Author Archives: Donald Fraser

Over the past few years, I’ve watched discourse decay. I’ve seen social activists be labeled racists in quibbles over language or best routes to enabling civil rights. I’ve seen diehard environmentalists get shouted down for critiquing methodology of change. I’ve seen food activists condemned for introducing peer-reviewed science. And when someone doesn’t have the knowledge […]

You could tell that he was struggling. You could tell that he was off his game. From the first blown lyric of “Fifty Mission Cap” to a heavy reliance on the TelePrompTers that were hidden strategically across the stage, you could tell that Gord Downie was playing hurt. But as captain of Team Canada — […]

Your summer weekend listening! My interview with the one and only Yann Martel wanders through the spiritual, the philosophical, and even the comical. It’s part of our ‪#‎TrentVoices‬ Literary podcast series, featuring a who’s who of Canadian writers — all of them Trent University alum — including Leah McLaren, Linwood Barclay, Richard B. Wright, and […]

We are extremely excited to announce podcast stream dates for our summer #TrentVoices Literary Series. The impressive Trent University alumni lineup, which includes a who’s who of Canadian authors, is perfect listening for the dog days of summer. Tune in from your dock, deck, patio, or summer sanctuary. Keep your ears peeled, both here and […]

Things heated up between the Liberals and NDP when Grits scoring captain Justin Trudeau had an altercation with fourth-line Dipper, Ellen Brosseau.  Players spilled from both benches to join in the fray. Now that the refs have broken things up, this is how the calls should break down: no suspensions, though there should be plenty […]

Great to see Arcade Fire’s Will Butler showing the love for Owen Pallett in his review of Radiohead’s Moon Shaped Pool. As much as I love what Jonny Greenwood has brought to the table with his knowledge and arrangement of strings (and you can colour me gaga), he’s hardly the only classically steeped kid on […]

I don’t get to write about music nearly as often as I used to — or nearly as much as I would like.  Really, its always been a small part of my output/income as a writer.  But whenever I’ve been brought on to do promotional writing for an artist/band, it’s always been an absolute pleasure.  […]

Back in 2013, I wrote that we “might be laughing a little too hard” at Rob Ford — not for moral reasons, but because I felt that backlash to all of the negative attention might lead to him being regarded as a martyr/folk hero by a considerable portion of the population. Today, the death of […]

Why Hand-Me-Downs Make for Happy Babies This article originally appeared in Local Parent magazine. The full magazine, their regularly updated website, and series of blogs can be found here. Donald Fraser’s fathering column appears bi-monthly. Clara got tissue paper for her birthday. She got even more of it for Christmas. We’re really looking forward to […]

Andressa Lacerda is in mid-career stride, despite being only 26. She’s a founding partner and the CFO of Noble Inc., a company that will manufacture and distribute filtration systems to remove nanosilvers from wastewater. Also on the Noble Inc. agenda? The introduction of pharmaceuticals that will cure cancer and diseases caused by virus’. Her partner […]