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Ontario may be out of gas pump stickers, but Joe Moed has lots of his own
Sunday, September 1st, 2019
“Basically I went out and rage-bought 5,000 stickers,” Moed said, adding that he feels the Ford government’s stickers tell “half the story” by not including information about rebates that go hand in hand with the federal carbon levy. “It’s a lie by omission. It’s misleading and I wanted to take some direct action against it,” he said.
Tags: ideology, jurisdiction, participation
Posted in Governance Debates | No Comments »
It’s time to move past ‘fake news’
Sunday, September 1st, 2019
“Critical thinking doesn’t mean we disparage everything; it means we try to distinguish between claims with evidence and those without,” he said. There is plenty of available material for arming ourselves against disinformation. Mustering the will to do so should be easy when the stakes are considered. History shows that trusting in falsehood can have dire, even catastrophic consequences.
Tags: globalization, ideology, participation
Posted in Governance Debates | No Comments »
Removing sexism in Indian Act a work in progress
Sunday, September 1st, 2019
Sex discrimination in the Indian Act was a stain on Canada’s record; recent changes are long overdue. What comes next is hard work and some expense, but these are not processes to be feared, for they continue the ongoing effort to define and refine Confederation.
Tags: budget, ideology, Indigenous, jurisdiction, participation, rights, women
Posted in Equality Policy Context | No Comments »
It’s not an ‘affordability crisis,’ it’s a class conflict
Friday, August 30th, 2019
It’s not an affordability crisis, it’s a class conflict. It requires redistribution of wealth, not population… But they pin it on affordability, as if it’s a virus that calls for bed rest, rather than on the rich and their agenda since the 1980s, starting with with the panic over “deficits,” a word that came out of nowhere, too, so that public spending had to be slashed and taxes cut since “it’s your money and you should keep it” — as if you can build your own schools and public transit, once you’ve got a few more bucks in pocket.
Tags: economy, ideology, participation, standard of living
Posted in Equality Debates | No Comments »
Many companies are choosing to underfund pensions even though they have the cash, study finds
Thursday, August 29th, 2019
The study found that in 2017, the 90 defined pensions were collectively underfunded by roughly $12 billion. The companies responsible for those pensions, meanwhile, paid out $66 billion in dividends to shareholders — more than five times the amount it would have cost to fund the pensions… “Shareholders are supposed to take on the firm’s risk. Instead, that risk is being shouldered by workers whose retirement security is compromised by outstanding pension deficits.”
Tags: economy, ideology, pensions, rights, standard of living
Posted in Debates | No Comments »
Tax on super-rich a popular idea, except in the media
Thursday, August 29th, 2019
Given that 26 individuals now have as much wealth as the bottom half of humanity (3.8 billion people), one wonders at what point conservative commentators might consider this a problem… Let’s not forget that the super-rich typically made their fortunes by selling products built by employees we all paid to educate, and shipping those products on roads we all paid to build.
Tags: economy, globalization, ideology, participation, poverty, standard of living, tax
Posted in Equality Policy Context | No Comments »
De-listing medical services is wrong diagnosis, wrong prescription for health-care system
Wednesday, August 28th, 2019
The real diagnosis is that physicians’ services are often wasted because our system isn’t built on need. Rather, it’s based on insurance. OHIP pays a lot per hour for episodic care and low value follow-ups. It still pays poorly for working in a small team and being accessible today for people who need you. Furthermore, there is little quality assurance by doctors to ensure that clinical decisions are justified.
Tags: budget, Health, ideology
Posted in Health Debates | No Comments »
Liberals committed $13B to affordable housing, report says
Tuesday, August 27th, 2019
Legislation passed in June requires Ottawa to advance a human rights-based approach to housing that prioritizes the needs of the most vulnerable and requires regular reporting to Parliament on progress toward meeting its housing strategy goals… “It promotes diverse communities, and builds housing that is sustainable, accessible, mixed income, mixed use and that is fully integrated into the community — close to transit, close to work and close to public services.
Tags: budget, housing, ideology, poverty, standard of living
Posted in Inclusion Policy Context | No Comments »
Internet access for all should be a promise made by all political parties in the upcoming federal election.
Friday, August 23rd, 2019
this country once recognized that the telephone was an essential service and made sure it was affordable. And the CRTC has even mandated that companies provide so-called “skinny,” affordable cable packages for low-income families. Now it’s time to make sure all Canadians are able to connect to the internet.
Tags: budget, ideology, participation, standard of living
Posted in Equality Delivery System | No Comments »
Family law cuts affect more than the poor
Thursday, August 22nd, 2019
… many middle-class Ontarians who used to qualify for free legal help are now faced with the intimidating challenge of appearing in court without advice or paying hefty private legal fees… When people come to court unprepared, it also places an additional burden on court resources… Wasted court time is also a waste of public funds… Ford’s Legal Aid cuts hurt everyone, regardless of income. To view it otherwise is simply wrong.
Tags: budget, ideology, jurisdiction, rights, standard of living
Posted in Child & Family Debates | No Comments »
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