Saturday Afternoon Links

Assorted content for your weekend reading.

- Jerusalem Demsas discusses the strong popular support for affordable social housing even as governments continually fail to provide it. Daphne Bramham rightly asks why we haven't seen far more of a move toward the Housing First models (including both secure housing and the availability of associated supports) which have consistently proven effective at assisting people facing addictions and homelessness. And Richard Warnica weighs in on the death toll from Ontario's reliance on for-profit long-term care homes. 

- Moira Wyton reports on the outcome of British Columbia's panel on a basic income - which found that more targeted income and basic services would represent a better use of public resources. And Heather Scoffield offers her take on why a basic income isn't the right option to try to eliminate poverty. 

- Timothy Bond, Jillian Carr, Analisa Packham and Jonathan Smith study how the timing of food benefits directly affects students' scores on tests which affect their future.

- Bill Blaikie puts some of the forces behind the U.S.' Trumpist insurrection into historical context. And Amy Goodman and Denis Moynihan write about the needed push from social movements for change as the Biden/Harris administration begins its tenure.

- Meanwhile, Scott Harold Payne wonders whether the relentless flow of corruption and incompetence from the UCP will lead to the end of Alberta conservatism as we know it.

- Finally, Kendall Latimer reports on Saskatchewan's long-overdue end to the use of birth alerts - while also noting the need to make up for the damage they've done already.

Musical interlude

 Joywave - Doubt

Friday Morning Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Andrew Nikiforuk writes about the even greater urgency to get to COVID zero as more dangerous strains of the virus spread in Canada. And Adam Miller reports on growing recommendations that we wear more effective masks, including while outdoors. 

-Truc Nguyen reports on some of the ways to deal with the anxiety arising out of the pandemic, while Natalie Grover reports on research showing that the coronavirus itself leads to mental illness and brain disorders. And James Wilt points out the public health implications of people drinking more in the course of the pandemic.

- Sarah Jaffe discusses the problem of burnout generally - including by recognizing that it's an inevitable outcome of economic and social systems designed to impose as many costs as possible on individuals for the benefit of businesses. Meghan Bell calls out the attempt by Bell (and so many politicians) to turn mental health into a single-day distraction while standing in the way of the support people need at all times. And Ray Fisman and Michael Luca point out how the effort to squeeze concessions out of workers - rather than providing a stable and secure livelihood - is ultimately a damaging one for employers.

- But in case anybody thought there was hope for consensus on a change in course, Tom Scocca writes that the Trump years have offered an appalling test of how much suffering the U.S. is prepared to inflict on people. And Mindy Isser discusses the need to ensure that organizing efforts include people who have been willing to support the likes of Donald Trump.

- Finally, Nana Ama Sarfo makes the case to end Canada's current status as a haven to hide the beneficial ownership of corporations. And Canadians for Tax Fairness argues that we shouldn't let Pfizer use COVID-19 as an excuse to claim yet another round of tax concessions and corporate giveaways.

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Ciara Nugent writes about Amsterdam's embrace of doughnut economics focused on finding the sweet spot which accounts for human well-being and environmental sustainability.

- Ross Belot discusses why the world doesn't need Keystone XL, while Angus Reid notes that only the prairie petro-provinces have any apparent insistence on continuing to fight in the face of the U.S.' decision not to grant a permit for it to proceed. Andrew Nikiforuk points out a few of the realities which rebut Jason Kenney's talking points for prioritizing oil infrastructure over any other purpose or principle. Gary Mason notes that Kenney's decision to pour billions into pushing Keystone XL was always a losing bet with public money. The Canadian Association of Journalists calls out the UCP's publicly-funded propaganda campaign against media who dare to report on environmental issues rather than serving as cheerleaders for fossil fuels. And even the Globe and Mail's editorial board is past pretending that the pro-pipeline bluster is anything more than a farce - which fits into Jim Storrie's recognition that Kenney is engaged in little more than theatre.

- Damian Carrington reports on new research showing a connection between air pollution and macular degeneration. 

- Nikiforuk also calls out the UCP's disinformation about additional coal development. And Bob Weber reports that as the Kenney UCP seeks to ram through new coal mining, Alberta's existing mines are getting away with contaminating river water with selenium. And Carrington reports on the recognition by two-thirds of the world that we're facing a climate emergency, while Elizabeth Weil offers a stark look at what's coming as our natural environment continues to break down.

- Finally, Adrian Humphreys reports on polling showing strong support among Canadians to limit the spread of hate and racism. But PressProgress reports on the continued convergence between pro-oil forces and anti-democratic propaganda.

