This and that for your Tuesday reading.
- Paul Kelso reports on Public Health England's findings about the connection between poverty and more health difficulties, with residents of poorer neighbourhoods facing twice the incidence of ill health.
- Phil Whitaker points out the need to address the stressors causing childhood mental health issues. And Arif Jetha notes that fair working conditions for younger workers would work wonders in avoiding long-term scarring effects.
- Kim Kelly highlights the widespread use of prison labour in the US through the loophole left in its constitutional amendment against slavery. And an inmate at Burnside Jail explains why striking is effectively the only means for incarcerated people to call attention to their human dignity.
- Rajeev Syal discusses a push by UK unions toward a four-day work week.
- Finally, Denis Meunier studies Canada's shameful role as a money-laundering haven due to a lack of transparency in beneficial corporate ownership.
Tuesday, September 11, 2018
Monday, September 10, 2018
Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material to start your week.
- David Roberts highlights the trillions of dollars in global benefits to transitioning to sustainable energy over the next decade-plus - as well as the political choices keeping us from achieving them. Orville Schell and David Hochschild note that California and China are putting their combined economic clout behind global climate action. And Ryan Rumboldt reports on the hundreds of millions of dollars of damage to Canada's Prairies from extreme weather this summer.
- Patrick Condon discusses how a tax on low-density housing could both raise revenue and encourage the development of more liveable cities. But that would require a willingness to ensure that the wealthiest are required to pay their fair share, rather than being catered to by distorted tax systems - and Tom Harper reports that the UK (like Canada) regularly allows its richest residents to avoid consequences for breaching their social obligations.
- And the Council of Canadians points out that that Donald Trump isn't the only bully in the ongoing NAFTA negotiations, as any earlier hints about addressing labour and environmental issues have been thrown out the window by the Trudeau Libs in favour of corporate interests.
- Rohan Ghatage reviews Annie Lowrey's Give People Money as an effective argument for a basic income. And Caroline Hartnell discusses the importance of ensuring people living in poverty have enough power to improve their circumstances.
- Finally, Doug Cuthand points out how coverage of protests such as the Justice for our Stolen Children camp is all too often slanted toward process issues rather than the real injustices which give rise to compelling activism.
- David Roberts highlights the trillions of dollars in global benefits to transitioning to sustainable energy over the next decade-plus - as well as the political choices keeping us from achieving them. Orville Schell and David Hochschild note that California and China are putting their combined economic clout behind global climate action. And Ryan Rumboldt reports on the hundreds of millions of dollars of damage to Canada's Prairies from extreme weather this summer.
- Patrick Condon discusses how a tax on low-density housing could both raise revenue and encourage the development of more liveable cities. But that would require a willingness to ensure that the wealthiest are required to pay their fair share, rather than being catered to by distorted tax systems - and Tom Harper reports that the UK (like Canada) regularly allows its richest residents to avoid consequences for breaching their social obligations.
- And the Council of Canadians points out that that Donald Trump isn't the only bully in the ongoing NAFTA negotiations, as any earlier hints about addressing labour and environmental issues have been thrown out the window by the Trudeau Libs in favour of corporate interests.
- Rohan Ghatage reviews Annie Lowrey's Give People Money as an effective argument for a basic income. And Caroline Hartnell discusses the importance of ensuring people living in poverty have enough power to improve their circumstances.
- Finally, Doug Cuthand points out how coverage of protests such as the Justice for our Stolen Children camp is all too often slanted toward process issues rather than the real injustices which give rise to compelling activism.
Sunday, September 09, 2018
Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading.
- Andrew Jackson comments on the need for a national anti-poverty strategy which can actually meet its intended purpose:
- Meanwhile, Rajeshni Naidu-Ghelani reports on Canada's extremely high number and concentration of ultra-wealthy individuals.
- Toby Helm interviews John O'Donnell about UK Labour's plans to systematically increase the role of workers in corporate decision-making.
- Finally, Scott Sinclair highlights the predictable concessions and trade-offs being forced on Canada in a breakneck push to sign a new NAFTA on Donald Trump's terms. And Noah Smith rightly points out that in order to reduce our reliance on a capricious southern neighbour, Canada needs to plan for long-term population growth built largely on increased immigration.
- Andrew Jackson comments on the need for a national anti-poverty strategy which can actually meet its intended purpose:
- Scott Remer makes the case for personal debt forgiveness as part of a progressive economic platform. Nick Falvo examines some of the factors which affect a family's ability to move on from housing support. And Brian Rogers' story about a 71-year-old Regina woman evicted and left homeless due to unexpected Service Canada reporting requirements signals the problems with benefit systems designed to attack and punish recipients rather than ensure their well-being.[The new Poverty Reduction Strategy] responds to progressives and anti poverty activists who have long called for a federal government led, broadly based initiative to address and reduce widespread poverty in Canada. However, it is disturbing that there is no commitment to new federal government funding to meet the stated poverty reduction goals and targets, and that the technical poverty measure proposed by Minister Duclos and the Trudeau government is, to say the least, debatable.Many anti poverty activists, especially in Ontario, were rightly critical of the lack of additional funding for income support programs, especially in the context of already announced and pending provincial cuts to social assistance which will increase and deepen poverty. This underlines the fact that any effective national anti poverty strategy will require major investments by all levels of government, while the new strategy speaks only to the federal role.It is strange that there is no discussion of the Canada Social Transfer, a $14 Billion per year federal program which has only one condition at present for making cash transfers to the provinces, that there be no provincial residency requirement for social assistance.With respect to the federal role, there should have been a commitment to increase funding over time for the income support programs which have the greatest immediate impact on poverty – the Guaranteed Income Supplement for seniors; the Canada Child Benefit, and tax credits for the working poor – as well as broader social investments in areas like education, child care and affordable housing. The strategy does not attempt to calculate what additional resources will be needed to hit the stated targets.
- Meanwhile, Rajeshni Naidu-Ghelani reports on Canada's extremely high number and concentration of ultra-wealthy individuals.
- Toby Helm interviews John O'Donnell about UK Labour's plans to systematically increase the role of workers in corporate decision-making.
- Finally, Scott Sinclair highlights the predictable concessions and trade-offs being forced on Canada in a breakneck push to sign a new NAFTA on Donald Trump's terms. And Noah Smith rightly points out that in order to reduce our reliance on a capricious southern neighbour, Canada needs to plan for long-term population growth built largely on increased immigration.
Saturday, September 08, 2018
Saturday Morning Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading.
- Oliver Bullough writes that the combination of increased wealth concentration and the free flow of money across borders to attacks currencies and governments represents an urgent threat to democratic governance. And Owen Jones argues that now is the ideal time to push for a transformation of the UK's economy:
- Andrew MacLeod writes that we can't expect to deal with the opioid addictions without recognizing and addressing the underlying social causes. And David Crow reports that one of the major manufacturers of the opioid crisis has now claimed patent rights over a new treatment.
- Kelly Crowe comments on the hundreds of shortages of medications faced in Canada just this year, with most resulting from weaknesses in the corporate pharmaceutical supply chain. And MacLeod discusses the difficult choices around "orphan disease" drugs which are available only for exorbitant prices through private sources.
- Laura Paddison takes note of a new report which highlights the implausibility of addressing the problem of climate change with the same capitalist principles which created it. And James McClintock discusses how greenhouse gases are acidifying our oceans in addition to heating up the planet.
- Finally, Jennifer Zwicker and Stephanie Dunn question why decisions about disability supports are being made by the CRA rather than departments better positioned to address them.
- Oliver Bullough writes that the combination of increased wealth concentration and the free flow of money across borders to attacks currencies and governments represents an urgent threat to democratic governance. And Owen Jones argues that now is the ideal time to push for a transformation of the UK's economy:
What is striking about [the IPPR's] demands isn’t just how much more radical they are than only four years ago: it’s who has endorsed them – from the archbishop of Canterbury to business leaders. The IPPR’s polling shows that, from a radical clampdown on tax avoidance to publicly owned investment banks, to borrowing to invest, there is overwhelming support for the junking of the old neoliberal order.
Against this backdrop, the left needs to demand more radicalism from Labour. The very few sympathetic commentators have felt reluctant to do so because of the unrelenting attacks on a besieged Labour leadership. Some fear that any criticisms of the party from its left flank will offer succour to its increasingly hysterical opponents. But public appetite for radical reform – with even business figures endorsing it – means there is space to go further. Labour’s commitments on income and wealth taxes are insufficient to fully reverse Tory austerity and benefit cuts. The case for free movement of people in Europe has, sadly, largely been abandoned. By demanding more boldness from Labour, the political debate can be shifted further left still.
The report calls for a paradigm shift as radical as those achieved by Attlee and Thatcher. Both built a new consensus, forcing their opponents to surrender to their underlying philosophies. To avoid its flagship policies being unpicked by another Tory administration, a future Labour government must seek to do the same.
- Andrew MacLeod writes that we can't expect to deal with the opioid addictions without recognizing and addressing the underlying social causes. And David Crow reports that one of the major manufacturers of the opioid crisis has now claimed patent rights over a new treatment.
- Kelly Crowe comments on the hundreds of shortages of medications faced in Canada just this year, with most resulting from weaknesses in the corporate pharmaceutical supply chain. And MacLeod discusses the difficult choices around "orphan disease" drugs which are available only for exorbitant prices through private sources.
