Friday Morning Links

Assorted content for your Friday reading.

- Emma Buchanan writes about the restrictions on media access that have resulted in people being poorly informed about the damage done by COVID-19. Meredith Wadman reports on new research showing that the increased infectiousness of the Delta variant is the result of its leaving more of its genetic code in host cells. And Matt Gurney discusses the importance of increasing vaccine supply around the globe - though he leaves out the obvious source of the current shortage as wealthy countries continue to prohibit the release of intellectual property over publicly-developed vaccines to let developing countries establish their own supply.  

- Corry Anderson-Fennell writes about the benefits for everybody when workers have access to paid sick leave, rather than being financially compelled to work through illness and pain. And Kim Siever debunks the corporate lobby's rhetoric about Alberta workers choosing federal pandemic benefits over work - as the only sectors seeing less employment are the ones where employers (government or otherwise) have chosen to restrict operations. 

- Meanwhile, Mario Canseco discusses new poll data showing an increasing number of Canadians recognizing the opioid crisis as a major problem and recognizing the need for political leadership. 

- David Suzuki calls out the continued subsidization of fossil fuels even as climate science points to an urgent need to transition away from them. Liang Jing et al. study (PDF) the carbon intensity of oil, and find Canada to be the second-worst polluter on the planet for the amount of crude it produces. And Aaron Wherry makes the seemingly obvious point that the high-pollution, low-efficiency tar sands are logically among the first resources which need to be left unextracted as we work on reducing our fossil fuel dependence. 

- Chen Zhou highlights how wealthy countries are trying to shift the goalposts to avoid meeting existing commitments to fund climate finance. Phoebe Weston reports on new research showing the grossly disproportionate share of emissions attributable to luxury carbon consumption. And Andrew Nikiforuk writes about the need to reduce our energy use in order to rein in the climate crisis.

- Finally, Susan Ferguson discusses how the systemic violence of capitalism has dictated a woefully insufficient response to COVID-19 (and to other crises). And Alex Steffen calls out the plutocrats who are using the spoils of existing wealth inequality to corner the market on the necessities for survival in a foreseeable climate apocalypse. 

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Christine Gibson writes about the need to start seriously fighting against the dangers posed by a climate breakdown, rather than merely hoping the problem goes away on its own. And George Monbiot observes that any plan which fails to account for the need to keep fossil fuels in the ground is at best a distraction tactic. 

- Which is to say that an agreement only to prioritize domestic production over foreign projects falls far short of the mark - particularly as Canada's oil companies are planning to ensure that carbon pollution continues to get dumped into our atmosphere for decades regardless of the damage done to our planet.  And Silvia Pastorelli makes the case to ban fossil fuel advertising as a needed step to stop corporate disinformation from getting in the way of climate action. 

- Meanwhile, Annie Hylton discusses how Canadian resource companies continue to commit human rights abuses in Guatemala and elsewhere (with the full support of the federal government in the name of the "business environment"). Gregg Mitman highlights how the concealment of history in the form of corporate records prevents us from knowing and acting in response to some of the most powerful forces shaping our world. And David Sirota and Andrew Perez write that unchecked corporate power is central to the U.S.' slide away from anything resembling democracy. 

- Molly Murphy points out how defunding the police fits into the goal of protecting our climate. But Laura Sciarpelletti reports that the Moe government is instead echoing Jason Kenney's desire to pay more for a police force under provincial political control.

- Finally, Murray Mandryk writes about the vaccine hesitancy problem within the Saskatchewan Party as one of the causes of Moe's fourth COVID wave. 

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Sarath Peiris rightly calls out Scott Moe and his government for making it a goal to punish the poor within Saskatchewan. 

- Marco Ranaldi and Branko Milanovic study the connection between inequality of income sources and of income totals. And Ricardo Tranjan writes that we can't expect the pandemic (or any other event) to produce the end of neoliberalism, but instead need to fight for it against forces who remain determined to extract value from both the general population today, and the future of generations to come. 

