Idea alert

By Aaron Wherry - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 at 11:31 AM - 9 Comments

Keith Martin suggests we send the professors to Africa.

His early ideas had focused on getting doctors to developing nations. But Martin, a physician who has been to Africa 26 times, realized medical help alone wasn’t enough: without essentials like clean water, a local doctor’s good work could be quickly undone. So he hit upon the idea of centres for international health and development in universities that could serve as talent pools for the developing world.

He says campuses have the array of talents so often in demand in Third World countries – medicine, nursing, engineering, veterinary sciences, law, business and education. His pitch isn’t aimed at students. Rather it’s targeted at the professors, perhaps those nearing retirement, who are the experts in their fields, have the skills to work unsupervised and at this point in their life, have the time to spend in a developing nation.

Q & A: Gene Simmons

By Kate Fillion - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 at 11:20 AM - 11 Comments

Famous for onstage blood-spitting and tongue-waggling, the Kiss bassist and singer also appears in a hit reality show, now in its fifth season, with actress and former Playboy Playmate Shannon Tweed and their two children. Born Chaim Witz, he immigrated to New York from Israel with his mother, a concentration camp survivor, when he was eight. Today, his far-flung business empire includes comic books and a marketing company with international interests.

Q: Your public image is over the top, but judging by your reality show, Gene Simmons Family Jewels, your kids, Sophie and Nick, are normal and well-adjusted. What’s your parenting philosophy?

A: Never negotiate with kids. They don’t have life experience, and they don’t have repercussions for bad decisions, they still get fed and housed. And most importantly: I’m bigger! Don’t hit, but don’t pander or give power to kids. They have to know where the power lies. Otherwise, why would they respect it?

Q: You’ve never done drugs or gotten drunk. How did you teach your kids to resist peer pressure, growing up in Hollywood?

A: If Sophie came home high or drunk, she’d find her Beverly Hills butt in the middle of the Arizona desert in a work camp. I’m deadly serious. The only jobs kids have are to do well in school, to be charming and polite, and be thankful. That’s it. I’ll house you, protect you, I’ll even give my life for you, and in return, you will behave. Continue…

Laraque apologizes for racy ad

By macleans.ca - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 at 11:19 AM - 2 Comments

George Laraque apologized for appearing in a controversial online ad for Octane 7.0, an alcoholic energy drink, saying he didn’t realize what the finished product would look like. In the video, Laraque brings the drinks to a group of scantily clad women, initiating a road hockey game fraught with slow-motion poses. The women “don’t even talk. All they’re showing is a certain part of their body.” said Chantal Ismé, a spokesperson for women’s rights group CLES. Laraque has also been criticized for supporting a drink that contains both alcohol and caffeine, a dangerous mixture according to alcohol awareness groups. “Obviously, it’s not something that I would do in the future,” Laraque said, “and I’m deeply sorry that I upset people.”

CBC News

Happy one year anniversary, 40th Parliament of Canada!

By kadyomalley - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 at 10:52 AM - 22 Comments

I know, it seems like so much longer, doesn’t it?

ITQ is just disappointed that the prime minister doesn’t seem to be planning to mark the occasion this time around, which is a break from tradition, at least as far as celebrating the anniversary of his first electoral victory. (ITQ’s live-ish blog of the 2007 festivities are, alas, lost somewhere in the pixelverse, but here’s her report from 2008.)

According to his official schedule for today, he’s just toodling around Alberta, posing for the cameras here, chatting with Edmontonian businessmen there. He seems to have some sort of announcement later this afternoon in Wabuman, but at the moment, there appear to be no plans for a grand ‘One Year Ago Today …’  speech, or even a closed-to-media-but-we’ll-tell-you-about-it-anyway party. Maybe he’s going to wait until he’s back in Ottawa next week, so he can buy a round for the Little Shop veterans who so successfully crushed Stephane Dion’s shifty green dreams of victory.

Anyway, congratulations, class of 2008! ITQ hopes you’ve enjoyed the last year of political antics and intrigue as much as she has. You haven’t always managed to Make Parliament Work, but you’ve definitely kept it interesting, which is really all that a Hill reporter can ask.

Liberals ready to Think Big

By Andrew Potter - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 at 10:47 AM - 66 Comments

Nice reporting from the Star today, confirming that the Liberal party’s long-anticipated Big Thinkers conference is set to go in January.

