Archive for the ‘Governance Debates’ Category
It’s time to talk about what COVID did to Toronto, and to us
Thursday, June 26th, 2025
The isolation, loss, distrust and disruption that arose during the COVID-19 pandemic continue to make their mark on us today… neither the heroism, collective sacrifice or loss, nor the mistakes… We can’t move forward without finding a way to talk about — and process — what went right, what went wrong and what we all suffered during COVID-19… There is still so much misinformation out there about what actually happened during the pandemic. We desperately need a collective airing of the facts.
Tags: ideology, jurisdiction, mental Health, participation
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Mark Carney unveils Liberal party’s election platform, promises $129 billion in new spending
Saturday, April 19th, 2025
The platform defines capital spending as “anything that builds an asset” owned by the federal government, another level of government, or a private company… not “spending” but “investing” that will prompt private sector investment to grow the economy… Carney also repeated his promise that his government would not cut health and social transfers to provinces, and would preserve programs like national child care, dental care, pharmacare and an emerging school food program.
Tags: budget, economy, featured, tax
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Canada can be the first choice for high-skill talent fleeing Trump’s America. But we have to act fast
Saturday, April 19th, 2025
We have the political stability, multicultural harmony and robust R&D activity in our world-class universities, teaching hospitals and networks of entrepreneurial tech startups to attract top talent from beyond our borders. But Canadian universities — epicentres of advanced research in a multitude of fields, and the intended destination for many potential U.S. immigrants — are coping with a funding crisis…
Tags: Education, Health, immigration, jurisdiction
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Platform Crunch: Tax cuts are alive and well in this federal election, but who benefits? (Hint: Look up, way up)
Friday, April 18th, 2025
The richest 40 per cent of Canadians would enjoy three-quarters of those promised savings (for either party), while the lowest-income earners in Canada would, on average, enjoy zero benefit. Not great preparation for a tariff war that would hit low-income families the hardest… The expenditures are so large and these parties are so concerned with having no deficits that they’ll require massive cuts elsewhere to balance the budget. We are yet to see a detailed list of those cuts…
Tags: economy, tax
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The ‘We Are Canadian’ Video Is Serving Nationalism with a Twist
Monday, March 17th, 2025
The new “We Are Canadian” slogan might resonate with many voters who still see Canada as a country built on collective effort — on socialized health care, multiculturalism and government intervention for the common good. But for the modern CPC, which leans heavily on the language of personal responsibility, rugged individualism and minimal government, this shift in national sentimentality could be a liability… if “We Are Canadian” is any indication, the broader electorate may be moving in a different direction — one that values community over the individual.
Tags: featured, ideology, Media
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In the Ontario election, we’re not talking about money—which the province urgently needs
Wednesday, February 26th, 2025
Ontario is a rich province. We have the resources, but the provincial government needs to act with resolve in collecting revenue and investing it… Ontario also raises less revenue than almost all provinces on a per capita basis. Every year, it raises $2,400 less in revenue per person than British Columbia and $4,100 less than Quebec… Ontario’s low revenues mean less funding for public services
Tags: budget, economy, featured, Health, housing, standard of living, tax
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‘Against The People’ and the truth about ‘populist’ Doug Ford
Friday, January 31st, 2025
In every public policy area, “the voices of the public, civil society organizations, local governments and the provincial public service Ford has aggressively marginalized as red tape”… Consistently, Ford is following the Conservative strategy of “creating a crisis” and then corporatizing and privatizing the solution, transferring wealth to the wealthy and keeping wages low.
Tags: economy, featured, Health, ideology, standard of living
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Doug Ford’s $612-million beer boondoggle tab could hardly have arrived at a worse time for him
Wednesday, January 29th, 2025
Why starve hospitals and deprive patients of family physicians while pouring money down the drain for beer and wine?… Ford had the past seven years to make good on his promises — on health care and housing, if not booze. Yet only on Monday, on the eve of an election, did his government come forward with a last-minute plan to give two million more Ontarians access to a family doctor within four years (in time for another election).
Tags: budget, economy, Education, featured, Health, homelessness, standard of living
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Rage is having its moment, but author Carol Off sees hope for return to civility
Friday, January 24th, 2025
She… examines six words, in six chapters, that she believes are in danger of losing meanings that have been well-earned and hard fought: “Freedom,” “Democracy,” “Truth,” “Woke,” “Choice,” and “Taxes.”… The “freedom” call grows loudest from those who believe their place in society is slipping… and their definition of freedom means they are liberated from responsibilities to strangers or the constraints of government…
Tags: ideology, immigration, rights
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Doug Ford always had a mandate to invest in Ontario, he just didn’t do his job
Friday, January 24th, 2025
Does the current government have the mandate to expand child care provision, tackle the colossal school repair backlog, reduce emergency room waiting times and assist the more than 100,000 Torontonians relying on food banks and 80,000 Ontarians experiencing homelessness? It does.
Yet, that’s not the focus. Year in and year out, the Ontario government’s attention and dollars have been poured into populist and nonsense measures nobody asked for.
Tags: child care, economy, Education, featured, Health, homelessness, poverty
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