Articles

I often find it hard to feel empathy for Prime Minister Stephen Harper. But when I saw the grim picture of him talking on the phone following the end of his confinement in the locked down House of Commons yesterday, I sensed in him a vulnerability he rarely exhibits. Harper, like his fellow MPs, Parliamentary staff, media, visitors and children in the downstairs daycare, had likely hunkered (…)

As more European governments line up to recognize a Palestinian state, Israel (and the U.S.) look more isolated than ever. In his recent meeting with President Obama, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saidthat he was “committed to the vision of peace for two states for two peoples.” That sounds nice. But if he’d been pressed, Netanyahu might have admitted that the two states he had (…)

It’s getting difficult to remember a time when the Canadian Parliament actually tried to make principled decisions regarding foreign policy and our place in the community of nations. But we should try. Perhaps a first step in returning to such a time was the decision of the NDP and Liberal Party to oppose Stephen Harper’s most recent ill-considered and cynical march to war with his decision of (…)

Increasingly of late, Prof Romila Thapar is required to assume the nearly impossible role of Emperor Akbar, who, according to the official plaque at his tomb near Agra, had “created a nation out of a mob”. To her credit (and sorrow), the ageless historian stands firm among a handful of public intellectuals left in India who have refused to be pulverised by the rise of right-wing Hindutva mobs. (…)

Only minutes after shots rang outinside Canada’s parliament buildings and on the streets of Ottawa today, mainstream media quickly launched into fear-driven reporting, largely failing to look critically at the incident. Importantly, this shooting occurs as Canada’s Conservative government moves to join a violent and cynical US-driven military campaign in Iraq and Syria, moving both military (…)

The word ’chutzpah’ cannot be translated into English. As an essential part of human behaviour, however, it has entered the daily language of many East Coast Americans or, more precisely, in its Yiddish pronunciation: ’chutzpeh’. Chutzpah is exaggerated self confidence, often with a lack of consideration for the other. Chutzpah is an essential component of the Israeli psyche, and Israeli (…)

Since the publication of Une stratégie altermondialiste, history has shifted into high gear. We can say that the hypotheses and proposals of the book have been confirmed, together with their uncertainties and contradictions. They now need to be specified in light of recent events. The deepening of the structural crisis is confirmed and the ruling class has intensified its violence to maintain (…)

Just like against the Gaza Strip, Israel has launched an offensive against Jerusalem. And just like in the 1980’s under General Ariel Sharon, Israel is attempting to re-engineer Middle East politics and erase the Palestians as a political actor. The Palestinian leadership, Arab governments and international community condemned the new Israeli settlement plans in Jerusalem. Washington (…)

This past month, Glenn Greenwald stopped by Montreal on his Canadian speaking tour. The Concordia University event was a fundraiser for the Freedom of the Press Foundation and began with a trailer of CITIZENFOUR, a film portrait of Edward Snowden, which is being screened on the November 13 by Rencontres Internationales du Documentaire de Montreal (RIDM). Greenwald stood in front of an audience (…)