Perhaps it’s not democracy that has been corrupted, nor the democratic process, but rather the electorate itself
If the majority of the electorate is not already disillusioned and alienated by the extreme partisanship of politics, the upcoming United States elections will likely push another generation of voters into the void of disillusionment, apathy and abdication of franchise. The U.S. is the so-called beacon of democracy. Yet the two political extremes have become…
Every dollar spent on white elephant vanity projects reduces the money that could be spent on schools, hospitals
If a door-to-door salesman pitched you on a “win-win” sale, your first reaction would probably be skepticism. Unfortunately, a similar level of skepticism is called for whenever a politician declares their latest spending project to be a “win-win.” That’s exactly what Prime Minister Justin Trudeau affirmed was the case when he announced that the “independent”…
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has brought in economist Mark Carney as an adviser to assist with mapping out the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The CBC reported how Carney left his position as governor of the Bank of England “after guiding it through Brexit uncertainty.” But it seems the media is as clueless…
The pandemic has underlined that we should neither disregard nor worship uncritically at the altar of science
In addition to upending 21st century normalcy, the COVID-19 pandemic has shone the light on science itself. Just how reliable is it? It’s an interesting question. First, though, let me be open about my default settings. I’m generally very big on medical science, believing that without it I mightn’t be alive today. Ireland, where I…
Placing trust in the public has become an alien idea. Our governments have become too large and self-serving
If there is one thing the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us – and it has taught us many things – it’s that partisan politics has completely taken hold of public discourse and, in effect, banned common sense. This truth was made most clear in early May when United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the…
The Specials helped calm racial tensions and drew broad attention to the unjust imprisonment of Nelson Mandela
It has long been debated whether you can change the world with a song. If it’s not possible, one band came incredibly close. The Specials (or The Special AKA) rose to prominence in England in the late 1970s and achieved international fame in the early 1980s. Their sound fused the music of Jamaican immigrants with…
By Aaron Wudrick and Franco Terrazzano Canadian Taxpayers Federation Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has chosen to make life more expensive for Canadians by increasing the federal carbon tax by 50 per cent amidst the COVID-19 economic and health crisis. Meanwhile, governments around the world are moving in the opposite direction because hiking taxes during a…
The authors of a letter to Trudeau say most aid should be expedited but for oil companies, which need to be trapped in a bureaucratic nightmare
When professors around the country were busy figuring ways to deliver their classes online, two faculty members at the University of Alberta wrote a letter and enlisted the endorsement of 200-plus of their leisured colleagues at 33 universities in Canada. A crisis must not be wasted. From the privileged positions of publicly-paid jobs, the Alberta…
Liberal bias among researchers has implications for the quality of the research
When it comes to discussion of public policy, the term evidence-based has assumed mantra status. Those who deploy it immediately grab the high ground, inoculating their views against criticism from the less informed – which generally translates into anyone who disagrees with them. It’s a neat trick if you can pull it off. Contrarians, mind…
Their experiences in gaining traction as presidential candidates certainly suggest so, even if their ideologies are markedly different
Despite appearing to be polar opposites, do U.S. President Donald Trump and Democratic Sen. Bernie Sanders actually have a lot in common? Are they perhaps two sides of the same coin, two peas in a pod? Let’s consider. The hostile takeover Neither Trump nor Sanders emerged as presidential candidates with the blessing of party establishments.…
If the majority of the electorate is not already disillusioned and alienated by the extreme partisanship of politics, the upcoming United States elections will likely push another generation of voters into the void of disillusionment, apathy and abdication of franchise. The U.S. is the so-called beacon of democracy. Yet the two political extremes have become…
