Notes From The Press Gallery

Paul Dewar vows to engage NDP grassroots

2012-01-30T17:29:00.003-05:00

I have a new piece on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which was my contribution to the series of interviews with the various NDP leadership candidates. I spoke to Paul Dewar about his bid, which was an MP I'm glad I got to speak to given that I've talked a lot with Dewar over the past few years on a variety of issues, and he's one of the candidates that I do know best in the race. We had a good conversation, and the distilled version is here before you.

The Harper government's 'commitment' to gay rights

2012-01-20T21:48:00.000-05:00

I have a new analysis piece on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which responds to the articles and op-eds that have shown up in recent days about the Harper government's commitment to gay rights, and the dichotomy between his promoting rights abroad while tinkering with same-sex divorce at home, and the left-right debate on whether or not there is a homophobic hidden agenda. I tried to play it as down-the-middle as possible, and to be fair to both sides, dismissing the talk of hidden agendas while at the same time taking a harder look at the real record rather than the appearances that have been put forward. It's generated some debate so far, so I'm hoping it will continue to stir some more in the days to come.

Government changes will hurt gay refugees

2012-01-13T22:13:00.000-05:00

I have a new story on the main page of Xtra.ca, which looks at proposed regulatory changes to refugee policies that could have an impact on queer refugee claimants. This came up when I was writing about the government's pledge to increase the number of government-sponsored refugees they're accepting next year, so I was eager to take a look. Add to that, it was nice to get a chance to catch up with some of the groups I've dealt with before on this file.

Choosing a Liberal Party president

2012-01-06T21:56:00.000-05:00

I have a piece on the national page of Xtra.ca today, in which I ask the five candidates for Liberal Party president how each of them thinks the party should be reaching out to the queer community. Some of the answers were surprising, some of them spawned off another discussion entirely in addition to what was said, and in all, we'll see who it is that wins the leadership at the convention this weekend.

Starting a Liberal gay caucus

2012-01-05T22:03:00.001-05:00

I have a story today on the national page of Xtra.ca, in which I talk to the person behind the new Liberal "queer caucus" that is starting up in Toronto. This is one of two pieces that I've done in advance of the party's convention January 13 to 15, and the next piece will build off of this one in a way that wasn't expected when I started these pieces.

MP champions human rights in Colombia

2012-01-04T19:38:00.002-05:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which talks about Liberal MP Scott Brison and his involvement in the human rights treaty that became part of Canada's free trade agreement with Colombia, and his continuing engagement with that country. I had originally written this story for Outlooks back in the summer, but with the ownership change and the rebranding of that magazine, it never made it off the editor's desk. When it was released back to me, it made its way over to Xtra.ca, where it was published today.

Decriminalizing homosexuality

2011-12-28T12:34:00.002-05:00

I have a new story up on the main page of Xtra.ca, which looks at the failure of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting to come to an agreement about the issue of decriminalising homosexuality among member nations, and broadens out to a look at the efficacy of using foreign aid as a possible means for achieving these goals. I really enjoy being able to do these longer, more analytical pieces, and I think I managed to find a pretty good group of experts to talk to on the issues presented here, which always makes these kinds of stories even more enjoyable.

Canada and the Commonwealth

2011-12-27T17:12:00.000-05:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which is my interview with Senator Hugh Segal about his role in drafting the Commonwealth Eminent Person's Report. With the other Commonwealth stories I've been working on (another is due up on the site shortly), it was nice to get a chance to talk to Segal about his role and to get a better glimpse of what was going on behind the scenes of the report drafting process. Shortly after writing the story, it was announced that Segal would be leading Canada's effort for Commonwealth renewal, which I think will suit him well.

Harper government keeps 2011 Global Fund commitment

2011-12-24T16:10:00.000-05:00

I have a story up on the Toronto page of Xtra.ca which is actually a good news story for the government, about how they're keeping their 2011 Global Fund commitment - and actually getting the money out the door a bit early even. I'd like to thank Bev Oda's spokesperson for getting back to me personally right away, which almost never happens lately, and to Richard Elliott for once again being such a great source of information on these kinds of issues.

Parliament Hill's Rehabilitation Underway on Several Buildings

2011-12-23T12:13:00.000-05:00

I have a new story up on OpenFile Ottawa this morning, which serves as an update on the progress of the renovation, restoration and refurbishment of several buildings on Parliament Hill and in the parliamentary precinct. As a regular denizen of the Hill, I always enjoy hearing more about what is going on with that process, and doing stories like this gives me the opportunity. Plus, how cool is the cutaway picture of the Wellington Building?

Federal AIDS funding rules change

2011-12-22T22:39:00.002-05:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which looks at the way in which the federal government changed the funding requirements for HIV/AIDS service organisations around the country. It's one of several HIV-related stories that I wrote over the past few days (but ironically the first one to be posted, as the others trickle out over the next few days), and it does seem fairly apropos given some of the news in the past week over the possibility of a new vaccine and the upcoming court challenges on criminalisation of HIV infections.

Critics question government's response to refugee claims

2011-12-19T22:08:00.000-05:00

I have a new story up on the main page of Xtra.ca, which looks at the pledge that Jason Kenney made about taking in more refugees, but contrasts it with some of the other moves that his government has made on the refugee file. Given that the refugee file is one I've kept an eye on for a while (so much so that one of my sources remarked that I seem to be one of the few journalists who actually talks about refugees), it was nice to catch up with some of my sources, and to keep up on the issues.

Preserve the system, change the culture

2011-12-07T12:55:00.001-05:00

I have an op-ed piece on iPolitics.ca today, as part of their "78 ways to fix the way we do politics" series, in which I argue in favour of the "first-past-the-post" electoral system. The opportunity came up as a bit of a surprise, when the deputy publisher emailed me after I tweeted my displeasure with the two articles on electoral reform that appeared in the print edition of the series. After a bit of discussion, and given their awareness of my own previous writings on the topic of democratic reform, they offered me the chance to write my own piece, which I gladly took up. Hopefully it can be a useful contribution to the discussion that follows.

