Current Events, Climate change
Donald Trump
“Glad you asked me this question. I am a very stable genius and math is one of my specialties. When I was on the Howard Stern show, he asked me a very difficult math question, “What is 17 times 6?”.
Much has been written about the effects of Brexit on the UK, but there has been little thought given to the future of the EU itself.
The problems of the EU are well known. What Europe needs is a Julius Caesar, Charlemagne, Napoleon or a Bismark (or all of them). Angela Merkel showed hints of European leadership, until her disastrous error in allowing unlimited numbers of “refugees” into Germany. Even though there is the lack of leadership, clear common goals and periodic crises, the EU muddles through, in spite of the British press gleefully predicting the imminent break-up of the EU and the collapse of the Euro
Continue reading “The EU after Brexit – A Vision for Success”
It is time for Canada to shake off the last vestiges of its colonial past and stand up as a truly sovereign nation by patriating the monarchy and inviting Prince Harry to be King of Canada.
In 1982, Pierre Trudeau, then Prime Minister of Canada (and father of Canada’s current Prime Minister) “patriated” the Canadian Constitution. Until that time, the highest law of the land was the British North America Act of 1867, an act of the British Parliament. The Canada Act of 1982 is now the highest law of the land and, in effect, ended Canada’s status as a British colony.
There is one aspect that still reflects Canada’s colonial past. The Head of State of Canada is Queen Elizabeth II, “by the Grace of God, of Great Britain, Ireland and the British Dominions beyond the Seas, Queen, Defender of the Faith”. The low ranking of Canada in the title, where it is not even mentioned by name is clear. Continue reading “For Canada’s 150th, It’s Time to Patriate the Monarchy”
There has been much discussion about raising the minimum wage, with proponents claiming it will improve the lives of the working poor and reduce “inequality” and opponents claiming it will reduce employment, making the poor worse off.
Classical economic theory claims that raising the minimum wage (or instituting it where there is none) will lower employment.
Closer examination suggests that a higher minimum wage will lead to increased inflation, some job losses, increased economic growth and reduced inequality. Continue reading “Can Raising the Minimum Wage Boost the Economy?”
In a recent article in the Financial Post, Ted Rechtshaffen, (“‘Tax the rich’ may be a rallying cry, but it’s hardly a fair system”, May 15) looked at three different tax schemes:
I will take these in reverse order.
Recently, the EU has ruled that Apple owes Ireland €13 billion in back taxes. The CEO of Apple reacted with the sort of indignation only an American can achieve when dealing with non-Americans. Columnists tended to side with Apple on the basis of their ideological biases.
Yet the central issue of taxing corporations is that globalisation and the rise of mega-corporations has not been mirrored by a rise in inter-governmental co-operation. Only such co-operation can deal with the problems.
For those who do not follow British politics, Jeremy Corbyn is the leader of the Labour Party and, as such, is the leader of the opposition in the British parliament.
Jeremy Corbyn has had a difficult start as leader of the Labour Party. He has floundered on a number of issues such as anti Semitism in the Labour Party and more recently, his support for Britain remaining in the European Union (EU) has been weak and lukewarm, even though the party is strongly pro-remaining in the EU.
The key to understanding Jeremy is his academic record. At A-levels (equivalent of Grade 12 exams) it is normal to take three subjects. Corbyn passed two with E grades[which is the lowest pass mark] and presumably failed the third. He then went to the North London Polytechnic college to take Trade Union studies and flunked out after one year. This shows that Corbyn has limited intelligence, certainly lower than the intelligence required the lead the opposition in parliament, or potentially to be a future Prime Minister. Continue reading “Understanding Jeremy Corbyn”