The Shotgun

Friday, July 10, 2009

Celebrate Bahamas' Independence Day while you can; it’s quickly losing its sovereignty to the OECD

Peter Kent, Minister of State of Foreign Affairs (Americas), today issued the following statement congratulating the people of the Bahamas as they celebrate their country’s Independence Day:

“Canada congratulates the Bahamian people as they mark the 36th anniversary of their country’s independence. Canada and the Bahamas enjoy a long-standing and warm relationship, built on a shared Commonwealth history, important commercial links and strong people-to-people ties.

“The Bahamian people are proud of their vibrant and diverse cultural history and the Bahamian diaspora has made a valuable contribution to Canada’s economic and cultural development. Bahamian students have been instrumental in the success of Canadian academic initiatives such as the Canada-CARICOM Leadership Scholarship Program. We hope this academic partnership will be enhanced by Bahamian participation in the new Emerging Leaders in the Americas Scholarship Program.

“Canada is proud to count the Bahamas as a friend and an important partner in the Americas. We value our countries’ close ties and hope to build upon them as we continue to develop our mutually beneficial relationship with the entire Caribbean region.”

Given the pressure coming from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to shut down tax- and privacy-friendly off-shore banking jurisdictions, Bahamas’ independence is in increasing jeopardy.

In a breaking story today, Singapore has succumb to OECD pressure to fully implement global standards aimed at eliminating tax havens. The country has agreed to sign a treaty with France allowing the exchange of private and personal information on taxpayers. Like the Bahamas, Singapore is on the OECD black list for its banking privacy policies.

I hate to spoil a good Independence Day party, but how much longer until the Bahamas cedes its sovereignty to this international pressure?

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 10, 2009 at 10:21 AM
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Thursday, July 09, 2009

Polygamy, The More the Merrier?

The case against two men accused of polygamy has been put on hold until September when a B.C. Supreme Court judge will consider a defence argument to toss out the charges.

What are the charges? Polygamy; having more than one wife at the same time.

These folks in Bountiful, B.C. are what’s called “Momon fundamentalists”, in that they have the same lineage with the “Mormons”; the folks headquartered in salt Lake City Utah known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; and that they believe that they are living the fundamentals of the religion that the mainstream Church abandoned over 100 years ago; the practice of plural marriage.

At it's core, marriage is a contract between two or more people that can consent to the provisions of the contract. The trouble comes in when you add a third party, the government.

In these communities, they usually have one legal government marriage between the man and the "first wife"; the other marriages are spiritual marriages of a religious nature that are only binding in their church, and do not constitute bigamy, which is legally marrying someone while still having a previous legal marriage.

These "Celestial marriages" are not recognized by the state, so the ladies that enter them and have children will often go on government assistance, and to the government they appear as stay-at-home single mothers. They often do not live with their husbands and may or may not receive financial and emotional support from them.

Put aside the (likely true) accusations of underage brides, put aside the welfare mothers this situation creates, put aside the unusual nature of their religious practices; the question that stands is should these people be allowed to practice their religion when it comes to plural marriage?

I believe in freedom, including religious freedom. While I don't agree with many of the tenants of their faith, I believe that where there is informed consent there is the right to be left alone. It is their faith, it is their lives, and they should be free to choose how to live it, and should be free to choose to leave, as some have.

The RCMP have launched numerous investigations into Bountiful since 1990, and prosecutors have repeatedly shied away from laying charges, concerned the polygamy laws wouldn't survive a challenge under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

I think that they may be right.

Posted by Scott Carnegie on July 9, 2009 at 11:21 PM
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Free enterprise used to stimulate the Alberta economy; today, it’s government: Mark Dyrholm

Another federal-provincial partnership was announced today to create infrastructure jobs across the province. Rob Merrifield, Minister of State for Transport, along with Luke Ouellette, Minister of Alberta Transportation, announced funding for 156 infrastructure projects valued at over half a billion dollars through the Infrastructure Stimulus Fund, under Canada’s Economic Action Plan.

“Today, the Government of Canada announced investments in key infrastructure projects that will boost our economy and create jobs for Albertans,” said Merrifield. “The strong partnership between our two governments allows us to work together to ensure that Alberta’s economy remains strong and productive during these challenging economic times.”

“This co-investment in municipal infrastructure will address much-needed projects in our communities,” added Minister Ouellette. “It will also help keep Albertans working - one of the province’s priorities in these economic times.”

Infrastructure – roads, bridges, power grids, sewage, etc. – is considered by most to be what economists call a “public good” and, therefore, the proper function of government. Putting aside the very legitimate objections to this "public good" notion, government infrastructure spending should be about meeting real economic needs, like a bridge connecting two isolated markets or a highway upgrade that reduces congestion and, consequently, the cost of shipping.

When job creation drives government spending, however, it leads to the misallocation of resources. Under this scenario, the question for government becomes “How many short-term jobs will this project employ” rather than “How will this project create long-term wealth by integrating markets.”

The governments of Canada and Alberta announced funding of more than $443 million for 156 community and provincial infrastructure projects across Alberta. Together with municipal and other contributions, the total investment in local infrastructure improvements in Alberta for the Infrastructure Stimulus Fund exceeds $550 million.

If $550 million seems like a lot of money, the Alberta government intends, in total, to spend over $23 billion over three years on projects expected to create 80,000 jobs across the province. That's about $30,000 per job.

While 80,000 infrastructure-related jobs might sound impressive, in an interview with the Western Standard, Wildrose Alliance leadership candidate Mark Dyrholm reminds Alberta voters of the jobs lost in the province’s oil and gas industry due in large part to Stelmach’s New Royalty Framework (NRF).

“If Ed Stelmach had not torn up written contracts and damaged our international reputation as a fair and stable place to invest, we wouldn’t need federal government help to create jobs,” said Dyrholm, referring to the NRF which changed pre-existing royalty agreements in the oil and gas industry, bringing drilling activity in the province to a stand still despite oil trading between $60 - $70 a barrel.

According to a study by Gerry Angevine, senior economist with the Fraser Institute's Centre for Energy Studies, Alberta is now the worst place in Canada to invest in oil and gas from a tax and regulation standpoint.

“Free enterprise used to stimulate the Alberta economy; today, it’s government." said Dyrholm. "Again, we need restore Alberta’s reputation as a fair and stable place to do business within Canada and internationally. When we do this, when we undo the damage the Stelmach government has done, we’ll get Albertans back to work."

Recent studies by the Canada West Foundation and Calgary Economic Development acknowledge that Alberta’s energy sector drives job creation and economic activity even in the province’s non-energy sectors.

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 9, 2009 at 10:42 PM
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NDP demands whistle-blower legislation for health workers. What about teachers?

An Alberta Health Services document threatens health care professionals with termination if they criticize mismanagement, NDP MLA Rachel Notley said today.

She called the recently released AHS Code of Conduct an intimidating document that aims to deter workers from exposing failures in the health care system.

“Health care workers who are critical of government cuts are being told that if they don’t shut up, they’ll be fired,” Notley said.