Baird speaks out on Nigerian anti-gay bill

2011-12-01T17:33:00.001-05:00

I have a second story today, this one on the main page of Xtra.ca, which gets reaction from opposition parties to the official condemnation by the Canadian government of Nigeria's anti-homosexuality bill. The other stories in the mainstream simply rewrote the press release whereas I got some reaction, and had some pretty interesting feedback - especially from the Liberal critic, who was willing to talk about reexamining our aid to Nigeria in the wake of this law.

An MP remembers a brother lost to AIDS

2011-12-01T17:27:00.001-05:00

I have a new story up on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca, in which I talk to NDP MP Glenn Thibeault about his brother who died of AIDS twenty years ago. This being World AIDS Day, it was an interview that came about at a very timely juncture, and everything fell into place nicely. It's also received some really great attention from places like Macleans.ca, and it made it onto National Newswatch, which is really gratifying.

Senators talk to local youth about bullying

2011-11-25T20:05:00.000-05:00

I have a new story up on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca, which was about an event that took place in the Senate chamber this morning. I always enjoy spending time up in the Senate, and as this was a more informal event, where I could actually take pictures and head down onto the Senate floor after the event to speak to both Jeremy Dias and a couple of the Senators, it made it that much more of a fun event to cover - even if I had to be surrounded by children and be subjected to spoken word poetry.

MPs react to BC polygamy ruling

2011-11-24T17:49:00.001-05:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which gathers political and legal scholar reaction to yesterday's BC Supreme Court decision on the polygamy reference. Being as I knew it was coming down the pipe, I gave the various parties a heads-up, and to their credit, they were ready with spokespeople for me. And once again, UofO law professor Carissma Mathen proved that she's a fantastic resource on these kinds of legal questions, and many thanks to her once again for taking the time to speak to me and explain some of the issues involved - and for creating a bit of controversy in the decision.

Democracy at the riding level

2011-11-11T16:20:00.001-05:00

I have an editorial up today as well on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca, which accompanies the piece on the Liberal riding association meeting. While the story talked about what happened at the meeting, this piece looks at the significance of joining a party at the riding level, which is something that I'm quite keen on encouraging people to do because that's the part of our democratic system that is the most engaging, and the part that most people simply don't know about. Like I said before, the whole evening was pretty inspiring, and I'm hoping these two pieces help to encourage more people to get involved, whatever their party affiliation.

Ottawa Liberals discuss party's future

2011-11-11T15:38:00.000-05:00

I have a new story up on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca today, which stems from my visit to the Ottawa Centre federal Liberal riding association meeting on Wednesday night. It was a pretty great night for someone who believes strongly in parliamentary democracy - seeing people engaging in the process and having some really great discussions about the existential questions of their party and where they want things to go. I also got to meet Mike Crawley, who is running for the position of party president and have a good chat with him, some of which made it into the final piece.

A more cautious Supreme Court?

2011-11-07T14:27:00.000-05:00

I have a new analysis feature on the main page of Xtra.ca, which looks at what the two new incoming Supreme Court justices might mean for a couple of the cases that are heading before the Court that Xtra has been keeping an eye on - in particular, HIV criminalisation cases and the court challenge to prostitution laws. I really enjoyed this piece as I got to speak to a couple of really smart people on the subject, and I also had enough room to really delve into some of the issues.

Commonwealth meeting comes up empty-handed on human rights

2011-11-01T22:05:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up on the main page of Xtra.ca today, which follows up on last week's story and the weekend's events with the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. It was another piece where I was able to get the right commentary immediately after Monday's QP, was able to get Baird's quotes from QP, and put it all together in a fast turnaround (where it then sat on my editor's desk, but what can you do?) And I hope to follow up on this story further within the next few days with some background and behind-the-scenes interviews, with any luck.

Will Stephen Harper address gay issues in Australia?

2011-10-27T18:25:00.000-04:00

I have a story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today about the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting taking place in Australia, and whether or not Canada would be pushing for the decriminalisation of homosexuality as part of it. It was pretty straight-forward, but it was a case where half of the story changed between Wednesday and Friday last week, so some of the interviews I had to do over again, not that it was a hardship.

MPs of all stripes criticize free speech bill

2011-10-25T23:45:00.000-04:00

I have a new story on the main page of Xtra.ca today, which looks at the new Private Member's Bill aiming to repeal the hate speech provisions of the Canadian Human Rights Act. It's a particular story that I've followed in various iterations for the past couple of parliaments, and not it's until now that it's coming up in a particular form that may actually have a chance of advancing. I'm sorry that Mr. Storseth denied the interview request, but a chance encounter with Senator Nancy Ruth helped to give the story its final shape, which was a nice bit of happenstance.

MPs grill Supreme Court appointees

2011-10-21T16:50:00.000-04:00

I have a new piece up on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca which recounts what happened at the ad hoc Parliamentary committee on Wednesday that questioned the new Supreme Court appointees. It was interesting to be able to watch as the new justices answered questions, but the experience itself was a bit drawn out and ridiculous in places, but I'm glad I was able to cover it.

MPs commemorate Jamie Hubley

2011-10-21T15:49:00.000-04:00

I have a new story on the national page of Xtra.ca, which looks at how Spirit Day was marked on the Hill yesterday, especially in light of the death of local teen Jamie Hubley. It was a pretty lively day, with action in the House to record and reaction to gather from the Foyer afterward, and getting Hedy Fry to talk about her bill was a bit of fortuitous happenstance that wasn't planned but worked out rather well in the final piece.

Supreme Court hears arguments in hate speech case

2011-10-13T16:18:00.001-04:00

I have a new story up on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca, which looks at the Whatcott case before the Supreme Court of Canada yesterday. It was a case where a lot of the mainstream accounts completely overlooked the issue of behaviour versus orientation that were central to the appeal, and I made sure that it got a full airing. Unfortunately, the whole piece did not make through, and my interview with University of Ottawa law professor Carissima Mathen to analyse the hearing and talk about what was and was not said didn't make the final cut. Alas.

UK civil union is not marriage: feds

2011-10-06T19:18:00.000-04:00

I have a new story on the main page of Xtra.ca today which looks at a particular international same-sex divorce case which the federal government is taking an interest in. It was fairly intriguing to learn about the particular differences, and it benefitted from an update on the day it was posted (I filed yesterday) with Nicholson's answer in QP today, but it's going to be something to keep an eye on.

