Sunday, November 30, 2008
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Update: DFAIT Program: Dec 17-18
See DFAIT's Web site.
Architects and Innovators: Building the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, 1909-2009
Program
Lester B. Pearson Building
Wednesday, 17 December 2008
Registration: 13:00 - 13:30
Opening Remarks: 13:30 - 14:00
Greta Bossenmaier, Associate Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs
Session 1: Establishing the Department - 14:00 - 15:30
Chair: Gaëtan Lavertu
Carman Miller (McGill): "Sir Joseph Pope: A Tory Public Servant"
Margaret MacMillan (Oxford): "Sir Robert Borden: Laying the Foundations"
Stéphane Paquin (Sherbrooke): "Senator Raoul Dandurand: Spokesman for the World"
Coffee Break - 15:30 - 16:00
Session 2: Projecting a Presence Abroad - 16:00 - 17:00
Chair: Jean McCloskey
John Hilliker (Independent scholar): "Style and Substance: Vincent Massey, William Herridge, and the Canadian Legation in Washington, 1927-1935"
John Meehan (Toronto): "Canada's Pacific Debut: Herbert Marler and the Tokyo Legation, 1929-1936"
Coffee Break - 17:00 - 17:30
O.D. Skelton Memorial Lecture - 17:30 - 19:30
Chair: To be confirmed
Norman Hillmer (Carleton): “Foreign Policy and the National Interest: Why Skelton Matters”
Reception
Thursday, 18 December, 2008
Session 2 Continued: Projecting a Presence Abroad - 8:30 - 9:00
Chair: Jean McCloskey
The Hon. Roy MacLaren: "Peter Larkin and the Creation of Canada House"
Session 3: Building a New World Order - 9:00 - 10:30
Chair: Michael Kergin
Stéphane Roussel (UQAM): "Hume Wrong: The Consummate Realist"
Francine McKenzie (UWO): "A.D.P. Heeney: The Orderly Under-Secretary"
Hector Mackenzie (DFAIT): "Gerry Riddell: A Golden Age Idealist"
Coffee Break - 10:30 - 10:45
Session 4: The Centre Cannot Hold - 10:45 - 12:15
Chair: Jacques Roy
Eric Bergbusch and Michael Stevenson (York): "'Give Peace a Chance': Howard Green, Public Opinion, and the Politics of Disarmament"
Robert Bothwell (Toronto): "The Fulminating Under-Secretary: Marcel Cadieux"
Claire Turenne-Sjolander (Ottawa): "Margaret Meagher and the Role of Women in the Foreign Service: Groundbreaking or Housekeeping?"
Lunch - 12:15 - 13:45
Session 5: The Shifting Agenda - 13:45 - 15:15
Chair: Leonard J. Edwards, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs
John English (Centre for International Governance Innovation), "Two Heads are Better than One: Ivan Head, Pierre Trudeau, and the Department of External Affairs"
David Elder (Queen's), "The Department, Summits and the International Economic Agenda: Sylvia Ostry as Architect and Innovator"
Kim Richard Nossal (Queen's), "Allan Gotlieb and the Politics of the Real World of Washington."
Coffee Break - 15:15 - 15:30
Session 6: The Integrated Department: views from within
- 15:30 - 17:00
Chair: Leonard J. Edwards
The Right Hon. Joe Clark (Secretary of State for External Affairs, 1984-1991)
James H Taylor (Under-Secretary of State for External Affairs, 1985-1989)
R.Allen Kilpatrick (Deputy Minister of International Trade 1993-1995)
The Hon. Pierre Pettigrew (Minister of International Trade, 1999-2003, and Minister of Foreign Affairs, 2004-2006)
Friday, November 21, 2008
December 17 at the Pearson Building
Architects and Innovators: Building the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, 1909-2009.
December 17 is a big day at DFAIT, with lots of interesting speakers. Thanks to Jim Elliott, who sleuthed it out for us -- another covert public outreach?
Check out the program here.
December 17 is a big day at DFAIT, with lots of interesting speakers. Thanks to Jim Elliott, who sleuthed it out for us -- another covert public outreach?
Check out the program here.
