Omar Khadr has now completed his one-year sentence at Guantanamo, and is liable to be returned to Canada at any time. It's completely understandable that the PM and most Canadians don't want the guy back in Canada. His life is already a mess, and it's doubtful if it can be salvaged. But he's going to be our problem. So what should be done about him, if anything?
At the moment Libya looks alarmingly like one set of tyrants replacing another set of tyrants. The Canadian government has expressed concern about torture in Libya, but that may not result in much since we've already pledged support for the new Libyan regime -- even before we had a clue who or what was running it. For many who rebelled against Gaddafi, it's get-even time.
In the upcoming caucuses and primaries it should be easy for Romney. Not a lot of colour to the guy, but flamboyance can be a detriment. Romney seems a perfect candidate -- no hint of scandal, no big surprises, someone who is competent at everything he gets involved in, who doesn't panic, and is ineffably courteous.
The fact the Sun News TV interview with dancer Margie Gillis was deemed "aggressive" says a hell of a lot about the pathetic state of journalism in this country, where hard questions are deemed mean and unwarranted. There's a difference between a tough interview and a rude interview.
To the surprise of some, Canada is 10th on the scale of press freedom in the world, as determined by Reporters Without Borders (RWB). A lot of Canadians would probably expect us to be number one, but that's only because journalists here aren't often assassinated, arrested, or beaten up by government thugs.
Good on Peter MacKay for not brushing the NATO leaks aside that Pakistan military is helping the Taliban, and demanding the country's government cooperate with Canada. The problem is not the Taliban, but the Pakistan leadership which seems hell-bent or wrecking relations with western allies, and gambling that we are too timid to do anything about it.
Though he's passed away, the writer Ron Lawrence was responsible for one of the more exotic incidents in my career in journalism. After the war he'd acquired a large amount of British pounds that he'd wrapped in tinfoil and hidden under the floorboards of a room where he was lodged in Gibraltar. Years later, he asked me to go back and get it for him.
To the surprise of everyone on this Valentine Day -- with the possible exception of his family -- Rick Santorum has vaulted past New Gingrich to becom...
Ontario Superior Court Judge Anne Molloy was absolutely right in saying a three-year sentence to Leroy Smickle for photographing himself on a computer camera with a pistol, is "cruel and unusual punishment." It's also a ridiculous sentence for no crime.
Harry Evans was the editor of the Sunday Times' Insight Team, which covered stories like abuses in Northern Ireland, and the victims of Thalidomide. In his autobiography, Evans reveals the "tradition" and "laws" of Britain that are used to prevent newspapers from publishing what government elements don't want published.
The world's media isn't paying a lot of attention to a Saudi Arabian journalist who faces death for blasphemy, for his inconsequential musings on Twitter. Now that he's back in Saudi Arabia, Kashgari has vanished from view. An unperson, with brave individuals like Farzana Hassan willing to risk extremist retribution by defending him.
You wanna know the difference between Justin and Pierre? As far as substance is concerned, Justin has given no evidence of his father's panache, his daring, his ideological motivations, his courage, and his curious sympathy for tyrants. Pierre Trudeau relished controversy; Justin Trudeau dreads it.
PETA advertises itself as the largest animal rights organization in the world, with over three million members and supporters. PETA stages "rescue" operations of abused animals, and can serve a useful purpose, which it is exceedingly adept at publicizing. What PETA does not publicize, however, it euthanizes -- kills -- some 85% of the animals it rescues.
Baird's background doesn't indicate he's a natural to head Canada's Foreign Affairs, but he has to be uneasy about Dechert's long range dalliance with Shi Rong. Baird radiates ambition. One suspects he'll get new Parliamentary Secretary when the fuss with Dechert blows over.
The Soviet Union once sought to intimidate, undermine, influence, subvert, exploit, deceive, penetrate, and dominate every country it had dealings with -- friendly or otherwise. It was paranoid and paralyzed by its dependence on the secret police. But today, the best course of action with Russia is to leave the damn country alone.
To mark the occasion of the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth, someone in high command in the Commonwealth Division ordered all divisional artillery to fire celebratory red, white and blue smoke shells on Chinese positions across the front in Korea. The Chinese thought it was deadly gas, and responded with actual artillery.
One wonders why Obama felt obligated to apologize about the Quran burnings and subsequent murder of a couple of U.S. advisers in Afghanistan, when a "regret" would have sufficed. To some of us, torturing and murdering prisoners seems worse than burning a holy book.
It turns out Romney's secret weapon in this campaign -- which none of his rivals can match -- is the economy. Santorum, Newt Gingrich, and Ron Paul have really never worked in the private sector, while Romney's greatest achievements have been in the private sector, running companies, salvaging companies, creating jobs and saving jobs.