- On that front, PressProgress exposes how private long-term care homes in Ontario profiteered off the pandemic by charging extra to move residents out of the risk of four-to-a-room overcrowding. Guy Quenneville reports on the prospect that it may take over a year and a major resource boost to make up the backlog in Saskatchewan's health care system - which is particularly problematic given the Sask Party's desire to hand health services over to the corporate sector.

- Michael King and Morgan Black report on the escalating death count from opioid poisoning in Alberta even as the UCP tries to ignore the options which would most obviously save lives. And in contrast, Michelle Ghoussoub reports on British Columbia's move toward decriminalization to ensure people don't fall victim to toxic drug supplies.   

- Environmental Defence examines how the oil industry's attempt at greenwashing with "net zero" spin falls far short of anything resembling a viable climate plan. And Megan Gibson and Phil Clarke Hill interview Jagmeet Singh about the work needed to push Justin Trudeau to fund a just transition to a clean economy, rather than decades of fossil fuel infrastructure.  

- Chen Zhou writes about the need for wealthier countries to pull our weight in funding global climate action. And Brian Kahn's survey of climate scientists show that the people best informed about our climate breakdown are begging our leaders to avert an imminent catastrophe.

- Finally, for those interested in a deeper look at climate change issues, a couple of new sites worth visiting have recently gone live: the David Suzuki Foundation's Climate Emergency Unit as a road map for action, and Amy Westervelt's Rigged as a source on corporate disinformation. 

Tuesday Night Cat Blogging

Costumed cats. 

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Mark Armstrong reports on the G20's agreement on a painfully-unambitious vaccination target for poor countries which is still unlikely to be reached. And Tahir Amin draws a connection between the dystopia of Squid Game and the reality of vaccine exclusion. 

- Jennifer Schuessler discusses David Graeber and David Wengrow's The Dawn of Everything as signaling the evolution of social structures far earlier and more broadly than we usually assume. And Wengrow takes that history as a basis for optimism about our current challenges - including the need to join forces to protect our living environment in the face of imminent climate breakdown.  

- David Wallace-Wells makes the compelling case for climate reparations - including the need for wealthier countries to both bear our share of the loan in mitigating the damage we're doing to our planet, and ensure that the people we've exploited along the way have opportunities to adapt and develop. And Laurie Macfarlane writes that we can't address the climate crisis without also addressing economic and social injustices. 

- Umair Haque discusses why the U.S. looks to be just beginning a full-on societal collapse. 

- Adam Lachacz reports on the frustration of Alberta municipalities with the UCP's blinkered devotion to promoting a costly and unnecessary provincial police force, rather than doing anything to actually improve people's lives. And Sheila Wong and Emma McIntosh explore just how corrupt and counterproductive the Ford PCs' push for another major bypass actually is. 

- Finally, John Clarke calls out the absurdity of Justin Trudeau's effort to equate left-wing activism toward equality and justice with right-wing bigotry. 

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Trevor Howlett warns not to treat a short-term drop in case numbers from an alarming peak as an excuse  to stop taking COVID-19 seriously. And Alexander Quon and Bonnie Allen offer a look at the painful and lonely plight of ICU patients sent to Ontario due to Scott Moe's choice to overload Saskatchewan's health care system. 

- Emma Jones reports on the increased number of liver conditions likely arising out of pandemic drinking. And Stephen David Cook reports on the deadliest year yet for drug poisonings in Alberta. 

- Brett Dolter discusses some of the lessons we should take from our COVID response in dealing with the generational challenge of climate change - though there's reason for concern that the main takeaway is that self-serving profiteers will find excuses to stake fraudulent claims to the entire world before the public can get its shoes on in response. Bob Ward reviews Katharine Hayhoe's Saving Us as a resource in trying to reach people who are hesitant to contribute to climate solutions. And Fiona Harvey reports on Antonio Guterres' message that we can't rely on optimism without action, even as the obvious plan of the leaders who need to step up is based on wishing rather than effort. 

