Liebnitz and the Tesserae
“So two haggises are cooking in the oven,” said Chief MacBannock, “and one says, ‘Boy, it sure is hot in here! And the second one replies, ‘Whoa! It’s a talking haggis!'” He glanced around expectantly, but the others around the table just…
The Foreign Service and the United States or You want an exotic posting? Try this…
The great thing about a foreign service career is the opportunity to work abroad, representing Canada and assisting Canadians wherever they are. And Canadians are everywhere these days; ask the Consular Bureau!
In Celebration of Excellence // Dans la célébration de l’excellence
On Thursday, June 14, 2007, 280 colleagues and guests gathered to celebrate excellence in the Canadian Foreign Service at the PAFSO Dinner and Awards presentations held in the Panorama Room of the National Arts Centre in Ottawa. James Gray’s bagpipes signalled the…
Nixon in China: The Week that Changed the World
Some 15 years ago historian Francis Fukuyama published The End of History and the Last Man. His book, an expansion of a 1989 article, argued that the end of the Cold War and the breakup of the Soviet empire represented the end…
A Short History of British Columbia, A Short History of Alberta, A Short History of Saskatchewan, A Short History of Manitoba
Ed Whitcomb, a longtime Political- Economic Officer with the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, at present on secondment to the International Assessment Staff at the Privy Council Office, is slowly working his way across Canada, one book at a time.
Intelligence
The Senate of Canada has been much criticized over a number of years as being of little importance and numerous suggestions have been made for its «reform,” some useful others not very useful and, in some instances, unhelpful, even bizarre.
The Persian Version
To the World’s Only Superpower, Iran is a “rogue state,” a threat to world peace and security. Ironically, 2500 years ago, when Iran was the World’s Only Superpower, it had its own problems with rogue states, in particular Athens and Sparta. How…
Peter Zalite 1942–2007
Peter Zalite, engineer, naval officer, entrepreneur, diplomat and docent, died in Ventspils, Latvia, on February 21, 2007. He was 64 years old. After a varied and successful career as a Foreign Service Officer in Canada’s Department of External Affairs, Peter took early…
Hues from the East
I shoot in black-and-white and colour, and while I prefer black-and-white, my eye is often drawn to colour. These photos were taken in various Asian countries and I was lured to each scene either by the colour, the design, or both. I…
Relief (Pitcher) in Hyannis Port
There was a new prime minister in Canada, who had promised decisive action (“Sixty Days of Decision”) on a wide range of issues, including relations with the United States, which had deteriorated under his predecessor. The American president, who had been narrowly…
