If students are self-censoring on campus, that’s a free speech problem
A recent Aristotle Foundation survey found that only half of Canadian students felt comfortable sharing their views on controversial topics On the question whether there is a free speech issue, problem or crisis on our university campuses, there are two distinct views. Some in our universities say no; the issue is either imaginary or vastly […]
By recognizing ‘Palestine,” Carney upends 80 years of Canadian foreign policy
Canada once played a constructive role in the Middle East, but not anymore When Prime Minister Mark Carney announced in July that Canada would recognize a Palestinian state, he reversed almost eight decades of Canadian policy regarding Israel and its Arab protagonists. That reversal was ill-formed, badly timed and bound to give comfort to Israel’s […]
B.C. Supreme Court takes an axe to private property rights
Native rights are constitutionally guaranteed; property rights are not. When courts recognize Aboriginal title, it’s easy to see who will win Think you own your private property? Well think again, as a recent court decision has thrown the entire basis of property ownership into chaos in British Columbia. In the ultimate “land acknowledgement,” the B.C. […]
The prime minister’s anti-reality views on Israel
Instead of aiding Israel’s enemies with moralistic scolding, Canada’s leaders should face facts about Hamas and humanitarian relief. Presumptively, on behalf of all Canadians, Prime Minister Mark Carney has condemned the Government of Israel for its alleged “failure to prevent the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian disaster in Gaza.” As with other commentators, he added some gratuitous and utterly […]
Judges should interpret law—not make public policy from the bench
To understand how politicized Canada’s courts have become, one must understand how judges once viewed their role—not as policymakers, but interpreters of laws and the Constitution. In 1982, the late Supreme Court of Canada Chief Justice Bora Laskin said judges have “no freedom of speech to address political issues that have nothing to do with […]
Mark Carney must combat antisemitism — not fan its flames
With Prime Minister Mark Carney’s declaration last week that Canada plans to recognize a Palestinian state in the fall, he sent chills down the spine of Canada’s Jewish community. By effectively demonizing Israel, he opened the floodgates for more antisemitic acts in Canada. The prime minister’s news release lists four factors that are “steadily and gravely” eroding […]
Canada’s anti-slavery legacy is a history worth celebrating
As U.S. president Donald Trump’s trade wars continue, we’ve seen more Canadian flags flying than during the Justin Trudeau years, when flags on federal buildings flew at half-mast amid self-flagellation over “our country’s historical failures.” But few Canadians are aware that four years ago, Parliament voted unanimously to designate Aug. 1 as Emancipation Day to […]
Nurses warned of ‘imbalances’ in ‘colonial’ health-care system
Two centuries ago, liberal theorist John Stuart Mill wrote in his classic, On Liberty, that human liberty requires freedom of conscience, thought and feeling: “absolute freedom of opinion and sentiment on all subjects, practical or speculative, scientific, moral or theological.” His thinking has recently taken a battering, not least in our universities, but that beating […]
Something has to give for universities that are fighting for their survival
In a recent article in Halifax CityNews, journalist Rachel Morgan asked an important question: can Nova Scotia universities survive the red line? Budget deficits, tuition controls and caps on international student numbers combine to threaten their stability and perhaps, in some cases, their existence. The issues are not for Nova Scotia alone; they are present […]
The end of Canada is coming and British Columbia is leading the charge
The federal government’s new law designed to fast-track major projects has put the true meaning of UNDRIP’s “free, prior and informed consent” provisions under the spotlight. At the core of the issue is a simple question: does “consent” mean an Indigenous veto over projects, even those in the public interest? While the prime minister and […]
The Iranian regime’s very present threat in Canada
The Islamic Republic of Iran’s global image is in further disarray after Israeli and American bombings, and the spectre of regime change looms once again. Will the Iranian regime finally fall? Iranian nuclear sites may well have been destroyed and high-profile scientists and military leaders assassinated, but the regime stands. The Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, […]
Justice or ideology?
