This and that for your Sunday reading. – Edward Keenan writes that a lack of affordable child care is the crucial financial pressure facing families across the income spectrum. And Michael Wolfson discusses the dangers of talking about taxes in a vacuum without recognizing what we lose by failing to
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Accidental Deliberations: Saturday Morning Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading. – Don Pittis examines the Cons’ record on jobs and the economy, and reaches the inevitable conclusion that free trade bluster and corporate giveaways have done nothing to help Canadians – which makes it no wonder the Cons are hiding the terms of the
Continue readingMichal Rozworski: The media love the TPP, but should you?
My piece on the mainstream media’s trade deal boosterism was published at Ricochet yesterday. Canada’s media have heaped fawning praise on the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the biggest free trade and investment deal in years. Rather than raising questions and red flags over a secret deal with mixed impacts, our media has been
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: New column day
Here, on how the Cons’ multi-billion dollar price tag for Trans-Pacific Partnership compensation makes clear that every party is planning to spend large amounts of public money reshaping Canada – leaving us to choose which we value most out of the NDP’s social programs, Libs’ temporary infrastructure spending or Cons’
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: Trudeau’s Endorsement of Harper’s Trans-Pacific Partnership Deal Insulting
Justin Trudeau blindly endorses the secretive Trans-Pacific Partnership deal, and then attacks Stephen Harper for failing to be transparent “especially in regards to what Canada is conceding”. The post Trudeau’s Endorsement of Harper’s Trans-Pacific Partnership Deal Insulting appeared first on The Canadian Progressive.
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On campaign reflections
There’s been a flurry of discussion elsewhere about the NDP’s campaign over the past couple of weeks, and I’ll chime in quickly with my own take on how the campaign has developed so far – and what we should hope for as it reaches its conclusion. To start with, I
Continue readingLeft Over: Composure Under Pressure…..
I am trying with great difficulty to ignore the current campaign for a new Parliament and, if there is any justice, a new PM. I have been also trying, somewhat unsuccessfully, to stop comparing and contrasting (thanks so much to all my Uni profs. who beat that concept into my
Continue readingLeft Over: Composure Under Pressure…..
I am trying with great difficulty to ignore the current campaign for a new Parliament and, if there is any justice, a new PM. I have been also trying, somewhat unsuccessfully, to stop comparing and contrasting (thanks so much to all my Uni profs. who beat that concept into my
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Tuesday Morning Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading. – Hadrian Mertins-Kirkwood highlights how the Trans-Pacific Partnership will do little but strengthen the hand of the corporate sector against citizens. Duncan Cameron notes that even in the face of a full-court press for ever more stringent corporate controls, there’s plenty of well-justified
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: A Quick Thought About The TPP
I was not planning to write about the Trans Pacific Partnership deal gleefully announced by Mr. Harper yesterday, trade and economics not being my strong suits. However, looking at the overall details of what it entails prompts me to make an observation. First, a few of the details: Beef and
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On uncosted liabilities
So even from the sketchy details made public so far, and even leaving aside the more general harm done by limiting government action and entrenching corporate monopolies, the Trans-Pacific Partnership will cost Canada: $4.3 billion in compensation to dairy, chicken and egg farmers Up to 20,000 lost jobs in the
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material to start your week. – Joseph Heath discusses how the Volkswagen emission cheating scandal fits into a particular type of corporate culture: (W)hen the Deepwater Horizon tragedy occurred, or now the VW scandal, it was hardly surprising to people who follow these things. Certain industries essentially harbour and reproducing
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Embracing The Veil
H/t The Toronto Star While our prime minister claims, when attacking the niqab, that Canadians hold openness and transparency as societal values, he is happy to keep us in the dark about all of the secret negotiations going on to conclude the highly controversial Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement, leaked elements
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading. – Ian Welsh writes that the Harper Cons have destroyed Canada’s historic economic balance by scrapping the parts of the manufacturing sector which previously provided a buffer against low resource prices. And Bruce Campbell compares Canada’s record on climate change to Norway’s, and
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week. – The Equality Trust reminds us that economic inequality leads to harmful health consequences even for the lucky few at the top of the income scale. And Matt Bruenig observes that a basic income would provide workers with far more scope to avoid employer
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Bernie Sanders would win – if US elections weren’t controlled by big money….. But he just might win anyway, and he is well on his way
The Independent Senator from Vermont, and US Presidential candidate, Bernie Sanders, is riding a fast-growing wave of popular support across the United States. Sanders is getting ten times the turn-out for rallies as any other candidate, and the momentum continues to build. Bernie Sanders is getting higher turn-outs to rallies
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading. – Rosemary Barton discusses why it’s in Canada’s best interest on the global stage to work on building strong multilateral institutions (including the UN) rather than counting on bluster to make a difference. But Gus van Harten notes that we’re instead signing onto
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Free Trade, CETA, TPP, and the US and Canadian Federal Elections: Some Critical Perspective
The following is critical to understand – for the people of Canada, the US, Europe and the world: “free trade” deals such those already signed (NAFTA), and those being pushed through with great secrecy now (CETA, TTIP and TPP), are agreements which grant supra-national powers to transnational corporations, powers over
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading. – Jim Stanford discusses how the Trans-Pacific Partnership is renegotiating NAFTA – and taking away what little Canada salvaged in that deal. And Jared Bernstein highlights the TPP’s impact on prescription drug costs. – Rick Smith rightly challenges the effort some people have
Continue readingOpenMedia.ca: Truth Out: What’s Going On With the TPP?
TPP Update: After years of secret negotiations, we’ve just learned U.S. Trans-Pacific Partnership officials have decided to appoint a “Chief Transparency Officer.” So who did they pick? One of their own lawyers, Tim Reif. Not exactly encouraging. TPP provisions will grievously hurt the Internet and our right to free expression! We
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