Friday Afternoon Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Owen Jones writes that a stunning Green by-election win in the UK can be traced to their offering meaningful hope that things can get better while Labour has chosen a strategy of reactionary centrism. And G. Elliott Morris highlights how the problem U.S. Democrats face with voters is one of being perceived as weak rather than falling offside of people's values. 

- George Tsakraklides discusses the myriad ways in which our existing systems and structures are being wrecked - as well as the need to build up again from the wreckage. 

- Seth Klein points out the desperate need for public investment as part of Canada's economic reorientation, including through new or revitalized Crown corporations. But Taylor Noakes reports on yet another instance of Mark Carney instead serving the interests of dirty capital, this time by facilitating the development of fossil fuel-powered data centres following a flurry of lobbying. And Darius Snieckus reports on Investors For Paris Compliance's warning that the capital class' push to lock us into fossil gas infrastructure represents a losing bet for Canadian savings. 

-  Finally, the Norwegian Consumer Council offers a painfully apt take on the enshittification of our world:

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Bruce Campbell discusses how Canada continues to be both a laggard in its own climate action, and an obstacle to international cooperation. And Patrick Greenfield and Kristi Greenwood discuss the growing danger of zombie fires in the Arctic due to a warming and drying climate. 

- Michael Green examines the problems with treating the U.S. poverty line as a measure of sufficiency rather than deprivation - meaning that while steps to reduce measured poverty like Rashida Tlaib's Economic Dignity for All Agenda would represent progress toward economic security, they shouldn't be taken to be adequate. And Will Parker reports on the first months of operation of Atlanta's government-funded supermarket in providing accessible and affordable food where it presviously wasn't available. 

- Abdullah Khan et al. study the immense social benefits of vehicle safety technology which the Trump regime is looking to deregulate. And John Lorinc examines (note: post from July) the lack of any evidence to support the Ford government's attacks on bike lanes - in stark contrast to the clear evidence that they save lives. 

- Luke James reports on the steps insurers are taking to avoid being stuck with liability for AI catastrophes. And Tina Nguyen examines big tech's lobbying to have the Trump regime prevent any regulation or liability by fiat.

- Finally, Markham Hislop discusses how Danielle Smith and the UCP are attacking the very idea of democracy in Canada by seeking to import Trump's corruption and authoritarianism.

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- G. Elliott Morris examines what voters want out of a political party independent of the platforms being presented to them - and finds both that there's reason to apply an affordability/ideology axis, and that the general preference is for left-leaning policies to the extent the traditional ideological spectrum is taken into account. And Paul Krugman discusses how Americans are recognizing how the Trump regime is hurting their material interests. 

- Meanwhile, Clement Nocos and Nathan Prier point out how the Carney Libs' cuts to public services are both unnecessary and dangerous. And Angella MacEwen highlights why we should be embracing and benefiting from public ownership and investment, rather than engaging in the right-wing impulse to put everything in corporate hands:

- Carole Cadwalldr writes that some of the most prominent techbro billionaires are signaling their own recognition that AI is a bubble rather than a sustainable focus for economic activity, while Nicole Einbender reports on the extreme exploitation of labour being pushed at another of Sam Altman's corporations. Bryce Elder rightly draws a distinction between past tech successes which became more efficient at scale, and AI which has seen nothing of the sort. Peter Rudegeair, Nate Rattner and Sebastian Herrera report on Oracle's fall from AI darling status to failed business. 

- Anne Plourde discusses new research showing how health care privatization leads to worse mortality rates. And David Climenhaga calls out Danielle Smith for looking to sacrifice Albertans' health in the name of imposing two-tier care.  

- Mel Woods offers a fact check against the excuses the UCP is peddling for going nuclear against trans people and their Charter freedoms. And Dale Smith warns against normalizing the use of the notwithstanding clause as a matter of convenience and avoiding evidentiary justification for policies which attack rights. 

- Finally, Tanayott Thaweethai et al. study the trajectory of long COVID in Americans, including a large number of people with persistently high or continuing symptoms. And Malin Spetz et al. examine the connective between COVID-19 severity and cardiovascular risks.

Monday Morning Links

Assorted content to start your week.