Alberta court’s ‘gender’ ruling ignores evidence and common sense. Last November, the Alberta Medical Association (AMA) released a statement taking aim at the Smith government for its new legislation banning puberty blockers and hormone therapy for trans-identifying youth. The AMA stated, among other things: “There is no place for the government in the medical decisions […]
Memo to tourists: Dachau is not Disneyland
Within Dachau’s walls, the crowds are frenetic, loud, and only generally aware that something significant surrounds them. How did it come to this? In an age of ubiquitous technology and look-at-me social media, where “selfies” have replaced a focus on others while travelling—remember when people once took pictures of their friends and family, with their […]
Why the West’s separatists could be just as big a threat as Quebec’s
It is a mistake to dismiss the movement as too small In light of the poor showing by separatist candidates in recent Alberta byelections, pundits and politicians will be tempted to again dismiss threats of western separatism as over-hyped, and too tiny to be taken seriously, just as they did before and after the April 28 […]
Apologizing for slavery would be a distortion of history
Canada was a world leader in the abolition of slavery. So why does an NDP MP want the government to issue an apology? One of the first petitions to Canada’s new Parliament has landed, and the topic is slavery. Endorsed by Gord Johns, an MP from British Columbia who managed to survive the recent NDP […]
The Canadian Medical Association’s inexplicable stance on pediatric gender medicine
Physicians have a duty to put forward the best possible evidence, not ideology, based treatments Late last month, the Canadian Medical Association (CMA) announced that it, along with three Alberta doctors, had filed a constitutional challenge to Alberta’s Bill 26 “to protect the relationship between patients, their families and doctors when it comes to making treatment decisions.” […]
John A. Macdonald’s return to Queen’s Park an opportunity for historical literacy
The reappearance of his statue at the Ontario legislature is not the end of the conversation. It should be the beginning This summer, the Ontario government will remove the box that has, for several years, concealed the statue of Sir John A. Macdonald at Queen’s Park. It was in 2020 — after several statues across […]
We need an immigration policy that will serve all Canadians
A new ministry should be held responsible for ensuring we’re letting in people who will further our economic interests, and that infrastructure can keep up Canadians deserve an immigration system that serves the national interest. This is exactly what we once had when most Canadians agreed with the economic and cultural arguments in favour of […]
The University of Saskatchewan is on an ideological mission
It needs to end I must disclose my background here; I was employed by the University of Saskatchewan for 40 years including 13 years as president. The institution’s distinctive origins combined the development of liberal education with a responsibility to build the province’s agricultural industry, and it did the latter with world-class agricultural programs and […]
Western Canada’s creation myth
Why Laurentian Canada’s survival narrative doesn’t resonate in the West Note to readers: We are posting Aristotle Foundation president Mark Milke’s 2010 National Post column on Western Canada as it contains timeless observations about differences in the development of Canada’s regions, i.e., the settling of what is now eastern and central Canada vis-à-vis western Canada. […]
Is It 1938 Out There?
Today’s Hamas sympathizers echo the 1930s ‘Bund’ movement in North America. Since the Hamas invasion of Israel to massacre Jews on Oct. 7, 2023, there has been an eruption of public Jew-hatred in Canada. The most recent example occurred this past weekend, at the start of Passover, when “pro-Palestinian” demonstrations took place on Parliament Hill […]
Happy Easter from the Aristotle Foundation
Wishing you a Happy Easter One reason we created the Aristotle Foundation for Public Policy was to renew interest in the art and culture of Western civilization. It’s Easter weekend, and whether one is Christian, another faith, or practices none at all, art can always be appreciated on its own terms. Here are five Easter-themed […]
A primer on why DEI is a mistake
Why is DEI so flawed and illiberal? One reason we set up the Aristotle Foundation for Public Policy is to give Canadians the data, history, and tools to inform themselves and others. Think of us as the “wholesaler.” It’s our goal to provide research you can then “retail” to students, parents, teachers, politicians, the media—anyone […]
Book excerpt: No Avro Arrow conspiracy
Contrary to the myths, Diefenbaker’s decision ultimately came down to dollars and cents The Avro Arrow has taken on myths of epic proportions since the Diefenbaker government scrapped its development in 1959. According to such folklore, the cancellation was the result of a deep conspiracy that scuttled superior Canadian technology at the behest of a […]
Why Canada’s housing crunch isn’t going away
Immigration levels, with the exception of skilled workers and trades, must come down quickly before Canada can meet housing demand In the past year, multiple federal and provincial politicians finally recognized one important reason why Canada’s housing shortage in the last decade became severe, rents soared, and home prices stayed at nosebleed levels: unsustainably high […]