- Laura Paddison takes note of a new report which highlights the implausibility of addressing the problem of climate change with the same capitalist principles which created it. And James McClintock discusses how greenhouse gases are acidifying our oceans in addition to heating up the planet.
- Finally, Jennifer Zwicker and Stephanie Dunn question why decisions about disability supports are being made by the CRA rather than departments better positioned to address them.
Friday, September 07, 2018
Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week.
- Paul Krugman writes that progressive voices need to reclaim the theme of freedom as it becomes increasingly obvious how deprivation and precarity deprive people of meaningful choices:
- Jeremy Caradonna offers six reasons why proportional representation in British Columbia (and elsewhere) would produce better climate policy. And Mitchell Beer's worthwhile list of climate suggestions for Justin Trudeau is all too likely to be ignored by a government exercising false majority power for the benefit of the oil sector.
- Andre Picard discusses the latest data continuing to show widespread poverty, hunger and mental health concerns among Canadian children. And Clare Hennig comments on the struggle poor families face trying to meet the financial demands of an education system which lacks the resources needed to provide for children's needs.
- Finally, Peter Lozinski notes that in the midst of already-grim figures about family savings and debt in Canada as a whole, Saskatchewan stands out for a combination of low savings, high debt, and a lack of optimism that anything will improve.
- Paul Krugman writes that progressive voices need to reclaim the theme of freedom as it becomes increasingly obvious how deprivation and precarity deprive people of meaningful choices:
(L)arge economic players are dominating more and more of the economy. It’s increasingly clear, for example, that monopsony power is depressing wages; but that’s not all it does. Concentration of hiring among a few firms, plus things like noncompete clauses and tacit collusion that reinforce their market power, don’t just reduce your wage if you’re hired. They also reduce or eliminate your options if you’re mistreated: quit because you have an abusive boss or have problems with company policy, and you may have real trouble getting a new job.- Alister Doyle and Nina Chestney report on the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate's research showing that the global economy stands to benefit by trillions of dollars per year from low-carbon development. And Dale Marshall questions why we do anything but laugh about the "jobs" spin from a fossil fuel industry which already offers relatively few compared to other economic sectors, and is looking to "zero man" what's left.
But what can be done about it? Corey Robin says “socialism” – but as far as I can tell he really means social democracy: Denmark, not Venezuela. Government-mandated employee protections may restrict the ability of corporations to hire and fire, but they also shield workers from some very real forms of abuse. Unions do somewhat limit workers’ options, but they also offer an important counterweight against corporate monopsony power.Oh, and social safety net programs can do more than limit misery: they can be liberating. I’ve known many people who stuck with jobs they disliked for fear of losing health coverage; Obamacare, flawed as it is, has noticeably reduced that kind of “lock in”, and a full guarantee of health coverage would make our society visibly freer....(T)here are no perfect answers to the inevitable sacrifice of some freedom that comes with living in a complex society; utopia is not on the menu. But the advocates of unrestricted corporate power and minimal worker protection have been getting away for far too long with pretending that they’re the defenders of freedom – which is not, in fact, just another word for nothing left to lose.
- Jeremy Caradonna offers six reasons why proportional representation in British Columbia (and elsewhere) would produce better climate policy. And Mitchell Beer's worthwhile list of climate suggestions for Justin Trudeau is all too likely to be ignored by a government exercising false majority power for the benefit of the oil sector.
- Andre Picard discusses the latest data continuing to show widespread poverty, hunger and mental health concerns among Canadian children. And Clare Hennig comments on the struggle poor families face trying to meet the financial demands of an education system which lacks the resources needed to provide for children's needs.
- Finally, Peter Lozinski notes that in the midst of already-grim figures about family savings and debt in Canada as a whole, Saskatchewan stands out for a combination of low savings, high debt, and a lack of optimism that anything will improve.
Thursday, September 06, 2018
Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading.
- Ed Finn discusses how employment and unemployment rates are among the economic indicators which are all too often misleadingly substituted for shared prosperity. And Russell Robinson points out how the Libs' poverty strategy is at best a first step toward eliminating needless deprivation in our midst.
- Meanwhile, Robert Frank notes that one of the insidious effects of income inequality is an increasing gap in access to justice.
- Jared Bernstein and Dean Baker offer a reminder of the role organized labour needs to play in reducing inequality, while IBEW points to new research showing how all workers benefit from union strength. And Nick Reeve writes that pensions and benefit structures haven't kept up with the spread of precarious employment.
- Andrew Nikiforuk concludes that the Libs' Kinder Morgan bailout represents nothing but an example of petro politics at work. And Chris Turner traces how Trans Mountain became a political dumpster fire which the Libs and Cons are both determined to keep burning, while Cara Daggett explores the connection between fossil fuels and the right-wing shift toward exclusionary authoritarian politics.
- Finally, Yves Engler highlights Canada's reliance on financial-sector profits, including ones extracted from poorer countries around the globe.
- Ed Finn discusses how employment and unemployment rates are among the economic indicators which are all too often misleadingly substituted for shared prosperity. And Russell Robinson points out how the Libs' poverty strategy is at best a first step toward eliminating needless deprivation in our midst.
- Meanwhile, Robert Frank notes that one of the insidious effects of income inequality is an increasing gap in access to justice.
- Jared Bernstein and Dean Baker offer a reminder of the role organized labour needs to play in reducing inequality, while IBEW points to new research showing how all workers benefit from union strength. And Nick Reeve writes that pensions and benefit structures haven't kept up with the spread of precarious employment.
- Andrew Nikiforuk concludes that the Libs' Kinder Morgan bailout represents nothing but an example of petro politics at work. And Chris Turner traces how Trans Mountain became a political dumpster fire which the Libs and Cons are both determined to keep burning, while Cara Daggett explores the connection between fossil fuels and the right-wing shift toward exclusionary authoritarian politics.
- Finally, Yves Engler highlights Canada's reliance on financial-sector profits, including ones extracted from poorer countries around the globe.
New column day
Here, looking to the work of Elizabeth Warren and the Institute for Public Policy Research for options in making our economy more responsive to the needs of the public.
For further reading...
- Warren's Accountable Capitalism Act is here (PDF), and again was discussed by Matthew Yglesias here.
- The IPPR's report on Prosperity and Justice is here, or available in summary form here. [Update: And Chris Dillow offers a worthwhile review of it here.]
- Emma Sara Hughes and Tony Dundon make the case for a return of wage councils as another way to reduce inequality.
- Finally, Matt Bruenig points out how Sweden's widespread prosperity can be traced back to a substantial reduction in the 1%'s share of wealth ownership. And David Weil highlights the effects of employer monopsony on labour markets.
For further reading...
- Warren's Accountable Capitalism Act is here (PDF), and again was discussed by Matthew Yglesias here.
- The IPPR's report on Prosperity and Justice is here, or available in summary form here. [Update: And Chris Dillow offers a worthwhile review of it here.]
- Emma Sara Hughes and Tony Dundon make the case for a return of wage councils as another way to reduce inequality.
- Finally, Matt Bruenig points out how Sweden's widespread prosperity can be traced back to a substantial reduction in the 1%'s share of wealth ownership. And David Weil highlights the effects of employer monopsony on labour markets.
Wednesday, September 05, 2018
Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.
- Andrew MacLeod offers a reminder that income is often the most important factor in ensuring a person's health - even if it's seldom treated that way as a matter of policy. Marilisa Racco reports on Canada's unconscionably high rates of child poverty, mortality and mental illness. And Patrick Butler writes about the millions of UK children too poor to have a healthy diet.
- William Eichler examines new research showing how increased real estate wealth in the UK is only leaving poorer residents behind. And the Angus Reid Institute finds strong public support for policies to tax extreme housing wealth to provide needed homes in Toronto and Vancouver.
- John Harris warns about the effect of losing shared public spaces to gratuitous austerity.
- Bhaskar Sunkara discusses the role unions play in fighting racism and sexism. And Ben Smee's report on the demand of Australian temp agencies for a new category of workers without rights only confirms the importance of collective action to avoid exploitation.
- Finally, Phillip Inman reports on the Institute for Public Policy Research's call for an overhaul of the UK's economy to ensure that both decision-making authority and economic benefits are more widely shared.
- Andrew MacLeod offers a reminder that income is often the most important factor in ensuring a person's health - even if it's seldom treated that way as a matter of policy. Marilisa Racco reports on Canada's unconscionably high rates of child poverty, mortality and mental illness. And Patrick Butler writes about the millions of UK children too poor to have a healthy diet.
- William Eichler examines new research showing how increased real estate wealth in the UK is only leaving poorer residents behind. And the Angus Reid Institute finds strong public support for policies to tax extreme housing wealth to provide needed homes in Toronto and Vancouver.
- John Harris warns about the effect of losing shared public spaces to gratuitous austerity.
- Bhaskar Sunkara discusses the role unions play in fighting racism and sexism. And Ben Smee's report on the demand of Australian temp agencies for a new category of workers without rights only confirms the importance of collective action to avoid exploitation.
- Finally, Phillip Inman reports on the Institute for Public Policy Research's call for an overhaul of the UK's economy to ensure that both decision-making authority and economic benefits are more widely shared.
Tuesday, September 04, 2018
Tuesday Morning Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading.
