Before retirement, I worked in accounting and small business management. I have published commentary about public issues at IN-SIGHTS.CA since 2009.
MethaneSAT is equipped with advanced sensing technology that allows it to precisely identify methane emissions at oil and gas sites across the globe. The satellite was launched on March 4 and its data will be available to the public free of charge later in 2024…
Proponents of hydroelectric dams love to talk about these as low-impact sources of clean energy. Many proponents expect to gain financially from construction of the megaprojects. To them, self-interest is always more important than public-interest. But many of the proponents expect to gain financially from construction of the megaprojects. To them, self-interest is always more important than public-interest. In British Columbia, the financial cost of electricity from Site C will be 4x to 6x that of wind and solar alternatives. Authorities choose to disregard human and environmental costs and leave them unmeasured.
The item below the separator was published in March 2018. That was three years before the Site C budget doubled to $16 billion, and we’ve now entered the fourth year since the dam budget was publicly updated. While overall inflation in Canada has been about 16% during the past four years, the non-residential construction industry experienced historic levels of inflation in 2022 and 2023. No one should be surprised when after the October 2024 provincial election, the Site C budget is revealed to be above $20 billion.
It is worth considering a 2023 report authored for the David Suzuki Foundation by Daniel Horen Greenford, a postdoctoral researcher at Concordia University. It is titled ‘Debunking LNG as a Climate Solution.’ Unfortunately, it contains a great deal of bad news for people who care about future generations…
Greenwashing promotes false solutions to the climate crisis that distract from and delay concrete and credible action…
Pensions are something that young people spend little time thinking about, while for seniors, it is an important subject. Individuals young and old have little knowledge of how pension funds are invested, and almost zero influence on the choices made by people who manage funds that measure in the trillions of dollars…
Starting as a young adult, I paid regular attention to the brilliant Len Norris and other cartoonists featured in newspapers and magazines. Ten years ago, Ian Holliday wrote an article for The Tyee that gave examples of work by BC artist Adrian Raeside. The article described the value of editorial cartoons, but Raeside admitted to being part of an endangered species. The extinction process has not slowed in recent years…
I write often about climate change and tend toward pessimism about humankind’s efforts to avoid disaster. But there are good stories that show progress. Will they be enough? Only if we have the will to go against powerful vested interests and implement 21st century technologies…
I spend much time on the internet reading reliable sources. (Well, mostly reliable.) My subscription list for mainstream media is lengthy, although I consciously avoid Postmedia. While the company employs some excellent […]
Sometimes, we become focused on things that matter to us, but matter little or nothing to others. I might be accused of that when I write at IN-SIGHTS. But I haven’t yet reached the point where I’m analyzing ravioli and hiring a lawyer.
A 1953 speech by W.E.B. Du Bois discussed the fundamental injustices and shortcomings of the American economy. It includes one of his most famous quotes:
It must dishearten nuclear proponents when wind energy is shown to be a low-cost, quickly installed source of electricity.
Owners of social media platforms profit from tidal waves of hate and disinformation. Boy, do they profit. According to Forbes, Facebook’s Zuckerberg is worth C$230 billion, while co-founders Saverin and Moskovitz share C$50 billion. Twitter’s Elon Musk is said to be worth C$275 billion, while Google founders Page and Brin hold $320 billion between them. That’s almost a trillion dollars in the hands of six greedy men.
The people of British Columbia will soon pay $3 billion a year in carbon tax. Yet actions of governments, fossil fuel producers, financiers, and people holding extreme wealth ensure that climate change is dealt with more by words and empty promises than by meaningful actions.
In the 2024 Throne Speech, the government of David Eby claimed that “greenhouse gas emissions are down 5 per cent from six years ago.” The claim is simply untrue. It is made by ignoring vast sources of emissions.
If you are a climate change denier, better miss this BBC report. If you are not, feel sad for future generations…
Star columnist Armine Yalnizyan wrote about the tapeworm economy that emerges when governments finance private corporations to deliver services to the public. She says it “like introducing a parasite that slowly robs the body of nutrients and destroys its organs.”
Regular IN-SIGHTS reader Ken Holowanky wrote a letter to the Times Colonist in response to a diatribe by Gwyn Morgan, a man called “Shale Gas Baron” in The Tyee’s headline for a 2011 article by Andrew Nikiforuk. With the letter writer’s permission, I will repeat it. But first, a little about Gwyn Morgan…
In late January, Manitoba Hydro CEO Jay Grewal said the utility would need new sources of electricity within five or six years. She reiterated a plan to meet new demand by contracting with private electricity producers. Shortly after, the Manitoba government fired Jay Grewal.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) reported that wind and solar accounted for 71 percent of U.S. electric-power capacity additions in 2022. 8.5 GW of wind power capacity was added for investments totalling C$16 billion. By comparison, Site C will cost at least C$16 billion and provide 1.1 GW of power capacity. However, the budget for the project near Fort St. John has not been updated for three years…
Foot dragging? Know of anywhere with a huge coastline, lakes and rivers, lots of tourists wanting to sightsee, lots of…
Yes, I fully agree with this summary. I am also reminded of, what seemed to be, the suspect (and possibly…
Thanks, good summary of the fiasco. Mr Eby will likely resign his seat when the new leader is in place,…
Yes, a predictable loss... though it was interesting to see the Conservatives also attracting fewer votes than last time. I…
I hope Canada hurries up no tolerance based rules. I also hope this country has at least a clue of…