Canada Out of NAFTA! The Communist Party has 9 reasons why it is time to move on

With the election of Donald Trump we have ironically seen many leftists almost seem to support the terribly destructive corporate NAFTA agreement presumably because of his alleged opposition to it.

Yet while Trump may "oppose" NAFTA, he does not at all do so on a pro-worker, pro-internationalist axis, but rather on the basis of crass pandering to American racist and imperialist narratives.

While it is understandable that Bay St. liberals would try to defend NAFTA it is critical that leftists remember that NAFTA is an agreement that is by and for big business and the capitalist class.

Ending NAFTA is in the interests not only of Canadian workers, but also workers in Mexico and globally.

While the Liberals predictably have taken a "must save NAFTA" position and while the NDP's position is hopelessly muddled and included absurd comments such as "NAFTA can improve the welfare of all North Americans", the Communist Party of Canada has released a leaflet that clearly outlines why Canada should take this opportunity to not knuckle under to Trump and to simply leave NAFTA now.

Here are 9 reasons why Canada should quit and never look back.

(Click on images to enlarge) 

An Outstanding Revolutionary and Leninist -- In Commemoration of the 90th Anniversary of the Birth of Georgi Dimitrov, CPSU 1972

Vintage Leftist Leaflet Project

See the end of this post for details on the project.

Leaflet: An Outstanding Revolutionary and Leninist -- In Commemoration of the 90th Anniversary of the Birth of Georgi Dimitrov, CPSU 1972

Published in 1972 to commemorate the 90th anniversary of his birth, this booklet contains two separate essays from a Soviet perspective on what the authors saw as the importance and legacy of Bulgarian Communist leader and revolutionary Georgi Dimitrov. Dimitrov was the first leader of the post-war People's Republic of Bulgaria and is especially famous for his defense during the Nazi Leipzig Trial in 1933 when he was charged (falsely) with having been part of a conspiracy to burn down the Reichstag.

The essays are interesting in the focus on his ideological and tactical positions towards the united front idea and nationalism.

One notable quote was "We Communists are implacable and principled opponents of bourgeois nationalism of every stripe. But we are not advocates of national nihilism and must never appear as such".

(Click on scans to enlarge)

When The Left Chapter began part of what I wanted to do on the blog was to show and highlight vintage public leftist election/political leaflets and booklets. While many of these have been offered with commentary to date, a very large collection of hundreds of them from several different sources remains and to preserve these often quite rare documents we will be posting them on a regular (almost daily) basis now often without or with minimal commentary so that people may have access to them as quickly as possible as an historical resource. 

While these will all be leaflets from a variety of different leftist viewpoints and countries, they are being posted as an historical/study resource and the views or opinions expressed in them do not necessarily reflect the views of this blog or blogger.

All of these posts (as well as posts made to date) will be listed on the page: Vintage Communist/Socialist Leaflets (which is still being updated with past posts).

If you have any public, vintage leaflets or booklets you would like to contribute to this project please contact us via theleftchapter@outlook.com

Transit, Housing, Climate Change & more -- The Left Chapter Sunday Reading List November 19-26

This week's list of articles, news items and opinion pieces that I see as must reads if you are looking for a roundup that should be of interest to The Left Chapter readers.



This list covers the week of  November 19 - 26. It is generally in order of the date of the article's release.

1) Vancouver's homeless face cruel dilemma — do you risk lighting a fire to survive the cold?

Michelle Ghoussoub, CBC News

By late autumn in B.C.'s Lower Mainland, it's often rained so heavily that, if you're living on the street, you're soaked to the skin. Your socks, shoes and sleeping bag are drenched, and it's virtually impossible to get dry.

On a brutally cold, windy night in January 2008, a man named Darrell Mickasko and his girlfriend found themselves in that situation and made a fateful choice: they lit a candle.

Their tarp caught fire and Darrell burned to death.

Read the full article.

2) I have never been sexually assaulted

Deidre Pearson, Feminist Current

So when you ask why women don’t speak out, why they don’t report, why they remain silent for years and decades, I don’t believe you. You know why.

