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"There is no greatness where simplicity, goodness and truth are absent." Leo Tolstoy
It's About Over-Extraction
2024-04-21 13:23
The Liberals say that their budget is about restoring generational fairness. Some economists say that the problem is over-extraction. Evan Dyer writes:"Income matters less than it used to. A… Read More
In The Gutter
2024-04-17 12:59
Craig Wallace writes that you can't run a country on outrage and insults. But that, apparently, is what Pierre Poilievre intends to do. Wallace writes:If recent polls remain the same, someti… Read More
Today's The Day
2024-04-15 12:54
Today's the day Donald Trump goes to criminal court. Jennifer Rubin writes:The day has finally arrived for the historic trial in Manhattan of Donald Trump on charges of falsifying business d… Read More
Idiocy -- Pure In Simple
2024-04-13 15:21
Arizona women are now living with an anti-abortion law that was passed in 1864, before they had the right to vote. Dana Milbank writes:Trump accurately boasts that “I was able to kill… Read More
2024-04-11 14:22
 Max Fawcett writes that Doug Ford is dumbing down Ontario:At an announcement for a new medical school at York University, Ford suggested that he wanted to get rid of all the province&r&hell…Read More
A Weird, Weird World
2024-04-09 13:00
Fifty years ago, Louis Armstrong had a big hit singing "What A Wonderful World." That song doesn't characterize the world we live in. Susan Riley writes:Anyone looking for evidence that we l… Read More
Here Come The Nutbars
2024-04-06 13:52
InfoWars nutbar Alex Jones has endorsed Pierre Poilievre. Emily Leedham writes:Pierre Poilievre has earned a new admirer — conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.Jones, who regularly promotes… Read More
Climate Fools
2024-04-04 13:02
Max Fawcett writes that Conservative climate policy is a joke:There’s a growing irony in the carbon tax increase falling on April Fools’ Day every year, since it now offers an an… Read More
Holy, Holy, Holy
2024-04-01 13:07
Donald Trump is hawking Bibles. Michael Harris writes:It wasn’t cologne.  It wasn’t those $399 Never Surrender gold high-top running shoes. It wasn’t a T-shi… Read More
Lies Can Get You A Long Way
2024-03-28 12:53
Pierre Poilievre keeps repeating a lie. Bruce Arthur writes:The top issue facing Canadians right now, if you ask Canadians, is affordability. Inflation rose, and is falling to a new, higher… Read More
A Contrary View
2024-03-25 15:47
If the polls are to be believed, we are headed for a Conservative juggernaut. Susan Riley isn't so sure:Lurking somewhere between despair and denial, you can spot tiny glimmers of hope for n… Read More
Wisdom That Will Be Missed
2024-03-23 18:40
On the day of Brian Mulroney's state funeral, Catherine McKenna writes that Brian Mulroney was wise in a way that today's Conservatives aren't:In 1987, U.S. president Ronald Reagan and prime… Read More
The Carbon Tax: In Memorium
2024-03-20 12:56
Max Fawcett writes that the carbon tax is dead:How did the Trudeau government’s signature climate policy turn into a political albatross? As Ernest Hemingway might say: gradually, then… Read More
No Bosom Buddies
2024-03-18 13:07
You might think that, if Pierre Poilievre becomes prime minister, Doug Ford would be ecstatic. Martin Regg Cohn writes that such is not the case:By rights, these two right-wingers should be… Read More
The Bond Is Breaking
2024-03-14 13:42
David Ignatius writes that the relationship between Joe Biden and Benjamin Netanyahu is pretty tense:As the war in Gaza grinds on, President Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanya… Read More
The War In Gaza
2024-03-11 12:49
Protests against the war in Gaza are growing. Michael Harris writes:Political leaders who can no longer hear the people are usually on their way to defeat.That is one of the takeaways from t… Read More
Brian Mulroney
2024-03-02 14:42
I never voted for Brian Mulroney. The Neo-Conservative Era -- which he ushered in with Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan -- to me always seemed wrong-headed. I agreed with John Kenneth Gal… Read More
The Question
2024-02-29 13:58
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear Donald Trump's claim for complete immunity. What's important, Jennifer Rubin writes, is how the court has framed the question:The court determined t… Read More
Time For A Walk In The Snow?
