In 1946, George Orwell published a short essay entitled, “Politics and the English Language.” It is a gem that deserves to be ritually proclaimed on an annual basis in town squares across the land.

Published in Guest Columns

One unanticipated consequence of the election of Donald Trump as 45th President of the United States has been the rediscovery of a seminal novel first published in 1949. According to The New York Times, George Orwell’s 1984 is being reprinted around the world and is at the top of bestseller lists.

Published in Guest Columns

Credit Air Canada with cluing me in to the bracing effects of the state sticking its imperious snout so deeply into Canadian society.

There I was on a recent cross-country flight waiting for someone in authority to give the malfunctioning in-flight entertainment system a good whack when the little screen was suddenly alight with visual metaphor. From the depths of one of the boundless bureaucracies that spend our quarter-trillion-dollar federal budget, we strapped in travellers were shown a videographic public service announcement on a matter so urgent it was deemed essential viewing for an audience that cannot escape.

Published in Peter Stockland