they could test Harper’s ability to win a majority. And for child, youth, and family advocates, they isolate and juxtapose these two parties’ family policies in a way that’s usually not possible.

In the BC riding of New Westminster-Coquitlam, there are four candidates, but it’s really a two-horse race between NDP Finn Donnelly and Conservative Diana Dilworth. This riding has swung between NDP and Conservative for years, both candidates have been municipal politicians for years, and both work for environmental non-profits. Donnelly, born and raised in the area, is a local hero for twice swimming the length of the Fraser River to bring attention to sustainability issues. Dilworth’s bio notes that, as a single parent of two adult children, she understands the stresses of raising a family. But she also understands business, having worked in the public, private, and non-profit sectors, and having run her own business.
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I can’t bring myself to sing the national anthem in public. On the rare occasion (probably the last time I was at a hockey game) where I am required to stand as it plays, I fight the following battle within myself: Sing; No. You’re supposed to; I don’t want to. You’re standing anyway, sing; No, I’ll feel stupid. Isn’t that sad? I’m too cool to sing the Canadian national anthem in a roomful of other Canadians; I haven’t opened my mouth and joined in since elementary school, when it didn’t faze me at all and I belted it out every morning. And I’m not alone – look around your local sporting event – most people are like me, standing silently, waiting for it to be over, or at the very most, mumbling the words quietly under their breath. To be fair, there will always be one or two shameless diehards, bellowing along energetically, bless their hearts.
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I have been following with much interest the downward spiral and final fizzles of Bishop Raymond Lahey’s ignoble and sadly typical priestly career. The media it would seem, on the surface has done everything in its power to flog this story to death and drag the once unjustly good name of Bishop Lahey through the mud. What has shocked me though, is that while interviews of the victims of this once powerful man abound, the public has been left completely ignorant of the sheer influence Lahey once had in Antigonish County. It is staggering, given the number of boys who have now come forward attesting to the Bishop’s pedophilic tendencies, that the focus has been entirely upon Lahey’s ecclesiastic rank and the awful, yet ironic fact that Lahey was in charge of the settlement soon to be paid to survivors of the same cruel form of Catholic charity he also imbibed in. I have been meditating on the appalling morbidity of this and the fact that it did not compel this new round of victims to come forward earlier. This article, rather than merely reporting and commenting on events, tenders a hypothesis (sadly one that has not been raised thus far): that Bishop Lahey was not confronted because of his tremendous influence in the affairs and daily operations of the community of Antigonish.
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Who in Canada is not familiar with the work of Craig Kielburger? Inspired at age 12 to fight child labour overseas, he and his brother Marc founded Free the Children to “empower children in North America to take action to improve the lives of fellow children overseas.”

But what happens when the child labour is happening right here at home?

In late 2003, the BC government changed child labour laws to allow children as young as 12 into the workplace. According to a new report, there has been a 10-fold increase in the number of child work-place injury claims accepted by WorkSafeBC, BC’s worker compensation body, since that change.
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One thing that seems to come up when the spotlight shines is the question of how one wants to be seen. The spotlight is only a few short months from shining on Vancouver during arguably the most impressive show of athleticism in the world. The pressure of hosting the Olympics comes from a need to showcase the country’s personality and promise. But what is the image that Canada has chosen, and more importantly who has defined it?

The Vancouver Organizing Committee (VANOC) has been guided through the process by 20 individuals nominated by the Federal Government, the Province of Vancouver, the City of Vancouver, the Resort Municipality of Whistler, the Canadian Olympic Committee, the Canadian Paraolympic Committee and the local First Nations. The Chair of VANOC is Jack Poole, a prominent Vancouver businessman who is involved in everything from marinas to golf courses, malls and car dealerships. The remaining members of the board of directors are in business, finance, politics and athletics. Our elected politicians have entrusted these people to make decisions that will determine how the world views this country.

VANOC has set its values as Team, Trust, Excellence, Sustainability and Creativity. This reads like a list of most corporate values, values which one cannot help but wonder what would happen if the choice came between making a profit or having environmental sustainability – a look at Alberta’s oil and gas industry would seem to indicate a clear answer.

VANOC has chosen to showcase the multiculturalism that Canada has been famous for. Canadian musicians, dancers and artists have been slated to perform their various acts at locations around the city during the Olympics. From rappers, to Ugandan Dance troops to Jazz musicians – Canada is hoping to prove that they can offer a lot to the international artist community.
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Auditor General Sheila Fraser has made the assertive announcement that despite billions of tax dollars being poured into airport security over the past few years, an act as simple as a background check on the people who work there are run without much thought at all.

If at all…

Day to day, we are led to believe that there is a chance that authorities would not know if those working behind airport security lines were terrorists or drug smugglers.

Fraser’s latest report, zeroing in on wasted government money, includes an account of airport security clearance being granted to someone with assault and weapons convictions, and someone who was under investigation for a murder relating to drug smuggling at a large airport.
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When I first heard about the Canadian do-not-call list a few months ago, I was ecstatic. Finally, I thought, I would be able to get rid of the endless, annoying and constant telemarketing calls that put me past the point of frustration. At the time, I was getting around 2-3 calls per day. It was unbearable. So without thinking twice, I signed up.

For those of you who don’t know, the Canadian do-not-call list allows Canadians to decide whether or not to receive telemarketing calls. Signing up takes about 5 minutes, and upon doing so, a large portion of telemarketers will be forbidden from calling you. If they do, they can face up to a $15,000 fine.

But it’s not all that rosy.
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