I had also been curious about whether this may have an impact on the current UK campaign to have their civil partnerships be given full equal marriage status, but since the line of questioning was pretty much universally that it shouldn't be a factor, and given space considerations, it never made it into the final copy.

Insite can stay open: Supreme Court

2011-09-30T16:36:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca, reporting on the Supreme Court of Canada decision this morning to grant an exemption that allows Insite to remain open. This was actually the first time I've done a court decision the day of at the Supreme Court (in fact, after seven years of living in the city, it was the first time I've actually been in the building - shocking, really), which was pretty cool. I've done plenty of stories on the Insite case, and it was nice to be able to cap them off in such a manner, and to get some pretty immediate political reaction from the Hill right after.

Partner of fallen cop honoured at national ceremony

2011-09-28T22:43:00.000-04:00

I have a story on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca today, which talks about the the death of a police officer, and his surviving partner's experiences since the accident. It was a difficult piece to write - an interview with someone whose spouse had died, and trying to be sensitive yet trying to find out more about what else was going on, such as the dispute with the family over the estate. That part of the story almost didn't make it in, as Blais was reluctant to talk about it, but emailed me a couple of days later, intent on sharing the story in order to show how other people in common law relationships are vulnerable in situations like this under the law. Already the feedback has been really positive, which I'm quite grateful for.

Trans bill reintroduced in House of Commons

2011-09-22T17:00:00.000-04:00

My second story today on the national page of Xtra.ca is about the reintroduction of the trans bill to the House of Commons. Actually, I'm not really sure I can say it's my story anymore as most of what I wrote was cut, which was a lot of context and explanation of procedure as to why two identical bills were introduced and how the Order of Precedence works, and my editor inserted a quote with an improper attribution, got a couple of other facts wrong, and stripped away the context from one of the quotes so that it doesn't make any sense. But it's still my byline anyway.

Contentious federal bill to tackle drugs, crime

2011-09-22T16:46:00.000-04:00

The first story I have up on the national page of Xtra.ca is my look at the introduction of the omnibus crime bill in the House of Commons this week. While this updates the issue that we have been following for a while, it also was the signal that the Liberals are looking at reopening the issue of decriminalising marijuana, but what didn't make the final article was Bob Rae's quote about how prohibition failed with alcohol and we as a society changed tactics there, and how that kind of discussion is needed with marijuana, which would have been a nice bit of context.

Libby Davies mulling NDP leadership bid

2011-09-20T17:32:00.000-04:00

I have a new story today on the national page of Xtra.ca, in which I talk to Libby Davies about her mulling the leadership of the NDP, as well as her current role as deputy leader in the transition period with Nycole Turmel as interim leader. A couple of quotes didn't quite make it into the final edit, which were about Davies talking about the sense of responsibility she feels as deputy leader despite it being an "honorific" title, and about the activist role she plays within the party.

Topp first to declare NDP leadership candidacy

2011-09-12T17:34:00.000-04:00

My second story of the day was my take on this morning's big story of Brian Topp making his declaration for leadership. This was was more standard, and the Boivin connection was of interest to us, given the questions that surrounded her during the campaign, and this marks the beginning of what promises to be an interesting next few months.

Queering the Liberal Party

2011-09-12T17:28:00.001-04:00

My first story of the day was originally a feature story that I had worked on over the course of the summer, but which has been edited down into a much smaller piece. It was a lot of work in terms of talking to some really interesting people within the party about how they feel that the queer community can do its part to help in the Liberal rebuilding, and how the party can reach out to that community as part of that process. Unfortunately, in the editing process, most of that discussion and nuance was cut and it turned into more of a discussion of attracting voters. I'll likely post the original version on my new Tumblr page in a few days, but this was one case where I was really disappointed by the final outcome of the editing process.

Update: Here is the link to the full version on my Tumblr.

A look at potential NDP leadership candidates

2011-09-08T22:17:00.000-04:00

I have an analysis piece on the Ottawa page of Xtra.ca which looks at the current slate of candidates who are mulling the NDP leadership. While this has been a fairly common story going around, I'd like to think that I did bring a couple of things to the table that others haven't mentioned, such as Paul Dewar's expending his political capital on local municipal issues, the unresolved questions around Françoise Boivin's departure from the Liberal party, and the fact that people are underestimating the appeal that Megan Leslie has with the younger members of the party, who all adore her (and tell me so on a regular basis).

Gays and lesbians in the House of Commons

2011-09-05T20:02:00.010-04:00

I have a guest post on Samara Canada's blog as part of their series on diversity in the House of Commons, where I look at the topic of gay and lesbian MPs in the 41st Parliament. This all began a couple of months ago when a fairly active member of Ottawa's queer community wrote to Samara to ask why they didn't already talk about queer MPs in their diversity series, and when they said they didn't know enough about the topic, he suggested me to them, and I was happy to take it on. It was a nice chance to talk about some of the work I do on a regular basis to a broader audience, and to bring up some issues that are perhaps a bit more under the radar, like the urban/rural divide within the queer community, and how that even plays out in the House of Commons. It was a great experience, and I'm really thankful that Samara asked me to participate.

Lucie Pépin retires from the Senate

2011-09-02T18:29:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca, which is an "exit interview" with retiring Liberal Senator Lucie Pépin. When I first heard that Senator Pépin was retiring, I read a brief biography of some of her accomplishments over her career and was fascinated, and felt that she was someone that Xtra readers should know a bit about, considering how much of her activism has touched the queer community one way or another. Fortunately, she was more than willing to talk, despite her office in the middle of being boxed up (we got the photo before they came in later in the day to take back the artwork), and it was a great conversation that I'm glad I was able to have, and share with my readers.

Picking up the pieces

2011-08-31T17:25:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca which looks at this week's Liberal caucus retreat and the direction the party is moving in the post-Layton landscape. Of particular note in my mind were the resurgence of the word "prosperity" in the political rhetoric, and the new Liberal mantra of evidence-based policy over ideology. No doubt this is just the first of many pieces to come on the Liberal Party's rebuilding effort.

