A labour shortage will reduce income inequality. But inflation will trend higher
Written by economists Charles Goodhart and Manoj Pradhan, The Great Demographic Reversal is a provocative read. And with 81 diagrams and 23 tables, it’s chockful of data in support of its thesis. That thesis is simple: “Of one thing we are sure, the future will be nothing like the past.” Or at least nothing like…
Biblioasis has recently released two new books, one on baseball, the other on the origins of Covid
When I worked for the Windsor Star as an editorial writer and columnist, one of the stores I regularly frequented was Biblioasis. The independent bookstore was located in the city’s downtown core on Ouellette Avenue. It had an impressive selection of fiction and non-fiction titles for all ages and interests. I bought a few books…
The next and most difficult step is to find positive solutions and build a better world
Comedy is like any art form; some of it is brilliant, and some of it is dehumanizing. What we consider funny reflects the culture of the time and can also reveal our deepest thoughts. Laughter is central to being human and therefore warrants a serious discussion. American comedian Sarah Silverman said, “Comedy puts light onto…
Regardless of the British reaction to Wilson’s death, the Irish civil war was likely to happen
Michael Collins was the most dynamic figure in the events leading to the establishment of the Irish Free State. And he was killed in an ensuing civil war ambush on August 22, 1922. Just two months earlier, Field Marshal Sir Henry Wilson had been assassinated in London. Allegedly, Collins ordered the hit. Irish journalist Ronan…
How did a man with one of the highest profiles in American politics flop so badly in 1962?
Including his two campaigns for vice-president, Richard Nixon ran for office nine times and lost twice. One of these losses was the razor-thin defeat to John F. Kennedy in 1960’s presidential contest. The other was his ill-advised California gubernatorial effort two years later. California was Nixon’s home state and he’d always done well there, even…
Although it may be a fabrication, the story has powerful resonance
King Arthur is back in the news, thanks to an archeological dig in Herefordshire, England. The dig site in question is Arthur’s Stone, a Neolithic-era burial chamber that’s somewhere in the vicinity of 4,000 years old. It’s technically a dolmen with a capstone resting on nine uprights. And with an estimated weight of around 25…
The battle between Convoy Conservatives and Club Conservatives has led to a ‘new divide’ between people and elites
The Conservative Party of Canada’s leadership race is heading into the home stretch. Once the dust settles after the ballots are counted on Sept. 10, the new leader must focus on defeating Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and deciding the right path for Conservatives to take. Tasha Kheiriddin, a lawyer, columnist and principal at Navigator…
The changes in attitudes over the past half-century are little short of astounding
It was 55 years ago this summer that English journalist William Rees-Mogg penned a widely read editorial for London’s Sunday Times. Borrowing from the 18th-century poet Alexander Pope, Rees-Mogg’s piece was titled Who Breaks a Butterfly on a Wheel? In it, Rees-Mogg took issue with the severity of the legal treatment meted out in consequence…
Some Hollywood legends actually participated in the reality of war, rather than merely on celluloid
If you’re like me, the most vivid combat images you have of the Second World War come from Hollywood movies. Whether it was John Wayne on Iwo Jima or Errol Flynn in Burma, heroism was very much the order of the day. And Americans were invariably at the centre of the action. Naturally, the historical…
When it comes to favourite humour comics, my list is exhaustive. Each strip was a work of art
When people think of their favourite comic strips, they typically list the ones they remember reading as a child – or, in some cases, still read today. My preference has always been for the comics of yesteryear. The early political cartoons of William Hogarth (A Rake’s Progress, 1732-34) and Francis Barlow (A True Narrative of…