Editorial Rant: RCMP Surveillance of Social Media -- to What End?
Recent articles in The Tyee discuss the revelation that the RCMP have been engaged in monitoring social media – characterized in the article as “ongoing wide-scale monitoring of individuals’ social media use [that] could pose a threat to Canadians’ privacy and charter rights, say experts.” But ...
Column: From the Hill -- Canada needs Pharmacare
When Canadians are asked what makes them proud to be Canadians, many say that our health care system is a big part of that pride. We care about each other and want to make sure that everyone has access to health care when they are sick or injured. But our medicare system has some big gaps, and one of those is our access to...
Op/Ed: It's Wrong-headed to Protect Nature with Human-style Rights
By Anna Grear, for Aeon How can the law account for the value of complex, nonhuman entities such as rivers, lakes, forests and ecosystems? At a time of runaway climate change, when the Earth’s biosphere is on the brink of collapse and species extinctions are accelerating, this has become a vital question. Some theorists argue...
OP/ED: B.C.’s first ever Poverty Reduction Plan tracks strong start with comprehensive approach but gaps need to be filled moving forward
The B.C. Poverty Reduction Coalition (BCPRC) congratulates the provincial government for launching the first ever poverty reduction plan for B.C.: TogetherBC. After a decade of advocacy, B.C. is no longer the only province without a poverty reduction strategy. The BCPRC welcomes the strong start outlined in the plan tracking...
OP/ED: BC SPCA urges public to support bill protecting animals
The BC SPCA is encouraging members of the public to show their support for Bill C-84, which broadens the definition of bestiality and expands provisions against animals used for fighting. Bill C-84 was introduced by former Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould and includes amendments to section 445.1(1)(b) and 447 of the...
Editorial: We aren't enlightened, we're just short of workers
Will the new Builders Code help women and other minorities survive in the trades? Time will tell. Race and gender still provoke ostracism, bullying, harassment, hazing … call it what you will, it is all too common, and it creates a toxic workplace, especially for those at whom it’s directed. In some cases,...
COLUMN: Part Three: The West is Best, What do we Owe the Rest?
Part Three In the two previous editions of the Arc, I have been writing about the recent history of Western global dominance, about reactions to that past, and what it reveals about human consciousness expressed in culture. Two main authors are my resource for conversation about culture and consciousness in evolution: Robert...
Opinion: Opportunity costs: can carbon taxing become a positive-sum game?
By John Quiggin, professor of Economics at Queensland University in Brisbane, for Aeon Climate change, caused by human activity, is arguably the biggest single problem facing the world today, and it is deeply entangled with the question of how to lift billions of people out of poverty without destroying the global environment...
Opinion: Belief in Meritocracy is not only False; it's Morally Wrong
By Clifton Mark, for Aeon; edited by Nigel Warburton ‘We are true to our creed when a little girl born into the bleakest poverty knows that she has the same chance to succeed as anybody else …’ Barack Obama, inaugural address, 2013 ‘We must create a level playing field for American companies and workers.’ Donald Trump,...
Column: on SNC-Lavalin and our government
Last Wednesday we heard riveting testimony from former Attorney General Jody Wilson-Raybould on her account of events in the SNC-Lavalin story. This is a long and sordid tale of corruption both abroad and here in Canada. As the SNC-Lavalin scandal rolls out, I’m reminded of Tommy Douglas’ political fable “Mouseland”. In it,...
