The Secret of Harpers Success

Stupid voters. The amount of Canadians that are illiterate is equal to the number of Canadians who support Harper. Coincidence? I think Not.

Canada is among leading OECD countries in literacy scores for secondary school students, but literacy skills appear to be weaker for adults in Canada. Evidence suggests that Canadians are experiencing a decline in these skills over the course of their lives.

Literacy Skills

• The proportion of Canadian adults with low literacy skills remains relatively high compared to other countries.
• Canadian adults are performing in the middle of comparison countries in literacy.
• Evidence suggests that Canadians are experiencing a decline in literacy skills over the course of their lives.

The 2006 Composite Learning Index



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Build A Wall And They Will Still Come

I am surprised that no one has noted the American fetish for building a wall along the border with Mexico is modeled on the Israeli wall in Palestine. Which was declared illegal by the International Court in the Hague.

Of course some folks might think that given the fascist nature of the United States that they are modeling it on the old Berlin Wall.

Fascism may be defined as a form of political behavior marked by obsessive preoccupation with community decline, humiliation, or victimhood

And with the xenophobic nationalism that is being raised by the right wing media in the US, and yes I include CNN, one could be forgiven for thinking that Bush's speech last night was a bit of sturm and drang for the right wing. Public Supports Troops on Border

What was that saying the Republicans had during the Cold War? Oh yes; Mr. Gorbachev tear down this wall.

My how times have changed. Now they are saying Build the Wall. Patrol won't halt Mexican wave

Beefing up security on the Mexican border is mostly a symbolic gesture. Border patrol numbers have been rising inexorably for 20 years, with scarcely a dent in the number of immigrants who make it past them. Desperate people will find a way: East Germany used to shoot fugitives trying to escape across the Berlin wall, but people still took their chances and made it across. Bush cannot satisfy the demands of those who want the Mexican border sealed. Bush's border dispute

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The NDP Discovers Blogging

Stop the press the NDP has discovered blogging. The only party NOT to blog during the last election now is blogging. From Bonn. From the Climate Change conference. On the trail of Rona Ambrose goes NDP MP from Skenna; Nathan Cullen. Read his blog here. Better late than never.



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Harpers Director of Non-Communication

No comment.

Government officials would not confirm reports. Sandra Buckler, a spokeswoman for the Prime Minister, said she was not allowed to talk about the story, in what is becoming a familiar pattern for this government's communications director."Sorry — not able to confirm," she said.
Tories move to extend Afghanistan mission

Origin of 'See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil'

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Kyoto Opps

Now whose embarrassed? Canada is not the only country that has admitted Kyoto is a failure. Deal with it. Carbon credits are a joke. The only way to reduce green house gases is to actually use scrubbers and pollution reduction, as well as adopting a policy of industrial ecology. Anything else is platitudes. As any proponent of Social Ecology will attest to.

The European Commission admitted Monday that member states had given companies far too generous targets for greenhouse gas emissions last year, raising questions about the Continent's ability to meet its obligations under the Kyoto Protocol and triggering chaos in Europe's embryonic market in trading emissions credits. The revelations, some of which had been leaked earlier in the month, prompted Germany and Britain to call for stricter European quotas for greenhouse gas emissions in the years ahead. Europe set bar low on greenhouse gas targets

IE and China's Circular Economy Initiative

China's top leadership has instituted a potentially far-reaching transformation of the economy to a more closed-loop system, with industrial ecology and cleaner production methods as the foundation for the strategy of transformation. The proposed goal is a ten-fold increase in productivity and efficiency of production. This is likely to become the most strategically significant application of industrial ecology, given China huge population and consumption of global resourdes. See our overview of this initiative.

More on Kyoto


Also see: A Critique of Kyoto Capitalism Is NOT Sustainable




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Nothing To Worry About In Bolivia

Despite the hand wringing and crocodile tears from the Canadian Mining industry about Bolivia's planned nationalizations of oil and mining, there is nothing to fear from it.

Nationalization worries foreign mining firms

TORONTO
Bolivia's plan to nationalize its natural-gas industry and exert greater state control over all of its natural resources has North American mining companies fretting over their future prospects extracting the nation's rich resources of gold, silver and tin.
The chairman of one of the world's largest gold-mining firms told shareholders he would now "put my buck" on exploration in Pakistan, rather than the South American countries that are erecting more roadblocks to foreign investors.
Patricia Dillon, president of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada, said plans by Bolivia to raise taxes and royalties on foreign mining firms are disconcerting.

Cuba is a excellent example of cooperation between a Canadian Mining Giant and a state-capitalist regime. I am speaking of Sherritt Gordon. Which has revived the nickel mines, coal production and oil production in Cuba based on an unheard of 50/50 deal.

China, Canada seek crude off Cuba, but not US
HAVANA (AFP) - China will send 12 hi-tech rigs to drill for oil in Cuban waters of the Gulf of Mexico, officials have confirmed, irking US lawmakers that US firms cannot prospect in nearby US waters. Cuba has stepped up work on a total of 36 new oil wells with Chinese companies and Canada's Sherritt, about four kilometers (2.5 miles) off the north coast, officials said privately.

