Features

On the Hill – In Theory

The idea of a non-partisan civil service is sort of like watching a Little League game. In theory It’s about skills like fair play and teamwork, but what most people really want is for their team to win. And the chasm between theory and reality got a little wider this week with the announcement of… Read more »

Google Street View – Are You Ready for Your Close-Up?

New technology is a double-edged sword. It brings convenience, productivity, and sometimes just plain fun. With that come the inevitable trade-offs. We love our cars but the lack of exercise contributes to obesity. Phones are great yet we loathe telemarketers. Usually we’ve got a choice: embrace the new technology or toss it aside. An interesting… Read more »

On the Hill – Down on the Farm

There’s no question that our federal government is busy these days. In fact, it seems they’re so busy they haven’t heard all the noise being made about the increasing viability of the local-food movement. How else to explain the fact that the government is adamantly refusing to listen to logic and is determined to shut… Read more »

Love: Made for TV?

Hollywood runs on love. Every TV show and movie involves some kind of romantic entanglement and every magazine cover is flooded with photos of happy and not-so-happy couples. Considering that all I know of romantic love comes from what I’ve seen in the movies and on television, it should come as no surprise that I… Read more »

On the Hill – In the Closets of the Nation

Is it possible to defend someone’s personal freedom by taking away their right to choose? That’s the decision Ottawa may soon face on the issue of banning the burka and the niqab. The Muslim Canadian Congress is asking the federal government to ban the two garments in public. As the Globe and Mail reports, the… Read more »

Pages – The Haunted: A Social History of Ghosts

The days are growing shorter and shadows are growing longer. You feel a sudden and distinct chill in the air. Is it simply winter’s approach that makes you shiver, or are the spirits of the dead looking over your shoulder? Is it the rustling of autumn’s fallen leaves you hear, or the footsteps of the… Read more »

On the Hill – The More Things Change

On October 1, Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff introduced a non-confidence motion in an effort to topple the Harper government. The motion was defeated, but it brings to mind that old saying about how the more things change the more they stay the same. That’s the situation Canadians face as the prospect of another federal election… Read more »