- Tim Wu discusses how the richest few have come to dominate our politics (with our health and well-being paying the price), while Ian Welsh examines the obscene concentration of wealth in the U.S. Jeff Horwitz exposes how Meta's business model includes the deliberate facilitation of scams as a major revenue source, while Harrison Mooney interviews Gil Duran about the rise of techno-fascism. And Jared Yates Sexton writes that oligarchic buyup of politicians and ad blitzes hasn't succeeded in winning over the public.

- Carl Beuer writes that the devastating results of Trump regime's withholding of food stamps demonstrate the need for effective government to provide social supports, while Kristen Crowell offers a reminder that the long-time plan of the Republicans and their anti-social cronies has been to eliminate anything of the sort. Marisa Kabas talks to SNAP recipients about their experience having minimal supports stripped away. And Rene Sylvestre-Williams discusses how there's more governments can do to ensure necessities are affordable, including by directly providing basic needs so people aren't stuck paying corporate markups for everything. 

- Luke Savage discusses the stark difference between a future where people have an option of pluralistic social democracy, and one where neoliberal acquiescence is the only perceived alternative to fascism.  And Jason Sattler comments on the importance of a politics based on people taking action rather than merely being acted upon, while Taylor Noakes highlights how Canadians can draw inspiration from Zohran Mamdani's mayoral victory. 

- George Goehl writes about the need to give people clear calls to action at a time when they're eager to make a difference. And Katherine Wu discusses the large number of scientists stepping up to run for office as their life's work has been negated by ignorant political choices. 

- Finally, Karl Nerenberg comments on Mark Carney's choice to focus the federal investments on militarism and little else. Alex Hemingway points out a few of the most glaring missed opportunities,  while Emmett MacFarlane notes that the budget misses the real causes of Canada's problems. And Rachel Samson points out the mismatch between Carney's supposed goals and the level of resources provided, while Carl Meyer examines the particular reduction in both rules and funding for environmental priorities. 

Friday Morning Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Liz Dye writes that the only insurrection occurring in the U.S. is the Trump regime's attempt to overthrow democracy. Jeremy Berg highlights the need for a united resistance to that seizure of power, as anybody attempting to stay silent is sure to end up in the administration's crosshairs. And Brian Beutler discusses what people can do to contribute to collective action. 

- Paul Krugman examines how Trump's tariffs have already led to both higher prices and a distorted economy. And Tammy Ibrahimpoor reports on new polling showing a massive supermajority of Canadians still supporting boycotts against the U.S., while Curtis Fric likewise points out overwhelming opposition to Trump's continued threats of annexation. 

- David Eliot discusses the risk that tech giants peddling AI will hijack the concept of nation-building for their own corrupt ends just like 19th-century rail barons, while David Sirota notes that anti-corruption is a winning message for anybody who dares to challenge the greedy. And Ari Rabinovitch reports on new Statistics Canada data showing record levels of income inequality. 

- Kimberly Molina reports on the vital services beyond mail delivery which are current provided by Canada Post - but which stand to be cut as the Carney Libs look to hand new profit streams to private actors. And Aaron Vansintjan discusses the prospect of publicly owned grocery stores as a means of ensuring healthy food is accessible and affordable:

- Finally, Isaac Phan Nay discusses the potential for sectoral bargaining to give a voice to vulnerable workers who are far too easily exploited on their own. 

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Kelly Hayes writes that the only emergency that's developed under the Trump regime is the atmosphere of fear being imposed by a gratuitously violent police state. And Henry Farrell notes that solidarity is the only viable response to an authoritarian regime determined to divide and conquer. 

- Garrett Graff is the latest to point out that it's impossible for the Democrats to make a meaningful budget deal with an administration which claims the authority to negate any law or agreement. And Michael Harris notes the similar problem facing Mark Carney - though he's not helping matters by accepting the frame that he needs to reach an agreement anyway. 

- Murad Hemmadi reports on OpenAI's attempts to make itself too big to fail in Canada just like in the U.S. And Savannah Ridley examines the dangers of betting the economy on massive data centres which support few jobs, serve no real purpose and impose environmental destruction. 

