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James L Turk

@jameslturk.bsky.social
122 followers 54 following 46 posts

Director of the Centre for Free Expression at Toronto Metropolitan University University. Board Member of the International Civil Liberties Monitoring Group. Writer, Speaker, Policy Analyst.

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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
Alberta won the 2025 Code of Silence Award for Outstanding Achievement in Government Secrecy after the Alberta Information and Privacy Commission found the provincial government had repeatedly violated its own freedom of information laws. cfe.torontomu.ca/index%2ephp/...
cfe.torontomu.ca
A blanket smother-up: Alberta government wins secrecy award for opaque access-to-information process | Centre for Free Expression
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s government has been selected as the provincial winner of the 2025 Code of Silence Award for Outstanding Achievement in Government Secrecy after Alberta’s information a...
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
Age verification may be desirable in theory but it has more dangers than benefits in practice. www.politico.eu/article/eu-b...
politico.eu
Brussels launched an age checking app. Hackers say it takes 2 minutes to break it.
Cyber experts say they have found holes in Brussels’ age verification app, despite claims by the EU executive that it is “technically ready.”
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 19/06/2026
The V-Dem Institute report on global democracy shows Canada's democratic decline, accelerated by the firehose of government bills undermining basic civil liberties, human rights and democratic practices-- C-5, C-4, C-15, C-12, C-14, C-9, and C-22. cfe.torontomu.ca/blog/2026/06...
cfe.torontomu.ca
While We Watch the U.S., Canada’s Democracy Is Quietly Eroding | Centre for Free Expression
With the precipitous decline of democracy in the United States, it is all too easy to ignore that Canada’s democracy is in decline as well. We ignore the signs at our peril.
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 26/12/2025
In a move that will help disinformation proliferate, the Trump administration has penalized leading European tech regulators. Ironically no western government is engaged in as much censorship as the US under Trump. U.S. Bars 5 European Tech Regulators and Researchers www.nytimes.com/2025/12/23/t...
nytimes.com
U.S. Bars 5 European Tech Regulators and Researchers
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 04/12/2025
C-9 is a terrible bill that infringes on fundamental Charter rights. It should be withdrawn not made even more unconstitutional. If it is not withdrawn, I guess we will have to sort it out in court.
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International Civil Liberties Monitoring Group (ICLMG) @iclmg-csilc.bsky.social · 02/12/2025
🚨 URGENT: Bill C-12 could be voted on THIS WEEK (as early as Dec 4) Your call can stop this anti-immigrant bill. MPs are counting constituent calls RIGHT NOW before the vote. Takes 2 minutes. Make it count. migrantrights.ca/actionslist/... #cdnpoli #cdnimm #cdnref #refugeeswelcome #stopc12
migrantrights.ca
STOP Bill C-12: Call Your MP Now! - Migrant Rights Network
Bill C-12 returns for third reading THIS WEEK—December 3rd—and could be voted on any day.  This dangerous legislation threatens the rights of refugees, migrants, and everyone in Canada. Once passed, t...
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 06/11/2025
Will Canada abandon environmental assessment in the Ring of Fire?: Unfortunately, there has been no answer to this vital question. Odds not good that Carney will preserve environmental protections. ricochet.media/indigenous/w...
ricochet.media
Will Canada abandon environmental assessment in the Ring of Fire?
Doug Ford wants Ottawa to ignore First Nations’ warnings that drinking water, treaty rights, and the land itself are on the line
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 01/11/2025
‘Elbows Up’ — Yesterday’s Slogan -- Judy Haiven is right that our apologetic (to Trump) Prime Minister uses the rhetoric of Canada charting its own course while pursuing policies that bring us evermore into the U.S. orbit. That leads no where good. open.substack.com/pub/judyhaiv...
open.substack.com
‘Elbows Up’ — Yesterday’s Slogan
Home About
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 22/10/2025
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/o...
theguardian.com
Jewish figures across the globe call on UN and world leaders to sanction Israel
Exclusive: In an open letter, Israeli ex-officials, artists and intellectuals say ‘unconscionable’ actions in Gaza amount to genocide
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 22/10/2025
Leading AI assistants misrepresent news content nearly half the time according to a European and British study of 3,000 responses to questions about the news from leading artificial intelligence assistants. www.cbc.ca/news/world/a...
cbc.ca
Top AI assistants misrepresent news content, study finds | CBC News
Leading AI assistants misrepresent news content in nearly half their responses, according to new research published on Wednesday by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and the BBC. The study also fo...
