This and that for your Tuesday reading.
- Emily Atkin offers a reminder that the people with the least stand to face the most severe costs of climate change. But lest we take that as a signal that there's an irreconcilable gap between countries, Eric Levitz writes that even in the U.S., the public is more than ready for a quick transition to clean energy. Which means that governments continuing to hand free money to fossil fuel barons may be damaging themselves politically even as they continue to harm our planet.
- David Lazarus discusses how most Americans are seeing no benefit from an economy designed to funnel money to the top while leaving wages stagnant. And Ian Hussey notes that the only substantial effect from Alberta's minimum wage increase has been a real improvement in the standard of living of lower-income workers.
- Andrew Coyne points out that Doug Ford is a symptom of severe underlying problems with the political system which installed him in power. Fair Vote Canada zeroes in on the role of a false majority under a first-past-the-post system in allowing Ford to impose his will on the majority of voters who opposed him - not to mention trampling their rights. And Mainstreet documents how strongly Toronto residents are opposed to Ford's choice to undermine their municipal election.
- Meanwhile, David Reevely notes that Ford's circus is distracting attention from policies designed to enrich the financial sector at the expense of consumers.
- Finally, Carly Weeks reports on the latest alarming numbers showing that Canada's opioid crisis is only getting worse.
Tuesday, September 18, 2018
Monday, September 17, 2018
Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material to start your week.
- Tracy Smith-Carrier comments on the importance of addressing poverty as an issue of human rights rather than charity:
- Jedediah Purdy points out how the U.S. has turned the principle of freedom of speech into a mechanism to ensure most people are drowned out by the privileged few who can afford to dominate the media. And Adam Federman reports on the private surveillance of environmental activists in Canada as a similar example of money infringing on basic freedoms.
- Michael Harris offers a reminder that Canada is far better off holding off on any NAFTA deal than signing onto Donald Trump's plan to further enrich the American corporate class. And Janyce McGregor reports that like so many corporate trade deals, the CETA has fallen far short of its supposed economic promise.
- Finally, Colleen Flood, Bryan Thomas, Asad Ali Moten and Patrick Fafard examine some of the options available to establish a national universal pharmacare system.
- Tracy Smith-Carrier comments on the importance of addressing poverty as an issue of human rights rather than charity:
It is not a matter of being down on your luck or misfortunate, as if people are somehow fated to live a life of poverty. It is the building blocks of society that reproduce poverty. Work conditions, unequal social relationships and the economy are all part of the problem: Some groups have historically been subject to racism, discrimination and inferior treatment while others have been accorded wealth and privilege.- David Leonhard argues that our current mean of measuring the economy tend to focus on the concentration of wealth rather than economic security for most people.
For example, dynamics in the economy and labour market cause poverty. How many jobs are available, the nature and quality of those jobs, the availability of child care, the accessibility of advanced education and training, the affordability of housing, the extension of appropriate accommodations in the workplace, the accessibility of transportation systems, the ability for certain groups to climb the social ladder, the extension of income-security programs to buffer people in times of crisis: These are all factors that influence people’s slide into poverty and their ability to move out of it.
The decisions people make are ultimately shaped by these larger systemic forces. People might reduce their hours of work as they cannot find quality child care, or they might be reluctant to pursue post-secondary education with the prospect of crushing debt. These decisions are ultimately shaped by a lack of opportunities, not by personal deficiency. And then there is the psychological toll poverty takes: Mental-health issues can develop in the face of lingering unemployment.
...
Charity – the primary solution in place to address poverty through breakfast programs, soup kitchens, food banks, community gardens, and the like – can only provide some measure of emergency relief. It cannot eradicate poverty. No one gets out of poverty by using charitable programs. The fundamental problem – a lack of financial resources – remains unchanged.
It is time to shift away from the charitable model to a rights-based approach, guaranteeing people the right to food. People must have access to an adequate income that allows them to obtain their own food, and do so “in normal and socially acceptable ways,” ensuring personal dignity and choice. The perpetuation of food banks ensures the charitable-food model is preserved, and people remain hungry.
- Jedediah Purdy points out how the U.S. has turned the principle of freedom of speech into a mechanism to ensure most people are drowned out by the privileged few who can afford to dominate the media. And Adam Federman reports on the private surveillance of environmental activists in Canada as a similar example of money infringing on basic freedoms.
- Michael Harris offers a reminder that Canada is far better off holding off on any NAFTA deal than signing onto Donald Trump's plan to further enrich the American corporate class. And Janyce McGregor reports that like so many corporate trade deals, the CETA has fallen far short of its supposed economic promise.
