Shares of the Week: We Still Have Work to Do Edition
The City that Rhymes with Fun
Regina's decades-old north vs. south of Dewdney Avenue rivalry explained - Here is some fun history about the friendly rivalry between two major regions of my home city. Although I am now a south end “cake eater” (in name only) after growing up in the north end, the NOD spirit will live within me forever.
The Prairie Wasteland
‘A shocking number:’ Suspected overdose deaths in January average more than one a day Saskatchewan - One overdose death is a tragedy. More than one death per day in one month is a crisis. Our communities are failing the people who are struggling the most. Something meaningful needs to be done to prevent more precious lives from being wasted.
'An abomination': Sask. water expert warns of contamination following Alberta's coal policy changes - Alberta is getting closer to approving an open pit coal mine on the eastern slopes of the Rockies near the headwaters of the South Saskatchewan river. No amount of jobs would make such a risky and short-sited endeavor worth pursuing. The most frightening part about this is that Alberta can seemingly make a decision that could affect the quality of a vast majority of the fresh water in southern Saskatchewan for generations, if not, forever. This is greed at its purest, blackest form.
Update: Alberta reverses direction on coal development and reinstates 1976 policy, for now - This came out within hours of me originally making this post. This is great news but we must remain vigilant as the fight to protect our most precious resources marches on.
‘Incredibly destructive’: Canada’s Prairies to see devastating impact of climate change - Farmers on the Canadian prairies are some of the strongest opponents of a price on carbon and other meaningful carbon reduction policies, yet they are going to be some of the hardest hit by human made climate change due to the burning of fossil fuels, proving its not just urban elites who want to have their cake and eat it too.
Oh, Canada
‘Saving For A Down Payment Has Never Been Worse,’ Says National Bank Of Canada - Nothing to see here folks. There can't possibly be any serious consequences from an entire generation being locked out of the middle class dream of owning a home. Right?
Government stuck on 'narrow' approach to tackling wealth inequality, economist says - Canada is slow to tackle wealth inequality because the Liberals aren’t real economic progressives and the Conservatives aren't interested at all (even when they had the word progressive in their name). The Liberals promise just enough to steal votes from the NDP and then drift back into their lane of being the more-woke alternative to the Conservatives. Meaningful progress won’t happen in this country until either the two major parties drop their adherence to the cruel and insane neoliberal policies of the 1980s, or Canadians gain the courage to vote for a real progressive party.
Bonus: Citigroup’s Plutonomy Memo: “There are rich consumers, and there are the rest” - A review I recently stumbled upon of a memo that went out 15 years ago that describes the US, the UK, and Canada as the world’s Plutonomy, which could partially explain Canada’s slow response to socioeconomic inequality.
Canada Is Now Paying the Price for Privatizing Its Vaccine Research and Production Lab - If the Liberals want to put the needs of Canadians first and prove that they are a progressive party, they must reverse the cuts to essential public infrastructure that began with Brian Mulroney, continued by Jean Chrétien and Paul Martin, and accelerated by Stephen Harper. Investing back into pharmaceutical research, such as that which previously happened under Connaught Labs, would be a good start in securing back our country’s autonomy.
Google, Facebook Will Need To Pay For News Under New Legislation: Minister - This link tax is one of the dumbest and most short-sighted ideas put forward by a Canadian MP in recent memory. If this were to go through, anyone, whether it’s Google, Facebook, Reddit, or even this blog, would be charged for simply linking to a Canadian news article. Imagine being charged for pointing someone in the direction of a newsstand, which this essentially does. The media companies lobbying for this would be in for a surprise when they discover this might have the reverse effect they are hoping for.
Canada's Shittiest Company
Bell Media Cuts 210 Jobs at Local TV, Radio Stations - Let’s talk about how Bell received over $122 million in wage subsidies, yet has still decided to fire a large amount of its workers, including Dan O’Toole of Jay and Dan fame, only days after the company's mental illness marketing campaign, proving once again that nothing matters to the company more than profits and executive bonuses.
Global Solidarity
Rihanna Is Right About the Importance of India’s Massive Farmer Protests - Haven’t heard about what might be the largest protest in human history going on India right now? Farmers are rallying against plans by the far-right, nationalist Indian government under Narendra Modi, which would arguably change their lives for the worse, all in the interest of free enterprise.
Bonus: Greta Thunberg effigies burned in India over tweets supporting farmer protest - The Swedish teenage girl who terrifies conservatives the world ‘round has now become a source of hate for Indians who support the new farming laws, who’s calls of international interference is a classic right-wing strategy to prevent global solidarity for exploited workers.
The Cult of Ignorance
New Rule: America's Mass Delusion | Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO) YouTube - Bill Maher explains why no one should be surprised that so many people are hopping on the QAnon crazy train. Spoiler alert: it's religion.