Not everything is broken in our world

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World Central Kitchen, founded by Spanish-American chef Jose Andres, is an example of humanitarianism at work. WCK has become one of the world’s leading relief organizations since its 2010 launch following a devastating earthquake in Haiti. Food is essential to life and is vitally important in a crisis. Access to healthy meals during a disaster is a reminder that someone cares. But, of course, not everyone cares. Pierre Poilievre said a Conservative government would cut foreign aid funding. That mimics Trump’s policy of eliminating almost all development and humanitarian help abroad.

Media bias

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Ad Fontes Media is a non-profit watchdog that rates media for bias and reliability. The name comes from Latin words meaning “to the sources.” The organization concluded its own output is biased, because all reports by humans are affected by personal judgments and preferences…

Legislature loonies

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On February 24, Coquitlam-Maillardville MLA Jennifer Blatherwick made a motion in the BC Legislature asking the House to condemn U.S. President Trump’s proposed tariffs and endorse retaliatory action. Eighty-six MLAs voted YEA, five MLAs voted NAY. The five who oppose Canadians reacting to American provocations were BC Conservatives…

Polluting Education

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This report explores the involvement of the oil and gas industry in schools and climate-related education in Canada. Given that comprehensive, evidence-based climate education is essential to addressing climate change, and that youth will be the most affected by climate breakdown, it is imperative that the industry most responsible for driving the climate crisis be prevented from influencing the education young people receive on subjects related to climate, environment, or energy…

Madmen and extremists…

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One of the less frequently noticed luxuries of the postwar liberal order was the licence to be a fool. For the better part of a century, prosperous, scientifically minded countries have tolerantly sustained an underbelly of madmen and extremists — medical sceptics, conspiracy types and anti-democratic fantasists who would quickly have come to grief in less congenial surroundings.

The current world situation

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This is a guest post by Chris Merrick, a school friend who has serious concerns with the state of the world. Most of us can say that in our lifetimes, Canada has never experienced such a direct threat to its continued existence. It is vital to build country-to-country relationships in other parts of the world. The U.S. President is not our only problem because a large number of American politicians and plutocrats are Trump’s fellow travellers.

BC Supreme Court finds racist RCMP acts violated Charter of Rights and Freedoms

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Award-winning Indigenous journalist Brandi Morin posted comments about Justice Michael Tammen’s findings in a court case that followed violent and racist actions by the RCMP. Police were serving as a security force for the oil and gas industry, which is just one more hidden subsidy governments provide for fossil fuels. An approaching climate crisis seems not to matter. Unfortunately, the findings of Justice Tammen are unlikely to change RCMP behaviour. The police force has a long history of ‘dirty tricks’ favouring oil and gas companies.

Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it

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Spanish-American philosopher George Santayana stated the words shown here in his work The Life of Reason. With the rising tide of fascism in the USA and elsewhere, we should be attentive to his warning. According to University of Edinburgh historian Stephan Malinowski, a small group of powerful actors played a critical role in the creation of the Third Reich. In the 21st century, a different small group is again promoting fascism.