Les Routledge

EI Reform – Please Let Me Opt Out

Down in Ottawa, the concept of EI reform is heating up. One reform I would like to see is allowing people to opt out of EI coverage and self insure.  As both a farmer and a self employed business person, I strongly object to paying into that fund when it does not...

How to Pay for Roads

As vehicles get more fuel efficient, the old model of using road taxes to pay for road upkeep and construction is breaking down.  This article explores how the UK is dealing with the challenge. I can see the day emerging when both road upkeep fees and insurance are...

ICBC is onto Something

The new insurance method, if approved by the B.C. Utilities Commission next year, would shift from a vehicle-based claims-rated scale to one that focuses on drivers and their records. Read...

Featured News

Correlation is not Equal to Causation

Here is a decent post on the potential correlation of solar sun spots to long term climate cycles. The reader is reminded that correlation does not equal causation. However, a lack of correlation usually suggests no causation.  I will leave it up to readers to look at...

BC Lobby to Legalize Pot

Some food for thought here. “I have always had a problem with the idea that the state should criminalize an act which is essentially no more complex than putting a couple of seeds in your back yard, waiting a while and then, when something grows, you put it in your...

Pay as You Drive Insurance

Why I do not like the overall approach this auto insurance company has employed, it is a start in the migration toward charging for insurance based on people actual risk in driving instead of unrelated factors such as income or credit history. In my situation, I drive...

Alberta’s Good Fortune

When I read a news item like this one profiling the riches that Alberta is reaping from the natural, non-renewable resource asset base, I often try to simplify it to making an analogy to my own farm.  I own 200 acres of land that most years will produce a bit of...

Fracking Code Of Practice

Well this code of practice is a good start to address neighboring concerns about hydraulic fracturing. The prior sampling of water quality is a particularly good step. However, implementing a no-fault insurance policy to cover water contamination in areas near oil and...