- Meanwhile, Carl Meyer discusses how Carney has been rolling back what little progress Canada had made on climate policy in a futile effort to appease petropoliticians - even as Manitoba is showing (PDF) how net zero is well within reach. 

- Arshy Mann interviews Nora Loreto about the deliberate destruction of state capacity in Canada. But in case anybody was under the impression that privatization and outsourcing were based on any reasonable expectation as to efficiency and productivity, Joe Wilkins reports on new research showing that NASA's use of private spacecraft has resulted in no overall savings (and glaring inefficiency on more complex projects). 

- Finally, Lauren Aratani reviews Chuck Collins' Burned By Billionaires, with particular emphasis on the structural forces which have been put in place to exacerbate inequalities of wealth and power. 

Tuesday Afternoon Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Jared Yates Sexton writes about the Trump administration's attacks on reality and truth. Marisa Kabas laments the fact that the U.S. is deteriorating faster and in more ways than it's realistically possible to track even absent the harm being done to its information environment. And about the best available reason for hope is to note, as Agent Nkrumah does, that the Trump Republicans are running scared. 

- Scott Galloway writes about the rise of violence entrepreneurs as part of the MAGA propaganda machine. And Olufemi Taiwo discusses the need for shame as part of any functional social system - even as the Trump regime looks to purge anything of the sort (with far too much assistance from the corporate media). 

- Susan Delacourt reports on new polling showing that Canadians quite rightly don't see any point in negotiating a trade agreement with a regime which can't be trusted to honour it. 

- Erin Sikorsky discusses how the U.S.' war on climate action will leave it at a disadvantage as the global economy shifts toward clean energy. David Wallace-Wells offers a reminder that attacks on climate policy have had harmful effects around the globe. And John Woodside reports that environmental groups are being shut out of any direct interaction with a Carney government which is only interested in catering to CEOs. 

- Andrew Nikiforuk notes that spin about nuclear power serves mostly to delay a clean energy transition (and commit massive amounts of money to an inefficient, non-renewable energy source). And Adam Thorn writes about the importance of using public policy to foster a move toward electric vehicles. 

- Finally, Ryan Cooper reports on the success of Greenland's state companies in both providing employment and generating public returns as an example for other jurisdictions to follow. 

Friday Morning Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- John Harwood discusses how Donald Trump's second term in office has been more harmful than even the most dire predictions anticipated. Donald Gutstein calls out Danielle Smith for promoting the twin U.S. interests of dirty energy and Alberta separation as her primary areas of activity. And Peter Zimonjic reports that Mark Carney is joining the corporate elites working on normalizing Trump's abuses, as he's removing a number of the targeted tariffs which had served as important pressure points against Trump's arbitrary actions.

- Meanwhile, for those looking for construction actions which Canada could and should be taking, Jon Milton and Nathaniel Denaro make the case for a vehicle production Crown corporation to ensure our existing industrial base isn't subject to the whims of the Trump administration and the U.S. automakers collaborating with it. And Brendan Haley points out the value of energy efficiency as a nation-building project. 

- Karl Nerenberg writes about Carney's immediate shift toward austerity and tax-cutting after he won power as the defender of a progressive Canada. Grant Robertson and Kathryn Blaze Baum report on the results of a federal investigation showing that existing reliance on algorithms to govern regulatory activity was a major cause of a deadly listeria outbreak - even as Carney seeks to replace even more government functions with AI vaporware. And Sophia Harris reports on the CRA's woeful lack of resources to answer public inquiries as well as ensure that the wealthy pay their fair share in taxes. 

- Finally, David Coletto and Eddie Sheppard discuss new polling showing that an increasing number of Canadians are slipping into exonomic anxiety and precarity. 

Friday Morning Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Andy Craig writes that the Trump regime and its enabers have shattered the U.S.' past constitutional order.  Jill Lawrence discusses the denihilism behind the Republican embrace of ignorance and destruction, while Adrienne Mitei highlights the absurdity of the elite effort to normalize the collapse of society. And Jessica Wildfire writes about the limitations of in-system prepping in a world that projects to far exceed the most severe temperatures and weather humanity has ever experienced. 

