The euro zone and Canada
The European Union is right to rescue Greece; with a shared currency and shared central bank, members of the euro zone are not in a wholly different position from those of Canadian provinces or U.S. states.
Public-spirited transit
Dozing ticket collectors, disrespectful passengers and, now, sex scandals appear to be derailing public transit in Toronto. But much of the recent turmoil involving the Toronto Transit Commission is a distraction, and it holds a lesson for city dwellers across the country. It's time to bring some civility back to our shared spaces, and for a new emphasis on the "public" part of transit.
Globe editorial
Those who read well at 15 succeed
There's no greater predictor of a child's future educational success than reading proficiency
Globe editorial
Ill-funded public good
Canada risks losing its status as an important centre for clinical trials, and patients could end up receiving well intentioned, but lesser care
One-stop shopping
Buying a new house is a complicated, and expensive, proposition. The Competition Bureau's complaint that the Canadian Real Estate Association and its Multiple Listing Service system are anti-competitive is a welcome, pro-consumer move that could allow sufficiently brave buyers to take on more of the complication themselves, while reducing their expense.
Canada drags its feet
Canadians have demonstrated an unsurpassed generosity in their response to Haiti's devastation. They have given more than $113-million in cash donations alone, an amount to be matched by Ottawa. As well, Canadian soldiers, police officers, NGO officials and countless volunteers are on the ground helping to stabilize the badly wounded nation.
Globe editorial
Missed opportunity, but not the last
The First Nations University of Canada appears doomed, but the efforts to advance first nations postsecondary education must continue
Solvency in question
The victory of Viktor Yanukovich in the Ukrainian presidential election increases the influence of Russia in Ukraine, but the country's solvency depends to a great extent on its government's willingness to satisfy the conditions under which the International Monetary Fund will resume its lending of instalments under a $16.4-billion rescue program, which is in effect currently suspended.
Globe editorial
Civic reinvolvement
With shenanigans in Ottawa proceeding apace, some public agitation against prorogation is welcome and necessary
Globe editorial
Coercion adds to trauma
Judges have a responsibility to look with skepticism at new offerings from medical or psychological professionals. Yesterday it was repressed-memory syndrome; today, parental-alienation syndrome
Crackdown not needed
A temporary combination of circumstances does not amount to a compelling argument for the existence of a residential real-estate bubble that is due to burst, or for a policy change in mortgage-insurance standards.
Pawns of the theocracy
Three American hikers just marked six months in an Iranian jail. They are the unlikely symbols of a repressive regime now single-mindedly focused on security. As the opposition prepares for more protests this week, the 31st anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, it is time for the government of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to end the worst abuses in its criminal justice system, and release the hikers and others being used as political pawns.
Globe editorial
Erosion of trust
The Toyota recalls are many things: a nuisance for car owners; a vindication for those whose defect-burdened vehicles careened into danger; and a headache for the company's employees and shareholders. They also shine a light on the importance of trust and transparency in modern economies.
The dormant bubble
President Barack Obama's proposals to reduce the risks that led to the credit crisis of 2008 and 2009 are one-sided; that is, he has become more bold in trying to limit the speculative behaviour of banks, but he has done little or nothing to restrain unduly hopeful home-buyers or - what amounts to the same thing - to protect American taxpayers from carrying almost all of the risk of mortgage default in the United States.
The return of legitimacy
It is time to end the international isolation of Honduras, and to recognize Porfirio Lobo as president. This Central American nation of eight million has taken the necessary steps to demonstrate that constitutional rule is being respected. The election of Mr. Lobo, in November, 2009, met the standard for democracy. The boycott of aid and international recognition punishes Hondurans, half of whom live below the poverty line, and works against building stability in the third-poorest country in the Americas.
Opening a window
The RCMP has dragged its own name through the mud so many times in the past few years it comes as a shock when it suddenly recognizes what it needs to do to begin restoring public trust. Commissioner William Elliott announced on Thursday that the force will no longer investigate its own members who are involved in cases of death or serious injury. This is a sign, one hopes, that the force's culture of arrogance is on the way out.
The school of fewer hard knocks
Seen in their true light, children's vulnerabilities may also be the source of their strength and hope, a new study says. Those children who are unusually sensitive to stress - the orchid children, the Swedes call them - are more likely than their hardier peers ("dandelion children") to suffer in poor soil. But let them grow in nurturing soil and they are more likely to become flowers of striking beauty.
Globe editorial
Not yet decisive victory
Ottawa's success in this negotiation was too slow; a sustained, cross-border pro-free trade campaign will help sure that interests never gain the upper hand to begin with
Globe editorial
Lesson learned
Stephen Harper's elimination of spring break won't undo the damage, but it is tacit admission outrage expressed by Canadians has resonated in Ottawa
Solid, not a turnaround
At mid-term, Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach is in trouble. The recession, a growing deficit and uncertainty around the province's economic future have thrown his leadership, and the very future of the Progressive Conservative party, into question. Yesterday's throne speech needed to deliver a compelling vision of his government's direction, but the effort, while laudable, came up short.