I have been following an online course on St. Thomas Aquinas provided by the Order of Preachers, also known as the Dominicans. 

Following 29 deaths in the U.S. and at least three cases of severe illnesses in Canada, the Canadian government is stepping up efforts to speak out about vaping, defined as “the act of inhaling and exhaling an aerosol produced by a vaping product, such as an electronic cigarette.”

The current federal election campaign is perhaps the saddest in Canada’s 152-year history. With its emphasis on political spectacle, minimal contact with voters and a refusal to look the future in the face, one wonders what democracy has become.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau refused to change how he campaigned in election 2019 just because he needed paramilitary-style protection from a death threat at a Thanksgiving weekend event.

There is a sense that protection is required when we step out into the unknown darkness of life, whether it be the darkness of suffering or of a lifestyle tinged with fear and regret. Traditionally the Church has called upon the angelic hosts for such protection. 

As we near the end of the election campaign, many comments on social media remind me of something Mark Twain wrote 112 years ago: “I am quite sure now that often, very often, in matters concerning religion and politics a man’s reasoning powers are not above the monkey’s.”

Pope Francis reminded the newest cardinals that the “readiness of a cardinal to shed his own blood (is) signified by the scarlet colour of your robes.” For one of them it was not a reminder but a memory.

The death of Alan Nichols took several months to make it into the mainstream news. And as of this writing, it is still a blank spot. His case should have been big news because of what it indicates for the future of this country and the safety of our most vulnerable.

“Overdrawn,” I thought, as I drove out of the city. “I feel like my whole life is overdrawn.” 

Jimmy Carter, the former U.S. president who turned 95 on Oct. 1, is one of the most decent, self-sacrificing human beings of the 20th (and 21st) century.