Wednesday Afternoon Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Casey Newton notes that repeated studies showing the distorting effects of X and other social media sites are making it impossible to pretend that major tech platforms deserve the protection of a presumption of neutrality. And Raphael Satter and Alexandra Alper report on the Trump regime's demand that other countries avoid asserting any protection for data integrity or public privacy where its tech giants think there's something to be exploited.

- Rory White investigates the consultants looking to overwhelm political conversations with AI talking points. And Brett McKay reports on the right-wing astroturf entities who are skirting or deliberately violating Canadian election laws in order to flood the airwaves with election ads without providing timely (or in some cases any) disclosure of who's funding them. 

- A.R. Moxon discusses why toxic masculinity is damaging to the people who succumb to it, while recognition of others' humanity is necessary to the flourishing of one's own. And Kelly Hayes writes that it's no surprise that people who have been systematically isolated are unable to understand the connections being made in Minnesota where people are building support networks. 

- Finally, Sharlene Gandhi examines data from 211 calls which shows that housing and mental health are the most glaring unmet needs among people calling for crisis support. And Simon Enoch discusses Saskatchewan's continued place as the province with the highest rates of child poverty - which is only becoming both broader and deeper under the Sask Party. 

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Garrett Graff writes about the importance of good character as the ultimate check on the abuse of power - even as the Trump regime looks to purge anything of the sort. And Bruce Arthur notes that Pierre Poilievre's inability to act as anything but an arsonist is starting (at long last) to be seen as a liability both within his party and in the broader political scene. 

- Simon Nixon highlights how China is taking control over global supplies of critical minerals - with a boost from Trump's flailing trade policies. Steff Chavez and Antoine Gara report that the regime's response has been to try to cut shady deals with big capital. Jon Shell warns that the Carney Libs' approval of the debt-financed U.S. takeover of a major refiner and gas supplier signals that they're entirely willing to play along. And Tammy Robert writes about the capital takeover of Saskatchewan farmland - and the Saskatchewan Party's role in undermining any attempt to monitor, let alone manage, foreign and private ownership. 

- Ben Casselman and Colby Smith report on the chasm between higher-income Americans with absurd amounts of money to spend, and an increasingly desperate working class. Matt Egan and Chris Isidore report on new data showing a surge in defaults on subprime car loans as a leading indicator of an economy about to collapse. 

- Meanwhile, Greg Ryan reports that Massachusetts' wealth tax continues to bring in even more revenue than projected - confirming that more progressive tax policy can produce far more fair outcomes. And  in another example of the options to align revenue generation with intrinsically desirable policy, Graham Redfearn notes that Australia is looking at ensuring that companies can't profit from breaking environmental laws. 

- Systems Change Lab examines the state of climate action - finding that while there's been some work done with measurable impacts, the overall picture is one of a grossly insufficient response to a well-known crisis. 

- Finally, the University of Leeds discusses new research showing how UK children are dying as a result of poverty. And Zoe Grunewald rightly calls for the Labour government to prioritize children's well-being over an ideological commitment to austerity. 

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Thomas Zimmer writes about the importance of drawing principled lines as to what's compatible with democracy rather than presuming that whatever's currently happening must be within bounds. A.R. Moxon discusses the glaring contrast between minority groups being told they need to be respectful toward their oppressors, and the legitimacy being conferred on those oppressors to engage in violent eradication. Dharna Noor reports that U.S. climate activists are engaging in the fight against authoritarianism based on their recognition that it's not going to be possible to agitate for change in a system that eliminates any responsiveness to public demands. And David Dayen highlights the futility of any U.S. budget deal that doesn't rein in Trump's arbitrary exercise of power, while theorizing there may be some opportunity to win meaningful restraints as part of a deal to fund farm bailouts.

- Chuck Collins and Omar Ocampo discuss how the concentration of wealth and power over the past few decades has been even worse than we generally assume. Rachel Funk Fordham highlights the impact of Citizens United on American politics, while Dean Baker explains why CEOs have been entirely willing to play along with the Trump regime. And William Murphy writes about the combination of debt and financialization that prevents people from fighting back against a rigged system. 

