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350 or bust: Take Time To Renew Your Spirit
When asked at colleges if I am pessimistic or optimistic about the future, my answer is always the same: If you look at the science that describes what is happening on earth today and aren’t pessimistic, you don’t have the correct data. If you meet the people in this unnamed
Continue readingPolitics, Re-Spun: NDP Leaders, By the Numbers and the Intangibles
There are some interesting dynamics going on with the NDP leadership race that we can track with numbers, see way below. And while numbers tell some stories, they don’t necessarily track intangible criteria of leadership qualities like these, which I would perhaps suggest in this order: intelligence progressive vision: social,
Continue readingNorthern Insights / Perceptivity: Reconsidering Harper’s vision for Canada
THE CAGING OF AMERICA, Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, January 2012 “…In the past two decades, the money that states spend on prisons has risen at six times the rate of spending on higher education. Ours is, bottom to top, a “carceral state,” in the flat verdict of Conrad Black,
Continue readingNorthern Insights / Perceptivity: Treading on the public welfare
News Item, January 11, 2012: “Shaw Media announced Wednesday that it has filed an application to the CRTC for a 24/7 regional, all-news channel for the province. “The channel is set to launch this summer, pending approval from the CRTC, which is the country’s broadcasting regulator. The new channel will
Continue readingNorthern Insights / Perceptivity: Judging the judge, again
Also read: J. Leask: Questions of perspicacity and impartiality B.C. Appeal Court overturns cocaine conspiracy acquittal…, Neal Hall, Vancouver Sun, Jan. 10, 2012 “VANCOUVER — A three-judge panel of the B.C. Court of Appeal has overturned the acquittal of four men accused of a cocaine trafficking conspiracy and has ordered
Continue readingPolitics, Re-Spun: Day Two of Tragedy of the Market: From Crisis to Commons
Tragedy of the Market: From Crisis to Commons January 6-8, 2012 Vancouver/Burnaby All panelist biographies are here: Below are some lessons learned and observations from the sessions. Friday: The opening panel is recorded in the Twitter storify here. Saturday: Opening Panel A Global Tradition: History of the Commons Silvia Federici
Continue readingPolitics, Re-Spun: Opening Panel from the Tragedy of the Market: From Crisis to Commons
This weekend I attended Tragedy of the Market: From Crisis to Commons community gathering in Vancouver and Burnaby, sponsored by these groups and people. The basic premise is not so much that capitalism is broken, and we just need to fix it, but that neoliberal market fundamentalism is inherently broken
Continue readingLarry Hubich's Blog: SFL awaits Court decision in Charter Challenge case against Bills 5 & 6
During November of 2011 the SFL et al, along with 3 intervenor unions were in court to argue that the Saskatchewan provincial government’s (2007 – 2008) labour legislation (Bills 5 & 6) violates the Charter rights of working people. The SFL team argued 3 main points: 1. People have the right to
Continue readingPolitics, Re-Spun: How You Can Support the Gitxsan Blockade
Photo courtesy of Gitxsan Against Enbridge website. Despite very public chest thumping, trumpeting and proclamations by Enbridge, mainstream media and Hereditary Chief Elmer Derrick, the song remains the same: the Northern Gateway Project is unwelcome in Northern B.C. As the angry, indignant and brave members of the Gitxsan Nation
Continue readingLarry Hubich's Blog: Inside Job, Narrated by Matt Damon (Full Length HD)
Inside Job, Narrated by Matt Damon (Full Length HD) on Vimeo. “‘Inside Job’ provides a comprehensive analysis of the global financial crisis of 2008, which at a cost over $20 trillion, caused millions of people to lose their jobs and homes in the worst recession since the Great Depression, and
Continue readingNorthern Insights / Perceptivity: Victoria’s practitioners of distraction
“The impact of the government’s changes to the drunk-driving laws have been felt in a very real way across the province. They were highly controversial. They were argued about. They are still being argued about. But you can’t argue with the results.” Premier Photo Op claimed 45 people are alive
Continue readingNorthern Insights / Perceptivity: Things I wonder about
1. — Exactly who is the federal government representing as they try to suppress evidence that they are suppressing evidence of the ISA threat to westcoast fisheries? From Tamsyn Burgmann, Canadian Press: “The possibility that a potentially devastating fish virus has migrated into British Columbia salmon is concerning enough to
Continue readingNorthern Insights / Perceptivity: Effective and sustainable? Who knows?
“Old news” – new anxieties for Liberals, posted three weeks ago, mentioned Basi/Virk judge Anne MacKenzie’s reasons for sentence and her dialogue of standard clichés, wordplay, and nonsense: “…a conditional sentence is not necessarily a more lenient sentence…” “The stigma of a conditional sentence with house arrest should not be underestimated.”
Continue readingNorthern Insights / Perceptivity: A snail’s pace is quick by comparison
To emphasize that the Basi/Virk trial was merely meter-spinning theatre from the injustice system, I bring back a Northern Insights piece from almost 18 months ago. I think it captures reality, showing the trial was never about exposing truth. This week another insider of the Liberal government was caught reaching
Continue readingNorthern Insights / Perceptivity: Victoria’s old-time policing continues
Victoria police assault probe not over yet, CBC News, November 23, 2011: “A provincial court judge ruled [Victoria police sergeant] George Chong used excessive force in applying a chokehold that rendered Frank Blair unconscious in January 2010. “The judge sentenced Chong to one year’s probation and ordered him to take
Continue readingNorthern Insights / Perceptivity: Would law apply to all violent rioters?
News Item: “OTTAWA – It could soon be illegal for rioters to hide behind masks. “A proposed law would allow cops to arrest those participating in an unlawful gathering or a riot if they cover their faces with bandannas and balaclavas. “This is exactly the kind of thing we need
Continue readingNorthern Insights / Perceptivity: "Old news" – news anxieties
Alex Tsakumis today offers Open Letter to John Doyle, Auditor-General of British Columbia: The Information You Need On the Buying of Dave Basi and Bob Virk by the BC Liberals is Right Here. That we can read Judge Anne MacKenzie’s “Oral Reasons for Sentence” emphasizes this is theatre of the
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