Archive d'auteurs: Natalie Brender

Published in the Toronto Star, May 21, 2013 Mike Duffy, China, Syria: one of these things is not like the others. For starters, only the first (along with the inimitable mayor of Toronto) has riveted the attention of most Canadians in recent days. And for those already inclined toward misgivings about the Harper government, only the unfolding Duffy scandal… Read More

It’s looking likely that Prime Minister Harper will boycott the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting to be held in Sri Lanka this November, due to that country’s deteriorating human rights and governance record. If so, Canada may be alone among the Commonwealth leaders in adopting a boycott. Other countries seem to be endorsing a policy of engagement… Read More

Published in the Toronto Star, April 22, 2013 Rarely do questions of metaphysics, epistemology and foreign policy intersect. The past seven years of foreign policy under Prime Minister Harper and his various foreign ministers, however, suggest that the government has trouble grappling with objective reality when it comes to the world outside Canada’s… Read More

Published in the Toronto Star, March 26, 2013 Lots of good news these days if you’re hoping to break into show biz: British music mogul Simon Cowell is now accepting YouTube auditions for his global talent search. And the news is even better if you’re a newcomer to Canada and are yearning to be discovered. Merely through your presence on Canadian soil, you stan… Read More

Published in the Toronto Star, March 18, 2013 The profusion of official statements the Harper government issues to recognize Canadians’ diverse ethnic and religious holidays suggests a deep-seated love of all that is festive and momentous. But for the scribes tasked with writing these messages, it can’t be easy to find fresh wording each year for express… Read More

Published in the Toronto Star, March 11, 2013 Recent months have seen heated debate about CIDA’s venture into funding partnerships between Canadian mining companies and international development NGOs. Earlier in March, CIDA Minister Julian Fantino told a gathering of international resource companies, government officials and NGOs that Canada’s ve… Read More

Published in the Toronto Star, February 25, 2013 Earlier this month, the House of Commons finished the second reading of a private member’s bill (“An Act to Amend the Citizenship Act, Honouring the Canadian Armed Forces”) that would revoke the Canadian citizenship of dual nationals who commit an “act of war” against the Canadian Armed Forces. According to… Read More

Recent weeks have seen a brief revival of discussion in print and elsewhere on the question of whether Canadian multiculturalism is passé. This latest round of debate has shed little new light on the topic, having consisted chiefly of anecdotes about cultural pigeonholing (as opposed to broader evidence about the impact of multiculturalism as public pol… Read More

Plusieurs des thématiques abordées dans le Blogue du CÉPI ce semestre concernaient la politique étrangère du gouvernement Harper au Moyen-Orient et à l’ONU, et sa vision plus générale de la place du Canada dans le concert des nations. La session a débuté avec une critique par l’associé de recherche en visite au CÉPI, John Mundy, de la décision du gouverneme… Read More