Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Toby Buckle notes that the most accurate predictions for Donald Trump's second term have been the ones which warned about the worst (and even then may have underestimated the dangers). Marina Kelly and Vittoria Elliott report on DOGE's theft of massive amounts of data which is being turned into an unprecedented surveillance tool. Brittany Gibson notes that anybody who merely speaks up for the people disappeared by Trump's goons is being threatened with criminal prosecution. And Radley Balko writes that Trump's regime is imposing direct costs on basic human decency - making it all the more important for people to defy the powers that be by caring for one another. 

- Dan Froomkin argues that accurate coverage of the Trump regime needs to start from the premise that it's a criminal enterprise. Paul Krugman notes that major policy announcements are now being made in private meetings with corporate executives. And Will Bunch examines how Trump's second inaugural fund was turned into a nine-figure shakedown and grift which received scant media attention. 

- Frank Langfitt reports on a survey of political scientists finding broad agreement that Trump is tipping the U.S. into authoritarianism. And Robert Reich writes about the billionaire class' ongoing efforts to secede from society at large rather than contributing a nickel to its success. 

- The Canadian Press reports on a push by professors to offer safe haven to American academics and researchers. Dat Nguyen warns against allowing Pierre Poilievre to import Trump's war on science to Canada, while Aaron Wherry and Catherine Cullne report that the Cons' plans to exercise political control over research are intact even after they were left out of the first version of the party's English platform. Geoff Dembicki examines the Cons' plans to mimic DOGE, while Adrienne Tanner reports on their similar mirroring of the Republicans' culture war. Harrison Mooney talks to Martin Lukacs about Poilievre's plans to trash the welfare state and civil society. 

- Finally, andrea bennett interviews Enda Brophy about the class politics of the Canadian federal election. Emmett Macfarlane takes a look at the plans offered by Canada's political parties on democracy and governance - though it's unfortunate that the far more substantive plans of the NDP receive far less attention than the lack thereof of the Cons and Libs. Jen St. Denis examines how and why extreme-right propagandists were able to hijack the election debates. And Gillian Steward points out that the real goal of Western separatists is merely to maintain a grievance culture that serves as a roadblock to climate action and clean energy development. 

Tuesday Night Cat Blogging

Restful cat.

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Adrienne Lafrance discusses how the clock is ticking - but not quite yet run out - to check Donald Trump's assertion of absolute power before the U.S. falls into authoritarianism. Will Stone reports on the Trump regime's gutting of the Department of Health and Human Services' injury prevention team, while Hiroko Tabuchi reports on the cancellation of research grants to address the effects of pollution and toxic chemicals on children. And Laurie Udesky and Jack Leeming write about the beginning of a massive scientific brain drain. 

- Stephen Magusiak talks to Geoff Dembicki about the close connections between Pierre Poilievre's Cons and the corporate forces responsible for Trump's entrenchment in power. Christopher Holcroft examines a half-dozen of the crucial policy areas where Poilievre is consistently parroting Trump. And Washim Ahmed warns that Poilievre's determination to mimic Trump's deportation of people for the exercise of free speech and assembly is particularly dangerous. 

- Ximena Gonzalez rightly questions why neither of the main parties is showing any interest in tackling poverty or inequality. And Danyaal Raza writes about the crisis in primary health care which is likewise receiving short shrift from the Libs and Cons alike. 

- Finally, Christo Aivalis writes about a principled approach to strategic voting for left-wing Canadian voters (in stark contrast to the "Dear Leader requires a crushing majority!" message coming from the Lib camp). And Tom Parkin offers a data-driven approach to electing the most progressive Parliament possible. 

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Stephen Marche discusses how the overriding objective of the U.S.' corporate elite is absolute impunity. Ariella Markowitz writes about the decades-long astroturf effort to undermine the use of taxes both to raise revenue and rein in inequality. Bob Lord points out how the rich are lying about paying their fair share of taxes. And Alec MacGillis discusses how the Trump regime is waging war on public data generally to make sure people can't see how they're being affected by a fascist kleptocracy

- Meanwhile, Katya Schwenk and Luke Goldstein note that Trump is facilitating the use of surveillance pricing to enable price gouging. And Raymond Patterson, Emily Laidlaw and Jian Zhang discuss how the result is the imposition of higher prices on the people who can least afford them, with the result being the deliberate exacerbation of inequality. 

- Jim Stanford examines the problems with treating per-capita GDP as a proxy for well-being as it rewards profits on paper while punishing the presence of people. Daniel Horen Greenford writes about the need for Canada's election to include a reckoning with the failure of neoliberal economics - even as Mark Carney promises more of the same turbocharged by the use of AI. And Peggy Nash notes that we should be moving past merely buying Canadian to pursuing public ownership of the necessities of life and strategic resources.

- Armine Yalnizyan examines the major parties' plans when it comes to affordability and the cost of living. And The Narwhal sets out what's on offer for environmental policy and resource management. 

- Calder McHugh highlights how Pierre Poilievre's choice to pattern his every message and policy after Donald Trump has come back to bite him as voters recognize the dangers posed by the Trump regime. Andrew Coyne warns that Poilievre is planning to undermine Charter rights as an end in itself, rather than a means to any policy goal. And Charlie Angus examines what would stand to be lost if a Canada version of DOGE is imposed. 

