Canadian Author and Activist
“Why hasn’t Canada signed the UN Nuclear Ban Treaty?” is the title of an upcoming webinar featuring Liberal MP Hedy Fry, Green Party MP Elizabeth May, NDP deputy foreign affairs critic Heather McPherson, Bloc Québécois MP Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, as well as Setsuko Thurlow, who accepted the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of the International... Continue Reading →
Why is the Canadian Labour Congress lobbying for a wealthy capitalist and former Liberal cabinet minister to head an international organization of rich countries? The CLC recently released a joint statement with the Canadian Chamber of Commerce endorsing Bill Morneau, the former Liberal finance minister’s bid to lead the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and... Continue Reading →
The Jewish Defence League and B’nai Brith are boasting that they convinced the Trinity-St. Paul Centre for Faith, Justice and the Arts to cancel a room booking “to celebrate the artistic and cultural contributions of Palestinians in the diaspora.” The Toronto United Church had agreed to provide space to the Palestinian Youth Movement for... Continue Reading →
Victoria MP Murray Rankin’s recent announcement that he won’t seek re-election is a victory for NDP members who stand for Palestinian rights and oppose regime change efforts in Iran and Venezuela. Since taking his place in Parliament seven years ago Rankin has been a leading anti-Palestinian activist in the NDP. Here is a brief summary... Continue Reading →
If more people understood that “aid” often goes hand in hand with military intervention there would be less uncritical support for it. An important, though little acknowledged, principle of Canadian ‘aid’ policy is that military intervention elicits international assistance. Or, in the case of Venezuela ‘aid’ is a tool being used to stoke military conflict.... Continue Reading →
If the dominant media was serious about holding the Canadian government to account for its foreign policy decisions, there would be numerous stories pointing out the hypocrisy of Ottawa’s response to recent political developments in Haiti and Venezuela. Instead silence, or worse, cheer-leading. Venezuela is a deeply divided society. Maybe a quarter of Venezuelans want... Continue Reading →
What should the leader of Canada’s left wing party say about what’s happening in Venezuela? Here are a few suggestions: “Canada should respect international law in its dealings with Venezuela.” Or, “Canada shouldn’t select the president of Venezuela.” How about, “The US has a long history of overthrowing governments in Latin America and Canada should... Continue Reading →
Few are aware that Canada’s aid agency has spent tens of millions of dollars on media projects designed in part to draw journalists into its orbit and shape perceptions of Ottawa’s international policies. For example, “Find Out How Canada is Back!” was the title of Journalists for Human Rights’ (JHR) Night for Rights fundraiser at... Continue Reading →
When will NDP members push back against the party leadership’s all-too friendly relations with Canada’s leading Israel lobby group? Recently, former NDP Premier of Nova Scotia Darrell Dexter joined the board of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) while four years ago NDP foreign critic Paul Dewar and MP Robert Chisholm attended a CIJA sponsored Young... Continue Reading →
Pro-Israel politics make for strange bedfellows. B’nai Brith (BB) and the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) must be concerned about the furor over Doug Ford’s ties to fringe Toronto mayoral candidate Faith Goldy. Last month the prominent white supremacist participated in a BB support rally and the two pro-Israel groups smeared Dimitri Lascaris... Continue Reading →
Who exactly is the NDP making friends with in Israel? In refusing to heed a call from 200 well-known musicians, academics, trade unionists and NDP members to withdraw from the Canada-Israel Interparliamentary Group (CIIG) the party leadership cites the need for “dialogue”. But, when Jagmeet Singh, Hélène Laverdière, Murray Rankin and others call for “dialogue” they... Continue Reading →
In their obsession for regime change, Ottawa is backing talk of an invasion of Venezuela. And the NDP is enabling Canada’s interventionist policy. Last week 11 of the 14 member states of the anti-Venezuelan "Lima Group" backed a statement distancing the alliance from "any type of action or declaration that implies military intervention" after Organization of... Continue Reading →
Many progressives call for Canada to “do more” around the world. The assumption is that this country is a force for good, a healer of humankind. But if we claim to be the “doctors without borders” of international relations, shouldn’t Canada swear to “first do no harm” like MDs before beginning practice? At a minimum... Continue Reading →
Unions are a force for good in the world. Too bad not all of them are a force for good everywhere in the world. Canadian unions are largely indifferent to international affairs. And when they engage it’s rarely to challenge Ottawa’s foreign policy. Over the Labour Day weekend the Ontario Federation of Labour and some... Continue Reading →
Strange how some people think Canada is a colony, a victim of U.S. power, when so much evidence points to the Great White North being an imperial power. For example, Canada is an international banking powerhouse. The Globe and Mailreport on TD’s third-quarter results noted that its “international operations – mostly in the United States and... Continue Reading →
The NDP hierarchy’s response to noted war hawk John McCain’s death is shameful. Even worse, it reflects a general hostility towards the victims of Western imperialism. After the U.S. Senator died over the weekend federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh tweeted: John McCain had the courage not to stoop to divisive politics. He showed us that... Continue Reading →
Repeat after me: Canada is seldom a force for good in the world, Canada is seldom a force for good in the world. Thomas Walkom’s “Canada should board Korean peace train” is yet another example of how the progressive end of the dominant media has been seduced by Canadian foreign policy mythology. The leftist Toronto... Continue Reading →
You must be logged in to post a comment.