Tag Archives: Stephen Harper

The Smokescreen of ‘Modernization’ at Library and Archives Canada

By Ian Milligan The government claims that Library and Archives Canada needs to be modernized so all Canadians can access archival services. Yet the state of Canada’s online collections are small and sorely lacking when compared to their expansive on-site collections. LAC does need to modernize, and the goal of expanding access beyond just Ottawa is actually a laudable one. But what… Read more »

The Return of the History Wars

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Despite being declared over by many historians, the debates of the History Wars – where social and cultural history was pitted against political and economic history – have returned to public discourse in Canada.

CFP: CHA Active History Working Group 2012 Public Workshop: “1812: Whose War Was It, Anyway?”

June 18, 2012, two hundred years to the day since the United States declared war on Great Britain and her colonies, marks the starting point of a period of commemorations, restorations, re-enactments and monument building which will mark the bicentennial of the War of 1812. The Government of Canada, under Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper, reiterated its commitment to supporting… Read more »

Canadian Political Leaders, the Campaign Trail, and the “Ordinary Joe”

As another federal election enters high gear, television screens and newspaper pages are filled with images of party leaders trying to show that they are ordinary Canadians. When did Canadian politicians begin to depict themselves as ordinary Canadians, not elite members of society?

Waving the Flag in Distress

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Today is the one-hundred and forty-third anniversary of Canada’s Confederation and the formal birth of the country’s federal political system. And instead of waving the flag in a perfunctory fashion (yes, I know the Queen is visiting), I’d like to wave it in distress over the present dysfunction in our federal politics by briefly singling out four serious issues in… Read more »

“Copenhagen is PM’s big chance”, History PhD Candidates Argue

Jeremy Marks and Ryan O’Connor’s op-ed piece in the London Free Press argues positive action at Copenhagen would be good politics for the Conservative party.