Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Julia Steinberger writes about the necropolitics surrounding the climate breakdown - as fossil fuel interests have declared our lives forfeit, and our scope for decision-making is limited to trying to salvage what we can around that assumption. Ellen Ormesher and Rebecca John discuss the UK's parliamentary debate on fossil fuel ads with reference to the increasingly sophisticated and manipulative techniques used to keep people addicted to dirty energy. Michael Bloomberg notes that the recent Texas floods are just the latest example of disasters made worse by climate denial. And Erin Sagen highlights how the childhood experience of gaining independence and bolstering health through cycling is being taken away by car-centric transportation choices. 

- Ezra Levin notes that the firehose of money being spewed at ICE will represent the most obvious direct effect of the Trump budget. And Greg Sargent talks to Garrett Graff about the reasons to anticipate that an immense flow of money into a secret police apparatus will lead to massive corruption. 

- Alexander Hill and Paul Robinson each highlight why Canada shouldn't accept sleepwalking into its own wasteful funding of a militarized state. And Kate McKenna reports on a new procurement process set up to favour an American supplier rather than doing anything to support Canadian sovereignty and independence from the would-be conqueror to our south. . 

- Meanwhile, Christo Aivalis discusses how Mark Carney's promise of resistance has generally given way to absolute capitulation to Trump - making the latest round of calls for "strategic voting" the most destructive one yet. 

- Finally, Hamilton Nolan writes about the blinkered vision of billionaires who can't imagine politics or social structures serving any goal other than to shower them with still more unnecessary wealth. 

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Julia Kollewe reports on Oxfam's latest data on inequality showing that the wealth of billionaires grey by over two trillion dollars in 2024, with the prospect of multiple trillionaires looming as an imminent posibility. And Seamas O'Reilly discusses how tech oligarchs are making life objectively worse for the general public, while Philip Moscovitch talks to Ed Zitron about the spread of the rot economy. 

- Katherine Rempel reports on the reaction of businesses to Trump's tariff threats - which understandably involve routing import supply chains around the tariffs to the extent possible rather than building a new manufacturing sector from scratch. Gabriel Zucman makes the case for Europe to develop a trade regime managed to counter carbon pollution and wealth accumulation. And Christo Aivalis discusses how Canada's response should involve a move toward public ownership and economic planning, while Cory Doctorow suggests that Canada focus on developing alternatives and workarounds to rent-seeking in tech and consumer goods. 

- Meanwhile, Heather Stewart writes about a new paper on the importance of cohesion and trust to produce both economic and social success.  

- Finally, Joan Westenberg discusses the need to work on building rather than falling into cynicism and inaction. And Charlie Warzel notes that the internet can and should be a source of support and engagement, rather than merely a source of material for doomscrolling. 

Wednesday Afternoon Links

This and that for your mid-week reading.

- Jeremy Corbyn writes about the denialism involved in refusing to deal with the climate crisis with language and action proportionate to its dangers. Zoe Schlanger discusses how the breakdown we're experiencing goes far beyond what was projected even by the models which have told us we should be doing far more. Bill McKibben points out the stark difference between Jimmy Carter's leadership and forward thinking as to the value of renewable energy, and the oil-fueled anti-science of Ronald Reagan which shut down any prospect of cleaner energy which wouldn't serve to enrich a small set of oil tycoons. David Roberts discusses the work of Greenlight America in seeking to organize people to support renewable projects. And Andrew Lam reports on new research showing a correlation between proximity to Alberta oil and gas infrastructure and respiratory and cardiovascular difficulties - while noting that the province has gone far out of its way to avoid accurately assessing the harms of fossil fuels.

- Peter Bloom examines the growing body of evidence showing that neoliberal "saviors" can't protect against the spread of authoritarianism - particularly as they seek to exacerbate the concentration of wealth and power. And Matthew Green and Joseph Gubbels discuss how Justin Trudeau's abandonment of electoral reform reflects his blinkered view of democracy as entitling people only to select which representatives of the elite will control them, while Christo Aivilis rightly argues that the NDP should be loudly committing to follow through where Trudeau broke his promise. 

- Nora Loreto writes about the concerted effort to infantilize younger adults in order to prevent the exercise of collective action. Miles Klee highlights how slurs which had long been treated as unacceptable are being revived as part of the alt-right's assault on human decency. And Rafael Behr writes that Kemi Badenoch is continuing the UK Cons' descent into conspiracy theory and fascist rhetoric.

