What is so different about teaching?
June 10, 2013 | No Comments
The Government of Ontario is making changes to teachers college. No longer will it be one year; it has been expanded from lasting two semesters to four. This means that students will have to pay twice as much and stay in teachers college twice as long for the privilege of teaching in Ontario’s schools. Of [...]
Duffy and Wallin, a rhyming couplet
June 8, 2013 | No Comments
Karma’s a bitch… or so they say. Stephen Harper was a promising leader when he took over the nascent Conservative Party. It had been so long since we had a federal Tory leader that was worth much excitement (jet-ski fetishists, aside). You should always know that you’re going to be disappointed by politicians, but that [...]
Free trade and why the Ontario Tories still can’t be taken seriously
June 7, 2013 | No Comments
Bad habits die hard. The benefits of open trade are well established in economic history, practical application and Canadian history. The debate these days is never about implementing free trade; it’s just a discussion about how free our trade should be. Luckily (for those of you who can’t stand the indignity of an upright windmill), the Progressive [...]
I Support Mike Duffy
May 24, 2013 | No Comments
And I want him to remain a Senator for years and years and years. Don’t get me wrong; this whole affair is an insult and embarrassment to Canada, but the problem here is not Mike Duffy; it’s not Nigel Wright; and it’s not Pamela Wallin. The problem is our Senate. It’s a rotten institution. It’s [...]
Labour Issues in the News
May 1, 2013 | No Comments
It’s May Day, so what better time to go over some labour issues that are currently making news? What’s the value of Peter Mansbridge? The Tories have made the decision that Crown Corporations need a new strategy when dealing with upcoming collective bargaining (contracts will be ending in 2015). The government will be taking a [...]
Special Treatment
April 22, 2013 | 2 Comments
The current government has experienced some bad press regarding the treatment of soldiers recently. First, there was the heretical notion that the danger pay for conducting training programs need not be as high as the danger pay received for fighting on the front lines. Don’t worry, the Tories stepped in and slapped down the rogue [...]
The Military-Quebecois Complex
February 22, 2013 | 3 Comments
There’s a bit of a kerfuffle with the Parti Quebecois’s attempt to reform Bill 101, Quebec’s language laws. One of the most odious aspects of Bill 101 relates to education. The bill dictates who may or may not attend English language schools. If you attended an English language school in Canada as a child, you [...]
Free Labour
February 15, 2013 | 2 Comments
The Canadian Press is reporting that a Canadian mining company rejected many candidate applicants, including one with 30 years of experience, in favour of hiring 201 people from China. Unions are crying foul, naturally, but other than contravening xenophobic labour law, HD Mining did absolutely nothing wrong. Other than discriminating against people based on the [...]
Oh Right… Democracy
February 15, 2013 | No Comments
The Senate of Canada is in trouble. The criminal charges leveled against troubled Senator Patrick Brazeau are its most prominent problem, but it’s not like the institution has an otherwise-unblemished record. Not only do we have two other Senators, Pamela Wallin and Mike Duffy, in a bit of hot water, but the senate has an [...]
Ganging Up on Teachers
January 25, 2013 | 2 Comments
There’s an interesting development in the ongoing labour dispute between the teachers unions and the Ontario government. Not only do we have unions fighting the government, but we now have school boards picking fights with its teachers: On Friday, the Upper Canada District School Board, which serves a wide area south of Ottawa, intends to [...]