Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- David Climenhaga responds to the Cons' union-bashing in the guise of accountability by pointing out who actually exerts disproportionate influence under a cloak of secrecy:

(M)aybe the bright light of a freshly charged forensic accountant's flashlight would be just the thing to shine on the books of private corporations who benefit from tax breaks and subsidies. This goes double for "think tanks" like the Fraser Institute and the Frontier Centre (neither of which are anything more than market-fundamentalist PR agencies) and AstroTurf groups like the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (which does not represent the interests of taxpayers) and the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (which does not represent the interests of independent businesses).
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(U)nions have little to fear from more modest reporting requirements similar to those faced by public companies. After all, as Stanford correctly points out, most unions disclose their audited financial statements to an elected board of directors anyway, whence they are distributed to local executives, and upon request to members.

Of course, not all unions do things that way. Many publish their complete audited financial results, in spite of the fact this is not required by law, and distribute them to 100 per cent of their membership. Any member of the public, of course, may access that information. Such complete openness seems to do them no harm.

On the other hand, right-wing think tankers, secretive AstroTurf "federations" and companies that hide behind the fact their shares are not traded publicly have plenty to fear, especially from the extreme level of reporting that would be required by the union-hating plotters in the PMO.

Well, maybe it's time that they be required to behave in an open fashion too? If so, Hiebert's rules would be an excellent place to start.

Indeed, wide open corporate and propaganda institute reporting would be a worthwhile demand for the young people who are this week protesting against the depredations of the 1 per cent who own and manipulate everything around the world.

- Chantal Hebert suggests that the Occupy movement should focus on voting instead of direct activism. pogge recognizes that there's plenty of need for improvement on both fronts.

- Aaron Wherry wonders whether more sitting days for Parliament and Canada's legislatures might allow for better debate - and ideally, greater public confidence in the political process.

- Meanwhile, after years of the Cons torquing every procedural measure they can think of to stifle debate, it's a plus to see the NDP Official Opposition fighting back. Though it's all the better when the Cons' attempts to dictate the terms of Canada's political coversation backfire on their own.