- Finally, Katie Surma and Nicholas Kusnetz discuss Bolivia's long road to extricating itself from ISDS  corporate control agreements. 

#Elxn44 Roundup

News and notes from the aftermath of Canada's federal election.

- Christo Aivalis is the latest to point out that nobody emerged from the election as a winner. And John Packer writes that there's an ever-stronger case for a coalition government given the low level of popular support for the party with a plurality of seats. 

- Katrina Miller notes that the idea of taxing the rich isn't about to disappear anytime soon, and that it makes sense for it to be one of the outcomes of Monday's election. 

- Karl Nerenberg writes about the multiple barriers to voting which limited turnout and affected the fairness of the election. And Ole Hendrickson argues that the low turnout also serves as evidence of discontent with an electoral system which fails to reflect the will of voters. 

- Pam Palmater highlights why we need to be worried about the PPC's increased number of votes as an indication of a dangerous far-right movement. 

- Finally, Nia Williams writes about the demand by Canadian fossil fuel workers to see the Libs make good on the promise of retraining as part of a just transition. 

#Elxn44 Roundup

The latest from Canada's federal election campaign.

- Christo Aivalis discusses Jagmeet Singh's much-needed willingness to take on the power of the rich to fight for a country that works for everybody. And Shelly Hagan writes about the resulting possibility of greater social contributions being required of those who can most afford to make them.  

- In contrast, Luke Savage highlights how Justin Trudeau's promises - particularly those aimed at progressive voters - are made to be broken. And the Centre for Canadian Progress offers (PDF) takes a look at the options for left-oriented voters on the key priorities of housing, climate change and pharmacare. 

- Richard Saillant reviews the parties' housing policies and finds the NDP's to be the one best suited to meeting the needs of people in precarious situations. And Richard Cuthbertson and Alaina Luck report that the Libs' idea of an "affordable housing" plan is to provide private developers with preferential terms to build units which cost up to double double the average rent within a community. 

- Meanwhile, Jackie Brown, Amit Arya and Andrew Longhurst discuss how to reach the NDP's goal of ensuring that long-term care homes are focused on care rather than profit. 

- Finally, David Akin examines the state of the race and concludes that we're likely headed for another minority Parliament. 

#Elxn44 Roundup

Links, notes and comments up to and including the first week of Canada's federal election.

- Shannon Proudfoot reports on Innovative Research's polling into how voters perceive the federal parties - with the noteworthy findings including the fact that the NDP is the only national parties seen as likely on balance to make life better for voters. And Darrell Bricker takes note of the reality that the Libs are seen as the party with a hidden agenda.

- tcnorris offers a reminder that minority governments' gambles on being promoted to majority status may not be as safe as they appear. Christo Aivalis discusses both the opportunity and the need for the NDP to play a key role in keeping the Trudeau Libs from an undeserved false majority. And Dru Oja Jay examines how the NDP has used the balance of power for the benefit of Canadians in the past.

- Luke Savage examines the prospect of an NDP surge (which seems to be playing out at least through the campaign's early stages). And Andrew Perez looks at a few of the factors in Canada and around the globe which were feeding into the party's momentum even before the campaign began, while Lisa Van Dusen discusses the authenticity which provides Jagmeet Singh with an important contrast against the other federal leaders. 

- Meanwhile, Jen Gerson discusses the importance of giving leaders more than one election to grow into the role, rather than throwing them away in the hope that someone newer and shinier will avoid the work of actually building a party and movement. 

- Finally, Maria Della Mattia offers suggestions as to how to make a party's values and ideas stick with the voters who stand to benefit from them.

Friday Morning Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Miquel Oliu-Barton, Bary Pradelski, Philippe Aghion, Patrick Artus, Ilona Kickbusch, Jeffrey Lazarus, Devi Sridhar and Samantha Vanderslott examine how strategies aimed at eradicating COVID-19 - rather than aiming for it to spread at some non-zero level - produces better outcomes in terms of economic outcomes, public health and civil liberties. And Graham Thomson calls out Jason Kenney for allowing anti-vaccine sentiment to fester and endanger the health of his province's whole population.