- Finally, Colleen Flood, Bryan Thomas, Asad Ali Moten and Patrick Fafard examine some of the options available to establish a national universal pharmacare system.
Sunday, September 16, 2018
Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading.
- Matt Phillips and Karl Russell write that the next severe financial meltdown may not be far away, and that student and consumer debt (along with new derivatives from corporate debt) look to be at the centre of it. And Stephen Long points out that the suppression of information about deceptive lending practices is only ensuring that banks continue to face potential liability.
- Deborah de Lange notes that the building of housing in unsafe areas such as flood plains is one of the symptoms of an unequal society. And Kathleen Martens reports that the tearing down of tent cities in British Columbia isn't being paired with any plan to find housing for the residents who lack it.
- Luisa D'Amato observes that if Ontario had taken up its opportunity for a proportional electoral system, it wouldn't have Doug Ford running roughshod over a province based on 40% of the popular vote.
- Doug Cuthand discusses the need based on the continued recognition of the Indigenous rights recognized both by nation-to-nation treaties and Canada's Constitution.
- Finally, Bernie Sanders makes the case for a progressive front across borders to counter the billionaire-funded nationalist international underlying the spread of right-wing populism:
- Matt Phillips and Karl Russell write that the next severe financial meltdown may not be far away, and that student and consumer debt (along with new derivatives from corporate debt) look to be at the centre of it. And Stephen Long points out that the suppression of information about deceptive lending practices is only ensuring that banks continue to face potential liability.
- Deborah de Lange notes that the building of housing in unsafe areas such as flood plains is one of the symptoms of an unequal society. And Kathleen Martens reports that the tearing down of tent cities in British Columbia isn't being paired with any plan to find housing for the residents who lack it.
- Luisa D'Amato observes that if Ontario had taken up its opportunity for a proportional electoral system, it wouldn't have Doug Ford running roughshod over a province based on 40% of the popular vote.
- Doug Cuthand discusses the need based on the continued recognition of the Indigenous rights recognized both by nation-to-nation treaties and Canada's Constitution.
- Finally, Bernie Sanders makes the case for a progressive front across borders to counter the billionaire-funded nationalist international underlying the spread of right-wing populism:
We must understand that these authoritarians are part of a common front. They are in close contact with each other, share tactics and, as in the case of European and American rightwing movements, even share some of the same funders. The Mercer family, for example, supporters of the infamous Cambridge Analytica, have been key backers of Trump and of Breitbart News, which operates in Europe, the United States and Israel to advance the same anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim agenda. Republican megadonor Sheldon Adelson gives generously to rightwing causes in both the United States and Israel, promoting a shared agenda of intolerance and illiberalism in both countries.
...
Together governments of the world must come together to end the absurdity of the rich and multinational corporations stashing over $21tn in offshore bank accounts to avoid paying their fair share of taxes and then demanding that their respective governments impose an austerity agenda on their working families.
It is not acceptable that the fossil fuel industry continues to make huge profits while their carbon emissions destroy the planet for our children and grandchildren.
It is not acceptable that a handful of multinational media giants, owned by a small number of billionaires, largely control the flow of information on the planet.
It is not acceptable that trade policies that benefit large multinational corporations and encourage a race to the bottom hurt working people throughout the world as they are written out of public view.
It is not acceptable that, with the cold war long behind us, countries around the world spend over $1tn a year on weapons of destruction, while millions of children die of easily treatable diseases.
In order to effectively combat the rise of the international authoritarian axis, we need an international progressive movement that mobilizes behind a vision of shared prosperity, security and dignity for all people, and that addresses the massive global inequality that exists, not only in wealth but in political power.
Such a movement must be willing to think creatively and boldly about the world that we would like to see. While the authoritarian axis is committed to tearing down a post-second world war global order that they see as limiting their access to power and wealth, it is not enough for us to simply defend that order as it exists now.
We must look honestly at how that order has failed to deliver on many of its promises, and how authoritarians have adeptly exploited those failures in order to build support for their agenda. We must take the opportunity to reconceptualize a genuinely progressive global order based on human solidarity, an order that recognizes that every person on this planet shares a common humanity, that we all want our children to grow up healthy, to have a good education, have decent jobs, drink clean water, breathe clean air and live in peace.
Saturday, September 15, 2018
Saturday Afternoon Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading.
