Did the good people of Minneapolis save the republic?
For some reason the recent election in the east German state of Saxony-Anhalt got me to thinking about Minneapolis. The success of the far right…
What is AI for?
The introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) into our lives has been compared to the Industrial Revolution. Technology taken to a whole new level, changing everything.…
More on referendum follies
In a previous post I pointed out why referendums are perhaps the worst instrument democracy has in its tool box. Rather than repeat the argument…
Negotiating with a narcissist
On August 21st an extraordinary thing happened. A foreign government attempted to make a deal that would advance its control over our trade relationships, our…
Will global warming impoverish Europe?
Global warming has its idiosyncrasies. For example, it could send Western Europe into an ice age. That story begins with the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation…
We do love our tribes
Tribalism: a strong identification with and loyalty to one’s tribe or social group, often accompanied by an “us vs. them” mentality Back in the old…
About those oaths and Charles Mountbatten-Windsor
The debate persists. Why are Canadians, citizens of a democracy, required to swear oaths of allegiance to a monarch? The answer of course is that…
Residential school “denialism” and free speech
The recent Assembly of First Nations chiefs produced some good stuff. For example, their resolution to oppose the Carney government's reforms aimed at streamlining major…
Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua: revolutions betrayed
Last week, Daniel Ortega, Nicaragua’s co-president (last year he promoted his wife, Rosario Murillo, to share his presidency) announced the country would have no more…
Are our leaders pyromaniacs?
I wonder if Prime Minister Carney and Premiers Smith and Ford enjoy irony. Because they recently delivered up a big dish of it. About the…
The U.S. “dismantles” the world order
In Prime Minister Carney’s acclaimed Davos speech, he talked about a “rupture” in the rules-based international order that we had prospered under for most of…