- Roy Culpeper points out the need for Canada in particular to start contributing our fair share to global emission reductions. And Jay Wilson discusses how cleaner infrastructure is a vital part of the picture. 

- Finally, the University of Cambridge studies the amount of work necessary to achieve the positive mental health outcomes associated with it - and finds that a day per week is the point of diminishing returns for work for its own sake. And Sara Zaske reports on new research confirming that parents living in poverty who are offered a basic income will put the new resources toward their children. 

Sunday Morning Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- Fiona Harvey reports on the warning from climate scientists that a 1.5 degree target is non-negotiable. Adam Tooze explains why we shouldn't let fossil fuel flacks convince us to mistake a temporary price fluctuation for a reason to entrench our reliance on dirty energy. And PressProgress notes that the UCP's anti-environmental inquiry inadvertently exposed how much foreign money actually got poured into fossil fuel astroturf projects.

- Meanwhile, Scott Neigh discusses the oil sector workers looking for a transition to more sustainable jobs. 

- Mohamed Adow discusses the growing climate debt as wealthier countries (and people) continue to blow through our planetary carbon budget while expecting people with less resources to absorb the cost and risk. And Phillip Inman notes that colonial debts are keeping poorer countries from investing in any mitigation or adaptation (among other vital priorities).

- Kenny Thomas highlights a new tool to expose UK corporations which have committed regulatory offences. But in case we needed a reminder that we shouldn't presume malfeasance by the wealthy has actually been investigated and prosecuted, the Canadian Press reports on the continued failure of CRA audits of ultra-wealthy people arising out of the Panama Papers to produce a single prosecution.  

- Finally, Eric Levitz laments how the U.S.' Congress has chosen to learn nothing from the COVID-19 pandemic. And Umair Haque discusses how the UK has eliminated its own capacity to function as a state - while choosing in response to keep up appearances even as essential services disappear.

Saturday Afternoon Links

Assorted content for your weekend reading.

- PressProgress offers a timeline of Saskatchewan's fourth wave of COVID-19 (and the choices by Scott Moe which precipitated it), while Arthur White-Crummey reports that approval of the Sask Party's pandemic response is half what it was four months ago. And Justin Ling highlights how many governments continue to act as if we'd learned nothing about COVID by emphasizing surface hygiene theatre over the ventilation and masking which have actually made a difference.

- Benjamin Franta documents how oil companies knew about climate change long before most of the public - and went far out of their way to deceive people into continuing to rely on their carbon-polluting products. And Brooks DeCillia, Melanee Thomas and Lori Thorlakson discuss how to turn the tide of public opinion to favour climate action in a petro-state like Alberta.

- George Monbiot writes about the need to challenge the structure of a capitalist economy in order to save our natural environment, rather than accepting consumer choices as the limit of our ability to make change. And David Sirota discusses the impossibility of catering to corporations while solving the problems they impose on the public.

- Mitchell Thompson discusses how Loblaws' business model depends on paying workers poverty wages. And Samantha Ponting points out Doug Ford's use of Ontario's workers' compensation system as a giveaway to employers, rather than a dependable source of needed relief income for injured workers.

- Finally, The Breach interviews Harsha Walia about the racism exploitation of immigrants in Canada. And Monia Mazigh sets out the concrete steps Justin Trudeau would take if he were serious about fighting Islamophobia, rather than treating it solely as a photo op.

Musical interlude

Vök - Running Wild

Friday Morning Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- Sara Birlios examines the grim state of Saskatchewan - including the numerous areas where Scott Moe and the Saskatchewan Party are consciously choosing social murder over even the slightest concern for the well-being of non-donors. And the Globe and Mail's editorial board calls out Jason Kenney for continually picking the wrong fights (and accruing a lengthy list of failures in the process). 

- Ryan Patrick Jones reports on the escalating pressure on already-overstretched food banks to help people to get by. And Rosa Saba highlights the backlash against the Libs' choice to keep subsidies flowing for businesses while leaving workers to fend for themselves. 