- Meanwhile, Melissa Naschek interviews Vivek Chibber about the continued importance of class politics. And Helen Quinn reports on new research showing both that a growing number of UK children are growing up in poverty, and that the cost of that deprivation manifests itself in all kinds of health and social outcomes. 

- Finally, Michael Barnard discusses why small modular reactors do nothing to avoid the problems of cost and waste that make nuclear power a poor option compared to readily-available renewable alternatives. And Drew Anderson examines a new report showing that the UCP's hostility to clean energy has driven away investment which would otherwise have resulted in substantial developent. 

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Stelios Giogiades and Ryan Voisin discuss how political choices are a crucial determinant of health for children. Danny Dorling laments that children in the UK are shorter and hungrier now than just a decade ago due to their uncaring Con government, while Buttle UK examines the realities of childhood poverty. And Oshan Jarow reports on research showing that unconditional child benefits produce massive returns on investment with time. 

- Meanwhile, Kiran Stacy discusses a new survey showing that the vast majority of UK voters are favourable toward housing construction as long as it doesn't result overburden local services - signaling that the housing crisis is just another problem which can't be solved without also ensuring people have access to basic services generally.

- Marc Lee makes the case for free public transit, while Luke Bornheimer writes about the harmful effects of making driving children to school the default mode of transportation. Byard Duncan, Ryan Gabrielson and Lucas Waldron report on the use of car loan deferments as just another way financial predators wring money out of consumers. And Andrew Hawkins reports that the US National Highway Safety Administration is only now getting around to setting safety standards for the effects of vehicles on pedestrians. 

- Colin Newlyn asks why so many employers are determined to follow the orthodoxy of dehumanizing employees even when it demonstrably produces worse outcomes. And Heather Stewart examines how workers are getting stuck in precarious work as the unpredictable and excessive demands of a current employer preclude any opportunity to find more stable jobs. 

- Finally, Josh Cohen discusses how to respond to the age of rage on a personal level. A.R. Moxon notes that the proper response to conservative division is to build a generous, caring society that won't sustain irrational anger. And Jason Sattler points out that the only way to put an end to high-stakes battles for democracy every election cycle is to build it up consistently whether or not an election is looming. 

Sunday Afternoon Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- Michael Savage points out the billions of pounds worth of pay and benefits being stolen from workers by UK employers every year. And The Breach reports that the same app being used to fix housing prices and gouge renters on the behalf of landlords in the U.S. is also being used by familiar landlords in Canada. 

- John Lanchester discusses the absurd amount of activity and nominal wealth based purely on financial speculation rather than the production or delivery of anything real or useful. Robert Reich notes that billionaires are looking to fund the end of democracy in the U.S. and elsewhere as they recognize that their continued accumulation of wealth and power will never stand if people have any say in the matter. And David Moscrop points out how learned helplessness from current governments has opened the door for fascist politicians to claim they can solve problems which other politicians won't. 

- On that front, Hayley Juhl writes that decades after Canada's Parliament agreed unanimously to end child poverty, its persistence and growth is leading to understandable skepticism among younger generations that the federal government is interested in their needs.

- Finally, Chris Lehmann discusses how Russian funding and direction is behind prominent MAGA influencers in the U.S. And Luke LeBrun highlights the Canadian connections (and in some cases roots) of Vladimir Putin's right-wing mouthpieces in North America.

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Oliver Milman discusses a new study showing that the costs of a climate breakdown roughly approximate what it would take to fight a domestic war in perpetuity. Sarah Waldrip examines the relationship between climate change and unexplained changes in oceanic tides as yet another example of how the climate crisis is altering our living environment in unanticipated and dangerous ways. And Sanjay Sisodiya and Mark Maslin find that climate change is also exacerbating the symptoms of numerous brain conditions.  

- Jonas Hosp et al. study the long-term effects of COVID-19 on cerebral microstructure as an apparent explanation for the sustained harms of long COVID. But Tamara Schneider writes about new research showing that repeated COVID vaccines also bolster the body's immune defences against a range of other viruses. 