- Gaby Hinsliff notes that Trump and his ilk have made a point of denying merit and humanity to anybody but white males, while warning against the UK allowing a similar attitude to take hold. Gil Duran highlights Ruha Benjamin's analysis of the eugenics which have been embraced by techbros - and the resulting need to avoid relying on them to do anything to support the population which they see as disposable. And Sandeep Vaheesan's review of Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson's Abundance rightly notes that the path to meeting people's basic needs doesn't involve further empowering the corporate oligarchy which has priced them out of reach. 

- Alex Cyr discusses why Canadians have every reason to fear crossing the border into the U.S. - even as Mark Carney is trying to tie us even more tightly to the Trump regime. And Sam Biddle reports on the U.S. intelligence community's hoovering up of sensitive personal information from data brokers to set up an unprecedented surveillance state. 

- Nicholas Kristof writes about some of the key strategies available to counter an autocracy. And Desmond Cole points out that the suppression of dissent isn't limited to the U.S. - with "bubble zone" laws aimed solely at limiting specific kinds of speech serving as a dangerous example. 

- Finally, Taylor Noakes discusses how Canada Post has long been set up to fail - but how a government with any interest in its effectiveness at providing a vital public service could ensure its success simply by allowing it space to grow. 

Thursday Afternoon Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Robert Reich discusses how Donald Trump's absolute lack of inhibition is responsible for the disastrous effects of his regime - and how a public revolt which threatens Republicans necessary to his sense of impunity is the most plausible means to set the boundaries which are otherwise lacking. 

- Bob Lord highlights how the U.S.' tax system in general and treatment of capital gains in particular are both highly regressive. But Bobby Kogan and Greg Sargent each point out that the Republicans' current plan is to make matters far worse. 

- Dell Cameron reports on the Trump regime's plans to allow data brokers to profit off of sensitive personal information with no regard for the public, while Joseph Cox reports on the dangerous amounts of data being collected (and sold to the U.S. government) from license plate readers. And Luke Goldstein and Katya Schwenk report on a Republican push to shield a landlord oligopoly from answering for price-fixing.  

- Meanwhile, Simon Enoch rightly asks whether we trust unreliable and easily-distorted artifical intelligence to control access to vital social programs.

- Linda McQuaig offers a reminder that public investment has been the only proven means of building a strong Canadian economy which benefits everybody. Marc Lee discusses the importance of federal support for housing construction in particular. And Tom Goldsmith points out that Canadian businesses have never turned immense profits into meaningful investments in research or innovation, while Mario Toneguzzi reports on Loblaws' plan to extract even more profits out of consumers based on claims of tariff uncertainty. 

- Finally, Jen Gerson writes that Danielle Smith's pandering to separatists is the antithesis of leadership, reflecting an abandonment of the public good out of what can at best be characterized as cowardice. And Lisa Young points out how the UCP's belated amendments to the referendum legislation it's rammed through the Legislature confirm their utter failure to recognize the effect of treaty rights and constitutional responsibilities on the exercise of trumped-up grievance politics. 

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Tim Dickinson interviews Naomi Klein about the oligarchy's escalating war against the general public, while the Guardian's editorial board points out that warehouse and transport workers are the first groups to face decimation as a consequence of the Trump regime's class war. And Lauren Leffer discusses how the normalization and rationalization of death is the primary common theme to Robert F. Kennedy's actions while in charge of U.S. public health. 

- Marc Elias discusses the need for U.S. courts to stop treating the Trump regime as a normal litigant as it repeatedly ignores rulings and seeks to intimidate judges. And Brian Beutler calls for Democratic governers (and anybody else who might be tempted to appease Trump) to avoid becoming an object of scorn like Paul Weiss.

- Jonathan Last writes that the essence of a fascist view of law enforcement is to encourage state violence against perceived enemies while demanding that allies be treated as entirely above the law. And Will Sommer discusses how the MAGA right's moral compass has been so thoroughly warped that it's treating the direction of the "n" word toward a child as a cause deserving of crowdfunding.  

- Andrew Nikiforuk talks to Ece Temelkuran about the predictable steps from democracy toward autocracy - and the importance of acting in the early stages to avoid being pushed down the path. And Zoe Yunker interviews Alexis Shotwell about the need for collective action in response to large-scale problems. 

