Musical interlude

The War On Drugs feat. Lucius - I Don't Live Here Anymore

Friday Morning Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Michael Bang Pedersen argues that the COVID pandemic offers a prime example of the importance of telling hard truths to the public - rather than engaging in the wishful thinking, sugar-coating and general denial we've come to expect from Scott Moe. And Susie Flaherty writes about new research confirming that children are spreaders of COVID-19 (and particularly its variants), while Lynn Giesbrecht reports that over a hundred Saskatchewan schools (plus several dozen daycares) are currently experiencing outbreaks.  

- Paddy Bettington rightly criticizes the UK Cons' version of "building back" for providing nothing but worse conditions for workers. And Paul Krugman points out the rightful revolt of American workers against being underpaid, put at risk and taken for granted.  

- Max Callaghan and Carl-Friedrich Schleussner discuss their new study showing how the vast majority of people are already affected by the climate crisis. And Oliver Milman, Andrew Witherspoon, Rita Liu and Alvin Chang observe that a climate disaster isn't merely a remote future prospect, but an imminent reality.  

- Simon Evans notes that the IEA's latest World Energy Outlook shows fossil fuel use peaking in 2025 if countries meet their climate commitments. But Rob Davies highlights how that limited and delayed change would be nowhere near enough to actually avert climate breakdown. 

- Meanwhile, Siddharth Joshi, James Glynn and Shivika Mittal discuss the obvious potential for solar power alone to meet the world's energy needs. And Dana Nuccitelli points out how a faster transition to a clean economy will also be a more affordable one.

- Finally, Brent Patterson examines what we know about the RCMP's unit dedicated to violating human rights to protect extractive industries. 

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Amativa Banerjee writes about the cognitive dissonance involved in living through the COVID-19 pandemic. And Ian Sample reports on scientists' recognition that the UK's deadly second COVID wave was the result of the repetition of mistakes and a failure to learn from the first wave. 

- Needless to say, that makes an especially dangerous and deadly fourth wave all the more preventable and inexcusable. On that front, Mickey Djuric reports on the continuing erosion of care for Saskatchewan residents in need of surgery, while Zak Vescera reports that the province is on the verge of needing to ship ICU patients to Ontario for lack of health care capacity. 

- Meanwhile, Marlene Leung reports that many of the experts trying to help save lives in the midst of a pandemic have themselves faced threats of violence for daring to do so. 

- Norm Farrell writes that David Card's Nobel prize helps to signal how empirical reality is on the side of progressive policy - even as the wealthiest few set up self-serving default assumptions to the contrary. 

- Jacob Lorinc reports on the CCPA's research into the hundreds of thousands of workers who have left thankless and abusive service-sector jobs for ones which offer greater pay and security - and the employers trying to spin that as reflecting a "labour shortage" rather than a need to do better themselves. Robert Reich characterizes the newfound willingness of U.S. workers to reject unacceptable work as an unofficial (and entirely necessary) general strike. And Shannon Waters documents the lobbying by B.C. employers against a basic standard of paid sick leave. 

- Finally, Mariana Mazzucato highlights the need for a new international consensus in which governments plan, and deploy public resources toward, a new economic structure which serves the common good rather than the rich. 

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- David Fickling responds to the attempt by petropoliticians to blame high gas prices on limited climate action rather than the vagaries of commodity economics. Lisa Friedman reports on the agreement among 30 countries to slash methane emissions as a crucial short-term step in mitigating a climate breakdown. And Pratyush Dayal reports on the embarrassing gap between Saskatchewan residents' acknowledgment of the reality of the climate change, and their unwillingness to be part of the solution in fighting it. 

- Emma Black argues that any successful push toward a just transition needs to originate in the working class. Chris Saltmarsh highlights the importance of a Green New Deal which reflects state planning in the public interest, rather than attempting to get capital interests to develop a clean economy. 

- Lucy Ellman discusses how we've prioritized frequent and gratuitous air travel over basic health and safety (among other far more important concerns).   

- Kim Moody writes about the needless fragility of just-in-time supply chains as exposed by events ranging from the COVID-19 pandemic, to the disruption caused by a single stuck ship. 

- Jennifer Sweet reports that out-of-control housing markets are pricing cooperatives out of the picture along with most individuals. 

- David Climenhaga writes about the dangers of Jason Kenney's all-in bet on an equalization referendum to salvage public support. 

- Finally, Doug Cuthand notes that the racism which led to Joyce Echaquan's death remains embedded in Canada's history and established social structures. 