The offending passages in the AHS Code of Conduct include rules governing public statements:

If you are approached by the news media to provide information and/or interviews concerning Alberta Health Services’ practices or operations, immediately refer all such requests to the Communications Department.

As a representative of Alberta Health Services, which you are by virtue of your role within the organization, it is important to exercise caution at all times and to choose your words carefully when engaging in any form of public speaking. You must not breach confidentiality or privacy regarding any patient, employee or business information.

If you write for publication or in any other public forum, you must ensure that any Alberta Health Services patient, employee or business information is not disclosed and that confidential documents are not made available to unauthorized persons.

Do the restrictions on speaking to the media about AHS "operations" or “business information” constitute political censorship? Notley says they do.

“The government needs to immediately draft whistle-blower legislation allow these people to freely express their opinions,” demanded Notley.

Other passages in the code of conduct that are of concern to Notley are these:

If your personal conduct could reasonably result in valid allegations or criticism from our fellow Albertans, then the conduct is questionable and may be improper.

...

Conduct that adversely affects the interests of Alberta Health Services (…) could result in disciplinary action, even dismissal or termination.

According to the NDP, criticisms over cuts to health care including hiring freezes, MRI tests cancellations, and the closures of long term care and public laboratory facilities are appearing more often in newspaper editorials and at public forums.

“Just last month at an NDP healthcare town hall in Lethbridge, we heard from a nurse who feared repercussions for speaking out,” Notley said. “This Code of Conduct is her fears come true.”

Health care workers are not the only provincial employees governed by professional codes of conduct. Teachers in the province as subject to the Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA) code of conduct which prohibits public criticism of teachers and demands “service” to the union:

16. The teacher recognizes the duty to protest through proper channels administrative policies and practices which the teacher cannot in conscience accept; and further recognizes that if administration by consent fails, the administrator must adopt a position of authority.

...

22. The teacher accepts that service to the Association is a professional responsibility.

“[S]ervice to the Association” means teachers can not express anti-union or anti-public education views, and critics of the public education status quo are effectively prohibited from teaching in the province.

Will the NDP and former labour lawyer Notley challenge the ATA to remove these restrictions on teachers?

(Picture: Rachel Notley)

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 9, 2009 at 06:06 PM
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Hot Room Live

It all begins at 8:15pm EDT / 5:15pm PDT. If you're around early, there will be some pre-show action.

Live TV : Ustream

Posted by Mike Brock on July 9, 2009 at 05:31 PM
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In the Hot Room tonight... 8:15pm Eastern / 5:15pm Pacific

I will take up the reigns again for about an hour or so of political talk after the shows 6 week hiatus. We will have the chat room open for your comments, and I'll be taking your calls. Join in -- right in this space -- we'll be streaming live.

Posted by Mike Brock on July 9, 2009 at 11:52 AM
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Legalize It - Part 1

Legalize it, all of it.

Let me make very clear that I do not advocate most drug use; I think that using some drugs is generally bad. I have never used “recreational” drugs in my life, ever. I think our society would be better off if many drugs didn’t exist; but they do, and there is a demand for them, so they continue to be manufactured and sold.

Prohibiting and controlling drugs does not stop some people from having the desire for them, that is unlikely to go away; as long as these desires exists there will be a demand and market for them, and some folks will be willing to meet that demand, whether it's legal or not.

Self-Ownership

Do you believe that you own yourself? If you truly own yourself, then you are free to keep yourself as fit or as fat as you want. If you truly own yourself, then you are free to put into your body what you want, be it apples or marijuana.

The principle here is self-ownership; you own and are in charge of yourself. Because of this, you are responsible for yourself (provided that you have the mental capacity to be) and are free to make good or bad choices, provided that those choices don’t violate the liberties of other people. Using harmful drugs is generally a bad choice in my opinion, but it is one that you have the right to make as it harms yourself directly, just like eating too much fatty food or listening to your Ipod at full volume all day.

Obviously, there are social consequences of using drugs and the possibility of becoming addicted; you may be ostracized from friends and relatives, if you have people financially depended on you they may be negatively affected. There will be indirect effects on people from your actions no matter what you do, these cannot necessarily be controlled or measured, that’s why the focus is on the actions you can control; your own.

Legalize Marijuana

It’s harder for the general public to hear the message of “legalize ALL drugs”, it’s not something that is often heard, therefore I will focus on the legalization of marijuana, though the arguments for it’s legalization will apply to other drugs like heroin, cocaine, meth etc.

Though is has been shown that there are medicinal benefits to marijuana, the reason for it’s legalization is still based on the principle of self-ownership, but I will look at some of the common arguments for and against it, while still holding the self-ownership principle as the main reason for why it should be legalized.

Decriminalization of Marijuana in Canada

Marijuana was first banned in Canada in 1923 under the Opium and Drug Act. Since 1997 marijuana has been covered by the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act.
In 2000 over 30,000 Canadians were charged with simple possession of marijuana, according to the Senate Committee on Illegal Drugs.
Current laws are enforced unevenly across the country.
Most of those convicted of possession of marijuana do not go to jail, but do receive a criminal record.

Think of the waste that goes into policing drug users. 30,000 people in Canada charged ever year. That means that every one of those people were dealt with by police, then entered into the system, paid fines, court dates, etc. The amount of bureaucracy needed to deal with this is staggering. Now, all of those people have criminal records. They will have a harder time getting a job, crossing borders, finding suitable housing, etc., all because they choose to put something into their body. That is not good for them or good for the rest of society as they may end up drawing on welfare or other socialized programs becasue of the lack of opportunities a criminal record may bring them.

So the point comes up, then why do them? As a non-marijuana user I cannot answer that, other to say that people have been suing this substance for many years, and it's illegal nature has not dettered many of them or halted the drug trade. To some folks the risk is worth it.

Every April 20 at the Legislature here in Winnipeg, you will find thousands of people lighting a blunt in open protest of the illegality of marijuana, yet there aren’t swarms of police coming down to break it up. Yet they will spend time going after people in their homes, on the street, etc. Why this inconsistency? Even the police realize that possessing marijuana is not a serious enough offense to warrant shutting down this peaceful protest. This seems like an inconsistent, hypocritical position.

The problem isn’t the police, it is the law, and the beaurocrats that make the law.

The Government are Drug Dealers

Speaking of hypocritical positions, even though growing, possessing and distributing marijuana is illegal, the Canadian government continues to do it to this day.

Health Canada looking for marijuana grower

Government pot is grown in an abandoned mine in Flin Flon, Manitoba, and used for medicinal marijuana. The use of marijuana for medicinal purposes has been well established, and Health Canada recognizes and approves its use.

Health Canada - Medical Use of Marihuana

Health Canada grants access to marihuana for medical use to those who are suffering from grave and debilitating illnesses.

Yet, you aren’t allowed to grow your own medicine if you so choose, the government has to do it for you and give you a piece of paper that allows you to have it. Why is the goverment in the medicine business? Is there Province of Manitoba brand ibuprophen? No one else is allowed to provide this approved medicine, only the government.

