When it comes to terrorism we have this odd obsession with groups. We study them, we dissect them, we map their internal organisations, we draw up ‘top-ten’ most wanted members, and in many instances countries have created ‘terrorist entity lists’ (here is a link to Canada’s for example). It is as if groups are what […]
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If you have never heard the comedy routine ‘The 2,000 year old man” by Carl Reiner and Mel Brooks, you are really missing something. The original dates back to 1961 but it is still very, very relevant and very, very funny. In one part, Mel Brooks, playing the 2,000 year-old man, says that WWII lasted […]
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Are anti-vaxxers the new terrorists?
How many of you remember the mumps? The mumps is a viral infection that affects the salivary glands and is often associated with trouble swallowing or earaches. I think I had them as a kid – then again I don’t have a really good memory of my early childhood. I just read that the mumps […]
This piece appeared in The Hill Times on April 22, 2019. Pop quiz! How can you tell an election is coming up in Canada? a) the government puts out a report that some identifiable part of our society takes offence to; b) that part happens to be concentrated in several ridings the ruling party currently […]
This piece appeared in The Hill Times on April 15, 2019 As all Canadians know, our country has a longstanding relationship with Afghanistan. In the aftermath of 9/11 the government decided to send our military, first special forces, then regular troops, to engage in what began as counter terrorism (CT) and ended as a combination […]
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The terrorist who took his time
If you are really seized with an issue – and I mean really, really burning with zeal and a desire to right a perceived wrong – would you not want to put your commitment to the test as soon as you could? Would you not want to show the world that what you fervently believe […]
In the lead-up to an election politicians pander to certain constituencies. That is just what they do. It is all in the context of getting votes. Even if the concessions granted go against longstanding policies or are baldly contradictory, a vote is a vote. In some ridings in our country there are noteworthy concentrations of […]
This piece appeared in The Hill Times on April 8, 2019. When a massacre on the scale of the terrorist attacks in Christchurch, New Zealand hits the news we all engage in examinations of what may have led to events as horrific as this to occur. And this time was no different. There was a […]
We all get a feeling of deja vu at times, don’t we? You’ll see something and remark that you definitely seen it before. Sometimes it is a little spooky while at others it is more mundane. Today’s blog is about the latter. The MacDonald Laurier Institute, a Canadian thinktank, has just published a paper by […]
When it comes to terrorism I suppose the mantra that most people hold to is somewhat akin to that found in the real estate industry: location, location, location. Attacks that happen in countries most cannot find on a map, or have no intention of ever visiting, or frankly don’t really care about (as harsh as […]