For the crime of being a man of his times, Canadians are being asked to wipe the memory of a Father of Confederation clean
“We do not allow the dead to rise up against us. … You will be lifted clean out from the stream of history. Nothing will remain of you, not a name in a register, not a memory in a living brain. You will be annihilated in the past as well as in the future. You…
David Johnston told the unvarnished truth: all Canadians, including aboriginals, are immigrants from somewhere. No apology necessary
By Brian Giesbrecht Senior Fellow Frontier Centre for Public Policy Canada’s governor generals have been famous and infamous. They have played large parts in our country’s history. In some cases, the contribution has been dramatic. Where does David Johnston's recent capitulation put him? In 1926, the King-Byng affair kept the country spellbound as it unfolded, after…And things will get a whole lot worse - and costly - as more and more people are added to the list of entitled
By Brian Giesbrecht Senior Fellow Frontier Centre for Public Policy Chief Rick O’Bomsawin of Odanak, Que., is urging a House of Commons committee to pass Bill S-3, which would give First Nations women full equality with men. But much more – and much less, financially – must be done before we are all treated equally. In…Fundamental to human rights in Canada is access to a public education system that offers choice and quality to the taxpayers who pay for it
Choice and opportunity should be fundamental to public education, but sometimes the argument gets muddied by peculiar personal perspectives. We’ve seen an unprecedented movement in Canadian publicly-supported schools to accommodate the needs and rights of minority groups such as LGBTQ, with the introduction of gender-neutral bathrooms and curriculum updates. Social justice issues have taken up…
First Nations can’t veto development in northern Ontario. They must engage in good faith, just like business and governments, and not squander this opportunity
By Joseph Quesnel and Kenneth Green The Fraser Institute It’s often said that successful First Nations must operate at the speed of business, not the speed of government. That certainly applies to First Nations affected by the Ring of Fire mining proposal. Long delays and lack of communication between governments and the nine First Nation communities…
Canada needs laws to protect vulnerable transgender youth, who experience bullying at much higher rates than their peers
Conservative Sen. Donald Plett recently said, “I don't think there's any law in the world that will prevent children from bullying.” With all due respect, the Manitoba senator is wrong. He made the comment last week during discussion in the Senate about Bill C-16, which is designed to protect gender identity and gender expression in…
The only route to a better appreciation of the cultures in Canada is through exposure, questioning, expressing opinions – even if those opinions are wrong
If there’s ever going to be a watershed moment in protecting free speech in Canada, the recent controversy surrounding cultural appropriation could fit the role. The story began in a rather innocuous manner. Hal Niedzviecki, editor of Write magazine (the quarterly publication of the Writers’ Union of Canada), wrote in a column, “I don’t believe…Nationalistic politicians' attacks on free markets and economic freedom driven primarily by the support and desires of rural voters
As France and Turkey show, populism and deepening urban/rural splits represent dangerous and confusing threats to prosperity. The populist economic urge is cropping up around the world, however dissimilar the countries may seem to be. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan secured his recent constitutional power grab through rural votes, while losing in the big three…
Contrary to decades of marijuana proponent propaganda, it’s not a drug like alcohol or caffeine. It's very purpose is intoxication
Many Canadians are hypocrites: they want to have their energy cake and burn it, too
A prevailing question is bouncing around the country: Should Canadians trust the energy sector? It preoccupies a fair number of people, including academics and politicians. Many are intent on doing good by creating new ways of thinking through some of the country’s complex energy challenges. Creating trust is a cornerstone of this thinking. But trust must travel…