Merry Hell: The Story of the 25th Battalion (Nova Scotia Regiment)

 Merry Hell: The Story of the 25th Battalion (Nova Scotia Regiment), Canadian Expeditionary Force, 1914-1919 By: Brian Tennyson 269 pages • ISBN 978-1442644960 Canada has always been involved in the most relevant events in the international system. The history of the Canadian military has many stories and anecdotes that inspire Canadians from coast

How a program retraining Canada’s veterans offers solutions for the mid-career worker

 By Nobina Robinson The world of work as we know it is changing – rapidly.  The “gig economy” and “automation” are just two phenomena shaping our working future.  Jobs are being “unbundled” and tasked out, piecemeal, across the globe.  And emerging technologies are changing the ways we interface with our

Letter to the Editor from the Philippine Ambassador to Canada

 This letter to the editor from the Philippine Ambassador Petronila P. Garcia is a response to the article "Correcting Misconceptions & Upholding Justice in the South China Sea" from our February/March 2016 print issue. You can find that article here. The letter is included below in full.

Five Ways We Can Reduce Suicides in Canada

 Why a suicide prevention strategy needs to include injury prevention Despite recent headlines, Canadian rates of suicide and attempted suicide have remained largely unchanged over the last several decades (11 per 100,000).  What has changed is that we’ve seen increasing rates of suicide in the Canadian military recently, after stable

Women and the World Wars

 Photo © Canadian War Museum The Canadian War Museum is celebrating Canadian women’s roles and contributions made during the First and Second World Wars in the museum’s new exhibit, World War Women. Dr. Stacey Barker is the Acting Historian, Art and War, at the Canadian War Museum. Barker has been working at the

Ask Alex Summer Style

 COOL KHAKI Khaki is back with a bang. Appearing in varying styles and from a number of fashion houses, sleek khaki-coloured dresses appeared on the Gucci and Donna Karan runways. Marc Jacobs offered military silhouettes and Ralph Lauren opted for safari-style glamour. The updated khaki trend works brilliantly as a

Astounding Soundwaves

 Above: An example of how sound waves expand from a central point. Photo credit. Sound is something most people experience almost every minute of every day, and so it is easy to take for granted. However, even something as simple as sound can be used to create powerful tools when

Must Read: The Thin Black Line by Simon Gervais

 Prepare for a whirlwind of a read. Simon Gervais’ newly released debut novel The Thin Black Line, is a must-read thriller based right here in Canada’s capital city. A first time novelist, Gervais delivers a heart-pumping, nerve-racking story with a climactic ending you won’t see coming. In The Thin Black

Calling All Superheroes!

 Are you a geek? Well, it’s time to celebrate! The Ottawa Geek Market is back at the Nepean Sportsplex to celebrate all things superheroes and gaming from March 27 to 29. Imagine 40,000 square feet of shopping, games and superhero-themed activities! Is there anything else you would rather be a

How Lt Gen Currie turned the Canadian Corps into a national army

 Ask the average Canadian student about the origins of our nation and you will likely hear about Confederation and how Canada became a country with the passage of the British North American Act (BNA) in 1867. The fact of the matter is this is not actually the case. The BNA

Putting the “Science” in “Science Fiction”–A New Light Shines on Lasers

 It has been a long time since I last wrote about lasers--one of the most common gadgets in science fiction--but that does not mean scientific interest in these devices has lessened. The opposite is true in fact, with new advances being made in this field on a constant basis. As

Putting the “Science” in “Science Fiction” – Giant Robots

 One of the most pervasive figures in technology throughout the history of science-fiction is the giant robot. Although they may be impractical in the real world, there is something about giant walking machines that captures the awe and imagination of people around the world. From H.G. Wells’ Martian tripods to

Putting the “Science” in “Science Fiction” – Violet Incredible

 Violet Incredible, one of the titular characters of Disney's film The Incredibles, shares a number of powers with the Invisible Woman. She uses her powers throughout the film and, though her ability to become invisible is useful, the power she uses the most is the ability to create force fields.

Ireland Welcomes You Home

 Your Irish Heritage Is Waiting To Be Discovered. It seemed fitting to take my daughter on a trip to Ireland to explore the land of her paternal ancestors. Thanks to the mild oceanic climate, the south and south west of Ireland are a beautiful lush green carpet peppered with towns,

Canada’s Presence in Afghanistan: Why We Are There And Why We Would Do A Disservice To The United Nations And Ourselves If We Didn’t See The Mission Through

 The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) is that august organization's single largest special political mission. Nineteen UN agencies are in Afghanistan to help the Afghan people and its democratically elected government establish a solid and secure democratic society. Twenty thousand troops from 37 countries (including over 2,500 Canadians

Canada’s Muscular Military: The Throne Speech Façade

 Pity the Canadian Forces. They must surely be suffering from an identity crisis. It was only a month ago that the government strutted the Forces before the public eye so we could see their biceps bulging, their pecs rippling. Just listen to the overflow of machismo in the Throne Speech

Afghanistan and the Polls: Change the Question – Change the Numbers

 Quick media conclusions on polls released regarding Canadian participation in the Afghanistan mission are flawed. Part of the difficulty in interpreting the polls lies in the fact that the two principal polling firms involved with the longest databases use very different questions in their polls. Strategic Counsel, which is the

An interview with Russian Ambassador to Canada Georiy Mamedov

 Ottawa Life will takes you into the heart of the new Russia. We will look at the business opportunities, bilateral relations, cultural and arts scene, and tourism potential and get the pulse of a country very similar to our own. We begin our series with Russia's man in Canada, Ambassador

Trouble in a fool’s paradise: The problems with our Canadian Forces

 By Dan Donovan and Jennifer O'Meara The HMCS Chicoutimi was only days out of port on its maiden voyage when disaster struck. An onboard fire would leave one sailor dead and an entire crew bobbing in the North Atlantic for days as they waited for a towline to take them back

Part 2: Gen. Ray Henault: Focus of Canada’s Defence is Shifting

 Above: General Ray Henault in the cockpit, April 2004 In this three-part series on the state of Canada's military preparedness, Ottawa Life's top writers examine Canada's peacekeeping deployments around the world, capacity and equipment challenges, and pressing infrastructure replacement needs. Here is Part 2 of an interview with Gen. Ray

An Interview with Gen Ray Henault: There’s No Life Like It

 In this three-part series on the state of Canada's military preparedness, Ottawa Life's top writers examine Canada's peacekeeping deployments around the world, capacity and equipment challenges, and pressing infrastructure replacement needs. We begin our series on national defense with the first of three interviews with Gen. Ray Henault, Chief of

Chain of command lets Rockcliffe military community down

 By  Colonel Alain Pellerin One of the outcomes of the recent tragedy that took the lives of two Canadian soldiers and injured three of their comrades just outside of Kabul, Afghanistan, was to witness the closeness of a military community as it quickly came to the support of the grief-stricken

In opposition against “a Phantom Prime Minister”: An interview with Stephen Harper

 By: Peter Gill Ottawa Life Magazine: If you were Prime Minister, how would you deal with Canada's declining military? How much money do you think needs to be invested in it? Stephen Harper: A lot. Numbers have been thrown around by various groups. The consensus seems to be you need

Heroes betrayed —The Merchant Seamen story

 By Cliff Chadderton It is mid-January of 1940 in "an East Canadian port." Canada is at war. The recruiting offices are open. You see a poster of a soldier in a tin hat. You recall the slaughter of the trenches in Flanders in World War I and mutter: "No thanks."