Read the full article.

3) Sexual harassment doesn't just happen to actors or journalists. Talk to a waitress, or a cleaner

Alissa Quart and Barbara Ehrenreich, The Guardian

The number of women in the entertainment industry coming forward with charges of sexual harassment is starting to feel endless. They include stars like Gwyneth Paltrow and Angelina Jolie but also heads of tech startups and journalists, gallerists and producers.

But it is women working in far less glamorous occupations who really bear the brunt of male lechery and assault: the housekeepers, waitresses and farmworkers. A paper in the journal Gender, Work & Organization, based on interviews with female workers at five-star hotels, found almost all experiencing some kind of inappropriate sexual advance from a guest. In another study, 80% of waitresses reported sexual harassment. A mind-boggling 88% of female construction workers did, too.

Read the full article.

4) For Flight Attendants, Sexual Assault Isn't Just Common, It's Almost A Given

Jamie Feldman, The HuffPost

Flight attendant Caroline Bright was kicking off her last shift of the day when she realized one of the pilots on board reminded her of someone.

Read the full article.

5) TDSB votes to scrap School Resource Officer program

Joshua Freeman and Kayla Goodfield, CP24.com 

Trustees at the Toronto District School Board have voted to end the School Resource Officer program – a program that has placed police officers in some high schools for nearly a decade.

Read the full article.

6) Hamilton Police Are Now Investigating Patrick Brown’s Ontario PCs Following Allegations of Voter Fraud

Press Progress

Hamilton police have officially authorized a criminal probe investigating allegations of vote rigging and ballot-stuffing at a contested Progressive Conservative nomination meeting last spring.

Read the full article.

7) After the liberation of Mosul, an orgy of killing

 Ghaith Abdul-Ahad, The Guardian

In the dying days of the battle of Mosul, Ghaith Abdul-Ahad followed Iraqi soldiers during the last push against Isis. But following their victory, a new wave of savagery was unleashed.

Read the full article.

8) 'You'll never work again': women tell how sexual harassment broke their careers

Molly Redden, The Guardian

As women come forward with accusations of sexual harassment in politics, media, entertainment and other fields, following the flood of allegations against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, it is striking how many of their stories share the same ending.

Read the full article.

9) Ice Apocalypse

 Eric Holthaus, Grist

Rapid collapse of Antarctic glaciers could flood coastal cities by the end of this century.

Read the full article.

10) The Enduring Relevance of the Russian Revolution

John Clarke, The New Socialist

Those who carried out the Russian Revolution in 1917 saw it as a prelude to world-wide socialist revolution. Attempts to follow their example were, of course, unsuccessful and the Soviet Union itself succumbed to external forces and international contradictions. Still, they were not wrong. When global capitalism falls, the historical contributions of the Russian Revolution will be a potent force on the side of those who bring it down.

Read the full article.

11) Bell insider reveals high-pressure sales tactics required on every single call

Erica Johnson, CBC News

A longtime Bell Canada employee describes working in the company's Scarborough, Ont., call centre as "a non-stop nightmare," where she says she is forced to sell customers products they don't need, don't want, and may not understand, to hit sales targets and keep her job.

Read the full article.

12) The Climate Crisis? It’s Capitalism, Stupid

Benjamin Y. Fong, The New York Times

Even casual readers of the news know that the earth is probably going to look very different in 2100, and not in a good way.

Read the full article.

13) Activists say Ottawa should deliver housing funds over two years, instead of 11

Julien Gignac, The Toronto Star

Protests sprung up in Toronto on Wednesday ahead of the Canadian Government’s much anticipated National Housing Strategy announcement.

Read the full article.

14) West End condo would not only have "poor door," but poor playground

Jen St Denis, Metro

A proposed condo building in Vancouver’s West End will have not only a separate door and lobby, but also a separate playground for the social housing portion of the building.

Read the full article.

