Sep 22 2020 — Glen Pearson — National Newswatch — Most throne speeches are primarily political affairs, designed to either obscure some kind of scandal or poor performance or to usher in some emerging initiative by putting immediate wind in its sails. Occasionally it deals with both, as is the case with this week’s attempt to change the channel. Rumors abound, with some maintaining that […]
Sep 15 2020 — Glen Pearson — National Newswatch — “For the first time in history, all peoples on earth have a common present. In the age of globalization, every country has become almost the immediate neighbour of every other country, and every person feels the shock of events which take place at the other end of the globe.” So wrote Hannah Arendt in her […]
Sep 1 2020 — Glen Pearson — National Newswatch — The CBC’s Catherine Cullen’s insight back in June regarding the Conservative leadership drama turned out to be prophetic. Writing of the various levels of complexity that could ultimately lead to an Erin O’Toole victory, Cullen observed: “While some Conservatives have suggested that any public discussion of social issues such as gay marriage or abortion prevents […]
Aug 11 2020 — Glen Pearson — National Newswatch — Communities across Canada are holding their collective breath awaiting the expiration of the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB). The reason is simple: what comes next is unclear. For significant periods during the pandemic CERB was both a life-saver and an emotional boost in a time of deep concern. It successfully rounded off the harsh edges […]
Aug 6 2020 — Glen Pearson — National Newswatch — The appointment of Bob Rae to become this country’s ambassador to the United Nations made sense to most. As a Canadian statesmen and politician, Rae just happens to be a person of large interests and experience around the world – a quality that suits the post of someone meant not only to represent Canada to […]
Jul 31 2020 — Glen Pearson — GlenPearson.ca — “The map is not the territory,” observed philosopher Alfred Korzybyski. In other words, things we put boxes around, label or define, are not necessarily what is real. We have been brought up in the West to believe that, overall, we got things right and that the rest of the world is left to catching up. […]
Jul 22 2020 — Glen Pearson — National Newswatch — Ray Dalio is a virtual unknown entity to most people, including Canadians. An American billionaire, hedge fund manager, and a philanthropist. He’s spoken widely in global venues and written books on business success and prosperity. But in recent years, Dalio has sensed a massive economic and political shift in the offing and some of his […]
Jul 7 2020 — Glen Pearson — National Newswatch — For all of the challenges it has thrown in our path, COVID-19 has provided some remarkable accomplishments. A relatively sanguine House of Commons. Productive dialogue between the fed and the provinces. Brian Mulroney emerging from seclusion and sounding more progressive than many single-issue progressives. Public health leaders unafraid to put health before politics and politicians […]
Jun 29 2020 — Glen Pearson — National Newswatch — We wait with baited breath the next pronouncements from government centres, health authorities and business commentators. We’re doing our best – in Canada at least – to respect the guidelines of social distancing, just as we’ve been instructed. We watch south of the border as the American melting pot becomes the boiling pot and we […]
Jun 24 2020 — Glen Pearson — National Newswatch — It was a straightforward conversation with a French government official – an acquaintance from my time in politics – about Canada’s failure to secure a temporary seat on the UN Security Council. We continue to enjoy a shared interest in foreign aid, development, and the state of global refugees. As we wound up the conversation, […]
Jun 10 2020 — Glen Pearson — National Newswatch — It was Barack Obama’s final international trip before Donald Trump was to occupy the Oval Office. The venue was the Summit of Pacific Nations in Lima, Peru, and at the first opportunity he was taken aside and asked what could be expected from Donald Trump. Being diplomatic, Obama cautiously observed, “Give him a chance. Wait […]
May 20 2020 — Glen Pearson — National Newswatch — Virtually from the beginning, the World Health Organization has labelled our present predicament as a “global” pandemic. This isn’t just about COVID-19s reach, but it’s ability to turn back the clock on so many international advancements made on the economic front. It’s so frightening, in fact, that the Economist recently ran an article with the […]
May 8 2020 — Glen Pearson — National Newswatch — It’s been hard. For some it’s been the inability to get together in our favourite pastimes or with our friends and families, but for others it has been the loss of income, the present reality of food insecurity, or the fact that there might be no job to go back to. We want our lives […]
May 5 2020 — Glen Pearson — National Newswatch — It’s taken time, but increased amounts of commentary are emerging about what life will be like post-covid. Truth is, we just don’t know and while all the projections are interesting, there are too many unknowns for us to plan for anything beyond the near future. And there are uncertainties out there that could, at any […]
Apr 13 2020 — Glen Pearson — National Newswatch — It shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone that the plight of developing nations has understandably fallen off the radar of the Western world. Despite its global origins, the coronavirus has focused on domestic concerns in countries like Canada like little else in our history. International development, foreign aid and emergency relief funding have been part […]