- Christo Aivalis discusses how both Justin Trudeau and Doug Ford are sacrificing workers' health and safety in the name of corporate profits and control. The members of the Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table study the positive effects of sick leave in reducing the spread of the coronavirus. Rick Salutin calls out the insistence of Ford's PCs (among other governments) on setting up barriers to access to sick leave and other income support in the midst of a pandemic, while Josh Rubin reports on the quick response recognizing that the belated offer of three days of leave is far from enough. And Rita Trichur notes that anybody with any belief in the concept of corporate social responsibility should expect paid sick leave to be one of the minimum requirements to pursue it.

- Wyatt Schierman writes that India's desperate situation highlights the need to prioritize access to vaccines over intellectual property monopolies.

- Hiroko Tabuchi and Nadja Popovich point out how environmental racism results in minority groups being exposed to more dangerous pollution than the people choosing to impose the risks. And Rosanna Xia reports on the discovery of DDT dumped into a far larger swath of the Pacific Ocean than previously known as an example of the environmental harm that's been concealed from the public so far.

- Finally, Robert Hackett and Hanna Araza highlight how Canada's media gives large amounts of space to the oil industry to dictate the terms of any discussion about its harm to the planet. And George Monbiot calls out much of the UK's media for facilitating Conservative corruption and cronyism - especially in the areas where they've resulted in failing services and direct human suffering.

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- John Guyton, Patrick Langetieg, Daniel Reck, Max Risch and Gabriel Zucman examine (PDF) the massive amounts of money which people at the very top of the income distribution hide from revenue authorities. And Nancy Cook reports on Joe Biden's plan to at least somewhat increase what the wealthiest few pay to fund a functional society. 

- Michal Rozworski highlights how the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the erosion of public planning capacity through decades of privatization and outsourcing.

- The Canadian Press reports on the NDP's push to eliminate for-profit long-term care - which was of course voted down by the corporate establishment alliance of the Libs, Cons and Bloc. And Christo Aivalis notes that there's plenty of room for additional ambition in bringing essential utilities including telecommunications under public control.

- Julia Peterson talks to Markham Hislop about the ongoing transition to clean energy - and the reality that it's happening no matter how desperately the petrostate tries to cling to the past century's economic model. 

- Karen McVeigh reports on new research showing that bottom trawling in the oceans is a major cause of carbon emissions. And Erin Brockovich writes about how we're endangering ourselves through the use of toxic chemicals.

- Finally, the Broadbent Institute has published a new set of principles for Canadian social democracy. And Elizabeth McIsaac discusses the need for the pursuit of equity to be at the centre of any work for social change.

Thursday Evening Links

 This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Christo Aivalis rightly points out that the NDP needs to be a party of labour and fight to ensure workers' needs are central to Canada's political discussion, rather than amplifying the rhetoric of the exploitative corporate lobby even when it's in the guise of "small business".

- Pete Hudson makes the case for a public vaccine manufacturer in Canada. And the latest Dispatches from the Left includes a reminder of the harm privatization does to the public interest:

Now is the time to put efforts into organizing around taking back our Crowns, restoring services like laundry, cleaning, and food services that have been contracted out to private companies, and putting a stop to privatization of any kind. For-profit service provision is violence. This year we have done nothing but pay for the short term profits gained by the privatization of vaccine labs, of long term care, of STC, of all the auxiliary services necessary to make our healthcare system function. The cost has been far more than we can bear. Privatization robs the public of control over the ways that our communities are run. It robs us of oversight, of opportunity, and, in the case of those who died so Extendicare could have its most profitable year ever, it robs us of our lives. Public ownership isn’t a panacea for the problems of our time. But it is a step towards justice and equity.  

- Andrew Nikiforuk calls out the Kenney UCP's word games as it barges ahead with coal mining in the Rockies. And the Star's editorial board criticizes Doug Ford's prioritization of enriching donor developers over preserving Ontario's environmentally sensitive areas.

- Richard Raycraft reports on the Libs' sudden cut in funding to supports for people with disabilities related to printed text.

- Finally, Luke Savage writes about the need to focus on the development of democracy even when it would be tempting to give up in the face of public choices.

Sunday Morning Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- Alex Himelfarb writes about the need to get past obsessing over deficits and taxes when they're necessary to fund the society we want.

