Co-optation of Students at School Through We Day, Or School Indoctrination, Part One

I thought it appropriate to post a couple of comments on WE in light of the WE scandal. Justin Trudeau, prime minister of Canada, supported WE, and his wife personally participated in it--and his mother was paid by WE. However, rather than looking at the scandal, it is better to look at WE itself since, … Continue reading Co-optation of Students at School Through We Day, Or School Indoctrination, Part One →

A Worker’s Resistance to the Capitalist Government or State and Its Representatives, Part Four

This is a continuation of a previous post that illustrates how politically biased the capitalist government or state and its representatives (such as social-democratic social workers) are when it comes to determining real situations--especially when a person self-declares as a Marxist. Just a recap of part of the last post: I filed a complaint with … Continue reading A Worker’s Resistance to the Capitalist Government or State and Its Representatives, Part Four →

A Critical Look at The Socialist Project’s Pamphlet on Green Jobs Oshawa

The Socialist Project, "based in Toronto [Ontario, Canada] ... works to generate and promote Left activism education and organizing. Our membership includes activists, students, workers educators and others interested in Socialist politics in Canada," recently published (February 2020) a pamphlet titled Take the Plant--Save the Planet: The Struggle for Community Control and Plant Conversion at … Continue reading A Critical Look at The Socialist Project’s Pamphlet on Green Jobs Oshawa →

Critical Education Articles Placed in the Teacher Staff Lounge While I Was a Teacher, Part Four: Brains, the Body and Intelligence

This is a continuation of earlier posts. As chair of the Equity and Justice Committee for Lakeshore Teachers' Association of the Manitoba Teachers' Society (MTS), I also sent the articles and summary to the Ning of the MTS (a ning is "an online platform for people and organizations to create custom social networks"). As I … Continue reading Critical Education Articles Placed in the Teacher Staff Lounge While I Was a Teacher, Part Four: Brains, the Body and Intelligence →

Reform or Abolition of the Police, Part One

In at least two posts, I will explore the issue of reforming the police versus its abolition. Conveniently, there are a couple of articles that address the issue. Mr. Rosenfeld, a self-declared radical and Marxist living in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, in an article published in the social-democratic magazine Canadian Dimension on April 20, 2020, Reform and … Continue reading Reform or Abolition of the Police, Part One →

Socialism, Part Nine: Market Socialism as an Initially Necessary but Inadequate Social Model

In previous posts on the topic of socialism, I have argued implicitly that a market for consumer and capital goods may be necessary initially. This is so in order to eliminate the exploitation of workers by employers. The amount of work performed by a person would still be related to the amount of consumption goods … Continue reading Socialism, Part Nine: Market Socialism as an Initially Necessary but Inadequate Social Model →

The Rate of Exploitation of Workers at Magna International Inc., One of the Largest Private Employers in Toronto, Part One

In another post, I presented the twenty largest employers in Toronto according to level of employment (see A Short List of the Largest Employers in Toronto, Ontario, Canada). One of those employers is Magna International Inc., a multinational corporation whose workers produce automobile supplies for inputs into car manufacturing. This is a first attempt at … Continue reading The Rate of Exploitation of Workers at Magna International Inc., One of the Largest Private Employers in Toronto, Part One →

Critical Education Articles Placed in the Teacher Staff Lounge While I Was a Teacher, Part Three: The Academic Versus the Practical

This is a continuation of earlier posts. When I was a French teacher at Ashern Central School, in Ashern, Manitoba, Canada, I started to copy critiques, mainly (although not entirely) of the current school system. At first, I merely printed off the articles, but then I started to provide a summary of the article along … Continue reading Critical Education Articles Placed in the Teacher Staff Lounge While I Was a Teacher, Part Three: The Academic Versus the Practical →

The Poverty of Academic Leftism, Part Eight: Class Harmony

This is an elaboration of a critique of an academic leftist (aka academic historical materialist), the philosopher Jeff Noonan. Professor Noonan's neglect of the relatively privileged status of university professors in relation to other workers leads him to assert the following (from Thinkings 4: Collected Interventions, Readings, Evocations, 2014-2015, page 13): Whether or not it was … Continue reading The Poverty of Academic Leftism, Part Eight: Class Harmony →

Basic Income, Public Ownership and the Radical Left in the Wake of the Coronavirus Pandemic: A Critique

In a couple of posts, I criticized John Clarke's opposition to a particular form of basic income. Mr. Clarke is a former leader of the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty (OCAP) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Mr. Clarke continues to oppose any alternative universal basic income scheme (see 'Pandemic Basic Income' Gets It Wrong). He has ignored … Continue reading Basic Income, Public Ownership and the Radical Left in the Wake of the Coronavirus Pandemic: A Critique →