If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
The gap between rich and poor is widening, which is one of the key points highlighted in a recent publication by the Broadbent Institute. The policy paper entitled "Towards A More Equal Canada," highlights the problems of inequality in Canada, how we got to where we are, and how we can move forward.
Our research has uncovered a new generation of Canadians willing to sign up to the new union project. We've found that a majority (53 per cent) of younger Canadians under the age of 30 say they would join a union if given the opportunity. That's the highest level of any demographic we asked.
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty's "no bad job" wisecrack is strangely ironic coming from someone who has spent a vast majority of his professional life, much like many of his cabinet colleagues, on the government payroll. There are plenty of "bad jobs," and millions of people go to them every day.
The gap between rich and poor is growing and that threatens to make us all poorer, in health and quality of life. Governments can take action to help close the gap and their budgets are one of the most important tools they have to do this.
While Rick Santorum was dropping out of the GOP political race for personal reasons, and Hilary Rosen was making personal attacks on Anne Romney for political reasons, AOL/HuffingtonPost office politics became big personal news (at least for those of us working here): Microsoft agreed to buy $1.06 billion worth of AOL patents. (Yes, Dr. Evil, that's one. billion. dollars -- or $999,440,106.20 CDN).I can't claim any insider information as to what this means to AOL/Huffpost in general, or AOL/Huffpost Canada in specific. At minimum, I'm hoping for a new stapler.
Two major government budgets were released this week, by Ontario and the Feds respectively; as widely anticipated, both will balance spending and eliminate debt by the end of the year with no cuts to any social services. Critics from the left and right applauded the leaders for showing such fiscal responsibility while managing to balance the needs of all Canadian citizens. Asked how he expected to deal with the looming crisis with old age pensions, Prime Minister Harper noted that the budget called for the phasing out of seniors beginning in 2016... Okay, now that I've got my April Fool's joke out of the way, let's look back upon the messy conflagration of human events that constitutes last week's news highlights here at Huffpost.
Time is running out for Canada to dispense with the divisive wedge politics that has exacerbated the inequality gap. It is vital for those who care about the country's sustainable economic future to develop Canada-wide policies and actions to rectify the distressing picture painted by new stats from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
I feel like I've aged at least 10 years over my summer of unemployment. Long gone are my dreams and ambitions of finding a "creative" job, a fulfilling job, a job I enjoy. Fantastic, I am jaded and still in my 20s.
For the last couple of years my husband and I have been living on the edge. We're not skydivers or stunt pilots or Cirque du Soleil performers. We're simply your regular children of baby boomers, navigating a crappy economy and a world of student debt, all the while aspiring to do what we love.
Today Toronto leads all cities in North America with 132 high-rise buildings currently under construction. If you're like me and own a unit downtown, you can't help but be a little nervous about where all of this is heading.
The 99 per cent built a nation, raised successful families against increasing economic odds, built remarkably successful businesses, sacrificed for their communities and cared for their world. Only a blind ideologue could overlook such important contributions.
Only a clear definition and enforcement of private property can prevent this war of all against all. But of course, a group of activists who believe in private property would never have defined their whole movement as based on the "occupation" of land belonging to others.
After its initial success, it's time for Occupy to think big. It won't be easy. Everyone thinks their cause is the most important. But the attempt to build this unity would have to be couched in language that encourages open dialogue and willingness to focus on root causes and not just symptoms.
A friend texted me the other night complaining about how someone on the subway car was plucking her eyebrows during her commute home. "I wish I was part of the one per cent," she texted me, with what I could only assume was a sigh.
We are sacrificing too much to a system driven by three fallacies: that well-being can only be measured in money, that distribution does not matter, and that the economy can grow forever. And like so many people today, I question whether our economic system is serving the goals that are important to society.
Despite the ability of co-ops to offer clear solutions and leadership (two areas where critics crap on Occupiers for sucking harder than an airplane toilet), the Co-op Movement admittedly falls short in one area where Occupy thrives: grabbing your attention.
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