Issues, ethics, memory
On September 27, a day millions when of people around the world marched to demand action on climate change, I joined the climate strike in Ottawa with about twenty thousand others. It was a heartening exercise, made even more special by the presence of so many young people. Facebook posts That evening I placed a... Continue Reading →
Young Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, who will speak to the UN Climate Summit in New York this week, has said: “I want you to act as if our house is on fire. Because it is.” One thinks of the carnage at Fort McMurray in 2016 where the houses were on fire after a massive blaze... Continue Reading →
Newspapers have recently carried lengthy obituaries on the death of David Koch, the US billionaire. Through Koch Industries, David and his equally wealthy brother Charles controlled the second largest private corporation in the US, with ownership in chemicals, pipelines and fossil fuel extraction. The company was also, until recently, a major investor in Alberta’s oil... Continue Reading →
My Facebook site has been inundated recently by people sickened by the latest mass shootings in the US and outraged that an American president is acting as an enabler to fellow white supremacists. When we Canadians look at the racism and misogyny being perpetrated by people like Donald Trump, Juan Bolsinaro in Brazil, Rodrigo Dueterte... Continue Reading →
I was invited in 2019 to speak in Ottawa to the Annual General Meeting of the ecumenical social justice group Citizens for Public Justice. They asked me to talk about populism. It's a topic that has gained new urgency following the so-called Freedom Convoy in 2022. Here is the speech: Introductory comments I am so... Continue Reading →
A group of Conservative Senators are attempting to prevent an important piece of legislation from becoming law. Bill C-262 would ensure Canadian laws are consistent with the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. This bill passed resoundingly the House of Commons on May 30 by a vote of 206-79, with only the Conservatives... Continue Reading →
In February I posted to this blog about the United We Roll Convoy which was on its way from Alberta to Ottawa. Those involved said their concerns were primarily about the oil and gas industry. However, it soon became clear that the tour was about more than that. At every convoy stop there was also... Continue Reading →
A friend travelling in Europe pleaded recently on Facebook for information to help her respond to a fellow tourist, an “alpha male” from the US, who was criticizing the Canadian health care system. He claimed, for example, that he had seen statistics showing that 20% of Canadians go to the US each year for elective... Continue Reading →
Paul Dewar, the much loved and respected former Ottawa MP, died of cancer on February 6, 2019. Ten years earlier he spoke at a class that I taught to middle-aged and older adults. Paul was raised in a political home and his parents were staunch Catholics, although he later attended at a United Church. I posted a piece in 2009... Continue Reading →
The United We Roll convoy of trucks on its way from Alberta to Ottawa makes for good television coverage, but the deep sense of grievance and anger on display does beg questions. Here are some of them. What about global warming? Those in the convoy demand that Ottawa simply clear the way for the construction... Continue Reading →
Pulpit and Politics 