- Thomas Walkom reminds us that the Libs's supposed tradeoff of climate policy for pipelines is failing as much in producing the former as the latter:
- Gabriel Elizondo offers a reminder of the massive amount of plastic being dumped in our oceans. And Bethany McLean writes that in addition to being an environmental disaster, the U.S.' increased push toward fracking is setting up an economic house of cards.
- David Climenhaga points out that the Trump administration's depiction of an utterly feckless Canadian NAFTA bargaining team rings all too true.
- The CP reports on Quebec Solidaire's promise of a public wireless network to ensure that telecom giants can't limit access to the Internet through price gouging and selective deployment.
- Finally, Chase Rutting discusses the urgent need for Saskatchewan to confront the violent racism in its midst - rather than catering to it as the Saskatchewan Party has chosen to do.
- Thomas Walkom reminds us that the Libs's supposed tradeoff of climate policy for pipelines is failing as much in producing the former as the latter:
For almost two years, the Trudeau government has tried to finesse the contradictions of its climate-change policies.- The Globe and Mail's editorial board discusses the need to keep fighting against climate change rather than succumbing to defeatism - though we also shouldn't be fooled by insufficient incremental steps in the face of a serious global problem. And Rebecca Harris, David Bowman and Linda Beaumont write about the Australian ecosystems that are collapsing as a result of climate change.
On the one hand, the government has talked tough, promising to impose carbon taxes on those provinces that don’t have their own.
...
On the other, the proposed carbon tax itself — $10 per tonne of greenhouse gas emissions this year, rising to $50 by 2022 — is woefully inadequate to the task of weaning Canadians from their reliance on fossil fuels.
Experts I’ve talked to estimate that a carbon tax would have to start at $30 a tonne and reach at least $200 by 2030 to do any good.
The federal government has also insisted that Canada can merrily continue to mine the carbon-intensive tarsands and still meet its international greenhouse gas emission reduction obligations, which it cannot.
- Gabriel Elizondo offers a reminder of the massive amount of plastic being dumped in our oceans. And Bethany McLean writes that in addition to being an environmental disaster, the U.S.' increased push toward fracking is setting up an economic house of cards.
- David Climenhaga points out that the Trump administration's depiction of an utterly feckless Canadian NAFTA bargaining team rings all too true.
- The CP reports on Quebec Solidaire's promise of a public wireless network to ensure that telecom giants can't limit access to the Internet through price gouging and selective deployment.
- Finally, Chase Rutting discusses the urgent need for Saskatchewan to confront the violent racism in its midst - rather than catering to it as the Saskatchewan Party has chosen to do.
Monday, September 03, 2018
Planning for failure
The Saskatchewan Party's latest excuse for a climate change announcement passed last week with little more than a passing mention in the media. And on the merits, it certainly earned that lack of notice.
But given the certainty that the Saskatchewan Party will end up pointing to the announcement later in response to the criticism it deserves for a wholly negligent climate change policy, let's take a few minutes to dig into what makes the plan so useless.
Even the headline numbers involved in the "industry standards" are pathetic on their face: a theoretical 1.1% reduction in the emissions of Canada's worst (and worsening) climate offender over a period of 12 years, compared to the national commitment to reduce emissions by 30% in the same time span. (Apparently the Moe government's new intention is to claim victory if emissions have been reduced at all by that time, signalling its determination to refuse to participate in any solution to a serious and immediate collective action problem.)
And indeed, even the closed list of industries involved will see target numbers of only 5-15% - meaning that absolutely none of Saskatchewan's largest emitters are being asked to do more than half their theoretical share to meet what's already an inadequate goal.
But matters look even worse behind that top-line number.
To start with, the targets themselves are mere "intensity" measures. I've previously noted how those are designed to fail: not only do they allow for emissions to increase as long as an industry manages to push its overall production up higher, they may even result in the government handing out credits to corporations which ramp up production by more than their emissions increase.
That's right: Scott Moe's climate plan includes free money for increased emissions.
And to make matters worse, the new standards are set based on 2018 numbers. That means that in most covered industries, the continued emission increases resulting from the Saskatchewan Party's previous decade of neglect are locked in. And conversely, any industry which bothered to act responsibly by reducing emissions in the interim will receive no credit for that effort.
Of course, it's telling that the Saskatchewan Party can't even introduce what's supposed to be an environmental regulation without emphasizing that its primary emphasis is serving big business. And this is exactly the type of industrial emission plan one would expect if the government ignored all climate science and consulted only with industrial emitters, asking them what they'd view as a fully agreeable fig leaf while emphasizing a willingness to continue letting them pollute.
But with our planet already overheating, we should be appalled by the selfishness of a government determined to keep doing as much damage as it and its corporate cronies can get away with.
But given the certainty that the Saskatchewan Party will end up pointing to the announcement later in response to the criticism it deserves for a wholly negligent climate change policy, let's take a few minutes to dig into what makes the plan so useless.
Even the headline numbers involved in the "industry standards" are pathetic on their face: a theoretical 1.1% reduction in the emissions of Canada's worst (and worsening) climate offender over a period of 12 years, compared to the national commitment to reduce emissions by 30% in the same time span. (Apparently the Moe government's new intention is to claim victory if emissions have been reduced at all by that time, signalling its determination to refuse to participate in any solution to a serious and immediate collective action problem.)
And indeed, even the closed list of industries involved will see target numbers of only 5-15% - meaning that absolutely none of Saskatchewan's largest emitters are being asked to do more than half their theoretical share to meet what's already an inadequate goal.
But matters look even worse behind that top-line number.
To start with, the targets themselves are mere "intensity" measures. I've previously noted how those are designed to fail: not only do they allow for emissions to increase as long as an industry manages to push its overall production up higher, they may even result in the government handing out credits to corporations which ramp up production by more than their emissions increase.
That's right: Scott Moe's climate plan includes free money for increased emissions.
And to make matters worse, the new standards are set based on 2018 numbers. That means that in most covered industries, the continued emission increases resulting from the Saskatchewan Party's previous decade of neglect are locked in. And conversely, any industry which bothered to act responsibly by reducing emissions in the interim will receive no credit for that effort.
Of course, it's telling that the Saskatchewan Party can't even introduce what's supposed to be an environmental regulation without emphasizing that its primary emphasis is serving big business. And this is exactly the type of industrial emission plan one would expect if the government ignored all climate science and consulted only with industrial emitters, asking them what they'd view as a fully agreeable fig leaf while emphasizing a willingness to continue letting them pollute.
But with our planet already overheating, we should be appalled by the selfishness of a government determined to keep doing as much damage as it and its corporate cronies can get away with.
Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your Monday reading.
- Ed Finn laments the lack of labour coverage in today's media landscape. But David Climenhaga points out that a combination of the omission of unions from much of the media and their vilification by corporate propaganda mills hasn't stopped an increasing number of workers from wanting to participate in collective action:
- The Mail & Guardian discusses how inequality and deprivation breed violence. And Phillip Inman reports on yet another study - this from the UK's Smith Institute - showing how a city benefits in multiple ways when workers are paid liveable wages.
- Finally, Hassan Yussuff argues that now is the time to make a push for a universal pharmacare program focused on public well-being rather than pharmaceutical rent-seeking. And the Star's editorial board chimes in on the need to make child care available in settings designed to encourage individual development, rather than through "big box" corporate providers who will treat children only as expenses.
- Ed Finn laments the lack of labour coverage in today's media landscape. But David Climenhaga points out that a combination of the omission of unions from much of the media and their vilification by corporate propaganda mills hasn't stopped an increasing number of workers from wanting to participate in collective action:
- Glenda Luymes discusses the reality that there's still ample room to push for a shorter work week. And Jordan Press reports on the potential to introduce a right to disconnect into employment legislation which doesn't yet account for the issue of availability away from paid work hours.Literally billions of dollars have been spent over the past 30 years by the globalizing internationale and the radical market-fundamentalist national political parties it supports to persuade working people they don’t need unions, and governments that it’s of paramount importance to make it difficult for working people to join unions.On the legislative front, these efforts have enjoyed considerable success – particularly in the United States, where that country’s 18th Century Constitution effectively suppresses the fundamental right of working people to organize and the ability of democratically minded legislators to prevent big money from buying elections. Even when that effort falls short, as we have seen, the U.S. Constitution finds ways to ensure losers win.Yet while barely 10 per cent of American workers belong to a union today, half as many as did 30 years ago, union membership remains an aspiration to huge numbers of American workers.A recent survey in the United States showed that interest in joining a union is at a 40 year high. Nearly half of all non-unionized workers in the United States would join a union … if they could.Think about this. It’s a remarkable trend, given the efforts that have been put into making unions unappealing to workers – from the casual defamation of labour leaders as “union bosses,” to the many bogus studies showing these democratic institutions restrict worker freedom, to the unending stream of journalistic vituperation directed at unions.Yet it appears despite the herculean efforts of the American right, increasing numbers of workers are doing the math.
- The Mail & Guardian discusses how inequality and deprivation breed violence. And Phillip Inman reports on yet another study - this from the UK's Smith Institute - showing how a city benefits in multiple ways when workers are paid liveable wages.
- Finally, Hassan Yussuff argues that now is the time to make a push for a universal pharmacare program focused on public well-being rather than pharmaceutical rent-seeking. And the Star's editorial board chimes in on the need to make child care available in settings designed to encourage individual development, rather than through "big box" corporate providers who will treat children only as expenses.