This is another government monopoly like Manitoba Lotteries and MPI, making the bearuocracy larger, demanding tax money to grow pot.

I wonder how someone who is against the legalization of marjiana would feel knowing that they are paying to grow and distribute it.

Prohibition

What would happen if pot was legalized? We can look at history to find out. In the early 1900’s alcohol manufacturing, distribution and possession was made illegal all over North America.

Prohibition_in_the_United_States

Prohibition_in_Canada

When something is outlawed, it creates a black market for that product or service. When something is in the black market it inherently becomes more dangerous because it needs to be under the radar of law enforcement. It becomes the product of gangs and organized crime, and prices get very high, and violent crime surrounds it. This is what happened with alcohol prohibition; people didn’t stop drinking, they just had to do it underground. Once alcohol prohibition ended, so did the violence and crime surrounding it’s manufacture and distribution. Do we currently see turf wars or gang crime with alcohol distribution? No, it went away when prohibition went away. The same thing would happen if the prohibition against marijuana was ended.

Let’s look at this realistically. If marijuana wasn’t prohibited, how would people get it? Likely the same way people get alcohol and tobacco; large companies will grow and sell it and you can buy it at the corner store. Plus, you will have companies selling “home growing kits” so you can grow your own. You won’t need to buy it on the street under threat of arrest and the prices would be lower because there will be a large, safe supply and legal ways of obtaining it.

If people could choose between a drug store or a thug on the street, where would they be likely to go to buy marijuana?

Arguments Against Legalization

when illicit drugs are legalized, drug use increases
marijuana is a gateway drug to harder drugs
decriminalization would send conflicting messages to young people
marijuana is harmful

If murder wasn’t on the books as being illegal, would people murder each other? Laws don’t dictate behavior, marijuana is illegal right now yet people still use it, the law doesn’t stop that. If it was legalized, people who were going to do it will still do it, and people who weren’t going to do it won’t. There is a taboo in doing something illegal, and once that taboo is gone, then a small part of the thrill is gone.

In September 2007, the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse reported that marijuana use in teens have gone up (opens PDF).

(marijuana use)use is reported by 17 per cent of students in grades 7 to 9, about 29 per cent of 15- to 17-year-olds, and almost half of 18- to 19-year-olds

Would arresting 50% of Canadian teens do them any good? How would that help them in life? It won't stop them from using the drug, just put them into the legal system and make it harder to move forward with a productive life.

Let’s look at a place where pot is less restricted, Amsterdam and some of Australia. The usage of marijuana in those areas is actually lower than that of the U.S.

Marijuana Prohibition Has Not Curtailed Marijuana Use by Adolescents

This report shows that the prohibition of marijuana in the United States has not curtailed adolescent marijuana use.

                 United States   The Netherlands

Total Population      31.1 [a]           28.5 [b] 
Young Adults          47.3 [c]           45.5 [d] 
Older Teens           38.2 [e]           29.5 [f] 
Younger Teens         13.5 [g]            7.2 [h]

To say that legalizing marijuana would lead to an increase in use is not what the evidence shows.

In March 2009,the Cato Institute put out a report about the success of drug decriminalization in Portugal.

Evaluating the policy strictly from an empirical perspective, decriminalization has been an unquestionable success, leading to improvements in virtually every relevant category and enabling Portugal to manage drug-related problems (and drug usage rates) far better than most Western nations that continue to treat adult drug consumption as a criminal offense.

You can see the policy forum and presentation of this report at the Cato Institute website.

Also, to call marijuana a “gateway” drug is misleading. Using marijuana does not mean that you will then use, cocaine, heroin or other harmful drugs. It is most of then the first one that people will use because it is the most common and least expensive. Calling marijuana a gateway drug is like calling beer a gateway drink that means you will start misusing alcohol and more potent drinks, it is not necessarily true. Most people first encounter beer, it is less expensive than harder drinks so it is naturally what would be encountered first.

As for sending “conflicting messages” to young people, I say, let them make up their own mind. The message we can send is that some things are good for you, some things are bad, you choose which you’d like to do. In fact, I wouldn’t call marijuana “bad”, no more than I would call having a beer “bad”. I’m going to teach my children to choose for themselves, no conflicting message there.

The argument that marijuana is harmful doesn’t stand up either. Yes, it can cause some harm to the body, but if we were to outlaw things that were harmful then perhaps we should be outlawing salt, butter, etc. By this reasoning, anything harmful to an individual should be prohibited. Well, then here are a few other things that should be banned then.

4000 people die per year in Canada in car accidents. – ban cars
6,700 deaths from alcohol – ban alcohol
33,5000 from tobacco - ban cigarettes
732 deaths due to use of illicit drugs – wow, a lot less than cars
How many deaths from marijuana? 0
reference Drugs and Drug Policy in Canada

If we truly own ourselves, then we are the ones that choose what we can and can’t put into our bodies. If we choose to harm ourselves with drugs, or salt, or getting fat, then that is also our choice.

I welcome any comments or corrections.

Please keep comments on topic and cordial. Insults and ad hominems may result in deleted posts.

Posted by Scott Carnegie on July 9, 2009 at 11:11 AM
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Middle Class For A Change

I think I've figured out why it bugged me so much. Tim Hudak, the newly minted leader of the Ontario Tories, invoked the term "middle class" with near comic frequently during the recent party leadership campaign. We are basically a middle class society. Once upon a time class was a clear and powerful dividing line in Canadian life. It still exists. But when plumbers make more than university graduates - and not just in the humanities - the lines have blurred. Middle Class is really code for average. The "divine average" as Whitman put it. Perhaps vanity overtakes me here, but I take offense at being called average. Let's put it this way:

Hi, my name is Publius. I'm looking to earn your vote. I know how you think because we're both average. Not special in anyway. Just plain ordinary. I'm ordinary, you're ordinary. We're all ordinary. Vote for me! We're both beige amidst a background of sprawling grey.

Middle Class Ontario is the reverse of Lake Wobegon. No one is above average, or below it. We are not bright or stupid. We lack distinguishing characteristics. We all live in the suburbs. We all have two kids. Don't let all that ethnic or racial diversity fool you. The chap fresh off the plane from the Punjab, or the vet who crossed the Scheldt, are both middle class, both average. Just like Tim, and Dalt, and Michael and Stephen. Except that Michael and Stephen are not average, they're clearly above average.

It would be difficult to pick Dalton McGuinty out of a police line up (away dark thoughts). He blends so effortlessly into wherever he is. His voice has the soothing tone of a vacuum cleaner running on low. Very useful for putting fussy babies to sleep. A post-political career, surely. Whitman's Divine Average incarnate. For all the Red Star's desperate attempts to paint Tim Hudak as the Son of Mike, the two men project very different images. Mike was clearly a leader. He was the guying pushing his way to the front, devil take you know what. Tim is the guy next door. Like Dalt. The new Tory leader isn't so much running for Mike Harris' third term, but for Dalt's.

