Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- David MacDonald studies the increasing concentration of wealth in Canada, while noting the need for wealth-based taxes (and particularly an inheritance tax) to start building a more fair society. And Alan Rappeport and Jim Tankersley report on the Trump administration's latest move in the wrong direction, as they plan to bypass normal legislative processes to lavish hundreds of billions of dollars on people who already own large amounts of capital.

- Allison Chandler points out research into the role the melting of the Arctic may be playing in causing heat waves around the globe. But Margaret McGregor, Stirling Bryan, Penny Brasher and Courtney Howard note that Canada is far behind the curve in assessing how climate change and other environmental factors affect public health.

- And not surprisingly, that conspicuous lack of curiosity tends to lead to avoidable environmental risks. On that front, Bob Weber reports on the potential acidification of a massive area around the oil sands, while Ainslie Cruickshank discusses the devastating effects a Trans Mountain dilbit spill could have on already-threatened salmon stocks in British Columbia.

- Jake Johnson highlights Bernie Sanders' observation that even Koch-funded antisocial propaganda accidentally confirms that publicly funded and provided health care is both better and more affordable. Alex Lawson and Stephanie Taylor make the case for at least a public option for prescription drug coverage. And CBC News reports on the risk that a manufacturer-based shortage of Epipens may threaten Canadian lives in the very near future.

- Finally, Andre Picard argues that instead of criminalizing drug users, we should be managing and reducing the harm resulting from all types of drugs.