I was going to write on Ignatieff’s plan for taking power after defeating a Conservative budget following the election, should the Conservatives fail to gain a majority in the House of Commons. But the Premier of Saskatchewan, Brad Wall, has said it much more succinctly than I would have: I am deeply troubled by …
Category Archive: Canadian
Apr
20
Apr
18
Health Care and Election 2011
To my faithful readers – all four of you – I apologize for my lack of posting this election season. Like many, I find this fourth election in 7 years a little uninspired. Scratch that – I find it insipid and depressing. From all sides. The issues that concern me are those that concern most …
Mar
01
Yes, patients die on the waiting list
Raj Sherman, the outspoken medical doctor and Member of the Alberta Legislature (Ind. former PC), has caused an outrage by claiming in the Legislature that 250 cancer patients died while waiting for treatment and that Alberta Health officials covered it up and penalized people in the system for speaking out. The outcry should be about …
Feb
02
On Usage Based Billing
Fundamentally, I don’t disagree with the idea of usage based billing for bandwidth on the internet. In a free market, the consumer of this service should pay an amount that is set my the free market price mechanism. The cost of providing the service includes infrastructure, maintenance, operations and upgrades and expansions. I disagree with …
Dec
21
Ayn Rand, Futurist
Normally, I don’t like to post blatant “I agree” posts that simply point to someone else’s blog, but this time I can’t resist: (Philadelphia Inquirer, 12 Dec 201) Earlier this month, responding to a shortage of chemotherapy drugs in Minnesota, Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D., Minn.) wrote to FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg asking that the FDA …
Oct
26
Say NO to Pigouvian Food Taxes
The National Post, today, covers an urging by the Heart & Stroke Foundation’s expert panel that the government should impose taxed on sugary drinks and fatty foods as a disincentive to obesity. There is this ridiculous statement: Its lead author insists, however, that the soda-tax and other proposals do not represent nanny-state intervention into diet …
Oct
13
A bad science decision by Canada’s Government
Today, the Government of Canada has added bis-phenol-A to the list of toxic substances, after deciding that the American Chemical Council had failed to: …bring forth any new scientific data or information with respect to the nature and extent of the danger posed by bisphenol A. The problem of course being that there is almost …
Jun
21
Ignatieff decides to give up on Alberta
So Michael Ignatieff has decided to give up on Alberta when it comes to elections. He is taking a stand against oil tankers of the BC coast, proposing a ban on such tankers. The Liberals clarified: Ms. Murray indicated the Liberals are against large supertankers and not the many other ships that sail B.C. …
Jun
11
Really, Mr. Flaherty?
Nothing like destroying the incentive to work hard and save for your own retirement… In Victoria Friday Mr. Flaherty fanned the flames further when he told executives that citizens who have saved enough for retirement will eventually be asked to help those who haven’t. So, what you are saying is that if I save lots …
Jun
10
Flaherty is wrong on CPP
Jim Flaherty, the Canadian federal finance minister, has posited in a letter to his Ontario counterpart, that perhaps the premiums that all Canadian workers (and their employers) pay should be increased to increase the amount of money Canadians are saving for retirement. This is a very bad idea. First, increasing payroll taxes is a known …