NDP queer caucus remembers Jack Layton

2011-08-22T22:27:00.000-04:00

I have a new feature story on the national page of Xtra.ca, which is about the reactions of the queer MPs in the NDP caucus to the passing of Jack Layton. I didn't get to talk to Dany Morin or the co-chair of the NDP's LGBT commission, but I still had a story that was full of some pretty great recollections.

Chronicling our past

2011-08-15T17:34:00.000-04:00

I have a feature story up on the main page of Xtra.ca today which looks at the progress of the Canadian Human Rights Museum, and how it plans to address the issues of the history of queer rights in this country. I had a few good conversations in writing the piece, and got a bit of an insight into the planning process, and some of their thinking around ways to ensure that it won't simply be the "saddest place on earth."

Getting In On the Ground Floor + Thoughts From the Hill - July/August Edition

2011-08-10T17:10:00.000-04:00

The July/August edition of Outlooks Magazine is now out, which has two piece in from me. The first is an editorial geared toward queer Liberals in terms of encouraging them to get involved in their party's rebuilding process, while the second is the monthly Thoughts panel, this time on the issue of catastrophic drug coverage (which sparked me to write a more substantial piece for Xtra on the topic).

These were also my last political pieces for Outlooks for the foreseeable future. The new direction the magazine is taking under the new owners is more lifestyle oriented, and for the time being, nearly all editorial pieces are out, as are my Thoughts panels. I hope to write some politically-themed features in the coming months, but Canadian politics won't have the same prominent place in the magazine that it has in the past few years.

The editorial is on page 46, and the Thoughts panel on page 47.

Scaffolding on Wellington remains for several years

2011-08-03T15:31:00.000-04:00

I have a story up on OpenFile Ottawa site today, which looks at all of the scaffolding on Wellington Street as part of the ongoing Parliamentary precinct construction and renovation. While this is a story that someone seems to cover every few months, I decided to take the angle of speaking to Ottawa Tourism about it, which was a different take that I think suit the OpenFile audience quite well. And hey, I managed to take a couple of decent photos to include with it, so that was a nice bonus.

NDP endorses Turmel as interim leader

2011-07-27T17:06:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca about the NDP caucus decision to endorse Nycole Turmel as the party's interim leader. While everyone was on this particular story, I did manage to get a couple of really great interviews with Libby Davies and Randall Garrison, and got some great quotes to go with a piece that the rest of the pack was covering. I also managed to get some additional interviews for the Hill Queeries blog, which made for a busy day.

Parliamentary anti-Semitism report tabled

2011-07-13T13:00:00.000-04:00

I have a new piece up on the national page of Xtra.ca about the CPCCA report that was tabled last week. Unlike any of the other outlets who wrote on the topic, mine focused a bit more on the Queers Against Israeli Apartheid connection, as well as focusing a bit more on some of the recommendations that came out in the report. My editors in Toronto added a bit more context and some links around the Ontario legislature debate, which is wholly appreciated. And hey, I managed to take a half-decent photo with the sometimes problematic lighting in the Charles Lynch Press Theatre.

Paying for HIV prevention

2011-07-08T14:50:00.000-04:00

I have a new story on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which takes a look at the issue of catastrophic drug coverage across the country, particularly through the issue of HIV medication. I was first alerted to the issue not only through the last election (and numerous questions in Question Period), but when I was invited to be on a media panel at the Canadian AIDS Society's annual general meeting a few weeks ago, and one of the participants talked about this issue. A few things ended up on the editing room floor, including some mention of a couple other issues of coverage in some provinces, explicitly saying that the pharmaceutical companies aren't the bad guys in this, and talk about the Romanow and Kirby reports, but overall the piece should hopefully generate some good discussion about the issue.

NDP resolves to deny charitable status to ex-gay organizations

2011-07-06T17:37:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which is a bit late but I'm glad it's up nevertheless. Despite the delays (it took a long time to get in touch with the new GLBTT Commission co-chair, and then delayed at the editorial end because of Toronto Pride coverage), I'm glad I was able to not only draw together some of the queer-themed happenings from the NDP convention, but also was able to find a queer angle to one of the other stories from the convention, being the "socialism" debate.

It Doesn't Have to be a Binary Choice + Thoughts From the Hill - June Edition

2011-06-29T12:55:00.001-04:00

I have two pieces in the June issue of Outlooks, the first of which is my editorial on the narrative of "uniting the left" after the last election. My case is largely to look south of the border to see what a polarised political landscape has done to the country, and how partisan devolved into tribalism, and how that is not an idea that we need to import into the Canadian scene. The other piece is my usual Thoughts From the Hill panel, where Libby Davies steps in to fill the role that Bill Siksay played since the inception of the panel. Davies will appear again in the next issue before the spot is taken over by Randall Garrison, who is the party's new GLBT critic (and also fills in my urban and west coast boxes of regional representation).

The editorial is on page 11, and the panel is on page 22 of the issue.

Gay people and national security

2011-06-27T17:13:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up on the main page of Xtra.ca today, that immediately gained a lot of attention and was even the headline story at the top of National Newswatch, one of the most popular news aggregators in the country. It was a story that was a couple of weeks in the making, gathering the right interviews and having the time to work on it and edit it just right (which was a bit tough during the busy past week), but I had a lot of interest from certain acquaintances and even a few other reporters in just what it means that Baird became the new foreign minister. It also became an opportune time to provide a bit of a history lesson on our country's history with the security campaigns of years past, which is something that not a lot of people gay or straight know about, and to show the kind of progress that we've made in the past couple of decades. Baird's appointment turned out to be an opportune hook for the story, and based on the feedback that I've received over the course of the day from some pretty prominent reporters from national outlets, I think I struck a good balance.

Canadian Human Rights Act amended to cover First Nations

2011-06-22T17:46:00.009-04:00

I have a story up on the main page of Xtra.ca today, which is one from Friday (oh, delays...) about the changes that have just happened to the Canadian Human Rights Act. It's not something entirely in Xtra's usual beat, but there is a peripheral connection, and I was curious about a few other issues at the CHRC (such as if they're afraid they're up for the axe under the Conservative majority), so there was enough to keep one engaged with the story nevertheless.