I’m generally quite in favour of these sorts of things. A political party is the hinge institution of a democracy, where policy gets transferred into power. It’s bad for democracy when a party is too ideological and unwilling to sacrifice principle for power — as was too often the case with the Reform party. But it’s probably worse when a party is so blindly focused on gaining and keeping power that it loses sight of why it wants to govern in the first place. See: Liberal party from 2000 to 2006.

But here’s a caution to the Liberal party. From the Star’s piece, you already get the sense that expectations for this within the party are high, and getting higher by the week. As always, Liberals are thinking back to the famous Kingston conference that energized the Pearson years, and the Aylmer conference that gave Chretien a push. It’s like they think all they have to do is read a bunch of academic papers and the majority governments will beat a path to their door.

But things have changed a lot in Canada in the nearly 20 years since the Aylmer conference. It’s a much different country, and it faces much different challenges. I don’t have a solid argument on this, but my feeling is that the ideological landscape of Canada has narrowed considerably since then. What that means is that Canadian politics is much less amenable to Big Ideas and Grand Narratives. That isn’t to say we don’t face problems, many of which are open to partisan disagreement. But in general, the country seems to me to have become substantially post-partisan. To put it in a way that will drive a lot of you nuts: Canada, as a state, might have reached the End of History in the Fukuyamian sense.

Which means that the idea that the Liberals will come out of this conference brimming with a grand national vision is misplaced. Instead of a big policy conference every few decades, where they expect to set in motion a strategy that will bring them years of comfortable power, the Liberals might want to consider having a regular series of small conferences. Hold them every two years, or one a year alternating official languages. Or better yet, make long-term strategic thinking a permanent part of the party appparatus. But keep it small and keep it nimble — the world operates in a much higher tempo than it did when Mulroney was in power.

What the Liberals need are not a couple of Big Ideas (High Speed Rail! National Energy Grid!) that will require massive amounts of political and financial capital, but a whole bunch of great little ideas. Can a bunch of little ideas add up to a comprehensive strategy that could serve as a proper political brand? Of course. It’s harder to do, and it requires, in many ways, far more in the way of leadership.

Is Ignatieff the man for the job? Maybe, but only if he shows himself willing to think small.

(In many ways, what I’m getting at is something close to what Andrew Coyne and I both argued a few years ago for the 40th anniversay of This Magazine — our little essays are available here.)

are different challenges facing the country,

already feel the excitement building in the party, and with excitiemetn

Public and private lives, literary and political

By John Geddes - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 at 10:04 AM - 10 Comments

I’m struck by the similarity of the opening lines of two recent book reviews.

Reviewing the new biography Charles Dickens: A Life Defined by Writing in the Oct. 10 issue of The Guardian, Simon Callow writes:

“In terms of what we know about them, the contrast between our two greatest men of letters, William Shakespeare and Charles Dickens, could scarcely be sharper. Of Shakespeare, we know next to nothing; of Dickens we know next to everything.”

And reviewing the new biography Byron in Love: A Short Daring Life in the Sept. 24 issue of The New York Review of Books, Harold Bloom writes:

“The ultimate contrast in English poetry is between Byron and Shakespeare. Of Byron the passional man, we know nearly everything, while of Shakespeare’s inwardness we know nothing.”
Continue…

The war for workers

By Rachel Mendleson - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 at 8:15 AM - 28 Comments

Jacob Gamache never thought he’d end up in the public sector. “There is a stereotype that the government of Canada is very slow,” he says. Seeking a faster-paced, more competitive environment, Gamache used his master’s degree in sports administration to land a job in 2005 with a private, non-profit organization in Ottawa. Though officially the manager of communications and events, Gamache, now 28, says he was somewhat of a “jack of all trades,” creating pamphlets, updating the website, and offering tech support to his co-workers. “I got an opportunity to learn a lot,” he says of the job, which required plenty of overtime. “You come in in the morning at 7:30 or eight, and you’re not too sure when you’ll go home at night. When you do, the laptop comes with you. And the cellphone.”

