Although the central events of the Christian calendar are fraught with theological implications, an understandably neglected, but, at the same time, quite obvious focus can be brought to bear on these sacred mysteries, a focus that seeks to learn only from the unpleasant facts of the unjust execution of an innocent man. Obviously, the religious importance of this story is impossible to [...]
Following his rather convincing defeat in the recent provincial election, John Tory is, nevertheless, trying to hold on to his position as leader of the Ontario Progressive Conservative party. That party would do well to look for another Tory to lead it. In our November editorial, we chided John Tory for running a campaign devoid of the only leadership that matters: moral [...]
Pierre Trudeau famously reminded Canadians that there is a difference between a crime and a sin; now, some 40 years after his infamous Omnibus bill, the distinction has never been less clear. Despite their noble purpose of attempting to eliminate discrimination, human rights tribunals have proven to be a remedy that is worse than the problem they were created to solve. By [...]
The environment is all the rage these days in politics, the media, the classroom and elsewhere. Everything must be viewed through green-coloured glasses: from Christmas gift-giving (wrapping paper, plastic gifts, etc.) to perversion (hedonists debate whether sex toys and lubricants harm the environment). Nothing escapes the environmentalist’s gaze. So, we were amused by news coming out of Michigan State University, where researchers [...]
As the movie version of Philip Pullman’s The Golden Compass hit theatres, Canadian Catholic school boards in Calgary and Halton (Ont.) reviewed the books due to their promotion of atheism. Predictably, there were cries of “Censorship!” – and indeed it was. Justifiably so. Pullman’s stated aim is to turn people away from Christianity and the Catholic Church, in particular. Catholic schools are [...]
On Jan. 28, 1988, the Supreme Court threw out existing, limited restrictions on abortion put in place by the 1969 Omnibus bill, which permitted abortions in hospitals that were approved by (rubber stamp) therapeutic abortion committees. Over the past two decades, abortion advocates have simply lied about what the court’s majority said in its decision and politicians have hidden behind these lies. [...]
After the Huron-Superior District Catholic School Board rejected administering the anti-HPV vaccine Gardasil in its schools to pre-teen girls, Algoma Public Health attacked the board for what it implied were outright sexist views. The arguments were anti-Catholic and silly, so stale and predictable that APH should have been embarrassed to make them. Noting that females get the human papilloma virus from males [...]
The Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons ran a study, re-published in the the British insurance journal The Actuary, on the abortion-breast cancer link. It examined statistics for women in eight European countries and avoided the supposed weakness of other studies that have found a connection between abortion and breast cancer; namely, “recall bias.” Patrick Carroll, director of research at the Pension and [...]
To the modern reader, the visit of the Wise Men can only be one more improbable detail in an already impossible story. And yet, every Christmas, no matter how secularized the season has become, the tableau of a caravan, crossing a desert and following a star, survives. What is it about these Wise Men, these kings, that still appeals to an un-Christian [...]
A sure sign that a Liberal victory in the recent Ontario election was never in serious doubt was the fact that the abortion issue was ignored during the campaign. In Canada, whenever a left-of-centre party is in trouble, the social issues that cannot be brought up because they are “settled” suddenly become the only issues. The “social peace” surrounding abortion-on-demand can be [...]
The Interim has been criticized by some for its editorial position against proportional representation. This comes as no surprise, considering the criticism that Campaign Life Coalition has received for years over its (similar) stance on the issue. People of goodwill can disagree on this issue; how we choose our politicians is a matter of tactics, not morality, and as such, a civil debate [...]
This paper supports the right of parents to educate their own children as they see fit. Whether it is choosing the best government-funded school for their children within the public or separate school system, sending them to independent religious schools or educating their children themselves at home, such decisions are best made by parents. We also understand that whatever constitutional guarantees there [...]
The Canadian history magazine The Beaver ran an online contest to determine the worst Canadian. It also asked a panel of historians to compile a similar list. The results are enlightening. About 15,000 people participated in the online poll, which ran from May to July and the “Worst Canadian,” er, honour went to the late prime minister, Pierre Trudeau. About one in six [...]
On Oct. 10, Ontarians will be called on to vote twice. They will (or won’t) vote in the general election that decides who sits in the next provincial parliament and who governs Ontario. And, they will be called on to vote in a referendum to say “Yes” or “No” to a new electoral system for Ontario provincial elections: “mixed member proportional” representation [...]
For the past few years, there has been a sustained propaganda campaign by medical authorities and media outlets to raise awareness about the shortage of available organs as compared to the number of people seeking transplants. And, while politicians have put their their names behind such efforts and urged the public to sign organ donor cards, little has actually happened on the [...]