As coverage of the debate over the long form census continues into its second month, media dialogue appears to have reduced the matter to the old tried-and-true narratives, in lieu of a more substantive public discussion on why the census is important and what it says about our country and the citizens who live here. Below is a three-part essay that summarizes the media discussion to date, highli... [More]

As previous posts in this space have argued, philosophy is alive and well in Canadian public life, if you know where to look. And look you should, here, for the most thoughtful analysis of the reasons behind the federal Conservative government's recent decision to eliminate the mandatory long-form census,. Written by University of Ottawa political philosophy professor Paul Saurette, the piece se... [More]

For more on yesterday's piece on free speech in Canada, a short debate between Paul Saurette and Margaret Wente. Among other things, they discuss the role of controversial arguemnts and individuals in public life.  It was reminiscent of many of themes of last week's emotion and public policy conference. If this continues, I'll surely regret my decision to forgo philosophy in first year unive... [More]

Rumours to the contrary aside, if March is any indication, there is good reason to believe that philosophy is alive and well in modern life. Today, Paul Saurette encourages us to reflect, in light of Ann Coulter's recently-thwarted attempt to address a crowd in Ottawa, on the appropriate justifications for limiting free speech in Canada.  His plea for a "thoughtful and nuanced consideration... [More]