Sunday digest

- Sixty-five months of uninterrupted growth, and some folks will still find something to complain about.

- The other day, I was asked by someone if I'd ever like to work for Canada's Department of Foreign Affairs. My response? "I'm not much of a do-gooder." The fact that I agree 100% with what this Kenyan has to say explains why.

- Although Vladimir Putin played the skunk at the garden party at the G-8 last week, check out this piece from Niall Ferguson on how there are others who should have been invited, but weren't.

- A very well-considered piece here from an endangered species a Republican academic who argues that while democracy is part of the solution to fighting Islamic radicalism, you first have to promote a culture of real liberty.

Bonus points for the following quote: "... I often remind my students and colleagues that only the impotent and the naive have the luxury of self-righteousness."

- I am a big, big fan of Bill Cosby's mission over the last couple of years, which has been this: if you want to see positive change, set aside blame and start looking in the mirror.

- Not that I would usually care about an article from a former Paul Martin fartcatcher, but I have to point out something from Scott Feschuk's article in Maclean's this week, here. In evaluating his leader, Stephane Dion, Feschuk says:

"His tone is consistently that of a university lecturer, which is fine for a minister but death for a leader. No one ever emerged inspired from Introduction to Economics. (Suicidal? Yes. Also sleepy. But not inspired.)"

I would disagree with Feschuk. Many individuals, in fact, have emerged inspired from Introduction to Economics, but those who do don't choose a career path which leads to employment as a Trudeaupian PR flack. Therein lies the difference.

Maclean's makes up for their columnist's antipathy towards basic mathematics, here.

- Early indications are that those over the age of 19 are going to be prevented from drinking a glass of wine or a Blue next time they go to the multiplex to check out their film of choice, as the Ontario government won't put the children at risk.

Ahh, the omnipotent state, always there to protect us from ourselves.

This is the same kind of lowest common denominator thinking that prevents us from being able to buy beer and wine at corner stores in Ontario.