U.S. and China’s rivalry over Africa’s riches intensifies In my report on France’s invasion of Mali published in the March issue of The Monitor, I wrote that, “According to U.K. journalist John Pilger, ‘A full-scale invasion of Africa is under way. The United States is deploying troops in 35 African…
<Click here to download this fact sheet (PDF)> Affordable Housing Options for Seniors Living in BC Introduction BC’s provincial government has said it is committed to ensuring seniors can remain in their homes and “age in place.” Yet, the lack of adequate and affordable housing in BC means many seniors…
It’s near impossible to ignore the current debate regarding the Québec Values Charter. It would seem laudable at first for a society to decide to reflect on its shared values. There is no cause to rejoice in the face of the current debate: it is certainly not the relevant exercise it…
This is an experiment. I’m writing an essay based on my latest Metro Morning column. Each of these columns take hours of prep, so I thought I’d convert it into prose to see if it’s worth it. Would love your feedback. The rise and fall (and rise?) of Blackberry is a…
For most university students across Canada, this week marks the end of summer and the first full week of fall classes. As CCPA noted on Wednesday, most students celebrated ‘back-to-school’ with tuition increases and higher student debt. However, new data from Statistics Canada suggests that students are not only struggling with…
Some myths are just so hard to debunk. For instance, people in Québec generally assume that they are the most taxed in North America. IRIS tackled the well-rehearsed allegation in a recently published socio-economic notice. The reply resounded of what Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky have presented in Manufacturing Consent as flak.…
Last year, the BC government introduced legislation expected to bring ride-hailing to the province, but many questions remain about what that will look like in practice. One of the bodies responsible for working out the policy details is BC’s Passenger Transportation Board (PTB), an independent tribunal that has been handling…
L’élimination de l’écart salarial entre les sexes transformerait notre monde pour le mieux, tant pour les hommes que pour les femmes. Imaginez avoir plus de temps pour faire ce que vous aimez, avec les gens qui vous sont chers. Imaginez avoir un travail sûr et décent dans une économie en…
BC Hydro rates are going up. In its rate application hearing before the BC Utilities Commission last year, BC Hydro forecast increases of some 10% per year for 5 years or more. In ten years time, rates could be double current levels. That hearing took place prior to the recent…
Opposition to U.S. drone attacks rises globally and in U.S. Joe Lombardo is co-coordinator of the United National Anti-War Coalition (UNAC), the largest anti-war coalition in the United States. He is also a founding member of Project Salaam, a group that helps Muslims persecuted (mainly by the government) in the…
There are important new developments regarding the proposed frac sand operation adjacent to Hollow Water First Nation on the east side of Lake Winnipeg that will have a large impact on the entire project. Canadian Premium Sand (CPS), a publicly traded and Canadian-owned mining company, received an Environmental License from…
Where does the Saskatchewan government stand on the privatization of provincial Crown corporations? You’d be hard pressed to come up with a definitive answer after the government’s partial privatization of Information Services Corporation (ISC), the introduction of new private liquor stores and Premier Wall’s end-of-year comments that privatization deserves a “rational, pragmatic…