2024-02-26 13:45
Michael Harris has supported Justin Trudeau pretty consistently. Now, he writes, it's time for Trudeau to go:Nothing is clearer in Canadian politics than that the next federal election is Pi… Read More
A Fraud
2024-02-22 13:54
Pierre Poilievre is a piece of work. Linda McQuaig writes:So let me get this straight. Pierre Poilievre is going to make life more affordable for Canadians. Yet he’s going to ramp up o… Read More
More Damage
2024-02-19 14:16
The damage from the ArriveCan debacle is spreading. Once again, the Trudeau government is paying the price. Michael Harris writes:Apart from the Canadian public, the obvious loser in the Arr… Read More
Misinformed
2024-02-15 13:52
Danielle Smith believes that the future is in oil. Maax Fawcett writes that she is misinformed: Alberta’s UCP government may like to pretend it sees the world differently than Sau… Read More
They're Shafting Ukraine
2024-02-12 13:30
American Republicans and Canadian Conservatives are shafting Ukraine. Michael Harris writes:The politicians whom the Ukrainian president trusted to have his back in his country’s exist… Read More
Proportional Representation Now
2024-02-09 13:53
This week, the House voted down a resolution to establish a citizens' council to study proportional representation. Max Fawcett writes:On Wednesday, the House of Commons voted against a moti… Read More
They're In Trouble
2024-02-06 14:30
This week, the American Supreme Court will decide if Donald Trump can be kicked off the primary ballot in some states. Nathan Vanderklippe writes:On Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court will hea… Read More
The Irony Behind Conservatism
2024-02-03 14:34
Modern Conservatives don't conserve anything. Max Fawcett writes:Of all Pierre Poilievre’s familiar slogans, there’s one that stands above the rest: Canada is broken. There… Read More
Trump And The World
2024-01-31 14:05
Where Donald Trump goes, chaos follows. With that in mind, Max Boot speculates what foreign policy would be like in a second Trump term:Every president but one since Franklin D. Roosevelt ha… Read More
Lies And Damned Lies
2024-01-28 14:43
Tucker Carlson came to Alberta because, he says, he wants to liberate us. Timothy Caulfield writes:RIGHT BEFORE he was fired from Fox News last spring, the prime-time host Tucker Carlson was… Read More
The Perfect Storm
2024-01-25 14:02
We now have a perfect political storm. Susan Delacourt writes:Two sharply divergent views of those convoy protests, two opposite rulings from judges. Not surprisingly, each side will now be… Read More
It's Ugly
2024-01-22 13:53
Politics has changed. Michael Harris writes:Politics used to be a contest of ideas between parties with different visions of the country. At election time, that produced a winner and a good… Read More
Ed Broadbent
2024-01-15 14:02
Ed Broadbent died last week, Robin Sears writes:That an unassuming working-class boy from Oshawa grew into a pivotal figure in Canadian life and an international statesman is a testament to… Read More
Champion Of The Press?
2024-01-11 13:54
Pierre Poilievre is suggesting that Justin Trudeau is an enemy of the press. Max Fawcett writes:Poilievre’s attempt to gaslight an entire country into believing he actually cares about… Read More
A Wider War
2024-01-08 14:29
Things are spinning out of control in the Middle East. Michael Harris writes:Events unfolding in the Middle East are showing just how right Canada was to call for a ceasefire in the atrociou… Read More
He's Here
2024-01-05 13:53
Everything that develops in the United states eventually crosses our border. So it is that we now have our own version of Donald Trump. Max Fawcett writes:It’s not surprising then, tha… Read More
Did They Get The Memo?
2024-01-02 14:43
Paul Krugman writes that the news is remarkably good:You may have heard about the good economic news. Labor force participation — the share of adults in today’s work force &mdash&hell…Read More
The New Year
2023-12-31 18:52
The dying year has been difficult. Let's hope that we can collectively do better in the New Year.Best wishes to all Read More
Will They Convict Him?
