[TransitBart]

Not that I think his idea is going anywhere, but I'm amused no one has mentioned Olive's column in the Star.

He's calling for nationalization of all of GM Canada.

https://www.thestar.com/business/op...ime-for-canada-to-have-its-own-automaker.html

He used to be the ROB editor at the Globe. Must have had a philosophy transplant to Atkinson Principles along the way. I read the headline and couldn’t believe it was him.

 

[Admiral Beez]

He used to be the ROB editor at the Globe. Must have had a philosophy transplant to Atkinson Principles along the way. I read the headline and couldn’t believe it was him.

ToStar’s Atkinson Principles in the way they treat their own staff are in practice steeped in hyprocracy.

 

[lenaitch]

If anybody is into outsized egos, this should be entertaining:

https://nationalpost.com/news/polit...nt-with-scheer-says-its-time-to-fire-and-hire

 

[Videodrome]

He needs to go away. Is he still on Dragon's Den? I don't watch the show.

 

[lenaitch]

He needs to go away. Is he still on Dragon's Den? I don't watch the show.

No. He's such a loyal Canadian he decamped to ABC's Shark Tank along with Robert Herjavic, the guy who was tearily soooo thankful that Canada took his family in as poor immigrants.

At a certain level, money is a drug.

 

[jje1000]

The Liberals continue to drop the ball on immigration. And of course Trudeau is also intending to sign the UN Migrant Pact, which more or less establishes a binding global compact for "safe, orderly and regular migration"- this issue will never end.

Ottawa on pace to spend more than $1-billion over three years on unauthorized border crossings: watchdog

Managing the influx of asylum seekers at unauthorized points along Canada’s border with the United States is on pace to cost Ottawa more than $1-billion over three years, a new analysis from Parliamentary Budget Officer Yves Giroux says.

In a report released on Thursday, the PBO estimates the government spending at $340.2-million last year, $367.8-million in the current fiscal year and a projection of $395.9-million in 2019-20. It said the average cost for each migrant who entered Canada between border crossings is $14,321 for the entire refugee claim process. That figure is predicted to rise to $16,666 in the fiscal year that begins April 1, 2019, as wait times in the system get longer.

The PBO’s estimates do not attempt to calculate the costs for provinces. The government of Ontario has said it has incurred $200-million in additional expenses in areas such as housing, social assistance and education that it attributes to the rise in asylum seekers. The city of Toronto has requested financial help to deal with increased demand in its shelter system.

The report focuses on extra federal spending for public-service staff and the cost of providing medical and legal services to asylum seekers. For instance, the Interim Federal Health Program provides health insurance for people who are claiming refugee status.

Ottawa has announced it will transfer $50-million to Quebec, Ontario and Manitoba to defray their expenses related to asylum seekers, but the PBO report notes that “this sum is significantly less than the total costs reported by provincial and municipal governments.”

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/pol...nd-400-million-next-year-on-border-crossings/

The border just became an election issue

These sums don’t include the cost of sheltering, feeding, clothing, educating and otherwise caring for the needs of these asylum-claimants, which are largely borne by provincial and municipal governments, and which has set the Ontario government back an estimated $200-million.

It gets worse. Asylum-claimants who cross the border illegally are overwhelming the tribunals established to hear refugee claims, creating a current backlog of 65,000 cases. It will take about three years to handle the claim of someone arriving this year. Next year, the backlog could stretch to four years.

Each individual claim is unique. Each person seeking asylum in Canada has a story to tell, and that story can be heartbreaking. But, on its face, most of the people crossing into Canada illegally from the United States appear to have a weak case.

What we do know is that the problem of people crossing the border illegally corrodes confidence in Canada’s immigration and refugee system. This country’s future well-being depends on a robust intake of immigrants to compensate for a low natural birth rate. If people conclude that bogus refugee claimants are gaming the system, they could lose confidence in the entire program, which would be a disaster for Canada.

Of course, the Tories have no good explanation for how they would handle things if they were in charge. But that may not matter. The opposition mantra will be: The Liberals can’t get a pipeline built. They can’t balance their budget. They can’t even secure the border.

Not a pleasant narrative for a governing party to confront in an election year.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-the-border-just-became-an-election-issue/

 

[Videodrome]

I am following the by-election results and they are what I expected, a CPC hold. The NDP only have 3.4% of the vote though, which is a total collapse for the party.

