Archive for the ‘Governance Debates’ Category
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Minister delivers much-needed kick in the pants to justice system
… “the aspirations are fine,” particularly the legislation’s big push to reduce the administration-of-justice offences, which account for a quarter of all cases in court… These clog the courts and make criminals out of those on the margins — the poor, the Indigenous, the mentally ill, people of colour… Probably fully 80 per cent of the poor buggers before the courts don’t belong there. Their so-called “crimes” are too minor; their vulnerabilities are too great; they need help, not jail.
Tags: featured, ideology, rights
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Too many Canadian governments are borrowing too much money
Now that good times have returned, provincial and federal politicians are still piling on debt. This week’s Ontario budget crystalized the fact. A province with a strong economy and a small budget surplus, but the country’s fourth-highest net debt-to-GDP ratio, plunged itself back into deficit for the foreseeable future… social democrats have as much reason as conservatives to be appalled by heavy government debt. That’s because, far from being a reliable source of government revenue, debt quickly begins biting into government spending.
Tags: budget, economy, ideology, standard of living, tax
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Liberal budget asks voters to trust they’ll keep their nerve
… the social benefits from the Liberals’ proposed spending plans outweigh the initial monetary costs… voters are willing to tolerate budget deficits if they think the money is being well spent… Ontario’s debt as a percentage of gross domestic product is predicted to rise slightly over the next three years. But if the Liberals keep their nerve, this is a small price to pay for a path-breaking agenda.
Tags: budget, child care, economy, ideology, mental Health, poverty, standard of living
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Doug Ford’s false fiscal promises
Ford won’t find $6 billion in waste, just as he and his brother did not find the promised efficiencies at city hall. Instead, he will have to raise the money the old-fashioned way: taxes, debt or cuts to services. And given his outspoken disdain for taxes and debt, it’s no great mystery what path he would pursue… Ford is asking us to play a sort of austerity lottery. Because Ford won’t tell us, we can’t know which jobs will be lost, which programs deep-sixed, which services cut.
Tags: budget, economy, ideology, participation, standard of living, tax
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Why is Ottawa stalling on its promised election reforms?
the Trudeau Liberals promised during the 2015 campaign to end the first-past-the-post voting system for federal elections and then decided, once in power, not to bother. It was a cynical reversal designed to preserve the Liberals’ chances of winning a second majority. The only thing more cynical was the promise itself, made purely to attract younger voters but never seriously considered… Bill C-33. Introduced by the Liberals in late 2016… But the government has sat on the bill since introducing it.
Tags: featured, participation
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Psychographics: How Cambridge Analytica Peered Inside Your Mind
Cambridge Analytica worked hard to develop dozens of ad variations on different political themes such as immigration, the economy and gun rights, all tailored to different personality profiles… Behavioural analytics and psychographic profiling are here to stay… it industrializes what good salespeople have always done, by adjusting their message and delivery to the personality of their customers.
Tags: featured, ideology, rights
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Why women’s votes matter now
… women have so many concerns – gender violence, pay equity, the lack of and the cost of childcare, job insecurity, the state of schools, to name just a few. Because we experience these issues on a personal level, we don’t always connect them to political decisions. But we need to do that, and here are three reasons why: Budgets matter… Representation matters… Women’s Power matters…
Tags: featured, participation, women
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A civil election campaign is vital to encourage women in politics
History has shown that it’s quite possible – maybe even easier — to get elected by appealing to selected sections of the electorate and exploiting humanity’s worst instincts. But it’s impossible to govern effectively that way, to build anything that endures, to use high office in the service of our best selves. It would stand as an impressive first act of leadership if all would-be premiers said, in their first statements, that they will run, and will demand from their own supporters, campaigns of civility and respect.
Tags: featured, participation, women
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Speaking as a White Male …
Under what circumstances should we embrace the idea that collective identity shapes our thinking? Under what circumstances should we resist collective identity and insist on the primacy of individual discretion, and our common humanity? … the drive to bring in formerly marginalized groups has obviously been one of the great achievements of our era… Wider inclusion has vastly improved public debate… And there are other times when collective thinking seems positively corrupting.
Tags: featured, ideology, multiculturalism, participation, rights
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Wynne’s throne speech promises new spending on health care, home care and child care in Ontario
In a speech from the throne Monday, Wynne outlined the Liberal government’s agenda leading up to the June 7 election, promising new spending on health care, home care, dental care, pharmacare and child care… the premier is promising to expand the new OHIP+ prescription drug program “to include other parts of the population.” … The premier added that there would be an expanded public dental program in next week’s fiscal blueprint.
Tags: budget, Health, ideology, mental Health, pharmaceutical
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