More Layoffs/Less Service? Happy Holidays!
Canada Post to phase out urban home mail delivery Up to 8,000 jobs will be cut, while cost of stamps is going up CBC News Posted: Dec 11, 2013 9:37…
seniors
The Con War on the Canada Pension Plan
It's my nightmare vision of a Con jungle. A country full of seniors living in poverty and misery. A country where the old and the poor have no present, and…
‘Trade Deal’ Sure Isn’t the “New Deal”
5 ways the Canada-EU trade deal will impact Canadians By Susana Mas, CBC News Posted: Oct 18, 2013 9:16 PM ET Last Updated: Oct 19, 2013 8:03 AM ET I…
Homelessness Policy
This afternoon, I gave a presentation on public policy responding to homelessness in Canada, with a focus on the past decade. I gave the presentation at this year’s annual conference…
The Eyes Have It
This summer my mother was diagnosed with macular degeneration. There is no cure. It is irreversible. It simply progresses. Science has some hope for future cures, and has some treatments…
80-year-old Woman Tasered in Ontario
I must admit I didn't think that police in Otario could stoop any lower than the public execution of Sammy Yatim. For its senseless brutality stunned me. But then so…
BC’s wheelchair fee for seniors in long-term care facilities not fair: Researcher
Janine Farrell, a seniors care researcher at the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, explains why the recently announced $25/month user fee for wheelchairs used by people in long-term care facilities…
Pierre Poilievre and The Con War on Pensions
I have to admit that I have always disliked Pierre Poilievre. Something about him rubs me the wrong way.He's abrasive, he's yappy, he's arrogant. He looks and acts like a…
Jim Flaherty and the Theatre of Cruelty
You might think that Jim Flaherty would be satisfied with ramming through his latest Trojan Horse budget.His ghastly swollen beast stuffed to the gills with toxic waste.But no. Now he's…
Cowichan NDP MLA Bill Routley Stood Up For Cowichan Seniors And Won!
Richard Hughes-Political Blogger The BC Liberal attack on seniors through their wrong headed policy of forcing Seniors to take computer driving tests and or road tests in unfamiliar vehicles on…
Seniors Who Are Social Are Healthier
Seniors who lead active lives like playing cards and generally hanging out with friends feel healthier and are healthier than there less social peers. Friends make things fun and keep…
Caring for the Cancer Patient – Today: Mesothelioma
Recently, I received an email requesting a guest blogger spot on the subject of caregiving for people suffering from Mesothelioma, a type of cancer often caused by exposure to asbestos.…
Only in Canada? Pity…..
So, the Supreme Court in the US has ruled…and Obamacare, such as it is, is ‘safe’ for now… This decision means, practically, nothing regarding a tax, since if one reads…
Parliament in Review – April 27, 2012
Friday, April 27 saw another day of relatively non-contentious debate on the main bill up for discussion in the House of Commons. But there was plenty of reason to question…
Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week. – No, there was never any doubt that any statement which could possibly be interpreted as insufficiently jingoistic in favour of the oil industry…
Plenty of Jobs in Alberta (Alberta!!!) says Emperor Steve’s Puppet, Flaherty
Here’s good ol’ boy Flaherty warning Canadians that EI will be changed to reflect Alberta and Saskatchewan’s need for labour…as if the government was financing EI in the first place..…
On tectonic shifts
I haven’t spent much time discussing the spate of recent polls showing the NDP with a modest lead on the Cons, as those top-line results can easily enough be considered…
Parliament in Review: March 26, 2012
Having taken a bit of a hiatus during and after the NDP’s leadership campaign, I’ll resume looking back at what’s happened in the House of Commons starting with the election…
The Lonely Old Man and his Music
When I was in university I used to volunteer once a week at a nursing home in Montreal’s East End. Sébastien used to play the piano and sing French songs,…
How Old Age Security Should Have Been Reformed
Instead of raising the retirement age and distressing seniors with low-income the government should have prevented wealthier Canadians from receiving Old Age Security; not only would this have been fairer…