Modern politics witnesses the absurd spectacle of highly educated men, many of them with IQs toward the right end of the curve, stooping to conquer. Average people don't want to be Premier of Ontario, or Prime Minister of Canada. Perhaps not even sane people want such positions. This was not always so. Until at least the time of Brian Mulroney the chaps running the show projected themselves as larger than life. They would make flattering comparisons, or have others do it for them, toward the greats of history. Jim Hacker in Yes, Minister was always trying to sound Churchillesque.

An old story has it that Wilfred Laurier's handlers - yes, such creatures existed even then - tried to get the great man to make a speech in a lumber mill wearing workmen's clothes. Laurier put on the garb, took one look in the mirror and then immediately got back into his business suit. One of the most elegant dressers in the Dominion, whose manners and style rivaled those of a British peer, was not going to pretend to be anything but what he was. He told his handlers he would look foolish playing a mill worker. The electorate wanted to see a great man lead a great nation. It was a part and Laurier played it beautifully.

We don't look up to leaders. It goes against the democratic tradition that everyone is as good as everyone else. Many libertarians will second the sentiment. The state being little better than organized crime (the term organized being used loosely), its leaders are as such only gangsters. This confuses the "is" with the "ought." Leaders are about the ought, where we should be not where we are. They are suppose to project an ideal and lay out a plan to achieve it. Even a laissez-faire state will have crises and emergencies. The Divine Average as Leader is really the Status Quo as Ideal. We don't expect the guy next door to inspire us. We expect him to mow the lawn.

Posted by PUBLIUS on July 9, 2009 at 05:59 AM
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Wednesday, July 08, 2009

Alberta Tories refuse to name nuclear lobbyists: NDP

The Alberta Tory government is withholding information from the public about its nuclear consultations, NDP MLA Rachel Notley said yesterday.

“The government refuses to name the stakeholder groups they met with behind closed doors,” Notley said. “They’re keeping it secret. We’ve followed procedures to access this information, and still they refuse to come clean.”

The NDP submitted a Freedom of Information (FOI) request on May 8 asking the identity of industry representatives – Notley prefers the term lobbyists – who attended private “discussion groups” about the development of nuclear energy in the province.

The request followed a government announcement in April that stakeholders and focus groups would be consulted about the issue.

In a response to the FOI request last month, the government committed to posting the information by the end of June. That hasn’t happened, according to Notley.

“All they’ve given us is the dates and locations of 10 focus groups that were held April with random Albertans,” Notley said.

“We know the government had private meetings with business and energy lobbyists. The public should be told who those groups were, what they wanted, and what Ed Stelmach’s government has promised them,” continued Notley.

There is considerable interest in nuclear power in the province to support the energy-intensive oil sands industry. Oil sands projects are a major consumer of natural gas and a major producer of global warming gases, making nuclear power an attractive option, especially with a reliably source of uranium in nearby Saskatchewan.

Notley has been working with the Coalition for a Nuclear Free Alberta, primarily Peace Country residents, to stop the development of nuclear power in Alberta.

“Thousands of Albertans are signing petitions against the development of nuclear power in Alberta. They’re saying loud and clear that they don’t want nuclear power plants in this province, and the Tories are ignoring them,” said Notley.”

(Picture: Rachel Notley)

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 8, 2009 at 11:02 PM
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Flooding Bail-Outs

This past summer was a bad year for flooding in Manitoba, once of the worst since the big flood of 1997; Manitobans that were impacted by this years flood will receive $40 million in aid.

In past posts I have criticized this move, saying that it is up to private homeowners to have the proper insurance or face the risk of living and/or building in an area known to have a history of flooding, that taxpayers shouldn't be bailing out the poor decisions of other people.

But you know, I've been re-thinking this.

If your property is damaged, you deserve restitution from the party that caused the damage.

The river that caused the flooding is "public property", which really means its government property. So if government property destroys your home, whether it is their hydro pole falling on your car or their river flooding your land, then the government should pay restitution. If it was a private corporations' property that caused the damage, they of course would be held liable, as so should the government.

Too bad though that the government gets their cash from people not involved in the property damage, taxpayers.

The honest thing would be for the compensation to come straight out of politicians salaries, since it is their property that caused the damage.

Posted by Scott Carnegie on July 8, 2009 at 09:32 PM
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The Summer's Best Album?

If you find yourself starved for new music this summer, you could do a number of things, many of which Knox does on a regular basis to ensure a steady supply of fresh funk. One idea is simply searching I-Tunes or other music sites for rare cuts from artists that I like on the off-chance that I missed something floating around cyberspace. Effective, but hardly imaginative. Another one I use often to varying degrees of success is to watch, or listen to, live clips of bands I like and take note of other bands that they refer to, or whose t-shirts they wear, or stickers they put on their amps. For example, I was turned on to the Waco Brothers by listening to an old Napster bootleg version of "Over The Cliff" by the Old 97's and hearing lead singer Rhett Miller holler "this is a song we stole from the Waco Brothers". I figured "good enough for Rhett - good enough for Knox". I was right. Or the time I found the Four Horsemen by seeing James Hetfield of Metallica wearing a Four Horsemen t-shirt at a live show. Those were the successful outings. Other times I have bought some truly awful albums using this system, but in the search for new music, you take the good with the bad.

Another system that is certainly more reliable than the others is to pay attention to press about bands that you love and to snap up their albums as soon as they come out. Sure, even rock solid bands that you can count on for quality can let you down (see my recent Bruce Springsteen thoughts), but more often than not, you hit pay dirt. Using this philosophy, I picked up the new Rancid album - Let The Dominoes Fall. The thinking was that apart from 2000's self-titled album (which was a horrendously monotonous, barely-listenable work), Rancid has produced great album after great album. However, Dominoes is hardly a great album - it is fan-damn-tastic - and there is a little something for everyone.

The first track "East Bay Night" is a Ramones-esque, straight-ahead rocker that pays homage to the band's Albany, California roots. Other tracks on the album follow suit. Others still blaze a trail seldom traveled by Armstrong et al. Take "Civilian Ways", a largely acoustic song about an Iraq war vet who has returned home and has to battle wartime ghosts and demons in his day to day "normal" life back home. The song is inspired by front-man Tim Armstrong's brother who recently returned home from a tour in Iraq. A mandolin? On a Rancid song? Believe it, and get ready to love it. "Bravest Kids" is another track that supports those who have been sent to Iraq to fight what has been to many, an unpopular war. Other numbers like "Skull City", "That's Just The Way It Is Now" and "Highway" explore new ground and do so with dazzling results. Other powerhouse gems like "New Orleans" and "This Place" remind all that while Rancid went away briefly, they are back with a vengeance and have sought fit to bring hell with them.