UN to study discrimination against queer people

2011-06-21T21:39:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up on the main page of Xtra.ca today, which is a closer look at the UN vote the other day with regards to queer rights, and which also takes a look at political reaction here in Canada. Finding the UN document and decoding it was a bit of work, but I think I got a better read of the situation than was reported in some other outlets. My editor was also warning that I seemed to be letting Hedy Fry take all the credit, when what I was hoping her comments would actually convey were the fact that this is a very long process, and that Canada's persistence did pay off.

Phil Toone brings activist experience to Parliament

2011-06-20T20:12:00.000-04:00

Also up today on the national page of Xtra.ca is my introductory interview with Philip Toone, one of the new gay NDP MPs (which also managed to languish in limbo for a couple of weeks). Toone was the last of my new MP interviews, and he was quite pleasant to talk to, and I will certainly be talking to him more in the days to come.

Silva walks away with no regrets

2011-06-20T20:08:00.000-04:00

Up on the national page of Xtra.ca is a long overdue "exit interview" with former Liberal MP Mario Silva, which I actually did about a month ago, but it managed to languish in limbo for an inordinate amount of time. That said, here it is, and it was a pleasure dealing with Silva in the years I was covering him on the Hill, and I'm sure I'll see him again in the future.

NDP plans to give pass on tough-on-crime bill

2011-06-14T19:46:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up on the main page of Xtra.ca today, which looks at the upcoming bill on mega-trials that is about to go before Parliament, and they're going to try and pass it in a single day. While it's a bit on the edge of what we normally cover in Xtra, the fact that it's a "tough on crime" bill that is getting a pass, likely without debate, we wanted to ensure that this fact gets some notice and attention.

Conservatives vote to soften marriage stance

2011-06-11T19:12:00.002-04:00

I have a brief piece up on the main page of Xtra.ca today, which is a quick recap of the same-sex marriage policy resolution from the Conservative convention, plus a quick quote from Senator Nancy Ruth. There wasn't much more to add than that, and for having to work on a Saturday afternoon, I'm glad we were able to get the piece online in very short order.

NDP names Garrison queer issues critic

2011-06-09T20:06:00.004-04:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which is the long-awaited (for me, at least), announcement of who the NDP has chosen to be their GLBTT issues critic, along with (for the first time ever), an associate critic. With Garrison number 38 on the Order of Precedence, and given that he plans to reintroduce the trans rights bill again under his name, it looks like I'll have plenty to cover with him come autumn.

Democracy Lost Out

2011-05-30T16:54:00.001-04:00

I have an editorial in the May issue of Outlooks, which is now available online and in print. This was written immediately after the election, and was a bit of a distillation of the mood of the time. While a couple of weeks have passed, it still holds and talks about a number of things that most columnists aren't talking about right now, which is a conversation I hope to continue in the coming weeks and months.

I had also written a profile of Lee Easton, an openly gay candidate for the leadership of the Alberta Party, which was a bit of a foray back into Alberta provincial politics for me (where the bug first bit me during my years as a page in the Alberta legislature), but unfortunately it was cut for space, and Easton lost the leadership this past weekend, so that piece is iced unfortunately.

The editorial is on page 15 of the print edition.

NDP's Dany Morin has a lot on his agenda

2011-05-26T23:42:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca, which is my second interview with one of the new gay NDP MPs, this time Dany Morin. It was a good interview, and again it was nice to be recognised by my subject beforehand in that my reputation preceded me. That said, what I wasn't aware of until after the story was published was that Morin was another one of the Quebec NDP candidates who was basically unavailable to the media throughout. One of my compatriots at Xtra.ca noted today that Morin was consistently unreachable throughout the campaign, with no contact information, and the party's campaign office unwilling to provide any either. Had I been more aware of this at the time of the interview, I would have pressed him on it - but there's always a future date for such conversations.

Randall Garrison eager to be a federal NDP voice

2011-05-25T16:40:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca, which is my first interview with Randall Garrison, one of the three incoming gay NDP MPs. The interview ended up being a bit shorter than I had perhaps initially anticipated, but that in part had to do with the fact that he's still new, and hasn't been assigned any particular critic responsibilities yet. Nevertheless, he did recognise my byline, and sounds like he's looking forward to speaking to me a whole lot over the next few years.

Davies readies for Parliament

2011-05-24T11:03:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which continues my series of interviews with queer MPs post-election. Up today is "senior" out NDP MP Libby Davies (though this was actually the third interview I did), who is usually a pretty fun interview if only because of her enthusiasm for everything.

Scott Brison: the lone gay Liberal MP

2011-05-16T19:50:00.000-04:00

I have a new piece up on the national page of Xtra.ca, which is my post-election interview with Liberal MP Scott Brison. This is the first in a series of post-election interviews, and being as Brison was in town first, and I it was an interview that touched on issues for three different articles that will be coming out over the coming weeks, and there are some really thoughtful things that I'm looking forward to unveiling as they are published.

Françoise Boivin takes Gatineau

2011-05-12T11:34:00.001-04:00

I have a piece - well, half of one - in the current print edition of Xtra Ottawa, which melds this election night piece from my colleague Noreen Fagan, and tacks on my earlier piece about Françoise Boivin and her apparent "outing" and accusations of hiring misdeeds onto the end. While this works on a superficial level, I was disappointed that the questions raised about Boivin were pretty much chopped out, which I felt made the piece far more supportive of Boivin than perhaps should have been - though this does not surprise me, considering the endorsement that Xtra Ottawa gave to another local NDP candidate.

Supreme Court to hear harm reduction case

2011-05-11T11:11:00.000-04:00

I have a new story on the national page of Xtra.ca which previews this week's trial at the Supreme Court of Canada, which follows up on many of the stories I've been writing for a while now. Sadly, I won't be covering the actual trial - they've assigned the full-time staffer in Ottawa to that task, but I nevertheless got to write the preview piece. I was also quite fortunate that all of my sources came together before deadline, despite the fact that I was up late writing it. As well, I had another one of those perfect quotes from one of the sources which made a great sub-hed.

