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"Frank Scott and the Canadian conundrum" by Graham Fraser At the annual F.R. Scott Lecture at McGill University, the Commissioner of Official Languages shared a personal perspective on Frank Scott, the renowned constitutionalist, poet and human rights advocate who, as it happens, jointly owned a summer house with Fraser’s parents in North Hatley in the Eastern Townships of Quebec. "The state of oil" by Todd Hirsch [summary not available] "The Mood of Canada: government performance ratings stable; perception of right direction moves up" by Nik Nanos In his third annual Mood of Canada survey for Policy Options, pollster Nik Nanos finds that the mood of Canadians has improved significantly over a year ago, when the country was plunged into a recession after the crash of the stock market. He also finds that most Canadians don’t think relations between their federal and provincial governments have improved, in spite of governments working closely together on economic recovery and H1N1 vaccine distribution. Finally, two Canadians in three give the Harper government a passing grade in its performance over the last year. "Canadians favour stiff penalties for athletes caught using performance enhancing drugs" by Nik Nanos [summary not available] "Canada needs a two-track strategy for hosting international games" by Bruce Kidd [summary not available] "An Olympic odyssey" by Richard W. Pound In this extraordinary account of his life in the Olympic movement, Dick Pound tells of a journey that began in a swimming pool in Ocean Falls BC, and took him to Olympian heights as president of the Canadian Olympic Association, vice-president of the International Olympic Committee and finally chairman of the World Anti-Doping Agency. From multibillion-dollar-television deals to a global protocol for busting cheaters on performance-enhancing drugs, Pound has seen it all from the inside. As the Olympics approach in his native province, he remembers the first time Olympic swimmers returned to a hero’s welcome in his hometown, recalls his transition from swimmer to Olympic executive and tells how he did the billion-dollar TV deals with NBC. "Doping: the seamy side of sport" by Steve Elliott Nothing damages and breaks the spirit of sport more than doping. “Doping to enhance performance is not only unfair, it is also unsafe,” writes a scientific executive director of Amgen, a biotech company. He adds: “We must protest against those who would demean the sports they participate in, and educate the athletes, coaches and fans about the dangers of doping.” He concludes that we must also encourage policy-makers to support initiatives that make doping illegal and create ramifications serious enough to discourage it. "Own the Podium or rent it? Canada's involvement in the global sporting arms race" by Peter Donnelly Canada has never won a gold medal at the Olympics it has hosted — in Montreal in 1976 and in Calgary in 1988 — but that is expected to change in Vancouver in February, partly because of a $110-million investment in the Own the Podium program over the last five years. But Peter Donnelly, director of the Centre for Sports Policy Studies at University of Toronto, suggests there is a downside to a narrow focus on winning, including the creation of two classes of athletes — the elites and the others, not to mention a very un-Canadian attitude about bragging rights. Among other things, the bar of expectations is being set very high. "Excellence in sport and other circuses" by Irvin Studin As Canada prepares for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Irvin Studin reflects on the two key, systemic challenges that have impeded sustained Canadian excellence in sport — challenges that are true for nearly all Canadian institutions (sporting and other). The first is the difficulty of building east to west (and north); the second, the national incapacity to project outwards — that is, beyond Canadian borders. Studin traces the origins of these challenges to Canada’s constitutional structure, explains their consequences for Canada’s sporting institutions and proposes policy remedies — most notably, the cross-country professionalization of sports training and development (from early ages) and the creation of bona fide national, professional sports leagues in a variety of team sports. "Le défi de Vancouver 2010 et la politique canadienne du sport" by Jean Harvey The biggest challenge of the Vancouver Games rests on the shoulders of the athletes, writes Jean Harvey, director of the Research Centre for Sport in Canadian Society at the University of Ottawa. With the Own the Podium program, Canada has given itself the ambitious goal of finishing first among the medal winners. It has thus concentrated resources in the disciplines where athletes were most likely to win medals. Its performance during this major event, which has funnelled most of the efforts in the Canadian sporting world since 2003, will have a tremendous impact on the Canadian sports policy review that will take place between now and 2012. Here the author looks at the main issues that will be discussed, notably the compromise between investing in high performance sports and in measures to increase participation. "Peace in our time: how the