Sunday, September 02, 2018
Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading.
- Lana Payne's column for the Labour Day weekend comment on the role unions play in pushing for advancements for everybody.
- Paul Krugman offers a reminder that a focus on GDP alone as a measure of economic development misses the issue of inequality. And Simon Kuper discusses how the wealthiest people have looted their own countries in order to further distance themselves from the rest of society, while Assaf Razin and Efraim Sadka study the consequences of elite-driven globalization in undermining fair revenue systems and the social programs they fund.
- Neil Schoenherr reviews Gerrit De Geest's new book on how marketing has contributed to rent-seeking by the few at the expense of the many. And James Wilt argues that instead of focusing on consumer behaviour, we should be working on developing models of production and consumption that are less destructive:
- Lana Payne's column for the Labour Day weekend comment on the role unions play in pushing for advancements for everybody.
- Paul Krugman offers a reminder that a focus on GDP alone as a measure of economic development misses the issue of inequality. And Simon Kuper discusses how the wealthiest people have looted their own countries in order to further distance themselves from the rest of society, while Assaf Razin and Efraim Sadka study the consequences of elite-driven globalization in undermining fair revenue systems and the social programs they fund.
- Neil Schoenherr reviews Gerrit De Geest's new book on how marketing has contributed to rent-seeking by the few at the expense of the many. And James Wilt argues that instead of focusing on consumer behaviour, we should be working on developing models of production and consumption that are less destructive:
There is nothing inherently wrong with the consumption of energy and materials. The problem is that consumption is largely undemocratic, exploitative, and unsustainable: all realities that can be dramatically altered.- Finally, David Climenhaga notes that the obsession with the rule of law trumpeted by pipeline pushers against protesters has disappeared now that the Federal Court of Appeal has held that approvals handed out without meaningful consultation are themselves illegal.
We know that many socially destructive sectors consume a vast chunk of resources. For example, the U.S. military is the institution which consumes the greatest amount of oil in the world. At last count, over half of the energy used in Canada was consumed by the industrial sector – the likes of mines, factories, and fossil fuel extraction. A 2011 study by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives concluded that the top one per cent of income earners in B.C. emitted almost six times the amount of carbon pollution as residents in the bottom 10 per cent.
And corporations have created a status quo of obscene food waste, planned obsolescence, and entrenched fossil fuel interests that obstruct a rapid transition to low-carbon communities.
...
We must abandon the language and sentiment of overconsumption and organize our cities and towns through unions, co-ops, community centres, and activist organizations – with a primary focus on improving conditions and services in low-income communities of colour.
...
The so-called problem of consumption is a convenient distraction from the hard work that needs to be done to overhaul the exploitative and destructive systems that currently concentrate a vast majority of the wealth and power in the hands of the very few. Such greed won’t dissipate by individual moralizing or using fewer plastic bags.
It’ll take radical collective action – and an impassioned desire for all of us to be able to consume more of the things that are sustainable, just, and fulfilling.
Saturday, September 01, 2018
Saturday Morning Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading.
- Jagmeet Singh observes that much of the festering hate stoked by right-wing parties can be traced back to economic injustice and insecurity:
- Cory Coleman reports on Regina's sharp increase in homelessness as a result of Scott Moe's decision to slash housing funding. And Philip Inman discusses how increased land values in the UK are enriching current owners while leaving everybody else behind.
- Finally, Brent Patterson calls out the dishonesty behind the Trudeau Libs' attempt to tie modest climate change policies to the publicly-funded expansion of fossil fuel infrastructure. Peter Tertzakian discusses some of the implications of a world in which clean energy is no longer scarce - though it's worth noting the additional result that investments based on seeking rents from tight markets for oil and other energy will lose any prospective upside. And Guy Dauncey sets out a few of the climate change options which might make a meaningful difference in saving a livable environment.
- Jagmeet Singh observes that much of the festering hate stoked by right-wing parties can be traced back to economic injustice and insecurity:
(I)f we really want to stop hate, we need to do more than just call it out. We need to recognize that it is growing economic inequality that creates the conditions for hate to fester. That’s the reality Andrew Scheer is trying to exploit: the economic injustice that has left so many very hard-working Canadians wondering why they can’t make ends meet, and what — or who — is to blame.- Thomas Kochan, Duanyi Yang, Erin Kelly and Will Kimball examine the widespread desire among U.S. workers to engage in collective action, even as Republicans go far out of their way to prevent anything of the sort. And Anna Patty reports on new IMF research showing how a labour market distorted in favour of employers is robbing workers of any share in economic development.
This summer I met a lot of those Canadians, Canadians who Scheer hopes will tune into his message. Workers juggling multiple jobs just to pay the rent and wondering why good quality, long-term work is so hard to find. Families that, every month, are just a few dollars away from not being able to pay their bills. Students grappling with debt and a job market with very little to offer. Seniors having to choose between paying for groceries and the medication they need. Parents struggling to find child care they can afford and rely on. Too many wondering how they’ll ever retire without living in poverty.
...
There is no excuse for inaction in the face of economic injustice. It’s time to implement real solutions.
Solutions like universal pharmacare, which economists say is more than feasible and will save us billions of dollars. Solutions like universal child care, which we know would more than pay for itself by allowing more parents, especially women, to go to work. Solutions like an immediate federal investment in housing, which we know would make an enormous difference to families struggling to pay skyrocketing rents for substandard accommodations.
We know we can help pay for these and other concrete solutions by finally clamping down on tax loopholes and tax havens, so that everyone in Canada, including the richest, pay their fair share. But Canadians have been waiting too long for that simple and fair fix.
- Cory Coleman reports on Regina's sharp increase in homelessness as a result of Scott Moe's decision to slash housing funding. And Philip Inman discusses how increased land values in the UK are enriching current owners while leaving everybody else behind.
- Finally, Brent Patterson calls out the dishonesty behind the Trudeau Libs' attempt to tie modest climate change policies to the publicly-funded expansion of fossil fuel infrastructure. Peter Tertzakian discusses some of the implications of a world in which clean energy is no longer scarce - though it's worth noting the additional result that investments based on seeking rents from tight markets for oil and other energy will lose any prospective upside. And Guy Dauncey sets out a few of the climate change options which might make a meaningful difference in saving a livable environment.
Friday, August 31, 2018
Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week.
- Joseph Stiglitz writes that history has proven wrong the theory that the weak recovery from the 2008 economic crash was the result of "secular stagnation" rather than a woefully insufficient public policy response. And Sam Pizzigati points out how the U.S. public is picking up the bill for obscene executive pay rather than seeing public money used for beneficial purposes.
- Thomas Walkom points out the futility of signing trade deals with unreliable partners. And Theophilis Argitis observes that there's been no reality to past threats about the consequences of failing to follow Donald Trump's regressive economic policies.
- Oliver Milman reports on California's move toward 100% clean electricity, signalling how forward-looking jurisdictions are planning their energy futures.
- Rick Smith discusses how the defence of democratic decision-making has become a genuinely controversial issue in the face of right-wing politicians increasingly determined to warp electoral systems and public institutions to exclude any other voices. And Linda McQuaig notes that Doug Ford has picked up a class war on behalf of the rich where Mike Harris left off.
- Finally, Luke Savage highlights the need to properly define and apply the concept of populism, rather than using it as a shorthand which simultaneously dismisses legitimate criticisms of the status quo and reinforces misleading messages:
- Joseph Stiglitz writes that history has proven wrong the theory that the weak recovery from the 2008 economic crash was the result of "secular stagnation" rather than a woefully insufficient public policy response. And Sam Pizzigati points out how the U.S. public is picking up the bill for obscene executive pay rather than seeing public money used for beneficial purposes.
- Thomas Walkom points out the futility of signing trade deals with unreliable partners. And Theophilis Argitis observes that there's been no reality to past threats about the consequences of failing to follow Donald Trump's regressive economic policies.
- Oliver Milman reports on California's move toward 100% clean electricity, signalling how forward-looking jurisdictions are planning their energy futures.
- Rick Smith discusses how the defence of democratic decision-making has become a genuinely controversial issue in the face of right-wing politicians increasingly determined to warp electoral systems and public institutions to exclude any other voices. And Linda McQuaig notes that Doug Ford has picked up a class war on behalf of the rich where Mike Harris left off.
- Finally, Luke Savage highlights the need to properly define and apply the concept of populism, rather than using it as a shorthand which simultaneously dismisses legitimate criticisms of the status quo and reinforces misleading messages:
(T)he label’s almost uniformly negative connotation has created a parochial shorthand by which any serious critic of the status quo can be summarily dismissed regardless of their actual analysis or their ultimate political demands (whether you favour them or not, calls for tuition-free universities or universal social programs are categorically not equivalent to closed borders or fear-mongering about immigration). For another, it often has a way of needlessly glamorizing political behaviour that is, in fact, quite traditional. Is Doug Ford, for example, really a populist or is he just the scion of an entrenched political dynasty who’s cavalier with the truth and likes to say “folks” so much that people forget he’s a multimillionaire? Let’s avoid ascribing some ethereal mystique to good old-fashioned political posturing or demagogy. But finally, and most straightforwardly, incoherence is generally harmful for democracy—when people go to vote, we presumably would like them to have some idea of what they’re actually voting for, and not all populisms are created equal.[Edit: fixed typo.]
...
