The two most striking features of the health care omnibus bill introduced yesterday by the United Conservative Party are that it opens the door to a higher degree of privatization and two-tier health care and escalates Health Minister Tyler Shandro’s feud with the Alberta Medical Association. Neither is a positive
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Accidental Deliberations: New column day
Here, on how political fund-raising scandals in Ontario and British Columbia only highlight the complete lack of rules governing donations in Saskatchewan.For further reading…- SCOTUS’ Citizens United decision is here (PDF). And Michael Hiltzik discu…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading.- Alexander Panetta reports on the G20’s agreement on the need to crack down on tax evasion – as well as the steps Canada needs to take to get our own house in order:The final communique warned of actions against c…
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Toward Democratic Renewal
I’m sure that all progressive bloggers are disheartened and bedeviled by the devolution of democracy in Canada. Not only has it been under consistent and sustained attack by the Harper regime, but it has also (perhaps as a result of those attacks) seen a substantial rise in the number of
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Let The Sun Shine
Like the vampires of fiction who cling to the darkness as they carry out their nefarious, life-depleting ravages on their prey, the Harper regime best operates in the dark, away from the light of public scrutiny as it continues to suck the vitality out of our democracy. (Sorry for the
Continue readingA BCer in Toronto: Parliamentarians and the yoke of party discipline
A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of attending a screening of Whipped, a documentary on party discipline by former BC legislature reporter Sean Holman. You can now stream the doc on the CPAC web site, and it’s well worth a look. While it’s focused on Victoria and BC
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