Maverick shifts gears -- again

Ian Delaney's Cuban adventure laid the groundwork for his latest contrarian project: Canada and its coal, WENDY STUECK writes

At the time, the only two places in the world with a surplus of nickel and a shortage of refining capacity were Russia and Cuba. Talks with Russian interests went nowhere. But by 1991, Sherritt had struck a deal to buy metal from Cuba, an arrangement it cemented through a joint venture in 1994.

The Canadian-Cuban partnership made sense for both parties: Sherritt was hungry for metal and Cuba, reeling from the disappearance of billions in financial aid after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, was desperate for hard currency.

One party, however, was mightily displeased. The United States, which imposed a sweeping trade embargo on communist Cuba in 1961, watched with consternation as foreign investors, including Sherritt, moved into the country.

Slammed by U.S. critics for daring to do business with a communist dictator, Mr. Delaney launched a company to do just that. In 1995, the former Sherritt was split in two, with one arm holding the fertilizer business and the other set up to focus solely on Cuba.

In 1996, the Helms-Burton Act came into effect. The legislation opened the door to lawsuits against companies that "traffic" in property confiscated in the Cuban revolution of 1959, and to this day prohibits Mr. Delaney and other Sherritt executives from setting foot in the United States.

Through it all, Mr. Delaney chomped on Cuban cigars, trumpeted the potential of the Cuban business scene and said one should never back down from a fight.

It's a trait that he's still known for.

"Ian is very much a 'screw you' kind of guy," says long-time acquaintance Jeff Green, chairman of Toronto-based Paradigm Capital Inc.

Something the Canadian Miners in Bolivia should consider. Instead of whining about how they intend to invest in Pakistan, home of the Taliban and Osama bin Laden Inc., instead of Bolivia.

A capital strike by the Canadian Miners against the people of Bolivia will not result in harm to Bolivia, but will give another black eye to a Canadian industry that already has a poor international reputation for pollution, expolitation and environmental disasters.

Suck it up and make a fair deal with Bolivia. After all Canadians pride themselves in being fair.

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Before the Crying Starts

Anyday now we will be hearing the manufacturing lobby spokesperson, former Mulroney Cabinet Minister, Warren Perrin and the Council of Canadian CEO's along with their earstwhile ally in the Canadian Auto Workers Jim Stanford starting to decry the high Canadian dollar.

The fact is that it is now the international currency of choice as the Petro-dollar. And our commodity prices for metals and ores, shows a boom in the mining industry, and of course a boom in the Canadian loonie. While the oil and mining sector directly impacts on the Toronto Stock exchange. That boom is resulting in further monopolization of the mining sector in Canada, through a heated round of mergers and aquistions.

Mining merger mania timeline

Multibillion-dollar mergers are breaking out across the mining sector and a few mutual funds are well-positioned to reap the gains.

The real reason that there will be an impact on Canadian exports to the US is NOT because of the loonies rise but because of a tightening of the American market due to the US dollar's decline.

So before David Dodge and the Bank of Canada start screwing around with interest rates, that is raising them, which has had no effect on the loonie, we should remember this.

That the loonie is now seen as the Petro-dollar and a secure investment, which will attract more international finance, to offset those losses incurred by reduced market purchases from south of the border.

As well our position of exporting into the US market has made us popular with foreign manufacturers such as automobile companies, and Mittal Steel.

Of course the last time we had high foreign investment in the Canadian dollar and in Canada we had the right wing whining about debt and deficits and how we owed, we owed, to foreign investors. Ya just can't win with these guys. Ever.

On the rise
What impact will a strong Canadian dollar have on Durham Region?

May 15, 2006
By Izabela Jaroszynski

Staying cost-competitive in relation to the United States is vital for a manufacturing industry already suffering from job losses.

Earlier this year, KPMG released its Competitive Alternatives report, citing Canada as the cheapest place to do business among G7 countries and giving Canada a 4.5 per cent advantage over the U.S. when it comes to overall cost of doing business.

But with the stronger dollar, will this advantage erode?

Mark MacDonald, director of Competitive Alternatives for KPMG, says yes, but insists that the value of the Canadian dollar against the American is only one factor that goes into determining overall competitiveness.

"It is very case specific," he said. "Having said that, it is certainly not a secret that people in Canada are concerned."

For Mr. Myers, the concern goes deeper than just a strong dollar.

"It is also the reason behind the increase," he said. "Part of it is an increase in the cost of doing business, with energy prices going up and commodity prices going up. The other part is a weakening American economy."

That worries Mr. Myers because it will mean that sales in the U.S. can decline.

"It is easier to adjust to a higher dollar if your sales in the U.S -- your major market -- are booming, but right now there are indicators that those sales are going to weaken in the course of the coming year."

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Putting the Boots to Outsourcing

Here's a good news story about insourcing, Kodiak boots are now being made in Canada. Again. After being outsourced to Asia.

KODIAK COMES HOME It's been quite a hike for an iconic boot to Asia and back, and Kodiak Group Holdings Inc. is out to prove manufacturing can still survive and prosper in the Great White North

And here is why, Candaian productivity. That is variable capital; technology and labour. Which is called in modern economic parlance; value added production.