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- George Monbiot writes about the COVID disinformation which is so dangerous as to need to be suppressed. Maggie Keresteci, Nili Kaplan-Myrth and Naheed Dosani highlight the need for equity to figure into our plans and messaging about vaccine distribution. And Dakshana Bascaramurty discusses the challenges in reaching racialized Canadians with the information needed to protect themselves and the public.

- Bruce Arthur points out the futility of blustering about borders when a province already has community outbreaks of highly dangerous variants. And Walker Bragman and David Sirota report on the factors which have had the most impact in suppressing the spread of COVID-19 in the U.S. - with work from home and housing security at the top of the list. 

- The Star's editorial board joins the calls for paid sick leave to ensure workers don't put people at risk in order to pay their bills. And Omar Mosleh reports on the limited number of retail employers offering anything of the sort when not required to do so.

- Theresa Boyle reports that Ontario is among the provinces falling far short of using even the federal resources available to it - let alone contributing appropriately on its own - to offer COVID-19 relief and support. And Matt Elliott calls out Doug Ford's almost total lack of investment in social housing, even as he looks to destroy greenspace and heritage buildings alike to grease the skids for private developers.

- Grace Blakeley discusses how the coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated poverty and inequality. And Arwa Mahdawi makes the case for a greed tax to reverse that trend. 

- Finally, Dr. Jacelyn Hanson and Dr. Larissa Kiesman remind us of the existing public health emergencies of homelessness, opioids and HIV which have been worsened by COVID-19. 

Tuesday Night Cat Blogging

 Toying cats.

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Simon Enoch traces the COVID-19 spending that's taken place in Saskatchewan - finding that most of the support has come from the federal government, while Scott Moe has combined a refusal to lift a finger (and indeed a failure to make use of all the federal money available) with constant complaining that the feds aren't doing enough:

(T)hroughout the pandemic, the Saskatchewan government has been quick to tout the state of its finances, in spite of the crisis, reporting lower deficits than anticipated and continuing to commit to a balanced budget by the 2024 election.

The irony is, that for all the ire that Mr. Moe directs at Prime Minister Trudeau, it may very well be the largesse of the federal government, coupled with the underspending of transferred dollars, that has allowed Saskatchewan to post such rosy fiscal numbers.

While in any other situation such news might be greeted by some as evidence of fiscal responsibility, during the worst public health crisis in 100 years, failure to spend and access every available dollar to protect us from the ravages of this pandemic looks a lot less like financial caution and a lot more like callous recklessness.

- Justine Hunter and Ian Bailey report on British Columbia's vaccine distribution plan - showing that it's possible to actually do the work of helping to keep people healthy, rather than devoting one's sole efforts to whining about the federal government. And Gary Mason notes that B.C. has also managed to get caught up on its surgical backlog.

- Robert Reich writes that the threats to U.S. democracy aren't limited to the Trumpist white supremacist uprising, but include corporate sedition aiming to capture the government for the benefits of the wealthiest few.

- Finally, Mitchell Anderson points out that Canada is home to a similarly dangerous set of violent actors who are often encouraged by our right-wing parties, while Matthew Remski documents the spread of Qanon in particular. And Geoff Dembicki notes that the work product from Alberta's anti-environment inquiry includes a smear campaign against journalists funded out of public money.

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Jim Brumby writes about the multiple growing disruptions to economic health and security which could be addressed by a wealth tax.

- Kim Siever highlights how the oil industry continues to scam Alberta while pretending that its interest is that of the province - which of course applies with equal force in Saskatchewan. The Energy Mix points out that the fossil fuel sector is marked by disproportionate returns to capital for the amount paid in wages - making a transition entirely affordable as long as we focus on the public good rather than aiming primarily to enrich the few billionaires who want to add even more to their fortunes. And Cameron Fenton notes that Keystone XL is just the latest example of the Libs refusing to act consistently with their rhetoric about climate change. 

- Peter Giger offers a reminder of the multiple environmental tipping points which could see us fall into irreversible climate breakdown if we don't transition to a clean economy. And Brian Kahn writes that the decisions we make about the oil industry this year will echo long into the future.

- Tom Cardoso reports on analysis showing over a million Canadians engaged in overnight holiday travel in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Globe and Mail's editorial board asks why we're still allowing the coronavirus to spread to Canada on international flights. Laura Woodward reports on Dr. Nazeem Muhajarine's call to finally end the risk of spread through in-person restaurant dining. And the Star's editorial board argues that we should be doing far more to ensure that long-term care homes don't turn into death sentences for the people who raised and nurtured us.

