Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading. – Grace Blakeley discusses how corporate handouts represent a major contributor to the concentration of wealth by the richest few. And CNN reports on the new billionaires created by the public development of COVID-19 vaccines. – Rachelle Younglai points out that generational wealth transfers
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Accidental Deliberations: Tuesday Night Cat Blogging
Cats amid chaos.
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Tuesday Morning Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading. – Robert Reich offers some lessons we need to draw from the coronavirus pandemic – including the recognition that while billionaires won’t save us from collective action problems, effective government can. – Renju Jose reports on Melbourne’s instant reaction to community spread of
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib Mk. II: Hedges on Israel – No Surprises There
Chris Hedges is an outspoken, full throated supporter of Palestine and its people. You won’t find a shred of neutrality in him but he would say exactly the same about the American (and, for that matter, Canadian) governments, fawning support for the Israeli side. Hedges reminds us that the
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib Mk. II: It’ll Take More Than Solar Panels and Electric Cars
At some level most of us probably know that solar panels and electric cars won’t be enough to avert a climate catastrophe. Yet they do appeal to our inner “lazy self.” However, what sort of future we bequeath to our grandchildren is a function of how much we’re willing
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your Monday reading. – Jenna Gettings et al. study the massive effect masking and improved ventilation have in reducing the spread of the coronavirus in elementary schools. But Sheila Wang reports on the outdated assumptions still being used to inform public health advice about COVID-19. And Michael
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib Mk. II: As Long As They’re Here, They Might as Well Make Themselves Useful.
Next month, the US will release a report on everything (almost) the government knows about UFOs, now called UAPs or Unmanned Aerial Phenomenon. The report is expected to include scores of sightings by military pilots. For decades it was feared that rumors might stampede the public into a War
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Sunday Afternoon Links
This and that for your Sunday reading. – The Globe and Mail’s editorial board discusses the reality that the end of the age of oil is near no matter how many petropoliticians try to operate in denial. Carl Meyer reports on the oil lobby’s attempts to turn the pursuit of
Continue readingThe Cracked Crystal Ball II: Wherein We Learn That Cryptocurrency Is About to Repeat History
According to this article, Cryptocurrency market volatility is because they are “free”. The upshot of the argument being made here is that because the “worth” of a cryptocurrency is entirely decoupled from any measurability, that this means that the markets are “more free” (free as in freedom, in a somewhat
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Saturday Afternoon Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading. – Murray Mandryk discusses how COVID-19 has highlighted and exacerbated existing inequality in Saskatchewan. And Aaron Wherry points out that Canada shouldn’t treat its privileged position in securing early access to vaccines as cause to ignore the pandemic which will continue to rage around
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Musical interlude
The Glorious Sons – Daylight
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Afternoon Links
Assorted content to end your week. – John Michael McGrath makes the case for optimism about our potential to avoid further waves of COVID as long as COVID-19 vaccinations overtake the risk of community spread. Brian Platt reports on Nova Scotia’s use of rapid testing to catch a substantial number
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib Mk. II: Who Asks "Why?"
Every time there’s a conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians, all we hear is ‘why?’ It’s easier to affix blame if you can truncate the event. Pick a convenient start date, something recent. In this case we’ll make it either the Israeli eviction of Arabs from Jerusalem or the scuffle
Continue readingThe Cracked Crystal Ball II: A Skeptical View Of Cryptocurrencies
Recently, I have seen a lot of discussion on Twitter about cryptocurrencies, and their validity. The arguments basically boil down to proponents arguing that this technology is the future of currency, and others pointing out a range of problems from "what's the basis of valuation?' to "jeez, something about this
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib Mk. II: In the Runup to What Could Be Another Roe v. Wade Showdown, Another Iron Curtain Descends on Reproductive Rights in America
A couple of days ago we learned that the governor of Mississippi had signed into law a blanket prohibition against abortion after 15 weeks. Not to be outdone, the governor of another slave state, Texas, has enacted a six-week abortion ban. And it’s wild. Senate Bill 8 (SB 8), passed
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading. – Bruce Arthurt warns against letting up in our effort to fight COVID-19 just when a substantial victory is in sight. And Stephen Reicher, Susan Michie and Christina Pagel offer their take on the needed response to the emergence of more dangerous COVID variants
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib Mk. II: The Rise of America’s Authoritarian Right
This ought to be a bit chilling. Almost half of Republicans would willingly ditch democracy. So finds CBS News-YouGov polling conducted in mid-May. The survey asked Republicans a series of questions about the required level of fealty to former president Donald Trump, their views of the 2020 election and priorities
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib Mk. II: Where Was All the Outrage When Houthi Civilians Were Being Slaughtered?
The US and Canada back Israel. The US and Canada also back Saudi Arabia. When Israel lowers the lumber on Gaza Palestinians we take to the streets in protest. Who those people are dying by the hundreds. When Saudi Arabia waged a relentless aerial campaign against Houthi civilians it
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib Mk. II: Faint Praise
The Globe editorial board is practically giddy at the prospect that Canada is edging ahead of the United States on Covid-19 vaccinations. While this is the sort of thing that sends politicians scurrying to take a victory lap, our success is primarily because Canadians aren’t as stupid as our
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