Friday December 1, 2017

November 30, 2017 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday December 1, 2017

Trump’s behavior raises questions of competency

Donald Trump potentially has millions of lives in his hands as the threat of a devastating war with North Korea swiftly escalates.

January 20, 2017

Yet the President of the United States is raising new questions about his temperament, his judgment and his understanding of the resonance of his global voice and the gravity of his role with a wild sequence of insults, inflammatory tweets and bizarre comments.

On Wednesday Trump caused outrage and sparked fears of violent reprisals against Americans and US interests overseas by retweeting graphic anti-Muslim videos by an extreme far right British hate group. Earlier this week he used a racial slur in front of Native American war heroes. He’s attacked global press freedom, after cozying up to autocrats on his recent Asia tour.

August 18 2017

And now there are reports that the President has revived conspiracy theories about former President Barack Obama’s birthplace and is suggesting an “Access Hollywood” video on which he was heard boasting sexually assaulting women, and for which he apologized last year, had been doctored.

In normal times, it would be a concern that the President is conducting himself in a manner so at odds with the decorum and propriety associated for over two centuries with the office he holds.

September 20, 2017

But the sudden escalation of the North Korean crisis, following the Stalinist state’s launch of its most potent ever missile on Tuesday, takes the world across a dangerous threshold.

If diplomacy is unable to defuse the North Korea crisis, or slow its march to the moment when Kim Jong Un can credibly claim to be able to target all of the United States with a nuclear payload, Trump will face one of the most intricate dilemmas of any modern President. Will he live with the threat posed by a mercurial, wildly unpredictable adversary? Or, will he launch what could turn out to be a hugely bloody and destructive war to remove Kim’s nuclear threat?

November 3, 2017

There will be a premium on Trump’s judgment, his capacity to absorb the most serious detail and to make choices that could put many, many lives at risk, and draw the United States into escalating situations in Northeast Asia. Trump would be required to switch from the swaggering, untethered political persona he has been reluctant to drop as President into the role of sober statesman, unifying the nation and US allies — a switch he has rarely achieved so far in his 10 months in power.

On Wednesday, in St. Charles, Missouri, Trump stuck to his preferred name calling, again blasting Kim as “Little Rocket Man” and branding him a “sick puppy” after his White House earlier promised severe new sanctions against Pyongyang. But he didn’t elaborate on his vows to “handle” the situation. (Continued: CNN)

SaveSave

Saturday September 30, 2017

September 29, 2017 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday September 30, 2017

McMaster going tobacco, smoke-free

McMaster University will become the province’s first tobacco and smoke-free campus next year.

As of Jan. 1, 2018, using tobacco and all oral smoking devices will be prohibited on McMaster campuses.

This includes the Hamilton campus, inside and on the grounds of the Ron Joyce Centre in Burlington, as well as at all McMaster-owned properties.

The university said it is working to help students, faculty and staff adapt to the new policy and educate the community before it comes into effect.

“McMaster University recognizes the unique relationship that many Indigenous cultures have with traditional and sacred medicines,” says a post on Mac’s Daily News website. “As such, exemptions to this policy will be granted, upon request, to members of the McMaster University community.”

There will be phased-in enforcement of the designation starting in January.

For the first months, anyone found in contravention of the policy will be asked to stop or referred to supports and resources. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)

Wednesday September 20, 2017

September 19, 2017 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday September 20, 2017

Donald Trump says ‘rocket man’ Kim Jong-un is ‘on a suicide mission’

U.S. President Donald Trump warned on Tuesday that the United States will be forced to “totally destroy” North Korea unless Pyongyang backs down from its nuclear standoff, mocking North Korean leader Kim Jong-un as a “rocket man” on a suicide mission.

September 6, 2017

Loud murmurs filled the green-marbled UN General Assembly hall when Trump issued his sternest warning yet to North Korea, whose ballistic missile launches and nuclear tests have rattled the globe.

Unless North Korea backs down, he said, “We will have no choice than to totally destroy North Korea.”

“Rocket man is on a suicide mission for himself and his regime,” he said.

A junior North Korean diplomat remained in the delegation’s front-row seat for Trump’s speech, the North Korean UN mission said.

August 10, 2017

In his first appearance at the annual gathering of world leaders, the president used a 41-minute speech to take aim also at Iran’s nuclear ambitions and regional influence, Venezuela’s collapsing democracy and the threat of Islamist extremists. He also criticized the Cuban government.