You heard it here first (ok, maybe you've read other reviews elsewhere, but let's ignore that for the moment, shall we?) - this is the best album of 2009, or at least the best album of the summer of 2009. As a "head's up" though, those of you out there who pick your music based on your politics (the only reasonable excuse for listening to Libertarian bands like Rush), may find some lyrics here distasteful. Rants like "the workers mislead by corporations that know no boundaries" from "This Place" or "when the middle class breaks up, the working class better wake up" from "Lulu" are annoying indeed, but are really only reflective of the constant confusion displayed by punk bands who seem to think that an anarchist utopia is to be achieved through socialism and an ever-growing state. I choose to ignore such sentiments in music to avoid being stuck listening to Rush. There are also lyrical gems like "opinions are hard to put in prison" from "The Highway" and "out in the open they ain't gonna hide - police
state upon us prepare to collide - they're gonna keep you down, step on your neck can't move no more -the weapon of their choosing is censorship and war" from "Liberty and Freedom". See what I mean? You take the good with the bad.

Anyway, grab this one. It is TOP SHELF.

Posted by Knox Harrington on July 8, 2009 at 09:12 PM
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In defense of Bill 44

It’s good to know that Halifax News Net blogger Kim Kinrade is frightened by Alberta’s Bill 44. His article starts with quote from an Albertan parent that clearly opposes Bill 44 stating that the bill limits exposure to diversity (run for your life!), followed by this gem:

Some people in Canada think “Progressive Conservative” is an oxymoron, like “military intelligence.” And nowhere is this more evident than in the Progressive Conservative government of Alberta Premier Ed Stelmack, who rammed Bill 44 through the provincial legislature two weeks ago.

Hm, I never heard that one before! Then again, I would never expect the Nova Scotia media to support such a thing as originality or change. The new bill enables parents to legally opt their children out of class when certain subjects are “taught”. These subjects are things like sexual orientation, sexuality, and religion – the subjects that happen to be those few that have historically been the responsibility of parents in the first place. As a reaction, the “progressives” are hysterical about such a notion as parents being more competent at parenting and the state. Maybe it’s true that today’s parenting isn’t as great as it used to be, but the idea that we can’t fix ourselves and need the government to be the knight in whining armor yields a white flag in my eyes. Conservatives are not ones to surrender, and I’m no exception. I say more provinces should adopt the bill and see what happens. Surely our public schools cannot get any worse (knock on wood!). Unless I’m shown evidence that what we’re currently doing is working, I propose we consider history and examine what has generally worked and what hasn’t. Bill 44 is a small but solid step towards that. Unfortunately with the new provincial NDP majority in Nova Scotia, Bill 44 is about as unlikely as the possibility of the NDP doing well in office.

[Cross-posted at The Right Coast]

Posted by Dane Richard on July 8, 2009 at 08:24 PM
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An experiment in voluntary taxation could be Michael Jackson’s most valuable legacy

Los Angeles city officials are looking for ways to pay for the cost of Michael Jackson’s public memorial service, estimated at $4 million.

According to a report by msnbc, the city has set up a web site urging fans to make voluntary, tax-deductible donations to help cover the costs.

Right behind staying out of the memorial service business altogether, this is a great solution for paying this I.O.U., which includes $50,000 for lunches for the on-duty cops being paid overtime.

In fact, while L.A. officials are not likely to give up on coercive taxation, this donation model could be more broadly used to finance non-essential government services. Under this model, unpopular government services that don’t get public support would be scraped, or paid for out of general revenue if the service is deemed essential. This would allow taxpayers to express their preferences among government programs.

Going further, 100 per cent tax deductable donations to registered non-profit organizations would be a great way to gradually return welfare and philanthropic activities to the private sector. Taxpayers could cover their tax bill by either sending their money to the local government, or to the registered charity of their choice.

The idea needs some fine tuning, and might be costly to impliment, but I'd like to see more governments attempt to raise funds voluntarily, and push services into the private sector by allowing charitable donations to substitute for taxes owed.

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 8, 2009 at 07:03 PM
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More British Nanny State Files

A British City council has told residents in an apartment block that their doormats and plant pots outside their doors are fire hazards and must be removed. (h/t Overlawyered)

Another local council has decided that no humor can be tolerated, so they have threatened a store owner with arrest if he doesn't stop posting funny material on his billboard.

Closer to home, the nanny state is taking on a family that is trying to make their garden friendly for wildlife. Meanwhile in the chief nanny state, the District of Columbia, a city councilor is proposing banning sales of pizza by the slice as a means to curb crime. (h/t Radley)

Posted by Moin A Yahya on July 8, 2009 at 05:00 PM
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Libertarians are the future of the Republican Party: Eric Margolis

The only energy left in the Republican Party can be found in Congressman Ron Paul’s Campaign for Liberty, a grass roots movement to restore constitutionally limited government and liberty in America.

In a recent Sun column, Eric Margolis, having spoken to Paul’s Liberty caucus in Washington, wrote:

As I talked with Paul, it occurred to me that he and his fellow libertarians are the potent remedy that the dreadfully sick Republican Party so desperately needs. Paul's Liberty caucus hopefully will form the core around which a vigorous, new party grows that addresses America's real needs.

...

Paul and his fellow libertarians offer Republicans and Americans a badly needed alternative to the dumbed down Republicans and the wildly spending Democrats, whose expanded Afghanistan war and increasingly neosocialist policies are leading the nation into dangerous waters.

The future belongs to libertarians. Let’s hope it’s a future worth inheriting.

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 8, 2009 at 12:11 PM
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Citizens insisting on their freedom are a terrible inconvenience to government: Marc Emery

Marc Emery’s “Farewell Tour” was in Lethbridge, Alberta last night for an event sponsored by the Southern Alberta Cannabis Club. In coverage found in the Lethbridge Herald, Emery credits Ayn Rand for igniting his passion for individual liberty and his opposition to the war on drugs:

His ultimate goal has always been to legalize marijuana because he believes it’s the right thing to do. He became a crusader for marijuana users after reading Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged some 30 years ago.

“Ever since, I’ve been on this one-man tear to bring justice to the people I thought were most oppressed and unable to defend themselves,” Emery said.
...

“Citizens insisting on their freedom are a terrible inconvenience to government.”

Emery will be in Edmonton on Thursday.

(Picture: Marc Emery)

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 8, 2009 at 11:27 AM
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On this date in history, a young man lost his faith in capitalism

In its regular Today in History feature, the Edmonton Sun reported yesterday that “On this date in 1953, Che Guevara set out to Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, and El Salvador where he was convinced of how terrible capitalism was.” The date was July 7th, and the rest of the story is part of the bloody history of communism.

This historic factoid reminds me of another idealistic young man who lost his faith in capitalism. On October 18, 2009, the once proud fiscal conservative economist, Prime Minister Stephen Harper, declared the era of “unfettered capitalism” over before it had even begun.

But only when young anarcho-syndicalists run wild in the streets during WTO meetings clad in t-shirts with a defiant image of Harper emblazoned on the front, will I truly believe the era of economic freedom in Canada is over.

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 8, 2009 at 10:37 AM
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Alcohol Prohibition Still Alive

Remember in the 1920's when alcohol was prohibited by the government? You probably weren't there yourself, but we know it happened. It was supposedly ended back then, but alcohol prohibition is still alive in Canada.