15) The $3bn subway station – and other urban white elephants

Colin Horgan, The Guardian

How much should one subway station cost? The city of Toronto has an answer. The plan to extend transit in the Toronto suburb of Scarborough winds back at least a decade: at one time the plan was a seven-stop light-rail line; later a three-stop subway. Today, Scarborough is preparing to replace its six-stop automated train with just one single, solitary subway station, for a mere C$3bn (£1.8bn).

Read the full article.

16) Anti-Trump protesters risk 60 years in jail. Is dissent a crime?

Yael Bromberg and Eirik Cheverud, The Guardian

More than 200 people who were arrested on Trump’s inauguration day risk up to 60 years of jail. Meanwhile, the white supremacists in Charlottesville walk free.

Read the full article.

17) When Sexual Assault Victims Are Charged With Lying

Ken Armstrong & T. Christian Miller, The New York Times

The women accusing the Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore of sexual misconduct have faced doubt and derision. Other women, who have alleged sexual assault or harassment by powerful men in Hollywood, Silicon Valley and elsewhere, have become targets for online abuse or had their careers threatened. Harvey Weinstein went so far as to hire ex-Mossad operatives to investigate the personal history of the actress Rose McGowan, to discourage her from publicly accusing him of rape.

There are many reasons for women to think twice about reporting sexual assault. But one potential consequence looms especially large: They may also be prosecuted.

Read the full article.

18) Raped, tracked, humiliated: Clergy wives speak out about domestic violence

Julia Baird and Hayley Gleeson, ABC News

Women who were married to abusive priests are for the first time revealing their experiences of sexual assault, control and fear. They say the church has known for decades that some clergy abuse their wives but has done very little to fix the ongoing problem.

Read the full article.

19) Canadian firm to face historic legal case over alleged labour abuses in Eritrea

Ashifa Kassam, The Guardian

A Canadian mining company has lost its bid to block a lawsuit accusing it of human rights abuses against miners in Eritrea after a ruling by an appeals court in British Columbia.

Read the full article.

20) Uber to U.K. Supreme Court: Drivers don’t deserve workers’ rights

Fast Company

Uber might have lost its appeal against a ruling that its drivers need to be classified as workers with minimum-wage rights in the U.K., but it’s not backing down. After failing to persuade the Employment Appeal Tribunal earlier this month, Uber is now taking its fight all the way to the Supreme Court–The U.K.’s highest appellate court–according to Reuters. An Uber spokesperson confirmed to Reuters, “We have this afternoon requested permission to appeal directly to the Supreme Court in order that this case can be resolved sooner rather than later.”

Read the full article.

21) On the Road

Documentary, The Guardian

Hundreds of women operate as sex workers along the Strada Bonifica, the ironically named ‘road of love’ on the Adriatic coast of Italy. There has been a huge increase in the number of Nigerian women working along the 10-mile stretch of road – some of whom have been trafficked into the country and forced into prostitution. The film moves between the women’s stories, the Italians who live and work there and the local NGO, named On the Road, attempting to support the women.

Watch the full documentary.

22) Colin Kaepernick infuriates Trump fans by attending UnThanksgiving protest with Native Americans

Andrew Buncombe, The Independent

Colin Kaepernick, the American football star whose “kneeling protest” sparked a national debate, has travelled to Alcatraz Island to join Native Americans protesting the “genocide” they say is represented by Thanksgiving Day.

Read the full article. 

23) On the Rails: A Case for Renewed Leftist Infatuation with Transport

James Wilt, Canadian Dimension

A few weeks ago, at 3:30 in the morning, the Manitoba government froze public transit funding to Winnipeg, equivalent to a $10 million cut.

Read the full article.

24) Al Franken Issues New Apology After More Groping Accusations Surface

Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone Magazine

Al Franken issued a new apology Friday after two more women accused the Minnesota senator of inappropriate touching.

Read the full article.

25) Marchers say Basil Borutski guilty verdict was too little, too late

Trevor Pritchard, CBC News

The guilty verdict — according to the bright pink sign — was too little, too late.

Read the full article.