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 15/10/2025
The opponent of foreign interference in U.S. elections is doing his best to interfere in Argentina’s www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
theguardian.com
Trump threatens to cut US aid to Argentina if Milei loses election
US president says ‘we will not be generous’ if leader fails to win key midterms after promising $20bn to prop up struggling economy
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 01/10/2025
The Trump Administration’s attack on freedom of expression is being particularly felt by editorial cartoonists. Some sad stories and great cartoons can be found in this article fair.org/home/us-cart...
fair.org
US Cartooning Tradition in Peril in Trump’s First Year
In the era of Trump, publishers are, for a variety of reasons, encouraging cartoonists to approach the president on bended knee.
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 14/07/2025
Alberta Education Minister's ban of all books with any sexually explicit content from all school libraries will only hurt kids. We all learn about sex. Too bad there won't be access to the best books available -- which are sexually explicit in age appropriate ways. cfe.torontomu.ca/blog/2025/07...
cfe.torontomu.ca
Alberta Returns to 17th Century Puritanism for Its School Libraries | Centre for Free Expression
17th Century puritanism has come back to life in the Alberta Government. Last week, its Minister of Education, Demetrios Nicolaides signed a Ministerial Order that is jaw-dropping. Concerned that some...
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 06/07/2025
Former Canadian MP Charlie Angus reflects on where MAGA's celebration of a camp built for the express purpose of dehumanizing and brutalizing migrants could lead. Unfortunately, his fears should be all our fears. American Dachau open.substack.com/pub/charliea...
open.substack.com
American Dachau
Trump Takes the Next Step
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 03/07/2025
Congress just passed the biggest transfer of wealth from the poor to the rich in American history. All those well-intentioned poor and modest-income Americans who voted for Trump will pay a huge price. So will the United States. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
nytimes.com
See How Trump’s Big Bill Could Affect Your Taxes, Health Care and Other Finances
The wide-ranging domestic policy legislation could impact your taxes, clean energy choices, health care access and more.
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 30/06/2025
Canadian legal & human rights scholars call on York Region to reinstate paramedic fired for Facebook comment critical of Israel; not altogether different from former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmer's Haaretz op-ed “Enough Is Enough. Israel Is Committing War Crimes.” tinyurl.com/3yz3vjud
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 30/06/2025
Instead of the “elbows up” Priime Minister Mark Carney promised to be, he has shown only cowardice and capitulation to Trump’s threats. Last night’s cancellation of Canada’s Digital Services Tax, as Trump demanded, is a disgrace to Canada and Canadians. www.reuters.com/world/americ...
reuters.com
Canada rescinds digital services tax in a bid to advance trade talks with US
Canada has rescinded its digital services tax in a bid to advance trade negotiations with the U.S., Canada's finance ministry said in a statement on Sunday.
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 26/06/2025
Great source of recommended readings
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 16/06/2025
Decisions about what books should be in school libraries should be made by professional educators and librarians, not by politicians using children in their culture wars as is happening in Alberta. cfe.torontomu.ca/blog/2025/06...
cfe.torontomu.ca
Librarians and Educators Should Decide Books for School Libraries, Not Politicians | Centre for Free Expression
On Monday, May 26th, 2025, Alberta Minister of Education Demetrios Nicolaides announced that the government was bringing in new rules to ensure only "age-appropriate" books are available in school lib...