- Edward Keenan points out how multiplex construction can be a key element in resolving the housing crisis - but that Toronto and other municipalities have effectively banned it in favour of single detached buildings. 

- Finally, Colleen Fuller writes that Canada needs a public insulin manufacturer to ensure that an essential medication doesn't disappear due to arbitrary action by a few corporations.

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Paul Krugman examines the reality that the Trump regime is bad for business (as it is for people as well). But that doesn't mean it's not bent on allowing the wealthy few to take a larger proportion of a shriking economic pie - as Elizabeth Dwoskin et al. report on DOGE's plans to turn government operations into profit centres, while Jake Pearson reports on the dismantling of any work by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to ensure scammers and rent-seekers can exploit people without any pushback.

- Meanwhile, Mather Iantorno points out some of the options available to ensure the Canadian public doesn't bear the brunt of Trump's tariffs - with the NDP's proposals for price caps and antitrust enforcement both ranking as key tools. 

- Ethan Phillips highlights why we can't count on markets alone to diversify our trade flows. And Fred Wilson and Robert Chernomas discuss the need to make use of public investment options to fund economic development, rather than trying to prod corporations who would rather use their already-massive cash reserves on buybacks and bonuses to pursue capital spending in the public interest. 

- Finally, Charlie Angus writes about Danielle Smith's choice to take Trump's side over Canada's (and Pierre Poilievre's willingness to let her). Eric Wickham reports on the MAGA fanatics who have thrown their support behind Poilievre because they see him as willing to impose Trump's agenda in Canada. And Simon Enoch weighs in on the tech companies looking to impose a DOGE north of the border under a Con government. 

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Stephanie Bouchoucha et al. offer a reminder that Australia (like other jurisdictions) needs to do far better in reducing the harm caused by an ongoing pandemic. And researchers presenting to the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine have found widespread long COVID among people who were infected while pregnant. 

- Meanwhile, Crawford Kilian warns that the anti-social, anti-science cranks empowered by crass corporate operators wanting to avoid COVID restrictions are stoking a resurgence of measles (as well as increased threats from other diseases). 

- Clyde Hughes reports on a new study showing that 83 million U.S. residents are exposed to unhealthy air every year due to the climate breakdown. And Jennifer Francis discusses the "weather whiplash" which is becoming increasingly common and destructive due to climate change. 

- But Jefim Vogel and Jason Hickel find (PDF) that even the countries who are claiming to have decoupled growth from carbon pollution are still spewing more than we can afford. 

- Andy Stirling reviews Tim Schwab's The Bill Gates Problem as an important exposition as to how billionaire-controlled "charity" results in warped and self-interested priorities.  

- Finally, Shauna MacKinnon writes that there's no excuse for governments deferring to the whims of private-sector developers when the need for housing can only be met by public social investment. 

Tuesday Afternoon Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Michelle Gamage and Katie Hyslop report on the grassroots push for better anti-COVID-19 planning in British Columbia schools. And in case there's any doubt what's at stake, Brenda Goodman reports on new research finding that long COVID may cause a greater disability burden than cancer or heart disease, while the San Diego Union-Tribune warns about the immense social damage which would result from continued spread without massive improvements in treatments and therapies.  

- Damian Carrington et al. write about the growing indicators that humanity has already fundamentally broken our climate. And while Katharine Hayhoe makes the case to respond with determination rather than resignation, it's worth noting the powerful interest aligned against any effort to meaningfully avert a total breakdown - including a fossil fuel sector talking openly about its plan to continue to spew carbon pollution for generations to come, and a sketchy carbon offset system which is claiming credit for  the false promise of protection of forests which are themselves turning into carbon bombs. 

- Meanwhile, David Climenhaga points out how the UCP is putting its thumb on the scale to prevent clean energy development generally, while Clayton Keim writes about the Peace Energy Cooperative solar project as a stark example of the progress that's been shut down in order to keep Albertans hooked on dirty fossil fuels. 

- Finally, Rebecca Zandbergen examines the enduring consequences of the Canadian federal government's decision to stop funding social housing. 

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Madeline Holcomb reports on new research showing that COVID-19 boosters are more effective when delivered to the same arm as previous vaccine doses. 

