Where are the federal Conservatives headed on policy? Over the past year there have been some odd priorities, at least to my mind. My favourite odd ducks are: 1 - Making a new training program a key plank of the last budget, pushing into provincial...
Year: 2013
Expression Not So Free at University
How do Manitoba universities fare when it comes to protecting freedom of expression? According to the 2013 Campus Freedom Index, Manitoba universities are not doing so fantastic. In Manitoba, 67% of campuses earned at least one 'F' in the index's four categories....
The Economics of Airline Overbooking
A recent CBC radio report focused on the woes of an overbooked airline traveller. Missing was an analysis of the airline perspective. Overbooking is not, as consumer advocate Gabor Lukacs claims, a “deceptive practice.” Ralph Nader used the same language in his...
The science fiction of IPCC climate models
By Kesten C. Green, J. Scott Armstrong and Willie Soon The human race has prospered by relying on forecasts that the seasons will follow their usual course, while knowing they will sometimes be better or worse. Are things different now? For the fifth time now, the...
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Demand Fairness from Ottawa and Edmonton
A few weeks ago, Albertans voted to reduce the inequities in the federal equalization program. The deficit between the dollars that leave to and come back from Ottawa has recently been as high as $27 billion in one year. During times of crisis, it feels like salt in...
Inflation: They Win, You Lose: Politicos, Cronies Fleece Canadians with Monetary Expansion
One of the most widespread economic myths is that inflation—the reduced purchasing power of a currency—is a win for a nation, a sign of a booming economy. For the privileged classes in government and with initial access to monetary expansion, it is a win. For everyone...
German Perspective on Spying and Privacy
The global spying scandal shows that the US has become manic
What’s Holding Back Toronto (and Ontario)?
Dwight Duncan, who up until a few months ago was Ontario’s Minster of Finance, recently suggested that his colleagues at Queen’s Park should force the Mayor of Toronto from officeover un-proven substance abuse allegations. Soon after, the federal Minister of Finance indicated he would prevent the Government of Ontario from setting variable sales tax ratesto raise revenue for its Greater Toronto Area transit plans. While not connected, these two incidents underscore the troubled state of Canadian federalism.
Britain’s Royal Mail To Be Privatized
Last week, the British government announced that the Royal Mail is to be privatized: The process of selling off the Royal Mail begins today with the promise of free shares for workers weighed against fears about layoffs and higher postage costs.... ...The Initial...
Property rights and human remains
Finding human remains on any property is a sensitive topic. The topic requires respect for all parties involved. For one woman in southern Ontario, the discovery of an Aboriginal burial ground on her property led to 18 months of uncertainty, although a resolution is...
Science Is About Evidence, Not Consensus
Science does not respect consensus. There was once widespread agreement about phlogiston (a nonexistent element said to be a crucial part of combustion), eugenics, the impossibility of continental drift, the idea that genes were made of protein (not DNA) and stomach ulcers were caused by stress, and so forth—all of which proved false. Science, Richard Feynman once said, is “the belief in the ignorance of experts.”
Taxis’ Fare Road to Profit: Restricted supply has inflated value of vancouver licence to $800,000
Gary Tarantino owns arguably the most valuable taxi in Vancouver, in an industry already known for its breathtakingly high licence values. Tarantino’s Licence 70384 could easily command more than $1 million in a business where the average Vancouver taxi costs $800,000. That’s because he is the last holdout of independent taxi owners in an industry where all of the other 687 licences are held by the city’s four taxi companies.
Mr. Suzuki’s Baseless, Irresponsible Immigration Claims
Imagine there was a policy that could reduce global poverty, conserve natural resources and help alleviate the coming retirement crisis, all while also fostering domestic economic growth. You would have to be either misinformed or malicious to oppose this policy, right? Well, this policy exists, and it’s called immigration.
Ironically, “progressive” hero David Suzuki has come out in favour of reducing immigration levels, only to be met with opposition from Conservative Minister of Immigration, Jason Kenney, who defended the value of immigration to Canada.
Fear, Shame and Silence – the New Hydro
Publius On the orders of its master, the NDP government of Manitoba, Manitoba Hydro doggedly continues to implement a risky and seemingly ever increasingly expensive development plan. (Is there anyone left that actually believes the forecasts of costs, export revenues...
Municipal Amalgamation – Not a Good Idea
Given the opportunity, I would support a move back to two councils and a shared services agreement.