- Luis Feliz Leon and Maximillian Alvarez write about the importance of converting the visible worker militancy reflected in the U.S.' Striketober into substantial results and systemic change. 

- Heather Wetzel writes about the problem with discussing economics without recognizing and accounting for the distortionary effects of land and resource ownership.

- Kyle Bakx and Tony Seskus review Canada's history of underdelivering when it comes to averting the climate crisis. And Thomas Gunton examines how much more action is needed even to meet our current targets.  

- Andre Picard writes that the Libs' choice to identify a minister in charge of mental health means little if it isn't backed by funding and a commitment to action. 

- Finally, Umair Haque discusses why societies may be unable to see their own downfall - and how the U.S. and UK are falling prey to that phenomenon. 

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Bruce Arthur calls out Doug Ford for choosing (like other conservative premiers) to prioritize the "freedom" of uninformed anti-vaxxers to endanger everybody over the health of the population at large. The Economist charts how vaccinated people have not only been better protected from COVID-19, but also less likely to die of other causes - which, while not subject to a causal analysis, would make sense from the standpoint of a dividing line as to the recognition and calculation of risk. [Update: Yes, this would seem related too.] Pat McKay tells the story of a family facing limited care for prematurely-born twins due to Scott Moe's choice to flood the health care system with COVID patients. And Theresa Kliem reports on the health care workers who no longer see a future in a province which places so little value on them or their patients - exacerbating what was already a shortage of care workers. 

- David Coletto unveils new polling data showing that a large majority of Canadians - including a plurality even among the most recalcitrant provinces and political parties - want to see far more action to protect our climate. 

- But Oliver Milman reports on a new study by Systems Change Lab showing that not a single industry is pulling its weight to pull us back from reaching and exceeding 1.5 degrees of warming. Oil Change International points out how countries are continuing to subsidize carbon pollution by throwing money at oil and gas operators, while Bob Weber reports on Canada's place as the worst offender of the lot in funding the entrenchment of dirty energy rather than a transition to cleaner options. And Geoffrey Morgan reports on the giant windfalls being pocketed by oil companies even as governments go out of their way to avoid having them post security for their environmental damage. 

- Georgia Wright, Liat Olenick and Amy Westervelt point out the U.S.' worst climate villains. Belen Balanya, Lala Hakuma Dadci, and Myriam Douo discuss how dirty energy interests have blocked climate action in Europe. And Tim Gray and Devon Page highlight how the UCP's inquiry attacking environmental activists represented an unconscionable abuse of power - even if its results proved to be a damp squib. 

- Finally, Colleen Silverthorn reports on the grossly inadequate benefit amounts under Saskatchewan's income support system, while Yasmine Ghania reports on yesterday's rally to at least reverse the Sask Party scheme which has pushed dozens of people out of their homes and into tent cities. And PressProgress exposes how the Ford government is not only slashing assistance to people, but ensuring that Republican cronies reap profits as a result. 

Wednesday Afternoon Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Yasmine Ghania interviews Nazeem Muhajarine about the Saskatchewan Party's choice to produce misleadingly low COVID-19 case numbers by stifling testing. And Kelly Provost reports on one of the families facing potentially dangerous delays in necessary medical care due to Scott Moe's fourth wave, as a patient awaiting a kidney transplant has been put on hold indefinitely.  

- Andrew Coyne writes that the Cons have failed in their chance to be a responsible party when it comes to vaccines in Canada. And Wyatt Schierman discusses how the failure of Canada and other wealthy countries to ensure equitable vaccine access means that the world's poorest countries could be without vaccines for decades.  

- Fiona Harvey reports on the UN's warnings that current emission targets would produce a calamitous 2.7 degrees of global warming - and the reality that we've already failed to build back better as part of our pandemic recovery. Damian Carrington reports on Nicholas Stern's warning that existing climate plans are based on the devaluation of the lives of young people and future generations. And Emily Atkin and Molly Taft expose how fossil fuel giants are using a new round of deceptive media tactics to try to avoid accountability for their history of climate fraud.  

