Columnists

Running for social justice

May 222012

Politics can be a noble profession once again.

by Jody Dallaire, Dieppe Advisory Committee on Equal Opportunity between Women and Men

[Editor's note: On May 13, municipalities, rural communities and school boards across New Brunswick held elections. SGN correspondent Jody Dallaire was re-elected as a Councillor at Large in Dieppe.]

Recently the Manning Centre for Building Democracy, a right-wing political think tank, conducted a poll asking Canadians what they think of politicians. Results showed that public respect for politicians continues to plummet. A majority of Canadians consistently responded negatively — 52 percent said politicians are lazy, 58 percent said they are unprincipled, 59 percent said they are incompetent, 69 percent said they are dishonest, 77 said they are untruthful, and 90 percent said they are more concerned about money than about people.

These results are similar to the results from a poll conducted by polling firm Angus Reid in 2008.

The late comedian Groucho Marx once described politics as: " the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedies."

Bob Rae’s next steps

May 222012

Insight

Interim Liberal leader surely weighing his options.

by Geoffrey Stevens

With the House of Commons enjoying another extended break — nine days to celebrate Victoria Day — this is a quiet time to ponder a question that perplexes friends and colleagues: What is next for Bob Rae?

Rae has been filling in as federal Liberal leader since the disaster of the 2011 general election, when the former natural governing party was reduced to third-party status. The word is out in Ottawa that Rae will resign as interim leader next month. The party's board of directors is expected to rescind its edict that the interim leader not be allowed to run for the permanent position. And, as speculation has it, Rae will be a candidate at the leadership convention a year from now.

Sonar-guided bug catchers

May 222012

Science matters

Time to go to bat for our furry flying friends.

by David Suzuki

Bats are fascinating creatures, and they're more important than many people realize. A bat can eat more than 1,000 insects in an hour — up to 6,000 a night. Some bats consume bugs that attack agricultural crops and some feast on pests like gnats and mosquitoes. The 25 million free-tailed bats in Bracken Cave, Texas, eat more than 200 tonnes of insects every summer night!

Some bats are also pollinators. Without the services of the Mexican long-tongued bat, the agave plant, from which we get tequila, might not survive. So, right off the bat (sorry), if you like tequila but not mosquito bites, you should view bats as your friends.

There's more. Because of their role in insect control, pollination, and seed dispersal, bats are a key part of the interconnected web of life that makes growing food possible. Even their nitrogen-rich poop makes good fertilizer. Bats do so much for us. Maybe it's time we returned the favour — especially considering the dire threats many bat populations face.

Update on Victoire Ingabire, jailed in Rwanda

May 152012

Taylor report

Also: NATO's missile shield as "strategic options".

by Phil Taylor the Taylor Report for CIUT

Phil continues the investigation into the arrest and trial of Victoire Ingabire, the Rwandan woman who returned from Holland to run for the office of Rwandan president, only to end up in a Rwandan jail. This presidential candidate is now on trial in Kigali, where she has dismissed her lawyer as a protest against the court and refused to participate further.

Budgets convey values

May 142012

Equality time

Gender analysis leads to better budget decisions.

by Jody Dallaire, Dieppe Advisory Committee on Equal Opportunity between Women and Men

This column used to be written by the New Brunswick Advisory Council on the Status of Women, until the New Brunswick government decided to abolish the Council's funding on March 31, 2011. The decision — made without any public consultation whatsoever — was announced a year ago in the 2011-2012 provincial budget.

Supersonic albatross

May 142012

Insight

Does Harper have the guts to junk the F-35?

by Geoffrey Stevens

The Harper government is still scuffling around on the F-35 fighter jets, trying to pretend the acquisition remains a viable option.

The government should abandon that effort. It is time to cut its losses, to admit that, back in 2006, in its early days as a new and inexperienced administration, it made a catastrophic error by signing on to the US-controlled and -manipulated Joint Strike Fighter program. It compounded that error by trying, repeatedly, to hide the true costs of the F-35 from Parliament and the public; but no amount of bookkeeping jiggery-pokery can camouflage the deception.

Black out, speak out

May 142012

Science matters

Websites to speak out for the environment and democracy on June 4.

by David Suzuki

Canada would be a different place without our 80,000 registered charities dedicated to everything from health to economic policy to the environment. We'd be much poorer without the two-million employees and millions of volunteers who devote their time to causes that strengthen our nation.

Recent efforts by the federal government and its backers in media and industry front groups like Ethical Oil to demonize and silence legitimate organizations ignore the important role charities play in Canada. That's why environmental and other organizations are joining with Canadians from all walks of life for Black Out Speak Out or silenceonparle.ca en français, launched on May 7 with ads in the Globe and Mail, La Presse, and Ottawa's Hill Times and culminating in a website blackout June 4.

Charles Taylor and the International Criminal Court

May 082012

Taylor report

Also: taxi co-operatives, cabs as public transit.

by Phil Taylor the Taylor Report for CIUT

Phil speaks to David Hoile about his recent article, The International Criminal Court: Europe's Guantanamo Bay and this court's conviction of deposed former Liberian president, Charles Taylor. The warlike situation between Sudan and South Sudan is also explored.

Phil also interviews Jacob Leibovitch of the Ontario iTaxiworkers Union about different urban models of providing taxi service as part of a comprehensive public transit strategy. Jacob was involved in organizing a special labour conference in Toronto featuring Prof. Erik Olin-Wright of Madison, Wisconsin. Wright described a taxi service that is provided by a driver cooperative.

Website: http://www.taylor-report.com/

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Generosity time

May 082012

Equality time

Video evokes the best in people.

by Jody Dallaire, Dieppe Advisory Committee on Equal Opportunity between Women and Men

Recently, the community news website Miramichi Online went around asking, "What is the most generous thing that someone has ever done for you?" Then the site produced a charming 10-minute video called: "50 people, One question".

Cameras are rolling when people hear the question that they are invited to answer. It is fascinating to see them react live. An incredible number cannot think of something on the spot, but probably continued thinking about the question as they left and when they woke up in the middle of the night.

The fallen media tycoon

May 082012

Insight

Love him or hate him, we cannot escape Conrad Black.

by Geoffrey Stevens

If Conrad Black did not exist, we would have to invent to him. After all, he's the protagonist in a uniquely Canadian melodrama.

For some, he has been a source of perverse pride — a Canadian whose name is recognized everywhere, a fallen media tycoon who once assembled what was said to be the world's third largest newspaper empire. For others, he has been an outrage — a rich scoundrel with political connections who renounced his own land for the fool's gold of a foreign title and who now, needing sanctuary, seeks to crawl, unrepentant, from American prison back to the embrace of the country he so rudely spurned.

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