- Finally, Sinead Campbell reports on new research showing that a sixth of the Earth's cropland is comtaminated by toxic heavy metals. And Rhian Lubin reports on a far-reaching E.coli outbreak in American produce which was concealed from the public.

Saturday Morning Links

Assorted content for your weekend reading.

- Doug Saunders discusses how Trump has made "anti-woke" messaging toxic around the globe by demonstrating how evil and destructive it is in practice - even as Pierre Poilievre insists on trying to peddle it in Canada. And Leyland Cecco reports on the increasingly pervasive and sophisticated misinformation being disseminated in the course of Canada's election campaign.

- Jorge Barrera reports on the unsubtle and unconscionable stunts from Ezra Levant and company in spreading misinformation and disrupting the leadership debate scrums for Poilievre's benefit. And Taylor Noakes points out how Poilievre functions as a useful idiot for the oil sector. 

- Joe Vipond and Seth Klein lament the lack of discussion of climate change in the course of an election campaign which is supposed to involve charting Canada's course in the world for decades to come. Clean Energy Canada highlights the massive opportunities available if we joint our non-U.S. trading partners in focusing on building a renewable energy economy. And the 89 Percent Project is set to launch some much-needed coverage as to how the vast majority of people support climate action which is being held back only by a few greedy fossil fuel tycoons and their political puppets. 

- Nick Pearce discusses the possibility of establishing social democratic zones as a counter to the perpetual corporate push for non-democratic areas. 

- Finally, Erin Reed rightly argues that countries need to be prepared to accept transgender refugees from the U.S. in the face of a regime which treats their existence as a crime. 

Musical interlude

Flight Facilities feat. Dustin Tebbutt - All Your Love

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Matthew Yglesias implores the business sector which is increasingly recognizing the danger of Donald Trump's trade policy to notice that the balance of his plans are equally ill-founded. Will Saletan discusses the Trump regime's selection of cabinet officials based entirely on their willingness to propagandize and flatter, rather than the possession of any knowledge or competence. Charlie Angus highlights how book burning and information suppression fits into the fascist playbook. And Greg Sargent talks to Jonathan Friedman about the weakness in strongarm tactics which depend entirely on a lack of coordinated resistance.

- Bryan Tau, Joshua Goodman, Garance Burke and Brian Slodysko report on the DOGE takeover of the U.S.' General Services Administration which has resulted in effectively all public property and information being turned into playthings for Elon Musk. And Corbin Trent worries that most resistance so far has been based on inspiration in the absence of infrastructure, even as a fascist regime entrenches itself in power based on the groundwork laid by external structures. 

- Paul Wells highlights Pierre Poilievre's bragging about never changing his mind, whileLinda McQuaig writes that Poilievre's attempt to rebrand and partially reorient the Cons' campaign is likely doomed because of his inability to do anything of the sort. 

- Emma Paling and Alex Cosh examine how Poilievre has been treated with kid gloves by the media even while treating them with nothing but hatred and contempt. And Luke LeBrun reports on the Cons' laughable attempt to treat their own astroturfed attempt at polling denialism as being the result of a conspiracy involving both the Libs and Doug Ford (along with presumably various Freemasons, Roswell aliens and fake birds). 

- Finally, David Coletto examines the factors which have resulted in a shift among left-wing voters - with the main reason for any shift from the NDP to the Libs being a matter of transactional politics rather than changes in underlying beliefs. And Will Shelling discusses the importance of identifying and supporting strong NDP candidates, rather than complying with Lib partisans' demands for a crushing majority which would enable Mark Carney to sideline progressives inside and outside his party.

Wednesday Night Cat Blogging

Attentive cat.

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Jared Yates Sexton writes about the unambiguous wrong embodied in the Trump regime's claim to be able to disappear anybody it chooses to. Timothy Snyder rightly categorizes that position as the deliberate use of state terror. Coral Davenport reports on Trump's plan to treat the law as inoperative to the extent it doesn't suit the interests of him or his cronies, including by ignoring regulations which are seen as inconvenient. And Jason Sattler discusses how Elon Musk is attempting to enshittify Social Security out of existence (as an alternative to the Republicans' repeated attempts to eliminate it as a matter of law).

- Amanda Marcotte points out the theocracy embedded in Marco Rubio's attempt to treat any differing views as "anti-Christian bias". Saketh Sundar discusses how hospitals stand to be hard hit by Trump's attempt at a hostile takeover of universities. And Taylor Noakes writes that the rest of the world (including Canada) will suffer from the fallout of RFK Jr.'s gutting of public health. 

- Sushan Singh writes about the connections between right-wing authoritarian regimes around the world, including through the Modi government's interference to promote Pierre Poilievre and the Cons. Taylor Owen talks to Aengus Bridgman and Nina Jankocwicz about the broader reality of foreign information manipulation. 

- Patrick McCurdy and Kaitlin Clarke offer a reminder as to who stands to suffer from Poilievre's war on "woke" (i.e. any attempt to identify and correct injustice). Mel Woods points out the anti-trans messages being injected into the election campaign by the Cons. And Jen St. Denis reports that Canada's alt-right techbros are desperately trying to distance themselves from Elon Musk's DOGE (with all the credibility of Donald Trump's bald-faced lies about his connections to Project 2025). 

- Finally, Nino Antadze writes that Canada can draw important lessons from Georgia as to how to defend its sovereignty against a hostile superpower. And Charles Smith discusses how the new strain of Canadian nationalism emerging in response to Trump's threat may chart a path for our future development.