By the fall of 2007, Gamache was ready for “something a bit more stable.” On a friend’s suggestion, he applied to the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), a federal funding agency—and one of Canada’s Top 100 Employers this year. He took a job with the agency in May 2008 and hasn’t looked back. On top of solid benefits, an enviable pension and a higher salary, he says there’s plenty of opportunity to advance. (Despite his misgivings about the limits of bureaucracy, he’s already been promoted to project officer in a little more than a year.) What’s more: while the recent economic downturn has seen hundreds of thousands of Canadians lose their jobs, he’s had “no worries” about holding on to his. When asked whether he would consider returning to the private sector, Gamache says, “It would be a very tough sell.” Continue…

When the going gets tough

By Kate Lunau - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 at 8:10 AM - 4 Comments

After the video game development studio where Geoff Coates was working abruptly shut down, the Vancouver-based art director found himself looking for a new gig. He heard about another local company, Next Level Games Inc., from a friend. “The more I talked to these guys, the more I wanted to work here,” says Coates. The firm’s positive office environment, as well as the collaboration he saw, appealed to him. After spending more than 10 years in the industry, the 40-year-old says, “it became more about the people than the job title.” He took a job at Next Level Games—one of Canada’s Top 100 Employers—three months ago, and he hasn’t looked back.

Attracting and retaining highly skilled workers is crucial, especially during a recession when “you need your best and brightest,” says Richard Yerema, managing editor of Mediacorp Canada Inc., which compiles the list of Canada’s Top 100 Employers. With all the company closures and layoffs of late, there’s no shortage of unclaimed talent on the market. In good times, prospective employers could afford to offer fat signing bonuses and generous benefit packages to lure the best of them, but in today’s tough economic climate, firms have to be more inventive. By offering things like in-house training, volunteer opportunities and flexible work hours, companies on the Top 100 list are proving it’s possible to offer perks that people want, without breaking the bank. Continue…

Canada's Top 100 Employers

By Richard Yerema - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 at 8:05 AM - 103 Comments

For the ninth year running, Maclean’s has partnered with Toronto publisher Mediacorp to bring you the country’s most comprehensive independent study of workplace benefits. This year, more than 2,600 organizations applied—up 3.7 per cent from last year, and the most applications in the history of the Mediacorp survey.

For each organization, the editors assigned grades in eight key areas: physical workplace; work atmosphere; health, financial and family benefits; vacation and time off; employee communications; performance management; training and skills development; and community involvement.

The result is a revealing glimpse into the latest workplace trends—and into how Canada’s best employers are making a difference for their employees. Take a look at this year’s list of Canada’s Top 100 Employers.

The employers, listed below, are not ranked and are classified by industry. They are presented in alphabetical order. Click on each name to see a description.

(X) Indicates number of Canadian full-time employees

CONSUMER SERVICES

Carswell
Compass Group Canada Ltd.
Deeley Harley-Davidson Canada
Fairmont Hotels Inc.
Gay Lea Foods Co-operative Ltd.
Loblaw Cos. Ltd.
L’Oréal Canada Inc.
Mars Canada Inc.
Mountain Equipment Co-op
Omni health care LP
Procter & Gamble Inc.

FINANCIAL SERVICES

Agriculture Financial Services Corp.
ATB Financial
Assumption Mutual Life Insurance Co.
Bank of Montreal
Business Development Bank of Canada
Capital One Services Inc.
Johnson Inc.
Meridian Credit union
Royal Bank of Canada
Saskatchewan Government Insurance
Toronto-Dominion Bank

RELATED ARTICLES:
A Maclean’s special report: Canada’s Top 100 Employers — Even in tough times, these companies know what it takes to get the most out of their staff and attract the best talent out there
When the going gets tough — Employers are forced to get inventive to lure—and retain—the best and brightest
The war for workers — The public sector is all the rage these days. How can the private sector compete?
Fear factor — Can having a staff scared for their jobs be good for business?

INDUSTRIAL AND RESOURCES

Agrium Inc.
Alberta-Pacific Forest Industries Inc.
BD Canada Inc.
Cameco Corp.
Diavik Diamond Mines Inc.
Ellisdon Corp.
Enbridge Inc.
Goldcorp Inc.
Great Little Box Co. Ltd.
New Flyer Industries Canada ULC
PCL Constructors Inc.
Shell Canada Ltd.
Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada Inc.
Trican Well Service Ltd.