Vancouver games bring political stability to federal politics" by Graham Fox One of the collateral benefits of the Vancouver Games is that they could provide a season of political peace and stability in Ottawa. With all eyes on Vancouver in February, Canadians will be in no mood for the political shenanigans of a minority House. And the good feeling from Vancouver could carry over into March, when the budget is expected to be presented. That will be the opposition’s next opportunity to bring down the government, but there is no sense that the voters, in the afterglow of Vancouver, will be in the mood for an election. Contributing Writer Graham Fox elaborates. "The politics of a global climate change deal" by Velma McColl Can the Copenhagen negotiations yield a successor to the Kyoto Protocol? Countries are being asked to commit to greenhouse gas reductions and rules to 2020 and beyond. But serious challenges exist at the UN table and, rather than a legally binding deal, the compromise will be a high-level framework with details to follow. The Canadian and US positions in Copenhagen will mostly be aligned but the hard global politics of climate change will bite in 2010, a tricky year in the American energy debate. And, for better or worse, that will set the tone here in North America and internationally. "Shifting to a low-carbon economy: it starts with a price on emissions" by Stewart Elgie and Stephanie Cairns Putting a meaningful price on carbon is essential, not just to combat climate change, but to drive a transformation of Canada’s energy systems and position us to compete in the emerging low-carbon economy. Financing this transformation will be a challenge, particularly with rising deficits. If a cap-and-trade system is used, selling the permits, as most economists (and President Obama) advocate, could provide the revenues needed for this major public investment. It also could lay the foundation for a (much-needed) coordinated national approach to clean energy policy, as part of a federal-provincial agreement on sharing these carbon revenues. "Iggy's path to power: a funny thing happened on the way to 24 Sussex" by Robin V. Sears The Liberals took a drubbing in four federal by-elections in November, finishing third in all four of them, among both English and French-speaking Canadians, on both coasts and in urban as well as in rural Canada. Since Michael Ignatieff promised to bring down the minority government, his poll numbers have plunged. His office, in need of “adult supervision,” according to Robin Sears, is being revamped under the leadership of Peter Donolo. But it’s the leader himself who hired the old staff, and who has underperformed, in both the House and the country. Still, Sears sees a path to power for Ignatieff, provided the Liberal leader can get his act together. "The global drivers of change" by Kevin Lynch The former Clerk of the Privy Council observes that Canada’s economic fate, or its destiny, is largely being shaped by six “global drivers of change,” from globalization and the information revolution to changing demographics and climate change. “We now live in an increasingly multipolar world,” he writes, “where the pace and scope of change are accelerating.” "Saskatchewan in the nuclear renaissance" by Richard Florizone Concerns about global warming and increasing energy demands are creating renewed interest in nuclear power. As the world’s leading producer of uranium, what should Saskatchewan’s role be in this potential “nuclear renaissance”? As Richard Florizone says here, in the near term, opportunities include increasing Saskatchewan’s position in uranium exploration and mining, and building on its existing strengths to lead in nuclear R&D — including possibly helping to address the global medical isotope crisis. Generating nuclear power to serve western Canadian electricity markets may also be attractive, although the halting of Ontario’s new reactor build suggests that capital costs are a challenge. "Acheter un droit" by Alain Noël [summary not available] Book excerpt: Champlain's Dream by David Hackett Fischer In this excerpt from his epic biography of Samuel de Champlain, David Hackett Fischer recounts the founding and settling of Quebec, “a place that the Indians called Kebec, the narrowing of the waters.” Champlain’s Dream was short-listed for the 2009 Cundill Prize, administered by McGill University, the most prestigious and richest history award in the world. Antonia Maioni reviews Champlain's Dream by David Hackett Fischer [summary not available] Susan Delacourt reviews Just Watch Me: The Life of Pierre Elliott Trudeau: 1968-2000 by John English [summary not available] Desmond Morton reviews Egg on Mao: The Story of an Ordinary Man Who Defaced an Icon and Unmasked a Dictatorship by Denise Chong [summary not available] Jim Prentice reviews The Ice Passage: A True Story of Ambition, Disaster and Endurance in the Arctic Wilderness by Brian Payton [summary not available] Terry Fenge reviews Life Stories of Northern Leaders [summary not available] Anthony Wilson-Smith reviews Art and Politics: The History of the National Arts Centre by Sarah Jennings [summary not available] Geoff Norquay reviews the latest books by Peter Mansbridge, Rex Murphy and Margaret Wente [summary not available] |
