Apr 26 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — Like a lot of people, when Elon Musk first announced his intentions to buy Twitter I thought he was either engaged in high-level trolling or trying to create an excuse to sell the shares he’d acquired. Like a lot of people, I was wrong. Now, the question is whether his bet on the social media […]
Apr 18 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — If perfect is the enemy of good, that’s especially true when it comes to climate policy in Canada. Just ask Steven Guilbeault, our environment minister. He didn’t get into federal politics to defend the decision to approve a major new oil project, much less be the person who helped make it. But his current role, […]
Apr 13 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — Once again, our hospitals are straining under the weight of a growing load of COVID-19 cases, a burden amplified by the sheer number of health workers who are being felled by the virus themselves. In Ontario, the number of hospitalizations has risen above 1,000 for the first time since February, while wastewater data suggests as […]
Apr 7 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — As a lifelong Conservative and son of Alberta who was born in Calgary just as the National Energy Program was being created, there are probably few politicians Pierre Poilievre dislikes more than Pierre Trudeau. It’s ironic, then, that he appears to be following a similar path as the former Liberal prime minister. In the early […]
Apr 6 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — The contrast couldn’t have been much more striking. On the same day the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released a report showing both how far the world is from meeting its climate targets and the central role wind and solar energy have to play in getting it back on track, one of Canada’s biggest oil […]
Apr 1 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — For millions of Canadians, the recent deal between the Trudeau Liberals and Jagmeet Singh’s NDP will be about progress on pharmacare and coverage of dental services. But for Justin Trudeau, it was almost certainly about buying more time and space to reach his government’s climate goals. Now, with the release of the government’s emissions reduction […]
Mar 29 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — “If it bleeds, it leads.” That used to be the unspoken rule of thumb for journalists charged with deciding which stories deserved a spotlight. But now, it’s evolved into something different: “If it clicks, it sticks.” And that hunt for eyeballs has rarely been as obvious, or as problematic, as it was during Justin Trudeau’s […]
Mar 25 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — Pierre Poilievre, the putative front-runner for the leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada, is wrong about a lot of things. He’s so consistently and noisily wrong, in fact, that being aggressively wrong has become his stock in trade. But one thing he’s right about is the sorry state of Canada’s housing market and the […]
Mar 23 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — Brace yourself, Canada. If you thought the whining and wailing from truck-loving Conservatives about freedom and democracy was bad before, watch how they respond to the deal Justin Trudeau and Jagmeet Singh just struck. It will be portrayed as equal parts fascism and socialism, and it will kick up a populist fuss the likes of which we’ve never seen in this country. And […]
Mar 22 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — In Alberta politics, you can never count out the Conservatives. Despite leading a government that bungled the management of COVID-19 more badly than almost anyone else in North America, made a failed $1-billion bet on the Keystone XL pipeline, and foolishly embraced an anti-democracy convoy marbled with violence and racism, Jason Kenney’s UCP is now […]
Mar 15 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — Are we on the verge of a third world war? That’s the question suddenly on a lot of minds these days as Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine has spurred questions about what the West can do to help — and whether that could even lead to nuclear war. So much for 2022 being a better […]
Mar 9 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — It’s now all but official: Jean Charest, the former premier of Quebec and one-time leader of the Progressive Conservative Party, will reportedly contest the leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada. There are other names being bandied about, from Leslyn Lewis to Patrick Brown, but it’s Charest who has clearly emerged as the great non-Poilievre […]
Feb 28 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — For more than four years now, Canadians have watched the slow-motion collapse of American democracy with a mixture of horror and schadenfreude. In retrospect, we probably should have spent that time preparing our own country for the arrival of the political virus that Donald Trump created and is now spreading here. After the events of […]
Feb 24 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — During the four long years of Donald Trump’s presidency, many Canadians looked to the New York Times as an important beacon of reason and decency. Now that Canada is having its own Trump-esque moment, one that’s been amplified by the Trumpist instruments of Fox News and Facebook, the Times appears to have abandoned its post. […]
Feb 22 2022 — Max Fawcett — National Observer — For Justin Trudeau and his Liberal government, the hits just keep on coming with the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion. Last week, Trans Mountain announced the project will be an eye-watering $8.8 billion over its initial budget. And in a move that can’t help but raise eyebrows, CEO Ian Anderson will be retiring effective April 1. […]