Carbon tax anyone? It was a bad idea and badly sold
R.I.P. carbon tax, a bad idea badly sold. It is in the graveyard of doomed political schemes alongside national daycare (died in 2006), Senate reform (1993) and tax-deductible mortgages (1980). With Stéphane Dion as its spokesman it never had a chance. “The man has the charisma of Jell-O,” sighed The Chatham Daily News. In the […]
Prime Minister fails to grow in popularity
Brace for outbursts of chair-kicking rage at Stephen Harper’s place tomorrow evening. This is his third strike at a majority. No Conservative leader has ever been given a fourth. The likelihood of another minority Parliament mirrors the attrition in support most governments suffer in a five-week campaign. “Conservatives are going to get their majority,” The […]
Campaign debate on youth crime resembles Great Lakes fog horn: big noise and no light
OTTAWA—Does evil exist? The noun, long-banished from everyday newsroom discourse as old-fashioned, is making a resurgence in the debate over youth crime. “There’s no question that teenagers can sometimes be evil,” wrote The Red Deer Advocate. “Evil-doers,” The Vancouver Province called them. The two dailies were in distinguished company. William Golding, the schoolteacher who wrote […]
May burdened with expectations no newcomer could ever meet
Untested and praised to the skies, Green Party Leader Elizabeth May can only disappoint in this week’s telecast election debates. Having blustered her way in—”See you in court,” she threatened TV executives—May is burdened with expectations no newcomer could meet. “This is now her time to shine,” ordered The Prince Albert Daily Herald. May for […]
Dion’s problem? He’s not Barack Obama
Stéphane Dion’s problem is that he is not Barack Obama. Liberals take their heroes super-sized, industrial strength, the real kapow. Everyone else is happy to settle for mere mortals with a proven capacity to drive voters to the polls. It is the Liberals’ misfortune that elections in Canada and America should coincide. It is doubly […]
Politicians, media prefer to talk trivialities than Afghan war
The war is lost. It’s lost in the editorial pages of the most conservative newspaper in the most conservative city in the country, the Calgary Sun: “Are we winning? Can we win? What would a win look like?” Afghanistan is a “hellhole most people can’t find on a map”; claims of victory are “silly rhetoric,” […]
I love punditry and so should you
I love punditry and so should you. It fills dead air and blank newsprint that would otherwise be assigned to essential facts and accurate weather forecasts. It is inexpensive and entertaining, like watching the village humpback bite the head off a garter snake. To serious people who complain we need serious discourse, I say: Look! […]
The Titanic was not ‘the greatest maritime disaster in history,’ but it’s a whale of a story
They call it the greatest Good God headline of all time. The biggest shipwreck ever, they say. The tale has been embellished so often it is doubtful the public knows the truth anymore. When Canada observes UN World Maritime Day—an event to “focus attention on the importance of shipping safety”—nobody will recall the sinking of […]
Dysfunctional Parliament? Reporters spent the past year watching the Commons roll over for Harper like a hog in a ditch
All used up and thrown to the wolves, the 39th Parliament is ending its days with a wheeze. “Dysfunctional,” said the Prime Minister. “Obviously” he cannot wait a year to seek re-election. Those were the words of Stephen Harper, leader. Stephen Harper, economist, might have put it another way: If you think this economy is […]
It’s a sign of recession when nation’s biggest bathtub supplier stumbles into bankruptcy
Our secret recession skitters along like rats in a pantry. The signs are unmistakable. An infomercial offers “free miracle prosperity handkerchiefs” on Vision TV: “All things are possible if you believe!” The nation’s biggest bathtub supplier, Maax Corp., stumbles into bankruptcy. Housing slowdown, they said. CanWest News reported, “Now is a great time to grab […]
