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Hong Kong’s prospects for reform dire: Manthorpe

International affairs analyst Jonathan Manthorpe writes today on the crisis looming over Hong Kong, and the fraught relationship between its citizens and Beijing. An excerpt: A crisis is fast approaching in the relations between Beijing and the people of Hong Kong, a relationship which has been on a downhill slide since the territory was returned to China in 1997. Within the next few months, Beijing is set to decide whether to keep to its promise made before the handover to foster democratic government in Hong Kong, or to continue dictating who will run the territory of over seven million people.

Moon Eclipse

A full eclipse of the moon will occur overnight, visible in the Western hemisphere for three hours from late Monday April 14 (in western time zones) and early Tuesday April 15 (in the east). The United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) will stream a live feed of the eclipse, here, for some three hours starting at 2 a.m. EDT. The peak of the eclipse  — when the moon enters the Earth’s full shadow or umbra — will occur at 3:45 a.m., said NASA. NASA’s animated productions of the eclipse, as seen from moon, are here. An excerpt from

Pulitzer Prize for journalism on secret surveillance

The Guardian and the Washington Post newspapers were the big winners of the prestigious Pulitzer Prizes for public service journalism Monday, for their reporting on spying by American security agencies. Pulizter announced the two news organizations shared the prize for Public Service: Awarded to The Washington Post for its revelation of widespread secret surveillance by the National Security Agency, marked by authoritative and insightful reports that helped the public understand how the disclosures fit into the larger framework of national security. Awarded to The Guardian US for its revelation of widespread secret surveillance by the National Security Agency, helping through

Desmond Tutu on climate change, Keystone, and divestment

Nobel laureate Desmond Tutu has launched a campaign to persuade people to divest themselves of holdings in the fossil fuel industry and, specifically, to stop construction of the Keystone pipeline from Canada’s oil sands through the United States to the Gulf of Mexico. “Twenty-five years ago people could be excused for not knowing much, or doing much, about climate change,” he writes in an essay published here, in F&O’s Loose Leaf salon. “It was an “environmental issue” of intense interest to environmentalists and leftists and conspiracy theorists, but not much use to us. Today, we have no excuse. None. Knowledge

Jesse Winchester, R.I.P.

Jesse Winchester died today at his home in Virginia, age 69. He had reportedly been suffering from cancer. He is best known as a singer-songwriter from the United States but — like many Canadians — I think of him as a Draft Dodger, a designation most Canadians view as a badge of honour. During the Vietnam War Winchester was one of tens of thousands of Americans who fled to Canada, to avoid military service. Their exact numbers are uncertain, estimates range wildly from 20,000 to 60,000. Many of them influenced Canadian culture and political life. Winchester arrived in Montreal in 1967,

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