Make no mistake about it: Carole James will be gone as NDP leader well before the next provincial election. But remember: in politics, like comedy, timing is everything. And the next BC election isn’t scheduled until Tuesday, May 14, 2013.  Yes, 2013.  So for the NDP there’s no rush: in fact, it would be politically dumb to replace James […]

 We should have known it was too good to be true. Harper’s many, many repetitions of his government’s commitment to get all the troops out by July 2011 are well known. I think he may actually have meant it because by these repeated statements he framed the issue so strongly that all Canadians expected – […]

Now that I’m back from some well-enjoyed fun in the sun, I am amazed at the number of people who have suggested the biggest story that happened in BC in the past few weeks was the decision by Premier Gordon Campbell to step down.  They are wrong.   As repeatedly explained on this blog long […]

For those considering issue triage — picking five or six issues to focus on — in the fight to rid the country of the current government, one area that is critical to the outcome is exposing the Harper government’s construction of the national security state.   I am referring here to the commitment of the […]

So the Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan drama is about to come to a head Wednesday with the Harper government’s decision on whether or not to approve the takeover bid by Australia’s mega corporation BHP Billiton.  Most are predicting that Harper will cave under the pressure from Brad Wall, Saskatchewan Party premier and...

 I have argued that ideology makes you stupid and if you have power it makes you dangerous. One of the best examples is the idiocy of more and more tax cuts with the supposed goal of making Canadian business internationally “competitive.” First, tax rates regularly come about sixth or seventh down the list of factors that […]

 When asked recently what she thought of Jack Layton’s proposal to increase the payout of the Canada Pension Plan (by gradually increasing premiums paid by workers and employers) Elizabeth May, the leader of the Green Party replied:“I’m not sure why Jack would propose that. I think that’s a very poor idea. It would constitute...

What are the key issues that progressives need to be fighting to rid the country of Stephen Harper's wrecking crew? One is the tar sands and the Enbridge pipeline, which would see giant oil tankers plying the waters off the B.C. coast. Another key issue is the Harper government's oft-announced plan to begin its so-called...

It’s quite a come down. From in-your-face arrogance to a total retreat in a matter of a few months, the big money behind Quebecor’s determination to set up a Fox news North is now looking pretty humble.There’s no doubt that part of this is overreach on the part of Pierre Karl Peladeau and his junkyard-dog front man Kory...

Almost hate to admit it, but I am old enough to remember the advent of television in Canada. In Montreal, in the early 1950s, it all began with two television stations: CBMT (English) and CBFT (French), and we would watch, mesmerized by anything they broadcast',even the Indian head test patterns, with their various very...