- Meanwhile, Emily Eaton examines how Saskatchewan can transition to a clean and prosperous future without tying our economy to the development of fossil fuels. 

- Finally, Marc Lee et al. discuss how to build a zero-waste economy by 2040 both by reducing the production of avoidable waste, and by prioritizing repair and maintenance options to ensure that consumer goods are able to last. 

Tuesday Night Cat Blogging

Playful cats.

 

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- CBC News reports on the public health officers begging Saskatchewan's provincial government to stop the spread of COVID-19 as our health care system collapses, while Guy Quenneville notes that Dr. Saqib Shahab is now publicly calling out some of the areas where the Saskatchewan Party is being particularly negligent. And Jillian Smith reports on Saskatoon's move to apply gathering limits at the municipal level due to Scott Moe's stubborn refusal to lift a finger to protect public health. 

- Lori Lee Oates sets out how we can make a just transition to a clean energy economy generally, while Raidin Blue examines the path for Saskatchewan to do the same. And Emily Chung writes about a focus on net zero by 2050 actually looks like - along with the problems with trying to count carbon removal when there's little certainty that it will have its intended effect. 

- Meanwhile, Matt Simon writes about the potential for the concurrent use of land for solar panels and crops may produce improved outcomes for both energy generation and agricultural output. 

- But Doreen Nicoll points out the problem with spending billions to subsidize sprawl and carbon pollution at a point when we need to be working on decarbonizing. 

- Finally, Emma Kelly calls out the countries who provide tax havens for the wealthy seeking to avoid paying their fair share - with Canada making the list due to both low corporate tax rates and a lack of transparency.  

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Sarath Peiris discusses how Saskatchewan shouldn't be anything but embarrassed by Scott Moe's utter failure to look out for public health in the midst of a pandemic. And Theresa Kliem interviews Steven Lewis about the dire projections - even before the province made clear that rather than taking steps to limit the spread of COVID-19, it's still fully devoted to allowing super-spreader events regardless of the human cost. 

- Meanwhile, Jillian Smith reports on the homelessness crisis which is only being exacerbated by the Sask Party's choice to undercut housing security. 

- Doug Nesbitt discusses the now-expired federal pandemic supports in the context of our stingy employment insurance system as a whole. V.S. Wells says goodbye to the CRB which sustained many Canadians through much of the pandemic, while Taylor Scollon points out how the Libs' decision to cut it off is positively calculated to drive people into desperate poverty. David Lao reports on some of the people - and even businesses - seeing their future put in jeopardy by the choice. Kori Sidaway talks to Jim Stanford about the reality that employers finding workers should be looking at their own wages and working conditions, not trying to cut off social benefits. And Karl Nerenberg notes that income supports remain an area where the NDP is putting in hard work pushing the Libs to take better care of people, while Robin Sears argues that it's long past time for Canada's party leaders to put more time into making minority Parliaments work rather than constantly posturing for an immediate election. 

- Sara Mojtehedzadeh reports on the new employment standards being mooted in Ontario, including the possibility of a right-to-disconnect rule. But in case anybody lost track of Doug Ford's disregard for workers, PressProgress reports on the PC's choice to allow health-care employers to limit the protection provided to workers even when a stockpile of PPE is readily available. 

- Meanwhile, Jodi Kantor, Karen Wiese and Grace Ashford expose a new set of worker abuses at Amazon, as systematic refusals to provide leave have left workers scrambling to survive. 

- Finally, Luke Savage writes that multilevel marketing scams represent the epitome of capitalist logic, while serving to highlight the need for an society that isn't designed to enrich a few at the expense of the many. 

Sunday Afternoon Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- Ed Yong discusses how the field of public health has been marginalized by the false assumption that the task of keeping people healthy shouldn't play a role in our political choices.