DFAIT Centennary
The following is excerpted from the DFAIT web site, here. And yes, Canada had reps abroad before 1909 -- notably Trade Commissioners -- but that year is when it all came together as a department. Read on. And see the site for planned activities.
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On June 1, 2009, Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada will mark its 100th anniversary. We have come a long way since our modest beginnings as a registry office above a barber shop in downtown Ottawa. The department's emergence as a modern, dynamic foreign and trade ministry is a tale of accomplishment that we wish to share with all Canadians.
---
On June 1, 2009, Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada will mark its 100th anniversary. We have come a long way since our modest beginnings as a registry office above a barber shop in downtown Ottawa. The department's emergence as a modern, dynamic foreign and trade ministry is a tale of accomplishment that we wish to share with all Canadians.
Over the years, the department has evolved to reflect changing realities in Canada and in our international environment. So it is fitting that in our 100th year we are continuing to show our ability to adapt by undertaking a significant transformation exercise that will serve to underscore our continuing relevance to the government and to Canadians.
Beginning in June 2008, the department will sponsor a series of events and activities to mark our centenary, centred in Ottawa but stretching across the country, as well as in our missions abroad. We encourage you to explore this site for information on the department's history, interviews with former ambassadors, and links to some of our online historical resources and activities.
Please join us in our centennial celebrations, as we look back on our past, reflect on our present, and build for our future.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Oldies Jukebox
Jim Graham likes oldies and passes this one on to us. Just type in any song or artist you would like to hear. After it has played, it will continue with music of the same ilk, forever.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Snow Bird Banking
This message is from Waine McQuinn
We have had a condo in Florida for a number of years. Nevertheless, we were unable to get a US$ credit card. We also have had to pay $20 each time we transferred money to our Florida account by wire.
On the basis of a friend’s recommendation, we recently switched our US Banking from Bank of America to RBC Centura. In 2001 the Royal Bank of Canada purchased the Centura Bank in the Southeast USA and RBC Centura (currently being renamed RBC) has over 400 branches in NC, SC, GA, and Florida.
There were three immediate benefits for us:
1. RBC Centura, unlike other American banks, can access our Canadian credit experience and based upon that information was able to issue us a VISA credit card using our new account and Florida address;
2. RBC Centura can link our US and Canadian RBC accounts so that with on-line banking, we can see our US and Canadian accounts together and transfer funds between these accounts at NO COST.
3. We received a $25 Gift Certificate to a local restaurant of our choosing for opening our RBC Centura account.
I am bringing this opportunity to your attention since we have personally enjoyed the banking benefits of using RBC in the USA. We didn’t even have RBC accounts in Canada when we opened our account in Florida. We have since opened a Cdn$ and US$ account here because of the
benefits of transferring funds at NO COST.
To see if RBC US banking benefits are appropriate for your personal situation, I invite you to check out the website www.rbcbankusa.com. Should you proceed to open a RBC account in the USA, simply print out and complete the attached form and submit it to your RBC Account Representative for your free $25 Gift Certificate. Don’t worry about the restaurant names on the certificate, we were able to choose our own restaurant.
By the way, if this opportunity is not relevant to your own situation, feel free to pass it on to any of your friends or relatives who might be able to take advantage of it.
Happy Banking
Waine
We have had a condo in Florida for a number of years. Nevertheless, we were unable to get a US$ credit card. We also have had to pay $20 each time we transferred money to our Florida account by wire.
On the basis of a friend’s recommendation, we recently switched our US Banking from Bank of America to RBC Centura. In 2001 the Royal Bank of Canada purchased the Centura Bank in the Southeast USA and RBC Centura (currently being renamed RBC) has over 400 branches in NC, SC, GA, and Florida.
There were three immediate benefits for us:
1. RBC Centura, unlike other American banks, can access our Canadian credit experience and based upon that information was able to issue us a VISA credit card using our new account and Florida address;
2. RBC Centura can link our US and Canadian RBC accounts so that with on-line banking, we can see our US and Canadian accounts together and transfer funds between these accounts at NO COST.
