Canadian Author and Activist
Canada’s obsession with NATO is escalating the conflict in Ukraine and increasing the possibility of nuclear confrontation. During a press conference with her US counterpart last week foreign affairs minister Melanie Joly said Canada supported fast tracking Ukraine into NATO. If that transpired alliance members would be treaty bound to invoke Article 5 of the... Continue Reading →
Humanity is a mistake away from “nuclear annihilation”, according to the head of the United Nations. But the Canadian government refuses to support efforts to lessen that risk. In fact, they’ve pursued policies that increase the likelihood of nuclear war. At Monday’s opening of the review conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear... Continue Reading →
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine is a flagrant violation of international law. It has led to thousands of deaths, millions of refugees and tens of billions of dollars in damage. Troublingly, the situation could get worse if the escalatory politics sweeping Canada is any indication. A month ago, Ottawa was unwilling to send lethal weapons... Continue Reading →
Canada needs to break its addiction to one of the most dangerous and violent alliances in human history. Justin Trudeau is currently in Brussels to attend a special summit of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Canada’s prime minister will likely praise an alliance that has become more belligerent – with wars in Yugoslavia, Afghanistan... Continue Reading →
While in no way excusing Russia’s criminal invasion, NATO expansion eastward increased its likelihood. Although we’ll never know if the war would not have happened under different circumstances, after a month of Russian violence against Ukraine the two countries’ negotiators have reportedly agreed that it will reject joining NATO as part of a peace pact.... Continue Reading →
On Wednesday foreign affairs minister Melanie Joly told the press, “right now, it’s not about a diplomatic solution” and that “you can’t negotiate when you have a gun to your head.” But that’s simply not true. That’s exactly what you should do if the alternative is far worse. More war is a recipe for many... Continue Reading →
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has been condemned. The suffering of Ukrainian civilians and soldiers is horrible. Righteous fury has been aimed at the primary architect of this crime against humanity. But save some anger for those who will use the invasion to push other agendas that are bad for humanity and other life on our... Continue Reading →
NATO’s proponents often claim it’s a democratic force but in Canada’s case the alliance highlights the hollowness of our democracy. A healthy polity requires vigorous debate on important issues, but no major party opposes this country’s most significant and destructive military/foreign policy alliance. In fact, the NDP leadership has gone to great lengths to block... Continue Reading →
Another election postponement in Libya is a reminder that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is a threat to Africans. Last month, Libyan presidential elections were postponed partly out of fear that Saif al-Islam Gaddafi would win. He is the son of former strongman Muammar Gaddafi who was overthrown and killed in the 2011 NATO-led... Continue Reading →
Undoing centuries of racism requires looking at major government purchases through the lens of whether or not they challenge, or reinforce, existing structural power imbalances. For example, would spending billions of dollars on 88 new fighter jets reinforce white domination? To answer that question, one must look at history and current affairs. Historically, the Royal... Continue Reading →
Canadians truly committed to a rules-based, peaceful international order need voices in Parliament to speak up against militarism and the US empire. Instead we get a supposed ‘left’ party indistinguishable from the right. The recent flap over an award given out by the Halifax International Security Forum highlights how the NDP is jumping into... Continue Reading →
NATO is a bad influence. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization strengthens the worst tendencies of our political culture. Ricochet recently reported on internal government documents regarding a discussion about selling sensors for armed drones to Turkey. Last spring the Trudeau government approved an exemption to an arms export ban to Turkey, allowing Ontario-based L3Harris Wescam... Continue Reading →
For thousands of years folk wisdom has insisted that ‘you shall be known by the company you keep’. This is also true of countries. A recent United Nations vote condemning the “glorification of Nazism, neo‑Nazism and other practices that contribute to fuelling contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance” generated significant commentary... Continue Reading →
Justin Trudeau presents himself as “progressive” on foreign affairs. The Liberals claim to have brought Canada “back” after the disastrous Harper Conservatives. But their nuclear weapons policy demonstrates the emptiness of this rhetoric. Reducing the chance nuclear weapons are used again should be a priority for any “progressive” government. But, powerful Canadian allies oppose nuclear... Continue Reading →
Would it surprise you to learn that Canada’s minister of defence is an arms pusher? Last Friday members of Mouvement Québécois pour la Paix interrupted a $135-a-plate luncheon to confront defence minister Harjit Sajjan. At an event sponsored by SNC Lavalin, Bombardier, Rio Tinto, etc., we called for cutting military spending, for Canada to withdraw... Continue Reading →
Final in a four-part series on the 70th anniversary of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. The first two installments discussed how NATO was set up to blunt the European left and to enable global dominance while the third focused on NATO’s role in spurring conflict and military spending. This article details the Left’s relationship with... Continue Reading →
Third in a four-part series on the 70th anniversary of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. The first two installments of the series showed how NATO was set up to blunt the European left and to justify European/North American dominance across the globe. Recently, the alliance has intensified pressure on Canada to increase spending on the... Continue Reading →
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