In December of last year, the Assembly of First Nations’ (AFN) national chief announced he would not be seeking re-election. Coming up on the next leadership race, it may be important to have a conversation about what the AFN wants …
U.K.-Canada Trade Deal May Be First Example of Honestly Building Back Better
The phrase “Build Back Better” has drawn ire globally after Western politicians seemingly relished the damaging impact of COVID-19 lockdown policies and the opportunity it offered to radically change our economies. Extremist, insensitive and ill-timed policy initiatives from world leaders …
Entering the Age of Modern Monetary Theory and Universal Basic Income
Modern monetary theory (MMT) now plays a role in your life whether you know it or not. The theory argues that a nation can never truly run out of money, and advocates quantitative easing (QE) to solve a nation’s debt …
Indigenous Vaccination Priority Policy Deeply Flawed
Most Canadians – even those with serious health problems – are still waiting for the vaccination that might save their life. Meanwhile, vaccinations for indigenous people are proceeding at a rate eight times faster than elsewhere. In some cases, all …
A Meaningful Job is the Only Way Forward for First Nations People
There is little doubt that the condition of Indigenous people is desperate in Canada, especially for those living in the 600 or so small isolated First Nations communities. Most Canadians know some facts about the quality of lives of the …
Two Pandemics Are Scarier Than One
This week marked the anniversary of the COVID-19 confinements that were only supposed to last for a few weeks. That was 52 weeks ago. In many ways, fear became the pandemic. Different people drive the COVID-19 fear, but its principal …
Book Review: The Canadian Manifesto: How One Frozen Country Can Save The World
“…Canada is benignly regarded in the world, but is rarely credited with anything beyond being a relatively gentle and democratic society with a good historical record of welcoming diverse immigration, assisting worthy international causes, staying clear of wars yet participating in the great struggles of civilization that have occurred in its time bravely and justly, seeking nothing for itself but the triumph of the principles of human decency and international law (1, 2).”
Supreme Court – Only Francophone Judges Need Apply
The federal government has announced that it intends to promote the French language more aggressively throughout the country. A document entitled “English and French: Towards the substantive equality of official languages in Canada,” lays out 50 proposals to buttress the …
A Preposterous New Book – The Deficit Myth: Modern Monetary Theory and the Birth of the People’s Economy
Author Stephanie Kelton’s main point in The Deficit Myth is that federal deficits are not only harmless but highly desirable as devices to accelerate economic activity and resolve economic inequality. Government finance is not like other finance. Governments are issuers …