2023-12-26 14:14
Donald Trump doesn't read books. He probably doesn't even read memos. But he does read polls. And the polls are saying something interesting. Norm Eisen, Celinda Lake and Anat Shenker Osorio… Read More
The Big One
2023-12-18 13:46
The next election, Michael Harris writes, will be the most consequential in Canada's history:It will be a choice between today, and all the tomorrows the planet may or may not have; between… Read More
A Blood Feud
2023-12-14 14:17
Not since the days of Lester Pearson and John Diefenbaker has there been so much animosity between the leaders of the Liberal and the Conservative Parties. Susan Delacourt writes:To state th… Read More
Democracy On The Ropes
2023-12-11 14:01
In Canada, democracy is on the ropes. Michael Harris writes:Judging from the public’s view of politicians, especially incumbents, there is more than a little evidence that democracy is… Read More
Getting Nastier
2023-12-09 14:21
As Conservatives rise in the polls, their nasty streak gets wider. Susan Delacourt writes:The fierce polarization between the governing Liberals and opposition Conservatives has put Canada&r&hell…Read More
Not Mortal Enemies
2023-12-07 14:13
Time changes things. Consider the picture that appeared a couple of days ago. Lawrence Martin writes:The image leaped off the screen a couple of days ago. A photo of Stephen Harper and Jean… Read More
Kagan's Warning
2023-12-04 13:55
Robert Kagan is not optimistic about the future of the United States. He writes: Let’s stop the wishful thinking and face the stark reality: There is a clear path to dictatorship… Read More
Perfectly Clear
2023-12-01 14:55
Donald Trump announced this week that, when he's re-elected, he'll kill Obamacare. He tried that once -- and he almost succeeded. Why is Trump obsessed with Obamacare? Paul Krugman writes:Mu… Read More
We Know How This Story Ends
2023-11-23 15:00
Recent polls suggest that Pierre Poilievre will be our next prime minister. Bob Hepburn writes that's because neither the Liberals nor the NDP have figured out how to deal with Poilievre. Bu… Read More
Anger And Wisdom
2023-11-20 13:49
The tide is running against Justin Trudeau. Michael Harris writes:Poll after poll has shown that a lot of Canadians are stomping their feet for the current prime minister to resign right now… Read More
What Sane Person?
2023-11-17 13:45
The Republican Party is a collection of vile and incompetent people. Leading their parade is Donald Trump. But close behind him is Marjorie Taylor Greene. Dana Milbank writes:After eight fel… Read More
Carbon Folly
2023-11-14 13:27
Politicians are chipping away at the carbon tax. Pierre Poilievre wants to "axe the tax" entirely. The situation upsets former environment minister Catherine McKenna. She writes:Life is… Read More
Remebrance Day 2023
2023-11-11 16:42
In a world increasingly obsessed with Imperial Dreams, we must remember the cost of those dreams.Image: Saugeen Times Read More
Will It Be Carney?
2023-11-10 13:37
People are talking about Mark Carney. Max Fawcett writes:Over the last week, two things have become abundantly obvious to anyone watching Canadian politics. First, Justin Trudeau is in deep… Read More
Post Trudeau
2023-11-06 13:58
Justin Trudeau is in trouble. But so are the other leaders of Canada's three major parties. Michael Harris writes:Canadians are getting the picture: none of the major leaders can be taken at… Read More
Another Self Inflicted Wound
2023-11-02 12:55
The cost of living is on everyone's mind these days. In an effort to make things a little easier, the Trudeau government decided to remove the tax on home heating oil for three years. For a… Read More
The Big Question
2023-10-30 12:48
We have lived with a catastrophic myth for a long time. We have believed that we live outside nature. Derek Lynch writes:Globally, we have entered the Anthropocene, with humans the dominant… Read More
The Best People?
2023-10-26 12:49
The Republicans finally have a Speaker of the House -- someone they all voted for, someone nobody knows anything about. The internal communications of Republicans reveal a lot about who they… Read More
Truth And War
2023-10-23 12:49
Truth has always been the first casualty of war. The journalists who cover a war have a difficult task. Michael Harris writes:War triggers a tribal impulse to take sides, to live in a world… Read More
Will We Get Pharmacare?