Tuesday Night Cat Blogging

Uplifted cats.

 

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Ian Sample and Peter Walker report on the Parliamentary inquiry which has found the UK's response to COVID-19 to be one of the country's most severe public health failures in history. Denis Campbell reports on a new study showing that the UK's growing gap in lifespans based on income has only been exacerbated by the pandemic. And Jackie Dunham reports on the long-term damage to the nervous system being observed in people who have suffered from long COVID. 

- Meanwhile, Jake Johnson discusses the U.S.' hoarding of COVID vaccines. And Rebecca Robbins points out how after being gifted a vaccine developed through public investment and targeted donations, Moderna is going out of its way to avoid making any supply available to the poor countries where they're most needed. 

- Julieta Caldas chimes in on how philanthropy generally serves to entrench wealth and power. And Lori Nikkel writes that Canada now has significantly more food charities than grocery stores - while asking how we can accept that reality. 

- CBC News offers a reminder of some of the revelations about tax evasion prior to the Pandora Papers - while at the same time making clear that mere knowledge of offshoring has been far from enough to ensure that the wealthy are required to pay their fair share. And Roman Lanis and Peter Wells warn that we'll continue to see more of the same unless we eliminate the secrecy that allows assets to be hidden. 

- The Associated Press reports on the first step of achieving agreement among 140 countries on a minimum corporate tax rate. But Michael Galant highlights the problems with hoping for inequality to be solved based on the self-interested designs of the wealthiest countries. 

- Finally, Stuart Trew discusses how investment treaties continue to give corporate owners precedence over democratic governance in the public interest - even under newer models which supposedly respond to environmental and labour concerns. 

Monday Afternoon Links

Miscellaneous material for your Monday reading.

- Blair McBride writes about the long-term medical crisis Alberta can expect as people are unable or unwilling to have normal diagnoses carried out while the health care system is overrun by COVID-19.  And Mickey Djuric reports on the frustration of Saskatchewan families with their inability to access medical care for children.

- Faiz Shakir writes that organized labour is managing to win some important concessions for workers in the U.S. But Brett Wilkins offers a reminder of how far there is to go in ensuring that workers benefit from the riches that are being created, as the 1% now holds more wealth than the entire U.S. middle class.

- Matt Gurney takes note of Canada's housing crisis which is progressing beyond being an economic issue to a profound social illness. 

- Jeremy Lent discusses how a capitalist mindset is entirely incompatible with any solution to the climate crisis. And Amy Salyzyn and Penelope Simons theorize that an entirely new model of professional responsibility needs to be adopted to ensure that the legal profession doesn't continue trampling human rights and environmental imperatives in the service of extractive industries.

- Finally, Simon Evans examines historical greenhouse gas emissions from a few standpoints - including a per-capita calculation which shows Canada as the absolute worst offender in spewing carbon pollution.

Sunday Morning Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- Ricky Leong discusses the complete lack of any reasonable explanation for the UCP's failure to protect the health of Albertans in the face of the fourth wave of COVID-19. And Murray Mandryk comments that the Sask Party likewise insists on doing too little, too late even as people suffer as a result of their negligence.

- Adam King writes that the Pandora Papers offer just the latest reminder that any refusal to fund the society we want is a matter of choice rather than lack of resources.

- Matt Bruenig points out the U.S.' dangerous combination of gratuitously-slashed unemployment benefits and a lack of new employment. And Lysa Lloyd offers her perspective on the precarity and drudgery that come with surviving on social assistance. 

- Sandy Carrier discusses how a general disability benefit in particular would provide a desperately-needed basic standard of living. And Andre Picard writes that all parties should be able to agree on the need to ensure people with disabilities aren't trapped in poverty.

- Angela Smith interviews Jessica Whyte about the neoliberal movement's use of human rights language to impose cruel capitalist structures. 

- And finally, Alan Finlayson discusses the need to present progressive politics based on concrete proposals and demands, rather than nebulous values which are easily distorted by opponents while offering little of substance for potential supporters to draw upon.

Saturday Afternoon Links

Assorted content for your weekend reading.

- Adam Hunter points out the stark gap between public health officials emphasizing the need for protections against community transmission of COVID-19, and Scott Moe's stubborn refusal to apply them. Alexander Quon writes about the hundreds of Saskatchewan patients missing out on surgeries every day. And Jacqueline Howard reports on the new research confirming that children face no less risk of infection than adults.