- Nadeem Badshah reports on Greta Thunberg's message to countries participating in COP26 that we can't afford any more climate denial.

- Olamide Olaniyan interviews Naomi Klein about the hope for a breakthrough in applying an ethic of care to our natural and human environments. Alexander Kaufman reports on new research confirming that investments in renewable energy produce several times more jobs than comparable spending on fossil fuels. And Alexander Verbeek reports on the U.S.' recognition that a climate breakdown represents a severe security threat (among other calamitous outcomes).

- But Sandy Garossino writes that we shouldn't let the underwhelming contents of UCP's anti-environmental inquiry override our outrage at an abuse of power. And Andrew MacLeod reports on B.C.'s willingness to allow oil and gas companies to procrastinate (and likely welch) on their obligation to clean up their messes.

- Finally, Alan Freeman discusses how Stephen Harper is cozying up to dictatorships for financial gain even while continuing to operate behind the scenes of Canada's conservative parties. And CBC News reports on the Sask Party's push to hold a fire sale of Crown lands to undermine both public interests and treaty rights - and the work of Betty Nippi-Albright and others in trying to stop them.

Saturday Afternoon Links

Assorted content for your weekend reading.

- Adam Hunter reports on the increasingly public campaign by Saskatchewan doctors to have public health taken seriously in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. And Marshall Ross, Leona Morris and Robert Tanguay write about the trauma front-line healthcare workers are facing - and the need for a system to support them. 

- Meanwhile, Stephanie Nolan highlights how there's no reason why developing countries can't produce their own COVID vaccines other than the refusal by the corporate beneficiaries of massive amounts of public research to share the information needed to do so. 

- Matthew Halliday reports on New Brunswick's alarming decision to suppress research into an unexplained cluster of a severe and unknown neurological disease.

- Braxton Brewington writes that the resonance of Squid Game is based on the debt being systematically placed on the shoulders of the working class. And Steven Greenhouse wonders whether the show of worker strength reflected in the U.S.' Striketober will lead to lasting change.

- Finally, Andrew Kurjata reports on a court's refusal to order the violent destruction of camps of homeless people in Prince George - though the victory in preserving a poor substitute for a human right only highlights the need to make sure people receiving the housing they actually need. And Julia Peterson reports on Regina's Camp Marjorie which is likewise serving a vital stopgap role for people who deserve far more.

Musical interlude

Nothing But Thieves - Futureproof

Friday Afternoon Links

Assorted content to end your week.

- The Canadian Medical Association calls for Scott Moe to finally reinstate public health rules to prevent Saskatchewan's already-catastrophic fourth wave of COVID-19 from completely collapsing our health care system. And Phil Tank reports on Saskatoon's lonely efforts to start applying necessary measures at the municipal level. 

- Yuguo Li et al. discuss how the pandemic represents an air crisis which should lead to fundamental changes in ensuring that our indoor spaces are properly ventilated. Jan Wenzel et al. study the damage COVID-19 does to the brains of its victims. And the Associated Press reports on the positive news that highly-effective children's doses of a vaccine should be available soon, while Nurith Aizenman notes that the World Health Organization has been forced to fund African efforts to replicate Moderna's manufacturing process as the companies with existing vaccines refuse to share their knowledge on the scale needed to actually fight the pandemic. 

- David MacDonald examines who stands to lose out as the Libs needlessly allow federal COVID supports to expire. And Adam King interviews Jim Stanford about the danger of falling into austerity, while noting that there are plenty of opportunities for useful social investment. 

- Danyaal Raza writes about the need to provide more resources in areas that can keep us healthier - including both improved models for medical care, and a greater focus on the social determinants of health. And Jen St. Denis points out how the ongoing drug fatality crisis could be completely averted if we moved to a safe supply model, rather than insisting on a punitive approach to drugs.

- Finally, Dan Milmo reports on Twitter's admission that it systematically amplifies right-wing posts over left-wing ones. 