- Jessica Wildfire highlights how the war on remote work is the result of corporate landlords' determination to sacrifice human health and well-being in order to prop up real estate values. And Nojoud Al Mallees reports on the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation's warning that we're actually seeing a reduction in the construction of desperately-needed housing, while Marc Lee points out what we can learn from Singapore about the value of public-sector ownership of the provision of housing.  

- Mitchell Beer rightly warns against taking the word of Suncor's CEO on climate policy as he tries to lock in decades of extreme carbon pollution in order to keep extracting profits. And Geoff Dembicki takes a look at the oil industry-funded death cultists claiming credit for Danielle Smith's ban on clean energy. 

- Finally, Gary Marcus predicts that an already-enshittified Internet stands to get far worse as junk content from large language models crowds out accurate material. 

Saturday Afternoon Links

Assorted content for your weekend reading.

- Esther Choo and Scott Duke Kominers are the latest to point out the need for a focused effort (comparable to the Operation Warp Speed project to develop the original COVID-19 vaccines) to respond to the public health emergency that is widespread long COVID. Phil Tank highlights how the Moe government's elimination of masking protection in Saskatchewan health care facilities is a purely political decision to cater to anti-science cranks (which figures to produce disastrous health consequences). And Josiah Mortimer reports on the UK's apparent coverup of workplace COVID infections and fatalities in health facilities.

- Max Fawcett writes about the clear connection between strong social safety nets and people's happiness and well-being. Claire Cain Miller and Alicia Parlapiano chart how the U.S. built a functioning welfare state at the outset of the COVID pandemic - and has since dismantled it based on the perceived imperative to stop helping people. Andre La Rosa-Rodriguez reports on the rightful concerns by food banks that governments are entrenching the need for private charity rather than doing anything to ameliorate systemic deprivation. And Moira Welsh reports on the high rates of poverty and precarious housing among older women - and some of the options available to ensure a reasonable standard of living.

- Monica Potts discusses how rural America's combination of moral puritanism and limited economic development traps women based on their family backgrounds and sexual choices.

- Finally, Ann Pettifor writes about the importance of applying the principle that "we can afford what we can do" to the task of transitioning to a clean energy society. And Michael Mann discusses how climate change deniers seem to have finally been left behind in Australia's policy discussions - though many of us know from experience how other delay and obfuscation tactics can temporarily take the place of outright denial with a substantially similar effect.

Friday Afternoon Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Jonathan Lambert discusses how politicized messages have been used to weaponize uncertainty and changing information during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. Jonathan Howard points out how successful mitigation practices have been used to serve a misleading narrative downplaying the actual risks of COVID-19. Matt Gurney discusses the Canadian federal government's questionable decision to end supplies of rapid antigen tests while the pandemic rages on - as well as the lack of much apparent interest in challenging the choice. And Cara Murez reports on the research showing that reduced oxygen levels in the brain are among the effects of long COVID.

- Amy Westervelt reports on the fossil fuel sector's nine-figure capture of universities in the U.S, while Amy Mann writes that Canada too needs to stop letting oil and gas companies with a vested interest in continued carbon pollution fund and direct climate research. And Danielle Paradis reports on the choice by both Imperial Oil and the UCP government to inform First Nations and other affected parties of an unprecedented series of tailings pond leaks. 

- Trevor Tombe points out that the UCP's budget is designed to make the boom-and-bust cycle even bumpier than it was before. And Nick Warino discusses how Nordic countries are instead seeing large and stable returns from their investment in public enterprise.  

- Paris Marx warns against accepting Elon Musk's plan for a future which shifts to electric energy without otherwise disturbing the entrenched wealth structures which concentrate so much power in the hands of so few. 

- Finally, Alexander Quon surveys some experts about the claims of Regina's Catalyst Committee, and finds that nobody outside of Sandra Masters' backroom bunch thinks for a second that any returns from a downtown arena would come remotely close to justifying the expense. 

Tuesday Afternoon Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Richard Denniss calls out Australia's government for its "nothing to see here" approach to an ongoing public health emergency. And Falko Tesch et al. study the connection between COVID-19 infection and subsequent autoimmune diseases, while Tim Requarth discusses the multiple effects COVID can have on a body's ability to fight all kinds of threats.  