Liberals stumble over Egale survey

2011-04-30T16:32:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up on the main page of Xtra.ca, which looks at the various surveys sent out the the parties by interest groups over the course of the election. And while I did try to get comment from the Liberals as to what happened here, they didn't give me a final answer (despite some back-and-forth between Egale and the party). Nevertheless, I do feel some concern that this will be taken as an attack against them, considering the Ottawa paper, at least, has endorsed the local NDP candidate, though keeping the coverage fair and unbiased has been my intention the whole time.

ISP surveillance a priority under Harper majority

2011-04-29T22:57:00.000-04:00

I have a new story on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which is another policy-related story in the midst of an election campaign obsessed with polls. (Shocking, I know). There was one aspect of the piece that never made it to fruition, being some of the additional concerns raised by University of Ottawa professor Michael Geist about these provisions, especially as they related to costs to ISPs (which would be passed onto consumers), however Geist was unavailable (at a conference in Vancouver), but I was at my word limit anyway, and the story turned out fairly well in any event.

Was Françoise Boivin outed?

2011-04-27T18:32:00.000-04:00

I have an analysis piece on the main page of Xtra.ca, which looks at an incident on the campaign from a week ago. It was a difficult piece to write for many reasons - Boivin's campaign didn't want to talk, it was difficult to get any of the allegations out there, and to parse the messages being delivered. It was also interesting being the only journalist writing about the story from this angle - every other outlet simply said that the allegations were that she hired her partner - usually no gender specified - and Boivin denied it, end of story. What it all will mean in the end we have yet to see, but it was one of those experiences of being on the periphery of a story and finding an angle that other outlets have passed by.

Siksay Says Goodbye to Parliament + Thoughts From the Campaign Trail + What this Election Means to the Queer Community

2011-04-27T18:28:00.000-04:00

I have three pieces in the April issue of Outlooks - an interview with Bill Siksay as he retires from his political career, a panel with the party leaders for a change, and an editorial about what is at stake if the Conservatives form another government. The interview was drawn from the same long interview I did with Siksay for Xtra (I went into said interview intending different different questions for each outlet, but there was a bit of bleed between them). The panel was a bit of fun since I don't normally get to talk to the leaders, and true to form, Harper's team didn't respond. Good thing we planned for that in the layout. As for the editorial, it was pretty difficult to write, and I knew I was going to get a lot of pushback from the community (many members of whom have a great deal of loyalty to the NDP), but there were points that needed to be made.

The interview is on page 14 of the print edition, the panel on page 15, and the editorial on page 22 (and as you can see, both the panel and editorial are available online).

Conservative prison plan highlights parties' crime agendas

2011-04-26T22:36:00.000-04:00

I have a new feature story up on the national page of Xtra.ca which looks at the prison policies in the various party platforms, most especially the "drug-free prisons" promise of the Conservatives. It was nice to be able to put out a substantive policy piece during an election dominated by polling stories, and I was also happy to work again with Justin Piché, who is a great and knowledgeable source on these issues.

Green Party has most comprehensive plan for gays

2011-04-15T17:19:00.000-04:00

My third piece up today on Xtra.ca is my analysis of the Green Party platform, which I wrote up a few days ago but finally made it onto the site today. As with all of my platform analyses now online, it certainly gives me a bit more of a grounding on how the various parties are speaking to the queer community (or not, as the case may be).

Siksay's parting wish: fight the crime agenda

2011-04-15T17:10:00.000-04:00

My second piece on Xtra.ca today is the first of my two "exit interviews" with departing NDP MP Bill Siksay (the second, taken from the same interview, will be in the upcoming issue of Outlooks). This interview was focused more on policy issues, and helps to close off some of what we've been discussing for the past few years, and especially trans issues. I had so much material to work with, it was hard to pare down to just 800 words, but I think I got the core of it here.

Liberal Hedy Fry vows to sponsor trans bill in next Parliament

2011-04-15T17:03:00.000-04:00

The first of three stories I have on the national page of Xtra.ca is a story about how trans issues are playing out in the campaign. Interestingly, during the editing process the part about Hedy Fry's commitment became the lede rather than the lower grafs, while the grassroots trans groups organising went from the lede to the supporting. It certainly works, but it was interesting to see the choice.

AIDS drugs now an election issue + Feds fund gay refugee resettlement

2011-04-14T19:32:00.006-04:00

I have two pieces in the current print edition of Xtra's Ottawa edition, both of them truncated reprints - my piece on groups making an issue of the defeat of the CAMR bill (this was a very truncated version), as well as a shortened version of my story on the government giving resettlement funds to help queer refugees.

What elections mean for Sparks Street pubs - Brixton's Edition

2011-04-11T17:31:00.000-04:00

I have the second part of my look at political pubs now online on OpenFile, which looks at the way in which the 2004 election was the event that changed the NDP Wednesday night hangout, and how Brixton's became that hangout. I'm happy that these stories have finally seen the light of day after a number of delays, and how we managed to get the timing to work out better than initially anticipated.

NDP platform gives queer shoutout

2011-04-11T17:21:00.000-04:00

The first of two stories I have today, I have an analysis piece of the NDP platform on the national page of Xtra.ca. This was the final platform analysis I conducted (but not the final one to go up - that will likely be tomorrow), but it was also one that I had to approach a bit differently. Because this platform has the queer elements within it, I had to look at different criticisms of the platform, which went to issues of economics and jurisdictional issues, which are very serious in their own right and lay out a balancing act for voters in the queer community to consider.

Conservative platform promises draconian drug laws

2011-04-10T19:19:00.000-04:00

I have a new piece up on the national page of Xtra.ca, this time being my analysis of the Conservative Party election platform. While this was the third I wrote, it was the second to go live, but my analyses of both the Green and NDP platforms should be up in the next couple of days. This one was a bit tougher to write something for, considering how most of it was focused on economic concerns, which isn't the demographic I'm writing for. I did manage to find a few critiques in there, and the crime bill issues will become a full story on its own in the coming days.

What elections mean for Sparks Street pubs

2011-04-08T17:10:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up for a new venue - OpenFile. This is the first of two stories about pubs as political hangouts, and the road to these stories was a bit harried. When other outlets did their own stories on the same hangouts around the same time as these stories were originally written, my editor at OpenFile and I held back, and rejigged the pieces to fit the election that ended up happening. There was to have been a third piece as well, but we couldn't make it work in the long run, but I'm happy with these two pieces. (And we'll look forward to the second piece by Monday).