- Rhitu Chatterjee points out the large number of people in the U.S. losing essential caregivers to COVID-19. And Matt Sedensky discusses how nursing homes are losing staff - and the ability to care for residents - as a result of the ongoing pandemic.

- Umair Haque warns that the supply chain breakdowns seen in the course of the pandemic are just the beginning of a state of perma-crisis.

- Bob Weber reports on the UCP's pathetic - if perhaps not surprising - announcement that oil companies won't be contributing a dime of their massive windfall profits to cleaning up their messes. And Isabella Kaminsky highlights how fossil fuel giants have put massive chunks of the legal industry to work in attempting to avoid responsibility for the damage they've done to people and our natural environment.

- Meanwhile, Christian Schimpf et al. find that confidence in the long-term future of fossil fuels (however misplaced) translates into a refusal to accept climate action. 

- Finally, the Guardian's editorial board discusses the connection between the UK Cons' pay-to-play political schemes and the tax loopholes shown to be exploited in the Pandora Papers.

Musical interlude

Raye & Rudimental - Regardless

Friday Morning Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Thomas Saunders discusses how COVID-19 transmission through schools is resulting in effectively a separate epidemic among children and parents. Kathy Eagar offers a reminder of the dangers of recklessly discarding public health measures rather than taking care to make sure that reopening is sustainable. Erin Anderssen takes a look at the long-term difficulties facing people who have suffered from long COVID. And Scott Larson reports on the recognition by the Saskatchewan Union of Nurses that shuffling health care workers around is no answer to the demands placed on them by a pandemic that's been allowed to run out of control. 

- Meanwhile, Tosin Thompson writes about new research showing how air filters can remove viral particles from the air. 

- Christine Fernando reports on the likelihood that climate-related disasters will be the norm for today's younger generations. And Andrew Gregory discusses the growing recognition that a degraded natural environment will place young people under a lifetime of avoidable stress and anxiety. 

- Jaela Bernstein offers her take on what Canada needs to do to contribute its fair share to global emission reductions. And Marc Lee chimes in with some necessary lessons from British Columbia's unprecedented wildfire season. 

- But in case anybody thought the industries who have profited off of destroying the climate would be willing to contribute to solutions, Rod Nickel reports on the demands of tar sands operators who want the government to pay 75% of the bill to greenwash their continued extraction of dirty energy. And Frank Duffy writes about the UK auto industry's refusal to consider workers' attempts to transition toward non-emitting vehicles. 

- Finally, Yakov Feigin discusses how the right's obsession with inflation as an excuse for cruelty and austerity neglects the fact that the ultimate source of that inflation is the stagnation of productive capacity due to underinvestment. And Ian Welsh points out our glaring inability or refusal to do anything substantial without some entrenched corporate oligarch taking the resulting profit. 

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Carrie Tait reports on the spate of readmissions of COVID-19 patients to Alberta hospitals, while Zak Vescera points out the large number of Saskatchewan diagnoses happening only in hospital as infected people fail to get tested until their symptoms are severe. And Arthur White-Crummey reports that the Moe government still hasn't gotten around to making a request for federal assistance. 

- Neal Marquez et al. study the greater severity of COVID infections in prisons. And the Center for Health Security discusses the need for higher-quality masks and respirators than are currently in widespread use. 

- Haozhe Yang and Sangowh Suh examine the generational implications of the climate crisis - with younger people standing to benefit substantially from climate change mitigation. And Rebecca Leber highlights how the reconciliation bill currently stalled in Congress represents the U.S.' last and best chance to make a constructive contribution toward averting climate breakdown.

- But in case there was any doubt whether the interests of older and wealthier people are being favoured, Damian Carrington reports on the massive amounts of money being poured into fossil fuel subsidies. And Kim Siever reports on the oil and gas industry's negative contribution to Alberta's corporate tax revenues in 2020. 

- Meanwhile, William Gillies discusses what an actual national energy program could achieve if given a chance to operate. 

- Finally, George Monbiot offers a reminder that trashing the planet and making off with the spoils isn't a distortion of capitalism, but the essence of a system designed to reward individual greed and temporary exploitation. 

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Smriti Mallapaty reports on new research suggesting that vaccines provide only partial protection against the spread of the Delta variant of COVID-19. Sarath Peiris asks when Scott Moe and his minions will be held accountable for sacrificing hundreds of lives and thousands of people's health to science denial and wishful thinking. And the Maple examines the failure of both Moe and Jason Kenney to take steps to protect public health in the face of record case and hospitalization counts. 

