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The move is over. Let the unpacking begin. Thank you, my committed readership, for staying with us here at DWR during the transition to our new home. It has been a wild and hectic couple of weeks. I should be able to commit a little more time to blogging and finding the information I find interesting and sharing it with you. With that in mind I’d like to share and and comment on the recent furor about Tom Mulcair’s comments about the “Dutch Disease” in Canada.
The noise generated by his comments are out of proportion to what his observation was:
“Mulcair claims that “Dutch disease” has hit the country, blaming energy exports from the Alberta oilsands for artificially raising the Canadian dollar and hollowing out the manufacturing industry.
Coined in an article in The Economist in 1977, the concept refers to the adverse economic effects that the discovery of large natural gas fields off of the coast of the Netherlands in the 1960s had on the country’s manufacturing sector.
The theory goes that a boom in a natural resource sector can lead to an appreciation of a country’s real exchange rate. That increase in the dollar value makes exports more expensive, and has an adverse effect on the manufacturing sector by making it less competitive.“
Okay, so it sounds reasonable so far. Our dollar goes up and makes our manufacturing industry less competitive. But what has got the defenders of corporatism all up in arms? Mulcair takes his statement one step further…
“Mulcair said the problem is the government is not enforcing legislation that would include the environmental costs of exploiting natural resources.
“Those statistics with regard to the overall losses of jobs in Canada are irrefutable,” he said this week. “And they are directly related to the fact that we’re not enforcing federal [environmental] legislation.“
Oh snap. How dare you mention that pillaging the land in the hog-wild foo-fur-ah that is Fort McMurray might be anything less than a calm nuanced approach to 
resource management is beyond the pale. Fainting couches were needed *stat* across much of the Canadian media and parliament.
“I am wondering when the leader of the Opposition will apologize to western Canadians for suggesting the strength of the western Canadian economy is a disease on Canada,” Heritage Minister James Moore said in the House of Commons.
“He attacks western Canada, he attacks our energy industry, he attacks all of the West and the great work that is being done by western Canadians to contribute to Canada’s national unity. He should be ashamed of himself,” he said.
Yes, he should be ashamed for trying to keep the government accountable to for environmental legislation that is currently on the books, oh the villainy. The tar sands have gained a love-halo that is growing in magnitude. Speaking out against them is sacrosanct,with reasonable debate being drummed out by “it’s good for the economy!!!1!” and other nonsense.
Good On Mulcair for pointing out some of the problems with the oil-sands vis-a-vis the rest of Canada, the man is doing his job as leader of the Opposition.
Like this:
Fantastic. Our cracked conservative government is floating yet another trial balloon on its anti-empirical evidence “tough” on reality crime bill. Listen to all the surreal talking points from the interview on CBC’s The Current Podcast.
Civilized states do not put people to death. We should remain counted as a civilized state.
Seven-year-old Ferlin Iahtal lies in his home-made bunk bed in his home in Attawapiskat on Dec. 17. Twenty-one people live in the house that has plastic on the ceilings to stop water leaks.
Canada’s active neglect of the First Nations continues. Under the heavy mantle of the oppressive Harper regime minority groups and those concerned with justice should be prepared to take a pass until the current regime of plutocratic conservative troglodytes have been put out to pasture. Harper intends to meet with First Nations leaders again, to discuss land use, resource revenue and living conditions for Canada’s first peoples.
“More than 400 aboriginal chiefs will meet Stephen Harper, the Canadian prime minister, and government ministers at a summit known as the Crown-First Nations Gathering in Ottawa. It is the first official meeting of its kind since he took office in 2006. The aim is to improve the relationship between the Canadian government and what is known as Canada’s First Nations communities. That relationship stalled six years ago when the current Conservative government abandoned a five-year, $5bn plan known as the Kelowna Accord.”
Stalled is quite the understatement as First Nations concerns were unceremoniously kicked to the curb by the Conservative government.
“Resolving outstanding land claims is among the top priorities. Aboriginal leaders feel the current process of settling the claims unjustly favours the federal government.
Also high on the list of priorities is economic development. First Nation leaders want to secure a fair share of revenues from the exploitation of natural resources on aboriginal lands. And on health and education, most First Nation leaders will be pressing for a commitment to levels of funding and services comparable with those for non-aboriginal communities.”