(I)n its contemporary usage, populism seems to be more of a floating signifier than something that usefully connotes a specific ideology, tendency, or political project. True, antiestablishment posture seems a common thread in these examples. But establishment and elites are themselves quite mutable terms and refer to completely different groups and institutions depending on who you ask. Are “elites” and members of the “establishment” state bureaucrats? Academics? The media? Corporate CEOs? People who prefer a glass of sherry to a pint of beer or happen to live in a major metropolitan area near the coast? The various individuals, parties, and movements cited above would likely offer very different answers.
...
As fashionable as it has become, then, the populist label may only be useful in a broad, aesthetic sense, and even then its value may be limited. Unhelpfully, it often grafts an aura of novelty on to well-worn ideological divides and, in the process, puts completely disparate politicians and movements into the same box. In trying to interpret various movements of the left and right, let us stop conflating a political style with a distinctive ideology.
Thursday, August 30, 2018
New column day
Here, on the Saskatchewan Party's continued disregard for municipalities and other localized forms of governance - not to mention good government in general.
For further reading...
- Cory Coleman reports on the unanimous vote of Regina's City Council to stop corporate intrusion into Wascana Park.
- The Star-Phoenix and Leader-Post editorial boards criticized the Saskatchewan Party government's musings about moving municipal elections to suit Scott Moe's political schedule.
- Finally, D.C. Fraser reports on yet another combination of meddling and anti-accountability measures, as the employees who served as the public face of the province's attacks on the Justice for Our Stolen Children camp have been shuffled elsewhere.
[Edit: updated link.]
For further reading...
- Cory Coleman reports on the unanimous vote of Regina's City Council to stop corporate intrusion into Wascana Park.
- The Star-Phoenix and Leader-Post editorial boards criticized the Saskatchewan Party government's musings about moving municipal elections to suit Scott Moe's political schedule.
- Finally, D.C. Fraser reports on yet another combination of meddling and anti-accountability measures, as the employees who served as the public face of the province's attacks on the Justice for Our Stolen Children camp have been shuffled elsewhere.
[Edit: updated link.]
Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading.
- Christo Aivalis discusses the future of organized labour and the need for workplace democracy in an era of increased automation:
- Maude Barlow and Sujata Dey offer a reminder that Canada can do just fine without NAFTA. Jerry Dias implores the Trudeau government to be willing to walk away from NAFTA negotiations if the Trump administration is being as reckless and heavy-handed as it appears. And Brent Patterson wonders whether an even worse NAFTA might serve as the impetus for a more fundamental challenge to elite-driven capitalism.
- Carlyn Zwarenstein writes about the value of harm reduction as a response to addictions issues. And Liam Britten reports that in keeping with its stellar early returns in managing British Columbia's public resources, John Horgan's government is suing opioid manufacturers for their harm maximization model of drug distribution.
- Finally, Bashir Mohamed highlights why birthright citizenship - and the associated recognition that no person should be treated as illegal or without status - is important for all Canadians.
- Christo Aivalis discusses the future of organized labour and the need for workplace democracy in an era of increased automation:
New organizing models and shorter workdays are both viable solutions to address the struggles of encroaching automation, but neither strike to the heart of the matter that AI exposes. In our current capitalist system, the politics of automation are inherently adversarial, because while productivity increases and cost savings are consistently sought by owners, managers, and shareholders, the workers themselves don’t want to be displaced from the job that provides them their livelihood. Historically, many workers and socialists have acknowledged the immense social value automative processes have had in eliminating the most tedious and dangerous of jobs, meaning that we can shift our human resources in more productive and fulfilling directions. But automation driven primarily by profit motives serves to further concentrate power and wealth, making our society more unequal, and our democracy more imperilled. Even things like the basic income guarantee may fail to solve this issue, because putting the masses of people on mere subsistence incomes while an increasingly small number of owners and technical workers reap riches is more likely to lead to Elysium than to a just society.- Wojciech Keblowski makes the case to abolish fares for transit to maximize the public good it can achieve. And Ricardo Tranjan discusses the crucial role of public service employment as a matter of both economic and social development.
So the rise of AI may well provide the conditions for a reinvigorated challenge to capitalism. Unions must not only bargain for better wages and conditions, but must push for mechanisms that give workers greater say in the direction of their workplaces, and a greater share of the value derived from actions which have traditionally served to unemploy them. But beyond bargaining, labour must align with politicians seeking to democratize workplaces and the wider economy by increasing the proportion of our economy owned not by capitalists, but by cooperatives and the public. If we are indeed at the precipice of a new industrial era, the only way to ensure 90 per cent or more of the population isn’t permanently marginalized from economic life is to demand that our democratic levers extend into the operation of industry. Put another way: in the automated age, democracy will need socialism.
- Maude Barlow and Sujata Dey offer a reminder that Canada can do just fine without NAFTA. Jerry Dias implores the Trudeau government to be willing to walk away from NAFTA negotiations if the Trump administration is being as reckless and heavy-handed as it appears. And Brent Patterson wonders whether an even worse NAFTA might serve as the impetus for a more fundamental challenge to elite-driven capitalism.
- Carlyn Zwarenstein writes about the value of harm reduction as a response to addictions issues. And Liam Britten reports that in keeping with its stellar early returns in managing British Columbia's public resources, John Horgan's government is suing opioid manufacturers for their harm maximization model of drug distribution.
- Finally, Bashir Mohamed highlights why birthright citizenship - and the associated recognition that no person should be treated as illegal or without status - is important for all Canadians.
Wednesday, August 29, 2018
Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.
- Matt Bruenig makes the case for a social wealth fund in the U.S. And David Dayen offers a reminder that Alaska's dividend to citizens from its own wealth fund is both extremely popular and an effective treatment for many social ills.
- Meanwhile, Noah Zon and Hannah Aldridge point out (PDF) that lone-parent families continue to account for a high concentration of family and child poverty in Canada.
- Nicola Davis discusses the connection between climate change and nutrient deficiencies, while Pedro Nicolaci da Costa reports on new research showing how climate change may do far more damage to the U.S.' economy than previously assumed. Dana Nuccitelli points out that Donald Trump's attempt to do as little as possible to regulate greenhouse gas emissions will lead to large-scale health problems due to increases in other forms of pollution. And the Associated Press reports on the resignation of French environment minister Nicolas Hulot due to his refusal to serve as cover for a government unwilling to take action proportionate to environmental imperatives.
- Andre Picard cautions against any overreaction to a new study showing that alcohol has some negative health effects at any usage levels, noting that a public health approach which allows for moderate use represents the appropriate response to many kinds of potentially risky recreational behaviours.
- Finally, David Reevely notes that Tesla's quick win in court against the ill-thought-out cancellation of electric car rebates represents a prime example of the dangers of governing without thought.
- Matt Bruenig makes the case for a social wealth fund in the U.S. And David Dayen offers a reminder that Alaska's dividend to citizens from its own wealth fund is both extremely popular and an effective treatment for many social ills.
- Meanwhile, Noah Zon and Hannah Aldridge point out (PDF) that lone-parent families continue to account for a high concentration of family and child poverty in Canada.
- Nicola Davis discusses the connection between climate change and nutrient deficiencies, while Pedro Nicolaci da Costa reports on new research showing how climate change may do far more damage to the U.S.' economy than previously assumed. Dana Nuccitelli points out that Donald Trump's attempt to do as little as possible to regulate greenhouse gas emissions will lead to large-scale health problems due to increases in other forms of pollution. And the Associated Press reports on the resignation of French environment minister Nicolas Hulot due to his refusal to serve as cover for a government unwilling to take action proportionate to environmental imperatives.
- Andre Picard cautions against any overreaction to a new study showing that alcohol has some negative health effects at any usage levels, noting that a public health approach which allows for moderate use represents the appropriate response to many kinds of potentially risky recreational behaviours.
- Finally, David Reevely notes that Tesla's quick win in court against the ill-thought-out cancellation of electric car rebates represents a prime example of the dangers of governing without thought.
Tuesday, August 28, 2018
Tuesday Morning Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading.
- Duncan Cameron writes that the Libs' anti-poverty "strategy" really isn't about much more than spin. And Katherine Scott asks when we'll see something which actually reduces poverty rather than merely taking one more step in measuring it.
- Bill Curry points out that contrary to the Libs' homilies to tax fairness, the highest-income Canadians actually paid less in taxes in 2016 than the previous year - confirming that there's far more work to do in making the tax system more progressive. And Noah Smith discusses the U.S.' predictable discovery that lower capital gains taxes lead only to more wealth for the rich.
- Richard Partington reports on calls for the UK to stop relying on land speculation as a substitute for actual economic growth. And Emily Lazatin and Simon Little examine new polling showing Vancouver renters hoping for a real estate crash to make desperately-needed housing more affordable.
- Carla Green reports on the apocalyptic threat climate change poses to California. Damian Carrington and Lily Kuo report on new research showing the developmental damage done by air pollution. And Judith Marshall points out the similarities between tailing point spills in British Columbia and Mexico, while James Wilt notes that the public stands to be stuck with a massive bill for reclamation if Imperial Metals goes bankrupt.
- Finally, Paula Simons writes that the only real threat to Canada's identity as a country where everybody is welcome arises from the Cons' attempt to import Donald Trump's xenophobia.
