Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading. – John Ibbitson reports that the Cons’ obvious priorities have finally been made explicit: as far as they’re concerned, the sole purpose of international diplomacy is to serve the corporate sector. And Ian Smillie documents how the Cons hijacked Canada’s foreign aid program (while
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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: Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material to start your week. – Murray Dobbin writes about the crisis of extreme capitalism: (T)he “free economy” romanticized by Friedman and his ilk is anything but. Completely dominated by giant corporations whose wealth outstrips all but the richest nations, economic freedom does not exist for anyone else, including
Continue readingbastard.logic: I’m Not Sayin’ (I’m Just Sayin’)
The following nugget was buried at the bottom of a follow-up CP report on how CIDA helped fund the Ugandan aid work of the virulently anti-gay Crossroads Christian Communications (in full PR damage control mode now that its homobigoted Evangelical slip is showing) to the tune of half a million dollars last year: Francois Audet,
Continue readingbastard.logic: Big Pharma Cashing In On Global South Vaccination?
The Graun: Médecins sans Frontières (MSF), the Nobel prize-winning organisation working on the frontline in remote and conflict areas, says vaccines bought with UK and other donor governments’ money cost too much and are not designed for the needs of hot and impoverished countries. When the pot of money subsidising
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Morning Links
Assorted content for your Friday reading. – In response to the Fraser Institute’s latest attempt to foment panic (to be used as an excuse to attack public programs and hand yet more free money to corporations), Trish Hennessy explains the province’s choices in terms anybody should be able to understand:
Continue readingTrashy's World: Canada’s number one buffoon…
… is angling for a Senate seat, it appears. Although I don’t think he has the intelligence to engage in such strategic thinking. Regardless of whether his views are on or off-base, he-of-no-taste should stick to hockey and should shut up about the country’s foreign aid policies. He knows next
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week. – Steven Hoffman highlights the Cons’ utter refusal to recognize that foreign aid – as defined by global treaties – doesn’t mean the same thing as corporate giveaways: Reports and commentary on Canada’s new foreign aid policy reveal the extent to which international development
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading. – Martin Kirk discusses the role governments play in allowing and facilitating the extraction of a substantial portion of the world’s wealth to tax havens (h/t to thwap): Tax theft is endemic all over the world. It is organised through an intricate system of
Continue readingPolitics and Entertainment: Canadian aid to Palestinians may be on chopping block after UN vote
For bully boy Baird, international front man for the Harper Regime, to consider cutting off or freezing aid to Palestine is unadulterated, childish vindictiveness should he choose to follow through with such a threat (with apologies to children …
Continue readingPolitics and Entertainment: A Call for Direct Action: Is it Worthy of Consideration?
Your Anon News • A CALL FOR DIRECT ACTION
Although there are facets of this perspective that are highly debatable, as many of the comments on Tumblr reveal, this is an intriguing argument not without some merit because aspects of it are …
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Saturday Afternoon Links
Miscellaneous material for your weekend reading. – Thomas Walkom comments on the Cons’ preference for low-wage, no-rights immigrant labour as a means of avoiding good jobs for Canadians: Theoretically, temporary work visas are supposed to be reserved for those with unique skills. But increasingly, the notion of skill has been
Continue readingCANADIAN PROGRESSIVE WORLD: Bev Oda’s Sweet Double Resignation
GOOD RIDDANCE! The minister responsible for the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) has resigned from both Stephen Harper’s cabinet and her elected position as Conservative MP for the Ontario riding of Durham. The controversy-plagued Oda announced her resignation this morning without giving a clear explanation. No doubt, the resignation is a
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Parliament in Review – May 4, 2012
Friday, May 4 saw a relatively short day of debate on the omnibus budget bill – but with a few twists on the discussion seen to date. The Big Issue Claude Gravelle noted that the range of major changes in C-38 goes far beyond the environment alone. Ted Hsu wondered
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Parliament in Review – May 4, 2012
Friday, May 4 saw a relatively short day of debate on the omnibus budget bill – but with a few twists on the discussion seen to date. The Big Issue Claude Gravelle noted that the range of major changes in C-38 goes far beyond the environment alone. Ted Hsu wondered
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Parliament in Review: April 30, 2012
Monday, April 30 featured discussion of two opposition motions dealing with the federal government’s responsibility to ensure the safety of Canadians. And on both fronts, the Cons went out of their way to disclaim any such role for our public servants. The Big Issue Jack Harris started off the safety
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Parliament in Review – April 25, 2012
Wednesday, April 25 saw one of the more noteworthy economic debates we’ve seen in the current session of Parliament, as a former-PC-turned-Liberal raised the issue of income inequality to a noteworthy response from the Harper Cons. The Big Issue Scott Brison presented what should have been a relatively non-controversial motion
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Parliament in Review – April 3, 2012
Tuesday, April 3, 2012 saw the final day of debate at second reading of the Cons’ budget – and once again featured plenty of work by Peter Julian to introduce the types of perspectives the Cons would never tolerate if they could avoid it. The Big Issue Once again, Julian
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Parliament in Review – March 30, 2012
Friday, March 30 was the first day of Peter Julian’s budget filibuster. But while it accomplished its goal of avoiding several hours worth of Con talking points, was there much to take from Julian’s own comments? The Big Issue Well, let’s highlight a few of his more noteworthy observations. First,
Continue readingbastard.logic: The Real Bev Oda Scandal: Politicizing (& Corporatizing) Canadian Foreign Aid
That now-infamous taxpayer-subsidized luxury hotel switcheroo in Mother London? Small potatoes. Don Cayo: [A]nalysis by Fraser Reilly-King, a policy analyst at the non-profit Canadian Council for International Co-operation, shows substantial cuts to foreign aid in last month’s federal budget are aimed mainly at the same kind of underprivileged countries [that were
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