David McLaughlin

Policy Commentator

Prime Minister Harper is proving a political populist by practice and fiscal hawk by necessity; his finance minister, Jim Flaherty, is actually more the reverse. That tandem is holding, for now. A new Bank of Canada governor means renewed focus on the country's economic direction.

Kristin Kirkpatrick, M.S., R.D., L.D.

Manager of Wellness Nutrition Services at Cleveland Clinic Wellness Institute

People automatically associate a vegetarian or vegan diet with health, but in reality, eliminating meat from the diet is not necessarily a ticket to good health. In fact, it's just as easy to be an unhealthy vegetarian as it is to be an unhealthy omnivore.

Craig and Marc Kielburger

Co-Founders, Free The Children

We meet a lot of heroes every year. Not caped ones, generally, but down-to-earth heroes like Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Dr. James Orbinski, who save lives and change the world with education, medicine and compassion. Still we wonder who these heroes look up to -- Martin Luther King, or Ghandi? Sometimes. But more often the answer is much closer to home.

Natasha Koifman

President, NKPR

It's remarkable to see the impact The Great Gatsby has had on designers in recent seasons -- it started even when the movie was just announced. While current designers and collections offer many options for those of us enchanted with these styles, we can also go right to the source. Here are some more tips for shopping vintage.

The Purple Fig

The Purple Fig women's blogazine, thepurplefig.com

I can't spot a single one-dimensional woman for miles. They don't exist. I seriously want to throw a party for all the mothers today because even though mothers have always possessed these layers, women today just seem to own them more. At the party, I'd raise my glass to these ladies and say, "You are my heroes. Thank you for being more than just a mom."

Shelley Emling

Editor, Post 50

Here are four bedtime habits that may be killing your sex life. Have your own ideas? Let us know in comments.

Danko Jones

Musician

Gwen, don't listen to the naysayers. They're just jealous. Hell, I'm even jealous of you. You sang with The Stones and you looked great doing it, if I do say so myself. Nobody, even wild horses, as hard as they might try, can take that away from you.

Seema Jilani

Physician reporting from Afghanistan

I don't need you to "tolerate" me. I don't want you to merely put up with my presence. All I ask, all I have ever asked, is to be treated as a human being, that bigoted jingoism is not injected into every minute facet my life, that there remains at least the illusion of decency.

Daniel Alexandre Portoraro

HuffPost Blogger

In his most recent video where he thanks donors for their money, the Liberal leader Justin Trudeau looks like a college sophomore playing hacky sack in the quad. What Trudeau says in the video is of little import -- as so often with the aspiring prime minister -- but it's how he presents everything that makes this ad -- initially (and easily) thought to be a joke -- so downright clever.

Brenna Weingus

Dance competition show enthusiast

"Dancing with the Stars" is down to just six couples and the frontrunners of the season are becoming more and more defined. With powerful numbers from Zendaya, Aly, and Kellie, this season seems to belong to the girls.

Kennedy Stewart

MP for Burnaby-Douglas

By choosing to shift towards industry-driven applied research at the expense of scientist-driven basic research, the Conservatives continue to undermine scientific progress - and these policies will adversely impact all of us, including the very industry they purport to be servicing.

Marlo Thomas

Award-winning actress, author and activist

It's the one thing I tell people about myself that always seems to surprise them: that I was a teacher. I'd just graduated from the University of Southern California, and even though I knew I wanted to go into show business, I tried my hand at teaching for a while -- partly because my father wanted me to get a "real job," but mostly because I loved it.

Joshua Ostroff

Senior editor, Huffington Post Canada

We have responsibilities as parents, both to our children and the other children they spend time with at daycare, school or other gathering places,to ensure their safety. And that includes getting them properly immunized. You simply don't know more than your doctor or the medical establishment, and neither do the authors and bloggers trying to convince you otherwise.

Lesley M. M. Blume

Author, journalist, contributing style editor

As we all know, nothing falls out of fashion like fashion. History has relegated thousands of adornments to the ash bin, from togas to bustles to turbans. Yet, somehow these "glad rags" always manage to stage comebacks, sneaking into our modern wardrobes in various guises.

Minnow Hamilton

Editor and Chief Curator, SavvyMom Media

If you're interested in learning more about the women who bring you SavvyMom.ca, read on to see what they carry in their purses all day long. Here's our editors' list of 41 Things SavvyMoms Don't Leave Home Without --from the insiders at SavvyMom.

Alec Baldwin

Acteur

I have not acted in a legit show on Broadway since A Streetcar Named Desire in 1992, having chosen the not-for-profit route on Broadway or regional for my last four shows. Broadway has changed in the past 21 years and I wanted take a moment to look at that.

Dr. Chris Cobourn

General Surgeon

Spring's approach has a knack for making people more self-conscious and aware of their bodies. The good news? You can channel that energy into starting your weight loss journey, discovering how to keep the weight off, and preparing to debut your summer physique.

Cleo Hamel

Tax Expert

It is nice to receive a cheque from the government but a tax refund is not good, because you are only receiving your own money back. Your tax refund is money you have overpaid the government during the year. You want to pay the right amount of tax during the year, rather than give the government an interest-free loan.

The Purple Fig

The Purple Fig women's blogazine, thepurplefig.com

Work, work. Perpetually behind. What on earth did I do with my time before? Are my kid's feet freezing? Was it my turn for snack? What's on for the weekend? Are they okay? Until the day I die: Are. They. Okay?

Anne Theriault

Feminist blogger

The price of a piece of clothing is not at all indicative of the working conditions of its manufacturer. On top of that, implying (or outright saying) that there is something morally wrong with paying ten dollars for a t-shirt is incredibly classist.

Gary Goodyear

Member of Parliament, Cambridge-North Dumfries

Canada's ability to gain a competitive advantage in the global economy increasingly depends on industry's R&D; intensity and the success in translating basic science and knowledge into commercial products. With this change, the National Research Council of Canada is returning to these historic roots by renewing its focus on industrial research, new growth and business development.