Author: John Weissenberger

2018 marks the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War. Despite the passage of time, the events of that terrible human tragedy still have the power to horrify, inspire, and unleash our tears. Lest we forget the sacrifices of the Canadians who fought and died in that war and all the military conflicts that have tested our nation’s mettle, C2C Journal is marking Armistice Day with an essay by John Weissenberger that is bookended by the stories of the first and last Canadians who died in the Great War.

2014 marks the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War, which began in part because of persistent Russian meddling in the Balkans. The Soviet Empire that grew out of the Bolshevik Revolution was largely created by Russian meddling in the affairs of its eastern and central European neighbours before, during and after the Second World War. Today the Russians are meddling in Ukraine, among other countries. The point is, the core of Russian foreign policy never really changes. We should not be surprised or acquiescent. If we give Vladimir Putin an inch, he will take a mile. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has been saying as much for years, write George Koch and John Weissenberger, and it’s time for tougher action by Canada and the other western powers to contain modern Russian aggression.

In the federal election eight months from now we’ll find out how much damage the latest Quebec-centric political scandal has caused the Liberal Party of Canada. Previous ones, like the “Adscam” affair that crippled the Liberals in the 2006 election, involved millions of misappropriated tax dollars. So far “Lavagate” is about meddling with justice, not stealing money. The “Duffygate” scandal that dogged the Conservatives in the 2015 election involved a paltry $90,000 – and it got paid back. So it wasn’t really about money either. Or justice, as it turned out, when none of the charges stuck. As John Weissenberger wrote for C2C, it was mainly about the allegedly diabolical machinations of Stephen Harper. Readers can judge for themselves whether it belongs in the same league as Adscam or Lavagate.