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Poet, romantic, lover and carouser.Robert Burns blazed into Edinburgh in 1786 like a comet. The seat of the Scottish Enlightenment was electrified by the arrival of the ploughman poet and his free-thinking accounts of 18th century peasant life.But while Burns' tinder heart was often set alight, he found his love poems failed to have the desired effect on the "lively half of mankind," as the capital's refined ladies kept this force of nature at arm's length.Join Burns on his adventures in this historical novella told through the eyes of his young companion, John Bruce.In a town where you could hit "50 geniuses, 50 bankers, 50 lawyers and 50 rogues" with a pistol at any given hour, meet the infamous Deacon Brodie and the Crochallan Fencibles drinking club, and learn the cause of the rift between the poet and his young protégé - Clarinda, inspiration for one of his finest love tales, Ae Fond Kiss.
An exciting account of the origins of the modern world Who formed the first literate society? Who invented our modern ideas of democracy and free market capitalism? The Scots. As historian and author Arthur Herman reveals, in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries Scotland made crucial contributions to science, philosophy, literature, education, medicine, commerce, and politics—contributions that have formed and nurtured the modern West ever since. Herman has charted a fascinating journey across the centuries of Scottish history. Here is the untold story of how John Knox and the Church of Scotland laid the foundation for our modern idea of democracy; how the Scottish Enlightenment helped ...
In October 2015, Canadians elected a prime minister who promised to rehabilitate Canada's reputation globally. Justin Trudeau, "the free world's best hope" according to Rolling Stone Magazine, cultivated his image as a staunch advocate for a generous, liberal international order: maintaining peace, helping migrants and refugees, seeking dialogue and enhancing relations with other countries, and reengagement with the UN. Foreign affairs expert Jocelyn Coulon had a front row seat as a key Liberal party advisor during the election and early days of the Trudeau government. Coulon describes the ambitious policy proposals of candidate Trudeau. He analyses some key actions of Trudeau the prime mini...
Domination consists in subjection to the will of others and manifests itself both as a personal relation and a structural phenomenon serving as the context for relations of power. Domination has again become a central political concern through the revival of the republican tradition of political thought (not to be confused with the US political party). However, normative debates about domination have mostly remained limited to the context of domestic politics. Also, the republican debate has not taken into account alternative ways of conceptualizing domination. Critical theorists, liberals, feminists, critical race theorists, and postcolonial writers have discussed domination in different wa...
A miracle. Coal, oil and natural gas, the carbon-based fossil fuels that powered the Industrial Revolution and civilization’s rapid advancement. A menace. Climate change has how convinced many that carbon emissions are the world’s greatest challenge. The necessity and benefits of decarbonizing the global industrial and energy complex are well articulated. What is not explained is this will require the largest financial disruption in history, affecting everyone and everything. For over a century Alberta’s massive carbon resources have supported Alberta and Canada financially, helping make Canada the world’s fifth-largest oil and gas producer. Carbon has been a major driver of prosperi...
Canada's representative democracy is confronting important challenges. At the top of the list is the growing inability of the national government to perform its most important roles: namely mapping out collective actions that resonate in all regions as well as enforcing these measures. Others include Parliament's failure to carry out important responsibilities, an activist judiciary, incessant calls for greater transparency, the media's rapidly changing role, and a federal government bureaucracy that has lost both its way and its standing. Arguing that Canadians must reconsider the origins of their country in order to understand why change is difficult and why they continue to embrace region...
“Canada’s back” announced the victorious Liberal Party in October 2015. After almost ten years of Conservative Party rule, the Harper era in Canadian foreign policy was over, suggesting a return to the priorities of gentler, more cooperative Liberal governments. But was the Harper era really so different? And if so, why? This comprehensive analysis of Canada’s foreign policy during the Harper years addresses these very questions. The chapters, written by leading scholars and analysts of Canadian politics, provide an excellent overview of foreign policy in a number of different policy areas. They also offer differing interpretations as to whether the transition from a minority to majority government in 2011 shaped the way that the Harper Conservatives conceived of, developed, and implemented international policy. The analysis is gripping and the findings surprising, particularly the contention that the government’s shift to majority status was far less important to foreign policy under Harper than it had been under previous governments. The reasons why reveal important insights into the Harper decade of foreign policy.
From late January to mid February 2022, the eyes of Canada—and indeed, the world—were on Ottawa, Ontario as the Trucker Freedom Convoy converged from all parts of the nation. They were there to tell Prime Minister Trudeau that enough was enough, and they were not going to give in to his politicized mandate that required all cross-border truckers to receive the COVID 19 vaccine. Their journey caught the imagination of a nation tired of lockdowns, mandates, and government overreach. Hailed by many as heroes, and by the government and government sponsored media as “terrorists” and a “fringe minority with unacceptable views,” the truckers took an historic stand for freedom on Canadia...