New reading material: Mount Allison professor launches new book

Political science professor examines a Canadian company’s involvement in the international high-speed rail sector

On Oct. 23, with a yellow moon shining overhead, political science professor Dr. David Thomas’s new book Bombardier Abroad: Patterns of Dispossession was introduced to the world at large.

Thomas’s teaching and research interests Canadian actors abroad and on international political economy.

This book is focused on analyzing Canadian companies’ roles in international tension and dispossession. To accomplish, this the book focuses on infrastructure company Bombardier and the role its high-speed rail projects have played in larger global conflicts. The three case studies used are those of South Africa, Palestine/Israel and Tibet/China, all of which are locations of conflict between dispossessed peoples and dominant ruling groups.

At 7 p.m., attendees began to slowly trickle into the Owens Art Gallery. The majority of those present were either students or faculty from the political science and international relations departments. During the short lecture portion of the event, there was standing room only (partly due to the fact there were only five or so chairs).

Representatives from Tidewater Books, one of Sackville’s independent bookstores, were also present and selling copies of Thomas’s book, many of which he would later sign.

The event itself was only about twenty minutes. In his brief introduction, Thomas greeted the attendees and acknowledged the many sources of help he had for the creation of the book. On the list was Tidewater Books, Fernwood Publishing (a publisher whose motto is “Critical books for critical thinkers”), Thomas’s research assistants, civil society actors, friends, colleagues and family.

Thomas explained that his inspiration for the book came from the fact that most studies of transnational Canadian companies have focused primarily on extraction of raw resources. Thomas wished to expand the field into different avenues, in this case the transportation sector.

Thomas’s book is currently available for purchase at Tidewater Books at 13 Bridge St.

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