But before we begin cheering, its a speciality high priced boot that will be made in Canada, to sell to the branded market, which wants Made In Canada and will pay more for it. While their main low cost commercial boots will continue to be made in labour intensive low waged Asia. Until the workers in those countries form unions in the shoe industry.

But Mr. Huckle would not be making Kodiaks in Markdale, located two hours northwest of Toronto, without the confluence of special circumstances. For one thing, he was able to acquire two highly automated shoe plants from the takeover of rival Terra Footwear, a Canadian company famous for fast production turnarounds.

Terra's 110-worker plant in Markdale makes only a few models of high-end Kodiaks with a retail price of more than $140. Even with these more expensive boots, Mr. Huckle is giving away 7 to 8 percentage points in margin compared with making the same boots in Asia -- where he still sources the majority of his boots.

But he wants the domestic production to offer quick, efficient service for Canadian retailers, who may require only small numbers of boots, but need them in a hurry.

With Asian production, he has to contract for long production runs -- more than 1,200 pairs -- and has to carry a lot of inventory. With domestic manufacturing, the plant keeps enough materials around for relatively short runs. Because of automation and location, it can turn around Canadian production orders in 21 days, compared with 90 days for orders from Asia.

Mr. Huckle, who was on a five-country tour of Asia last week, says the developing world is still best for making products with high labour content. Wages in his Asian contract plants are a fraction of the average $15.50 an hour earned at Markdale, which has an in-house union.

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More Evidence For A Social Wage

A new report on Canada's Social Safety net proves what I have been saying here about the need for a Social Wage for ALL Canadians, that is a Living Wage or what was once called The Guaranteed Annual Income.

"When you look at the income-security policies, nothing has fundamentally changed for these folks in 40 years even though the labour market has changed enormously," she said. "Income-security programs are out of sync with the needs of people who are working in our modern economy." Coalition to unveil recommendations on social safety net

The report itself is interesting since those on the panel came from the left and right.

In addition to the Conference Board of Canada, the Caledon Institute and the C.D. Howe Institute, the members include top business leaders (Falconbridge chairman David Kerr and Nestle Purina Canada president Karen Kuwahara), labour leaders (Canadian Labour Congress president Ken Georgetti), bank economists Don Drummond (TD Bank) and Warren Jestin (Bank of Nova Scotia), social agencies, academics, foundations and a group of low-income individuals.Coalition to unveil recommendations on social safety net

And while calling for reforms they do not go far enough. Women in Canada not working need wages for housework , and all working class Canadians employed or not need a base social wage for those who earn less than $60,000 a year. As for tax breaks there should be NO income taxes on working class Canadians earning $100,000 or less.

Task force calls for social reforms

Income security programs are failing Canadians and need a federal overhaul that could cost $8.5 billion each year, says an exhaustive report by a task force of Toronto community members and civic leaders. The task force recommends the federal government reform employment insurance, create a new refundable tax benefit for all low-income working-age adults and provide a national disability income support program for those unable to enter the workforce.

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Stupid Human Gets Bear Killed

Another bear has been killed due to a stupid human.

The stupid human was mountain biking in the wilderness, well in the wild, well in Banff on a bike trail in the woods.

Wilderness. National Park. Animal preserve. Spring. Bears come out of hibernation and are looking for food. It's their park too.

Stupid human was biking along a wilderness trail in bear country. Stupid human was not paying attention to his reality. Nope he was listening to his IPod in the woods, as if we was in the city riding down the street. So he did not hear the bear approach.

It was a pitiful specimen of a bear, underweight and obviously in need of a good meal. The bear obviously thought the stupid human was food on wheels, sort of take out and delivery in one, and could not believe his luck.

Stupid human did not hear the bear until it was too late. Then he cried out Grizzly. Stupid human could not have been stupider, it was a black bear. An underweight one. Hungry. In a national park. A protected species, supposedly protected from stupid humans.

Well unfortunately for this poor bear, he met stupid human and attacked him. Resulting in the death of a bear, in his woods, in his national park, in his protected area. Thanks to a stupid human on a bike with an IPod in his ears thinking he was traveling down Younge Street in Toronto instead of being in BEAR COUNTRY. And the Greenies want to promote eco-tourism, please spare me, and the bears.

The black bear was likely three or four years old. In the spring, bears forage in the valley around Banff for food before moving into the mountains in summer when the snow is gone. Young bears generally have a tough time competing with older bears for food and this black bear was "particularly thin," Mr. Syme said. It was about 57 kilograms (125 pounds) and was probably seven kilos (15 pounds) or so underweight. "[The bear] was in poor condition," Parks Canada said in a press release.

The attack underscores the need to adhere to safety advice, which people sometimes spurn, Mr. Syme said. This includes travelling in groups, making noise and carrying bear spray. Mr. Flaaten was also wearing headphones, which is not good practice in the mountains. "Listening for those little subtle signals is important," Mr. Syme said. "If they're drowned out by music, it's not something I'd encourage people to do." Cry from the woods saves cyclist after black bear mauling

See More of my articles on Bears

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