- Torsten Bell points out that the UK (like Canada) has ample means to end child poverty if it's motivated to do so. But Adam Bienkov notes that PM Rishi Sunak is making out like a bandit in his family's personal wealth while standards of living are deteriorating. And Prem Sikka discusses the connection between corporate profiteering and the increase in citizens' cost of living. 

- On a similar note, Jim Stanford examines how the UCP has eliminated any wage advantage in Alberta while opening the province up for complete corporate exploitation. 

- Finally, Joan Westenberg calls out the use of social Darwinism as a basis to reward the rich and selfish at the expense of everybody else. 

Friday Afternoon Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Stephanie Soucheray discusses new research showing how people with existing health problems are at substantially higher risk of long COVID. And Helen Floersh points out a new study on how different COVID-19 variants are adapting to evade immunity. 

- George Monbiot writes about the oil industry's constant lobbying and propaganda aimed at keeping us addicted to fossil fuels even as they poison us and destroy our living environment. And Gary Fuller points out how the trend toward larger vehicles results in more pollution and more dangerous roads. 

- Bryan Walsh notes that on a global scale, any gains against extreme poverty have slowed to a crawl (even as the top-end wealth accumulation which is spun as helping the cause of raising lower-level incomes continues to accelerate). 

- Oshan Jarow highlights how the US was able to put a massive dent in child poverty in the midst of a pandemic by lifting restrictions on access to social benefits - only to push children back into deprivation at the first available opportunity. And Connie Mason and Leah Hamilton examine the roots of the "parents' rights" language being used as a pretext for attacking and outing vulnerable children. 

- Finally, Thomas Zimmer discusses how a "polarization" frame gives cover to the cultivation of violent extremism on the right. 

Saturday Morning Links

Assorted content for your weekend reading.

- Mary Ziegler and Scott Lemieux both warn of the many other rights in imminent danger due to both the fact of the elimination of abortion rights by the Republican-dominated U.S. Supreme Court, and the excuses made for it.

- Dylan Scott discusses how the decision will lead to increase in child poverty. And Cassandra Szklarski reports on the growing reality of child hunger in Canada - as well as the need for a fundamentally more equitable policies to ameliorate it, rather that short-term band-aids. 

- Meanwhile, Erika Ibrahim reports on the Libs' choice to keep delaying even a framework bill for a national disability benefit. And Sid Frankel, John Stapleton and Shalini Konanur discuss how the demand that people repay the CERB benefits which they were told to apply for is further squeezing people already living in poverty.  

- Emily Leedham calls out Pierre Poilievre's designs on using the threat of withholding federal funding to dictate the lines of academic freedom. 

- Raymond Zhong writes about the proliferation of extreme heat around the globe. 

- Finally, Adam King discusses how Amazon is continuing to violate labour standards in an effort to prevent employees from exercising any collective bargaining power. 

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Emma Farge and Mrinalika Roy report on the World Health Organization's warning that it's dangerous to act like the COVID pandemic is over. Davide Mastracci observes that governments who have been willing to bother protecting citizens against substantial community spread have been successful even against the Omicron variant - meaning that the illness and death sweeping over countries with less responsible governments are a matter of choice. Vincent McDermott reports on the Alberta Workers' Compensation Board's recognition of thousands of cases in the province's workplaces, while Zak Vescera reveals that Scott Moe and his government have blocked any enforcement of the vaccine mandate which was supposed to reduce the risk of transmission in Saskatchewan's health care system. And Sarath Peiris argues that we should be expecting Saskatchewan Party MLAs to speak up about their leader's refusal to keep the province healthy - though there's no apparent precedent for their doing anything of the sort. 

- Zackie Achmat discusses how Cuba's vaccine development and distribution efforts are creating a needed alternative to the corporate pharmaceutical industry which has sought to prolong the pandemic in the name of profiteering. But Joel Lexchin offers a reminder that the Libs are choosing to side with big pharma over the Canadian public when it comes to ensuring that people have the medication they need. 

- Dylan Matthews reports on new research reaching the entirely predictable conclusion that improved income supports enhance children's brain development. CBC News reports on the recognition by anti-poverty activists that the aspect of inflation which needs to be fought is its effect on people already struggling to get by - not the prospect of slightly reduced net returns on capital. And Meara Conway has released her consultation report on housing and social supports in Saskatchewan. 