Although these two articles are from before the period covered, we are including them as they are worth reading:

26) The Cause and Consequences of the Retail Apocalypse

David Dayen, The New Republic

The Macy’s near my house is closing early next year. The mall where it’s located has seen less and less foot traffic over the years, and losing its anchor store could set off a chain reaction. Cities across the country are facing this uncertainty, with over 6,700 scheduled store closings; it’s become known as the retail apocalypse.

Read the full article.

27) The Floodgates Aren't Open Until Working-Class Women Tell Their Stories

Nell Bernstein, BuzzFeed

The string of powerful men taken down by long-suppressed charges of sexual assault and harassment has been nothing short of stunning. For the women who work in the entertainment and media industries where these men loomed largest, it is bringing up powerful emotions — trauma and rage, but also a new sense of power and hope. But what about the women making their lunch?

Read the full article.

See also: Polish Nationalist Marches, the Tar Sands, Libya and more -- The Left Chapter Sunday Reading List November 12-19

See also: Paradise Papers, Texas Massacre, Catalonia and more -- The Left Chapter Sunday Reading List November 5 - 12

To Rachel Notley -- Climate change is destroying millions of workers jobs and lives around the world, so please, smarten up

Alberta's NDP Premier Rachel Notley has been pushing hard of late for pipelines and doing so by echoing many of the very worst right-wing narratives about the energy sector, the tar sands and jobs. While Notley started her term by striking a notably collaborationist tone with big business and some of the most destructive corporations on the planet -- beginning to placate their rapacious agenda on her very first day in office -- she has kicked the rhetoric into high gear over the last few days.

This past Friday Notley appeared in front of assembled members of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce to deliver a pseudo-populist speech that borrowed from decades of what folks like Stephen Harper and Jason Kenney have said. Like them she was trying to push an economic and tar sands agenda that flies in the face of alleged Canadian and progressive commitments to fight the fact of climate change as well as in the face of all the science and evidence around the damage this agenda causes. All with a lot of rubbish hard right speaking points.

The speech was so profoundly reactionary that it even drew praise from United Conservative Party MLA Ric McIver who said "She sounded a lot more like Jason Kenney or like a UCP member when she got the applause."

Think about that for a moment.

At one point Notley said:

To my political colleagues in the federal NDP, I said: You can't write working people and their jobs out of climate action. You need to start writing them in, so please, smarten up.

This is a classic line from defenders of environmentally catastrophic projects like the tar sands, which a writer in the Guardian recently described as "the largest – and most destructive – industrial project in human history". It is an attempt to frame themselves as pro-worker and concerned for the interests of working people even though it is unquestionably massive energy corporations and their profits that benefit the most from this ongoing destruction of the planet.

Even if we set the corporate profits and interests aside, though, and take this line at face value it is still nonsense in that it is predicated on the false notion that the only workers effected by pipelines and climate change are workers in the energy sector who might lose their jobs.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

In order to make the claim that shutting down the oil sands or opposing pipelines is anti-worker or anti-job -- or, as it is often put, would be 'leaving a generation of workers behind' -- you have to ignore the far greater number of workers both in Canada and internationally whose jobs are being negatively impacted by climate change. You have to ignore how a generation of young workers in any number of industries that are not in the energy sector are already being left behind. You have to ignore the terrible impact of climate change on workers in underdeveloped countries, who are among the most disadvantaged workers in the world.

You have to ignore that climate change -- driven by industries like the tar sands and the pipelines the tar sands require -- is impacting on the health and well-being of, the workplace safety of, and the life expectancy of hundreds of millions of workers. It is literally killing workers.

Those workers matter too. Not just tar sands and pipeline workers.

Since Notley wants to talk about workers, let's do that.