2023-10-21 13:23
Last week, at the NDP Convention, the delegates insisted that the Liberals deliver a pharmacare program by 2025 or their deal was off. Susan Delacourt writes:Their arrangement clearly states… Read More
At Our Worst
2023-10-18 13:11
The Israel-Hamas War is a case of humanity operating on its worst instincts. Eric Ifill writes:I am embarrassed by the leadership of this country who have polluted what it means to be a huma… Read More
Going Your Own Way
2023-10-15 13:43
We live in difficult times. The Israeli-Hamas War is only the latest in a long series of crises. Susan Delacourt asks:What happens to a government that’s constantly in crisis mode? The… Read More
Wisdom In That Notion
2023-10-12 12:59
Taking her inspiration from Rene Levesque, Danielle Smith suggests that Alberta should separate from Canada. Max Fawcett writes that -- for the rest of Canada -- that might be a good idea:On… Read More
The Party Is A Fraud
2023-10-09 13:41
The Republican Party can't do anything right. Ruy Teixeira writes:What is with the Republican Party? At a moment when they seem to have so much going for them, Republicans again are working… Read More
The Times They Are A-Changin'
2023-10-05 12:52
The new speaker in the House of Commons is a black man -- Greg Fergus. He'll have his hands full -- because he'll have to deal with Pierre Poilievre. Susan Delacourt writes:Poilievre welcome… Read More
Walking The Walk
2023-10-02 12:58
Pierre Poilievre claims he's a friend of the working man. But he doesn't like workers when they're on a picket line. Linda McQuaig writes:The Conservative leader fumes relentlessly about tod… Read More
The Road To Hell
2023-09-28 16:10
Canada and Canadians are deeply embarrassed. The applause a former Nazi received in the House of Commons has left us all red-faced. Michael Harris writes:Yesterday Justin Trudeau apologized… Read More
Dancing To A Madman's Tune
2023-09-25 12:36
Donald Trump just skipped the second Republican debate. He figures the nomination is in the bag. E.J. Dionne explains what is happening:Trump wants his foes to stay weak. By not showing up… Read More
Clouds In The Future
2023-09-22 13:02
Politics isn't just about elections. It's also about what happens between elections. Doug Ford made that abundantly clear yesterday when he reversed his decision to build houses on Ontario's… Read More
We Should Be Ashamed
2023-09-20 12:44
The news services are abuzz with Justin Trudeau's accusation that the Indian government was involved in the murder of a Canadian citizen. But, on that subject, something happened in the Hous… Read More
Mike Roman
2023-09-17 13:33
In Georgia, a guy named Mike Roman has been indicted in the case involving Donald Trump's attempts to overturn the results of the election in that state. Michael Harris writes that Roman has… Read More
Don't Be Fooled
2023-09-15 12:45
Global News reports that in 2018 Doug Ford instructed his Environment Minister, Rod Phillips, to make environmental legislation ineffective:When Ontario Premier Doug Ford first took office i… Read More
Not New And Improved
2023-09-11 12:40
Their convention is over and the Conservatives are riding high in the polls. Given the policies they adopted on transgender kids and race-based hiring, Canadians should be wary of the party… Read More
For A Long Time
2023-09-09 12:34
The Greenbelt scandal has become quicksand for Doug Ford. It has exposed the "man of the people" for what he is. Emma Teitel writes:Ontario Premier Doug Ford must assume us “folks&rdqu&hell…Read More
2023-09-04 13:52
Canada has a housing crisis. And some are blaming immigrants. Susan Delacourt writes:If politicians in this country are going to be seized with housing in the coming months — as they a… Read More
They're Expendable
2023-08-31 13:02
If there's one thing modern conservatives have trouble with, it's the truth. Max Fawcett writes:Sometimes, it pays to read past the headline. That’s certainly the case with a recent Na… Read More
Monumental Cowardice
2023-08-28 12:57
Today, a judge in Washington will set the date for Donald Trump's trial for attempting to overthrow the government of the United States. Instead of being appalled by what Trump did, Republic… Read More
A Lot Depends On The Alternative
2023-08-24 13:37
The conventional wisdom is that Justin Trudeau is in the twilight of his political career. Michael Harris doesn't believe it. He writes:The way most pollsters and pundits and all Harper-Cons… Read More
Conservatives And Conspiracy Theories
2023-08-20 12:44
Pierre Poilievre continues to strengthen his ties to conspiracy theorists. Max Fawcett writes:It’s not exactly a secret that conservatism has made more room in recent years for conspir… Read More
The Blood On Trump's Hands
2023-08-17 13:37
Jack Smith has charged Donald Trump with crimes he's committed throughout his life -- fraud and conspiracy. But he does not hold Trump responsible for the violence behind January 6th. He wri… Read More
Even Worse
2023-08-13 13:04
The Canadian Press reports that Pierre Poilievre is selling conspiracy theories:Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has been hitting the summer barbecue circuit with ramped-up rhetoric arou… Read More
The Trump Of The North
2023-08-07 12:38
According to a recent Abacus poll, a large number of Canadians don't like any of the party leaders. Michael Harris writes:Here are the numbers: 33 per cent Liberal; 22 per cent NDP and 19 pe… Read More
2023-08-02 12:54
Donald Trump has been indicted for a third time. Jennifer Rubin writes:Trump has spent his life evading responsibility for his conduct; within the space of a few months, he has been indicted… Read More
Intellectually Dishonest
2023-07-31 12:50
A cabinet shuffle offers us an opportunity to conduct our politics differently -- something, Michael Harris writes, that we desperately need to do. But Pierre Poilievre is having none of it:… Read More
Uncommonly Stupid
2023-07-28 13:06
Donald Trump will be remembered for many things. But, most of all, he will be remembered for his monumental stupidity. Ruth Marcus writes:If the allegations in the latest indictment of Donal… Read More
Cheapskate
2023-07-24 13:55
If you really want to know who Doug Ford is, consider what Linda McQuaig has written:There will be no cheapness on the part of the Ford government when it comes to providing for customers vi… Read More
Things Will Be Different
2023-07-20 12:51
Many people believe that the next election in the United States will be a replay of the previous two elections: the Democrats will win the popular vote, but the election will be decided in t… Read More
Canadian Constitutional Chaos?
