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By Greg Fingas, on June 13, 2013, at 10:45 am This and that for your Thursday reading.
- Mike Fancie offers this year’s definitive response to the the misguided concept of “tax freedom”: The Fraser Institute’s math on income and taxation has been roundly criticized, including by a former Assistant Chief Statistician and by our Andrew Jackson for skewing numbers to make a point. But while we take issue with the Fraser Institute’s numbers, and setting aside the bias inherent in their tax calculator’s $150,000 income ceiling, the more important discussion lies in appreciating why we pay taxes in the first place. Our tax dollars, far from disappearing into a (Read more…)
By Greg Fingas, on May 19, 2013, at 12:01 pm This and that for your Sunday reading.
- Justin Ling writes that the Cons’ aversion to accountability isn’t limited to their own government, as they’re one of the few holdouts against transparency in resource-sector reporting of payments to governments abroad.
- Meanwhile, Stuart Trew discusses an international citizens’ initiative to keep the Trans-Pacific Partnership from imposing harmful copyright rules: A coalition website, launched this week as a 17th round of TPP negotiations gets underway in Lima, Peru, calls on TPP negotiators to “reject copyright proposals that restrict open Internet, access to knowledge, economic opportunity and fundamental rights.” The website (Read more…)
By Greg Fingas, on May 10, 2013, at 9:32 am Assorted content to end your week.
- Yes, it’s for the best that some of Canada’s pre-eminent scientists are offering to walk Joe Oliver through the realities of climate change. But Nik Beeson’s offer of political detoxification looks like the more important step for those of us who aren’t in denial about the science: When pushing an oil addiction to a planet in the midst of catastrophic climate change is called ‘ethical,’ we have indeed entered a very Orwellian world, where words come to mean their opposites. Calling Canada’s oil more ‘ethical’ is precisely as logical as saying my crack (Read more…)
By Greg Fingas, on April 22, 2013, at 9:56 am Miscellaneous material to start your week.
- Paul Adams rightly points out that there’s no inherent value in centrism merely for the sake of centrism – especially when the spectrum of choices is itself shaped by decades of distorted assumptions: (T)he reality of modern politics is that the muddled middle is no answer at all to the issues facing us. On economic and social policy, what divides Canadians is their attitude towards three decades of market-liberating policies that have weakened our middle class, increased inequality, corroded social programs, undermined the ability of working people to negotiate a living wage, and (Read more…) us all more vulnerable and insecure.
There is certainly a discussion to be had about how quickly and by what means these policies should be moderated, revised or reversed — and issues of priority, pace and technique may divide the Liberals and the NDP.
But first, both parties . . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
By Greg Fingas, on April 9, 2013, at 11:28 am On the environmental side, I’ll limit my focus to one priority resolution. That’s in part because the NDP’s existing policy book looks to largely cover the most important aspects of the environment, and because the resolutions submitted for the Montreal convention largely have a fairly narrow focus (which takes it outside my goals in assembling the priority resolutions list).
But one resolution does offer some important new material to define the NDP’s direction, even if it looks fairly familiar based on the party’s current policy: 2-51-13 Resolution on Energy and PipelinesSubmitted by Toronto-DanforthBE IT RESOLVED THAT the following
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: #mtlqc13 Priority Resolution – Environment
By Greg Fingas, on March 26, 2013, at 9:41 am This and that for your Tuesday reading.
- Ruy Teixeira discusses Branko Milanovic’s finding that on a global scale, income inequality is almost entirely locked in based on an individual’s place of birth and parents’ income: Milanovic asks “How much of your income is determined at birth?” The answer: 80 percent of your income can be accounted for by the country of your birth and the income level of your parents. That leaves just 20 percent for age, sex, race, luck and, of course, hard work. Wow.
In the final section of his book, Milanovic looks at
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: Tuesday Morning Links
By Greg Fingas, on March 25, 2013, at 11:09 am If a non-Con federal government even hinted at this kind of policy in dealing with provinces, the western Village would collapse under the weight of its own hysterical shrieking. But because it only involves Stephen Harper trying to extort resources from First Nations, I don’t expect to hear of it again.
By Greg Fingas, on March 11, 2013, at 9:40 am Miscellaneous material to start your week.
- Bea Vongdouangchanh reports on Kevin Page’s concerns that the Cons are set to effectively destroy the PBO. And the Star’s editorial board slams Stephen Harper’s war against transparency and accountability in general: Stonewalling, foot-dragging and contempt for Parliament pay. At least that’s what the federal government appears to have concluded in the wake of the 2011 election. Toppled two years ago after being found in contempt of Parliament for failing to disclose fiscal information, the Conservatives were nonetheless rewarded in the polls with a majority government — a victory that has served as . . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
By Greg Fingas, on March 6, 2013, at 8:52 am Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.