- Olivia Stefanovich, Karina Roman and Ryan Patrick Jones report on the Auditor General's report placing responsibility for the continued lack of safe drinking water on First Nations squarely on the shoulders of the federal government.

- Justin Ling discusses Anthony Doob and Jane Sprott's report on the continued use of solitary confinement with no regard for its harm to the people locked away. And Robyn Urback points out how prisoners are the one group of people our governments consider themselves entitled to torture.

- Jag Bhalla highlights the desperate need for the world's wealthiest people to cut carbon emissions in order for there to be any prospect of averting a climate breakdown. But Robert Reich points out that people seeking to protect their concentrated wealth are instead using climate change to stoke class divisions. And Canada News Central notes that the Trudeau Libs are actually increasing federal subsidies for even more carbon pollution. 

- Finally, Christo Aivalis and Tom Parkin both call out Justin Trudeau and his party for voting against even a basic framework for pharmacare in the midst of a pandemic which is only highlighting the importance of access to medical care.

[Edit: fixed wording.]

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Elaine Godfrey writes about Iowa's disastrous COVID-19 spread as a prime example of what happens when a government chooses to do nothing about a collective action problem. David Climenhaga compares Australia's successful strategy of containment and clear direction to Alberta's calamitous reliance on personal responsibility to paper over a refusal to take action. And Adam Hunter contrasts Scott Moe's insistence on pitching the relaxation of public health standards against the alarming reality of Saskatchewan's second wave. 

- BBC News reports on Argentina's wealth tax which has been passed to ensure that COVID benefits are funded by those who can most afford to pitch in. Christo Aivalis writes that the Libs, Cons and Bloc have shown who they work for by voting down the NDP's modest wealth tax proposal - even as Luke Savage points out that Canada's wealthiest few are accumulating all the more wealth by profiteering off a pandemic.

- Oliver Moore and Shane Dingman report that Toronto is the next Canadian city examining a vacant house tax to ensure that housing is used proportionately more to meet human needs, and less as an investment vehicle. But Douglas Todd writes about the role of hidden foreign money in inflating the gap between Vancouver's incomes and housing prices. And Tim Kiladze notes that apartment buildings are the next targets for capital in seeking to turn needed homes into fully-exploited profit centres.

- Finally, Andrew Leach discusses how Alberta's reliance on regular oil booms looks to be sorely out of date.

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Umair Haque discusses the U.S.' extreme aversion to public goods (based primarily on a desire to exclude large numbers of people from normalized society) - and the role that ideology has played in its failure as a state. 

- Erika Beauchesne reminds us that progressive taxes on the rich can serve as both a source of revenue, and a means of rebalancing a warped distribution of wealth and power. And Christo Aivalis calls out the Libs, Cons and Bloc for voting down the NDP's motion for a publicly-supported wealth tax.

- Evelyn Forget writes that the success of the CERB and other temporary coronavirus relief programs demonstrates the power of a basic income which ensures that nobody is at risk of going without the necessities of life. And David Gray and Philip Leonard offer a reminder of the failings of an employment insurance system designed to restrict access rather than ensure support.

- Meanwhile, Cam Scott and Rob Crooks discuss the need for a housing strategy based on the public interest rather than profit-seeking.

- Jenna Moon reports on the continued profiteering by supermarkets which are raising prices while taking any additional benefits away from employees. Clark Kaufmann reports on allegations that Tyson Foods' callousness in response to COVID-19 included having managers take bets on how many employees would get sick with a deadly disease on their watch. And George Monbiot warns that the UK is at risk of an imminent food shortage due to the Con government's belief that it has no responsibility to ensure it's available.

- Finally, Martha Neovard writes about the utter lack of public health logic behind the Saskatchewan Party's decision to keep families apart unless they're willing to risk going out to a for-profit space. And Nicole Di Danato reports that Saskatchewan's doctors instead recommend restricting bars, nightclubs and bingo halls as creating risks which far exceed any benefit to their remaining open.

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Randy Robinson writes that Doug Ford's gratuitous austerity will have severe costs in both jobs and lives. And James Downie comments on the desperate need for a Biden administration to make major investments in an equitable and sustainable U.S. economy.

- Justin McElroy discusses how the B.C. NDP was able to win a majority government. And Christo Aivalis points out the importance of making the most of the opportunity by setting new standards for progressive government in Canada.