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Timothy Caulfield @caulfieldtim.bsky.social · 20/05/2025
Studies consistently show a LARGE portion of vaccine related adverse events are caused by the nocebo effects. Eg: Republicans & the hesitant experience more adverse events. My take: Vaccine safety, politics and the nocebo effect healthydebate.ca/2025/04/topi... via @healthydebate.bsky.social
healthydebate.ca
Vaccine safety, politics and the nocebo effect - Healthy Debate
We must vigorously counter the misinformation and political spin that helps to fuel the accelerating vaccine concern vortex.
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 20/05/2025
Premier Danielle Smith has found a way to bring Alberta's Treaty First Nations & the Calgary Chamber of Commerce together in common cause-denunciation of her coy flirtation/encouragement of Alberta separatism. tinyurl.com/5n7xur4d First Nations unity displayed at rally against Alberta separatism
readtheorchard.org
First Nations unity displayed at rally against Alberta separatism
“Our Treaties are not relics. They are not documents to be shelved and forgotten.”
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 19/05/2025
A fine statement of leading U.S. civil liberties' organizations. The surest protection against authoritarianism is active resistance by civil society - despair, apathy, cynicism, hopelessness are the authoritarian forces' best friends.
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The Washington Post @washingtonpost.com · 30/04/2025
Breaking news: The U.S. economy shrank in the first three months of 2025, contracting by an annualized rate of 0.3 percent, a stark reversal after nearly three years of solid growth, as tariff-related uncertainty upended spending patterns and raised fears of an impending recession.
washingtonpost.com
U.S. economy shrank in early 2025, as tariffs sapped growth
GDP shrank in the first quarter, a new report shows, offering a look at how tariffs are reshaping spending patterns and changing the economy.
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 30/04/2025
Government of Ontario wins national award for outstanding achievement in government secrecy - for using private cell phones and personal emails for government business - undercutting public access to information under Ontario law.https://tinyurl.com/4ye4xwhd
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 22/04/2025
There is hope in this dark time when the higher education sector is standing up to the bullying tactics of the Trump Administration - quite unlike their cowardice during the period of McCarthyism in the 1940s and 50s.
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 22/04/2025
There is hope in this dark time when the higher education sector is standing up to the bullying tactics of the Trump Administration - quite unlike their cowardice during the period of McCarthyism in the 1940s and 50s.
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 11/04/2025
The cruelty, short sightedness, and incompetence of the Trump administration is staggering.
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ProPublica @propublica.org · 10/04/2025
NEW: Climate experts expressed shock at the Trump administration's plan to stop collecting American polluters’ greenhouse gas emissions. “Not tracking the data doesn’t make the climate crisis any less real,” one said. “This is just putting our heads in the sand.” By @fastlerner.bsky.social
propub.li
Trump’s EPA Plans to Stop Collecting Greenhouse Gas Emissions Data From Most Polluters
Climate experts expressed shock and dismay at the move. “It would be a bit like unplugging the equipment that monitors the vital signs of a patient that is critically ill,” one said.
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 10/04/2025
Now the Trump Administration is trying to bully Princeton - withholding $210-million in research grants. Princeton's president Christopher Eisgruber's response is not the same as Columbia, thank goodness! edition.cnn.com/2025/04/01/u...
edition.cnn.com
Trump administration suspends dozens of research grants to Princeton | CNN
The Trump administration has suspended research grants totaling $210 million to Princeton University as part of an ongoing investigation into antisemitism on campus, according to the White House and t...
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 10/04/2025
Federal government bullying of universities extended to Cornell (withholding $1-billion in federal funds) and Northwestern (withholding $790-million) to make them serve Trump's ideology. Giving in to bullies only empowers them. www.linkedin.com/news/story/f...
linkedin.com
Funds cut for Cornell, Northwestern | LinkedIn
One billion dollars in federal funds and grants to Cornell University and $790 million to Northwestern University have been frozen, the White House confirmed to CNN.