But his strongest words were directed at North Korea. He urged United Nations member states to work together to isolate the Kim government until it ceases its “hostile” behaviour. He said North Korea’s pursuit of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles “threatens the entire world with unthinkable cost of human life.”

In what may have been a veiled prod at China, the North’s major trading partner, Trump said: “It is an outrage that some nations would not only trade with such a regime but would arm, supply and financially support a country that imperils the world with nuclear conflict.” (Source: CBC News)

By Steve

Sep 20 2017 9:14AM – TheSpec.com

In keeping with the let’s-mock-Trump-no-matter-what-he-says theme, Mackay would have us believe that North Korea is nothing but an annoyance and that the real threat to the world is the U.S.’s massive stockpile of nuclear arms under Trump’s control. Yet two weeks ago North Korea threatened the U.S. (and by geographical proximity, Canada) with an electro-magnetic pulse attack (EMP) that would cripple and destroy the U.S. should it succeed. Mackay can have his little bit of fun twisting things around and upside down when it comes to Trump but to dismiss egomaniacal despots as annoying, is irresponsible. History has shown us otherwise, that when these pathetic little men threaten us, they mean it. Why should we take the chance?

SaveSave

Tuesday April 15, 2017

April 17, 2017 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday April 15, 2017

Crucial vote looms for Hamilton’s LRT project

The survival of Hamilton’s $1 billion LRT project is balancing on a knife-edge.

Hamilton’s LRT gallery

If on Wednesday a deeply-divided council votes against submitting the updated environmental assessment to the province, Mayor Fred Eisenberger and others see it as the kiss of the death.

At this point there’s no telling how the vote will go, other than it’ll be a squeaker.

Only six of the 16 members of council, including the mayor, are firmly committed to keeping the train rolling.

That means, with Robert Pasuta on sick leave and unlikely to attend, Eisenberger must find at least two other supporters.

The most pliable in the mushy middle are probably veteran Tom Jackson from the east Mountain and rookie Arlene VanderBeek from Dundas.

Both are playing their cards close, virtually guaranteeing a cliffhanger.

“I haven’t decided,” says Jackson, who’s grown increasingly cynical about the project since the James Street spur was arbitrarily “de-scoped” by the province.

“I’ve pretty much decided how I’m going to vote, but I’m going to wait for the discussion,” says VanderBeek, noting she needs to find the balance between what’s good for Dundas and the rest of the city.

Stoney Creek’s Maria Pearson, another potential swing pro-vote, is equally guarded. Pearson says she’s still taking in information but admits she has “major concerns.”

To add extra suspense, the results of the councillor-funded poll gauging community support for the project are expected to be released Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the mayor has gone into overdrive — some say belatedly, some say desperately — to rally support. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)

Wednesday July 15, 2015

July 14, 2015 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday July 15, 2015

Iran after a nuclear deal: Where will Canada stand?

Iran and the P5+1 – China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States, or the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, plus Germany – finally reached a deal on Tuesday resolving the long-standing dispute over Iran’s nuclear ambitions. This raises questions for Canada, which has displayed a particularly aggressive stance toward Iran in recent years.

The Harper government’s hostility toward Tehran has been based on the premise, frequently expressed by the Prime Minister and senior ministers, that Iran poses the greatest threat to international peace and security. The government has nuanced this assessment recently, labelling Iran a “significant” threat to international security, presumably reflecting growing concern about the Islamic State and Russia. Nevertheless, it remains that Canada has differentiated itself from its allies under the Conservatives, adopting a harder line against Iran.

Concretely, this has meant that to protest against Iran’s nuclear program, human rights record, and confrontational regional policies, Canada has implemented all UN sanctions against Iran and has vocally adopted additional unilateral measures. In multilateral settings, Canadian diplomats repeatedly and assertively lambaste Iran. Ottawa also severed diplomatic relations in 2012.

As nuclear talks progressed over the past two years, Canada remained deeply skeptical of Iranian intentions and insisted that only tangible actions would prove Iran’s commitment to restraining its nuclear program. Canada also systematically emphasized that human rights had not improved under President Hassan Rouhani and that Iran’s support for terrorism across the Middle East continues unabated.

This aggressive policy towards Iran has been based on a flawed premise, has had a marginal impact, and has resulted in few measurable benefits. (Continued: Globe & Mail)