“It is better to play for nothing than to work for nothing.”

Adam Smith, quoted in Jan de Vries The Economy of Europe in an Age of Crisis, 1600-1750

NB this interview was done before the government said it would pay Admiral Norman’s legal bills. But I stand by my claim that the ordeal he went through, including having to fund the case himself while it was in progress and with no reasonable expectation that his bills would be covered, constitutes a powerful deterrent to anyone rocking the boat or, in this case, the supply ship..

“The profit motive is not a noble motive. It is not a gallant motive. It is not artistic. It is not dignified. And yet, it seems useful.”

Henry Luce, quoted in Calgary Sun Jan 25, 1990

“Progress mainly depends on the extent to which the strongest and not merely the highest forces of human nature can be utilised for the increase of social good.”

Professor Alfred Marshal, quoted in Nigel Birch, The Conservative Party

In my latest Loonie Politics column I say despite media jeering at Trump for supposedly caving in, the real losers were… just about everybody.

“They say we offer simple answers to complex problems. Well, perhaps there is a simple answer – not an easy answer – but simple: If you and I have the courage to tell our elected officials that we want our national policy based on what we know in our hearts is morally right.”

Ronald Reagan “A Time for Choosing” (a.k.a. “The Speech”) October 27, 1964