Dispatch from the US: While Sanders fights to gain momentum, Trump dominates Republican race; Canada Revenue Agency offers amnesty to wealthy in secret agreement; Medical marijuana workers excluded from Ontario Labour Relations Act protections; How and why we need to get ourselves out of the self care trap:Debate over iPhone encryption a distraction from debate over gun regulation
The idea being promoted by the Liberal government through its “Basic Income Guarantee” is that we should be moving towards a system where the government redistributes wealth by giving individuals money directly. As wealth redistribution goes, this is an inherently right-wing approach. It depends on the private sector to provide services that those on the Guarantee can afford, it does nothing to improve the employment prospects for those on the Guarantee, and in the end likely only increases inequality. Instead, the government should be investing this money in public services that are provided at no cost to everyone, an initiative that will create more jobs in the process.
Ontario's 2016 budget was announced on Thursday. In contrast to the newly applied progressive veneer of the current Liberal brand, the budget was actually an austerity budget. The funding for infrastructure all comes from other parts of the public purse, increases to regressive flat taxes, and delayed spending on much needed social programs. Reallocating public service funds to infrastructure investments will not give the province the advertised economic boost because every infrastructure job and investment will be offset by job losses and cutbacks to other public services.
Ontario's budget and tuition fees, phone security, retirement and the right-wing up to their old tricks in Latin America.
What's Left This Week includes an analysis of post-secondary education in Ontario and the call for a Franco-Ontarian university, the Uber fight in Montréal, a book review of February by Lisa Moore and the resurgence of independent bookstores.
This week, Franco-Ontarian students rallied at Queen's Park to demand government action on creating a Franco-Ontarian University. On the same day, roughly 100 km away, students at the Barrie campus of Laurentian University started an occupation of their administration's offices, demanding the right to complete their program after learning that their campus was closing its doors.
