Blog and Commentary

Monday, April 30, 2012

Last week, many people on my Twitter feed were questioning why MP Woodworth's Motion M-312 was allowed to be debated in the first place.

Traditionally, a Private Member's Bill (PMB) or Motion is put forward by the Member and the Member alone in response to requests from constituents or the Member's own interest or passion.

The Speaker rules it out of order or not based on standing Parliamentary rules. Generally, if the Bill/Motion requires government expenditure, it is not usually allowable.

However, Members run the Bill by their caucus first and get a...
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Monday, March 19, 2012

The deed is done. Air Canada Employees have lost the right to appropriate collective bargaining.

The Harper government argues that an Air Canada strike will damage the economy; that families will not be able to go on holidays for spring break, tourism and cargo movement will suffer. These are all valid arguments.

But, the rights of the worker to fair, collective bargaining is one of the core values of a democratic...
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Saturday, December 10, 2011

Today is International Human Rights Day. Canada has always been justly proud that the declaration was written by a Canadian: John Humphrey (with the assistance, it is said, of Eleanor Roosevelt).

That Declaration was clear then, about the inalienable rights of each human being… it is as clear today. It was one of the many Canadian initiatives that earned us the respect of the world...
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Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Today, on the steps of Parliament, in the cold, parents of the fourteen women murdered at L'Ecole Polytechnique gathered with other women wearing green scarves to remember those young lives that were cut short so brutally on that fateful December day by a semi-automatic rifle. Marc Lépine was not a known criminal. He was a quiet man.

Following the massacre...
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Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Climate change does not respect national boundaries. The air blows globally whether we wish it or not. The oceans flow and currents change via elements outside the control of governments. This may sound trite, but I want to highlight the fact that climate change is a global phenomenon. To curb it requires a collective effort: everyone pulling together in the same direction.

Kyoto was that process. Flawed or not, it's success lay in its collective goals and strategy.
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Tuesday, November 29, 2011

When is a photo-op just that: a cheap plastic political opportunity, lacking conviction? Well, the PM showed us how it's done, when he put some dollars and his face on the public agenda at Science World last week.

I guess you can say he put his money where his mouth is. But this is a politician who knows when to hold it, knows when to fold it…
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