Miscellaneous material to start your week. – Josh Eidelson and John Schmitt take a look at the guaranteed annual income which will be voted on in Switzerland – and the sole barrier to a similar discussion in the U.S. (and likely in Canada): What is a universal basic income, and
Continue readingTag: fair taxes
Accidental Deliberations: Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading. – Agence France-Presse reports that even the IMF has reached the conclusion that higher taxes on wealthy citizens are a necessary part of competent economic management – even as the Harper Cons and other right-wing governments keep trying to peddle trickle-down economics to
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Sunday Morning Links
Assorted content for your Sunday reading. – Alex Himelfarb and Jordan Himelfarb comment on Canada’s dangerously distorted conversation about public revenue and the purposes it can serve: As we argue in our new book, Tax Is Not a Four-Letter Word, the Canadian tax conversation has become dangerously distorted. Any reasonable
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Tuesday Morning Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading. – Charles Campbell discusses Robert Reich’s work to highlight the importance of a fair and progressive tax system. And while Lawrence Martin is right to lament the systematic destruction of Canada’s public revenue streams under the Libs and Cons alike, his fatalistic view
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On independent thought
It’s for the best that the idle speculation and gossip about a single point of policy difference between Thomas Mulcair and Linda McQuaig have been put to rest. But let’s make clear just how pernicious the “ZOMG!!! Candidate X occasionally thinks for herself!!! Clearly she must be muzzled!!!” line of
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week. – There was never much doubt that the Cons’ demolition of Canada’s long-form census was intended to ensure that we lack data needed to develop evidence-based policies – and that the effects would be most significant among the most marginalized (or exclusive) groups. And
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading. – Justin Ling reports on the federal government’s covert surveillance of Idle No More: Sitting in her teepee on Ottawa’s Victoria Island in December 2012, Attawapiskat Chief Theresa Spence was officially starting her hunger strike, breathing fire into the Idle No More movement
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading. – Alan Pyke observes that instead of reflecting any particular merit, massive payouts to CEOs are all too often made despite (or because of) executive incompetence and illegality: The best-paid CEOs in American business have overseen companies that were bailed out, been fired,
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week. – Alison Bennett reports on the OECD’s work on offshore tax avoidance, highlighting the “stateless income” that’s shuffled around the globe so as to avoid contributing to social good anywhere: Policymakers around the world are stepping up efforts to tighten rules because a growing
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On efficiencies
Nick Falvo offers one response to Tom Mulcair’s latest comments on taxes. And I certainly won’t argue with the position that it’s utterly bizarre to see the leader of a progressive party declare that he’s perfectly happy with the restrictive revenue streams (and associated lack of social programs) set up
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your holiday reading. – Paul Buchhelt discusses eight areas where privatization has proven to be a disaster in the U.S. – with one holding particular interest for Regina residents: A 2009 analysis of water and sewer utilities by Food and Water Watch found that private companies charge
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week. – Frances Woolley rightly challenges the conventional wisdom that there’s no such thing as a popular and efficient tax: Few taxes generate enthusiastic popular support, but some are more popular than others. Those are the ones that fill the red circle. The area labelled
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading. – Paul Krugman writes that the only real difference between the latest global crisis and past depressions is that we’ve moved further and further toward a rent-based economy – meaning that aggregated growth doesn’t necessarily result in any benefit for the vast majority
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Wednesday Afternoon Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading. – Polly Toynbee writes that there’s no magic involved in collecting fair tax rates from the rich – only a need for the political will to fund public priorities: Cutting the 50% top rate suggests no great enthusiasm for rigorous taxing. Last week’s ONS
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Saturday Afternoon Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading. – Paul Krugman points out that workers are receiving less and less benefit from technological advancements – and offers a simple policy prescription to ensure workers of all skill levels don’t suffer unduly based on forces far beyond their control: I’ve noted before that
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading. – Mike Fancie offers this year’s definitive response to the the misguided concept of “tax freedom”: The Fraser Institute’s math on income and taxation has been roundly criticized, including by a former Assistant Chief Statistician and by our Andrew Jackson for skewing numbers to make
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material to start your week. – Jason Fekete reports that the Harper Cons are taking the side of international tax evaders against other G8 leaders trying to implement an effective enforcement system. And CBC reports that the Canada Revenue Agency has repeatedly turned down the opportunity to access information
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week. – David Miller makes the case to take aim at inequality in Canada: With globalization being the holy grail of efficiency, it became a race to the bottom as international capital sought the lowest cost and the lowest wages. The result in Canada and
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: New column day
Here, on how the recent Munk Debate has helped to highlight Canadians’ preference for a fairer, more progressive tax system – and on a couple of the most important steps we can take toward that end goal. For further reading…– Ipsos Reid’s polling on public views toward taxing the rich
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material to start your week. – Mike Konczal discusses the distribution of U.S. tax breaks and incentives, and finds that measures normally presented as offering breaks for everybody in fact serve mostly as giveaways to the wealthy: (T)he government is very responsive to the interests of the top 20
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