- Duncan Cameron writes that the Libs' anti-poverty "strategy" really isn't about much more than spin. And Katherine Scott asks when we'll see something which actually reduces poverty rather than merely taking one more step in measuring it.
- Bill Curry points out that contrary to the Libs' homilies to tax fairness, the highest-income Canadians actually paid less in taxes in 2016 than the previous year - confirming that there's far more work to do in making the tax system more progressive. And Noah Smith discusses the U.S.' predictable discovery that lower capital gains taxes lead only to more wealth for the rich.
- Richard Partington reports on calls for the UK to stop relying on land speculation as a substitute for actual economic growth. And Emily Lazatin and Simon Little examine new polling showing Vancouver renters hoping for a real estate crash to make desperately-needed housing more affordable.
- Carla Green reports on the apocalyptic threat climate change poses to California. Damian Carrington and Lily Kuo report on new research showing the developmental damage done by air pollution. And Judith Marshall points out the similarities between tailing point spills in British Columbia and Mexico, while James Wilt notes that the public stands to be stuck with a massive bill for reclamation if Imperial Metals goes bankrupt.
- Finally, Paula Simons writes that the only real threat to Canada's identity as a country where everybody is welcome arises from the Cons' attempt to import Donald Trump's xenophobia.
Monday, August 27, 2018
Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material to start your week.
- Arno Kopecky points out that new highs in nominal standards of living around the globe are being paired with unprecedented environmental damage which puts our future at risk. And Laila Yuile responds to John Horgan's version of the line that any smaller jurisdiction can avoid responsibility for the planet by minimizing its contribution to a collective action problem.
- Don Lenihan asks whether "polarizing" political developments are doomed to fail - though the example of a carbon tax seems like an odd one, as it drew support from across the political spectrum (including being implemented by B.C.'s right-wing Libs) before attacks became incorporated into the core message of the Cons and their provincial cousins.
- Arif Jetha discusses how precarity is harmful to workers’ health. And Michael Mendelson offers a reminder that complex rules and stringent requirements around social benefits lead to worse outcomes for both recipients and governments.
- Tom Parkin notes that the Libs are trying to paper over a failure to keep their infrastructure promises by repackaging planned projects through the high-cost privatized infrastructure bank. And Mairin Prentiss reports on the Libs’ outsourcing of military cleaning work.
- Finally, Owen Jones comments on how the UK’s oligarch-controlled media has distorted public impressions and stacked the political deck in favour of the right.
- Arno Kopecky points out that new highs in nominal standards of living around the globe are being paired with unprecedented environmental damage which puts our future at risk. And Laila Yuile responds to John Horgan's version of the line that any smaller jurisdiction can avoid responsibility for the planet by minimizing its contribution to a collective action problem.
- Don Lenihan asks whether "polarizing" political developments are doomed to fail - though the example of a carbon tax seems like an odd one, as it drew support from across the political spectrum (including being implemented by B.C.'s right-wing Libs) before attacks became incorporated into the core message of the Cons and their provincial cousins.
- Arif Jetha discusses how precarity is harmful to workers’ health. And Michael Mendelson offers a reminder that complex rules and stringent requirements around social benefits lead to worse outcomes for both recipients and governments.
- Tom Parkin notes that the Libs are trying to paper over a failure to keep their infrastructure promises by repackaging planned projects through the high-cost privatized infrastructure bank. And Mairin Prentiss reports on the Libs’ outsourcing of military cleaning work.
- Finally, Owen Jones comments on how the UK’s oligarch-controlled media has distorted public impressions and stacked the political deck in favour of the right.
Sunday, August 26, 2018
Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading.
- Emma Paling discusses how the security of a basic income provides the opportunity to escape an abusive relationship. And Jim Stanford collects four views of a basic income from Australia, including this (PDF) from Ben Spies-Butcher:
- Jesse Eisinger writes that there may be a reason why the authors of extensive criminal activity around Donald Trump expected to avoid answering for their actions, as it's only the increased scrutiny of the political context that's led to the investigation of the type of white-collar crime which all too often goes unaddressed.
- Finally, Christo Aivalis examines some of the aftereffects of Maxime Bernier's announcement of a new, hard-right federal party. And Brent Patterson highlights the need for a serious response to Bernier's move to tap into the xenophobic sentiment that's done so much harm in other developed countries.
- Emma Paling discusses how the security of a basic income provides the opportunity to escape an abusive relationship. And Jim Stanford collects four views of a basic income from Australia, including this (PDF) from Ben Spies-Butcher:
There are two broad ways that politicians talk about welfare and social services that create these very different dynamics. One way is to tell a story of shared need. We all get sick, we all need Medicare. We all get old, we all need the pension. Those needs are often experienced differently. Some people get sick more than others. But the story focuses on what we have in common, and the policy is designed to emphasise what unites us. This creates a politics of universalism, and it does so even when the policy isn’t technically universal. In fact, there is little genuinely universal about Australia’s social policy; the pension sits next to super, Medicare next to subsidies for private health insurance. But the politics of these programs is based on a story of shared need, and so powerful is that story that even governments that initially opposed Medicare now legislate to retain it, and both sides of politics feel compelled to defend the pension.- The Equality Trust introduces its push for an Ownership Charter toward a more democratic economy in the UK.
The other story is one of rule following and deservingness, and ultimately of division. We can see it most obviously with immigration. Our expensive, unaccountable and inhumane system of offshore detention is the end result a form of ‘wedge politics’ based on showing how some people are deserving and others are not. The logic of ‘queue jumping’ mirrors the logic of breaching and quarantining for Newstart – it suggests there is a legitimate way to behave to access help, and if you do not behave that way you are cheating the system and should be refused. Conditionality is thus the cornerstone of wedge politics, it is the mechanism both to ‘test’ deservingness and to demonstrate to the public the importance of recipients being deserving. Of course, in both cases the very mechanismsthat are overtly designed to ‘test’ deservingness ultimately cause everyone to fail. In the public’s mind all refugees are suspect, and all those on Newstart are stigmatised.
It has been a very long time since progressives have won a debate about wedge politics. Victories are much more likely when campaigns reframe their goals in the language of universalism – as in ‘marriage equality’ and ‘love is love’. Of course, income payments are not the only way to reduce inequality and establish dignity. Decent jobs and social services are also important. Basic income is not a magic bullet, and when it is pitched as a retreat from those claims, as cheaper than public services or a safety net for mass unemployment, it is clearly not a progressive claim at all. But in the world we have, income is a basic social need – like health, education and housing – and income from employment is not guaranteed. In the short run, at least, it is an essential part of any progressive vision.
- Jesse Eisinger writes that there may be a reason why the authors of extensive criminal activity around Donald Trump expected to avoid answering for their actions, as it's only the increased scrutiny of the political context that's led to the investigation of the type of white-collar crime which all too often goes unaddressed.
- Finally, Christo Aivalis examines some of the aftereffects of Maxime Bernier's announcement of a new, hard-right federal party. And Brent Patterson highlights the need for a serious response to Bernier's move to tap into the xenophobic sentiment that's done so much harm in other developed countries.
Saturday, August 25, 2018
Saturday Morning Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading.
- Melissa Benn discusses how private schools entrench a class divide within a generation - and argues that they should be eliminated in favour of an inclusive education system:
- Karri Munn-Venn makes the case for a federal budget which focuses on people's well-being, not merely GDP and profits. Gideon Resnick reports on Bernie Sanders' proposal to tax large employers who rely on social benefits to make up for their failure to pay a living wage. And David Olive offers a reminder of the tangible benefits of minimum wage increases.
- Meanwhile, Maya Bhullar talks to Hazel Corcoran the role workers' co-operatives can play in building a diverse economy with shared benefits.
- Finally, the New York Times' editorial board examines how harm reduction strategies are reducing the number of opioid-related deaths at the state level.
- Melissa Benn discusses how private schools entrench a class divide within a generation - and argues that they should be eliminated in favour of an inclusive education system:
(W)e urgently need to renew the conversation about the private-public divide, and move beyond the superficial, profoundly apolitical debates of recent years. These have chiefly been characterised by the rolling out of the same information again and again, almost as if the private schools were not human creations but unchallengeable phenomena like the weather or religious deities. Over and over we are told: private schools achieve higher results; their graduates vacuum up the majority of places at the best universities; they take all the top jobs; they dominate the top of society. There is, as a result, a continual stirring up (with the liberal help of a few capital letters) of resentment, envy and panic – “Private pupils are SIX TIMES more likely to get A* grades at GCSEs than those at state schools”; “A third of private pupils score 3 A* grades at A-level compared to one in TEN at state schools” – finely seasoned with a good dollop of hopelessness: “The awful truth: to get ahead you need a private education.”- And the BBC reports on Scotland's new policy making sanitary products available for free to students in order to remove one obvious drain on students' limited resources.
...
If we are to move the conversation on, then, we need to be clear that the success of private education is not replicable precisely because it offers the already socially and economically privileged superior resources and opportunities that inevitably augment their confidence and capabilities in every sphere. Private day schools now cost, on average, £14,500 a year – more than the annual disposable income of the average English family. Boarding is a great deal more costly. The annual fees of a top private school such as Westminster, which sends more students to Oxbridge than any other school in the country, are around £35,000 a year for boarders. Compare this with the average per-pupil spend in a state secondary school of between £4,000 and £6,000 a year. But the difference is not only in simple resources, for the spread of pupils at many state schools will include those from deprived or struggling families, compounding the pressures on their education and those who teach them, while a private school is in general recruiting from the already affluent, literate and enterprising. Thus, we need to publicly acknowledge that the success of private education is far less to do with character building or autonomous governance than the powerful alchemy of several kinds of advantage.
