Thursday, September 01, 2016

Thursday Morning Links

This and that for your Thursday reading.

- Chris Hamby's brilliant series on the effects of investor-state dispute settlement continues with articles on the shift in power from governments to corporations, as well as the developing market in settlement speculation.

- Gordon Laxer argues that if NAFTA is in fact up for renegotiation, Canada should see walking away as an important option. Linda McQuaig points out a few of the ways in which the CETA and other trade agreements serve to undermine democratic governance. And Nicole Sagener highlights a new study showing how the CETA would enrich multinational corporations at the expense of the citizens of participating countries.

- The Star makes the case for a readily-accessible child care program as one of the most important steps in closing the gender wage gap. And Roderick Benns argues that a basic income would fit with the overarching pursuit of health in all policies.

- Andrew Russell and Lee Vinsel comment on the dangers of prioritizing innovation (and its associated PR boost) over less-glamorous maintenance of vital infrastructure.

- Finally, Thomas Walkom discusses the establishment pressure on Rachel Notley to abandon principle in order to appease deficit scolds. And Brent Patterson reminds us of the need for a strong social movement to put pressure on all stripes of government to take the public interest into account:
The public wants a Canada that respects Indigenous rights, that expands public health care, that has sustainable and fair trade with the rest of the world, that protects water, that has a 100 per cent clean energy future, and that has a democratic electoral system. That has always been the core vision of The Council of Canadians. Let us hold onto this dream of transformation by asking the hard questions to get us there, mobilizing for better, and demanding systemic change.

Political honeymoons are ephemeral, but movements have always been the real catalyst for social justice.

No comments:

Post a Comment