Some enterprising folks were delivering alcohol products to the northern Manitoba reserve of Pukatawagan by boat. Pukatawagan isn't a dry reserve, where alcohol sales are banned, but it is an isolated community and there isn't a place to buy alcohol there, and the band council has restricted how much alcohol residents are allowed to have.

The bootleggers were stopped by police and their bootleg booze was seized.

Separate from the issues of the problems with alcohol abuse, this raises the question, why is it that alcohol would be legal to bring into Pukatawagan for a company like Labbatt's, but not for private citizens who make their own brew?

Taxes.

The government doesn't gain from private citizens interacting with each other on a voluntary basis for good and services unless they take a cut. Taxes increase the cost of alcohol, so some people decide to go around the government system to make and distribute "bootleg" booze, and we see the same thing happening with tobacco. It creates a grey market for so-called legal products, which inherently brings a risk to the people involved in the trade.

Some people want to alter their state of mind with booze or pot, and if they can't get those then they may turn to other, more dangerous methods of doing it. Prohibition doesn't stop this desire, it makes it more dangerous for the people involved.

The more compassionate choice is to end prohibition.

Posted by Scott Carnegie on July 8, 2009 at 10:06 AM
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Don't Rain on My Homicide

From the NYT:

In fact, an analysis by The New York Times of rainfall and homicides for the last six years shows that when it rains substantially in the summertime, there are fewer homicides.
When there was no precipitation, there was an average of 17 homicides every 10 days. But when there was an inch or more of rain, the average dropped to 14.
That does not surprise Vernon J. Geberth, a former Bronx homicide squad commanding officer. He said that when there was a downpour, the police would sometimes joke, “The best cop in the world is on duty tonight.”
The gap is even wider when looking just at Saturdays in the summer. Those are the days that typically post the highest number of homicides in a year. When there was no rain, the average number of homicides for every 10 Saturdays in summer jumped to 24. For every 10 Saturdays doused with at least an inch of rain, the average number was 18.

Posted by PUBLIUS on July 8, 2009 at 05:32 AM
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"Hate law is in danger of being seen as an ass"

Love the "in danger" bit:

Where do you stand on the classic Canadian issue of freedom of speech vs. hate? There's the constitutionally guaranteed free speech. And there are anti-hate laws, under the Criminal Code as well as the federal and provincial human rights codes.

Classic in the sense that Led Zeppelin is "classic" rock. Both the Human Rights commissions and Jimmy Page's best guitar work date from the late 1960s and 1970s. For most of Canadian history there was no issue regarding hate speech vs free speech. With the exception of libel and blasphemy (the last enforced sporadically) the right to speak freely was par for the course. It was one of those things that distinguished Canada from those benighted places everyone was trying to flee. The governments of the day assumed that British subjects - which we were until 1977 - were grown up enough to decide between common sense and nonsense. A politically correct minder appointed by the state would have seemed not just absurd but tyrannical.

The Supreme Court has upheld both sets of laws. Neither trumps the other. They work in balance.

In the sense that poison and antidote work in balance, the latter remedying the effects of the former. One of the cliches of the inter-war period was that the problems of democracy could be cured by more democracy. The argument applies far better to free speech. Suppressing speech, even unpleasant speech, was seen as counter productive. If something was false and wicked it would be easier fight in the open. Turning wannabe Hitlers and Mussolinis into martyrs would accomplish nothing. A while back the Steyn observed that rather than trying to ban fascists in the 1930s, the British simply mocked them. PG Wodehouse invented the ludicrous character of Roderick Spode, the amateur dictator who designed ladies' undergarments in his spare time. Spode was a send up of Oswald Mosley. One good joke, Wodehouse understood, does the job of thousands of eloquent denunciations:

The trouble with you, Spode, is that just because you have succeeded in inducing a handful of half-wits to disfigure the London scene by going about in black shorts, you think you're someone. You hear them shouting "Heil, Spode!" and you imagine it is the Voice of the People. That is where you make your bloomer. What the Voice of the People is saying is: "Look at that frightful ass Spode swanking about in footer bags! Did you ever in your puff see such a perfect perisher?"

Sadly the one thing the modern human rights industry lacks is a sense of humour.

Posted by PUBLIUS on July 8, 2009 at 05:30 AM
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The Last Days of Jefferson

While a I disagree with the reviewers' agrarianism, Jefferson's genius shines through:

Crawford’s Jefferson speaks to the current crisis in his late-life responses to the steady growth of the central state and the resultant erosion of the political role of the local citizen. Crawford emphasizes, as so few writers on Jefferson have done, the “ward republics,” Jefferson’s radical yet practical plan for decentralizing government. His “single most profound contribution to American political thought,” in Crawford’s phrase, was explicated in a series of letters in 1814-16. He proposed that almost all governmental powers devolve to “ward republics,” five or six miles square, which the country could rely upon for “the eternal preservation of its Republican principles.” Crawford abhors the enlistment of historical figures in present-day crusades, but Jefferson’s ward-republic idea, though firmly set in a place and time, offers us a way out of Empire—a path of refreshment, a revitalizing end to our torpid condition.

Posted by PUBLIUS on July 8, 2009 at 05:29 AM
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Boring as Hell

Don't care that Michael Jackson is dead.

Don't care that Michael Ignatieff is pretending to like Alberta. The word Liberal is a profanity pretty much everywhere from the Peg to the Rockies. A slick Harvard professor isn't going to change that.

Don't care what Stephen Harper is saying today. I know whatever it is he wouldn't have said it ten years ago.

I sort of care what happens with Sarah Palin, if only because I do like her. Unfortunately she has yet to dispel the general impression that she is a light weight. Remember, Alaska has a population smaller than that of Mississauga. Being Governor of Alaska is essentially a part-time job. The rest of the time is taken up by photo-ops (which is typical for most politicos). Being able to find Africa on a map would be a plus.

Gordon Brown's death spiral is very boring. Even his political death lacks drama. The only politician more impressive - if that's the word - in his mediocrity is Dalton McGuinty.

While driving on the weekend I noticed one of the growing piles of garbage. The city is not quite over-run with trash, nor does it smell more than usual. What impressed me about this particular pile was its location, Sunnyside Park. This is a park located right next to the lake, not far from a series of luxiurycondos. Another pile is in Christie Pits, one of the city's best known and loved parks. Not only are Toronto's city fathers so clueless as to not have contracted out garbage collection, they seem intent on ruining many of the city's most scenic spots. The strike has hoisted Mayor David Miller by his own petard. He who lives by the unions should die by the unions.

I again ask Tim Hudak to refrain from using the word Middle Class.

Posted by PUBLIUS on July 8, 2009 at 05:28 AM
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Tuesday, July 07, 2009

Stelmach’s promise hits the right note: CTF

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) applauded Premier Ed Stelmach today for his commitment not to hike taxes during his term in office. CTF Alberta director Scott Hennig responded to comments made by the Premier that “As long as I'm premier of this province, there will be no tax increases."

Notwithstanding the massive new taxes on Alberta’s oil and gas industry that came through the New Royalty Framework, the Premier seems resolved to resist further pressure to announce new tax increases in Budget 2010.

