Politics
Typically, when you need access to acute care in this country, you get it no problem. It’s the routine stuff that’s an issue. Millions of us don’t have a primary care physician and essentially no access to basic primary care except for routine vaccinations in schools or
Urbanism
I wrote my Ottawa Citizen column on the OC Transpo documentary I told you about last week. I interviewed the filmmaker. He’s as surprised as everyone else by the reaction. Last Monday, Dec. 2, was Rosa Parks Day and my beloved Huntsville, Alabama, marked the occasion by offering free
Politics
In the Ottawa Citizen this week I talk about food insecurity and how extraordinarily incomprehensible it is for a society so rich and advanced that it can catch freaking rockets with giant chopsticks to have so many hungry people. It’s one in four households in Ottawa suffering from food
Politics
I like to joke that there’s only one man I put a helmet on for, and that’s true enough. I don’t do any ring fighting anyone, except with one friend who’s earned the privilege through grit, discipline and good cheer. In 2015 I was a second-degree
Urbanism
When the colossally stupid three-days-in-the-office federal policy came into effect in September I occasionally saw in my various social media feeds complaints from people who couldn’t find parking downtown. I thought it was weird. Difficult to believe, even. Aren’t there six thousand gazillion places where one can temporarily
Culture
Some weeks writing a column is fun and some weeks it’s even funner. This week I got to talk with Canadian comedian Ron James, live from his Toronto condo. He’s coming to Ottawa for a show at the Meridian next week (buy tickets!) and what better opportunity to
Urbanism
There are weeks when it seems there are no limits to the number of zany ideas people come up with, including (in no particular order), digging a tunnel under the 401 in Toronto to add lanes of traffic because there’s no way the existing 20 or so are enough,
Politics
Like her or not, Kamala Harris is a woman who knows who she is and works hard to do what she thinks is best and if there is anything that sets toxic men’s teeth on edge it’s a woman who doesn't need their approval for, well,
Urbanism
Labour Day weekend is here and in addition to the yard work I didn’t do all summer I’m planning to finish reading two books and finally get around to spring-cleaning the front closet. You could say I’ve had a busy 2024 so far, and not just because
Politics
What a week, my lack of god. It’s been difficult to focus on what’s happening here given the excitement of the big convention in Chicago and the sense that finally we’re getting over the doom and gloom of having two very old white dudes fighting for a
Gender
Any time someone is dumb enough to get into an argument with me about gender-affirming care it ends in stunned silence when I point out that if we are to ban it we’ll have to start with boob jobs, penile implants and Viagra. Oh yes, it totally is the
Urbanism
It is indecently hot and sticky this week and no, that didn’t stop me from running and kickboxing and frisbeeing and generally sweating buckets. It’s vacation time for many people and as we head into the August long weekend (who cares what it’s called or why?) and