2023-07-13 12:45
The United States is in constitutional chaos. In Canada, we could soon find ourselves in similar circumstances. Max Fawcett writes:It’s been clear for some time now that when faced wit… Read More
Crazytown
2023-07-11 12:30
We are about to discover just how crazy Republicans in the House of Representatives are. Eugene Robinson writes:I’ll admit I was surprised when Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) got th… Read More
A Deal They Couldn't Refuse
2023-07-08 13:05
Ontario and the Feds have come to an agreement on funding the Stellantis EV battery plant in Windsor. Martin Regg Cohn writes:So why did the premier and the prime minister dig so deep? And d… Read More
That Kind Of Change
2023-07-06 13:43
Polls suggest that Canadians are in the mood for change. Michael Harris writes:Within its sample of 2,000 respondents, the same Abacus poll that showed an overwhelming majority wants a chang… Read More
Money And Journalism
2023-07-03 13:24
Some nasty stuff has been going on at CTV News. Michael Harris writes:Bob Fife blew the whistle on the sad state of affairs inside CTV, when he reported in a June 27, 2023, story in The Glob… Read More
Canada Day 2023
2023-07-01 12:45
Where we live, smoke is in the air. It irritates our eyes and, when we go outside, we wear masks. These are difficult days. But let's not be overcome with cynicism. There is still much to ce… Read More
No More Of The Same
2023-06-29 13:03
On Monday, Olivia Chow was elected mayor of Toronto. Max Fawcett writes:Chow is taking the reins of a city that’s in much worse shape than it was when she unsuccessfully ran for mayor… Read More
A Pup Tent In Their Own Backyard
2023-06-26 12:47
Chantal Hebert writes that Pierre Poilievre's performance has not been stellar. He appears to be taking the same road that his two predecessors took:Nine months into his tenure, there is no… Read More
Complete And Utter Insanity
2023-06-23 12:53
The United States House Of Representatives has voted to impeach Joe Biden. Dana Milbank writes:Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) rose in the House Tuesday evening after the last vote. “For… Read More
The Whopper King
2023-06-19 12:40
Pierre Poilievre is using Donald Trump's playbook to claw his way to power. He specializes in telling whoppers. Michael Harris writes:As adroitly pointed out by Gary Mason in The Globe and M… Read More
National Cowardice
2023-06-15 12:42
Tom Friedman begins his latest column with a series of rhetorical questions:What if Mitch McConnell, at the close of his scalding speech on the Senate floor blaming Donald Trump for the riot… Read More
The Bonnie And Clyde Factor
2023-06-13 12:42
Donald Trump will be indicted for a second time today. Michael Harris isn't convinced that he'll ever face justice. To begin with, a judge who twice ruled in Trump's favour -- until she was… Read More
A Train Wreck
2023-06-11 12:58
David Johnston is gone. He was last week's sacrificial lamb. Intergovernmental Affairs leader Dominic Leblanc has suggested that the opposition parties construct their own solution to the pr… Read More
Finally
2023-06-09 12:41
Donald Trump has finally -- finally -- been indicted. Ruth Marcus writes in The Washington Post:For me, a seven-count indictment — though we haven’t seen all the specific charges… Read More
Zombie Economics
2023-06-07 12:49
There is an idea that should have died decades ago. Unfortunately, like a zombie from the film The Night of the Living Dead, it refuses to die. The idea is trickle-down economics. It's an id… Read More
The Bottom Of The Barrel
2023-06-05 12:57
Michael Harris doesn't pull his punches. What the opposition parties are doing to David Johnston, he writes, is a "ghastly shitshow:"The slimy assault on the reputation and character of Davi… Read More

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