Blacklock's Reporter

Poet Shai Ben-Shalom, an Israeli-born biologist, examines current events in the Blacklock’s tradition each and every Sunday: “Homicides in Ottawa hit a record high. 24 bodies in 2016; more than Montreal…”

Headlines perpetuate the one familiar story from the Arab world: “Canadian-Funded Clinic Destroyed” (Globe & Mail); “No Peace When War Never Ends” (Toronto Star); “Obama Outlines Military Plan” (Vancouver Sun); “Where ISIL Came From” (Montreal Gazette).

“In the West the Arab region of the Middle East and North Africa is all too often associated with terrorism, religious fanaticism, intolerance, sexism, racism, and a myriad of other social and political ills,” writes Prof. Bessma Momani of the University of Waterloo. Momani suggests there are two sides to every story – and in this case 350 million sides, representing the population of the Arab world.

Finance Minister Bill Morneau has stripped the Royal Canadian Mint of authority to launch new business ventures without his approval. The order followed millions in losses on a digital currency program. Morneau also ordered the Mint to report all Access To Information releases to his office, and all correspondence with MPs and senators: "It's not something I would have done."

Passage of a bill mandating prompt payment for subcontractors on public works has been delayed after senators declined to vote on it in committee. General contractors object to the measure: "We all know the dynamics, okay?"

The environmental impact of a national carbon tax is uncertain, say Access To Information memos from the finance department. Staff also warned all consumers will pay more under the tax to take effect in 2018: "Carbon taxes have disadvantages."

Rail safety reforms enacted after the Lac-Mégantic disaster failed to avert the fiery derailment of tank cars in a 2015 wreck, warns the Transportation Safety Board. Investigators yesterday cautioned regulations appeared inadequate: "They did not perform any better."

VIA Rail has again been cited by regulators for failing to accommodate disabled passengers. The ruling by the Canadian Transportation Agency followed a successful 2007 Supreme Court lawsuit against VIA by the Council of Canadians with Disabilities: "They still got it wrong."

RCMP in 1983 secretly assigned undercover officers to shadow a teachers’ union president, newly-released records show. Access To Information files detail elaborate surveillance in British Columbia in 1983 and ’84 over fears of a general strike: “Feelings are running high.”

Unpaid contractors on public works have faced blacklisting in attempting to collect money they’re owed, a Senate panel yesterday was told. Senators are considering a bill mandating 30-day payment to trades and subcontractors: "I can assure you it exists."

The first parliamentary report on the impact of a national carbon tax is due in three weeks. The Senate energy committee yesterday served notice it will report by March 9 on the effect of cabinet’s greenhouse gas emission targets: "When will the government face the music?"

A medical marijuana grower received a $50,000 grant in the name of industrial research, say Access To Information records. An MP who co-authored a 2014 Commons health committee report on cannabis described the subsidy as inappropriate: "I wouldn’t invest any government money in the production of marijuana."

Accidental damage to buried utility lines costs up to $5 billion a year, the Senate energy committee has been told. Senators expressed support for a bill to create a national call-before-you-dig system: "There is really nothing but upside."

MPs last night protested an 11th hour bid by cabinet to amend a DNA privacy bill already endorsed by the Commons justice committee. Members of all leading parties accused cabinet of gutting the legislation: "This action makes me more than a little bit angry."

Canada’s Public Sector Integrity Commissioner says a Court ruling that he breached a whistleblower’s right to procedural fairness will not be appealed. One MP called the case outrageous: "It raises very serious questions."

The Canada Border Services Agency faces a federal lawsuit over alleged racial profiling. The Canadian Human Rights Commission has identified 77 profiling complaints against the Agency in the period from 2011 to 2016: "It was rude and humiliating."