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Rod Nickel offers an international view of Saskatchewan's spiraling COVID-19 crisis, even as Scott Moe clings to his delusional minimization of the pandemic (and his personal responsibility for its impact on the province) in the face of objective reality. 

- Meanwhile, Laura Osman reports on the health care workers fighting to ensure sick leave is available across Canada when it's most needed. And Celina Gallardo writes about the frontline health care workers who are pitching in to save our health care system while lacking a path to permanent residency for themselves. 

- Valerie Lapointe and Nessa Gassemi-Bakhtiari write about the need to stop stigmatizing mental illness. And Jaela Bernstien discusses new research on the effects of climate change on our physical and mental health. 

- George Monbiot looks to World War II as an important example of how it's possible to direct our society and economy to response to an imminent threat - as we need to do to avert a climate breakdown. Jocelyn Timperley discusses how wealthy countries have broken their promise of even minimal financing for climate mitigation and adaptation. And Isak Stoddard et al. explore why we've failed so miserably in accomplishing much in previous decades, while Kevin Taft reviews William Carroll's Regime of Obstruction as an important reminder of the entrenched wealth and power that have been deployed to keep carbon pollution spewing, and Matthew Taylor reports that this year's global climate summit will be the first where big oil doesn't wield the power of a formal role. 

- Finally, John Woodside reports on recent research showing that continued fossil fuel production is absolutely contrary to any serious climate policy, while Jenny Uechl reports on Quebec's decision to end fossil fuel exploration. And Tzeporah Berman discusses how we've accepted far too little action from our political leaders as constituting climate leadership, 

Wednesday Afternoon Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Carol Off interviews Andre Picard about the cultural factors and policy choices that have led to an avoidable fourth wave of COVID-19 in Saskatchewan and Alberta. And Yasmine Ghania talks to Alex Wong about the need for immediate gathering size restrictions to prevent calamitous results, while Guy Quenneville highlights the modeling showing how Scott Moe is instead choosing to crash Saskatchewan's health care system.

Key slide. 5 scenarios. #skpoli pic.twitter.com/8f2wbJtddk

— Guy Quenneville (@gqinsk) October 20, 2021

- Meanwhile, Armine Yalnizyan takes a look at possible economic scenarios as we eventually emerge from the COVID pandemic - though it's hard to share her optimism that we'll see substantial renewal at a point when nearly all attention seems to be focused on entrenching existing wealth and power. And Andrew Jackson discusses how Nobel Prize recipient David Card's research fits into the recognition that living wages result in better outcomes for everybody. 

- The Stockholm Environment Institute examines (PDF) how we're continuing to burn far more fossil fuels than we can afford while maintaining a liveable climate, while the Chalmers University of Technology highlights the concurrent need for a far more rapid transition to clean energy. And Drew Yewchuk points out that Alberta is once again failing to secure the cost of remediation from resource exploiters even as soaring prices set up what may be the last, best opportunity to ensure the public isn't stuck with the bill for environmental disasters. 

- Toby Sanger highlights how Canada's tax system currently foundations and charities to shelter massive amounts of money without either making tax contributions or fulfilling their supposed purposes.  

- Finally, Kristy Kirkup reports on the push by several sections of the Canadian Bar Association to have the federal government stop its campaign of litigation against Indigenous children. 

Tuesday Night Cat Blogging

Cluttered cats.

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

- Gary Mason writes that Saskatchewan and Alberta are tragically showing the rest of the country what a COVID-19 disaster looks like. CBC News reports on a predictable spike in COVID-19 following Saskatchewan's Thanksgiving weekend. And Zak Vescera uncovers the Moe government's choice to beg for medical help from their Republican allies even while they demurred on making requests for help which was already on offer from Canada's federal government. 

- Meanwhile, PressProgress reports on the callous efforts of British Columbia's business lobby to prevent workers from having to access to sick leave during the pandemic. 

- Pratyush Dayal reports on how the Moe government's needless undercutting of social programs has led to the buildup of tent cities in the province's cities just in time for winter. 