- Paul Krugman discusses how Republican obstruction undermined both the shape and size of the U.S.' efforts to recover from the 2008 economic crisis. And Moritz Kuhn, Moritz Schularick and Ulrike Steins document how the crisis ant its aftermath exacerbated the U.S.' already-alarming level of wealth inequality.
- Katherine Paschall, Tamara Halle and Jessica Dym Bartlett point out the rising rate of poverty among American children. And Dave Prentis notes that public sector workers are increasingly being priced out of housing markets in the UK (and elsewhere).
- Annette Carla Bouzi writes about her experience on the picket line at Algonquin College. And Sara Mojtehedzadeh and Alex McKeen report on how the ownership stake of the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan saved the jobs and union of cleaning staff in Vancouver.
- Hannah Osborne reports on new NASA research indicating that methane releases from abruptly thawing Arctic permafrost could make an already-dangerous level of climate change far worse in the near future.
- Finally, Chris Selley writes that the gratuitous invocation of the notwithstanding clause out of spite may be just the beginning of Doug Ford's abuses of political power. Stephen Maher figures Ford is likely headed toward only a single term in government, though it's still necessary to minimize the damage even if that proves true. And on that front, Bruno Dobrusin offers some lessons for fighting back against Ford from South American activists all too accustomed to dealing with iron-fist governments.
- Paul Krugman discusses how Republican obstruction undermined both the shape and size of the U.S.' efforts to recover from the 2008 economic crisis. And Moritz Kuhn, Moritz Schularick and Ulrike Steins document how the crisis ant its aftermath exacerbated the U.S.' already-alarming level of wealth inequality.
- Katherine Paschall, Tamara Halle and Jessica Dym Bartlett point out the rising rate of poverty among American children. And Dave Prentis notes that public sector workers are increasingly being priced out of housing markets in the UK (and elsewhere).
- Annette Carla Bouzi writes about her experience on the picket line at Algonquin College. And Sara Mojtehedzadeh and Alex McKeen report on how the ownership stake of the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan saved the jobs and union of cleaning staff in Vancouver.
- Hannah Osborne reports on new NASA research indicating that methane releases from abruptly thawing Arctic permafrost could make an already-dangerous level of climate change far worse in the near future.
- Finally, Chris Selley writes that the gratuitous invocation of the notwithstanding clause out of spite may be just the beginning of Doug Ford's abuses of political power. Stephen Maher figures Ford is likely headed toward only a single term in government, though it's still necessary to minimize the damage even if that proves true. And on that front, Bruno Dobrusin offers some lessons for fighting back against Ford from South American activists all too accustomed to dealing with iron-fist governments.
Friday, September 14, 2018
Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week.
- Michael Harris laments the lack of any consistent connection between reporting on severe weather events and the climate change which is producing them in unprecedented numbers:
- Alex Hemingway examines how soaring real estate prices have exacerbated inequality in British Columbia.
- Yvette D'Entremont notes that a national food program is entirely feasible - though I'd be careful before assuming that a Senate motion will have any bearing on long-term policy development.
- Finally, George Monbiot argues that the results of publicly-funded research should be freely accessible to the citizenry which has footed the bill.
- Michael Harris laments the lack of any consistent connection between reporting on severe weather events and the climate change which is producing them in unprecedented numbers:
Mainstream news coverage does well with reporting episodes, but misses the boat on thematic coverage. CNN is good at telling us about the casualties and costs of storms in places like New Orleans or Wilmington. But it is next to hopeless at taking the vital signs of the planet. It may be the biggest missed story in history.- Arthur Neslen writes about the dangers of air pollution as the largest current environmental health risk in Europe. Ben Doherty reports on the UN Pacific Islands Forum's recognition that climate change is responsible for rising malnutrition rates. And the Canadian Press reports on new research showing how even slight exposure to diluted bitumen can be deadly for salmon.
Here are just a few of the inconvenient facts that don’t often make the nightly news — even when storm-tossed.
The biggest one is perhaps that despite all the global conferences, despite the policies of government, despite a token tip of the hat to alternate energy sources like wind and solar, despite all the hype surrounding electric cars, greenhouse gas emissions are rising. According to the Global Carbon Project, after three relatively flat years, there was a two per cent rise in emission rates in 2017.
Worse, emissions are growing at exactly the point at which radical cuts are needed to escape a 2 C rise in temperature that would plunge the planet into chaos, or even its death throes. The UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says that a 70 per cent cut in greenhouse gas emissions must be made by 2050 to break the earth’s rising fever.
It’s not happening.
