Wednesday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Duncan Cameron points out how the Cons are copying the Republican economics that have led the U.S. to ruin:

The Harper Conservatives model their economic policies on beliefs held dear by American Republicans: just lower taxes, and reduce government, and business will create the wealth.

With this approach, not only is income becoming less equal as the OECD just noted, Canadians and Americans are not becoming wealthier. The "give business a tax break" and the "let the invisible hand of the market do the rest" policies are not improving life for Canadians or Americans.
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There is a role for active government in creating wealth, working with trade unions and using knowledge invested in the workforce, and local resources to create new relationships between employers and communities.

Setting out performance criteria for business, taxing business income, and re-investing in businesses that create wealth in Canada is the way to go. Of course to get there is going to require a change in government, and a new approach by the next Canadian government. The American Republican growth model hold out little hope for a better future in Canada.

- No, it shouldn't be news that the Cons have no qualms about setting up shadow MPs to try to attack incumbents. But it's interesting to note that they're still trying the tactic when their previous efforts have failed so miserably.

- Lost in the midst of plenty of justified frustration with the Cons' climate-change obstruction and marginalization is a remarkable admission from Peter Kent:

Environment Minister Peter Kent has pledged to the United Nations that Canada won’t pull out of the Kyoto climate treaty during the final days of the Durban conference – but he refuses to rule out a decision to withdraw shortly after the global talks wrap up.

Asked about Canada’s rumoured withdrawal from the Kyoto Protocol, Mr. Kent said he assured the UN that he won’t unleash any “unfortunate surprises” before the end of the Durban conference Friday.

And we should be entirely willing to echo Kent's view that it would be both unfortunate and surprising for a country of Canada's stature to simply tear up an international agreement on climate change - particularly as Kent plans to do exactly that later this month.

- Finally, if we didn't have enough reason to worry about the Saskatchewan Party's financial mismanagement, surely the revelation that the Premier apparently can't make ends meet on his publicly-funded salary (and thus need to take taxpayer-subsidized dollars from his party as well) should raise some concerns.