Book excerpt: The populist vs. the banker
The Coyne-Diefenbaker dispute was no mere quibble over economic policy The following excerpt is from Freedom Fighter: John Diefenbaker’s Battle for Canadian Liberties and Independence by Bob Plamondon, published by the Aristotle Foundation for Public Policy. Foreword by Jean Chrétien. John Diefenbaker was a man of modest means with an aversion to debt. As a child, he witnessed […]
BOOK EXCERPT: It’s Complicated: The USA, JFK, and John Diefenbaker
How JFK and John Diefenbaker both interfered in each other’s election The following excerpt is from Freedom Fighter: John Diefenbaker’s Battle for Canadian Liberties and Independence by Bob Plamondon, published by the Aristotle Foundation for Public Policy. Foreword by Jean Chrétien. Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts visited Canada in October 1957, four months after John Diefenbaker had […]
Donald Trump’s continual, fake cries of victimhood
The president’s frequent cries about ‘unfairness’ are anchored in narcissism, irrationality and political scheming It would be remiss to survey grievance narratives without reference to Donald Trump precisely because his grand claims of victimhood are fanciful: a Manhattan developer/self-proclaimed billionaire who made it to the White House (twice) enduring the slings and fibs every candidate […]
Yasser Arafat — The Peter Pan Revolutionary of International Politics
The grievance narrative fed and nourished over the decades by Yasser Arafat has had murderous consequences The following excerpt is from The Victim Cult: How the Grievance Culture is Wrecking Civilization, by Mark Milke, published by the Aristotle Foundation for Public Policy. “He had a permanent chip on his shoulder, an angry undertone that seemed to insist: […]
Chronic Canadian apologies
Canadian politicians agree on virtually nothing except that apologies are owed The culture of political apologies Have we reached the ultimate stage of absurdity where some people are held responsible for things that happened before they were born, while other people are not held responsible for what they themselves are doing today? — Thomas Sowell […]
Gender affirming hormone therapy doesn’t work
Unicorns don’t exist. More accurately, there’s no evidence that they exist, which isn’t quite the same thing. As astronomer Carl Sagan famously articulated, “Absence of evidence isn’t evidence of absence.” Yet Sagan has also popularized the idea that “extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence,” which is also true, and a reprise of a similar axiom articulated […]
Land acknowledgements often ignore history
We should avoid creating mythology and special recognition that may have no basis in fact I remember the first time I heard a statement at a public event along the lines of, “This building is located on traditional unceded Aboriginal land.” It was in Australia, and it struck me as disingenuous, simplistic and patronizing. If […]
Why I’m thankful for pharmaceuticals
Almost 10 years ago, at the tender age of 90, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter was diagnosed with advanced metastatic melanoma, with lesions studding his liver and his brain. Historically, that diagnosis was a death sentence, with scant months between diagnosis and demise. But Carter’s diagnosis came shortly after the dawn of a new approach […]
The DEI nightmare must be dismantled
The full extent of it in Canadian universities is now emerging Shortly after his inauguration, United States President Trump issued an executive order that ordered the dismantling of “radical and wasteful government DEI programs and preferencing.” This order terminated federal diversity, equity and inclusion-related “mandates, policies, programs, preferences and activities.” Within days, a wave, indeed more like […]
Canada must prepare for a future without the United States
Over 150 years of economic integration may soon be coming to an end There is an old saying in American politics: “If you want a friend in Washington, get yourself a dog.” Canada’s problem with U.S. President Donald Trump is clear: there isn’t a Canadian breed that would stay with him. No one knows at […]
Taking stock of discriminatory hiring practices at Canadian universities
DEI isn’t just widespread, it’s practically ubiquitous, encompassing 98% of all academic job postings. Since the first European university was founded in Bologna, Italy, in 1088, the goal of higher education was supposed to be a search for truth. Alas, too many modern ivory towers in the West, including those in Canada in recent decades, […]
A mind that matters: Why everyone should know Thomas Sowell
Thomas Sowell’s searing critique of bureaucracy—“It’s hard to imagine a more stupid or dangerous way of making decisions than by putting those decisions in the hands of people who pay no price for being wrong”—is more relevant today than ever. This legendary economist, born to North Carolina sharecroppers in 1930, overcame adversity to become one […]
We’ve known it for years: Diversity, equity, and inclusion programs don’t work