Instead, the planet is experiencing unprecedented droughts, floods, hurricanes and wildfires scientists believe are linked to global warming.
- Alex Hemingway examines how soaring real estate prices have exacerbated inequality in British Columbia.
- Yvette D'Entremont notes that a national food program is entirely feasible - though I'd be careful before assuming that a Senate motion will have any bearing on long-term policy development.
- Finally, George Monbiot argues that the results of publicly-funded research should be freely accessible to the citizenry which has footed the bill.
Thursday, September 13, 2018
Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading.
- Paul Krugman offers a reminder that the great global policy failure following the 2008 finance-driven crisis was to bail out bankers alone, while leaving people to fend for themselves in the face of subsequent austerity. And Wayne Swan highlights how the continued race to the bottom when it comes to corporate taxes and regulations represents a threat to both economic justice and democracy.
- Patrick Butler notes that new research shows the UK's most severe cuts to social benefits have cruelly targeted toward the people who need help the most. And Libby Brooks reports on a new study showing the connection between poverty, isolation and death in Scotland.
- Aditya Chakrabortty makes the case for no-strings-attached housing through Housing First programs as the solution to the most important problems arising from homelessness.
- David Suzuki calls for us to turn "disposable" into something to be avoided, rather than a default expectation:
- Finally, Andre Picard discusses how decriminalization of drugs could help to reduce addictions and deaths resulting from opioids. But Beth Mole notes that the "morality" of the pharmaceutical industry is rather different from that of most people in treating rent-seeking as a moral obligation rather than an abuse of power.
- Paul Krugman offers a reminder that the great global policy failure following the 2008 finance-driven crisis was to bail out bankers alone, while leaving people to fend for themselves in the face of subsequent austerity. And Wayne Swan highlights how the continued race to the bottom when it comes to corporate taxes and regulations represents a threat to both economic justice and democracy.
- Patrick Butler notes that new research shows the UK's most severe cuts to social benefits have cruelly targeted toward the people who need help the most. And Libby Brooks reports on a new study showing the connection between poverty, isolation and death in Scotland.
- Aditya Chakrabortty makes the case for no-strings-attached housing through Housing First programs as the solution to the most important problems arising from homelessness.
- David Suzuki calls for us to turn "disposable" into something to be avoided, rather than a default expectation:
- Finally, Andre Picard discusses how decriminalization of drugs could help to reduce addictions and deaths resulting from opioids. But Beth Mole notes that the "morality" of the pharmaceutical industry is rather different from that of most people in treating rent-seeking as a moral obligation rather than an abuse of power.
New column day
Here, on how the needless use of the notwithstanding clause is just one more of the ways in which Scott Moe's Saskatchewan Party is dangerously similar to Doug Ford's PC government.
For further reading...
- CBC News reported on the Saskatchewan Party's own use of the notwithstanding clause to avoid a court decision it didn't like - and without waiting for the appeal process to play out first. And as a reminder, Brad Wall also mused about using the notwithstanding clause to suppress labour rights.
- Meanwhile, Ford's use of the notwithstanding clause has of course received far more attention - with Trish Hennessy, David Climenhaga, Steve Burgess, Paul Wells and John Lorinc among those weighing in. And Alex Ballingall offers a reminder as to how the notwithstanding clause came to be.
- Hilary Beaumont has documented the rapidly-growing list of legal challenges arising out of Ford's chaotic stay in office. And Robert Benzie reported on Ford's plan for a physical manifestation of the tired "open for business" talking point.
- Finally, Jayda Noyes reported on Moe's open adoption of Ford's anti-immigrant attack lines.
For further reading...
- CBC News reported on the Saskatchewan Party's own use of the notwithstanding clause to avoid a court decision it didn't like - and without waiting for the appeal process to play out first. And as a reminder, Brad Wall also mused about using the notwithstanding clause to suppress labour rights.
- Meanwhile, Ford's use of the notwithstanding clause has of course received far more attention - with Trish Hennessy, David Climenhaga, Steve Burgess, Paul Wells and John Lorinc among those weighing in. And Alex Ballingall offers a reminder as to how the notwithstanding clause came to be.
- Hilary Beaumont has documented the rapidly-growing list of legal challenges arising out of Ford's chaotic stay in office. And Robert Benzie reported on Ford's plan for a physical manifestation of the tired "open for business" talking point.
- Finally, Jayda Noyes reported on Moe's open adoption of Ford's anti-immigrant attack lines.
Tuesday, September 11, 2018
Tuesday Morning Links
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.
- 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.
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.
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