Search: “ISIS”

Here we go again. It must be that time of the week to take a swipe at the RCMP, or CSIS, or CSE or (fill in the blank ___) police services. A high-profile arrest is made or an action taken and everyone is a critic over what was done, what wasn’t done, etc. Everyone suddenly […]

All the jokes about civil servants aside, governments around the world do have some useful functions. Governments have the bodies and funds to look into important matters and provide advice to their citizenry on a whole host of things. Whether we are talking about food safety (the recent romaine lettuce scare in North America is […]

We Canadians may be shy folk (at least when put next to our southern neighbours) but we also tend to point out, nauseatingly perhaps, when one of ours makes it big on the international scene. Think Saturday Night Live, created by Canadian Lorne Michaels and featuring many, many Canucks over the years: Martin Short, Mike […]

Writing as an old spy, I have despaired of late on how the Canadian justice system has dealt with national security cases, and more specifically terrorism cases. The BC loser couple John Nuttall and Amanda Korody had their jury guilty verdict overturned twice on appeal after they placed pressure cooker bombs on the grounds of […]

Last July 22 I was in Toronto on the waterfront giving a presentation to an audience on extremism. I don’t quite recall who they were but it might have been a group that does Ontario Legislature security. My talk was well received and I even got to sell a few of my books – so […]

I have been looking at Islamist extremism as a form of terrorism for a very long time – more than two decades. When we delve into this topic we have to broach the very sensitive topic of religion and one religion in particular – Islam. Many are uncomfortable with this and many have tried to […]

In most Western judicial systems there is a very stark divide between minors and adults. The former are treated differently and, if found guilty of serious offences, are usually kept separate from older criminals. This is probably a good thing as putting kids with adults allows the latter to influence – and not in a […]

I have known a lot of people who left Canada to teach English abroad (usually known as ESL – English as a Second Language). It is a great opportunity to make a little cash, see the world, immerse yourself in a different culture and pass on a skill that can make a difference in another […]

Every end of year we are inundated with two phenomena in our newspapers, TV broadcasts and Web sites. These two are: the year that was and the year that will be. The former recaps the important events of the 12 months drawing to an end and always includes, and I am not sure why, a […]