The problem is neither the ideas nor the charged rhetoric, but simply the blatant determination to silence critics
We live in angry, intolerant times. The ideological battles of yesteryear seem downright quaint compared to the swirling mess that currently passes for public debate. Politeness and passion have been replaced with intransigence and condemnation from all across the ideological and cultural spectrum. Nuanced political debates are reduced to black and white standoffs, with combatants…
A closer look at almost every fact-checking organization shows a great deal of politics and vested interests involved
Fact-checking takes us past the spin and straight to the truth. Or maybe not. A closer look at almost every fact-checking organization shows a great deal of politics and vested interests involved. Years ago, I went to Snopes.com whenever someone sent me an email thread I wasn’t sure about. I even recommended to others that…
Vancouver is considering a tax on vehicles entering the downtown. It may well reduce pollution, but at what cost?
One definition of insanity is to keep doing the same thing and expecting different results. Another definition might be to do something different and not expect any changes. We all have a tendency to do this. For example, we get married and wonder why we no longer have the same services we had in our…
Just because someone else’s history makes you uncomfortable doesn’t give you a moral licence to erase it from public space
If I were a Brit – which I’m not – I’d be materially annoyed at the vandalization of Winston Churchill’s statue and the related attempts to remove it from its perch in London’s Parliament Square. And in keeping with today’s enthusiasm for rhetorical hyperbole, I’d be tempted to consider it the thin end of the…
Public shaming may reach a new low by looking at how much we eat
Move over flight shaming: environmentalists may be getting ready to target a new group of individuals. Overeaters. Yes, overeating could potentially become the next shaming social media target. For months now, many have taken to social media to spread their concerns about choices made when travelling. The plane has been a special target of environmentalists,…
Ultimately, they want nothing short of a transfer of democratic power to oligarchies of frantic enviro-zealots
Cults obey a logic of their own rather than following the parameters of mainstream logic. Climate zealots who concertedly blockaded bridges and important public roads in order to help the planet against climate change defy common logic. Blockading traffic and at times endangering tens of thousands of commuters to pressure governments to listen to their…
It is, at 236 metres high, one of the tallest office towers in Calgary. It’s architecturally stunning – in part because of the design by world-famous architectural firm Foster + Partners, but also because of its massive scale. When it was completed in 2012, it was among the top 10 architectural projects in the world…
On Thursday, Encana Corp. dropped a major bombshell on Canada’s energy industry – the company plans to move its headquarters to the U.S. early next year, and to rebrand under a new name. Who can blame them? The new name – Ovinitiv Inc. – drops the reference to Canada in their corporate branding. Encana evolved…
Even overlooking the personal smears, record fudging, or repressing the truth, the parties are filled with contradictions of the things they stand for
If there were any idealism left regarding the virtues of Canadian politics, the current federal election campaign is almost certain to have smashed it. Good governance and the common good were not the winners in last week’s English language debate. Thursday's French language debate was a slight improvement, but a one-off exception hardly undoes the…
I ride a bicycle as often as I can, but that doesn’t mean I feel compelled to paint myself silver, wear funny clothes, and block traffic
No one can argue that bicycles are increasingly becoming a major part of the urban landscape. I like bikes: I own two and consider the Tour de France to be one of the greatest athletic events of all time. But did you know that riding in a pack like they do in the Tour de…
We live in angry, intolerant times. The ideological battles of yesteryear seem downright quaint compared to the swirling mess that currently passes for public debate. Politeness and passion have been replaced with intransigence and condemnation from all across the ideological and cultural spectrum. Nuanced political debates are reduced to black and white standoffs, with combatants…
