Today if someone mentions a “salon” you probably think about a haircut or manicure. But in the 18th century, prior to the French Revolution, salons were the focus of civil debate, intellectual curiosity, and culture. They were centres of discussion on everything from manners to literature to philosophy to science.
Continue readingTag: civility
Scripturient: Manners? Civility? What happened to them?
In his book, Walden, in fact in the very first chapter, Henry David Thoreau wrote, “Most men lead lives of quiet desperation.” I would offer that today — at least based on the noisome detritus posted on social media — this is more like “lives of loud, rude selfishness and
Continue readingScripturient: Dandelions and civilization
Whenever I see a lawn with dandelions, I think, “This is the home of civilized people. This is the home of people who care about the environment and their community. This is where bees are welcome.” When I see a monoculture lawn, bereft of weeds or dandelions, I think, “Here
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: About Those Ear Plugs…
Sigh. I expected to spend the next four years writing letters to my MLA, Doug Schweitzer, but I didn’t think the first one would be about ear plugs. But we play the cards we’re dealt so here goes. Dear Hon. Doug Schweitzer, Justice Minister and Solicitor General, I’m a lawyer
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: Dignity and Respect
Two remarkable things happened this week. One remarkably good, the other remarkably bad. Let’s start with the remarkably good. Ricardo Miranda, Alberta’s Minister of Culture and Tourism, got married to journalist and communications specialist, Christopher Brown, this week. Premier Rachel Notley officiated at the wedding and had the privilege of
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Confronting Evil: Not with a bang, but a whimper? Neither, I say
Yes, it is best to be cordial, courteous, friendly and respectful, and to avoid harsh words and harsh speech, generally speaking. But when it comes to confronting power, when it comes to addressing the power elite and their willing vassals, servants, p…
Continue readingScripturient: Blog & Commentary: The Responsibility of Free Speech
In January, 2015, Marie Snyder, on her blog, A Puff of Absurdity, raised the question of how free should speech be. I share her concerns about the apparent limitlessness of our rights: our right to free speech is not matched to any inherent responsibilities, civic or moral, to behave in
Continue readingChadwick's Blog & Commentary: Who Knows Where the Time Goes?
I was thinking of the lines from that Fairport Convention song this week as we walked through Toronto on our three-day mini-holiday. I can still hear Sandy Denny’s wonderful, haunting voice singing the chorus of that dreamy, sad song, as … Continue reading →
Continue readingLaw is Cool: Chess Master, You May Approach the Bench
Ever want to take on an opponent in court from the comfort of your living room? This legal themed chess set might provide an outlet. “Approach the Bench” was designed by a lawyer’s son as a gift to his dad. After realizing there aren’t many legal-themed chess sets out there, the
Continue readingImpolitical: Ignatieff is right
In this excerpt in particular as highlighted by John Ibbitson earlier Wednesday, I agree with Ignatieff: When you think of your opponent across the aisle as an adversary, “you reject arguments, not persons; question premises, not identities; interrogate interests, not loyalties,” Mr. Ignatieff said. But when politicians look upon each
Continue readingTrashy's World: Del Mastro thinks some folks on the interweb thingy….
… are, ahem, lacking in civility. Yup, can’t argue with that. But. Seriously. Mr. Del Mastro. This is coming from a government MP whose party has been the LEAST civil in the history of Canada. Perhaps the whole frickin’ WORLD! You guys wrote the book on cynicism and a lack
Continue readingIn defence of 14-year-old girls
So it was that MP Charlie Angus, the NDP’s self-appointed guardian of civility, has declared that Twitter has “turned us all into 14-year-olds in a cafeteria” where “[e]verybody gets to be a Grade 9 girl.” Yesterday’s context, of course, was Patrick Brazeau’s calling reporter Jen Ditchburn a “bitch” because she
Continue readingImpolitical: A banner day in Ottawa
Yes, it was a banner day in Ottawa yesterday, replete with Hitler references from a Conservative MP and a Canadian minister of the crown telling Canadians that Canada will now act on information gained from torture. The video above is Rae, in the scrum after the Commons goings on, commenting
Continue readingImpolitical: A day – and era – for Dummies
Couldn’t let this one pass: “MPs hit new low in Question Period “for Dummies.” The Harper government has taken us to new lows, yes. But the “for Dummies” characterization is not the stuff to galvanize the Canadian imagination. Imagine the eye rolling across the country on reading this stuff in
Continue readingRed Tory v.3.0.3: Elizabeth Warren v. Heckler
An angry man confronts Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren at the outset of a local volunteer meeting in Brockton, Mass. “You’re a socialist whore!” the unemployed Fox News viewer shouted, adding for good measure that her “boss” (presumably President Obama) was … Continue reading →
Impolitical: On bullying
From a retired teacher via email: The tragic suicide of the 15-year old gay Ottawa teen has sparked renewed attention to bullying. It was big on CNN’s Anderson Cooper recently. And it’s not just a gay-straight thing. Bullying has always been around…
Continue readingJack’s passing seems to have sparked a new competition
I’m reminded at times of that aphorism (can’t remember whether it was Mark Twain or Winston Churchill) about a lie getting halfway around the world while the truth is still getting its pants on.It seems you could make a similar observation when you’re …
Continue reading@cityslikr lights @SueAnnLevy up like a pinball machine
(With an apology to pinball machines everywhere.)That @cityslikr fella can be wonderfully succinct sometimes. I retweeted this earlier, but it deserves a whole blog post.Word. If you’re ever curious about why so many of our fellow citizens seem ruled b…
Continue readingBCL catches @SueAnnLevy rewriting history, smearing brave firefighters
BigCityLib Strikes Back: In Case You ARE WonderingDon’t know why BCL isn’t on the Tweeter, but that’s up to him. In the meantime, seems the Venomous LoserTM is perfectly happy to use Toronto’s firefighters and their taxpayer-funded equipment as a …
Continue readingLeftist Jab: Let’s NOT Be Civil
There seems to be a very strong current within Canadian politics to “restore civility” within the House of Commons. This message was emphasized by Elizabeth May and the Green Party during the election. Jack Layton and even Pat Martin are wearing button…
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