I have always been intrigued by people’s tendency to believe what they want to believe rather than what the facts are telling them, to believe what their innate biases desire rather than what is true. I do it myself, of course, although I hope that for the most part I
Continue readingAuthor: Bill Longstaff
Views from the Beltline: Has Trump revived fascism in the Republican Party?
I am surprised and disappointed at those Republicans who support Trump to the point of rejecting the will of the American people and even democracy itself. The recent effort to allow Vice-president Pence to potentially replace Electoral College votes for Mr Biden with votes for Mr Trump came close to
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: A tale of two presidents and the rule of law
We can draw an interesting comparison between two politicians currently concerned that the long arm of the law may catch up to them upon leaving the sanctuary of the presidency. One has little to worry about. As an autocrat, he can manipulate both the people and the legislature to his
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Use the war room to educate Albertans?
In December 2019, the Alberta government launched the Canadian Energy Centre. The new UCP government had fulfilled its election promise of an energy “war room” that would “fight fake news and share the truth about Alberta’s resource sector and energy issues.” The promise has turned out to be a huge
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Conservatives and the working class
During the 2019 provincial election UCP leader Jason Kenney rambled about Alberta in a big blue pickup truck for all the world like a toiler in the oil fields. The new premier likes to present himself as one of the boys. Whether he succeeds or not, it worked electorally. He
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Parsing Alberta’s oil industry
One could divide Alberta up in various ways. First, as in most provinces and elsewhere, there is town and country, the old story of liberal cities and socially conservative hinterlands. And in the 2019 election the pattern held: the UCP dominated the countryside. And then there’s north-south. The southern part
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Conservatives and the elites
New Conservative chief, Erin O’Toole, has recently been singing a popular populist tune. He is greatly concerned about the “elites.” “These elites have only one set of values centred on unchecked globalization [and] political correctness,” Mr. O’Toole argues. Opposed are middle-class Canadians whose values are “rooted in family, home and nation.” The latter have been “betrayed” by “political elites,
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Denmark throws down the gauntlet
Denmark has taken another important step in its shift to a green economy. Earlier this month, the Danish parliament agreed to cancel licenses for oil and gas drilling and phase out all fossil fuel production by 2050. Parliament also committed to a just transition for affected areas and workers. “When
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Murdoch challenged
The most powerful man in the Anglosphere is, I submit, Rupert Murdoch, the world’s most influential media mogul. Yes, even more powerful than the president of the United States. Presidents come and go but News Corp, Murdoch’s media empire, goes on and on. Indeed, Murdoch can make and break presidents
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: What I learned from Trump
Up until four years ago I assumed that democracy was not only strong, it was invincible. At least in the Anglosphere. Why wouldn’t I? During my lifetime, democracy had survived the Great Depression, the Second World War complete with Fascists and Nazis, and the Cold War against a totalitarian state.
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Working less—one answer to COVID economics
As the pandemic continues to batter the economy and unemployment increases, it’s time to take yet another look at an approach to work that will maintain high employment while improving quality of life—shorter work times. Early in the 19th century, people worked on average about 3600 hours a year—70 or
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: East trumps West in COVID fight
The biggest problems we face in the modern world, including the biggest one of all, global warming, are human problems, i.e. problems we must face as a species rather than in our usual fashion as tribes. In the case of the coronavirus, we in the West are having some difficulty
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Singh writes a letter
Way back in 2004 the Liberals, led by Paul Martin, squeaked out an election win that resulted in a minority government. In order to remain in power, they needed the support of the NDP. Jack Layton, NDP leader, had said he would make proportional representation (PR) an ”absolute condition” for
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Donald Trump is now as American as apple pie
Donald Trump is for real. His victory in 2016 was no fluke. He got more votes this time, including more support from Republicans, the party he was predicted to shatter, than he did last time. He even got more votes from Latinos and Blacks. For half the U.S. public, Trump
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: O’Toole says some good stuff
Watching the vicious political battle taking place south of the border, it is refreshing to see signs of a more civilized political culture up here. Such signs were illustrated last Friday in a speech by Conservative leader Erin O’Toole to a business audience at the Canadian Club of Toronto. He
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Cancelling Tommy Douglas
If I had to choose my favourite Canadian, I would without hesitation choose Tommy Douglas, the man most responsible for Medicare, one of Canadians’ two most popular institutions. I’m not alone. In 2004, CBC audience members voted him the “greatest Canadian” in a network competition. He was indeed a great
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Electing Biden isn’t enough
In 2016, Americans embarrassed themselves by electing Donald Trump as their president. Then Trump took over and has embarrassed them ever since. If they want to regain the world’s respect, they must not only elect Joe Biden next Tuesday, they must repudiate Trump. They must elect Biden in a landslide.
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Greens cheated in B.C. election
The election in B.C. last Saturday should have elevated the Green Party to the status of power broker. It failed. The Greens’ 15 percent of the popular vote should have provided 13 seats in the legislature. It provided a grand total of three. The NDP’s 45 percent of the vote
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: China has a soft power shortage
Now would seem to be the moment for China’s star to shine. It has gained control of the coronavirus pandemic rapidly and effectively, and it is the only member of the G20 whose economy is expected to grow this year. At the same time, its major rival on the world
Continue readingViews from the Beltline: Kenney channels Notley
During the NDP’s brief sojourn as government of Alberta, it pursued a policy oft-referred to as “social license.” The idea was that if the province was to get investment in tar sands and pipelines, it would have to show sound environmental stewardship. This was undoubtedly part of the reason for
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