“Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.”
That hackneyed expression is used to describe politicians who stupidly work to defeat themselves. A good example today is the desperation we are seeing at Queen’s Park as the Liberal’s…
Ontario
Tuesday Morning Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading. – Annette Alstadsæter, Niels Johannesen and Gabriel Zucman examine (PDF) the size and distribution of tax evasion and (not surprisingly) find it clustered…
We can blame Cousin Oliver.
It is all Oliver Mowat’s fault. The myopic Father of Confederation had a mainly rural and agrarian Ontario to oversee in the early years of confederation. His picture hangs over…
Ontario’s Electricity Sector III: Legislative & Finance Update
My January and March posts on the Ontario electricity sector described how decisions by different Ontario governments gave rise to excess electricity generation with an inflated cost structure, leading to…
Fixing Ontario’s out-of-date work laws.
Ontario Labour Minister Kevin Flynn has a tough road to travel with the Wynne Cabinet. He is seeking to address the antiquated labour laws in Ontario. He wants to restore…
Saturday Morning Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading. – Claire Provost writes about the spread of the private security industry – which now exceeds the size of public police forces in Canada…
Southcore Financial Centre Showcases Mixed-Use Sustainable Development
The Southcore Financial Centre is a showcase of mixed-use sustainable development in Toronto’s financial district. The three new interconnected towers—PricewaterhouseCoopers Tower, Bremner Tower, Delta Toronto Hotel—incorporate sustainability best practices in…
Southcore Financial Centre Showcases Mixed-Use Sustainable Development
The Southcore Financial Centre is a showcase of mixed-use sustainable development in Toronto’s financial district. The three new interconnected towers—PricewaterhouseCoopers Tower, Bremner Tower, Delta Toronto Hotel—incorporate sustainability best practices in…
Ten things to know about social assistance in Canada
I’ve just written a blog post about social assistance in Canada. Points raised in the blog post include the following: -Social assistance has two contradictory objectives: 1) to give people…
Desmond Cole, the Toronto Star and Another Existential Crisis for Professional Journalism
DISCLOSURE: I worked as a mainstream news reporter between 2003 and 2012. I see this as a two-fold issue; firstly, actions and secondly, words. I’ll consider both briefly and then…
The piecemeal processes of Premier Wynne.
“Ladies and gentlemen and children of all ages: Let me draw your attention to the left ring of our three-ring circus. Here for your entertainment and edification is our finance…
5 Steps to Creating Something Universal
As is the purpose of the Political Road Map, the goal is to always question your government, politics and the overall direction of society with regards to both. In questioning,…
Ontario Budget: Shallow Election Bid or Deep Election Bid?
A thousand years from now, in present day Ontario, after the fallout from a Trump temper tantrum, future survivors will begin to reclaim the land. Upon doing so, they will…
Four (more) arguments against real-world basic income
With the Ontario Liberals rolling out their basic income pilot project to much fanfare this week, it’s an opportune time to dive into the debates around BI once again. 1…
Something borrowed, something blue.
Watching the news conference events last week at Toronto’s Liberty Village, you could not help but note what a modern setting it would be for a wedding. This must have…
You can call it a ‘Wynne Win.’
Ontario’s political pundits are all running with scissors these days forecasting the resignation of Premier Kathleen Wynne. Quite properly, she is scoffing at these rumours and promising to carry on.…
A Shivering Premier in a Hot Housing Market
I am watching Premier Kathleen Wynne and Charles Sousa introduce their Fair Housing Plan and I must say I am both impressed and skeptical. Wynne has mentioned a few times…
Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading. – Abi Wilkinson writes about the importance of making social benefits universal in order to reflect a sense of shared interests and purpose:…
Ontario’s Electricity Sector II: Political Economy Update
This is a third guest post by Edgardo Sepulveda, who is a Toronto-based expert in telecommunications and regulatory economics. Twitter: @E_R_Sepulveda By Edgardo Sepulveda In my previous post of January…
A Living Wage Makes for a Good Business Plan
Helmi Ansari started a successful business and understands what’s it like to worry about paying the bills – and knows that when you’re stressed about paying bills you’re not focussed…