- Hamilton Nolan sees reason for hope in the U.S.' wave of strikes, while pointing out the importance of people participating rather than merely observing. And Michael Sainato reports on organizing by retail workers at Dollar General and other stores which have refused to recognize the contributions of essential workers. 

- Dave Cullen writes that we shouldn't let self-serving actors turn the urgency of the climate crisis into an excuse to push expensive and dangerous nuclear power when we have more affordable renewable alternatives. 

- Finally, Karl Nerenberg discusses how a first-past-the-post electoral system magnifies and exacerbates regional divides. 

Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material to start your week.

- Monique Beals reports on Anthony Fauci's recognition that attacks directed against him are based solely on denialists' hostility toward the truth, while Mike Baker and Danielle Ivory discuss the U.S.' public health crisis. And Zak Vescera examines why Saskatchewan's vaccination rate is so low (notwithstanding Scott Moe's failed attempt to make it into the province's only ongoing response to a pandemic in progress). 

- Meanwhile, Marianne Cooper discusses how women have borne the brunt of additional "invisible work" trying to ensure colleagues' well-being during the course of the pandemic. 

- John Woodside reports on polling showing that a strong majority of Canadians want to see our governments invest in a just transition, and not in new fossil fuel infrastructure. Bill McKibben writes that the effort to avert a climate breakdown has two major strengths in its corner in a massive activist base and readily-available technological solutions. And Kim Siever reports on TransAlta's move from fossil fuels to renewables even under a government desperate to stand in the way of any transition. 

- Christopher Lyon et al. examine models showing the dire future which awaits - including centuries of continually increasing temperatures and drastic environmental changes - if we don't rein in the climate crisis. 

- Finally, Justin Fisher reviews Divided (ed. by JoAnn Jaffe, Patricia Elliot, and Cora Sellers) as to the social harm Saskatchewan is suffering as a result of the Sask Party's neoliberal economic and political model. And Susan Ferguson discusses how the violence and devaluation of life inherent in capitalist decision-making have constrained the responses to COVID-19 and other crises. 

Sunday Morning Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

- Hannah Devlin asks why the UK is accepting a thousand lives a week as the price of incompetence in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.

- Meanwhile, Marlene Leung reports on new research showing that surface contact on high-contact areas of grocery stores isn't a source of COVID spread at all.

- Jim Stanford discusses how Canada has been recovering from the pandemic with far more strength than the U.S. - demonstrating that slashing pandemic supports doesn' t help the economy even as the Libs are set to follow the U.S. down that road. And Eric Levitz writes that after seeming to have been exposed as the cause of our inability to respond to an emergency, neoliberalism seems to have emerged unscathed.

- Marc Jaccard makes the case for a zero-emission vehicle mandate from the federal government, while Rewiring Australia points out that full electrification is well within reach. The UN Climate Change examines the painfully tight carbon budget left to have a reasonable chance of stopping a climate breakdown at 1.5 degrees of warming. And the Canadian Press reports on the IEA's forecasts showing that the fossil fuel sector is in irreversible decline.

- Finally, Aaron Wherry highlights why it would be in everybody's best interest for the Libs to work on a multi-year support agreement with the NDP rather than planning for another game of minority Parliament chicken.

Musical interlude

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

Friday Morning Links

Assorted content to end your week.

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

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

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

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

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

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

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

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

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

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

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

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

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

Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Tuesday Night Cat Blogging

Uplifted cats.

 

Tuesday Morning Links

This and that for your Tuesday reading.

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

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

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

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

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

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

Monday Afternoon Links

Miscellaneous material for your Monday reading.

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

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

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

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

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

Sunday Morning Links

This and that for your Sunday reading.

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

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

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

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

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

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

Saturday Afternoon Links

Assorted content for your weekend reading.

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

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

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

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

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

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

Musical interlude

Raye & Rudimental - Regardless

Friday Morning Links

Assorted content to end your week.

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

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

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

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

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

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