The CBC did not identify terrorists in news stories because the term reflected a “certain narrative” and was “highly politicized,” an executive wrote in a newly-disclosed letter. The editorial policy drew censure from MPs and led to thousands of complaints: “We must always choose our words carefully.”
Time for Michelangelo’s
performance review.
Focus on How.
Four years painting a ceiling.
Creativity a concern: themes copied from Bible.
Did not identify areas for personal development.
Did not proactively engage supervisor.
Teamwork a weakness.
Workstation a mess.
Recommended action:
job shadowing.
By Shai Ben-Shalom
In 1874 a Scottish immigrant ship the Moravian glided past the pretty farms and hamlets of the St. Lawrence River valley. Passengers gathered on deck after a long transatlantic journey.
“A discussion broke out among a number of the ship’s passengers,” writes author Peter Price. “‘Who are Canadians?’ asked one person. For the gathered passengers, most of whom were laying eyes on the shores of Canada for the first time, it was a question with no obvious answer. A ‘person born in Canada is always considered a Canadian,’ one person insisted. This answer made little sense to another, who retorted that ‘a fellow can’t be a horse because he was born in a stable.’”
Yet Canada survived. Most nations indexed in the 19th century atlas did not. The Austro-Hungarian Empire, Czarist Russia, Kingdoms of Bavaria, Serbia and Hawaii, Republic of Cuba, Qing Empire, Orange Free State, all gone. The list of industrialized nations to survive intact for 158 years without civil war is a short list, yet Canada did it.
Ask, “Who are Canadians?” today and tens of millions will answer. Not so in the Confederation era, writes Price. As late as 1889 Nova Scotians used the term “Canadian” to refer to people from Ontario.
The word “citizenship” was “the political antonym of ‘colonist,’” he writes. Empire Day was an annual observance from 1898. The original British North America Act was scarcely a celebration of nationhood; it did not even contain the word “people.”
If the U.S. Declaration of Independence had famous signers, “in the case of Canada there was no signature, no moment at which the inhabitants of what became Canada convened and assented to their new appellation,” says Questions Of Order.
“‘Founding’ moments rarely have the conscious cohesion and clarity of purpose with which they are later remembered,” writes Price, of Queen’s University. “The truth is that founding moments exist most vividly in the imagination of posterity, and their retrieval in historical records tends to recover instead only fragments of later possibilities.”
Questions Of Order is a 19th century scrapbook of the land we left behind. Price is an enthusiastic chronicler. He guides readers through a time capsule of an era so different from ours Canada Day would be unrecognizable to the Fathers of Confederation.
Their flag was an English flag, their anthem God Save The Queen, their loyalty to the Old Country. The whole point of Canada was to save a big, rich land from the clutches of Americans.
“The emphasis on Canada’s British character as a contrast to the republicanism of the United States was a frequent feature of Canadian political and social life,” says Price. “It carried with it the idea of devotion not only to English political ideals, but likewise to all the cherished traditions of the English race, and to all its treasured legacies of mind and heart.”
“Over a century and a half after Confederation, it has become widely popular to mark that date as the emergence of Canadian independence,” he explains. “In all the discussions of the Canadian question, however, the suggestion that Canada ought to establish itself as a fully ‘independent’ state was the rarest one.”
Of course we were more than Little Englanders, even then. The country in its beauty, vastness and wealth inspires a deep pride and affection in most people who spend more than a winter here. It did then, too. As The New Dominion Monthly wrote in 1875, “Consider the name ‘Canadian’ as one to be proud of, and Canada as a country to be loved and gloried in.’”
By Holly Doan
Questions of Order: Confederation and the Making of Modern Canada, by Peter Price; University of Toronto Press; 226 pages; ISBN 9781-4875-22186; $20.96
Prime Minister Mark Carney yesterday redefined his first major bill to mandate that industrial projects deemed fit for speedy approval “must” serve Indigenous interests. The legal text of Bill C-5 passed into law June 26 states only that Indigenous interests “may” or “can” be considered: “Core to the objective, these projects must advance the interests of Indigenous peoples.”
Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre yesterday said he will compel a Commons vote this fall on capital gains tax breaks and other initiatives to “get building now” amid U.S. tariffs. Poilievre made the comment while campaigning in an August 18 byelection in Battle River-Crowfoot, Alta.: “We need to get building.”
Seizures of contraband drugs in federal prisons have jumped 169 percent since Parliament passed a Drug-Free Prisons Act, according to internal figures. Wardens blamed technology like drones: “It is doubtful if there is a prison in the world that is drug-free.”
Many Canadian researchers resent diversity, equity and inclusion criteria used to determine who qualifies for federal funding, says a submission to the Commons science committee. The document cited one instance in which a researcher was asked if they were LGBTQ for a project that had nothing to do with the LGBTQ community: “It is regrettable that criteria unrelated to science, excellence and merit are influencing funding decisions.”
An army corporal has been censured for picking a barroom fight after attending Remembrance Day ceremonies. Score-settling on a mournful day to honour Canadian war dead marked “a significant shortfall of expected military decorum,” wrote a Court Martial judge: “Conduct yourself in a manner that would honour the sacrifices of those who have gone before us.”
A federal regulator yesterday predicted weaker 2025 sales of zero emission vehicles just ahead of mandatory quotas. MPs on June 17 voted 194-141 to uphold the federal mandate that requires 20 percent of 2026 new vehicle sales be zero emission: “Weaker sales in 2025 are likely.”
Dr. Mona Nemer, cabinet’s $393,000-a year science advisor, recommends the government create a UFO agency to take calls from Canadians who claim to spot alien life. Nemer in an Access To Information report said it was likely “only a matter of time before it is discovered” but noted people who claim close encounters are typically ridiculed: “Report sightings without fear of repercussions.”
Muslim groups yesterday in a report proposed regulation of parliamentary “disinformation” against Arab Canadians. Amira Elghawaby, cabinet’s $191,000-a year Special Representative on Combating Islamophobia, said immediate action was required: “How would that work?”
Scotiabank yesterday declined comment on its refusal to make even small change for walk-in customers unless they open an account. The Bank’s new policy follows introduction of a cabinet bill abolishing cash transactions of $10,000 or more regardless of the source or circumstances, the first restriction of its kind: “We don’t have comment at this time.”
Canadians surveyed by the Department of National Defence rate Russia as the leading threat to national security. Other responses included China, the U.S.A. and “immigration policies.”
Federal election managers knew the approximate date of the 2025 campaign call months before it was public, Access To Information records show. Elections Canada to date has not explained numerous irregularities in the vote given the ample warning: “It appears we will have an election call on March 25 or 26.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney yesterday reiterated his pledge to double housing starts to 500,000 per year though federal figures show the target is impossible to achieve. Carney offered no explanation: “We build bigger and faster.”