- Finally, Jen Gerson writes that the Cons should be looking to excise the violent alt-right as a matter of self-preservation as well as civic duty. And David Climenhaga notes that the problem runs far deeper than Derek Sloan alone.

On root causes

Shorter Scott Moe on threats against Dr. Saqib Shahab:

I have no idea how these idiots got the idea that policy disagreement entitles you to engage in violent rhetoric and personal harassment. 

Shorter Scott Moe's CO2Anon donor base:

Environmentalists are child molesters! But the good news is that I think I've figured out the coded meaning of their pizza orders!

Sunday Morning Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- Grace Blakeley comments on the connection between neoliberal ideology, and the replacement of even the possibility of collective action with an assumption that we're only in it for ourselves. 

- Aditya Chakrabortty writes about the need to eliminate poverty in all of its forms - including by dealing with it head-on rather than slicing it into a series of less significant problems. And Gaby Hinsliff reminds us of the work that will need to be done to ensure a COVID generation doesn't miss out on the opportunity to engage in basic socialization and development. 

- Meanwhile, Peter Goodman reports on research showing that the world as a whole will be better off it we work on ensuring the distribution of vaccines based on need rather than national wealth.

- Daniel Oran and Eric Topol write about the consequences of being wrong in basic assumptions about the coronavirus - such as the question of whether it's possible to be contagious without symptoms (as we now know to be the case). Elizabeth Gulino discusses some of the changes we'll need to make in response to more contagious strains of COVID-19, while Patricia Treble points out that we're likely not managing to fully test and trace for the UK variant which we know has arrived in Canada. And Armine Yalnizyan offers a reminder of the desperate need for paid sick days to allow employees to avoid contributing to community spread out of financial necessity.

- Finally, Jen Gerson recognizes that Jason Kenney's belligerence is doing nothing but embarrassing himself and his province. And Scott Schmidt calls out Kenney's refusal to answer for the harm he's inflicting on Alberta.

Saturday Morning Links

Assorted content for your weekend reading.

- Anna McMillan reports on the disproportionate effect COVID-19 has (predictably) had on First Nations reserves in Saskatchewan. And Maan Ahmidi reports on the appearances and realities arising out of the Libs' continued appeals against orders to stop withholding equal access to services from Indigenous children.

- Diane Collier and Anne Burke write about the need to start listening to teachers about COVID in the classroom. 

- Of course, it may also be a nice touch to not raid teachers' pension funds to be placed under the the politicized control of an incompetent administrator (as the Kenney UCP is doing). And Elise von Scheel reports that Jason Kenney has also gone out of his way to replicate the federal Phoenix experience by implementing a new payroll system which is resulting in public servants being shorted on their pay.

- The CP reports on Erin O'Toole's belated statement that the far right is unwelcome within the Con party rather than representing its core. But Sean Holman rightly argues that the only way for the Cons to avoid a Trump-style takeover is to push back hard against denialism and bigotry in all their forms - even as there's little reason for optimism that O'Toole or any of his provincial counterparts has any interest in that effort.

- Finally, David Climenhaga writes about Jim Stanford's work showing how a just transition to a clean economy is both possible and necessary. And Jessica Green studies the extremely limited effect carbon pricing has had in actually reducing greenhouse gas emissions - confirming the need for both direct regulation of emissions, and a strategy to scale up the use of cleaner replacements for the dirty systems we still rely on (without counting on nuclear unicorns from the future when there's technology already available).

Musical interlude

 snarls - Walk in the Woods

Friday Afternoon Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- David Brancaccio and Rose Conlon write about the tendency for people involved in deliberately-rigged contests to believe their success is the result of skill rather than manipulation - offering an important comparison to wealthy people who can't sort out luck from merit in their own riches and power.

- Scilla Alleci discusses the prospect that the new year will see the public begin to collect a reasonable share of the revenue currently being sucked up by COVID profiteers and environmental scofflaws. Ian Vandaelle reports on CIBC Deputy Chief Economist Benjamin Tal's recognition that increased taxes on the wealthy are likely - and properly - on their way. And Michael Smart suggests looking to a capital gains tax instead to both increase revenue, and limit the disproportionate accumulation of wealth.

- Supreet Kaur, Sendhil Mullainathan, Suanna Oh and Frank Schilbach examine the effect of financial security on workers, showing that even a modicum of reassurance about cash on hand produces demonstrable improvements in productivity. And Dara Lee Luca and Michael Luca study the effect of minimum wage increases on restaurants, finding that higher-quality businesses do just fine when required to pay a fair wage. 