“Taxpayers have rightfully been concerned that the Stelmach government was preparing to hike their taxes in Budget 2010,” said Hennig. “And we made it clear in our recent pre-budget meeting with the Treasury Board that CTF supporters were completely opposed to hiking taxes.

“Premier Stelmach’s unequivocal promise to never raise taxes is very welcomed,” continued Hennig. “He’s made a big promise today and it’s excellent news for taxpayers.

“The next step for Premier Stelmach is to firmly commit not to run up deficits and debts into the future, and to balance the budget through spending reductions,” said Hennig.

Promises not to raise taxes are often broken, of course. The CTF points out that former Alberta Premier Ralph Klein said in 2001 that "The only way taxes are going in this province is down.” That promise was broken a year later in Budget 2002, when the province raised the health care premium tax.

“We hope this Premier, unlike his predecessor, keeps his word,” concluded Hennig.

(Picture: Scott Hennig)

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 7, 2009 at 11:06 PM
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Will Jason Clemens become new executive director of the Fraser Institute?

Vancouver-based Straight.com has picked up the story that Dr. Mark Mullins will be leaving the Fraser Institute as the organization’s executive director. Mullins' accomplishments with the Institute are significant, and can be found here.

So who will fill Mullins' shoes? Straight.com reporter Charles Smith gets close to speculating that Jason Clemens might be in-line for the job:

Coincidentally, a former Fraser Institute director of fiscal studies, Jason Clemens, will be in Vancouver on July 9 to give a six-month review of Barack Obama’s performance as president. Clemens is now director of research and strategic development at the Pacific Research Institute in San Francisco.

Clemens is a brilliant intellectual, strategist, communicator and networker. He's got it all, with good looks and charm to spare. He would be ideally suited for the job, and would give libertarians very little about which to complain.

(Picture: Jason Clemens)

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 7, 2009 at 09:03 PM
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Is there anything Obama doesn't know?

I'm guessing that you didn't know that Barack Obama was an expert on structural engineering in addition to being President of the United States.

At least you'd wonder that after reading The Province newspaper, in a story today on a local company that makes waterproof concrete.

Continue reading "Is there anything Obama doesn't know?"

Posted by Rick Hiebert on July 7, 2009 at 08:05 PM
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Mark Mullins to leave Fraser Institute

In an email to friends and supporters this evening, Mark Mullins, Executive Director of the Fraser Institute, announced he will be leaving the free market think tank.

Mullins wrote:

It is with a heavy heart -- but exceptional pride -- that I am writing to thank you for your ongoing interest in the Fraser Institute and our public policy ideas, as I prepare to leave the position of Executive Director. I have taken my vision for the Institute as far as it can go and it is time to pass the baton to new leadership here.

As I look back over my four years at the helm of this extraordinary organization, I am reminded of the tremendous successes we shared.

We expanded our role on the international stage through our economic freedom projects in Arab, Asian and Latin American countries, and raised the number of our global partnerships to 79 think tanks and similar organizations. We also opened virtual offices in the United States and developed hundreds of relevant research publications to populate our dedicated American web site at www.fraseramerica.org.

Two new offices -- in Montreal and Ottawa -- opened doors to French language audiences, policymakers, and the national media, and completed the Institute's expansion to provide direct access to people in Canada's five largest cities. The Ottawa office also provided an opportunity to launch a very successful new education program for Parliament Hill elected representatives and their staff and allowed us to expand our annual Canada Strong and Free gala event.

We significantly increased our team of talented staff and subsequently our research, including publications on climate change, energy, corporate subsidies, petroleum investment barriers, social insurance fraud, mining, home schooling, tax compliance, psychiatric care waiting times, urban planning, Canada/US relations and hundreds more.

As one notable example, our new Ontario, B.C. and Alberta Hospital Report Cards, which measure patient safety and quality of care at the local hospital level, provoked tremendous public interest and tens of thousands of individuals have now visited the program's special website at www.hospitalreportcards.ca.

Our outreach was expanded through events and excursions, involving renowned speakers from around the world including Prime Minister John Howard, Fed Governor Ben Bernanke, and Lord Nigel Lawson. We reached and educated young journalists in a week-long annual program and this was bolstered by new media initiatives, including Fraser TV and our ever growing video program, which have so far attracted more than 75,000 viewers on Institute websites and on YouTube.

The Institute doubled our media attention and attained record levels of supporters, whose contributions enable us to do what matters most -- conduct innovative, high quality research to impact the public debate leading to better public policy.

I feel privileged and honoured to have had the opportunity to work with the Institute's exceptional and dedicated staff on these activities and I know they will continue the work with their customary zeal. Their efforts have paid off spectacularly this year, with Foreign Policy magazine awarding us a top 10 ranking in the world out of 5,500 think tanks in existence. That is an incredible achievement for us all.

Mullins is ranked #4 on the Western Standard's Liberty 100 for this work in advancing economic liberty.

(Picture: Mark Mullins and enviro-realist Bjorn Lomborg)

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 7, 2009 at 07:56 PM
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Marc Emery’s “Farewell Tour” rolls through Banff: A report by Krista Zoobkoff

Marc Emery’s “Farewell Tour” rolled through Banff, Alberta on Monday for an event hosted by Krista Zoobkoff, Libertarian Party candidate for the riding of Wild Rose in the last federal election.

In a report for the Western Standard, Zoobkoff wrote:

Marc and Jodie Emery made their way to Banff on their second stop in the Marc Emery "Farewell Tour." The event was teetering on shaky ground, as we prayed for the weather to clear up. The event was held at the gazebo in central park at 4:30 p.m. just as the rain stopped. One hundred Emery supporters braved their way to the outdoor venue, making the Banff stop on the Farewell Tour a success.

A bylaw officer showed up to do a sound check, telling event organizers that “the RCMP is aware of the event but will probably stay away. It’s probably okay if you light up.” She was right; the RCMP didn’t make an appearance.

Emery is being extradited to the United States for his conspiracy to cultivate marijuana. This is a man who is going to lose his freedom for his part in selling cannabis seeds over the border to the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA). This was an act that was non-violent and that had no victims. Cannabis seeds don’t contain THC or any other intoxicant.

As a Canadian, I am outraged at the United States, the DEA, the RCMP, and the Conservative government that has not come to the aid of a Canadian citizen. Canada is not going to be safer with Emery behind bars, further showing the incompetence of the Harper government. The Emery extradition has been a burden to taxpayers, leaving Canadians to suffer the loss of a family member and a friend. These are our tax dollars hard at work.

Emery is going to prison and there is nothing we can do about that. Our next fight is going to be to put pressure on the Conservatives to transfer Emery to Canada so he can do his time where he will be safe and have access to his family and friends. So don’t rest just yet and stay informed on what we can do to get him transferred to Canada.

Thanks for the update, Krista.

The "Farewell Tour" will be in Lethbridge this evening and Edmonton on Thursday.