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES & COMMUNICATIONS

Amec Americas Ltd.
Ceridian Canada Ltd.
CH2M Hill Canada Ltd.
Ernst & Young LLP
Gamma-Dynacare Medical Laboratories Inc.
Golder Associates Ltd.
Halifax Herald LTD.
Hill & Knowlton Canada
KPMG LLP
Price­waterhouse­Coopers LLP
Sasktel
Stikeman Elliott LLP
Telus Corp.
Yellow Pages Group

PUBLIC SECTOR AND NON-PROFIT

Office of the Auditor General of Canada
B.C. Hydro
B.C. Lottery Corp.
B.C. Public service
B.C. Safety Authority
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.
Canada Post Corp.
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Canadian Security Intelligence Service
Capital District Health Authority
Catholic Children’s Aid Society of Toronto
Chatham-Kent Health Alliance
College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario
Export Development Canada
George Brown College
Hamilton Health Sciences Corp.
Information Services Corp. of Saskatchewan
McGill University
N.B. Power
Ontario Power Generation Inc.
Ontario Public service
Queen’s University
Royal B.C. Museum Corp.
Royal Canadian Mint
SaskEnergy Inc.
Simon Fraser University
Statistics Canada
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
Toronto Community Housing Corp.
Toronto Hydro Corp.
Vancouver Island Health Authority
City of Vancouver

TECHNOLOGY

Bioware ULC
DeltaWare Systems Inc.
Digital Extremes
Ericsson Canada Inc.
Hewlett-Packard (Canada) Co.
Honeywell Ltd.
MDS Nordion Inc.
MTS Allstream Inc.
Next Level Games Inc.
Research In Motion Ltd.
SAS Institute Canada Inc.
Siemens Canada Inc.
Sophos Inc.
Upside Software Inc.

OTHER

Assoc. of Management, Administrative and Professional Crown Employees of Ontario
Bayer Inc.
Monsanto Canada Inc.
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Canada Inc.

Compiled by Patricia Treble and Michael Barclay

Lock-Polanski-up rants are shocking

By Barbara Amiel - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 at 8:00 AM - 53 Comments

I’m not wildly excited to be at the barricades with film producer Harvey Weinstein, who has organized a petition on behalf of jailed film director Roman Polanski. But a thing may be true even though Lord Beaverbrook—or in this case Harvey Weinstein and Woody Allen—says it. Actually, not quite true because the petition isn’t really about Roman; its beef is that Polanski was arrested “on his way” to a film festival, which “by their extraterritorial nature” are special safe zones. If this decision stands, states the petition, no filmmaker will ever feel safe attending a fest again. The thought of a world film-fest free is almost enough to bring me on board against Polanski.

But let’s pretend that discussion on Polanski can yield to rational consideration rather than utter hysteria. On March 10, 1977, Polanski, 43, and Samantha Gailey, 13, had a sexual encounter in the home of actor Jack Nicholson, who was out of town. Only they know what happened. The reason we don’t know is that the case never went to trial. Grand jury testimony is meaningless since the accused and his lawyer are not present and the alleged victim not cross-examined. Continue…

A Maclean’s special report: Canada’s Top 100 Employers

By Joe Chidley - Wednesday, October 14, 2009 at 8:00 AM - 5 Comments

The talent war is over. Talent lost. Or at least it might seem that way to anybody who’s been watching the ranks of the jobless swell over the past year. How many of us, if we haven’t already lost our jobs, don’t know somebody close to us who has? Even among the employed, the relative glory days of the mid-2000s—the yearly raises and big-bucks bonuses and company retreats—have given way to layoffs, pay cuts and creeping pessimism. And small wonder. The unemployment rate in Canada is nearing nine per cent; in the United States, our largest trading partner and the epicentre of the financial meltdown that started this mess, it’s nearly 10 per cent. And here’s the really bad news: few observers think the recovery, when it begins, will translate into a jobs bonanza any time soon. Sure, U.S. Federal Reserve chair Ben Bernanke has declared that the recession is “very likely” over. But as Harvard professor Kenneth Rogoff, former chief economist for the International Monetary Fund, recently noted: “If you’re looking for a job, it sure doesn’t feel like the recession is over.”

Yet the bad news about jobs doesn’t tell the whole story. Need proof? Then just take a look at this year’s list of Canada’s Top 100 Employers. Continue…

Heavens, how did that get there?

By Aaron Wherry - Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 11:32 PM - 144 Comments

Conservative MP Gerald Keddy claims not to have noticed that a large novelty cheque he presented on behalf of the government of Canada bore the logo of the Conservative Party of Canada.

