Canada and the World Backgrounder articles from May 1998

Canada and the World Backgrounder archives from May 1998

Never make predictions - particularly about the future.(Editorial)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... There have always been plenty of people around willing to predict the future. But, it's a risky business. The fearless forecasts of the past often turn out to be the chuckles of the future. In 1943, Thomas Watson said: "I think there is a...

The rise of grey power.(Canadians living longer could cause social problems)
May 1, 1998... Like their ancestors before them, a generation of Canadians is aging, but their numbers are so huge they are presenting a major challenge to society Canadians are growing old. There's nothing startling or new about that. What makes our...

The upside of growing old.(advatages to growing old)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... Ana Malina Osorio decided it's never too late to upgrade your education. In October 1997, she became a high school graduate at the age of 102. The great-great-grandmother said she wanted her diploma so she could work at a local San Juan,...

Not alone.(countries might be overwhelmed by large, aging population)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... Canada isn't the only country with a large, aging population. A study by the World Bank in the early 1990s found several pension systems on the verge of collapse in Eastern Europe. South America. Italy and Turkey. In Japan, the ratio of...

Stressing the system.(medical care costs for Canada's aging will mushroom)
May 1, 1998... Just as growing old is one of life's certainties, so is a changing health picture for most of us Old people get sick more with such ailments as arthritis, rheumatism, and hypertension. They develop heart disease and lung problems. They have...

The epidemic ahead.(more elderly people means more healthcare costs)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... Cancers mostly a disease of older people. About 70% of new cancer cases and 80% of deaths occur in people who are 60 older. As we are now living longer, more of us are going to get cancer. In April 1998, Statistics Canada warned Canadian...

Choosing to die.(euthanasia supported by 76% of Canadian population)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... Most Canadians -- 76% -- think people have the right to doctor-assisted suicide. Euthanasia, or mercy killing, is highly controversial issue, but it's one that will crop up more frequently as our population ages. As things stand now, public...

From left to right - and back again?(Canadian baby boomers change political sides over time)
May 1, 1998... As the Baby Boomers cast ballots in their first elections, the politics of the left was popular; in middle age, with mortgages, car loans, and growing children, the Boomers favoured conservatives; now, as they approach retirement and old age,...

The left turns right.(left-wing political parties more aligned with the political right)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... Every time someone makes up a rule someone else comes along to break it. Social democrats all over the world have reinvented themselves in the 1990s. Left-wing political parties such as Britain's Labour Party, Spain's Socialist Workers Party,...

The world according to Galbraith.(economist, John Kenneth Galbraith)(Brief Article)(Transcript)
May 1, 1998... John Kenneth Galbraith, an economist of immense international reputation, was born in Canada in 1908. He advised Canadian prime ministers and American presidents on economic issues. In 1997, he gave a lecture at the University of Toronto. Here...

Some platforms.(general platforms supported by liberals and conservatives)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... The splitting of politics into left and right is a bit clumsy. People come in an endless series of shapes and sizes and so do their beliefs. That said, there are some generalizations that can be made to help us understand where people stand on...

In the boomers' shadow.(life is difficult for Canadians born after the baby boom)
May 1, 1998... For the people born immediately after the Baby Boom, life has not been easy The kids born between 1960 and 1966 are the generation Xers and, according to the authors of Boom, Bust & Echo, life is a lot harder for them than it is for older...

Hitting the streets.(homeless teenagers on the rise in Toronto, Canada)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... A disturbing trend among some young people is the increase in the number of homeless teenagers. Toronto's hostel workers say the city's nine youth shelters, with almost 400 beds, are filled most nights, and countless other kids are sleeping in...

The rich get richer.(gap between rich and poor widening in Canada)
May 1, 1998... There seems to be some truth in the expression, "Them that have, gets" It's easier to stay rich when you start out that way; for a few generations anyway. It's also hard to lift yourself out of poverty when you start out poor. And, those...

As hard as ABC.(widening gap between Canada's rich and poor aggravated by school system)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... The gap between rich and poor starts early. Children from poor families often are disadvantaged from the beginning. Parents may be too young to take on the task of parenting and may not have a family tradition of reading and story-telling or...

The hollow centre.(middle class struggling in Canada)
May 1, 1998... Middle class incomes are stagnant. If inflation is factored in, middle class incomes have hardly budged since the late 1970s. Between 1995 and 1997, average family incomes actually declined by about $200 You are middle class if you earn...

The end of civility.(Toronto, Ontario, illegal driving habits indicative of social dissatisfaction)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... Something had to be done. More and more drivers were running red lights and people were getting killed. In March 1998, Toronto officials decided to crack down. Cops were stationed at key intersections. There was a media fanfare; the cars were...

Future world.(technological developments beg ethical questions)
May 1, 1998... Researchers are constantly breaking new ground and the scientific advances they produce are providing our existing value systems with some exciting challenges Richard Seed has been called nuts. The American physicist announced in January...

Get used to it.(belief systems challenged by cloning)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... New scientific and technological breakthroughs are constantly challenging us and our beliefs. McGill University's Dr. Margaret Somerville is an ethicist who says we should understand our own reaction to sometimes troubling developments such as...

Science fiction.(two scientists teleport a particle of light)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... John Logie Baird created the first television picture in 1926. If you had seen the barely recognizable picture of a human face that Mr. Baird produced you would probably have said. "Hey John. Don't quit your day job; this technology is going...

It all depends.(two definitions of ethics)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... There are two ways of looking at ethics. The so-called deontological approach is clear and simple; something is right or it is wrong. If it is wrong, it is still wrong even though some good might come of it. So, if society decides that killing...

Out with old - in with the new.(religious practices changed in Canada by baby boomers)
May 1, 1998... Preachers in old, established churches often are talking to half-empty pews, while non-traditional congregations can't cope with the overflow Time Magazine caused a flap in April 1966. On its cover, Time's editors asked the question "Is God...

Spirituality.(religious belief usually how people express spirituality)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... Most humans have spiritual needs. Author Lucinda Vardey puts it this way: "We human beings tend to need to believe in something we cannot apprehend or understand -- something greater and bigger than our meagre lives. Spirituality is part of...

Moral guidance.(church not broadly viewed as having answers to moral questions)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... Traditionally, society has looked to the church for answers to moral dilemmas. Not any more. The authors of the European Values Study say that most people believe religious leaders should say less about issues such as abortion, extra-marital...

Small is beautiful.(small religious congregations on the rise in Canada)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... Montreal dentist Mordy Shizgal has set up a synagogue in his home. Each week, as many as 50 people come to his house to worship under the guidance of a young rabbi. It's a small-scale, community-oriented religious experience. Dr. Shizgal...

A Canadian prayer.(Native Chief, Dan George)(Transcript)(Brief Article)
May 1, 1998... Oh, Great Spirit, whose voice I hear in the winds, and whose breath gives life to the world, here me. I come to you as one of your many children. I am small and weak. I need your strength and your wisdom. May I walk in beauty. Make my eyes...