- Paul Adams highlights how the Cons and their anti-social allies have spent decades trying to convince Canadians that it’s not worth trying to pursue the goals we value – and how the main challenge for progressives is to make the case that a better future is possible: This is a huge issue for progressives — perhaps the most important they face.
This lack of faith in government is partly the product of 30 years of increasingly conservative governments which have shed any social ambition in favour of tax cuts and austerity — and
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: Wednesday Morning Links
By Greg Fingas, on March 1, 2013, at 9:19 am Assorted content to end your week.
- The Star’s editorial board highlights why our elected representatives should be countering the effect of precarious employment (rather than exacerbating them as the Cons have done): Simply put, programs like Employment Insurance and the Canada Pension Plan were created back in the days when employees received wrist watches for 40 years of service. Unemployment was considered a temporary misfortune, and big companies were expected to provide adequate pensions to be topped up by government cheques. Those programs have not adapted to the new, more “precarious” world.
For example, EI benefits have been pared
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: Friday Morning Links
By Greg Fingas, on February 25, 2013, at 8:28 am Miscellaneous material for your Monday reading.
- Andrew Nikiforuk discusses how Alberta and other petro-states have ended up destroying their treasuries and their democratic systems alike by relying excessively on volatile resource prices: Thanks to the volatile nature of the world’s most lucrative commodity, various petro states find themselves short of cash. And that’s because most petro states don’t know how to budget let alone govern.
Like any plantation economy, petro states operate pretty much like irrational monocultures: they know how pump oil, sell oil, talk oil and spend oil. But they don’t know how to save or diversify its
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
By Greg Fingas, on February 22, 2013, at 8:53 am Assorted content for your Friday reading.
- Michael Moss writes about the amount of time and money spent by corporate conglomerates to push consumers toward eating unhealthy food: The public and the food companies have known for decades now — or at the very least since this meeting — that sugary, salty, fatty foods are not good for us in the quantities that we consume them. So why are the diabetes and obesity and hypertension numbers still spiraling out of control? It’s not just a matter of poor willpower on the part of the consumer and a give-the-people-what-they-want attitude on
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: Friday Morning Links
By Greg Fingas, on February 21, 2013, at 8:27 am Obviously Erin Weir’s decision to withdraw from the Saskatchewan NDP’s leadership race and endorse Ryan Meili looks to be one of the most important developments of the campaign. While there’s still a wide range of possible outcomes among the remaining candidates, the movement of any substantial portion of Weir’s support should nearly ensure that Meili appears on the final ballot – and also figures to boost Meili’s odds of reaching 50% support on an earlier ballot.
But beyond the effect of Weir’s endorsement, I’ll also point out the shared policy statement which accompanies his support – which both highlights the
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: On effective departures
By Greg Fingas, on February 17, 2013, at 11:14 am This and that for your Sunday reading.
- Joseph Stiglitz discusses how the combination of increasingly concentrated wealth and deteriorating has eliminated any pretense of equal opportunity within the U.S.: It’s not that social mobility is impossible, but that the upwardly mobile American is becoming a statistical oddity. According to research from the Brookings Institution, only 58 percent of Americans born into the bottom fifth of income earners move out of that category, and just 6 percent born into the bottom fifth move into the top. Economic mobility in the United States is lower than in most of
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: Sunday Morning Links
By Greg Fingas, on February 5, 2013, at 9:07 am This and that for your Tuesday reading.
- The CP reports on the Canadian applicants rejected by HD Mining as it chose instead to staff its Murray River coal project solely with low-rights temporary immigrant workers: The unions, which are more broadly seeking a judicial review of Ottawa’s decision to issue permits to the workers in the first place, say their findings justify the legal challenge.
They filed documents to the Federal Court late Friday outlining some of the qualifications found within the tossed resumes.
One applicant had more than 30 years of wide-ranging and extensive experience in all aspects
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: Tuesday Morning Links
By Greg Fingas, on January 29, 2013, at 8:29 am This and that for your Tuesday reading.
- The CCPA looks at Statistics Canada’s latest income data and finds that inequality has been growing steadily across the country over the past few decades. The Canadian Labour Congress notes that corporate tax cuts have led to cash hoarding rather than increased jobs or productivity. Needless to say, the Village requests in all seriousness that observers not draw a connection between the two or any associated economic theory.
