This post is at the request of a faithful reader and meant to divert us from election reading for just a bit. We know where we’d like to tell some politicians to go, but what places in and around your home would you send friends for diversion, inspiration, or just plain fun? We’re all looking […] More »

I had a rather breathless phone call from my mom yesterday. I get the feeling Maclean’s is about to lose a subscriber, though I’m sure that scares no-one over there. What had Mom upset was Mark Steyn’s first column in the new Big Mac (read it under Jihad is a Feminist Issue at SteynOnline), in […] More »

I need to get this in quickly, while it’s still relevant. I know the RoC is dying for a Toronto update, so here goes: We haven’t seen sunshine in it seems like months, and the temperature has been hovering a few degrees above freezing for way too long for this time of year. Backyard rinks […] More »

Holy cow, I can’t leave the desk tonight. Breaking news from Paul Wells’ blog. Our very own Andrew Potter has succeeded in the long jump he’s been practicing for months now, and will begin a regular column on public affairs for Maclean’s. Andrew!!!!! Cheers to you. Very good news for you and the country. Also […] More »

Israel Pincu Lazarovitch a.k.a. Irving Layton died today after a very long illness. Born in Romania, Layton was one of Canada’s most successful poets. He was 93 years old. I have transcribed the following poem from A Wild Peculiar Joy (McClelland & Stewart. Copyright 2004 by Irving Layton). Go and buy the book, why don’t […] More »

Thanks to D.B. Scott for tipping me off to this Jim Travers column in the Toronto Star, which pushes Michael Ignatieff as the saviour of Canadian politics. Why the saviour? It’s his brain, stupid. I find something terribly troubling about this analysis, and not just because I am actively working to defeat Ignatieff in Etobicoke-Lakeshore […] More »

Recent revelations about a powerful Washington lobbyist should not go unnoticed by Canadians, especially during the election time. A key plank in the Conservative platform is to increase the number of so-called “free” votes in the House of Commons. The thinking is this would reduce the nasty problems that go along with party politics, such […] More »

Influence peddling, money laundering, corrupt politicians. Does this have anything to do with Judge Gomery and our current election? Sure it does, but I’m actually talking about Jack Abramoff, the American lobbyist who is right now cutting a deal with prosecutors, which will involve a lot of names named and careers tanked, mostly on the […] More »

As the holidays wind down and the election starts to pick up steam, interesting things are coming from the grass roots. Take Get Your Vote On, for example. Originally started by a group in B.C. to engage youth in this spring’s provincial election, GYVO has expanded its reach to increase the youth vote on January […] More »

You know, it can get too serious around here sometimes. I think it’s time we organized a game. Does anyone pay attention to CBC’s The National Playlist? I kind of like the idea, but I think we could do better. Who would be interested in helping me put together This National Playlist? I propose a […] More »

Sometimes, spending hours a day reading blogs isn’t a waste of time. Have a look at the art campaign “Meet the World” created by Brazilian artist Icaro Doria. He treats each flag as a graph and breaks down what each colour represents. Brilliant stuff. For example, here’s Angola: More »