December 2010

Education – so obvious people forget about it

December 30, 2010 Society

Do you consider yourself educated? Literate? If so, then you’re one in a dwindling number of Canadians, as our standards are slipping, and they’re slipping fast. The percentage of functionally illiterate Canadians – they can read words but can’t understand the context in which they appear – is hovering around 50 percent. As a result, [...]

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Time for Ignatieff to make his mark

December 27, 2010 Politics

There used to be a time when an alternation of Conservative and Liberal governments was the norm in Canada. Actually, they were all, or almost all, small-l liberal governments, as the then-Progressive Conservative Party was really just another “Liberal” party by a different name. Even today’s Conservative Party has evolved into a “Liberal Lite” party, [...]

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Alberta Liberals – out of the woods?

December 23, 2010 Politics

It’s the day before Christmas and something is stirring in the political corridors of Alberta. Why, it’s the Alberta Liberals! They’ve come out to announce that their party is “back on track” after some rather nasty infighting, defections and name-calling.

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Outlook 2011

December 22, 2010 Business

We’ve made it: we’re in the final days of 2010. Was 2010 everything you wished for? Probably not, so better luck next year. Overall, though, I don’t think that in Canada we have a lot of reason to complain, particularly when we look at what’s been happening in the United States, Britain, Europe and many [...]

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Pension debate proves that honesty is in short supply

December 21, 2010 Politics

I consider myself to be one of the “ordinary” Canadians politicians like Jack Layton keep talking about. I’m not rich or poor; just stuck in the “middle” and struggling like at least 80 per cent of my compatriots.

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Ignatieff plans to target only the smallest number of voters

December 18, 2010 Politics

Honest to God, is there a better comedy act in Canada than our own politicians? Not surprisingly, political humour and satire (Royal Canadian Air Farce, for example, which makes a comeback on CBC on New Year’s Eve to make us forget about Canada’s unfunniest “comedian”, Ron James) usually perform better in TV ratings than conventional [...]

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Greatest iPad apps around

December 17, 2010 Science & Technology

I was among the first Canadians to get the iPad on May 28, the day this great device was released in this Canada. For me, the iPad is mostly an e-reader that allows me to read all my favourite newspapers and magazines in style (while cancelling all my print subscriptions). I also use it for [...]

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NDP could become Canada’s Tea Party if it played its cards right

December 15, 2010 Politics

Who doesn’t remember the talk of “Canadians around the kitchen tables” heard throughout the campaign leading up to the last federal election? NDP leader Jack Layton was fighting hard to achieve his goal – becoming the leader of the Official Opposition. He figured his votes would come from millions and millions of “ordinary” Canadians who [...]

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Do we have the right to know everything?

December 14, 2010 Politics

With WikiLeaks dumping all sorts of confidential government documents on the Internet indiscriminately, and WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on record as saying that he doesn’t care if innocent people, such as Afghan informers and collaborators, are killed because of his leaks, as long as he can achieve his ultimate – left-wing – goal of destroying [...]

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Can we really trust our media?

December 10, 2010 Media

I should probably preface this column by saying that what I’m about to write is based on anecdotal evidence and personal observations, and not on “solid statistics”. However, my common sense and power of observation have always been highly developed, and my senses (the standard ones and any others) are usually spot-on. Having said that, [...]

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