I was not planning on writing about Israel, but who knew they would be so ridiculous this week. First came the report that they are deporting 400 children born in Israel of Palestinian parents. The justification? Zionism. Seriously, the cabinet publicly claimed that they were deporting these children to ensure the preservation of the Jewish [...]
I am very happy to announce the formal launch of Montreal Ouvert.net, a citizen’s action group to encourage the city of Montreal to embrace Open-Data. Open-Data is the practice of releasing information in a form that can be easily downloaded, used, merged and distributed. This means: centralized information, not in PDFs, and without copyright. This [...]
I was surfing around the net for more information on the conflict in the DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo) and I stumbled upon the site Global Issues – it is quite impressive, especially considering it is all written and maintained by 1 person. It is an amazing collection of information, links, and documents. The article [...]
In Canada, the government has copyright over its publications, paid for with your money. The copyright extends to laws, regulations, and other documents. A copyright makes it difficult for companies and non-profit organizations to reproduce government information without their explicit permission. This slows innovation, reduces transparency and adds bureaucracy. As part of the ongoing copyright, [...]
Two nights ago, I switched to Countdown with Keith Olbermann on MSNBC. The show is labelled as a political commentary, but too often resorts to sensationalism, and partiality. While Fox News is certainly the Republican party mouth piece and MSNBC its alter-ego, both are very bad for the United States. When I tuned in, Olbermann [...]
Municipal politics are messy. A number of scandals have rocked Montréal in the past year, overpriced water meters, lazy construction workers and sketchy land permits. All this amounts to corruption. So, in their bureaucratic wisdom, the Quebec government commissioned a study on how to fix the problem. Their solution: a code of ethics. Bravo. The [...]
Unions happen for a reason, to deny it is just ignorant. Unions usually form due to dissatisfaction with the employer, though local culture is very important. If you father/brother/mother were in a union and other nearby businesses are unionized, you are much more likely to get your card. Some companies see their employees as tools [...]
Two interesting articles came my way today, one from the New York Times explaining the challenges with bringing talented foreigners to the United States to work. The other was an essay advocating for a new type of visa for people who want to found a business. It seems obvious to me that Canada should open [...]
I have spoken my mind on Israel numerous times, notably here, here and here, but the following is perhaps my most comprehensive post. First, let me state this clearly, I believe in absolutes. There is such a thing as The Truth. We can never be perfectly just nor perfectly true, that would be disingenuous of [...]
My most recent discovery has been the power of non-violence and iteration. After reading a number of books on Gandhi and his general philosophy, I have come to accept non-violent resistance as the most powerful political force available. Ultimately, it is not so much about changing others, but changing oneself and letting that affect the [...]