- Jim Stanford writes about the importance of frontline workers in a pandemic - and the economic forces trapping them in precarity and deprivation. 

- Alec Salloum discusses how the Moe government's changes to Saskatchewan social programs are depriving the people who most need housing and income supports of those basic building blocks of a healthy life. And George Eaton points out how cuts to pandemic supports look to increase poverty and inequality in the UK. 

- Cole Hanson highlights how Canada has chosen to legitimize tax evasion rather than making it a priority to ensure the wealthy pay their fair share. And Adam Ramsey similarly writes about the UK's role in the Pandora Papers and the global system of tax avoidance, while Peter Oborne discusses the partisan connections between tax evasion and big-money donations to the UK Cons. 

- Meanwhile, Umair Haque and Doug Saunders each discuss the self-inflicted damage the UK faces as a result of Brexit. 

- Finally, Magdi Semrau explores how the U.S.' media distorted coverage of withdrawal from Afghanistan in favour of a frame of permanent war with no regard for consequences. And David Pugliese exposes how Canada has trained far-right extremists in the Ukraine. 

Tuesday Night Cat Blogging

Surfaced cats.

 

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Nazeem Muhajarine and Kathryn Green call out Scott Moe's Saskatchewan Party government for causing readily-preventable suffering and death - both from COVID-19 directly, and its devastating effects on the broader health care system. And Scott Larson reports on the "grim" situation facing Saskatoon's hospitals (among others). 

- Paul Krugman rightly questions why the self-appointed Very Serious People can't reach agreement on such fundamentals of a civilized society such as preserving a habitable planet and ending child poverty. 

- Sean Holman discusses the need to put human faces on the climate crisis, rather than dealing with it primarily as a matter of abstract policy. And Rachel Sherrington documents how the fossil fuel sector uses manipulative advertising to claim an interest in exactly the type of climate progress it's blocking through the concentrated application of wealth and power.  

- Jason Deign reports on yet another example of carbon capture and storage turning into an expensive flop, as a Chevron CCS setup intended to serve as license for a massive natural gas project is falling far short of its emission control targets. Hilary Beaumont reports on Enbridge's payment and use of Minnesota police to attack demonstrators opposed to the Line 3 pipeline, once again demonstrating the oil industry's use of state violence to override public concerns about health and the environment. 

- PressProgress exposes how Saskatchewan's process to evaluate infrastructure proposals is hopelessly biased in favour of privatization and financialization of public goods. And Randy Richmond reports on Ontario's plans to privatize the monitoring of inmates as an alarming example of the intersection of corporate interests and limitations on individual rights. 

- Finally, the Guardian and Charlotte Grieve offer summaries of the Pandora Papers as just the latest example of the wealthiest few around the globe escaping any obligation to contribute to the common good. 

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Paul Nuki, Jennifer Rigby and Anne Gulland write about the refusal to acknowledge the airborne spread of COVID-19 which led to a continuing failure to put basic precautions in place - though part of the problem is noted to involve the match between droplet spread and conservative governments' ideological preferences:

Policymakers and politicians also have a natural bias against the idea that diseases may be airborne, says Professor Jimenez. 

“Droplets and surfaces are very convenient for people in power - all of the responsibility is on the individual,” he said. “On the other hand, if you admit it is airborne, institutions, governments and companies have to do something.”

- And Zak Vescera reports on Scott Moe's continued insistence on pushing already-failed U.S. fads as a substitute for preventative measures, this time in demanding monoclonal antibodies while his public health half-measures fail to make up for a summer of complete neglect. 

- Heather Mallick challenges the attempt to spin any oil as ethical or friendly in the face of a climate crisis along with the well-document historical impact of extractive industries. And Halena Seiferling argues that the new Parliament needs to put climate considerations at the centre of every issue it addresses. 

- Meanwhile, Henry Paulson highlights how we're in the middle of an extreme extinction event for large numbers of species. And Nathanael Johnson notes that the severe wildfires across much of North America this summer were far from the worst on the planet due to Russia's unprecedented blazes.

- Finally, Kim Siever writes that Alberta saw a huge drop in payday loans in the early stages of the COVID pandemic - confirming once again how even a modicum of social support can alleviate the extreme precarity and stress we've been conditioned to think of as normal. Umair Haque laments the Biden administration's failure to work on improving citizens' lives on the scale obviously necessary. And Phillip Inman reports on Antonio Guterres' warnings about the urgent need to reduce inequalities around the globe. 