Let's talk about the job losses and economic impact on some of the world's most oppressed and poorest workers as Peter Poschen did in Decent Work, Green Jobs and the Sustainable Economy:

Already, there is growing evidence of the dramatic effects that severe weather that may be linked to global warming can have on economies and societies. As climate change continues to alter weather patterns, unpredictable weather conditions remain the most significant factor causing volatility in the price of agricultural products. High prices for maize and soybean following drought in the United States in 2012 illustrate the nature and the scale of the problem.
The number of people suffering from malnutrition and hunger stands at 805 million worldwide, of whom 791 million are in developing countries. The food price increases in 2008 pushed more than 105 million people into poverty and triggered food riots in a number of countries.
There are also direct losses of jobs and incomes. For example, as a result of Hurricane Katrina in the United States in 2005, New Orleans lost some 40,000 jobs; the hardest hit were women, mostly African American. Cyclone Sidr in 2007 disrupted several hundred thousand small businesses and adversely affected 567,000 jobs in Bangladesh; the estimated value of non-agricultural private assets fell by some $25 million.
In both cases, poorer households were more exposed because they live in more vulnerable areas and have fewer resources to enhance resilience to climate change.
Climate change is likely to have a particularly marked effect in magnifying existing patterns of gender disadvantage. Worldwide, women have less access than men to financial, institutional and other resources that would enhance their capacity to adapt to climate change, including access to land, credit, agricultural inputs, decision-making bodies, technology and training services.
In many countries, droughts, floods and deforestation increase the burden of unpaid work on girls and women, leaving them less time for education or earning an income. The situation is even worse for women attempting to recover from environmental disasters.   

Let's talk about lost productivity due to climate change as the Union of Concerned Scientists did when it noted that:

Disruptions in daily life related to climate change can mean lost work and school days and harm trade, transportation, agriculture, fisheries, energy production, and tourism. Severe rainfall events and snowstorms can delay planting and harvesting, cause power outages, snarl traffic, delay air travel, and otherwise make it difficult for people to go about their daily business. Climate-related health risks also reduce productivity, such as when extreme heat curtails construction, or when more potent allergies and more air pollution lead to lost work and school days.

Let's talk about the fact that:

Global warming will cost the world economy more than £1.5 trillion a year in lost productivity by 2030 as it becomes too hot to work in many jobs, according to a major new report.
In just 14 years' time in India, where some jobs are already shared by two people to allow regular breaks from the heat, the bill will be £340bn a year.
China is predicted to experience similar losses, while other countries among the worst affected include Indonesia (£188bn), Malaysia (£188bn) and Thailand (£113bn).

Let's talk about the reality that, as the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in the US noted, "workers are vulnerable to health impacts" due to climate change as:

In addition to the threats that all Americans face, many workers may experience longer or more intense exposures to climate change–related hazards than the general public, making them particularly vulnerable to the health impacts. Watch the news during an extreme weather event, or wildfire, and you will see rescue and response workers moving toward the most hazardous locations at the same time the general public is being evacuated. We saw this most recently, at the time of this writing, with responders rescuing people stranded by rising water in their homes and cars during the terrible floods in Houston. Picture agriculture or construction workers during periods of extreme heat. They may have little control over the location or timing of their work tasks, potentially placing them at higher risk of heat related–illness or injury than people who are free to seek shade at any time. Think also of the working conditions in warehouses and factories without climate control as the area of the country affected by high temperatures continues to expand, or of the maintenance worker in Alaska who finds that higher than usual temperatures mean the ice on the frozen river he usually drives his pick-up truck across isn’t as strong as he thought.

 NIOSH also noted:

A number of both indoor and outdoor worker populations may be particularly vulnerable to climate variations. Examples include: emergency responders, health care workers, fire fighters, utility workers, farmers, manufacturing workers and transportation workers. Climate conditions can amplify existing health and safety issues and could lead to new unanticipated hazards. Workers may also be exposed to weather and climate conditions that the general public can elect to avoid. For worker populations such as migrant workers and day laborers who may have inadequate housing or other social and economic constraints, the adverse health effects of exposure to climate-related hazards in the workplace could be exacerbated by exposure to similar hazards in the home.

