British comedian Frankie Boyle says the main purpose of conservative parties today is “to convince voters struggling through austerity that they have the same interests as billionaires and corporations.”
The video embedded here is not the least bit critical of its subjects. There is no discussion of wealth building through tax benefits, strategies that eliminate competition, or the use of political influence to advance economic interests. The following families are mentioned…
I mentioned kakistocracy in the article Impoverishment of thought. The Cambridge Dictionary defines this as “a government run by the worst, least qualified, or most unscrupulous citizens.” Peter Navarro is 78-year-old Donald Trump’s 75-year-old counsellor for trade and manufacturing. Navarro provides just part of the evidence that the President’s kakistocracy is now in place.
Build-grow-sell stories are repeated endlessly. It’s a result of our neighbour’s economic imperialism but also the lack of confidence in this country held by our corporate rulers. Sure, Canada beat the U.S.A. in a best-on-best hockey final, but in the national economy game, Americans are winners most of the time.
With the Musk/Trump administration ripping huge holes in America’s social safety net, it is frightening to observe how major media properties have sagged onto bended knees to pay homage to wealth and power. There is a parallel to Germany in the 1930s. There, political leaders took control of media that did not serve the Nazi Party. A cocktail of naked opportunism and misplaced arrogance among the country’s most powerful men facilitated the rise of the Third Reich. With the media silenced or controlled, it was relatively easy for evil men to consolidate power and punish opponents…
PBS show This Old House had a segment involving an idle paper mill on Maine’s Kennebec River, a site now used to manufacture wood-based insulation. TimberHP is the first wood fibre insulation manufacturer in North America. I wish British Columbia had committed a few creative minds to sustaining jobs in communities that no longer prospered through forest products.
Economist Erik Andersen offers something to remember when voting next month and beyond…
A reader who communicates regularly sent several interesting quotations that are perhaps relevant in today’s world. Some are repeated here…
Conventional wisdom says that economic disparities lead to political violence, or mildly violent collective actions. Yet few politicians anywhere are willing to address root causes of social difficulties. It is so much easier to accuse disaffected people of being indolent, abusive, drug-ridden lawbreakers. Those positions gain political success in many places. The Australian Institute of International Affairs noted confusion about the level of American support for Trump and the political party he captured and dominates:
Environmental Defence Canada says climate change is one of the main reasons why food prices are increasing. There are other factors too, but some of the prices in 2024 are shocking. Today I paid $16 for a small basket of BC raspberries and $1.50 each for local corn. Earlier I noted red onions at $3.50 a pound…
According to MIT Economics Professor Daron Acemoglu, a bountiful supply of good jobs is the best way to generate shared prosperity and also to cultivate civic and political participation from the broad cross-section of society. But organizations that regularly appear in corporate media are paid to oppose the concept of shared prosperity…
For as long as I can remember, we’ve been told that putting more wealth in the hands of the already wealthy will benefit everyone through greater economic growth, more jobs, and higher wages. Academic studies find the opposite is true. However, with most major media outlets controlled by the super-rich, these studies are barely reported…
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…
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:
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.”
While walking through a North Vancouver grocery store owned by Jim Pattison, one of Canada’s richest billionaires, I was astounded by price changes imposed in the last few years. To get to […]
February 8, 2024 news item: BCE slashes 9% of workforce, puts blame at the feet of regulators and policymakers. The cuts affect about 4,800 jobs and follow the elimination of 1,300 jobs last June…
Robert Reich is an American economist, professor, author, and political commentator who has been quoted here before. His May 5 newsletter discusses why corporations have so much power and workers have so little. While specifically about the USA, Reich’s words apply similarly to Canada. Reich notes indisputable trends and, if these continue, they ensure growing inequality, which, taken to extremes, has led to civil unrest throughout history. . . .
Co-authors Mariana Mazzucato, Professor of economics at University College London, and economist Rosie Collington think democracy is endangered by the growing involvement of consultants in public policy development and implementation.
Ethnographer, writer, photographer, filmmaker, and native of British Columbia, Wade Davis speaks…
Among the special advantages granted to billionaires? They can create monopolies which politicians will both subsidize and protect. Are domestic…
You mention investing. Anybody remember Canada Savings Bonds? Seventy years ago it offered people worried about becoming destitute pensioners a…
A huge fan of long-eclipsed Russian military glory, Mr. Putin expected Ukraine to collapse in 3 days. Three years ago.…
One thing I think people forget is - it became a good idea to invest in real estate as an…
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Blair Fix at _Economics from the Top Down_ also wrote two very good papers on the converion of housing into…