Sunday Morning Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- The Canadian Press reports on the overwhelming public support for vaccine mandates and other public health rules - as well as the supermajorities recognizing that Jason Kenney and Scott Moe have failed their provinces:

Unsurprisingly given their provinces' struggles with the fourth wave of the pandemic, Kenney and Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe ranked the lowest among provincial first ministers for their handling of the health crisis.

Fully 80 per cent of Alberta respondents said they were very or somewhat dissatisfied with Kenney's performance, and 74 per cent of Saskatchewan respondents felt the same about Moe.

- The Associated Press reports on the widespread shortages caused by the UK's ill-advised fixation on Brexit. And Matt Stoller writes about the U.S.' own supply chain failings, while noting that the issue goes far beyond COVID.

- Jeremy Appel offers a reminder as to how Canada lost its domestic vaccine supply to privatization and acquiescence in the business model of big pharma. 

- John Michael McGrath discusses how to empower municipalities now that the Supreme Court has confirmed that there's no Charter-protected right to meaningful elections at their level. And Henry Grabar writes about Paris' success reclaiming public spaces for people rather than cars. 

- Finally, Jeff Keele reports on how seniors with low incomes are being affected by the Libs' failure to account for their circumstances in designing the CERB. 

Saturday Morning Links

Assorted content for your weekend reading.

- The Globe and Mail's editorial board discusses the need to consider whether to lift public health measures with care rather than stubborn anti-social ideology. Adam Miller writes that Alberta's failure to do anything of the sort in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic has made it a cautionary tale, while Andrew Nikiforuk highlights the need to hold Jason Kenney (among other politicians) accountable for his lethal negligence in exercising the responsibility placed on a government to keep people safe. 

- Laura Osman reports on Theresa Tam's recognition that the Delta variant means we need higher vaccination rates to avoid catastrophic COVID surges. And Apoora Mandavilli discusses how the COVID variants appear to be getting more efficient at spreading through the air. 

- The Canadian Institute for Climate Choices examines how Canada's infrastructure isn't prepared for catastrophic climate change - making clear that any temporary failure to invest in transition and adaptation is going to be a false economy. 

- Duncan Kinney and Jake Pesaruk expose how multiple levels of government are instead funnelling money into a company combining fossil fuel extraction with environmentally-destructive crypto currency mining. And Geoffrey Morgan reports on the closure of the Canadian Energy Pipeline Association as a prime example of how governments are propping up fossil fuel projects which are seen as unproductive by private-sector standards. 

- Finally, Maximillian Alvarez, Jen Pan and Paul Prescod trace the decline of collective action to Ronald Reagan and his corporate backers. And Luke Savage interviews Patrick Wyman about the role of local tycoons in consolidating power and suppressing popular organization at the community level. 

Musical interlude

CHVRCHES & Robert Smith - How Not to Drown

Friday Morning Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Anand Giridharadas writes about the dangers of letting political discussions become primarily a matter of process and personalities, rather than the real impact decisions have on people's lives. 

- Graham Thomson calls out Jason Kenney for his consistent refusal to acknowledge the reality of COVID - both in communicating with the public and in making decisions about how to respond to a deadly pandemic. And Tanya Lewis points out the need to upgrade face masks to deal with more infectious COVID variants. 

- Kristian Nielsen examines the role privileged people will play in determining whether we're able to avoid a climate catastrophe. Max Fawcett discusses Canada's choices in its approach to the upcoming United Nations climate change conference - noting that all available evidence suggests that it's countries who get ahead of the inevitable transition to clean energy who will be best off in the long run. And Rebecca Leber discusses how Republicans are ensuring their states will be left behind by prohibiting municipalities from implementing any effective climate action. 

- Meanwhile, Heather Scoffield writes that investors and financial institutions are recognizing that the future is renewable as well - though they may need a boost from public policy to fully incorporate the into their decisions. 

- Douglas Todd writes about the reemergence of inheritance culture, as the children of families with wealth to spare are nearly alone in their ability to afford a home in Canada's major cities. And Chris Lehmann reviews Matthew Stewart's The 9.9 Percent as an important description of the group of workers outside the wealthy elite which works to preserve its privilege. 

- Finally, Melissa Ridgen interviews Murray Sinclair about the path toward reconciliation. And Martin Lukacs writes about the Defenders of the Land who are challenging the exercise of colonial power and pointing the way toward reconciliation based on the mutual recognition of rights.