The agreement was indeed historic, but in a different way than suggested by the Minister. In the “small print” which is part of the compromise, the EU said farewell to its isolated position in the world of climate management. Indeed, important sectors of European industry will be exempted from the compulsory purchase of CO2 -emission permits, in order not to be disadvantaged against foreign competitors who will not participate in the Kyoto Protocol.
Worth A Look
Deadly Cold, Heavy Snow Grip Europe
“It all reminds me of the war when we were freezing, except there is no shooting,” said Hilmo Celjo, who was lining up near the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo, to buy wood and coal.
Union On Express Bus To Self-Destruction
In the midst of what is, at least for anyone under the age of 75, the most serious global economic crisis ever experienced, one would think that unionized public sector workers should understand that now is not the time to demand more. Yet, secure in the knowledge that monopoly government employers don’t go bankrupt, no matter how high their costs or how poor their customer service, union leaders callously fight to extract more from beleaguered taxpayers.
All Fall Down
That’s how we got here — a near total breakdown of responsibility at every link in our financial chain, and now we either bail out the people who brought us here or risk a total systemic crash. These are the wages of our sins. I used to say our kids will pay dearly for this. But actually, it’s our problem. For the next few years we’re all going to be working harder for less money and fewer government services — if we’re lucky.
Featured News
Falling Immigration, a Troubling Signal
Manitoba shows no sign that its policies will be able to maintain the working population, while, over time, returning to annual balanced budgets and cutting taxes to keep the private sector that is here now. This dismal prediction is partially drawn by observing the...
International Traffic Congestion Extinguished by Pandemic and Remote Work
The 2020 TomTom Traffic Index reflects a huge drop in worldwide urban traffic congestion levels. Congestion levels (rated by the percentage of additional time required for auto travel during “rush hour”) dropped in 387 urban areas while increasing in only 13. Overall,...
Selling Wheat the Soviet Way
Last week, federal Minister of Agriculture Chuck Strahl suggested momentum was growing among farmers for an end to the Canadian Wheat Board's monopoly over Prairie grain sales. Since 1943, all wheat and barley farmers in the three Prairie provinces and northeastern...
Big Transit rides again
Two Fridays ago the folks responsible for the Pittsburgh region's collection of mass transit boondoggles and inadequate highways uncorked another mega transportation/planning study. Ignored and unread by the tax-paying masses, as these dangerous things always are,...
Left Not Always a Help to the Poor
Ever since revolutionaries toppled the French crown in 1789, the political left has asserted that the solution to shrinking poverty is to announce good intentions and follow up with government confiscation of private assets. The latest would-be defender to join...
Reinventing Winnipeg
The Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce’s vision statement for remaking civic government contains some useful suggestions.
Centralism Masquerading as Federalism
The long history of moving power to Ottawa and away from the provinces has had some unsalutary effects.
Canada’s Education Secret
Imagine a public-school system where families are encouraged to go shopping for the school of their choice. Imagine that the choice includes a sports school, an arts school, a military academy, a religious school and Mandarin immersion. Imagine a world where all the...
How to help Harper do what needs to be done
It's a sign of political success that last week's federal budget has already been forgotten. For so fragile a minority as Stephen Harper's, that's good. He hopes to use this budget as a solid, reassuring political springboard to win a majority, probably next year....
Equalization should be Scrapped
In the debate on how best to reform "equalization" -- the system by which Ottawa transfers cash from the richer provinces to poorer provinces -- nobody is asking the obvious question: Has the time come to scrap it? Yes, the principle of equalization was, unwisely,...
Let’s Compare the ‘Have-Not’ With the ‘Have’
Le Club Chasse et Pêche is a lovely restaurant in Old Montreal where the main courses start at $30 and, one evening this week, it was packed with diners for whom the price was no barrier. The irony of this obvious prosperity is that Quebec is officially a "have-not"...