- Matt Wade reports on new research showing how an affordable basic income could wipe out poverty in Australia.

- Naureen Malik, Brian Eckhouse, Dave Merrill and Jeremy C.F. Lin report that peak demand for natural gas in the U.S. is approaching in a hurry (if it isn't here already), leaving no excuse for wasting time and public resources on a "bridge" to cleaner and more efficient renewables.

- Finally, Ashleigh Mattern interviews Jan Gelech about the psychology behind anti-maskers in a pandemic. And Andre Picard writes about the need to focus on preventing COVID-19 superspreader events. 

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Annie Lowrey writes about the affordability crisis which has left most Americans in dire financial straits even as aggregate economic numbers look reasonably strong:

(B)eyond the headline economic numbers, a multifarious and strangely invisible economic crisis metastasized: Let’s call it the Great Affordability Crisis. This crisis involved not just what families earned but the other half of the ledger, too—how they spent their earnings. In one of the best decades the American economy has ever recorded, families were bled dry by landlords, hospital administrators, university bursars, and child-care centers. For millions, a roaring economy felt precarious or downright terrible.

Viewing the economy through a cost-of-living paradigm helps explain why roughly two in five American adults would struggle to come up with $400 in an emergency so many years after the Great Recession ended. It helps explain why one in five adults is unable to pay the current month’s bills in full. It demonstrates why a surprise furnace-repair bill, parking ticket, court fee, or medical expense remains ruinous for so many American families, despite all the wealth this country has generated. Fully one in three households is classified as “financially fragile.”
...
What is perhaps most frustrating is that the Great Affordability Crisis is amenable to policy solutions—ones most other rich countries adopted decades ago. In other developed economies, child care, early education, and higher education are public goods, and do not require high-interest-rate debts or endless scrambling by exhausted young parents to procure. Other wealthy countries have public-health systems that cover everybody at far lower cost, whether through socialized or private models. And numerous proposals would transform residential construction in this country, including one that just failed in California’s legislature.

- Jordan Yadoo and Noah Buhayar report that the disconnect between wages and housing costs is spreading from the U.S.' largest urban areas across the country. Andrew Longhurst writes about British Columbia's need for far more public assisted living. And CBC News reports that the City of Regina's public posturing about reducing homelessness has led to zero funds being allocated.

- Gabriel Zucman and Emmanuel Saez discuss the need for a wealth tax to rein in the distortion of the U.S.' economy and political system by the richest few. And Jereon Kraaijenbrink points out why even some of the .1% are making a public push for a more fair tax system which would result in their contributing more.

- Meanwhile, Christo Aivalis is the latest to highlight how the Libs' "middle class tax cut" in fact does little for the people who most need the federal government's help. Sam Jones reports on the findings of the UN’s special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights that Spain has left people to struggle in poverty even as its economy has recovered from recession. And Phillip Inman reports on new research into the continuing increases in the number of UK workers living in poverty.

- Finally, Tim Harford is optimistic about the prospects of a dematerialising economy which allows for social progress while limiting the environmental damage done by economic growth.

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Peter Eavis points out how U.S. CEOs are only seeing their exorbitant pay soar even further due to Donald Trump's tax giveaways. Kara Swisher interviews Anand Giridharadas about how "philanthropists" are bribing the public with small parts of the obscene concentrations money they've extracted from society at large.

- James Kurz highlights how the Trudeau Libs and a number of provincial governments are basing their climate policy on the perverse hope that Canada will fall far short of doing its share to avert the global climate crisis. Barry Saxifrage points out the distinction between the balance of Canada which is somewhere close to meeting its Copenhagen targets, and Alberta and Saskatchewan which are entirely undoing any progress - though it's worth noting that the federal government has chosen to emphasize continued oil development rather than administering a system capable of reaching our national targets. And the Associated Press reports on the deforestation of the Amazon which is only making matters worse.

- Meanwhile, Mia Rabson reports on the Greens' odd position that they're eager to see new fossil fuel infrastructure built as long as any development is done on a sufficiently nationalistic basis. Michael Laxer calls out the Cons for a literal scorched-earth policy on climate change. And Andrew Coyne offers a reminder that the only argument against carbon pricing is bare climate denial.