Keddy, MP for South Shore-St. Margaret’s, said he never noticed the logo when he presented the cheque, which bore his stamped signature. “You’re asking me about something that happened a couple of weeks ago,” he said. “Staff would have looked after it.”

In fairness, the display of the blue ‘C’ logo was quite subtle in this case.

Will we ever know what happened in Afghanistan?

By Aaron Wherry - Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 11:21 PM - 5 Comments

Canadian Press chronicles the latest development—allegations of witness intimidation—in the Military Police Complaints Commission’s attempt to investigate allegations of torture in Afghanistan and what the Canadian military knew, or should have known, about it.

Hearings were halted last week amid a dispute over the inquiry’s jurisdiction. The Federal Court has already ruled to limit its scope. The chairman of the commission has been told he’ll be reassigned on Dec. 11, likely before the commission has finished its investigation, despite opposition demands that his term be extended. Citing national security, the Justice Department has advised that some witnesses will not be allowed to testify fully, including Richard Colvin, who claims to have “personal knowledge” of what military police knew or could have known.

The Liberals are pursuing a parliamentary probe of the issue, while the NDP wants the chairman and Mr. Colvin to testify before a Parliamentary committee.

Is that the royal "presume?"

By Aaron Wherry - Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 9:27 PM - 33 Comments

Somewhat disconcertingly, Buckingham Palace seems somewhat less than certain who Canada’s head of state is.

“I know this comes on the back of what might have been said recently in the press, and obviously we’re not getting involved in anything that was said,” said palace press officer Nick Loughran. He then added, a bit hesitantly: “In terms of her official title, I presume the Queen is head of state in Canada.”

Follow the Fellow Who Follows Fifty-Five Other Followers

By Jaime Weinman - Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 5:43 PM - 0 Comments

If you’re on Twitter, interested in TV news and observations, and want to know who to follow (besides that @weinmanj guy), a good place to look is Josef Adalian’s list of “50 TV Insiders To Follow.” It includes Twitterers who work in TV, like Canada’s own Hart Hanson (creator of Bones) aka @HartHanson, and the many TV critics and bloggers who share their thoughts on the site, including friends of this blog like @TVoti (Todd VanDerWerff of The AV Club).

Twitter seems to be particularly well-suited to TV writers, who don’t usually have time to blog, but are good at making pithy one-line observations or writing brief thoughts on whatever is going on that day on the set. Shawn Ryan, creator of The Shield and The Unit and currently running Lie To Me, is particularly good at this. On his Twitter feed at ShawnRyanTV, he plugs his current show, offers quick observations on the writing process, talks about the other shows he likes, and, of course, says nasty things about NBC. Because if you think I’m the only one who is obsessed with NBC, you’re sadly mistaken. (Ryan got a lot of attention because he was the first to Tweet the cancellation of Southland; he also snarked that they  “even managed to lose the Seinfeld reunion to another network.”) And let’s not forget the ferocious campaign for followers; with regards to Hanson, he wrote: “that Canadian has 12,000+ followers? How is a true American like me losing?” (He was kidding. Really.)

Twitter is a conversational medium, and a lot of Tweeting consists of back-and-forth dialogue — but in a way it’s most valuable as a “microblogging” site. By using Twitter, showbiz insiders who don’t blog are essentially blogging in all but name: they’re posting links, sharing their thoughts. But at least at this point, it’s harder for them to get in trouble over their Twitter participation (unless they say something really outrageous), because the medium requires less time and no grammar, and because all but a few Tweets tend to “disappear” in a way that blog posts don’t, meaning that an old Tweet is less likely to come back to haunt them. Of course an individual Tweet can’t provide greater insight the way a good blog post can (in theory). But you can get some valuable information if you find the insider feeds that are mostly about their work and their business, rather than what video game they’re playing and what kind of burrito they ate while playing it.

Senate Finance Committee approves health care bill

By macleans.ca - Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 4:15 PM - 2 Comments

The U.S. Senate’s Finance Committee passed a mammoth $829 billion health care bill on Tuesday that’s expected to provide health insurance to an additional 29 million Americans. Among the reforms it includes are subsidies to help poorer Americans afford insurance, the establishment of nonprofit health care cooperatives, and the creation of health insurance exchanges to make it easier for small groups and individuals to buy insurance. However, unlike the other four bills put forward by Congressional panels, the Finance Committee’s proposal does not include a so-called public option (or government-managed plan). Sen. Olympia Snowe, a Republican from Maine, was the only committee member to cross party lines and vote in favour of the bill alongside Democrats.

