There is considerable confusion with respect to the terms of urban geography, not only among the population in general, but also among the media, and sadly, among academics. Perhaps the greatest confusion is between the terms “metropolitan area” and “urban area.”...
First Alberta, then Saskatchewan, but will Manitoba follow? Next year will be the final year for the Saskatchewan government retails alcohol—nearly 100 years after it began. This history demonstrates how long government keeps its hands on something once it starts, but...
The cost of actually building a house does not vary that much across Canada The Ford government’s plan to expand the land supply available for housing has evoked the usual dog whistles about “urban sprawl” by interests apparently unaware of the strong...
When COVID-19 first appeared in Wuhan, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) strategists seized upon a radical plan to prevent the spread of the virus. Instead of adopting a pandemic plan to protect the oldest and weakest, while keeping daily life functioning as normally...
The land of ice hockey, curling, maple syrup and Celine Dion is a nation overflowing with precious metals from coast to coast. Canadian provinces like Alberta and Saskatchewan, known for their oil sands operations, have an abundance of lithium. Why is this important?...
After a year’s experience of COVID-19 worldwide, the continuing hold of discredited mathematical models regarding lockdowns remain. As well, it is increasingly evident that medical specialists put in charge of public policy ignored existing pandemic preparedness...
First Amendment of the US Constitution: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to...
Historians make lousy prophets. In fact, we find it hard enough to predict the past, much less tell the public what is going to happen in the future. Nonetheless, in the spirit of “modelling” which has provided so much accurate information about our current viral...
Modern medicine has at its disposal a vast array of technologies that can be utilized to identify, track and predict the risk and potential impact of emerging infectious diseases. Bioassays, genome sequencing and molecular technology can identify a novel pathogen. ...
“Reconciliation is dead”, according to a Globe and Mail article penned by two Indigenous academics. That was also the message on signs carried by protestors blocking rail lines in support of some Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs. These people say that by announcing that...
The reports about nursing home deaths keep getting worse. Thousands of parents and grandparents have died before their time because of our collective negligence. At the same time, our decision to lock down has economic consequences that will hurt us for generations....
The World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes that we have to learn to live with COVID-19. Notwithstanding hope of a vaccine, there is no guarantee. Thus, the virus awaits as we step out our door. And it could get worse. Here, the virus has been suppressed by a...
Sometimes I wonder what people will say 100 years from now about the unprecedented events of 2020—not just about the pandemic, but about the extraordinary legal and economic measures imposed by governments around the world, purportedly for the purpose of saving lives....
No doubt many senior citizens will remember drinking from school water fountains long before students carried water bottles. When the school day began, elementary students would rush to get a drink before class, and the other children would queue up in an orderly...
Interim financial results for the 2019-20 fiscal year show that the Ontario government ran a $9.2 billion deficit. According to estimates from economists, the deficit is likely to more than triple, largely as a result of the pandemic and economic lockdown, to around...