Mouseland
NDP breakthrough in Nova Scotia
Since the Atlantic coast province of Nova Scotia joined Canadian Confederation in 1867 only the Liberal and Progressive Conservative parties have held the reigns of government there. That changed on election night June 9 when the labour-based New Democratic Party…
Who’s calling the shots for Iggy and the Liberals?
What's behind the ignominious retreat of Michael Ignatieff? The federal Liberal Leader backed off the threat to cause an election this summer over the lack of job creation and access to unemployment insurance. And he voted for the corporate bail-out…
Read More Who’s calling the shots for Iggy and the Liberals?
Household debt soars
Rising debt levels are putting Canadian households under growing financial strain while job losses mount, incomes stagnate and personal wealth declines.The Bank of Canada's bi-annual Financial System Review, released on June 15, said that households are increasingly vulnerable to “adverse…
The War comes Home
The foreign war of occupation in Afghanistan is coming home with a stunningly high incidence of spousal abuse, suicide attempts, assaults in bars and drunk driving by Canadian soldiers who survive one or more tours of duty.From privates to warrant…
Rally Shows Need to Step Up Labour Action against the Crisis
While CBC-TV fatuously reported that only 500 demonstrated, in fact nearly 2000 people rallied and marched on June 13 in downtown Toronto at the call of the regional labour council to demand "Good Jobs For All" and to Fix E.I.,…
Read More Rally Shows Need to Step Up Labour Action against the Crisis
B.C. NDP hands Campbell a victory
A lackluster, rather conservative campaign by the provincial New Democrats handed Liberal Premier Gordon Campbell a third consecutive majority government in the May 12 British Columbia election. The result was close to the one in 2005, except that voter turnout…
Bankruptcies skyrocket
Bankruptcies in Canada soared by over 50 per cent in March from a year earlier as the rising unemployment rate left more people unable to pay their bills, according to the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy Canada.Although business bankruptcies…
High food prices push world to the brink
Food riots, millions of starving refugees fleeing war zones, and devastating droughts are pushing the world towards chaos. At a time of global economic crisis, the world's poor have been hit with a triple whammy. While jobs have disappeared and…
A memorable May Day Celebration in Toronto
Scores of people crowded into the Free Times Cafe on Saturday, May 1 for the 23rd annual Toronto Socialist Action May Day celebration. The politics, the music, the diversity of the gathering fittingly fulfilled the theme “Solidarity Against the Crisis”.…
CAW concessions to Chrysler wipe out decades of gains
[by Barry Weisleder]Thousands of Canadian Auto Workers' Union (CAW) members at Chrysler plants in Toronto, Brampton, and Windsor, Ontario, approved another batch of labour concessions by 87 per cent on April 26.Given the deluge of propaganda by big business media…
Read More CAW concessions to Chrysler wipe out decades of gains
Court rebukes Harper on Omar Khadr case
[by Barry Weisleder]Federal Court Justice James O'Reilly ordered the government of Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper to seek the return of Canadian Omar Khadr from the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Khadr has been held at Gitmo for nearly…
Bosses fire pregnant women workers
[by Barry Weisleder]There is a disturbing surge in cases of pregnant women being fired by bosses, with the economic crisis cited as the excuse. The Ontario Human Rights Legal Support Centre, an independent agency funded by the province to provide…
A May Day Celebration in Toronto, Canada
Scores of people crowded into the Free Times Cafe last night for the 23rd annual Toronto Socialist Action May Day celebration. The politics, the music, the diversity of the crowd were all superb.Speakers included: Jorge Soberon, Consul General of Cuba…
New Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath ‘Winks’ Left
[by Barry Weisleder/April 2009]Two wings of the party establishment squared off in an eight-month-long battle that culminated in the election of Andrea Horwath as the first female Leader of the Ontario New Democratic Party on March 7. Leftist pressure at…
Read More New Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath ‘Winks’ Left
The Definitive Fidel
[by Barry Weisleder/March 2009]If you are interested in the life of Fidel Castro, his role in the Cuban Revolution (now in its 50th year), and in many major events that shaped the second half of the 20th century, this is…