Joe Couture, The StarPhoenix, January 23, 2014 A new report from the Frontier Centre for Public Policy tries to make government budget numbers easier to understand by scaling them down to the size of an average household’s finances. “People have a very tough time...
Media Appearances
Look at options for STC, Frontier Centre says
Joe Couture, The StarPhoenix, December 12, 2013 The latest transfer of cash from provincial coffers to the Saskatchewan Transportation Company is for a needed capital project, not increasing operating costs, according to the minister responsible, Don McMorris....
The Advocate
Originally printed on ucobserver.org Aruna Papp grew up amid honour-based violence in India. Today she’s a world-recognized champion for vulnerable girls and women everywhere. Pin-drop silence. That was the atmosphere on a sleepy summer Sunday when Aruna Papp, a lay...
Who’s Failing Math? The System
Here’s some bad news from the world of education: Math scores are in decline across Canada. Just as kids in Poland and Portugal and other formerly disadvantaged countries are taking great leaps forward, ours are going backward. Our high schools are graduating kids who have failed to grasp the fundamentals, and our universities are full of students who are struggling to master material they should have learned in high school.
Featured News
Cities Have to Expand for House Prices to Fall
The cost of actually building a house does not vary that much across Canada The Ford government’s plan to expand the land supply available for housing has evoked the usual dog whistles about “urban sprawl” by interests apparently unaware of the strong...
How We Teach Reading Really Does Matter
Reading is the most important skill taught in school. If students don’t learn how to read, not much else that happens there is going to matter. That’s because being able to read is important in virtually every job. Without the ability to read, life itself will be a...
Where Did All Alberta’s Money Go?: The left and right think they know
Partisan political operators are battling to define the debate over one of the most explosive issues in the coming provincial election: Why can’t a wealthy province like Alberta make ends meet?
To Resolve Our Biggest Moral Issue
Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Shawn Atleo, national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, federal and First Nations officials will meet here to discuss aboriginal education, governance and economic development. The meeting may have some success because Harper and Atleo are so similar. They both remind me (and I mean this as a compliment) of guys in my high school chess club. They are intelligent, quiet-spoken and can think strategically. They don’t blather a lot about what their next moves are going to be.
Big-Spending Alberta Irks Both Neighbours
Alberta government-approved wage rates, benefit packages and fee schedules are routinely cited by B.C. public sector workers in seeking catch-up increases in their contract bargaining.
Honour Killings in Canada: An Undeniable Reality!
Wherever there is a bubble of ignorance, I am there to burst it. Canada, a lovely country known for its open-hearted acceptance of immigrants from a vast array of foreign lands, is quickly becoming a cesspool in which cultures are clashing. These clashes are usually swept under the rug by the host country (Canada) and those who are integrating (at varying degrees) in to the host country.
Public Sector Wages Sap Alberta’s Revenues
Alberta’s public sector wage bill has increased nearly twice as fast as the national aver-age over the past decade, according to a new University of Calgary study.
Urban Reserves Gaining Acceptance
A gas station on 22nd Street has joined the growing number of “urban reserve” businesses throughout the province, a phenomenon which seems to be gaining widespread acceptance. Much of the initial uproar of a decade ago has subsided. Neighbouring businesses, other levels of government and the general public realize Cree Way Gas West on 22nd Street and other urban reserve companies make the same payments to municipalities and school divisions that other businesses do.
No ‘Honour’ in Killing: We need to ask tough questions about its growing incidence in Canada
In our often too politically correct world where everyone is afraid of being branded a racist and therefore doesn’t speak of such matters, there is a growing problem within some of our immigrant communities — honour-based violence, which in some cases, becomes fatal.
Control Taxes by Counting Pennies
The City of Kelowna has the most transparent taxation process in Canada, according to the Frontier Centre for Public Policy.
Move to Lean Concept Belated, but Also Absolutely Worthwhile
After 38 years in business, a stint in the health-care system, experience with Fortune 100 companies along with being a part of successful “Lean” implementations, I believe the Health Ministry’s plan to adopt this business concept is good news.