- Veena Dubal and Juliet Schor write about the need to ensure that gig workers have the same protections available to traditionally-classified employees. 

- But Josh Rubin points out that the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have been disproportionately felt by lower-income workers, while the already-secure have largely thrived. And Pia Arenata takes note of the health dangers of precarious work as people are forced to risk the spread of a deadly virus for want of other options to support themselves.

- Neil O'Brien highlights why we can't merely ignore anti-social COVID spreaders.

- Finally, Robert Reich discusses the need for radical action to avoid slipping back into the same "normal" which allowed Donald Trump to take power.

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Jim Stanford explores how a just transition plan can ensure that workers have new opportunities in the midst of a needed shift away from dirty fossil fuels - and also highlights how a blinkered refusal to accept the decline of the oil sector will only make matters worse for workers. And Thomas Lukaszuk writes that there's no reason for Alberta (or any other province) to obsess over oil rather than emerging clean technology.

- Karim Bardeesy writes about the need for a paid sick leave plan which ensures that people don't feel the need to contribute to the spread of COVID-19 in order to keep paying their bills. And Maryse Zeidler highlights how a focus on high-risk populations is crucial to our COVID response, while Bruno Mégarbane, Fanchon Bourasset and Jean-Michel Scherrmann find that stay-at-home orders do create a substantial benefit in reducing viral spread. 

- Jeremy Nuttall examines what other countries have been able to accomplish in providing long-term care where their focus is on the personal well-being of residents, rather than opening up rent-seeking opportunities for investors.

- But Theresa Boyle warns that a policy vacuum is allowing our health care system to shift increasingly toward privatized and profit-seeking services. And Joel Lexchin discusses how big pharma is trying to limit Canadians' access to needed medication, while Rachel Aiello reports that Pfizer is taking advantage of the need for COVID vaccines to seek special treatment from the federal government's next budget.

- Finally, as most of the world celebrates Donald Trump's long-awaited removal from office, Ta-Nehisi Coates points out the need to recognize and challenge the forces that allowed him to take it in the first place.

Tuesday Night Cat Blogging

 Conflicted cats.

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Jim Stanford discusses the reality that even from the standpoint of GDP and economic activity, we're better off implementing strong enough measures to control (or better yet, eradicate) the spread of COVID-19 rather than allowing the virus to run wild. But in the latest signal that far too many provinces are going backward in ensuring people can survive the coronavirus, Kelly Bennett reports on Doug Ford's decision to force nurses to go unpaid while they're in mandatory quarantine. 

- CBS News reports on doctors' observations that COVID-19 can cause worse lung damage than smoking even for people who avoid exhibiting severe symptoms.

- Zeynep Tufecki and Jeremy Howard ask why we haven't seen more of a shift toward better masks for the public as the pandemic continues. And Ian Gauthier rightly calls out Erin O'Toole's complaints about vaccinating people in prison as a public health threat to everybody which serves no purpose but cheap pandering to base instincts. 

- Speaking of which, PressProgress exposes how the Cons have accepted donations from a self-proclaimed neo-Nazi - and are seeking to blame Derek Sloan alone for donations made into party coffers. And Aaron Wherry discusses how little O'Toole has done to depart from the Trump playbook, even as he claims offence at being associated with it.

- Finally, Emma Graney reports on the latest revelations about oil operators misleading Alberta about their failure to clean up abandoned wells. And David Climenhaga writes that Jason Kenney's combination of aggressive anti-environmentalism and reckless determination to bet on a dying industry with public money has resulted in billions going down the drain in the form of the failed Keystone XL pipeline.

Monday Afternoon Links

 Assorted content to start your week.

- Scott Gilmore discusses how our elected leaders have failed us in responding to COVID-19. Shannon Devine offers a warning to the Ford PCs about their insistence in putting workers' lives and health at risk in the midst of a pandemic. And Christy Somos reports on a new survey showing that over two-thirds of Canadians support the ability to bar unvaccinated people from business premises.

- The Globe and Mail's editorial board highlights how the Atlantic provinces were able to contain the spread of COVID-19. And Caitjan Gainty and Agnes Arnold-Forster note that vaccines alone don't generally eradicate a disease in the absence of exactly the types of public health measures which have done the most to limit the spread of the coronavirus before a vaccine was available.

- Falice Chin examines Canada's worrisome literacy gaps - with one in six adults lacking even basic literacy skills, and fully half having difficulty processing complex texts in a world governed by them.  