CNN

The Interview: Wael Abbas

By Michael Petrou - Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 3:52 PM - 2 Comments

Egyptian journalist and blogger Wael Abbas has been a strong critic of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s regime and security services for years. Abbas’s exposure of police brutality and political corruption has resulted in his arrest and continuous harassment by state officials. He spoke to Maclean’s in Ottawa, where he is speaking at a seminar organized by Rights and Democracy on free media versus repressive regimes.

Q: What’s the state of the media in Egypt today?
A: There is no such thing as free media in Egypt. All the traditional media are subject to interference and censorship. Journalists are either harassed or they censor themselves. Five editors of the biggest newspapers in Egypt were recently taken to court for writing stories about the health of the president. Some were sentenced to fines and jail time, until the president himself pardoned them. Journalists often times are sent to court or jail for accusation of slander or insulting some religious or military institution. The same thing applies to bloggers; only bloggers don’t have a syndicate to protect them.

Q: What have you experienced personally?
A: My experience is different. They target my reputation and my credibility. There are rumours that I converted to Christianity or that I am a homosexual. I was accused on television of having a criminal past. I’m harassed at the airport all the time when I travel. They confiscate my laptop, memory cards, CDs. I was the Middle East correspondent of a European news agency. I lost my job in 2007 and have not been able to get a job since.

Q: If you were employed by a foreign news agency, how did the Egyptian government get you fired?
A: Like you, I used to think that state security had no influence on foreign media in Egypt. I found out the dirty truth. They cannot operate without government cooperation. They need their offices open. They need to have channels of communication open. They need access to officials, the president, ministers, stuff like that.

Q: What did you write that got them so upset?
A: I don’t know really, because I wrote about lots of stuff back then. But there was a specific interview with the nephew of the late president, Anwar Sadat, who was assassinated in 1981. The guy said that Mubarak took part in the assassination and that what happened back then was a military coup. Also police torture and harassment of women, election rigging, violence during peaceful demonstrations.

Q: Why do you persist with your criticism of the government?
A: Because I need my country to be a democratic country, to be more free, to have more representation of real people in the parliament, to have less power in the hands of the president, to have real presidential elections. This way we’ll be able to combat corruption, and we’ll be able to fight poverty, unemployment, and lots of problems that Egyptians are facing, especially the young.

Q: How do Egyptians react to such extensive state control over their lives and the lack of basic freedoms?
A: In the beginning we were living the lie: that Egypt is a democratic country, that Mubarak is not a dictator. But people started gradually being aware of the charade we are living. We’re starting to demand our rights. We have lots of workers’ strikes. We have demonstrations. Women who are subjected to sexual harassment report on what happened to them. The issue is not taboo anymore. People who suffer police torture are now going forward to report on the officers who tortured them. This is something that didn’t happen before. People were afraid.

Q: What’s the state of the opposition in Egypt?
A: We have all the colours of the political spectrum in Egypt. It is claimed that the strongest and most organized is the Muslim Brotherhood. But I claim the Muslim Brotherhood is chicken shit. They go into alliances with the government, even when the government suppresses them and arrests lots of people from their movement. They are not really serious about changing this regime. They are only after reform, which is a vague word. If you are wearing a very torn shirt, and it has holes everywhere and cigarette burns, how can you reform that? You need to change it. You need to get a new shirt.

Q: What about non-Islamist who are opposed to the government?
A: They are starting to take ground. They were not really influential or active before. The scene was dominated by the Islamists, who had manpower and money. They infiltrated society by doing charity and work with the poor. But now the liberals and the socialists are becoming more powerful. We had presidential elections in 2005, and the person who came second, Ayman Nour, was the head of one of the new liberal parties called the Tomorrow Party. He was accused of forgery because he dared to challenge the president and gained all those votes. He was sent to jail.

Q: The United States fears that the only viable opposition to Hosni Mubarak is the Muslim Brotherhood.
A: This fear is being fed by Mubarak himself. He is using the Islamists as a scarecrow to frighten the West, to convince the West that it’s either him or them. This shows how keen he is to cling to the chair he’s sitting on. But it’s not true. There are lots of other activists. And the Islamists in Egypt are not that dangerous. I believe they are just hypocrites, and people are going to realize their hypocrisy once they have their own political party or are in power to some extent.