 

[jje1000]

So how prepared is Canada for retaliation from China after the recent events involving Huawei?

Are we going to see cyber-attacks by the Chinese? New op-eds out of the blue condemning the arrest? Possible influence in the election next year?

 

[tiffer24]

Canada’s unemployment rate hits record low; economy adds 94,100 jobs in November...

A blast of 94,100 new jobs last month has knocked the country’s unemployment rate down to 5.6 per cent — its lowest level since Statistics Canada started measuring comparable data more than 40 years ago.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/bus...pid=rss&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

So how prepared is Canada for retaliation from China after the recent events involving Huawei?

Are we going to see cyber-attacks by the Chinese? New op-eds out of the blue condemning the arrest? Possible influence in the election next year?

I think those will happen either way simply because we're geopolitically aligned with their adversary. Let's not kid ourselves, this whole arrest is probably more about the loss of "face" on the part of China than the actual material impact of the arrest, and it is foolish to believe that the absence of which will affecting change in their strategic posture, which would have been negative by default. They of course will claim otherwise.

Wait till they get even more indignant when Huawei gets banned from supplying the 5G network.

AoD

 

[Filip]

I think those will happen either way simply because we're geopolitically aligned with their adversary. Let's not kid ourselves, this whole arrest is probably more about the loss of "face" on the part of China than the actual material impact of the arrest, and it is foolish to believe that the absence of which will affecting change in their strategic posture, which would have been negative by default. They of course will claim otherwise.

Wait till they get even more indignant when Huawei gets banned from supplying the 5G network.

AoD

I really worry about poking China too much.

Russia - well Russia is Russia, they can (and will) be a nightmare for their neighbours, but they don't have their global network anymore. China does, and China is aggressively expanding it. We here in the west don't quite realize how far and deep Chinese influence is throughout the globe.

China also has a mutual defense treaty with Russia.

This can get messy, it seems the US is trying to strangle China a la 1989 USSR - but this isn't the USSR.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

I really worry about poking China too much.

Russia - well Russia is Russia, they can (and will) be a nightmare for their neighbours, but they don't have their global network anymore. China does, and China is aggressively expanding it. We here in the west don't quite realize how far and deep Chinese influence is throughout the globe.

China also has a mutual defense treaty with Russia.

This can get messy, it seems the US is trying to strangle China a la 1989 USSR - but this isn't the USSR.

Of course, China have been strategically positioning themselves through One Belt One Road, and have a huge amount of influence in Africa. Having said that, those who signed up probably haven't learned how Imperialistic this power can be - yet.

Canada isn't immune, but we aren't nearly as dependent on them as other countries are (not that being dependent on the US is particularly healthy either, but that's another story)

AoD

 

[Northern Light]

Canada’s unemployment rate hits record low; economy adds 94,100 jobs in November...

A blast of 94,100 new jobs last month has knocked the country’s unemployment rate down to 5.6 per cent — its lowest level since Statistics Canada started measuring comparable data more than 40 years ago.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/bus...pid=rss&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

No fault finding here, your posting quality info.

Yet, I'm reminded as I see it that the data has serious limitations.

We really need to have some sort of qualitative index on employment that reveals more.

At the most simplistic level, that data needs the labour force participation rate for context.

However, I'd also like to see, what percentage of those with part-time work (employed) are seeking full-time work. (therefore underemployed)

We also need to see this correlated to median wage data, to see if wage growth is at least keeping pace with inflation, both above and below the median line.

 

[Filip]

Of course, China have been strategically positioning themselves through One Belt One Road, and have a huge amount of influence in Africa. Having said that, those who signed up probably haven't learned how Imperialistic this power can be - yet.

Canada isn't immune, but we aren't nearly as dependent on them as other countries are (not that being dependent on the US is particularly healthy either, but that's another story)

AoD

I think China is no more or less imperialistic than America when it comes to third party countries.

Otherwise, I agree with the rest. And I strongly believe a fight with China is a fight that America will ultimately lose. The Middle Kingdom has risen.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

I think China is no more or less imperialistic than America when it comes to third party countries.

Otherwise, I agree with the rest. And I strongly believe a fight with China is a fight that America will ultimately lose. The Middle Kingdom has risen.

That remains to be seen - developments of late internal to China is not necessarily encouraging - and I don't think one should "fight" with China - because nobody wins from that - but to encourage a China that is more open and less paranoid.

AoD