Let's talk, as the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) did about the "Impacts on Economic Activities and Services", that notes wide-ranging impacts on industries and workers (especially agricultural) that equally apply in Canada and globally:

• Communities that developed around the production of different agricultural crops, such as corn, wheat, or cotton, depend on the climate to support their way of life. Climate change will likely cause the ideal climate for these crops to shift northward. Combined with decreasing rural populations, as in the Great Plains, a changing climate may fundamentally change many of these communities. Certain agricultural products, such as maple syrup and cranberries in the Northeast and grapes for wine in California, may decline dramatically in the U.S.. These crops would then have to be imported.
• Climate change will also likely affect tourism and recreational activities. A warming climate and changes in precipitation patterns will likely decrease the number of days when recreational snow activities such as skiing and snowmobiling can take place. In the Southwest and Mountain West, an increasing number of wildfires could affect hiking and recreation in parks. Beaches could suffer erosion due to sea level rise and storm surge. Changes in the migration patterns of fish and animals would affect fishing and hunting. Communities that support themselves through these recreational activities would feel economic impacts as tourism patterns begin to change.
• Climate change may make it harder and more expensive for many people to insure their homes, businesses, or other valuable assets in risk-prone areas, or preclude them from insurance altogether. Insurance is one of the primary mechanisms used to protect people and communities against weather-related disasters. We rely on insurance to protect investments in real estate, agriculture, transportation, and utility infrastructure by distributing costs across society and build resilience. Climate change is projected to increase the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, such as heat waves, droughts, and floods. These changes are likely to increase losses to property and crops, and cause costly disruptions to society. Escalating losses have already affected the availability and affordability of insurance in vulnerable areas.

The EPA also talks about the impact of climate change on indigenous peoples:

Climate change can impact the health and well-being of indigenous tribes in many ways. Climate change will make it harder for tribes to access safe and nutritious food, including traditional foods important to many tribes’ cultural practices. Many tribes already lack access to safe drinking water and wastewater treatment in their communities. Climate change is expected to increase health risks associated with water quality problems like contamination and may reduce availability of water, particularly during droughts.
By affecting the environment and natural resources of tribal communities, climate change also threatens the cultural identities of Indigenous people. As plants and animals used in traditional practices or sacred ceremonies become less available, tribal culture and ways of life can be greatly affected.  

Let's talk about the impact of climate change on fisheries and all the workers in the fishing industry -- of which there are many in Canada, communities of workers that matter every bit as much as those in Alberta -- where, as Emily Logan of the WWF noted:

Our oceans absorb an enormous amount of human-caused emissions of carbon dioxide- approximately 30%- and without that, the planet would be warming at a much faster rate. But the growing carbon input has raised the oceans’ pH to 8.1, a 25% increase in acidity over the last 200 years. That makes it hard for many creatures, especially shellfish, to survive.
Warmer waters themselves also have an impact. In 2003, Scotland's hottest year on record, hundreds of adult salmon died as rivers became too warm for them to be able to extract enough oxygen from the water.
Last winter, amid near record-breaking temperatures, sunfish and thresher sharks, more common to Baja California, were found in Alaska’s seas. As fish change their migration patterns due to climate, they could affect not only the communities they leave who depend on them for livelihoods, but also their new homes as they disrupt the ecosystem and local fisheries.

Again, the impact is very pronounced on communities in places like West Africa that can least afford it thanks to factors like coastal erosion caused by climate change. A World Bank report noted that:

The economic and social impact of coastal erosion was strongly evident on our trip. About 13 million people who live in cities and villages in the coastal areas between Mauritania and Gabon have been affected by coastal erosion and flooding in the past 17 years. Their livelihoods are wrapped up in everything along the coast -- from farming, to fishing and marine industries to tourism, agro-industries and off-shore oil. Country investment in public infrastructure along the coast can be risky and the benefits short-lived. For example, one piece of the Abidjan-Lagos highway in Togo – a vital artery for economic development and integration in West Africa - has already been rebuilt twice – every time further inland. Hotels and entire fishing villages have been swallowed up by encroaching waters, imposing high costs on both the state, communities and individuals. At the current rate of erosion, there is also little appetite to invest in tourism infrastructure. 

 We could go on and on and on. We could also talk more narrowly about the impacts of climate change on workers in communities like Fort McMurray due to the wildfire and elsewhere across Canada in countless ways, though it is important to reflect the implications globally as we have here. Any "progressive" or "social democratic" party or government that wants to talk about jobs within a sector whose environmental outcomes are both staggering and global without acknowledging those outcomes on workers beyond its borders is not one that deserves support.