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 10/04/2025
It is a sad day for Canada when our universities start censoring artistic work critical of how the US is treating Canada. The University of Prince Edward Island should be ashamed of driving its first artist-in-residence to resign. The University's behaviour is a disgrace. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
cbc.ca
Artist quits post after P.E.I. vet college tells him to remove painting based on U.S. politics | CBC News
Christopher Griffin, the now former artist-in-residence at the Atlantic Veterinary College in Charlottetown, says administrators were trying to censor one of his paintings after complaints from Americ...
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 06/02/2025
If you missed this conversation with Lawrence Hill and Debra Thompson on Wednesday, the video of it, and a list of readings and videos they recommend, are now available on the Centre for Free Expression website: cfe.torontomu.ca/events/we-ca...
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 03/02/2025
Please take 14 minutes to listen to this Ezra Klein podcast about Trump. It is the first thing that has given me hope since Jan 20. Wonderful analysis. podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/d...
podcasts.apple.com
Don't Believe Him
Podcast Episode · The Ezra Klein Show · 2025-02-02 · 14m
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 03/02/2025
As soon as you think things could not get worse at American universities, they do. At NYU, an enterprising parent sees a way to get pro-Palestinian students deported. theintercept.com/2025/01/31/n...
theintercept.com
A Well-Connected NYU Parent Is Trying to Get Students Deported
The founder of Mothers Against College Antisemitism says her 62,000-member Facebook group is influencing NYU policy.
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Amy Kaler @amykaler.bsky.social · 30/01/2025
Not out of the realm of possibility that we could get such an email at UAlberta, given our far-right provincial govt hates EDI & our prez has signalled he’ll do whatever he thinks they want. This will be a challenge to sociologist in particular, given our discipline’s emphases & traditions.
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Nicholas Grossman @nicholasgrossman.bsky.social · 24/01/2025
RFK Jr. wanted a natural experiment of unvaccinated kids, which is messed up. But you know what's even worse? The result was unvaccinated kids dying of measles, and instead of the scientific conclusion that vaccination saves kids' lives, he concluded the opposite, and seeks to impose it on everyone.
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 28/01/2025
In response to the U.S. Department of Education's lie that book bans are not real in American school and public libraries, the American Library Association has issued this statement describing the reality. It's short and worth reading. www.ala.org/news/2025/01...
ala.org
ALA to U. S. Department of Education: Book bans are real
The American Library Association responds to the Department of Education's dismissal of complaints about censorship and discrimination: the "effort to terminate protections... advances the demonstrabl...
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 27/01/2025
"What should be the limits to freedom of expression in universities?" Tuesday, Jan 28 @7 pm EST. All-star panel: Jamie Cameron, Richard Moon, Louis-Philippe Lampron, & Vershawn Young. Bring your questions. Zoom: torontomu.zoom.us/j/91941276567 cfe.torontomu.ca/events/what-...
cfe.torontomu.ca
What should be the limits to freedom of expression in Canadian universities? | Centre for Free Expression
Panelists: Jamie Cameron, Louis-Philippe Lampron, Richard Moon, Vershawn Young Moderator: James L. Turk
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 21/01/2025
A good discussion of the Trump plans for higher education in the U.S. They are more worrisome than most of us imagined. Worth reading by Canadians as ill winds can often blow from the south. pen.org/for-federal-...
pen.org
For Federal Censorship of Higher Ed, Here’s What Could Happen in 2025 - PEN America
The GOP’s victory in the 2024 election will have major implications for academic freedom, free speech, and university autonomy.
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 18/01/2025
The Christian Right's fears are like those of all censors: "Rather than the notion that ideas can be critically analyzed and either accepted or rejected, it held that dangerous ideas can indoctrinate and possess you if you are merely exposed to them." newrepublic.com/article/1900...
newrepublic.com
Why the Christian Right Demonizes Discourse
Their toxic fear of ideas is shaping the modern censorship movement.