3. We received a $25 Gift Certificate to a local restaurant of our choosing for opening our RBC Centura account.
I am bringing this opportunity to your attention since we have personally enjoyed the banking benefits of using RBC in the USA. We didn’t even have RBC accounts in Canada when we opened our account in Florida. We have since opened a Cdn$ and US$ account here because of the
benefits of transferring funds at NO COST.
To see if RBC US banking benefits are appropriate for your personal situation, I invite you to check out the website www.rbcbankusa.com. Should you proceed to open a RBC account in the USA, simply print out and complete the attached form and submit it to your RBC Account Representative for your free $25 Gift Certificate. Don’t worry about the restaurant names on the certificate, we were able to choose our own restaurant.
By the way, if this opportunity is not relevant to your own situation, feel free to pass it on to any of your friends or relatives who might be able to take advantage of it.
Happy Banking
Waine
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Doctors' Opinions of Financial $700 Billion Bailout
Jim Graham conducted a survey of what Vancouver Island doctors think about the government bailouts.
His findings:
The Allergists voted to scratch it, and the Dermatologists advised not to make any rash moves.
The Gastroenterologists had sort of a gut feeling about it, but the Neurologists thought the Bush Administration had a lot of nerve.
The Obstetricians felt they were all laboring under a misconception.
The Ophthalmologists considered the idea short-sighted; the Pathologists yelled, 'Over my dead body!' while the Pediatricians said, 'Oh, Grow up!'
The Psychiatrists thought the whole idea was madness. The Radiologists could see right through it, and the Surgeons decided to wash their hands of the whole thing.
The Internists thought it was a bitter pill to swallow, and the Plastic Surgeons said, 'This puts a whole new face on the matter.'
The Podiatrists thought it was a step forward, but the Urologists felt the scheme wouldn't hold water.
The Anesthesiologists thought the whole idea was a gas, and the Cardiologists didn't have the heart to say no.
In the end, the Proctologists urged that the decision be left up to the assholes in Washington.
His findings:
The Allergists voted to scratch it, and the Dermatologists advised not to make any rash moves.
The Gastroenterologists had sort of a gut feeling about it, but the Neurologists thought the Bush Administration had a lot of nerve.
The Obstetricians felt they were all laboring under a misconception.
The Ophthalmologists considered the idea short-sighted; the Pathologists yelled, 'Over my dead body!' while the Pediatricians said, 'Oh, Grow up!'
The Psychiatrists thought the whole idea was madness. The Radiologists could see right through it, and the Surgeons decided to wash their hands of the whole thing.
The Internists thought it was a bitter pill to swallow, and the Plastic Surgeons said, 'This puts a whole new face on the matter.'
The Podiatrists thought it was a step forward, but the Urologists felt the scheme wouldn't hold water.
The Anesthesiologists thought the whole idea was a gas, and the Cardiologists didn't have the heart to say no.
In the end, the Proctologists urged that the decision be left up to the assholes in Washington.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Thursday, November 6, 2008
New Service from Google
Ray Guy has a speed dial number worth putting in your cell phone, or your home phone :
1-800-goog411.
This is an awesome service from Google, and it's free --Especially great when you are on the road. Don't waste time or money on information calls and dialing numbers. Example: I am driving along in my car and I need to call the Billiard Parlour and I don't know the number. I hit the speed dial number for Goog411.
The voice at the other end says, 'City & State.' I say, 'Ottawa, Ontario'.
He says, 'Business, Name or Type of Service.' I say, 'Fred's Billiard Hall'.
He says, 'Connecting' and Fred answers the phone.
This is North America-wide and it is absolutely free!
Click on the link below and watch the short clip for a quick demo.
<http://www.google.com/goog411/ >
1-800-goog411.
This is an awesome service from Google, and it's free --Especially great when you are on the road. Don't waste time or money on information calls and dialing numbers. Example: I am driving along in my car and I need to call the Billiard Parlour and I don't know the number. I hit the speed dial number for Goog411.
The voice at the other end says, 'City & State.' I say, 'Ottawa, Ontario'.
He says, 'Business, Name or Type of Service.' I say, 'Fred's Billiard Hall'.
He says, 'Connecting' and Fred answers the phone.
This is North America-wide and it is absolutely free!
Click on the link below and watch the short clip for a quick demo.
<http://www.google.com/
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