And that is the inconvenient truth that progressives who support or apologize for the terrible pandering of Notley and her adoption of truly vile rightist, anti-environmentalist propaganda and framing cannot afford to admit. When a politician talks about "workers" and ignores the interests of millions of them in Canada and hundreds of millions of them worldwide they are engaging in a deception that will, indeed, by applauded by big business and right-wing talking heads.

But they are also putting the lie to their pretensions to care about climate change and its demonstrable and terrible effects. It is impossible for Canada to take "action on climate change" without ultimately shutting down the tar sands and its pipelines and that is simply science fact.


A politician that does not understand that or accept that does not actually care in any meaningful way about fighting climate change. They are no more committed to it than the Republicans in the US.

So here is the thing, Rachel Notley: Climate change is already, right now, destroying millions of workers jobs and lives around the world. Climate change driven by fossil fuels and the tar sands. This is easily proven and is a scientific fact.

So please, smarten up.

See also: When it comes to opportunistic hypocrisy on the environment, Rachel Notley is right up there with Trudeau

See also: NDP Minister Brian Mason and Libertarian Party Leader Tim Moen agree! Jane Fonda is the problem, not climate change

Paratha Roti w. Goat and Potatoes at Ali's West Indian Roti Shop

We on The Left Chapter have visited Parkdale's excellent Ali's West Indian Roti Shop before both at its year round location as well as its booth at the Canadian National Exhibition.


Today we are returning to take a look at my new favourite thing on their menu (new as my favourite...not to their menu!) which is to order one of their Paratha roti dishes and ask for the roti on the side as opposed to wrapped.

When you do this you get whatever meat or shrimp option in its gravy accompanied by a large amount of the exceptionally soft and delicious roti which you can then use to dip into and enjoy the main.

While I love Ali's rotis and their rice and pea mains, I just can't get enough of this option at the moment. Especially when accompanied by their fiery and fantastic house hot sauce that they will give to you in little containers on the side to stir in and kick it all up a notch to paraphrase what Emeril used to say.

Here I had the goat option. The goat, as always, was very tender, comes with potato and the portion sizes are very generous. This all cost $12.95.

The other options are the shrimp, chicken, beef or the duck, which is really worth giving a try. There are also vegetarian options.

While there you can see what jars of their hot sauces they have for sale. Last time I went they had a citrus flavoured one I had never tried before with pieces of lemon, lime and peppers in it. It was a good one. These hot sauces never disappoint and can be had for $7-$10 a jar.

Ali's West Indian Roti is located at 1446 Queen Street W. (416) 532-7701. It on the 501 streetcar line. It is open 11 am - 10 pm seven days a week. You can visit their website for more information.  

See also: Ali's West Indian Roti Shop w. Fiery House Scotch Bonnet Hot Sauce

See also: Maurya East Indian Roti in Mimico -- Some of the best Toronto has to offer!

See also: Michael's West Indian Flavor: Perfect Oxtail in New Toronto

Sivananda Yoga Cookbook w. Lentil Burgers, Potato Moussaka, Samosas & more - Vintage Cookbook TBT

Vintage Cookbook: Sivananda Yoga Cookbook


Publication Details: Self-published, 1988


Published in 1988 this cookbook emphasized vegetarianism, Indian food and yoga when it was far less common to do so.

It opens with several pages of text and illustrations regarding the yogic diet, fasting and various dietetic rules. It then has over 100 pages of vegetarian recipes divided into sections such as "soups", "Indian" and "Italian". There is also an extensive section on desserts and baked goods. This gives it a very broad appeal to people interested not just in yoga, but in vegetarian recipes of different kinds more generally.

There are various illustrations throughout some of which are rather tongue in cheek as in the case of the one below showing a yoga pose for eating pasta to avoid staining your shirt!

(Click on scans to enlarge)

See also: Eastern Vegetarian Cooking w. Lime Pickle, Dashi, Millet & more -- Vintage Cookbook TBT