A Brief History of CSIS - National Security in a Liberal Democracy

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In the ever-changing world of digital society, national security apparatuses have continuously expanded their scope and capabilities. New ways of tracking and collecting information has pushed the legal limits of current legislation, while often ambiguous threats from home and abroad has forced our security agencies to use any means at their disposal. Though all in the attempt to keep Canadian citizens and values secure, the result has been a precarious mixture of surveillance of Canadians and inappropriate government oversight. Senator Hugh Segal (retiring this year) wrote an article in the National Post last week demanding that a commission be held to sort out these serious issues. His call for the “modernization of our national security culture” is timely and echoes some of the concerns that led to the Canadian Security Intelligence Service's (CSIS) creation nearly thirty years ago.

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A Rob Ford Democracy

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Despite the fact on Monday we tried to get away from the barrage of news surrounding the shameful antics of Rob Ford, his actions do deserve some comment on our blog. Much has been said about the meaning of Rob Ford's time in office as a symbol of race inequality, of democratic decline, of left-wing alienation, and so on and on. It's easy to be a bit overwhelmed by the deluge of pundits scrambling to offer their opinion on Ford's downfall. Let's look at some of what has been said to date and what it means for Canadian democracy.

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The Virtual Public Sphere

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Earlier this week we examined some common threads connecting the emergence of an information society during the Renaissance, the invention of the printing press, and the spread of the printed book to today's digital information society. Let's continue that connection with an examination of another transforming aspect of digital society historians will have to consider: the public sphere in the age of the Internet.

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Why You Don't Vote

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A report by Samara Canada garnered a lot of attention recently as pundits reacted to what has been the elephant in the room for a decade. Another report echoed Samara's conclusions.  To no one's surprise, Canadians care less and less about politics. Less of us vote, less of us volunteer for campaigns, and less of us even talk about politics among ourselves. As a young Canadian, political disengagement among my generation has been a constant part of my life. Samara made sure to define political engagement as more than simply posting about it on Facebook or reading political news – it required active involvement in the political community. For Samara, participating in the politics of a democratic state requires action and effort. It does not work without it, which unfortunately is too much to ask many Canadians especially those under the age of 30.

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