Ecofiscal Commission: the ‘green’ face of the tar sands?
Proponents of a carbon tax in this country have probably heard of Canada’s Ecofiscal Commission. Formed in 2014 to promote “practical solutions for growing prosperity,” it has an annual budget of millions, a long roster of notables from the private and public sectors, and the marketing savvy of a Bay Street firm. You could be […]
Anatomy of a maverick MP’s rogue vote
For a relatively unknown political commodity, it’s been a big month for Saint John-Rothesay Liberal MP Wayne Long, who has found his way to the centre of two of the biggest stories in Canadian politics: small business taxes and the demise of the Energy East pipeline. But the rookie New Brunswick backbench MP’s hand in […]
With Trump at the helm, rest in peace diplomacy
Re: “Of morons, Mormon choirs, and oxymorons,” (The Hill Times, by Lisa Van Dusen, Oct. 11, p. 12). Conrad Black in his recent National Post comment says that U.S. President Donald Trump is doing just fine. That may be so but Lisa Van Dusen highlights some shortcomings. One wonders if acting like a moron, or […]
Takeaways so far from the terrorist attack in Edmonton
It has been a little more than a week and a half since Canada suffered its latest, and thankfully still rare, terrorist attack. A 30-year-old Somali refugee named Abdulahi Sharif hit and stabbed an Edmonton police officer before leading authorities on a race through the city’s streets where he struck four pedestrians before he was […]
Winter Is Coming: Dispatches from Washington, D.C.
Huddled together in a Washington, D.C. law firm (on K Street no less), a group of former prime ministers, ministers,ambassadors, lawyers, and corporate leaders have come together to determine amongst themselves if the North American Free Trade Agreement is alive or dead. A stone’s throw away, the negotiating teams from Canada, Mexico, and the US […]
It’s Canada’s time to tackle malnutrition and unlock girls’ potential
Girls all around the world have big dreams. They dream of being doctors, soccer players, and presidents. But for more than one billion women and girls, malnutrition is standing in their way. Proper nutrition is the first step to helping girls achieve their dreams. It is the critical ingredient every one of us needs to […]
NDP also opposed Harder as Status of Women Committee chair
Re: “Liberal walkout of Status of Women Committee bad form,” (The Hill Times, Oct. 4, p. 8). I heard on the CBC Radio program As It Happens MP Sheila Malcolmson said the New Democratic Party also opposed Rachael Harder becoming chair of the House of Commons Status of Women Committee. The NDP MP seemed to me to say her party deserved […]
A prescription for Canadian influence at the UN
OTTAWA—More than a decade ago, the foreign ministry had an “outreach” program, which consisted of speakers—many ambassadors, but often foreign service officers like me—who went across the country speaking to the public about foreign policy. One year, I spoke to more than 50 assemblies of students from Halifax to the Yukon. My standard speech covered […]
Of morons, Mormon choirs, and oxymorons
It emerged last week like a neon “vacancy” sign at 4 a.m. on your last quarter-tank of gas in the Mojave Desert. Or like a glowing red “exit” sign in a foggy House of Horrors. One word, towering over a besieged but unbeaten republic after months of toxic babble and destabilizing chaos. “Moron.” The news, […]
Official inquiry needed to avoid repeat of Afghan failure
OTTAWA—There were news stories out of Afghanistan last week detailing how the United States is expanding and entrenching the so-called Green Zone in the centre of Kabul. An ambitious two-year construction project will bring together currently isolated outlying facilities into one massive protected zone. In addition to U.S. military and diplomatic posts, the “new and […]
