Canada needs proportional representation
Here are both sides of the debate on electoral reform, the right one (written by me) and the one opposed. Electoral reform is not a side issue: it goes to the heart of who and what government is for, of who gets to shape the future, the many or a powerful few. We cannot be … Continue reading
Inflation: austerity is not the solution, it’s the problem
SURELY WE HAVE ENOUGH TO worry about without renewed warnings about runaway inflation. But even amid all our various crises, inflation continues to make its way into the headlines: “Canada’s inflation rate hits a three-decade high”; “Is Canada’s inflation rate out of control?”; “Trudeau must act to ease worsening inflation.” We don’t need economists to … Continue reading
Interregnum: finding hope and solidarity in times of crisis and division
Notes for a CCPA (national) planning session, April 25, 2022. I chair or sit on a number of boards all of which have been going through exercises much like this one. I must say taking stock in this age of multiple crises can be pretty unsettling, depressing. Virtually every day I’m reminded of Antonio Gramsci’s … Continue reading
“Hope and Enlightenment in Dark Times”
https://modernpoetryintranslation.com/alla-gutnikovas-speech-from-court-friday-8-april-2022/ Alla Gutnikova’s speech from the Russian court as she is to be sentenced for standing for peace, for our shared humanity, for hope, for art, for our emancipation.
MAKING BIG CHANGE
I recently posted a piece I did for CCPA’s The Monitor recommending five readings on big change. Here I will try to distill some of what I gleaned about what it might take. Know the barriers: Big change is hard so it makes good sense to know the obstacles and have strategies for overcoming them. … Continue reading
BIG CHANGE
Big change is hard though of course big change is just what’s needed. The experts warn and our leaders confirm that we are in the midst of a climate emergency, an existential threat. Every day we see too many vivid and horrifying examples of the tragic costs of colonialism to treat the need for decolonization … Continue reading
Thoughtful Thursday: something to think about (from Jane Fritz blog)
Thoughtful Thursday: something to think about
Investing in Care, Not Profit
Central to building the care economy is reversing our dependence on for profit delivery. Here is a position paper by a number of colleagues and I on addressing the tragedy of long term care. https://www.policyalternatives.ca/publications/reports/investing-care-not-profit
What would a transformational budget look like?
Reactions to this week’s federal budget have been all over the map. Is it too much, too little? Is it the shock the country needs or a missed opportunity to set a new course? As expected, a number of headlines are preoccupied with the numbers – spending, deficits, debt – and compared to the constrained … Continue reading