- Finally, Christo Aivalis offers an apparently-necessary reminder of the legitimacy of coalition governments:

Sunday Morning Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- Riley Yesno rightly calls out the Libs for telling Canadians they have no choice but to settle for a slight variation in tone from Andrew Scheer:

When we become comfortable with the idea that the best we can hope for is a government that is even marginally better than what we believe is the worst option, we allow ourselves to become complacent in the face of that party’s shortcomings and acts of injustice. We cede our ability to hold the government accountable beyond the most basic principles of decency and good governance. We give permission to those in power to fail in ways that are entirely unacceptable, out of fear that a different power will behave in ways that are also unacceptable — just different.
...

We must demand better. Demand champions rather than lesser of evils. Demand an electoral system that is truly multi-party where your vote can reflect your beliefs rather than a strategy or act of harm-reduction. Remember that as long as you let even a small act of injustice stand, then injustice has already won.
...
Holding the government accountable for its shortcomings is not an attack on the country. In fact, I believe it may be one of the most loving things one can do for the people living within it.

- Christo Aivalis offers responses to three of the Libs' most frequent and dishonest talking points:



- And Lana Payne recognizes that the Libs' broken promise on electoral reform is one of the reasons why we're stuck with politics rooted in anger rather than positive goals.

- Finally, Gregory Beatty examines the Buffalo Project as Canada's first major PAC - and as a means to try to reinforce existing disparities in wealth and power in Western Canada. Scott Sinclair writes about the importance of standing up to big pharma (among other corporate interests) rather than allowing their profits to take precedence over people's lives. And Robin Sears highlights the exploitation of lax tax rules by tech giants who are able to amass large profits in Canada without contributing anything.

Sunday Morning Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- Jay Shambaugh, Ryan Nunn and Stacy Anderson write about the lasting effects of racial and regional inequality.

- Samuel Stein discusses the lessons activists can take from New York's successful pushback against Amazon's demands for billions in public giveaways. And Joseph Stiglitz writes about the available means to ensure that multinational corporations pay their fair share.

- Von Mattias Punz points out Portugal's success after rejecting austerity in favour of social development. And Ian Hussey takes note of Alberta's increase in service-sector employment after it boosted its minimum wage (contrary to the spin of the corporate lobby).

- Finally, Christo Aivalis discusses the continued importance of unions, including their role in building democracy both in workplaces and in general:

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Iglika Ivanova discusses how British Columbia can move toward eliminating poverty in its next budget.

- Patrick Maze points out the need for Saskatchewan's education system to be able to rely on stable and sufficient funding. But Alex MacPherson notes that Scott Moe has refused to benefit people even when there's federal money available to provide such basic necessities as public transportation.

- Kelvin Gawley reports on the massive public benefits from the NDP's comprehensive and universal pharmacare plan (in contrast to the Libs' watered-down attempt at corporate appeasement). 

- The Star's editorial board calls out Doug Ford's bait-and-switch which will result in funding being pulled away from the children with autism who most need it.

- Finally, Christo Aivalis reminds us of Tommy Douglas' genuine socialism - and the continued importance of holding and conveying strong social values even when they're not seen as politicall convenient:

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Christo Aivalis discusses the lessons the Canadian progressive movement should take from the emergence of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Bernie Sanders in shaping the U.S.' political discourse:

What is so crucial to Ocasio-Cortez’s potential—as well as the sheer hatred she inspires among the right—is the simple fact that she acknowledges the class conflict inherent within a capitalist society. She wants to build a broad coalition, to be sure, but she knows that it will never include the very wealthiest, and so—unlike many Democrats—she isn’t bothering with the political charade. This is why—over the tut-tutting of much of the pundit class—she has proposed a 70% top marginal tax rate on the wealthiest Americans, a plan which, however unpopular with the 1%, is supported by the broad electorate. Likewise, her Green New Deal is a bold attempt to wed an impending climate crisis to a capitalist system with undemocratic and chaotic forms of production and distribution. In her view, the masses of regular people must assert their democratic priorities over the rich and their unearned wealth. If this is class conflict, than Ocasio-Cortez seems perfectly willing to embrace the branding and run with it.
...
The lesson in my view is clear. The elites will never back a concerted push to build a just, equal, and democratic economy, and no amount of niceties and respectability will get them to: they must be defeated through a determined political effort that unites the many against the few.
...
It must be put clearly that class conflict is a reality in this country, too; that the economic elite have never supported the CCF-NDP, and they never will; and that we’ll be branded as class-warriors and socialists no matter what our policies, however ambitious or modest. We need to embrace the image we have, and not be ashamed of it. We need to take the progressive policies already on our books, and put them front-and-centre. We need to stand with allies like Ocasio-Cortez, Sanders, and Jeremy Corbyn in Britain, who are fighting similar fights, and we need to show Canadians that when push comes to shove, we have a vision for this country which is different than what they’ll get from the Conservatives, Liberals, and Greens. Certainly, when it comes to recent attacks on the right to strike and bargain collectively, the NDP has been workers’ only consistent ally, but we need to not only play defence, but go on the attack for the society we want to build. And if the cats get grumpy, and cry class warfare? Let them. After all, what’s wrong with battling every day to make the lives of the working-class better against those fighting tooth and nail to stop us?