Nothing unreasonable here, just people wanting to take part in the prosperous 1st world nation Canada is. A world that has, for the most part, been denied to First Nations people.
Meanwhile, the Canadian government is increasingly coming into conflict with the needs of First Nations communities as it promotes the extraction of oil and other natural resources. A diamond mine projected to become one of the richest in the world is just upstream from the poverty-stricken town of Attawapiskat on James Bay. The mine is on traditional lands, but the royalties flow to the province.
A puppy sits on the porch of a home in Attawapiskat. Inside, the home has no plumbing or sanitation facilities.
That town also made headlines recently over living conditions when it was found that people were living in tents, shacks and trailers in temperatures of minus 20 degrees Celsius. Charles Angus, a member of parliament representing James Bay, describes the conditions within several of the First Nation communities as an “international disgrace for our nation”. He[Charles Angus] tells Inside Story: “The Attawapiskat crisis certainly shook Canada. In a way it has been our Katrina moment because Canadians were shocked that people were living in such dire conditions but then also shocked that the government had no plan, no seeming interest to respond.”
Racism is alive and well in Canada as we continue to neglect our First Nations and keep them impoverished and on the margins of society.
“Canada not only created these reserves, they displaced First Nation’s laws with provincial child welfare, education and health laws that should apply to all Canadians. The result is most horribly experienced by children. One-in-six First Nations communities don’t even have the basics like water; some of them are using buckets for sewers. The list goes on and it is unacceptable in a wealthy country like ours, and completely preventable.”
-Cindy Blackstock from the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada
We still have far to go on improving our own imperialist record, mending decades of neglect is going to be a huge project, one that is unlikely to be undertaken by the current Conservative Government of Canada.
Like this:
Harper and his mercurial band of autocrats are merrily stomping on the neck of democracy. Sadly, this isn’t news, but rather par for the course as dissent, reality based or not (I’m looking at you prison bloat omni-bus bill) will be passed hell or high water. What makes the Wheat Board debacle such a gut-rolling spleen bursting festival of shitacular brazenness is that our government intends to ignore what the courts have to say on the matter as well. Canada, in theory, still regards the rule of law as important as long as it follows the will of the governing party… Rule of law be damned. A spirited opposition has risen to the task of fighting Harper’s autocrats:
“The Harper government has reneged on its promise and is now breaking the law, and we intend to hold them to it and ensure that farmers’ democratic rights are respected,” board chairman Allan Oberg said Wednesday.
The board will file an application with the Manitoba Court of Queen’s Bench, asking it to rule Bill C-18 invalid. The bill is currently before the Senate and could become law within weeks, so the board is also asking the court for an injunction to suspend the bill until the case is heard.
The government has already suffered one legal setback over Bill C-18. A Federal Court judge ruled last week that the bill violates the Canadian Wheat Board Act, which says the government must consult farmers via a plebiscite before making major changes.
Justice Douglas Campbell made it clear, however, that his ruling was simply a statement on the government’s actions. He did not order the government to halt the bill and said he was not interfering in the legislative process.”
However, once the wheels of injustice are greased, there is little to be done to stop the nefarious deeds -
“Five government-appointed directors now in charge of the Canadian Wheat Board decided Friday morning in Winnipeg to drop the board’s bid to block legislation ending its marketing monopoly for Prairie wheat and barley.
Legislation to end the wheat board’s single-desk became law Thursday night, when Gov. Gen. David Johnston gave royal assent to Bill C-18.
With its passage, the eight farmer-elected directors of the board are gone.”
So it is done. Of course in klassy Conservative style:
“Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz was jubilant Friday morning, telling farmers gathered in Balgonie, Sask., that it’s a great day.
“This feels damn good. It’s been a long time coming,” Ritz said. “Finally you have marketing freedom.”
Farmers in the room with Ritz cheered.”
Woo, now we can enjoy the bountiful harvest of the ‘free’ market! Soon to be followed with “all hail our new corporate agricultural overlords!!”. Now it is just a matter of time as the real work of divide and conquer can begin. Without the protection of the wheat board we can look forward to even more corporate agriculture and all of the ill effects associated with strict monoculture farming practices.