Corporate America needn’t have waited for Trump or the Supreme Court: The business case for ditching DEI has been sitting in plain sight for years. In January, the world’s second-largest restaurant chain, McDonald’s, and Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, both joined the long list of multinational corporations that have announced they are discontinuing their […]
As DEI dies, companies would be wise to abandon it sooner rather than later
Last week, the world’s largest restaurant chain, McDonald’s, followed by Meta—the technology conglomerate that runs Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp—dumped DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion). In doing so, they join Toyota, Tractor Supply, Lowe’s, Ford, Boeing, Harley-Davidson, John Deere, and Molson Coors in discontinuing or reducing DEI efforts. Even Walmart, previously one of the greatest corporate […]
Canada’s progressive antisemitism problem
A review of Selena Robinson’s Truth Be Told 278 pages, $30.00 CAD According to former British Columbia cabinet minister Selina Robinson, Canada’s Left has an antisemitism problem. Robinson should know. Until 2023, she was the only Jewish member of the leftist BC government’s provincial cabinet. That ended abruptly when she was fired on trumped-up allegations […]
New ‘Calgary Plan’ puts ideology above the needs of residents
The City of Calgary’s recently released Calgary Plan is meant to detail the next three decades of municipal development. Instead, the 156-page document devotes a lot of attention to the idea that Calgary is a systemically racist city. To wit, the word “equity” appears in the plan more than 50 times, while “affordability” surfaces a mere four […]
RFK Jr.’s false ideas about vaccines pose huge risk to public health
The incoming health secretary wants to ‘Make America Healthy Again,’ but without vaccines, his slogan might as well be, ‘Make America Infected Again’ Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination as America’s new secretary of health and human services has left much of the medical community muttering: “What the heck?” Kennedy’s stated mission is to “Make America […]
Education, not racism, drives the difference in earnings between races
New study fails to prove differences in earnings are due to systemic racism Significant federal program spending is premised on the idea that visible minorities in Canada are systemically disadvantaged. Take the latest: Earlier this fall, the federal government released a 45-page anti-racism strategy for 2024-2028, which “aims to tackle systemic racism and make our communities more inclusive and […]
Toronto should celebrate Henry Dundas as an abolitionist, not continue to cancel him
Unless one has been absent from Canada for years, it’s no secret that many academics and politicians appear to be in a race to cancel historical figures. Toronto has been ground zero for this behaviour which could be taken directly from George Orwell’s famous dystopian novel 1984. That book describes a future in which the […]
On gender, Alberta is following the science
Despite falling into disrepute in recent years, “follow the science” remains our best shot at getting at the truth of the physical sciences. But science, if we are to place our trust in it, must be properly defined and understood; it is at its essence an ever-changing process, a relentless pursuit of truth that is […]
Holding up the torch: An appreciation of those who served all Canadians
Our forebears were people who understood that the benefits granted by citizenship compelled one to return service to the nation. They signed up in droves to fight in 1914, and again in 1939; following the defeat of Hitler, Canada boasted a million men and women in uniform and the world’s fourth-largest navy. The stories of […]
Why ‘proportionality’ claims are flawed
One of the favourite words used by critics of Israel in its current wars against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon is “proportionality.’’ What is meant by this word is that there is no comparison between the civilian casualties in Gaza and Lebanon and those suffered by Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 (and after), […]
TMU medical school’s race-based admissions policy is doomed to failure
Treating people differently based on race doesn’t improve social harmony — or any other outcomes Affirmative action discrimination and other forms of racial preference are pervasive in Canada’s public institutions. See, for example, Toronto Metropolitan University’s (TMU) new medical school admissions policy, which reserves 75 per cent of its seats for Indigenous, Black and other “equity-deserving” groups, […]
The illiberal outcomes of anti-racism: Review of the latest hit from Daily Wire Studios, ‘Am I racist?’
“Am I Racist?” the latest from Daily Wire studios, hit theatres this past month, cracking the box office top five and grossing more than $4 million. But the movie warrants attention for more than just its box office success; its creators have also managed to kickstart an international conversation about Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI.) Am I Racist? is […]
At TMU medical school, some students are more equal than others
Remember that the next time you’re waiting to see your newly minted doctor Canada’s newest medical school will select students not for their ability, but their identity. Great, as if Canada’s healthcare system wasn’t bad enough already. The school, which opens next fall at Toronto Metropolitan University, will reserve 75 per cent of its seats for Indigenous, […]
