Poet W.N. Branson writes: The old Company wound down and out of the ashes, rises the Phoenix. A people put on clearance, a pelt for a skin, the Phoenix arises anew..." READ MORE
Review: The Spider & The Automobile
Membership in hate groups has long been linked to economic failure. Few millionaires joined the Aryan Nations. More contentious is a theory that all human beings are prone to irrational impulses that pit Catholic versus Protestant, English versus French, white versus Black. “We are hardwired to be ethnocentric,” writes Kenneth Stern, director of New York’s Bard Centre for the Study of Hate. Stern argues we are programmed through millennia to instincts that long ago meant survival but today make no sense whatsoever. Consider the story of the spider and the sedan. He quotes social psychologist James Waller: “Automobiles kill far more people today than do spiders or snakes. But people are far more averse to spiders and snakes than they are to automobiles. Why? Because for most of our ancestral history, spiders and snakes were a serious threat to our survival and reproduction, whereas automobiles did not exist.” READ MORE
Threatened French President
Confidential 1995 cabinet records declassified yesterday indicate then-Prime Minister Jean Chretien threatened the President of France not to act if Québec voted for independence. France would “find itself isolated in the United Nations,” Chretien said. READ MORE
Tell MPs Tax Bill’s Too Harsh
A cabinet bill to penalize taxpayers slow to comply with Canada Revenue Agency demands for documents is needlessly harsh and likely unconstitutional, tax experts have told the Commons finance committee. One group, Tax Executives Institute Inc. of Toronto, said under Bill C-31 a single parent in a $750 tax dispute with auditors could be charged $1,500 in penalties: 'It is grossly disproportionate.' READ MORE
Seniors & Kids To Cost $142B
Benefits for seniors and children will cost more than $140 billion annually by 2030, the equivalent of a quarter of the current federal budget, data show. The Budget Office yesterday calculated payouts of children’s benefits grew 16 percent in the past three years: "This is all tied to debt growth." READ MORE
Would Fingerprint Travelers
A federal agency responsible for airport security proposes to introduce face and fingerprint scanners for passengers by 2031, according to a report tabled in Parliament. The Canadian Air Transport Security Authority yesterday did not comment: "The Authority will implement biometric deployments at pre-board screening to improve efficiency." READ MORE
Rare Jailing In Civil Dispute
A Whitehorse judge in a rare order has jailed two businessmen in a civil dispute with municipal authorities. Operators of a local trucking company never said they were sorry for defying an order to stop operating in a City quarry and ignoring a $7,500 fine, said the Yukon Supreme Court: "Once our laws are flouted and orders of our Court are treated with contempt, the whole fabric of our freedom is destroyed." READ MORE
Guest Commentary
Some MPs come to Ottawa driven by passion for public affairs, others arrive by mishap. I’d worked as an educator for 30 years, teaching English, history and social studies. Current events were always very important in my class. Then I saw how Parliament works. I was shocked at the process. Debate is limited by closure. Many MPs are indifferent and never participate. There is no attempt at thoughtful analysis. Legislation is hastily passed and dissent is not tolerated. Is this too cynical?
