Notwithstanding
Michael Healey
pp. 46-53
Passed on April 17, 1982, as Schedule B of the Canada Act, the Canadian Constitution has, for better or worse, permanently reshaped Canada’s political landscape. F. L. Morton’s Law, Politics, and the Judicial Process in Canada (Calgary: University of Calgary Press, 2002) provides an overview of the relationship between judicial review and politics in Canada, beginning with essays by John Locke and Thomas Jefferson and finishing off with discussions of the notwithstanding clause, Canadian federalism, and the Supreme Court.
Readers specifically interested in sections 1 to 34 of the Constitution Act—the Charter of Rights and Freedoms—could start by browsing the February 2007 issue of Policy Options, watching panels from the 25th-anniversary conference at McGill, or reading the Charter text proper. An informative overview of the Charter’s effects on Canadian society can be found at Collections Canada, and the Library of Parliament hosts an excellent (if loquacious) page discussing the notwithstanding clause. For the dogged, the full text of all Supreme Court of Canada decisions are hosted by both Université de Montréal and CanLII; Mapleleaf Web runs a useful database of summaries. Politically noteworthy decisions include R v. Oakes, which produced the Oakes Test and set the template for all future Supreme Court cases; Figueroa v. Canada, which overturned the electoral legislation in the Canada Elections Act that disadvantaged smaller political parties; Harper v. Canada, which set third-party spending limits in elections; and reference cases on same-sex marriage and Quebec secession.
Quebec’s own Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms can be found here.
A Russian Tragedy
Alex Shoumatoff
pp. 54-65
“A Russian Tragedy” is correspondent Alex Shoumatoff’s debut for The Walrus, but he’s been working in the glossy-magazine biz since the 1970s, when he reported for the New Yorker and Rolling Stone. Shoumatoff’s website, Dispatches from the Vanishing World, has an extensive archive of his work, including “Russian Blood,” a family memoir he wrote for the New Yorker in 1982. He’s also published several books, including a now out-of-print extended version of “Russian Blood” (Russian Blood; New York: Vintage, 1990).
As Shoumatoff points out, the current situation in Russia is dire for the free press. The Committee to Protect Journalists has a continually updated section on the Russian press here, and the 2007 report on Russia from Reporters Without Borders can be found here. The Novaya Gazeta writer Anna Politkovskaya, who was assassinated last year, had several of her articles reprinted in English for the Guardian, along with this interview. The Russian daily newspaper Kommersant, whose correspondent Ivan Safronov was murdered in March 2007, has published this account of his death.
Of course, Russia isn’t just a dangerous place for journalists—with the spectres of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and major population decline, the country has become a dangerous place for every one of its inhabitants. New Yorker correspondent Michael Specter wrote an excellent, if harrowing, report about Russia’s AIDS epidemic in October 2004. If you can read Russian, see the government’s official population statistics at this site.
If you want a more whimsical look at Russia’s woes (and we wouldn’t blame you), check out the humourous website for Uncle Pasha’s Little Empire, as written by Shoumatoff’s Russian fixer, Pasha Voytinksy. Although Pasha no longer runs the “Misery Tours” mentioned in the piece, his website still runs a full itinerary for the tour. And while Russia’s press is still having a hard time, the Federation’s blogosphere is flourishing: this anti-Putin site has a particularly comprehensive links section to various blogs, think tanks, and human rights websites.
Oasis of Hope
Layne Coleman
pp. 66-74
Carole Corbeil died of cancer in 2000 but left behind an acclaimed body of writing, including two novels. Voice-Over (Toronto: Stoddart, 1992), her semi-autobiographical debut, won the Toronto Book Award in 1993, while her second novel, In the Wings (Toronto: Stoddart, 1999), was adapted for the Theatre Passe Muraille stage by Layne Coleman.
Cancer treatments that eschew chemotherapy and radiation in favour of an organic diet and detoxification continue to be controversial. Dr. Thomas J. Wheeler, who taught a course on the subject at the University of Louisville School of Medicine in 2004, posted his online reading list here. With titles such as “The Safety and Efficacy of Shark Cartilage in the Treatment of Advanced Cancer” and “Questionable Cancer Therapies,” the list guides readers toward a scientific perspective on the issue.
The San Diego-based Gerson Institute, founded by Charlotte Gerson in 1977, promotes natural (organic), alternative therapies—round-the-clock carrot juice and coffee enemas—for the treatment of a wide range of degenerative diseases, including cancer. Gerson-licenced doctors base their treatment on the findings of Charlotte’s father, Dr. Max Gerson, who appeared before a US Senate subcommittee in 1946 to argue for the importance of diet in cancer treatment. Dr. Gerson’s A Cancer Therapy: Results of Fifty Cases and the Cure of Advanced Cancer (New York: Whittier Books, 1958) is in its sixth edition and remains a seminal work in the field of alternative cancer therapy. The institute’s website features a short documentary on Dr. Gerson’s discovery and the founding of the organization, as well as the environmental causes of disease and the proposed cure.
Peaking on the Prairies
Comments (1 comments)
whitling: Oasis of Hope
I was mesmerised by this story. It was heartfelt, provocotive, and blisteringly frank. Was it fact, was it fiction, I could not tell and that was the allure. When one moves beyond the read to find out more, that is the signature of first class writing.
Please keep up the great work, both author and magazine.
Stuart Whitling
Vernon, BC June 16, 2007 20:31 EST