Q: How does American support for Mubarak affect the way Egyptians feel toward the United States?
A: I can’t speak for the rest of Egyptians, but for me, if you are aiding my enemy than you are my enemy, too. I supported Barack Obama. But after he came to power, I found that Mubarak became more aggressive toward the opposition. It was as if he got a green light from Obama. This was not the case during the Bush presidency. Bush was critical of human rights abuses and was for freedom of expression. Obama, when he came to Cairo to address the Muslim world, didn’t talk at all about these issues. He only recited some versus from the Koran and said some words of the prophet Mohammad, and he expected people to be happy because he said that. He was just addressing the religious sentiments of Muslims, not their minds. I felt insulted then. He was acting just like the Muslim Brotherhood.

Q: George W. Bush spoke about human rights and democracy in the Arab world, but you turned down an opportunity to meet with him.
A: Of course. Because he’s a war criminal. He’s an imperialist and a war criminal. The United States was always perceived of as a world power, but it was never perceived of as an imperialist power. But Bush taking over Iraq, killing all those Iraqis, and taking over the oil resources of the country made me hate him. I wouldn’t want that to happen to my country, even if Mubarak is a dictator.

Q: What do you think of the United States?
A: Mubarak cannot do anything unless the Americans are okay with it. The Americans are the only ones who can pressure Mubarak. I’m not asking Americans to pressure him. But I want them to be neutral. Give us a chance to fight our own war.

Q: I mean how do you personally feel about the country? You’ve been to the United States several times. You’ve completed internships there. There must be some attraction it holds for you.
A: The attraction is the experience of freedom–the experience of free media, the experience of the civil society. Anybody, anytime, without permission, can have a demonstration in front of the White House. They can start an NGO. They can start a newspaper. This is what I want in Egypt: freedom to start newspapers, freedom to assemble, freedom of the civil society. I have some criticisms of political life and the media in the United States. But still, our case is worse.

Q: It seems that no media in Egypt are willing to hire you now. What will you do?
A: I don’t know. I freelance. I have no steady income. I’m 35, and I still live with my family.

Q: Do you see any reason for optimism regarding Egypt’s future?
A: I’m working because I think something can be achieved. If I became pessimistic, I would stop and I would flee the country.

Q: Are you ever tempted?
A: I could leave anytime. I don’t want to.

Q: Would you meet with President Obama if he asked?
A: Only as a journalist to interview him. I don’t like him anymore.

'We require active, engaged federal leadership'

By Aaron Wherry - Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 3:30 PM - 58 Comments

The prepared text of Michael Ignatieff’s remarks to the Vancouver Board of Trade this afternoon.

Thank you Zach (Bhatia) for those kind words.

I’d also like to thank the Board of Trade for hosting us, and Jason (McLean) for your introduction.

It’s good to be back in Vancouver.

I started my working life out at UBC and I love this place. Every time Zsuzsanna and I come back we feel the excitement of a great world city.

Now the Olympics will spread the excitement of Vancouver to the whole country. When the torch relay starts, Canadians from coast to coast to coast will be lining the streets to watch them pass.

We owe British Columbians a debt of gratitude for what you’ve given our country. You’ve brought us together.

Continue…

Doctors in Quebec in favour of euthanasia

By macleans.ca - Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 2:17 PM - 3 Comments

Quebec’s specialist doctors are overwhelmingly in favour of legalizing euthanasia, according to a survey conducted by their professional association. The poll by the Fédération des médecins spécialistes du Québec found 75 per cent of doctors think the government should establish a legal framework that would allow them to help near-death patients accelerate their demise. The doctors are also urging the FMSQ to take a public stand on the matter. Nonetheless, 20 per cent of those polled say that even if euthanasia were legalized, they would refuse to perform it.

La Presse

13,000 more US troops to Afghanistan

By macleans.ca - Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 2:16 PM - 0 Comments

U.S. President Barack Obama is deploying 13,000 non-combat troops to Afghanistan, in a move demonstrating his change in concentration toward the country and away from the war in Iraq. The soldiers are mostly engineers, medical staff, intelligence officers and military police, with about 3,000 explosives specialists who are being deployed to lower fatalities from roadside bombs. They come in addition to the already announced 21,000-troop surge, and are part of U.S. commander General Stanley McChrystal’s campaign to win the hearts and minds of Afghans.

