On April 4, 1949, the foreign ministers of Canada, the US, the UK, France and eight other countries signed the North Atlantic Treaty. An armed attack on one member would be an armed attack on them all.

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A nation is a group of people who share the same illusions about themselves. Academics call it imagining a community. Vancouver cyberpunk novelist William Gibson calls it “consensual hallucination.” Whatever you call it, April Fools seems like a good opportunity to think about some of the illusions Canadians have about ourselves. One illusion we share [...]

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This week marks the 10th anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. We revisit that turbulent time with a look at our Maclean’s archives and its reporting on a history-making event.

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“Jack”, the new biopic on the late Jack Layton, tells the story of romance and politics behind the charismatic NDP leader. It premiers on Sunday, March 10 on CBC.

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When Russian dissidents were expelled from Russia, Canada welcomed them. In turn, they helped Canada with its two greatest needs: increasing the population and opening the West to agriculture.

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Exactly one year ago today, NDP leader Jack Layton passed away. We revisit his final words to Canadians.

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In Eugene Forsey, Canada’s Maverick Sage (Dundern Press), Helen Forsey talks about hearing her father’s typewriter as he banged away on it in his study. Eugene Forsey was a prolific writer—the sound of that typewriter must have comprised the background noise of Helen’s childhood. It is also  something of a keystone for her current awareness [...]

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As election outcomes go, the results in Ontario’s seem pretty reasonable, though to some extent troubling as well.

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“It is said that you can only make a first impression once. For me, Trudeau’s wasn’t favourable. To make matters worse, I had missed Trudeaumania. All I saw was Trudeau’s mania for power.”

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What sort of taxes (and there are many) should we have and how high should they be?

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President Obama thanked Prime Minister Harper for Canada’s “friendship and solidarity” during their “darkest hour.”

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Ten years after September 11, William Christian reflects on the day and the significance for Canadians.

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Jack Layton’s last letter to Canadians was, as everyone was told from the very beginning, a collegial affair.  Layton, party president Brian Topp, chief of staff Anne McGrath, and his wife and colleague Olivia Chow all had input into the final draft. The letter was hortatory rhetoric, defined as writing that encourages its audience to [...]

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In 1980, Pierre Trudeau defeated Joe Clark’s bumbling regime and formed a new Liberal government. However, he faced a serious problem constructing his cabinet. The voters of western Canada showed they did not much like the prime minister who had taunted them with the question, “Why should I sell your wheat?”

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“With the passing of Jack Layton we’ve lost a charismatic, engaging leader and a strong voice for our country. We’ve also lost one of our biggest advocates for young Canadians.”

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