In this occasional feature, two Torontoist staffers face off to debate an issue that is important to our city. We invite our readers to join in the debate in the comments section after the post. In October of 2006, Maclean’s magazine published an excerpt from writer Mark Steyn’s book, America Alone, which argued that demographics and the failures of liberal society were inevitably leading to the Islamization of Europe. Subsequently a group of Muslim students......

In a grudging acknowledgement that Canadians are still entitled to some measure of freedom of speech, the Ontario Human Rights Commission dismissed a complaint against Maclean's magazine for articles critical of Islamic fundamentalism, saying the Commission had no jurisdiction over print. However, the Commission—whose members are not required to have training in law, journalism, or, um, anything, really—did say that the articles caused "serious harm" to society with their "destructive, xenophobic opinions." That's nice.......

Along with ten other universities across the country, including Dalhousie, McMaster, and UBC, the University of Toronto has bowed out of participating in Maclean's annual university rankings survey. They cite Macleans' "misuse of data in establishing a spurious "ranking" table that is, at best, useless and, at worst, misleading to students wishing to make a thorough choice about the university they wish to attend." Strong words from U of T, which consistently ranks on top......