Supporters vow to make AIDS drugs an election issue

2011-04-07T17:53:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca, which looks at how Canada's Access to Medicines Regime (CAMR) will play out in the election. Seeing as this has been an issue I've been following as long as I've been on the Hill, it was good to see how this continues through the election.

Liberal platform long on family, short on queer issues

2011-04-04T13:10:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca, which takes a look at the recently launched Liberal Party election platform from the queer/social justice perspective of issues covered at Xtra. This was my first time in an actual lock-up for a story, which was kind of fun (especially because they remembered to feed us decently), and I got to talk to some of the document's authors as part of the research and answering questions on what was therein. While the platform itself was the focus of the piece, the colour of the launch itself was in the blog post made yesterday around the event.

Prime Minister sings Gaga's Born This Way

2011-04-01T17:34:00.000-04:00

I have a brief story up on the national page of Xtra.ca, which was election-related, which allowed me to draw upon some of my history of covering these issues on the Hill. And while I'm certainly not the biggest Lady Gaga fan, this particular incident did raise some eyebrows in the queer communities, so it did make for some relevant coverage.

Green Party sets sights on Vancouver Centre

2011-03-31T17:01:00.000-04:00

I have a new piece up on the national page of Xtra.ca today (which will also likely show up in the next print edition of Xtra Vancouver) about Green Party deputy leader Adriane Carr's bid for the seat in Vancouver Centre, and why she thinks the demographics there make it an ideal seat to win. The piece was actually written a couple of weeks ago, before the election call, but faced a delay in terms of finding an expert who could speak to the demographic issues of elections and Green Parties (note - there are apparently no scholars on Green Parties in Canada), and then my editor held it for a little longer, as it wasn't timely when submitted. That said, I think the source I did find - Funke - turned out incredibly well, and the fact that we did go to an election shortly after I wrote it meant the timing was more fortuitous than intended when I took on the piece.

What About a Spring Election + Thoughts From the Hill - March Edition

2011-03-28T21:55:00.000-04:00

I have two pieces in the March edition of Outlooks Magazine (and apologies for the delay in posting this). The first is the usual Thoughts From the Hill panel, this time with a timely topic about the response to the uprisings in the Middle East. The second piece was an editorial about the possibility of a spring election, and why Canadians shouldn't moan so much about going to the polls - and lo and behold, days after it hit the stands, we went into an election.

The panel is on page 20, and the editorial is on page 22 of the print edition.

Why the NDP's trans rights bill is dead in the water

2011-03-25T19:56:00.000-04:00

I had a post today on the national round-up blog on the main page of Xtra.ca today, which was a "brief" on why Bill C-389 faced a doomed fate in the Senate while C-393 stood a chance of passing. It was a bit less brief than intended initially, but it was a fulsome accounting of what happened, and I think it fairly apportioned responsibility for it. This was of course the final story I wrote up yesterday (after a very long day of filing numerous stories and web hits) but I'm happy it went up to tie up my coverage of the bill in this (now past) parliament.

On eve of election, Kenney finds $100k for queer refugees

2011-03-24T21:34:00.001-04:00

My third piece up today on the national page of Xtra.ca is a story about an announcement made by the immigration minister this morning in advance of an election campaign. Fortunately, I have a great deal of knowledge when it comes to the issue of queer refugees, thanks to the many stories I've written on the topic, and I was able to not only get responses from the people involved, but also had enough background on the subject of queer groups and private sponsorship (thanks to the story I wrote back in July) that I could get some actual critical content to the story, and before any other media outlet could get their own story up.

Tony Clement behind Senate delay, leaked document shows

2011-03-24T21:21:00.000-04:00

My second piece on Xtra.ca today was probably the most explosive. A leaked memo made it into my hands with regards to the delays on Bill C-393 in the Senate, and I got the story out as soon as I could. The contents even made it into Question Period today, which was pretty exciting. Of course, when the Globe and Mail reported on the story later in the day, they completely left out the memo and my story, but still - it was all pretty exciting.

In government's dying days, attention shifts to Senate

2011-03-24T21:12:00.000-04:00

The first of three new pieces I have on the Xtra.ca today, I have a story about how to - and how not to - write to Senators when you want to lobby them, as with Bills C-389 and C-393. The piece was originally destined to go up two days ago, but there were delays, however it's up now, and still with time for it to be effective to readers.

Senators race against the clock on AIDS drug bill ahead of possible election

2011-03-23T21:17:00.000-04:00

I have a new story on the national page of Xtra.ca today about the current fate of Bill C-393 in the Senate as the clock ticks down before the writ is dropped for an election. I was happy to get some great sources for it, and keep the interest up on the bill, and I'm sure there will be plenty more drama on it in the days ahead.

Dewar AIDS Bill Passes House + One gay sentence added + Refugee System Failing Gay Ugandans

2011-03-17T18:23:00.000-04:00

I have not one, not two, but three stories reprinted in the current print edition of Xtra's Ottawa edition. The first is my piece on Bill C-393 passing the House of Commons, the second on the addition of a single sentence on gay rights to the revised immigration guide (which was a really fast turnaround time between filing it and it appearing in the print edition), and the third piece is on Nicole LaViolette's appearance before the Commons international human rights subcommittee. Nice to see so many pieces in print!

Revamped citizenship guide still light on gay content

2011-03-15T11:51:00.000-04:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca which looks at the revamped Discover Canada citizenship guide, and the whole added sentence that the gays got this time around. And by going back through my files, I found an angle that no one else picked up - aside from comments from both national party critics - so that always makes me happy.

AIDS drug bill passes Commons

2011-03-10T20:42:00.000-05:00

I have a new piece up on the national page of Xtra.ca, which looks at the passage in the Commons of Bill C-393, which is another of those bills I've been following since the beginning. This was also a bill that every other mainstream outlet covered on the very last day - after it got a bit of star power - but that was fine. Many of the other journalists covering it acknowledged to me their debt in when it comes to knowing the background on the issue.