- Finally, Rachel Snow discusses how the right-wing denial of mass graves and other residential school abuses represents a continuation of white supremacy and colonialism. 

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Jill Lepore writes that the COVID pandemic has left no room for doubt that there is such a thing as society reflecting mutual obligations - and that its decay or subjugation to laissez-faire ideology produces disastrous results for everybody. And Randy Robinson discusses how inequality is resulting in the propagation of child poverty. 

- Fatima Hassan argues that vaccine nationalism only stands to draw out the suffering from COVID, while Peter Walker reports on the efforts nurses' unions are making to remove intellectual property obstacles to increased manufacturing and distribution. Larry Elliot discusses how the Omicron variant in particular shows the problem with leaving large swaths of the globe without access to vaccines. And while Katherine Wu and Kai Kupferschmidt each point out what we don't yet know about the variant, Ewan Birney writes that we shouldn't take that vacuum of knowledge for an excuse to hold off on the action need to limit transmission. 

- Meanwhile, Urbi Khan talks to eight nurses about the damage that's already been done to Ontario's health care system by the pandemic. And CBC News reports on the outbreak of tuberculosis which is devastating Pangnirtung years after a federal campaign was supposed to have put Canada on a path to eradicating it.  

- Lawrence Scanlan writes that people appear to be increasingly willing and eager to take back some power from the wealthiest few. Alan Murray and David Meyer point out the absurdity of granting preferential tax treatment to capital gains when capital is accumulating at unprecedented rates. And David Cay Johnston discusses how the rich further entrenched their power and privilege under the Trump Republicans. 

- But in case there was any thought there's nowhere to go but up in balancing the interests of the wealthy and the rest of us, Dan Fumano reports on the attempt by British Columbia businesses to claim extra votes for corporations in municipal elections. 

- Finally, Robin Sears discusses the lessons Canada could draw from Germany's successful cross-party cooperation if our two main parties weren't so obsessed with politics built around false majorities. 

Friday Morning Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Matt Gurney writes that the COVID pandemic has exposed - without ameliorating - our political leaders' inability to respond to any real crisis. And in case anybody was under the illusion that we're past the worst of COVID itself, Michael James and Christine Fernando report on the emergence - and apparent spread - of what may be the most threatening variant yet. 

- Nicole Ireland reports on the Public Health Agency of Canada's advice that we need to use more effective masks to limit COVID transmission. Zak Vescera reports on the stark differences in vaccination rates based on socioeconomic privilege in Regina and Saskatoon, while also noting that Saskatchewan as a whole is having to pursue "microtargeting" to squeeze out further vaccination opportunities. And Stephane Dubois highlights how pediatric vaccinations will help our population-wide protection - though Kelly Skjerven reports that the Moe government hasn't bothered to provide leave to enable parents to get their children vaccinated. 

- Meanwhile, Meaghan Ellis examines the personality traits which tend to underlie COVID denialism and anti-vaxx conspiracy theories. And Bruce Arthur discusses the challenges in trying to deal with anti-vaxxers. 

- Stephen Wentzell talks to Naheed Dosani about the importance of paid sick leave in ensuring health equity for workers. And PressProgress reports on the Horgan government's decision to offer only half a loaf, rather than the full 10 sick days recommended to protect the health of workers and the people who rely on them. 

- Jeanelle Mandes reports on new research showing that the rate of child poverty in Saskatchewan remains above a quarter of all children (where it's been for over a decade). And Katie Hyslop discusses how child poverty can generally be traced to mothers' poverty in particular. 

- Andrew Nikiforuk writes about the future costs of procrastinating on a transition to a clean economy, while Heather Scoffield notes that the price tag is already soaring due to immediate climate calamities. And Peter Zimonjic reports on Environment Commissioner Jerry DiMarco's recognition that Canada's climate policy has bounced from failure to failure, while Barry Saxifrage discusses how Canada is actually backsliding in the effort to replace dirty fossil fuels with clean electric power. 

- Finally, Jerry Dias offers a reminder of the efforts of the workers who make Black Friday possible. 