Now, more than ever, there is a strong moral and political argument in support of integration. At a time of growing divides and damaging inequality, we urgently need public institutions that bring the nation together, not further separate and divide us. For many in the UK, the idea of a unified education system to which all subscribe is too great a leap of the imagination, too daring a proposition – and yet the benefits of a common schooling could be immense.
Finland teaches us not only that state education will never be considered truly first-rate until we give all our children the same high-quality schooling, but also that a country that educates its children together has a better chance of being at ease with itself than one that segregates different parts of the population from an early age.
- Karri Munn-Venn makes the case for a federal budget which focuses on people's well-being, not merely GDP and profits. Gideon Resnick reports on Bernie Sanders' proposal to tax large employers who rely on social benefits to make up for their failure to pay a living wage. And David Olive offers a reminder of the tangible benefits of minimum wage increases.
- Meanwhile, Maya Bhullar talks to Hazel Corcoran the role workers' co-operatives can play in building a diverse economy with shared benefits.
- Finally, the New York Times' editorial board examines how harm reduction strategies are reducing the number of opioid-related deaths at the state level.
Friday, August 24, 2018
Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week.
- Jesse McLaren and Kate Hayman discuss how better treatment of workers can reduce the strain on a province's health care system:
- Eric Holthaus discusses the new generation of climate activists which has never known the issue as anything but an imminent existential threat. Clare Hennig points out the problems with treating climate conditions which are still subject to substantial change in both directions as a "new normal". And Jon Queally reports on the gall of the fossil fuel sector in demanding handouts to protect against the rising sea levels caused by its carbon pollution.
- Finally, Nikolas Barry-Shaw highlights just the latest poll showing that Quebecers don't share the obsession of their political class with discriminatory identity politics.
- Jesse McLaren and Kate Hayman discuss how better treatment of workers can reduce the strain on a province's health care system:
As front-line health-care providers we urge the premier to follow the Hippocratic principle, “first, do no harm,” and to not intervene to stop the $15 per hour minimum wage and paid personal emergency leave days.- Samantha Marcus reports on New Jersey's new legislation allowing striking workers to access unemployment benefits - a development arising out of the mistreatment of telecommunications workers. And Erica Johnson reports on the latest revelations as to how employees in similar positions at Bell and Rogers have been expected to pressure customers.
If Ford is interested in ending hallway medicine, he should support policies that prevent people from getting sick in the first place: a higher minimum wage, and paid personal emergency leave days for all Ontarians.
Low wages prevent people from accessing healthy food, safe shelter, and filling their prescriptions. According to a study by the Canadian Medical Association Journal, 1-in-10 Canadians can’t afford to fill or renew their prescriptions, and this rises to a third for low-income families. When patients can’t afford to preserve their health and take their medicine, they often end up in hospital.
Until this year, the situation was even worse for Ontarians without paid personal emergency leave days. The seemingly obvious medical advice to “stay home when you’re sick” is impossible for those who can’t afford to.
...
When it comes to labour policy, all the premier has to do to start supporting the people and help end hallway medicine is … nothing. Let the minimum wage increase, and protect access to paid personal emergency leave days.
Backtracking on legislation designed with input from health providers, public health experts, and economists will only hurt vulnerable Ontarians and our health-care system.
- Eric Holthaus discusses the new generation of climate activists which has never known the issue as anything but an imminent existential threat. Clare Hennig points out the problems with treating climate conditions which are still subject to substantial change in both directions as a "new normal". And Jon Queally reports on the gall of the fossil fuel sector in demanding handouts to protect against the rising sea levels caused by its carbon pollution.
- Finally, Nikolas Barry-Shaw highlights just the latest poll showing that Quebecers don't share the obsession of their political class with discriminatory identity politics.
Thursday, August 23, 2018
New column day
Here, on how the Libs' national poverty reduction strategy manages to aim low yet still set us up for failure on its own terms.
For further reading...
- CTV interviews Trish Garner about what's missing from the Libs' plan. Community Food Centres Canada discusses the danger that a vague and unfunded plan will be used as an excuse for inaction. And the Maytree Foundation is more optimistic, but also notes the need to move from aspirations to rights and actions.
- Matthew Johnson discusses how a basic income could significantly reduce work-related stress, while James Mulvale laments the end of Ontario's pilot project.
- Finally, Nima Maleki writes about the inherent moral implications of our policy choices - and the reality that the continuation of poverty comes from a failure to properly distribute what's already more than sufficient wealth.
For further reading...
- CTV interviews Trish Garner about what's missing from the Libs' plan. Community Food Centres Canada discusses the danger that a vague and unfunded plan will be used as an excuse for inaction. And the Maytree Foundation is more optimistic, but also notes the need to move from aspirations to rights and actions.
- Matthew Johnson discusses how a basic income could significantly reduce work-related stress, while James Mulvale laments the end of Ontario's pilot project.
- Finally, Nima Maleki writes about the inherent moral implications of our policy choices - and the reality that the continuation of poverty comes from a failure to properly distribute what's already more than sufficient wealth.
Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading.
- Simon Wren-Lewis discusses how media negligence allowed austerian economics to be treated as credible long after any pretense of academic merit has been debunked.
- Kevin Milligan and Tammy Schirle examine the relationship between income and life expectancy in Canada - featuring both the comparatively good news that we haven't seen a U.S.-style increase in the disparity between high and low incomes, and the reality that the preexisting gap also hasn't been reduced.
- Meanwhile, Joan Grant comments on the growing housing gap in the UK, as homeowners have become wealthier while housing has become ever less accessible for renters.
- Bethany Hastie and Daniel Mare identify a few simple changes to ensure British Columbians in precarious work are able to exercise their freedom of association and improve their working conditions. And Celine McNicholas, Samantha Sanders and Heidi Shierholz offer their set of suggestions to bolster workers' rights south of the border.
- Emily Atkin points out the need for a sea change in our transportation infrastructure as part of any meaningful effort to rein in greenhouse gas emissions. But the Canadian Press reports that the Trudeau Libs' main priority is instead to ensure that public spending on transit comes at the price of interest payments to private investors.
- Finally, Eli Day writes about a long-overdue movement to ensure that U.S. prisoners - along with anybody else with a stake in public policy - are able to exercise their right to vote.
- Simon Wren-Lewis discusses how media negligence allowed austerian economics to be treated as credible long after any pretense of academic merit has been debunked.
- Kevin Milligan and Tammy Schirle examine the relationship between income and life expectancy in Canada - featuring both the comparatively good news that we haven't seen a U.S.-style increase in the disparity between high and low incomes, and the reality that the preexisting gap also hasn't been reduced.
- Meanwhile, Joan Grant comments on the growing housing gap in the UK, as homeowners have become wealthier while housing has become ever less accessible for renters.
- Bethany Hastie and Daniel Mare identify a few simple changes to ensure British Columbians in precarious work are able to exercise their freedom of association and improve their working conditions. And Celine McNicholas, Samantha Sanders and Heidi Shierholz offer their set of suggestions to bolster workers' rights south of the border.
- Emily Atkin points out the need for a sea change in our transportation infrastructure as part of any meaningful effort to rein in greenhouse gas emissions. But the Canadian Press reports that the Trudeau Libs' main priority is instead to ensure that public spending on transit comes at the price of interest payments to private investors.
- Finally, Eli Day writes about a long-overdue movement to ensure that U.S. prisoners - along with anybody else with a stake in public policy - are able to exercise their right to vote.
Wednesday, August 22, 2018
Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.
- Ajit Zacharias, Thomas Masterson and Fernando Rios-Avila study the economic well-being of U.S. households, and find a stagnant standard of living including a falling base income for the median family. Josh Bivens and Ben Zipperer confirm that in the past few decades, workers have only seen meaningful wage gains at the end of extended periods of low unemployment - meaning they're the last to benefit from economic growth. And Craig Chamberlain highlights new research showing how stronger unions benefit all kinds of workers.
- Danny Dorling points out how the UK is seeing tens of thousands of "excess deaths" this year - and how the Conservative government isn't even willing to acknowledge a problem.
- Patrick Collinson reports on landlords' discrimination against people who receive housing benefits in the UK.
- Meagan Day makes the case for a publicly-owned bank to ensure that needed financial services are available and affordable for everybody.
- Finally, Alejandra Bravo writes about the need to treat Doug Ford's attacks on democracy as a reason to organize, rather than allowing him to breed public apathy and resignation.
- Ajit Zacharias, Thomas Masterson and Fernando Rios-Avila study the economic well-being of U.S. households, and find a stagnant standard of living including a falling base income for the median family. Josh Bivens and Ben Zipperer confirm that in the past few decades, workers have only seen meaningful wage gains at the end of extended periods of low unemployment - meaning they're the last to benefit from economic growth. And Craig Chamberlain highlights new research showing how stronger unions benefit all kinds of workers.
- Danny Dorling points out how the UK is seeing tens of thousands of "excess deaths" this year - and how the Conservative government isn't even willing to acknowledge a problem.
- Patrick Collinson reports on landlords' discrimination against people who receive housing benefits in the UK.