The Guardian

Garth Turner won’t run for the Liberals

By macleans.ca - Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 2:15 PM - 3 Comments

Garth Turner, the outspoken Conservative-cum-Independent-cum-Liberal former MP for Halton says he won’t run again in the next election. And in keeping with his unpredictable nature, Turner took a parting shot at both Michael Ignatieff and Stephen Harper in his announcement, claiming both leaders’ pledges not to raise taxes are fundamentally dishonest. “Economic growth alone won’t wipe out an historic debt load or the need for spending cuts and tax hikes.” he said. The one-time cabinet minister in Kim Campbell’s short-lived government returned to politics as a Conservative in 2006 but was booted out of the Tory caucus less than a year later over statements he made on his blog.

Toronto Star

Inside the meeting that saved the world

By Andrew Coyne - Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 1:45 PM - 30 Comments

The meeting was not going well.

On Friday, Oct. 10, 2008, finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of Seven leading industrial economies had gathered in Washington for their regular fall meeting. The circumstances, of course, were anything but routine. Four weeks after the collapse of Lehman Brothers, the 158-year-old Wall Street institution, the financial world was in a state of escalating panic. With banks toppling one after the other, stock markets in a death spiral, credit markets all but disabled, the meeting had taken on crucial significance.

Around the world, investors were looking to governments for salvation—only they could provide the kind of rock-solid assurances that might put a floor under the markets. A strong, united statement from the G7, and there was some hope of restoring sanity to the situation. A weak statement, or worse, a failure to agree, and the entire world financial system might well tip over the edge. Continue…

Quid pro quo

By Aaron Wherry - Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 1:34 PM - 3 Comments

With another round of floor-crosser rumour-mongering behind us, our Katie Engelhart considers what the Larry O’Brien trial means for the future of political favours.

“There is a warning out there,” says Errol Mendes, a professor of law at the University of Ottawa of the impact Cunningham’s decision might have on political life in Canada. He suggests lawyers will likely be advising MPs to be more cautious about the kinds of promises they make while striking deals. “Just the fact that [O’Brien] had to go through the allegations, the trial, etc.,” says Mendes, “those things alone should send a warning to people—don’t go anywhere near those sort of possible allegations.” Mendes hopes Cunningham’s “rap on the knuckle” will persuade politicians to be on their best behaviour in Ottawa. “The Canadian electorate is getting very tired and losing trust in politicians,” he says. “The most destructive impact of this is that it loosens trust in all democratic institutions.”

NBC Is Not a Real Network, Take 4

By Jaime Weinman - Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 1:02 PM - 1 Comment

According to Multiple Sources™, the cast of Glee was supposed to be featured in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, until NBC (which is broadcasting the parade) asked the organizers to have that float canceled, not wanting to broadcast a free promotion for another network’s scripted show. Creator Ryan Murphy’s comment — “I completely understand NBC’s position, and look forward to seeing a Jay Leno float” — says most of what needs to be said.

It’s been pointed out by Myles and others that the show that benefits the most from the NBC debacle is 30 Rock. For one thing, the reason it’s lasted this long despite its lack of popularity is that the network doesn’t have much else, and certainly doesn’t have anything to put in its place that would do better. For another thing, the show is about NBC, and in fact the NBC connection is really the only thing that survives from the original concept. The original idea was to do a show about behind-the-scenes life at an NBC sketch comedy show. The sketch comedy show is now almost irrelevant — nothing new in workplace comedies, where character rarely do any actual work after the first 13 episodes — but the jokes about NBC have remained and flourished. The season opener, airing this week, will have a lot of satire of the Leno strategy and NBC’s floundering; as the network continues to flounder, it provides lots of story opportunities for the show.

In fact, 30 Rock may be the only show where in-jokes about the network actually serve the story, rather than being arch throwaway bits. One of the two main characters is a representative of the network, and the main emphasis of the show is the craziness of working for a network (or any business) that’s one little piece of a giant corporation. So jokes about NBC’s suckiness actually fit right into Jack’s character and the relationship between him and Liz. The show can be a bit arch and smug sometimes, but the in-joke bits, which should be the arch-est and smug-est of all, don’t usually have that problem — and I think that’s because they’re genuinely built into the show and its characters. It’s the story of people trying to keep their sanity at a collapsing network, written by people trying to keep their sanity at a collapsing network.