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Cory Neudorf argues that a pandemic is the last time when we can afford to prioritize abstract individual interests over the collective good, while Alexander Wong writes that vaccination is a textbook example of a way in which parents can protect children from avoidable harms. Bruce Arthur asks why millions of doses of vaccines are about to expire even as Ontario demurs on any plan to make booster shots more widely available. Ed Yong examines the frustrations and challenges facing health care workers whose experiences with long COVID are being dismissed. And Nick Boisvert reports that the Libs' messaging from the return to Parliament includes making Chrystia Freeland the latest politician to prematurely spread dangerous themes about the pandemic being over. 

- Meanwhile, Andrew Kolodny discusses how the pandemic exacerbated the spread of toxic recreational drugs. And Zachary Siegel makes the case for a policy of safe supply to end the wave of avoidable poisonings. 

- David Wallace-Wells examines the global health toll of ten millions deaths a year caused by polluted air. Bill Stollery makes the case to treat climate change as a societal threat, while also noting that we can readily afford to fund a war effort against it by ensuring the wealthy pay their fair share. David Suzuki writes about the need for the public to engage in the fight as politicians and businesses fall short of the mark. And Andrew Freedman reports on new research casting doubt as to whether countries' already-insufficient emission reduction pledges will actually be achieved. 

- Nia Williams reports on the price tag facing British Columbia as it looks to update its infrastructure to account for the consequences of a climate breakdown. And John Michael McGrath notes that an effective climate plan will need to offer alternatives to individual vehicles, rather than merely relying on electrification. 

- Finally, Randy Robinson maps out the location of continuing child poverty in Canada, while Andrew Kersley highlights how poverty serves as yet another factor shortening people's lives. Nick Boisvert reports on Campaign 2000's latest study finding that any progress against child poverty stalled or regressed over the past two years. And Nathan Sing writes that the Libs have chosen to write any action to reduce hunger and ensure food security out of their list of priorities. 

Saturday Afternoon Links

Assorted content for your weekend reading.

- Brian Goldman interviews Raywot Deonandan about the options available to limit the spread of COVID-19 through the coming fall and winter. But while most people are primarily concerned with the coronavirus directly, Adam Miller reports on the growing calls from health care workers to ensure the safety of essential service providers is assured against an increasingly violent and emboldened mob of anti-science quacks.

- Omayra Issa discusses how a climate breakdown in progress is causing anxiety and grief. Marieke Walsh reports on new polling showing overwhelming support for strong climate action in Canada even if it affects existing industries. And the Environmental Society of Saskatchewan offers (PDF) its recommendations to move the province toward a more appropriate level of climate ambition. 

- David Wallace-Wells muses that the strongest climate change rhetoric from political leaders is often coming from those who are trying to avoid doing their part. And Bill McKibben writes that we should be far past the point of expecting governments to fix the climate crisis - meaning that citizen action is the only plausible means of ensuring a habitable environment.

- Hannah Brais, Alex Nelson, Jesse Jenkinson and Kaitlin Schwan examine the connections between homelessness and women's rights. And Michelle Marcus and Katherine Yewell observe that universal free meals in schools produce significantly greater benefits for children from lower-income households than mere access. 

- Finally, Judd Legum weighs in on how corporate concentration and monopolization are the real cause of any current inflation facing consumers.

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Bruce Arthur discusses how Doug Ford could prevent a third wave of COVID-19 in Ontario, but is choosing not to. John Michael McGrath writes that we need to stay vigilant in doing everything we can to limit the spread of the coronavirus even when our politicians are sending mixed or conflicting messages. David Rider reports on the warning from infectious disease experts not to relax public health restrictions in Toronto, while Colin Ruloff offers a reminder as to which experts deserve to be taken seriously. And Emily Pasiuk interviews Alex Wong about the likelihood that Regina's new COVID cases consist almost entirely of variants of concern.

- Sandra Martin writes that we should be ashamed of how we've treated seniors over the course of the pandemic. Stephanie Levitz reports on the Libs' willingness to endanger public health in order to put temporary workers to work faster. And Rank and File publishes a diary from a Shoppers' Drug Mart worker who has simultaneously been treated as essential and disposable.

