Labour Force Exodus
Statistics Canada reported this morning that 38,000 people gave up looking for work in February. The official unemployment rate fell because these Canadians were no longer counted as being unemployed.…
bc
BC Teachers Hurt The Left & Help The Right
The teachers’ strike in British Columbia this week was bad for the province but good for the BC Liberals. Facing challenges from the NDP on their left and the Conservatives…
BC Teachers On Strike Yet Still Teaching
This week Teachers in BC haven’t even been in the classroom, yet they’ve still managed to teach their students one of the most important things; how to take a stand.…
The BC Teachers’ Regressive Labour Strike
In 2010 the British Columbia Teachers’ Federation declared its opposition to the HST because it was a regressive tax, affecting the poor and families more than the wealthy and corporations.…
BC isn’t broke: putting teacher bargaining in perspective
Last Monday, BC teachers held a Day of Action in communities across the province to protest the BC government’s decision to legislate a contract and put an end to their…
NDP & the Decline of Labour
The NDP is certainly not asking whether it should abandon organized labour, but maybe organized labour should ask whether it abandon the NDP. What does it say about the New…
We All Lose In BC Teacher Labour Dispute
Who will win in the latest labour dispute between BC teachers and the provincial government? It doesn’t matter, we are already losing. Now a politician isn’t going to tell a…
Why Actions Today Matter
“We’re destroying future generations for now, and forever.” – Jitesh, an Indian oilman. You won’t regret watching this video, the guy’s a very good storyteller.
Comparing two carbon bombs: LNG vs Enbridge pipeline
With the spotlight on the federal government’s aggressive push to export tar sands bitumen via the Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline to Kitimat, and from there by tanker on to China,…
Odious profits and the Enbridge pipeline
Two obvious but generally unstated details about the Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline are climate change and that oil and gas companies stand to make mega-profits. An honest appraisal of the…
Updates from the BC Humanists
I just thought I’d give a quick update of how things are going with the BC Humanists here in Vancouver. First, we’ve finalized the date and location of our new…
A prescription for health care reform: think integration & collaboration
This morning the CCPA released a new report (co-authored by yours truly) that looks at the thorny issue of health care reform in BC (and Canada) and identifies some practical,…
Open Data in BC – Good & Bad Examples from Bikes to Libraries
Some small examples of open data use and public servants who do and don’t understand open data from the Province of British Columbia to the City of Vancouver. Open Libraries?…
Are Enbridge’s job numbers credible?
Putting aside the impact of the proposed Enbridge pipeline on GHG emissions or spills on land and at sea, the case in favour of the pipeline rests on creating jobs.…
Liberals & Conservatives, Two Halves of One Party
Are the BC Liberals a coalition of federal Conservatives and Liberals or are the Conservatives and Liberals just a federal party not yet united? There’s an answer to that question…
Faking Poverty
Jagrup Brar, NDP MLA for the Vancouver-area riding of Surrey Fleetwood today embarked on his vow to spend one month living on the paltry $610 that single (ostensibly “employable”) people…
Christy Clark’s staff respond to homophobic bullying
5 days ago I sent a form letter to Christy Clark, as my MLA, asking her to address homophobic bullying in BC schools. Dear Christy Clark, Premier and MLA, I…
Inequality and Climate Injustice: A Durban Post-Mortem
The United Nations climate change talks in Durban, South Africa, ended 2011 with a whimper. After a year in which climate disasters rolled across the globe, major polluting nations like…
Thoughts on the BC NDP 50th Anniversary Convention #bcndp50
This weekend was the first time I’ve ever attended a political convention, so I was quite happy that I was able to represent my riding as the youth representative (which…
John Horgan on Smart Meters
I wrote this morning’s post last night and scheduled it, assuming in part that it would be a few weeks to never when I received a reply (as if often…