Archive for the ‘Governance Debates’ Category
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First fix for the Conservatives — their psyche
The Western tradition therefore looks for ways to limit and disperse power, to contain and channel it — whether by the rule of law, the scrutiny of Parliament and a free press, the dictates of convention, or the competitive discipline of the market… these can be a starting point for a conservative conversation, not because liberals do not also believe in these things, but because conservatives will have their own particular way of expressing them — and because parties in opposition are always bound to be more interested in limiting power than parties in government.
Tags: economy, ideology, rights
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Want democratic reform? Let’s start with newspapers.
Those who run the country’s daily newspapers reveal themselves to be as contemptuous of democracy and society as the party they endorsed. They reveal themselves as concerned only about “the economy” but for them this is just a code word for the corporate elite, the 1% — not the economy of ordinary wage and salary earners… One answer to the democratic deficit created by media concentration (and ideological bias) is the idea of publicly subsidized newspapers — not unlike the CBC model and models in Europe…
Tags: economy, featured, ideology, participation, standard of living
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Dreaming and thinking: the Liberals need both
… with 325 commitments… the new government will need thinking of a high order: it will be necessary to create a strategic prime ministership in which Justin Trudeau’s time is allocated to the three or four priorities he most wants and needs to achieve. A second tier of critical issues (30 to 40) should be allocated to ministers and monitored, not run, by the centre. And a third tier which require a longer-range perspective, in which parliamentary committees, parliamentary task forces, and formal inquiries can do good agenda-setting work.
Tags: economy, participation
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Put democracy and fairness at top of Liberal agenda
Ottawa has the means to leverage spending in a more productive and equitable direction. The centre has identified more than $25 billion in foregone taxes and giveaways to corporations and the affluent that it argues could be put to better use. Ottawa could boost the Working Income Tax Benefit, refundable tax credits, and the Guaranteed Income Supplement and Old Age Security. Improve Employment Insurance. Support provincial poverty reduction strategies. And invest in child care, transit, housing and higher education.
Tags: featured, ideology, participation, poverty, rights, standard of living, tax
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Ottawa returns to normal after Stephen Harper’s dark decade
It is hard to convey the palpable relief that had wafted across the capital by lunchtime the day after the stunning collapse of the Harper regime… An Ottawa officialdom, quietly, confidently, steering the good ship HMCS Canada back onto its true course: the sensible middle-power nudging the more powerful on the international stage toward good, and the nation domestically toward some small degree of greater fairness and some small victories for social justice.
Tags: featured, ideology, Indigenous, multiculturalism, participation
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Trudeau’s kinder, gentler start
Politics will and must always feature robust, vigorous debate. Politics is how we sort out choices and priorities in a democratic society. And since we do not all agree on these matters, we debate them endlessly… But it helps protect or restore our faith in the way we make these choices if the debates are attended by some measure of restraint and dignity. We can do debates better if the one at the top of our political institutions, the prime minister, leads with a tone of civility and respect…
Tags: featured, ideology, multiculturalism, participation, rights, standard of living
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What a Liberal victory would mean for Canada’s economic policies
a minority government… would most likely require the support of the NDP to win confidence votes. The NDP will expect to see some of its policies implemented in exchange. The economic platforms of the two parties have significant overlap in terms of priorities, such as expanding the Canada Pension Plan, maintaining the age for qualifying for Old Age Security at 65, cutting the small-business tax rate from 11 per cent to 9 per cent, spending more on infrastructure and working with the provinces on a more aggressive approach to climate change.
Tags: budget, economy, globalization, Health, ideology, tax
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Democratic Accountability
… on the economy, on defence and security, and on social policy, a free-market, hawkish, moderately libertarian newspaper would be hard-pressed to prefer the offerings of the Liberals and the NDP to the Conservatives. The same cannot be said for the government’s record on democracy, ethics and accountability.
Tags: budget, featured, ideology, participation, rights, standard of living
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Campaign 2015 forced Canadians to face hard truths
The racial and religious harmony on which we pride ourselves is more tenuous than many of us realized. / We are willing to settle for “economic stability” rather than growth. / We have embraced the notion that strengthening the middle class is the role of government [marginalizing those who truly need help]. / Our humanitarian instincts remain strong [concerning refugees]. / We’re becoming a do-it-yourself nation. / We haven’t figured out how to keep our priorities — health care, the environment, our children’s future — on the election agenda.
Tags: economy, Health, immigration, multiculturalism, philanthropy, poverty, privatization, standard of living
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High-road approach may pay off for Liberals
The Liberal Leader has spoken often about his desire to reach out, to bring Canadians together. It sounds hokey, but it contrasts with the Conservatives, who acknowledge their fondness for divisive wedge issues… [As to] Mr. Harper’s autocratic tendencies… 587 [academics have issued an open letter in protest against tactics “that betray the values of mutual respect and toleration that lie at the heart of civil democratic discourse.”
Tags: featured, ideology, multiculturalism, participation, standard of living
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