- Jim Stanford and Daniel Poon examine how everybody benefits when workers have more of a voice - and greater control - in determining how their workplaces operate. But PressProgress reports on the efforts of Uber (and so many other precarity brokers) to entrench a new underclass of workers who lack normal protections.

- Michael Baker, Derek Messacar and Mark Stabile study (PDF) the effects of child tax benefits in Canada, concluding that they've succeeded in reducing poverty without affecting workforce participation by recipients. And Brendan Kennedy reports on the NDP's call for CERB amnesty for people with low incomes. 

- Finally, Luke Savage interviews UK Labour MP Jon Trickett about the need to focus political action on class relations rather than culture war distractions. 

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Rupert Neate writes about the twelve-figure tax avoidance by the U.S.' largest tech firms, while noting that Amazon stands out as the worst offender. And Meagan Day interviews Ramesh Srninivasan about the need to democratize the administration of the Internet.

- Meanwhile, Grace Blakeley makes the case to socialize the financial sector to ensure it serves the public rather than facilitating the concentration of wealth. And Anoosh Chakelian hopes that a devastating report on child poverty will offer a much-needed reality check in the course of the UK's general election.

- Animal Justice notes that Jason Kenney and Doug Ford are following in the Republicans' footsteps by planning to punish people for attempting to expose animal abuse.

- Chris Turner writes about Kenney's pursuit of modern-day McCarthyism. And Graham Thomson notes that rather than representing a necessary result of otherwise justifiable choices, the framing of large number of people as enemies is central to Kenney's political strategy. 

- Finally, Omar Washington writes that the re-election of Justin Trudeau in the wake of his blackface exploits represents a sad failure on the part of Canada's electorate. And Jordan Bober argues that Trudeau should at least recognize the need to put electoral reform back on the table after an election which has produced some of the most distorted first-past-the-post results yet.

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- David Leonhardt discusses how the U.S.' tax system has become definitively regressive, featuring this chart as to how the wealthiest few now pay a smaller share of their income than anybody else.

- Ann Pettifor highlights how society suffers when rentier capitalism is allowed to dictate our policy options. And Matthew Goodwin writes that in the UK - as here - voters are eager to see alternatives which result in a more democratic distribution of wealth and power.

- David Macdonald reminds us of the continued blight of child poverty in Canada three decades after Parliament voted unanimously to eradicate it. Laurie Monsebraaten reports on Campaign 2000's update on the state of poverty and inequality. And Yolande Cole takes note of new research showing that half of Calgarians are struggling to pay for basic needs such as food and shelter.

- Colin McClelland reports on BDO Dunwoody's latest survey showing the spread of precarity and personal debt. And Kevin Camichael notes that the Libs' and Cons' focus on targeting first-time homebuyers at the expense of everybody else will only stand to make matters worse.

- Finally, Kathy Tomlinson points out how the trucking industry is exploiting immigrants and endangering the public by charging fees to hire drivers with no regard for safety.

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Joanne Light and Cathy Orlando point out that we don't have any more time to waste in reining in a climate breakdown in progress. And Justin Ling writes that we should be far more concerned about Canada's massive and increasing deficit in action to avert a climate crisis than small amounts of ink on the federal balance sheet:

Even if Canada only contributes a fraction of the world’s emissions, we stand to shoulder a disproportionate share of the costs. Rising sea levels promise to displace populations along the coasts, increased rainfalls will require ever-larger bailouts for flooded communities in the East, and worsening wildfire seasons have wreaked havoc through the West.

To not prepare more actively to prevent and mitigate that – and to campaign, instead, on the few-hundred bucks in short-term savings that would come from doing nothing – takes the taxpayers for chumps.

Climate change is already costing us billions. If we don’t turn our entire government toward reducing and eliminating further emissions, and preparing and mitigating incoming effects, we’re only compounding the costs we’ll incur down the line.

- Meanwhile, Melanie Green points out that the ill effects of a climate breakdown extend to avoidable mental health difficulties for the people forced to confront it. And Andrew Van Dam reports on new research showing how living wages can ameliorate numerous social and health symptoms.

