I had an interesting political discussion last weekend. It was a scene from a Joseph Conrad novel. Three old friends and a stranger sitting in the gathering gloom, sipping cool drinks against the summer’s heat, listening to the narrator spin his tale. My audience divided perfectly: one FPTP diehard, one Pro-Rep supporter and one new…
Month: July 2018
Politics
War and Peace: Two Views of an Election
by renaissanceadmin • • 0 Comments
To listen to the opponents of Proportional Representation, this new form of election will mean the end of democracy as we know it. More to the point, the way they like it. So it is useful to project how the political landscape might shift following a change. There are two ways to look at an…
Social Commentary
Hitchhiking on the Highway of Tears
by renaissanceadmin • • 0 Comments
When the Canadian National Railway line was built from Jasper to Prince Rupert in about 1912, the designers arbitrarily plunked down a station in the wilderness every six to eight miles. Then the government let out homesteads along the line, all within an hour’s wagon ride of a station. I assume this process was repeated…
Politics
Let’s Play “What If?” With the Referendum
by renaissanceadmin • • 0 Comments
In order to win a hockey game, you only have to score one more goal than the opponent does. There’s nothing wrong with that in a hockey game. The game is intended to show which team is stronger, and that’s it. But is democracy a contest to prove who’s stronger? I hope not. And…
Social Commentary
Grand Theft Auto – Brainwashing for Criminality
by renaissanceadmin • • 1 Comment
I got an interesting take on American society this week. In the wake of the latest mass shooting, I was visiting with a family with connections in the States. A friend from down there had sent a birthday present to the 11-year-old: Grand Theft Auto. I don’t usually give reviews of products on this site,…