- Meagan Day makes the case for a publicly-owned bank to ensure that needed financial services are available and affordable for everybody.
- Finally, Alejandra Bravo writes about the need to treat Doug Ford's attacks on democracy as a reason to organize, rather than allowing him to breed public apathy and resignation.
Tuesday, August 21, 2018
Tuesday Evening Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading.
- Gary Mason discusses how politicians are fiddling while our planet burns. And Jonathan Watts reports on the strongest sea ice in the Arctic breaking up for the first time in recorded history, as well as the likelihood that Arctic warming bears part of the blame for exceptionally hot summer weather getting "stuck" elsewhere.
- CBC News reports on the Libs' choice to set unambitious poverty reduction targets - yet also positioning themselves to fail by refusing to commit a single nickel to the cause in the next dozen years. And PressAssociation takes note of new research from the UK showing that a family with two minimum-wage earners will still fall short of a bare minimum "no frills" lifestyle, while Caitlin Morrison reports on the explosion of household debt that's temporarily papering over insufficient wages.
- Trish Hennessy and Ricardo Tranjan point out that skilled professionals are vulnerable to the forces causing precarity and economic insecurity.
- Seth Klein and Vyas Saran make the case for electoral reform in British Columbia:
- Gary Mason discusses how politicians are fiddling while our planet burns. And Jonathan Watts reports on the strongest sea ice in the Arctic breaking up for the first time in recorded history, as well as the likelihood that Arctic warming bears part of the blame for exceptionally hot summer weather getting "stuck" elsewhere.
- CBC News reports on the Libs' choice to set unambitious poverty reduction targets - yet also positioning themselves to fail by refusing to commit a single nickel to the cause in the next dozen years. And PressAssociation takes note of new research from the UK showing that a family with two minimum-wage earners will still fall short of a bare minimum "no frills" lifestyle, while Caitlin Morrison reports on the explosion of household debt that's temporarily papering over insufficient wages.
- Trish Hennessy and Ricardo Tranjan point out that skilled professionals are vulnerable to the forces causing precarity and economic insecurity.
- Seth Klein and Vyas Saran make the case for electoral reform in British Columbia:
Our current two-party system narrows our political choices and limits our discourse, discouraging bold and long-lasting policies. FPTP can only reflect so many viewpoints in the rooms where policies, laws and other important decisions are made—and what does get through tends to be heavily shaped by elite interests, if not catering to them outright. When we limit our capacity to consider a wider range of views and evidence, it takes years to address serious issues like climate change and unaffordable housing, and change only happens when we’re deep in crisis-mode, if at all.- Finally, Travis Lupick offers a simple reminder that the elimination of supervised injection sites will result in people dying.
British Columbians cannot afford to wait until we are unbearably deep in poverty, priced out of our cities, and experiencing the full impact of climate change for our representatives to take action.
Sunday, August 19, 2018
Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading.
- Linda Solomon Wood comments on the absurdity of the federal cabinet meeting in a province facing rampant wildfires and not planning to utter a word about climate change. Will Steffen discusses how environmental feedback loops may make inaction even more costly and dangerous than previously assumed.
- Joe Romm examines how fracking is poisoning U.S. water supplies - particularly where they're already the most scarce. And Sarah Rieger reports on the prospect that Alberta may soon be facing perpetual drought conditions.
- Perrin Grauer offers a reminder that the people who have the least will be hurt the most by extreme weather and other consequences of climate change. And Amy Walker notes that in a similar vein, cust to public transportation have their most severe effect on people facing a gap between where work is available and where housing is affordable.
- Meanwhile, Richard Newell and Daniel Raimi point out that the growth in renewable energy has thus far served to supplement rather than replace dirty energy - signalling that an "all of the above" approach will do nothing to drive a needed transition from fossil fuels to renewables.
- Finally, Gabor Mate discusses the need to treat drug use as part of the human condition, not a basis to exclude and ostracize users.
- Linda Solomon Wood comments on the absurdity of the federal cabinet meeting in a province facing rampant wildfires and not planning to utter a word about climate change. Will Steffen discusses how environmental feedback loops may make inaction even more costly and dangerous than previously assumed.
- Joe Romm examines how fracking is poisoning U.S. water supplies - particularly where they're already the most scarce. And Sarah Rieger reports on the prospect that Alberta may soon be facing perpetual drought conditions.
- Perrin Grauer offers a reminder that the people who have the least will be hurt the most by extreme weather and other consequences of climate change. And Amy Walker notes that in a similar vein, cust to public transportation have their most severe effect on people facing a gap between where work is available and where housing is affordable.
- Meanwhile, Richard Newell and Daniel Raimi point out that the growth in renewable energy has thus far served to supplement rather than replace dirty energy - signalling that an "all of the above" approach will do nothing to drive a needed transition from fossil fuels to renewables.
- Finally, Gabor Mate discusses the need to treat drug use as part of the human condition, not a basis to exclude and ostracize users.
Saturday, August 18, 2018
Saturday Afternoon Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading.
- Paul Taylor argues that it's long past time for our leaders to take poverty and food insecurity seriously:
- Naomi Lakritz rightly challenges the anti-worker spin that price increases are caused to any substantial extent by improved minimum wages - and notes that to the contrary, government policy is needed for workers to keep up with prices which tend to press upward in any event.
- Paul Willcocks writes about the need for a public response to Skip the Dishes and other business built on skirting employment laws.
- Finally, Anya Zoledziowski reports on the reality that the recent reports of blatant racism in Cardston, AB only reflect new attention to a longstanding reality.
- Paul Taylor argues that it's long past time for our leaders to take poverty and food insecurity seriously:
While nonprofits do incredible work, I can’t think of many that can truly claim to be reducing poverty. Why? Because, while non-profit organizations, such as FoodShare Toronto and others, do everything we can to support people access good food, we do not have the power to set welfare and disability rates or minimum wage. We need politicians willing to commit to working with us to dismantle systemic inequities in our society, including racism, white supremacy, the policing of people of colour, violence against women, and of course income inequality.- But in a sad example of how far the Saskatchewan Party is from the mark, Lynn Giesbrecht reports on Carmichael Outreach's call for tents to try to provide some temporary relief against the a lack of affordable housing which Scott Moe has chosen to make worse. And this even as U.S. health insurers are beginning to provide housing directly because it costs less than dealing with only the health expenses arising out of homelessness.
Governments have at their disposal the tools to develop meaningful legislation that honours food as a right. Poverty and food insecurity are not inevitable. It’s time for us to put them where they belong — in our history books.
- Naomi Lakritz rightly challenges the anti-worker spin that price increases are caused to any substantial extent by improved minimum wages - and notes that to the contrary, government policy is needed for workers to keep up with prices which tend to press upward in any event.
- Paul Willcocks writes about the need for a public response to Skip the Dishes and other business built on skirting employment laws.
- Finally, Anya Zoledziowski reports on the reality that the recent reports of blatant racism in Cardston, AB only reflect new attention to a longstanding reality.
Friday, August 17, 2018
Friday Evening Links
Assorted content to end your week.
- A new IMF working paper confirms the connection between employment deregulation and workers' share of income. And Jennefer Laidley points out the all-too-imminent danger that the Ontario PCs are about to undo what little belated progress had been made in making social assistance more effective, while Teviah Moro notes that social housing is bearing the brunt of cuts linked to Doug Ford's denial-based climate change policy.
- Dean Beeby reports on a new survey showing that Canada Revenue Agency employees are as concerned as the general public about a tax system that favours the rich over everybody else. And Alex Hemingway offers this year's customary rebuttal of the Fraser Institute's oft-debunked spin on taxes.
- The Globe and Mail's editorial board recognizes that Doug Ford's attack on harm reduction in the name of nonexistent controversy about its impact on health outcomes will lead only to preventable deaths. And the Stoney Creek News explores the public health harms which can be expected to result from artificial reductions in alcohol prices.
- Lucius Couloute examines the close link between past incarceration and present-day homelessness in the U.S.
- Finally, Charlie Angus calls out John Baird for using his former role in government as an excuse to make money for his Saudi-connected employer. But it's worth being surprised that any former member of Stephen Harper's cabinet is managing to be an even more unprincipled shill after leaving that role.
- A new IMF working paper confirms the connection between employment deregulation and workers' share of income. And Jennefer Laidley points out the all-too-imminent danger that the Ontario PCs are about to undo what little belated progress had been made in making social assistance more effective, while Teviah Moro notes that social housing is bearing the brunt of cuts linked to Doug Ford's denial-based climate change policy.
- Dean Beeby reports on a new survey showing that Canada Revenue Agency employees are as concerned as the general public about a tax system that favours the rich over everybody else. And Alex Hemingway offers this year's customary rebuttal of the Fraser Institute's oft-debunked spin on taxes.
- The Globe and Mail's editorial board recognizes that Doug Ford's attack on harm reduction in the name of nonexistent controversy about its impact on health outcomes will lead only to preventable deaths. And the Stoney Creek News explores the public health harms which can be expected to result from artificial reductions in alcohol prices.
- Lucius Couloute examines the close link between past incarceration and present-day homelessness in the U.S.
- Finally, Charlie Angus calls out John Baird for using his former role in government as an excuse to make money for his Saudi-connected employer. But it's worth being surprised that any former member of Stephen Harper's cabinet is managing to be an even more unprincipled shill after leaving that role.
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