Is the populist fever breaking?
Populism, particularly the right-wing variety, has had a good run lately. Liberal democracy has been set on the back foot. The confidence of people around…
Is Brazilian democracy healthier than America’s?
That a South American country’s democracy might be healthier than that of the United States is a notion that would have been unthinkable only a…
Sometimes “the people” are wrong
Donald J. Trump represents the worst of his country—the archetype of the ugly American. I have been pondering what selection of adjectives might best describe…
We still need the NDP
In recent years I have developed the practice of voting NDP provincially and Liberal federally. The federal choice arises largely from the Liberal candidate being…
The U.S. changes sides, whither Canada?
Donald Trump and his MAGA colleagues have decided to do more than abandon America’s fight against climate change, more than formalize climate denial as the…
America chooses ignorance
Back in days long past, in a place called Camelot, John F. Kennedy ruled as president. Kennedy was noted for wanting to have bright people…
I still have hopes for our southern neighbours
Quite a few years ago I spent three years working for a major oil company in Houston, Texas. I enjoyed Texas and I enjoyed Texans,…
The populist right’s favourite country is a failing state
U.S. President Donald Trump is a great admirer of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. Indeed, former Trump adviser Steve Bannon described Orbán as “Trump before…
Party fealty—a public curse
The federal Conservatives’ fealty to Pierre Poilievre is puzzling to some. The man never caught on with Canadians, never achieving a decent popularity even when…
Leo XIV—a new pope with some new/old ideas
So, an American pope. A first. Now both the world’s most powerful political leader and the world’s most powerful religious leader are both Yankees. Fortunately,…
Trump’s biggest threat
“The world is now seeing Trump’s America for exactly what it is becoming: a rogue state led by an impulsive strongman disconnected from the rule…
Yes, Trump really is crazy
According to the The Canadian Psychiatric Association there is narcissism, and then there is narcissistic personality disorder (NPD), a mental disorder or illness. The Diagnostic…