Archive for the ‘Debates’ Category
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Drug executives face charges, just like street dealers
Saturday, April 27th, 2019
The U.S. government sent a powerful wake up call to drug company executives this week. For the first time, it charged a distributor of opioids, Rochester Drug Cooperative, its former CEO and another former executive with the kind of drug felony charges normally brought against the likes of street dealers and cartel bosses… In 2017 alone, 47,600 individuals in the U.S. died in opioid-related deaths, while the number in Canada was almost 4,000.
Tags: crime prevention, Health, ideology, jurisdiction, pharmaceutical
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The push is on to reinvent American capitalism
Tuesday, April 23rd, 2019
In today’s America, just 16,000 families account for US$6-trillion in assets. That is equal to the total wealth of two-thirds of all U.S. families. While so many go wanting, thousands have so much wealth they couldn’t spend it all if they lived to be 800. It’s irrational, and one of the many reasons rethinking capitalism is overdue… Mr. Trump triumphantly points to continued good growth and near record-low unemployment numbers… But … Republicans are vulnerable on the inequality issue. Their tax cut was a giveaway to the wealthy and to Corporate America.
Tags: economy, ideology, participation, standard of living, tax
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The crushing impact of social media freeloaders
Monday, April 15th, 2019
Here are two breathtaking stats: 65 per cent share and 80 per cent margin. Those are market experts’ estimates of share of ad revenues and the profit margins of the social media duopoly in Canada. No other ad business in the world has that stranglehold, no other media business earns one quarter of those stratospheric profit margins. Unlike them, their Canadian television, newspaper and magazine competitors pay taxes.
Tags: economy, globalization, ideology, participation, standard of living, tax
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A forensic accountant’s take on the Ontario budget
Saturday, April 13th, 2019
Ontario taxes more and spends more, per capita, than Ottawa… Before annual debt costs, both Ontario and Ottawa are just treading water… Ontario has a $4.1 billion operating surplus ($280 per person). Ottawa’s operating surplus is $9.4 billion ($252 per Canadian)… Ontario — spending cuts for many, more money for a few… Among the 19 losing ministries are: … Children and Community Services… Environment… Indigenous Affairs… Training, Colleges and Universities
Tags: budget, child care, corrections, crime prevention, disabilities, featured, Health, ideology, immigration, Indigenous, jurisdiction, youth
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Federal government moves to lift alcohol trade restrictions, urges provinces to do the same
Wednesday, April 10th, 2019
… the legislation, once passed, will remove the federal requirement that alcohol moving from one province to another go through a provincial liquor authority… The Supreme Court of Canada unanimously ruled last April that provincial and territorial governments have the authority to restrict imports of goods from other jurisdictions and that Canadians do not have a constitutional right to buy and freely transport alcohol across provincial and territorial borders.
Tags: economy, Health, jurisdiction, tax
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Canada ignored its gigantic money laundering problem for years — and lawyers fanned the flames
Monday, April 8th, 2019
In 2015, the Supreme Court of Canada made a huge mistake when it constitutionally exempted lawyers from a newly minted Proceeds of Crime and Terrorist Financing Act and Regulation (the ‘Proceeds of Crime Regime’). This followed arguments by the Federation of Law Societies of Canada that laws violated solicitor-client privilege and that the legal profession alone had the responsibility for policing itself. This puts lawyers above the law compared to other self-regulating professionals… This is foolishness.
Tags: budget, crime prevention, economy, featured, globalization, ideology, jurisdiction
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Don’t believe a carbon tax can effect huge change? Just ask British Columbia
Friday, April 5th, 2019
B.C. strengthened its carbon tax on April 1, raising the rate by $5 per tonne to $40 per tonne… Since introducing pollution pricing in 2008, per capita emissions in B.C. are down by 14 per cent, while the economy has grown by 26 per cent… B.C.’s booming clean-tech industry is a prime example of the benefits of pricing pollution…
Tags: economy, globalization, ideology, jurisdiction, standard of living
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Premiers who fight carbon tax ignore climate change at their peril
Friday, April 5th, 2019
Scientists and economists have been telling us for years that climate change is an issue for our health and our planet and an opportunity for our economy. Yet some Conservative politicians deny this… When farmers lose their crops like they did this summer, when your neighbours’ basements are flooded because of quicker snowmelts and more rain, when jobs start to leave because our economies haven’t kept up with the clean demand — will you have a plan then?
Tags: economy, globalization, ideology, standard of living, tax
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Ontario’s low-income tax credit gives fewer benefits than minimum-wage hike, watchdog says
Tuesday, April 2nd, 2019
The Ontario government’s new low-income tax credit provides fewer benefits than the cancelled minimum-wage increase, and will add $1.9-billion to the deficit, according to a new report from the province’s fiscal watchdog… On average, minimum-wage workers will receive about $400 less per year under the new plan… Under the proposed minimum-wage increase, 1.3 million people would have benefited, and received a net after-tax benefit of $810, the report said.
Tags: budget, economy, ideology, poverty, standard of living
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Canada sees 300,000 new immigrants — the largest influx in a century
Saturday, March 23rd, 2019
The increase in international migration has helped fuel a surge in employment — even amid sluggish indicators in other parts of the economy…It’s been a welcome tailwind for an economy coping with aging demographics and other drags like record household debt… The strong immigration numbers also make up for slower natural population growth.
Tags: economy, immigration, multiculturalism, participation
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