When the small farmers are all gone, we’ll look back and note the passage of the legislation that marked their end. We’ll also note the cheering, for the sake of irony and the inevitable “I told you so” that is forthcoming.
Our friends who live on the East coast seem to be clinging to a few anachronistic views about the autonomy of women and the spectrum of choice that should be available to them when it comes to reproductive services.
“Even though it’s a legal medical procedure, P.E.I. remains the only province where abortion services are not offered locally.”
The general notion is that because P.E.I is so darn small some medical procedures necessitate a trip out of province.
Doug Currie the Health Minister says: “There are many services that are currently not available on P.E.I. that Islanders do have to travel off Island for. Unfortunately, due to our limited resources here on P.E.I., being a small province, being a small population, there is just so much money to go around.”
Well Doug, I think it might be time to add one more service to list, call it expanding the economy or increasing your governments commitment to the people but let’s get all of Canada up to speed on its offerings of health and medical services.
MP Brad Trost (tosh) brings home the fail.
“A part of their [planned parenthood] mission statement is to support abortion, which I view as morally wrong,” he said.”
Hey Brad your “Moral decisions” should stay the frack out of a woman’s business when it comes to her body.
“Brad Trost, the MP for Saskatoon-Humboldt, says he will continue to oppose federal dollars being provided to the organization Planned Parenthood.”
Ah, the enlightened people elected this baron of misogyny and he continues to speak out against women. Fantastic.
“But Trost says he needs more information before he comments on his government’s decision to renew funding for the International Planned Parenthood Federation.”
Since when do conservatives look at information about what they are legislating? He’s going to require conservative reeducation.
“During the federal election campaign, the Conservative MP told the Saskatchewan ProLife Association that, thanks in part to petitions from the group, the federal government had stopped giving money to Planned Parenthood.”
Utter Tosh has a record of doing and believing in stupid things. Apparently if you’re a Canadian conservative, it is a good for your career.
Like this:
It is comforting to see that our financial myopia extends to the production and export of asbestos. If the tarsands and the associated environmental degradation is a slam dunk for Canada, for then exporting asbestos should hardly be on the radar.
“Canada won the fight, for at least another two years, to keep asbestos off an international list of hazardous chemicals as discussions wrapped up in Geneva on Friday.
The conference of participants to the Rotterdam Convention ended without agreement on whether to add chrysotile asbestos to the Annex 3 list.
The country was one of only a handful — and the only western country — to maintain its objection until the end of the week, denying the conference the consensus it needed to make the change.”
Conservative cabinet ministers in Ottawa insisted the lung-cancer-causing substance can be used safely.
Right on! The Conservative government making a principled stand for industry and profit, frack the science and those damn weenie Europeans. What does fact have to do with this issue?
Apparently the NDP gets it.
“Asbestos is the greatest industrial killer the world has ever known. More people die from asbestos than all industrial causes combined, yet Canada continues to be one of the largest producers and exporters in the world. We are exporting human misery on a monumental scale,” said NDP MP Pat Martin. “Our position is morally and ethically reprehensible.”
Full marks for rhetoric, but the message is pretty clear. Unlike the Liberal party who seem to think it is a great idea with a few ‘realistic’ qualifications.
“Liberal MP Marc Garneau said despite Paradis’ insistence that asbestos can be used safely, he should know that’s not the case in developing countries.
“This minister knows full well that it’s very difficult to use chrysotile in the proper working conditions. The procedures, the training, the complex equipment to use it in a safe way so that fibres aren’t accidentally breathed in,” Garneau said. “He cannot assure us that this is not being used improperly in countries that import it, Third World countries … This is willful blindness.”
Err…yah, so let’s take India where the majority of the people don’t really do the shoe thing. I’m sure they are ready for industrial grade lung death prevention procedures.
“But Paradis returned to the response he and Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver have been offering since the Rotterdam Convention meetings started in Geneva earlier this week.
“We know that recent studies show that chrysotile can be used in a safe and controlled manner,” Paradis said. “This is risk management, so we know that chrysotile can be used safely in a controlled environment.”
Misery and drowning in your own fluids for the poor, but for the asbestos industry it is all smiles and chuckles. I become more proud to be Canadian every day under this conservative government.
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