- Lucas Edmond writes about the need for direct action to confront the attacks on labour by Brian Pallister (a point which of course applies to his ideological soulmates elsewhere as well).

- Finally, Noah Smith discusses how the vast majority of the economic profession has come to reject the corporatist dogma that higher minimum wages lead to meaningful job losses.

On climate pollution

Martin Olzynski's submission this week has called plenty of attention to the Kenney UCP's funding of climate denialism through an inquiry attacking environmentalism. But let's note that the response to Olzynski's observations only makes the inquiry look all the worse.

Here's the excuse from the inquiry's spokesman:

Boras suggested to Global News that concerns raised about whether some of the reports question climate change and the role humans play in it are irrelevant to the inquiry’s mandate.

“The inquiry is not about the status of climate, that’s not in its terms of reference,” he said. “A forensic accounting exercise about foreign funding of policy initiatives by groups in Canada (is).”

Even if the plan is to avoid any recognition of climate change (and it's telling that the inquiry's response is to try to downplay its existence), consider what the response implies about the inquiry's operations.

Taking Boras' explanation at face value, that would mean a public inquiry has spent substantial amounts of money on "expert" reports which consist of climate denialists spouting propaganda which has nothing to do with either the inquiry's mandate, or their own commissioned role. 

And rather than trying to at least ensure that the work product of its own process meets even the barest standards of accuracy or relevance, the inquiry has in turn willingly served as a conduit for that denialism by distributing it to participants - only to disclaim responsibility by saying people apparently shouldn't care that its hand-picked collaborators are engaging in gratuitous anti-science disinformation on the public dime.

Of course, it shouldn't come as any surprise that a process long steeped in corruption and bias is continuing to demonstrate both at appalling levels. But it's remarkable when the best defence the inquiry has to valid concerns about being anti-evidence is that it's also wasteful and careless.

Sunday Afternoon Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- Kate Aronoff writes about the need for a functional and representative democracy to ensure that public demand for climate action is actually represented in policy decisions. And Seth Klein rightly proposes that the NDP (or Bloc) should take the opportunity in a minority Parliament to push the Libs to add some far stronger and earlier action to their insufficient climate accountability bill.

- Meanwhile, Avery Shannon and Naia Lee note that Vancouver offers a model for other municipalities to follow at the municipal level.

- Veronica Penney reports on new data showing that electric vehicles may already have reached the point of being less expensive than combustion models even without accounting for the environmental damage caused by fossil fuels. 

- Reuters reports that even the IMF is now urging countries to increase spending in the midst of a pandemic which is suppressing economic activity - even as our tired right-wing politicians continue to demand that we sacrifice lives on the altar of deficit reductions.

- Finally, Monia Mazigh writes that as long as Canadian governments seek to maintain a "terrorist" designation as a basis for legal distinctions, we should push for it to be applied to the Proud Boys and other purveyors of right-wing violent extremism. And Amira Elghawaby argues that people opposing the white supremacism of Trumpists on both sides of the border should have no hesitation taking up the title of "anti-fascist".

Saturday Afternoon Links

Assorted content for your weekend reading.

- Owen Jones points out how attempts to primarily blame the public for the spread of COVID serve primarily to distract from unsafe workplace and other systemic risks which have been left in place to serve corporate interests. And Jolson Lim reports on the increasing push for provincial sick leave policies - which are particularly necessary due to the federal Libs' decision that it was more important to cut off the CERB program than to ensure people have the support they need to survive the pandemic.

- Randy Robinson discusses how the pandemic has made it all the more painfully obvious how Doug Ford's hatred of government makes him unable to lead one. Sarmishta Subramanian rightly notes that empty "stay at home" messaging was doomed to fail when it was accompanied by an insistence that business be able to carry on as usual. And Rick Salutin calls out the Ford PCs' choice to claim that the only form of COVID control they'll ultimately accept is a vaccine - no matter how much avoidable sickness and death results from a lack of responsible action in the meantime. 

- Murray Mandryk offers a periodic reminder that more of the same shouldn't be acceptable for Saskatchewan - which of course doesn't mean we can expect anything different from Scott Moe. And Laura Woodward interviews Kyle Anderson about the prospect that nothing short of a full lockdown will be enough to get the virus under something resembling control.

- Meanwhile, Brian Platt highlights how Nova Scotia has succeeded in using rapid testing to get a handle on community spread.

- Finally, Linda McQuaig discusses how the trend toward privatized long-term care has exacerbated the crisis for residents in Ontario. And Amy Dempsey reports on the for-profit care nursing home operators who have pocketed money explicitly targeted for personal care workers.