The following proposal was submitted by Ian to the Ontario Government as part of their #BudgetTalks Initiative. We encourage our readers to submit proposals of their own (and repost them here if they like). Here is a simple proposal to increase teacher earnings, reduce the effects of economic inequality on student outcomes, and improve overall…
War on climate change (Wade Davis, The Globe and Mail): The global economic recovery from the Great Recession remains weak and climate change presents a global threat that will require significant investments to overcome. These circumstances provide an interesting parallel to WWII and the aftermath of the Great Depression. In the 1940s, allied powers made big, all-hands-on-deck investments and overcame both major challenges…
Donald Trump is a bigot and a racist. What some may once have been able to dismiss as just a few gaffes – caused by an affinity for shock value and a lack of ability to think before one speaks – is now an established pattern that, as some commentators have noted, accurately fits the…
In light of recent incidents at Yale (see competing perspectives here and here) and University of Missouri and in the context of the broader ongoing dialogue on how to balance sensitivity, inclusivity and free speech concerns (e.g. Charlie Hebdo and censored campus speakers), and on the intersections between social justice and identity politics (e.g. affirmative action, balancing…
Is there such a thing as too little corruption or too much anti-corruption? High levels of transparency and low levels of corruption in government and the private sector are critical to the stability of a democratic society. Even the appearance of corruption is known to erode public trust and social cohesion. As a result, populist…
As those close to me know, I’m a huge news junkie – especially Canadian news. In recent years, The Globe and Mail has been my primary source. Reading it on my phone while waking up has been part of my daily routine I rarely miss. Even though I could catch up on all of the headlines…
Despite all of the rhetoric about how this is an election of historic proportions with very high stakes and a polarized climate, the situation really could be a lot worse and a lot more polarized than it is. When compared to our neighbours to the south, all three of the major parties are running on…
This is probably the most important election in Canada in a generation. Stephen Harper is asking for a fourth consecutive mandate, and in return he is offering more of the same: more ideology over evidence to the detriment of the economy, more foreign policy that talks loudly and carries a twig – diminishing our global…
-The Expat- The Beginning I remember Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s first day in office. It was almost a decade ago, in what seemed to be an entirely different country than the one we live in today. It was a country where foul play could literally bring down a government; Paul Martin’s Liberals had just succumbed to…
-Jared Milne- Pipelines are a major political issue in Canada. Getting oil to market is seen as critical to Alberta’s economy. They are a high priority for Stephen Harper’s government, so why has there been so little progress on pipelines? Unfortunately, many of Ottawa’s actions have only damaged the oilsands’ image, and weakened public support…
The Tête-à-Tête 