- Oliver Wainwright discusses the rise of the new form of corporate-designed company town. And Shawn Micallef argues that we shouldn't allow tech giants to demand the power to shape living spaces and monitor individual activity without accepting the accountability which should apply to any de facto government.

- But based on the examples reported by Ainslie Cruickshank and Jim Bronskill, we shouldn't pretend that public resources aren't also misused to monitor people for the benefit of the wealthy few (including the fossil fuel industry). And Sharon Riley exposes CAPP's lobbying efforts to ensure that nobody other than oil barons has any say in the decisions made around dirty energy projects.

- Finally, a new Upstream study examines the continued shame of appallingly high child poverty rates among status First Nations children. And Andrew MacLeod writes about the role racism plays in Canadian politics.

Sunday Morning Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- Ed Finn writes that the Trudeau PMO's interference on behalf of SNC-Lavalin confirms Canada's plutocratic rule under Libs and Cons alike. And Carole Cadwalladr and Duncan Campbell report on Facebook's use of promised jobs to bribe its way out of the regulations which are supposed to protect citizens from corporate abuse.

- The Star's editorial board implores the Libs not to settle for a watered-down version of national pharmacare out of subservience to big pharma.

- The Edmonton Journal highlights the progress Alberta has made in reducing child poverty by half since the NDP first formed government.

- Meanwhile, Alex Soloducha reports on Saskatchewan's grossly inadequate social supports which make it impossible for people living in poverty to find housing. And Derek Cornet points out the continued scourge of hunger in the province.

- Gregory Beatty offers a reminder of the culture lost as a result of the Saskatchewan Party's elimination of the film industry - particularly as Netflix invests across Canada other than in Saskatchewan.

- Finally, Lana Payne discusses the Scheer Conservatives' choice to embrace racism out of political convenience.

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Shawn Gude comments on the choice Democratic primary voters will have between candidates seeking to regulate the economic system as it stands, and those pushing to fundamentally changing it. Ian Welsh points out the importance of supporting candidates such as Bernie Sanders with a genuine commitment to the more progressive policies on offer from many corners.

- John Horgan discusses the backlash against the extreme concentration of wealth amidst increased precarity in the U.S., while Ben Casselman and Jim Tankersley report on new polling again showing strong support for higher tax rates on the extremely wealthy. And Jordan Weissmann highlights how Elizabeth Warren's child care plan would boost both the economy generally, and the cause of shared and equitable development in particular.

- Larry Elliott reports on a new study showing how austerity has devastated families in the UK. And James Sillars notes that the result is a country set to reach record levels of child poverty even before it shoots itself in the foot through an attempt to distance itself from the world.

- Mat Hope exposes the disinformation campaigns used jointly by big tobacco and the oil lobby to attack any action to promote public health where it might affect short-term profits. And the Canadian Press reports on the CRTC's findings of misleading and aggressive sales tactics by the telecoms who are already overcharging Canadian customers.

- Finally, the CP also reports on new research showing that Canadian governments need to do far more to try to reduce the harm resulting from alcohol abuse - rather than promoting that harm through deregulation and downward pressure on prices as so many right-wing governments have chosen to do in the name of populist appeal.

Sunday Morning Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- Marshall Shepherd writes that the U.S. is facing a true national emergency in the form of climate breakdown. And Michelle Goldberg theorizes that the unlikely election and presidency of Donald Trump may open the door to a transformative response, including the possibility of the Green New Deal.

- Ed Finn argues that pharmacare should be a key issue in this year's federal election - though even before Justin Trudeau's decision to give in to big pharma, Finn would have been right to note the dangers of relying on a Lib promise to help people at the expense of corporate profits.

- Duncan McCue offers a reminder that Canada has long been a laggard in fighting corporate corruption.

- The CP reports on the Saskatchewan NDP's call to fight child hunger and poverty. Scott Moe of course couldn't be less interested when there are oil barons to be shilled for.

- Finally, Tabatha Southey comments on the Ford PCs' callous disregard for families with children with autism - both in their policy choices designed to leave children without the treatment they need, and their threats and attacks on anybody who dares point out that reality.