- Judy Rebick contrasts the Ford PCs' austerity for publicly-provided health care against their willingness to throw money into corporate coffers. And Don McLean highlights how Doug Ford has left no doubt that he's serving only big-money donors rather than the general public. 

- Meanwhile, Brian Doucet points out that any government actually interested in ensuring people are able to find a home would be using publicly owned land to build its own affordable housing, not turning it into a windfall for private developers. And Mariana Mazzucato discusses the need to treat the common good as the core focus of policy development, not a special interest to be addressed only to the extent necessary to enable the continued enrichment of the wealthy. 

- Oliver Milman reports on a new analysis that continuing to operate coal plants in the U.S. is far more expensive than transitioning to clean energy. But Umair Irfan reports on the petropoliticians in Texas (and elsewhere) who are using state power to keep dirty energy in operation even where renewables are both more reliable and more affordable. 

- Finally, Justin Ling looks at the background to the decriminalization of drugs in Vancouver - including the hope that it will at least reduce the carnage from a drug poisoning crisis which has been exacerbated by prohibitionist policies. 

Sunday Afternoon Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- Ed Browne examines the differences between the Kraken variant and the forms of COVID-19 which have come before. Char Leung, Li Su and Munehito Machida study how transmission different types of venues in Japan was reflected in further spread. And Benjamin Mateus discusses the readily-available options to clear air of COVID and other pathogens which are being ignored in favour of a strategy of denial.

- Michael Howard discusses how a basic income would effectively eradicate the U.S.' persistent poverty problem (among other social ills). 

- Meanwhile, Edward Keenan asks why Toronto (like so many other municipalities) is using force to destroy temporary encampments, rather than putting any resources into ensuring people have a safe home.  And Jason Vermes talks to Kayla DeMong about the need for support programs which don't insist on a miraculous, single-handed recovery from substance addiction as a precondition to any help.

- Katie Pedersen, Virginia Smart and David Common report on soaring cell phone bills across most of Canada as a narrowing corporate oligopoly squeezes consumers for every possible nickel. And Clement Nocos makes the case for a national public telecom provider to ensure people aren't systematically ripped off.

- Finally, Andrew Leach highlights how work toward a just transition is intended to make sure people who have previously depended on a declining fossil fuel sector have viable options for the future - in stark contrast to the desire of the UCP, Saskatchewan Party and their backers to focus solely on wringing short-term profits, then stick the workers and citizens who are left with all of the cost and risk of cleaning up the mess left behind.

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Juliana Kim reports on the growing wave of public health advice recommending masking in order to limit the harm from a "tripledemic" of infectious diseases. Blair Crawford reports on PSAC's rightful concern that a return-to-the-office order will avoidably expose workers and their families to circulating viruses. And Jessica Wildfire discusses how the systemic underreaction to pervasive threats can be explained as an example of normalcy bias - while pointing out how ill served we are by allowing it to dictate our actions. 

- Alan Joseph recognizes that the deaths being caused by a lack of emergency care are the result of a conscious a policy choice on the part of governments who are simultaneously ignoring public health threats, and underfunding the health care system being hit with the consequences. Tara Kiran examines the limited availability of primary care for millions of Canadians, while Audrey Provezano makes the case to shift from a single-physician model of primary care to a team approach. And Megan Ogilvie tells the story of a family forced to endure a 350-kilometer flight to get their 4-year child to a functioning ICU. 

- Lourdes Juan offers a reminder that donations to food banks don't do anything to address the underlying causes of poverty and hunger. And Jerusalem Demsas points out that homelessness is an entirely unavoidable consequence of a failure to ensure people have access to housing. 

- Lloyd Alter reviews Matt Simon's A Poison Like No Other as an essential read on the dangers of plastics (and the failure of recycling to address them). And Christy Climenhaga reports on the melting of permafrost as both a result and a cause of our climate crisis. 

- Finally, Jason Herring reports on a new Ernst and Young study confirming the obvious point that public auto insurance leads to more affordable rates, while the policy choice of leaving insurance to market forces results in brutal price-gouging.