That said, I'm quite disappointed in the editing of the piece, being as I had set out to write the definitive send-off from the Commons, with far more context and background to where it has been and where it's going. Nevertheless, only about half the piece made it, and a couple of the people I spoke to were cut out entirely. But, that's the name of the game, unfortunately.

HIV spending way up in federal prisons

2011-03-08T18:09:00.000-05:00

I have a new feature story up on the main page of Xtra.ca, which is something I worked on over the January break, and it's finally out. It all originated after my earlier story on funding levels for the Federal Initiative on HIV/AIDS, and the amount of money that Corrections was receiving made me curious. So I dug into things, and came up with this piece.

That said, I'm a bit disappointed that a few things ended up on the cutting room floor - the significance of bleach as a harm reduction tool (implicit acknowledgement that there are needles being used, but it's an ineffective strategy), and the fact that the one successful programme being funded is the post-release treatment coordination. Nevertheless, it was a rewarding piece to write, and I'm hoping it'll generate some interest.

After 4 hour debate, AIDS drug bill has teeth again

2011-03-04T18:14:00.000-05:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which recaps and gets reaction to the debate on Bill C-393 in the House last night. I got a couple of new MPs to weigh in - Bloc MP Monique Guay and Liberal MP Raymonde Folco - which is always nice to have, and I'll cover the final vote next week.

Delays make Canada a poor choice for queer Ugandans

2011-02-25T11:46:00.000-05:00

I have a new story up on the main page of Xtra.ca, which was about the appearance made by University of Ottawa professor Nicole LaViolette before the Commons subcommittee on international human rights. (The story is a week late in getting posted, but you can thank my editor for that). It's another story that I've been keeping my eye on, and it's always interesting to watch it continue to unfold. Also, it was nice to interview LaViolette in her professional capacity. Previously I had interviewed her as an athlete when she was a local participant in both the OutGames and GayGames (before I was doing political reporting as a focus).

Trans rights bill uncertain in Parliamentary landscape + Thoughts From the Hill - February Edition

2011-02-18T16:02:00.000-05:00

The February issue of Outlooks is now on newsstands, and I once again have two pieces in it. The first is a look at the issues that Bill C-389 was facing before it went into third reading, and this is one of those instances where writing for a monthly magazine has its downside. C-389 was of course originally supposed to be debated in early March, which the article would have been perfectly timed for, but as things go, it managed to trade spots on the Parliamentary calendar, so that debate and vote happened before the issue went to print, but too late to change it. Alas! The second piece is my usual Thoughts From the Hill panel, this time looking at the upcoming budget (which, it turns out, will be released in late March). This was one of those months where all of my panelists were really concise in their points, so I was trying to actually find a way to pad it out a bit more as opposed to trying to edit down. This is also the first issue where Outlooks is moving to a fully paid magazine rather than one that's largely free with a few newsstand and subscription sales. This is all part of the growth strategy, and I'm looking forward to seeing how this develops.

The C-389 piece is on page 14, and the Thoughts from the Hill panel is on page 17.

Trans bill heads to Senate + AIDS drug bill clears major hurdle

2011-02-17T23:53:00.001-05:00

The February issue of Xtra's Ottawa edition is now out, and I have two reprinted stories in it. The first is the story about Bill C-389 passing third reading in the House of Commons, and the other is the story about Bill C-393 passing its major procedural hurdle of being transferred to Paul Dewar's sponsorship. While the first story is largely reprinted intact, the second has shortened a bit more, but that's certainly not unusual in this day and age of the print edition.

Trans bill is at bottom of Senate pile

2011-02-17T17:31:00.000-05:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today about the process that Bill C-389 is going to face in the Senate. It was a really in depth piece, as there was a lot of ground to cover, and it was a fair bit of work, but I will also add that it was a lot of fun to write. I always enjoy writing Senate stories, and this was no exception. I'm quite looking forward to getting to follow the developments on this bill as it works its way through the Senate. (And that is my photo on the landing there, which I lucked out with in terms of getting to Chamber at an hour when the doors were open).

Brison attacks government secrecy

2011-02-11T11:39:00.000-05:00

I have a new piece up on the national page of Xtra.ca which looks at the privilege motion that Scott Brison currently has before the House. It's an important issue that I fear is being overlooked because of the focus on corporate tax cuts portion of the motion in the mainstream media, but I'm glad that because of Brison's involvement, it gave me the excuse I needed to write about it. I look forward to seeing how this develops, as it's important to our very institutions of parliamentary democracy.

Trans rights bill heads to the Senate

2011-02-10T11:57:00.000-05:00

I have a new story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which is the final outcome in the Commons of Bill C-389, a story which I've been tracking through its entire lifespan. Of course, now that it's heading to the Senate, I'll be shifting my focus on the bill to there, but as an avid Senate fan, I'm quite looking forward to this process, as talking with Senators is always a pleasure.

Jennings rips into McVety as trans bill heads to vote

2011-02-07T21:07:00.000-05:00

I have a new piece on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which followed today's debate on Bill C-389 in the House today. As this is a bill I've been following for months, this was one more update to the ongoing story, but I got some feisty commentary from Marlene Jennings today, which was a fun angle to cover.

AIDS drug bill clears major hurdle

2011-02-03T23:16:00.000-05:00

I have a new piece up on the main page of Xtra.ca today, which was another fairly unexpected piece given that I wasn't expecting this particular development for another several weeks, but lo and behold, it happened yesterday afternoon. And unlike the Globe and Mail's piece, I did more than just retype the NDP press release and actually talked to the people involved. Shocking, I know. In fact, one of the MPs involved thanked me for all of my excellent coverage today, which was really nice to hear.

Trans rights bill gets boost from Chow

2011-02-02T21:28:00.002-05:00

I have a new piece up on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which was the result of some negotiations between parties that moved Bill C-389 up the Order Paper. Seeing as I've covered C-389 all the way through, so this particular development fairly interesting to cover, even though the real drama won't be until next week.

Canada calls for 'thorough investigation' of Kato murder

2011-02-01T19:44:00.000-05:00

I have a second, shorter story up on the national page of Xtra.ca today, which stemmed from an exchange during Question Period in the House today. I was fortunately able to catch both Siksay on his way out, and get a question into Bob Rae during a scrum in the Foyer afterward, and this story was born as a result.