- Meanwhile, George Monbiot comments on how the removal of a privileged class from society at large serves to explain the disconnect between the
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: Tuesday Morning Links
By Greg Fingas, on January 26, 2013, at 10:52 am Assorted content for your weekend reading.
- Susan Delacourt comments on the role of robocalls in turning citizens away from politics – though it’s worth pointing out that the Cons may well see that as a desirable result to capitalize on a modest base of support: What may need more testing, however, is how robocalls work as a tool to suppress votes. Sure, they don’t make people any more likely to turn out at the polls, or vote for a particular party.
But they may just be annoying enough to turn people off politics or voting — and, from all
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: Saturday Morning Links
By Greg Fingas, on January 18, 2013, at 8:47 am This and that to end your week.
- Bruce Campbell argues that Alberta should take a lesson from Norway on how to manage natural resources – and plenty of other provinces could stand to take notes as well: The Norwegian government owns 80 per cent of petroleum production, and retains roughly 85 per cent of the net petroleum revenues mainly through a 78-per-cent company tax and through direct access mechanisms.
In Alberta and Canada, ownership and control have been controversial issues. At present, virtually the entire industry is owned by foreign and domestic private interests, which have taken the lion’s
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: Friday Morning Links
By Greg Fingas, on December 24, 2012, at 10:44 am Miscellaneous material for your Monday reading.
- Michael Harris asks why Stephen Harper is afraid to look Theresa Spence in the eye: (Harper) believes that the government’s lying about all these things is far less important than the fact that it is the government. Incumbency is a magic potion. Under its influence, people are supposed to swoon. All too often, they do. That’s the way oligarchs think. Richard Nixon put it in a nutshell when he famously said that if the president did it, then it wasn’t a crime.
Stephen Harper has arrived at the exalted position of Tricky Dick.
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
By Greg Fingas, on December 18, 2012, at 9:00 am With official forums on hold until January but the holiday lull not quite yet here, Saskatchewan’s NDP leadership candidates have been fairly active over the last little while. So let’s take a look at the latest developments.
- The latest fund-raising numbers are available here, and charted by Alice below:
What looks most noteworthy from November is a push by Ryan Meili in both fund-raising and expenditures. While his campaign has trumpeted its continued lead in donations, Meili also outspent his competitors substantially for the latest month, leaving him as the only candidate to end November with less cash
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: #skndpldr Roundup
By Greg Fingas, on December 10, 2012, at 8:56 am News and notes from Saskatchewan’s NDP leadership campaign…
- I wasn’t sure whether Ryan Meili’s reddit appearance would result in much difference from other forms of candidate interaction. But the outcome looks to have been a noteworthy discussion – both in a range of creative questions (indeed more than Meili could answer in the time allotted), and in the free-flowing responses including an amended take on what government can do to encourage honest and open political debate.
- Meili also released his platform on education and child care – with the latter looking to give him a ready answer to
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: #skndpldr Roundup
By Greg Fingas, on December 9, 2012, at 2:57 pm This and that for your Sunday reading.
- Jim Stanford responds to the claim that we should be eager to import whatever capital we can for lack of other means of developing our own resources: Measured by foreign direct investment, Canada has been exporting capital, not importing it. During the four years ending 2011, Canadian companies invested almost $75-billion more in their own foreign subsidiaries than foreign companies invested here. By this measure, too, Canada supplies capital to the rest of the world, not the other way around.
Even if we simply equate foreign capital with “money,” we clearly don’t
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: Sunday Afternoon Links
By Greg Fingas, on December 6, 2012, at 8:42 am Here, on how Saskatchewan’s existing list of unremediated and orphaned oil and gas wells should remind nus of the need to make sure resource developers account for the social cost of their operations.
For further reading…- The most recent Provincial Auditor’s report highlighting the orphaned well issue is here (PDF – see Chapter 31, page 239).- My comment about the two-year lag in any climate change action is based on the province’s climate change information page, which shows no new developments since February 2011 and no indication when relevant legislation will be proclaimed in force.-
. . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: New column day
By Greg Fingas, on December 2, 2012, at 12:41 pm Once again, Saskatchewan’s NDP leadership campaign has focused largely on recent debates and other candidate forums (and I’ll be discussing those individually as I get a chance to view them). And for those interested in immediate coverage of those, Tra… . . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: #skndpldr Roundup
By Greg Fingas, on November 27, 2012, at 9:47 am This and that for your Tuesday reading.- Paul Boothe discusses the dangers of giving in to resource-boom hype rather than planning for sustainable development:The resource roller coaster and the crazy things it causes us to do are not new. Remember the… . . . → Read More: Accidental Deliberations: Tuesday Morning Links
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