- And Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman highlight the role a progressive high-end income tax could play in limiting extreme inequality.

- Meanwhile, Hugh Son and Brian Schwartz point out the inevitable counterattack from the wealthiest few against any meaningful move toward equality. And Anand Giridharadas warns that tech-sector magnates in particular are trying to give the impression of addressing social needs while locking in their wealth and power.

- Trish Garner discusses the progress British Columbia has made in addressing poverty, along with the long road left to travel before the scourge of social deprivation is eliminated. And Laurie Monsbraaten reports on some of the shattered expectations and individual precarity resulting from Doug Ford's cancellation of even a tiny basic income pilot project in Ontario.

- Finally, Alastair Spriggs reports on the World Economic Forum's recognition that even the economic fallout from climate change demands a concerted transition strategy. And David Suzuki writes that Canadian public perceptions have been thoroughly manipulated by a combination of corporate and public fossil fuel propaganda.

Sunday Morning Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- Charles Smith and Larry Savage write that Justin Trudeau's use of back-to-work legislation against postal workers may have far more significant consequences than he seems to have anticipated. And Christo Aivalis examines the next steps for Canada's labour movement - as well as their importance for the country as a whole:

...In a time of growing inequality, all Canadians need to think about the questions unions face: At what point does the concentration of economic power in the hands of massive multinational corporations limit workers’ ability to respond through the traditional means of collective bargaining? At what point does this power threaten to control the destinies of entire communities and regions, rendering the democratic will of Canadians, if not irrelevant, then certainly compromised? And will endemic automation – even if it’s farther away than some people fear – only serve to disenfranchise the masses in favour of an ever-consolidating elite with more control than ever? These were the essential forces that led to these setbacks for UNIFOR – after all, how could an American company unilaterally decide to gut a Canadian town, leaving both workers and government holding the bag? – but those issues will come to workplaces and communities everywhere before long.
...

When it comes down to it, we need economic systems that reflect the democratic principles we so cherish, the ones through which we define so much of our Canadian identity. Unions have been a force for generations, giving workers at least some input into the operation of their workplaces, and organized labour will always have an irreplaceable role in building and preserving a democratic spirit that goes beyond the ballot box. It is in all our interests that unions succeed in organizing the workplaces of the present and future, that our governments enact policies that assist in this process, and that we as citizens retain a skeptical eye towards the further concentration of economic power in unaccountable private hands.

If unions fail, our democracy may well be at stake.

- Helia Ebrahimi discusses the connection between economic stressors and a hundred thousand suicide attempts in the UK in the last year alone. And Kwame McKenzie points out how it's only the people already facing the most challenges who are being asked to sacrifice by Doug Ford's government.

- Henry Grabar writes about Minneapolis' decision to end single-family zoning which has long served as a major source of housing segregation. And Douglas Todd comments on the complex relationship between immigration and housing in Vancouver - including the reality that more for-profit development does nothing to ease the lack of housing availability for the people who most need it, regardless of their place of origin.

- Roberta Lexier and Avi Lewis argue that it's long past time for Canada's corporate welfare bums to start paying their fair share for a country that serves the best interests of its citizens. And Yanis Varoufakis and David Adler highlight the need to fundamentally reshape and empower sources of collective decision-making - including international institutions - in order to be able to respond to our common problems.

- Finally, Peggy Nash and Tracey Raney point out how more equitable representation and power-sharing is a necessary component of any plan to end gender-based violence.