Archive for the ‘Equality Policy Context’ Category
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The world after 9/11: Naomi Klein prevails again
Friday, September 9th, 2011
Sep. 09, 2011
The objective of the economic class war has always been simplicity itself: inequality, the greater the better. And it’s working like a charm. In the United States, and to a growing extent in Canada, it is now politically impossible ever to discuss the need to raise taxes, even on the filthy rich, in order to sustain any kind of positive government… While the middle class shrinks, the working class slips backwards and social mobility erodes, the rich buy themselves politicians, lobbyists, legal beagles, slick accountants, “trained economists,” television networks, “think” tanks and whatever other apparatus is needed to make them even richer.
Tags: economy, globalization, ideology, standard of living, tax
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Failing Forward
Sunday, September 4th, 2011
August 26, 2011
We simply can’t keep turning to pills and prisons to solve issues of poverty and poor parenting. This is unhealthy, unsustainable and unwise… We also have to preserve women’s birth options should they become pregnant, including the option not to give birth. And, finally, for all the children who are born, we must make a valiant effort to give each and every one of them a fighting chance, which includes food and medicine when their parents can’t provide it. We must do this not as a boon or crutch to the parent, but as a selfish investment in the future of this great society.
Tags: ideology, participation, poverty, standard of living, youth
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Where’s Canada’s Warren Buffett?
Friday, August 26th, 2011
Aug 25 2011
Those with astronomical incomes, in part made possible by the social structure funded by past generations, have a responsibility to share the cost of public goods and services for current and future generations… adding two new tax brackets of 32 per cent on income over $250,000 and 35 per cent on income over $750,000 would generate about $12 billion in new revenue over the next three years. Those modest tax adjustments could fund a new national pharmacare program, or launch a national child-care program, plus allow university tuition fees to be rolled back to 1991 levels.
Tags: ideology, standard of living, tax
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‘Do you have running water? I don’t and I live in Canada’
Thursday, July 28th, 2011
Jul. 28, 2011
For the past decade, Ottawa has consistently opposed recognizing the right to water and sanitation. The Harper government voted to abstain when the General Assembly vote took place, and then argued (incorrectly) that the resolution is not binding… with an enforceable obligation, the government would likely face extensive liability with respect to the terrible drinking water and sanitation conditions in so many first nations communities. There are at least 49 “high risk” aboriginal communities in Canada with little access to clean water and more than 100 facing “boil water” advisories
Tags: Health, Indigenous, rights, standard of living
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Do we care that Canada is an unequal society?
Wednesday, July 20th, 2011
Jul. 20, 2011
Canada, it turns out, ranks 12 among 17 comparable countries in income inequality… The United States and Britain, two countries against which Canada measures itself, are the worst performers – that is, the most unequal societies of the 17… The Conference Board notes that government transfer programs flatten out some inequalities, but not as effectively as 20 years ago. Unemployment benefits go to fewer people; welfare rates haven’t always kept up with the cost of living. Many of the Harper government’s tax cuts… have disproportionately benefited those better off, since they’re not geared to income
Tags: ideology, poverty, standard of living
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First Nations: Forge hope from the pain
Sunday, July 17th, 2011
Jul 16 2011
In theory at least, Prime Minister Stephen Harper is… committed to holding a “Canada-First Nation Crown Gathering” to discuss a wide variety of issues: governance reforms, accountability, economic development and schooling, among others… Native leaders talk of negotiating a wide-ranging deal with the Canadian government that would affirm treaties, aboriginal title and rights, and chart a path forward… Ultimately, Atleo envisages breaking up the federal Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development department and giving First Nations the option at least of managing their affairs outside the restrictive 1876 Indian Act.
Tags: Indigenous, participation, rights, standard of living
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Canada’s wealth gap widening
Thursday, July 14th, 2011
July 13, 2011
The gap between the rich and poor is widening as the rich get richer, according to a new report by the Conference Board of Canada. The richest Canadians increased their share of the national wealth between 1993 and 2009, while poor and middle-income individuals lost ground… “While the poor are minimally better off in an absolute sense, they are significantly worse off in a relative sense…
“High inequality can diminish economic growth if it means that the country is not fully using the skills and capabilities of all its citizens or if it undermines social cohesion…
Tags: ideology, participation, poverty, standard of living, tax
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The Unwisdom of Elites
Sunday, May 15th, 2011
May 8, 2011
The fact is that what we’re experiencing right now is a top-down disaster. The policies that got us into this mess weren’t responses to public demand. They were, with few exceptions, policies championed by small groups of influential people — in many cases, the same people now lecturing the rest of us on the need to get serious. And by trying to shift the blame to the general populace, elites are ducking some much-needed reflection on their own catastrophic mistakes.
Tags: economy, globalization, ideology, standard of living
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Canada’s new electoral divide: It’s about the money
Sunday, May 8th, 2011
May. 04, 2011
With Canada still shaking off the effects of the recession, the Conservatives were clearly looking to herd economically worried voters into their column at the start of the campaign. The party was aiming not just at the haves, looking to safeguard their affluence, but at the just-hads, aching to reclaim their recently lost prosperity… the rise of the NDP, which siphoned off progressive-minded Liberals, clearly spooked a sizable number of blue Liberals, causing them to bolt to Mr. Harper in the last weekend of campaigning…
Tags: economy, ideology, participation, standard of living
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A political voice for indigenous Canadians
Wednesday, April 13th, 2011
Apr. 12, 2011
The First Peoples National Party (FPNP) wishes to bring the value of inclusion to Parliament, by promoting a vision for Canada in which all peoples have a say in our future. The FPNP was formed to provide a voice, particularly for those who currently have no representation in our elitist party system: Indigenous Canadians… A country that excludes its indigenous peoples from all levels of government and education exhibits not only a colonial mentality, but commits a slow and steady cultural genocide
Tags: ideology, Indigenous, multiculturalism, participation, rights
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