Canada

A place isn’t defined by who happened to be born there and left. It’s defined by who decides to stay.

Posted on 9 March 2013 and filed under articles, Canada, cities, ideas, misc, music

Of all the writing to come out of the punishment of Toronto mayor Rob Ford, the most informative I’ve seen is by lawyer Bob Tarantino in the National Post. He argues in favour of the judge’s ruling because “what is being punished, the failure to maintain the integrity of their office, is a transgression which […]

Posted on 28 November 2012 and filed under articles, Canada, politics

To what extent do we hold individual soldiers responsible for war?

Posted on 11 November 2012 and filed under articles, Best Of, Canada, comments, misc

Forget grammar, maybe we should learn how to speak the language first.

Posted on 9 October 2012 and filed under articles, Best Of, Canada, comments, misc

It does us as a nation no good to look at the problems and failures of the rest of the world and take that as proof that we got it right and can sit back and celebrate.

Posted on 1 July 2012 and filed under articles, Canada

I’ll admit to not being well-schooled in Aboriginal histories, but I’m equally unschooled in other histories. I’m more interested in the broad strokes, the narratives that shape the way people think about their country and themselves. And I don’t think that, as a whole, Canadians think of themselves as being shaped by Aboriginal people, historically or today.

Posted on 21 June 2012 and filed under articles, Canada

Nominating the nominees for the best music award in Canada.

Posted on 15 June 2012 and filed under Canada, music

Of everything I’ve read about the Conservative budget, the most interesting is Andrew Coyne’s column putting things into some context: “Be under no illusion about this: the five years of “austerity” on which we are now embarked will be, after inflation, adjusting for population growth, the five biggest spending years in the history of the country […]

Posted on 3 April 2012 and filed under Canada

Last night, the Junos, ostensibly the Canadian version of the Grammy, took place. And as an advocate for the great music this country has I have to weigh in on Michael Buble’s win. For a Christmas album. There’s a lot of head–scratching going on over this one for those who don’t follow the ins and […]

Posted on 2 April 2012 and filed under articles, Canada, comments, music

Chris Shepard explains why he’s leaving journalism: “Frankly, working as a reporter outside of a major urban centre is no way to make a living. You can’t raise a family on a reporter’s salary. “ I know very little about working for a small-town newspaper, and less still about what that would be like in […]

Posted on 5 February 2012 and filed under Canada, comments

From Minister of State for Democratic Reform Tim Uppal: 1/5: GoC is committed to bringing Canadian elections into 21st century… — Tim Uppal (@MinTimUppal) January 13, 2012 2/5: … by introducing legislation to get rid of the dated ban on early transmission of election results. #elxnresults — Tim Uppal (@MinTimUppal) January 13, 2012 3/5: The […]

Posted on 13 January 2012 and filed under articles, Canada, social media

This is one I’ve been meaning to write for a bit. It started December 2, when news broke that the Gitxsan Hereditary Chiefs in northeastern B.C. had apparently entered into an agreement Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline Project. The exact words: “On behalf of the Gitxsan Hereditary Chiefs, Hereditary Chief Elmer Derrick today announced an agreement […]

Posted on 15 December 2011 and filed under articles, Best Of, British Columbia, Canada, comments, Indigenous

Yesterday, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney announced that burkas and other forms of religious face coverings would be banned during citizenship oaths: From the National Post: “Kenney said the move follows complaints from citizenship judges, MPs and others who’ve participated in citizenship ceremonies who have argued it’s hard to tell whether veiled individuals are actually reciting […]

Posted on 13 December 2011 and filed under articles, Canada, politics

The finances of the Attawapiskat reserve have been placed under third-party control, in part to figure out where $90 million of federal government money went in the last five years. But how much is $90 million anyways? And how much money does the government spend on you?

Posted on 3 December 2011 and filed under articles, Best Of, Canada, comments, Indigenous, main, politics

It’s Canada Day. I don’t have anything new for you, but I’d like to share some of my past writing on Canada that people have liked. My most popular blog post of all time was this piece from last year called “How Independent Music Helped Transform A Nation.” It’s my theory that Canadian content rules […]

Posted on 1 July 2011 and filed under articles, Canada