You can read more about this and related issues by visiting north99.org. Recommend this Post
Continue readingTag: right-wing propaganda
Politics and its Discontents: A Tale To Frighten Children (And Uninformed Canadians)
Well, the Globe and Mail is up to its usual agenda of promoting the neocon vision. Not content to let Canadians ruminate on ideas unimpeded by thinly-disguised corporate ideology and scaremongering, it is attempting to sow doubt about a plan that would potentially benefit all Canadians, national pharmacare, whose time
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: The Fraser Institute (A.K.A., The Pinocchio Gambit)
It is to be hoped that no one was near the proboscis of Jason Clemens, Executive Vice President of the right-wing Fraser Institute, when he told this tall tale to Steve Paikin recently on TVO’s The Agenda: For a parsing of Clemons’ concoctions, please click here. Recommend this Post
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: The Climate Change Debate Lives On
The science on the theory of climate change is not settled. There is a powerful, scientific consensus that anthropogenic or man-made climate change is real, here now and worsening. There is a powerful, scientific consensus that man-made climate change is already triggering natural feedback mechanisms that eventually can become “tipping
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: A True Critical Thinker
For many decades Noam Chomsky has been fearlessly fighting for truth. His capacity for incisive critical thinking and unwillingness to submit to the bluster of the right is much in evidence in this excerpt from a 1969 edition of William Buckley’s Firing Line. Would that today’s progressives were as tenacious.
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Puncturing The Myth That Raising Minimum Wages Will Kill Jobs
The question of minimum wage has been very much a topic of discussion in alternative media of late, and I have written a few posts about the struggle. I am leading off today’s consideration of the issue with a well-considered letter from a Star reader, followed by a Real News
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: And Speaking Of Walmart …
Some days, corporate megaliths just can’t catch a break: P.S. I could only get this video to play in Internet Explore, not Chrome. Recommend this Post
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Free Trade – Part 2
Continuing with the theme of yesterday’s post, I am taking the liberty of reproducing some letters that appear in today’s Star on free trade. They nicely puncture the myth, propagated and perpetuated by the right, of its unalloyed benefits to Canada: Brian Mulroney and the harsh reality of Canada-U.S. free
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Resistance Is NOT Futile
In the various incarnations that the series Star Trek has enjoyed, The Next Generation was my favorite. Starring the well-known Shakespearean actor Patrick Stewart, whose regal commands propelled The Enterprise into inter-stellar adventures each week, …
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: How The Right Deforms Our Attitudes
I have long believed it is not so much the ‘genius’ of the extreme right as it is their financial backing that makes them powerful propagandists. Their domination of the media and their captivation of politicians’ ears give them advantages very difficult to surmount. Read letters to the editor throughout
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: What Canadian Media Outlets Need
What they need is people like CNN’s Soledad O’Brien, who refuses to be cowed by right-wing bullies like John Sununu. Peter Mansbridge, are you listening? H/t Roger Ebert See also Andy Ostroy’s thoughts on The Huffington Post. Recommend this Post
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: The Right-Wing Propaganda Machine Gears Up
Deeply affronted, perhaps even frightened by the recent change to the Ontario budget that will impose an increase of 2% on the income of those making over $500,000 per year, the right-wing has been busy cranking out its anti-tax propaganda. Lest anyone think that a return to some form of
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: An Inconvenient Truth For The Right Wing To Digest
Over the past several years, most notably since the ascension to power of the Harper regime, taxation, especially the concept of progressive taxation, has fallen into bad odour, Thanks to the ethos espoused by the right, we have been consistently bombarded with messages that we are unfairly burdened with oppressive
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