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 08/01/2025
Important CFE Virtual Panel: Can editorial standards be applied fairly in highly polarized situations? The case of Israel and Gaza. Tuesday, January 14, 7 pm EST. Panelists: Samira Mohyeddin, Shree Paradkar, Ivor Shapiro. Moderator: Sakeina Syed Zoom: cfe.torontomu.ca/events/can-e...
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 04/01/2025
Record inequality in Canada: New CCPA Report shows the top 100 corporate CEOs by the first working day of the year, January 2 at 10:54 a.m., already have made, on average as much as the average Canadian worker does in a year. www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...
policyalternatives.ca
Company men | CCPA
Following two blistering years of all-time high compensation, Canada’s 100 highest-paid CEOs pocketed $13.2 million, on average, in 2023—the third biggest haul since we’ve been tracking CEO pay. On av...
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 18/12/2024
I fear this lawsuit against the Des Moines Register is a sure sign of a vendetta the Trump administration will ramp up against media reporting news Trump doesn't like. The road to authoritarianism begins with attacks on the media, political opponents, and academics. tinyurl.com/4srhcm7w
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 12/12/2024
Canada must oppose the United Nations draft Convention against Cybercrime in the UN General Assembly vote next week, says James Turk in a CFE Blogpost today. The CFE joined 8 other organizations in a joint statement about how the treaty is harmful to human rights. cfe.torontomu.ca/blog/2024/12...
cfe.torontomu.ca
Canada must reject adoption of the United Nations draft Convention against Cybercrime | Centre for Free Expression
The United Nations draft Convention against Cybercrime will be voted on at the UN General Assembly on December 17 and will be open for signatures next year. It is essential that Canada vote against it...
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 09/12/2024
Natasha Tusikov and Blayne Haggard's Centre for Free Expression Blogpost on universities and the IHRA definition of antisemitism is well worth reading.
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 23/11/2024
Former ACLU National Legal Director, David Cole's superb article: "What Could Stop Him? Our Constitution includes multiple guardrails against Trump-like presidents. But those checks and balances only work when citizens resist." Please read it and share with others. www.nybooks.com/online/2024/...
nybooks.com
What Could Stop Him? | David Cole
Almost like the cycles of grief, Donald Trump’s reelection has provoked shock, outrage, despondency, exhaustion, and despair. And for good reason. Trump’s
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Davide Mastracci @davide.readthemaple.com · 31/10/2024
NEW: The Israel lobby wants you suspended, fired or in prison. This is what I concluded after reading through a disturbing plan from B’nai Brith outlining a co-ordinated effort to punish advocacy for Palestine. www.readthemaple.com/the-israel-l...
readthemaple.com
The Israel Lobby Wants You Suspended, Fired Or In Prison
A new ‘seven-point plan’ from B’nai Brith outlines a disturbing co-ordinated effort to punish advocacy for Palestine.
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 21/11/2024
TODAY@7pm ET - Is Investigative Journalism in Canada Dying? Join us virtually to hear top journalists Rob Cribb, Allya Davidson, Marie-Maude Denis, Anton Kuschany, & Cecil Rosner with moderator Julian Sher. What went wrong? What’s at stake? What does the future hold? cfe.torontomu.ca/events/inves...
cfe.torontomu.ca
Is Investigative Journalism In Canada Dying? | Centre for Free Expression
Panelists: Rob Cribb, Allya Davidson, Marie-Maude Denis, Anton Kuschany, Cecil Rosner Moderator: Julian Sher
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James L Turk @jameslturk.bsky.social · 20/11/2024
In The Origins of Totalitarianism, Hannah Arendt describes Trump's Cabinet nominees: “Totalitarianism in power invariably replaces all first-rate talents, regardless of their sympathies, with crackpots and fools whose lack of intelligence and creativity is still the best guarantee of their loyalty.”
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George Monbiot @georgemonbiot.bsky.social · 18/11/2024
3. Because this is an essential service, we have no choice but to pay for it. The monopoly has us over a barrel. It can therefore charge “entry fees” (also known rents) over and above the costs of delivering the service. It’s a form of coercive private taxation.
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