(Picture: Marc and Jody Emery in Banff, Alberta)

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 7, 2009 at 03:35 PM
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Big government blues

Check out my latest column, which appears in today's Sun media chain.

It examines the government-spending mania that's taking place on both sides of the border.

Posted by Gerry Nicholls on July 7, 2009 at 06:56 AM
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The Last Best West

Liberalism then and now:

Actually, Calgary does have a personality, one that favours and rewards both entrepreneurs and philanthropists. But, knowing the oil business doesn't make somebody a Conservative. Some of the top guys in the patch are, strange but true, devoted Liberals. So, much as some might be entertained by the idea of a city culture that just makes you a Conservative, it simply isn't so. Calgary attracts conservatives-- self-selection is part of what keeps fiscal conservatism strong here --but Calgary radicalism as a force destroying a person's natural Liberalism?
Only in Ignatieff's comfortable world view, in which people vote Liberal because that's what nice people do. That is also the only place where the values Harper claims for himself would be considered radical.
After all, what's radical about free enterprise, free trade or free speech? They're classic liberalism: Campaigning in 1896, Liberal icon Sir Wilfrid Laurier praised, "The good Saxon word, freedom; freedom in every sense of the term, freedom of speech, freedom of action, freedom in religious life, and civil life and last but not least, freedom in commercial life."

Posted by PUBLIUS on July 7, 2009 at 06:16 AM
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Honour Among Tyrants

Why Saddam lied:

Saddam Hussein told an FBI interviewer before he was hanged that he allowed the world to believe he had weapons of mass destruction because he was worried about appearing weak to Iran, according to declassified accounts of the interviews released yesterday. . . .Hussein, in fact, said he felt so vulnerable to the perceived threat from "fanatic" leaders in Tehran that he would have been prepared to seek a "security agreement with the United States to protect [Iraq] from threats in the region." . . . "The threat from Iran was the major factor as to why he did not allow the return of UN inspectors," [George L.] Piro [the FBI interviewer] wrote. "Hussein stated he was more concerned about Iran discovering Iraq’s weaknesses and vulnerabilities than the repercussions of the United States for his refusal to allow UN inspectors back into Iraq."

Posted by PUBLIUS on July 7, 2009 at 06:15 AM
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Monday, July 06, 2009

Private individuals fill the void of public sector garbage strike in Toronto

Toronto is suffering from a city wide union strike that includes the public garbage collectors. With no one to clear out the city's garbage the smell and pollution is getting worse and worse. Union leaders are holding the health and comfort of the people of Toronto hostage.

This is exactly the sort of situation that advocates of free enterprise always say brings out the entrepreneurs in people. And I am glad to say that we have not been disappointed.

A website called Garbage Help is putting Torontonians in touch with people who are willing to collect their garbage for pay. Toronto is proving that individuals acting for self interest and mutual benefit can be a powerful force to get things done.

Mayor David Miller is not a fan of individual entrepreneurship or of personal liberty. He has threatened a $5 000 fine for anyone who is not approved to pick up garbage by the state. All these people are doing is trying to fill a vital need that has been vacated. The people of Toronto surely desire this service. So if the city is unable to provide it, what right does Mayor Miller have to prevent others from stepping into the void?

Posted by Hugh MacIntyre on July 6, 2009 at 04:12 PM
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John Stossel on Canadian health care and free lunches.

John Stossel disagrees with President Obama's view that government can make health care cheaper and better for Americans. The truth is that free lunches, including the sorts handed out at soup kitchens, are rarely sought out for their quality and consumer-friendliness. In Stossel's words:

In England, health care is "free"—as long as you don't mind waiting. People wait so long for dentist appointments that some pull their own teeth. At any one time, half a million people are waiting to get into a British hospital. A British paper reports that one hospital tried to save money by not changing bedsheets. Instead of washing sheets, the staff was encouraged to just turn them over.

Obama insists he is not "trying to bring about government-run healthcare."

"But government management does the same thing," says Sally Pipes of the Pacific Research Institute. "To reduce costs they'll have to ration—deny—care."

"People line up for care, some of them die. That's what happens," says Canadian doctor David Gratzer, author of The Cure. He liked Canada's government health care until he started treating patients.

"The more time I spent in the Canadian system, the more I came across people waiting for radiation therapy, waiting for the knee replacement so they could finally walk up to the second floor of their house." "You want to see your neurologist because of your stress headache? No problem! Just wait six months. You want an MRI? No problem! Free as the air! Just wait six months."

Polls show most Canadians like their free health care, but most people aren't sick when the poll-taker calls. Canadian doctors told us the system is cracking. One complained that he can't get heart-attack victims into the ICU.

In America, people wait in emergency rooms, too, but it's much worse in Canada. If you're sick enough to be admitted, the average wait is 23 hours.

"We can't send these patients to other hospitals. Dr. Eric Letovsky told us. "Every other emergency department in the country is just as packed as we are."

More than a million and a half Canadians say they can't find a family doctor. Some towns hold lotteries to determine who gets a doctor. In Norwood, Ontario, 20/20 videotaped a town clerk pulling the names of the lucky winners out of a lottery box. The losers must wait to see a doctor.

Shirley Healy, like many sick Canadians, came to America for surgery. Her doctor in British Columbia told her she had only a few weeks to live because a blocked artery kept her from digesting food. Yet Canadian officials called her surgery "elective."

"The only thing elective about this surgery was I elected to live," she said.

It's true that America's partly profit-driven, partly bureaucratic system is expensive, and sometimes wasteful, but the pursuit of profit reduces waste and costs and gives the world the improvements in medicine that ease pain and save lives.

"[America] is the country of medical innovation. This is where people come when they need treatment," Dr. Gratzer says.

"Literally we're surrounded by medical miracles. Death by cardiovascular disease has dropped by two-thirds in the last 50 years. You've got to pay a price for that type of advancement."

Canada and England don't pay the price because they freeload off American innovation. If America adopted their systems, we could worry less about paying for health care, but we'd get 2009-level care—forever. Government monopolies don't innovate. Profit seekers do.

We saw this in Canada, where we did find one area of medicine that offers easy access to cutting-edge technology—CT scan, endoscopy, thoracoscopy, laparoscopy, etc. It was open 24/7. Patients didn't have to wait.

But you have to bark or meow to get that kind of treatment. Animal care is the one area of medicine that hasn't been taken over by the government. Dogs can get a CT scan in one day. For people, the waiting list is a month.

This hardly sounds like an "improvement" on the current system.

Posted by Alina on July 6, 2009 at 01:17 PM
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New report brings Edmonton-Calgary corridor high speed rail closer

The Alberta government has released a report today on a market assessment study of a potential high-speed rail service in the Calgary-Edmonton corridor.

The study, commissioned at the request of the province, looked at the ridership, revenues and demand for high-speed rail service. It also compared the costs and advantages of four different high-speed train technologies.

While the report makes no recommendations regarding the feasibility of high-speed rail or future government involvement in such a project, its conclusions support the project:

The development of the Alberta High Speed Rail (Alberta HSR) system will provide an integrating force for the communities of the Calgary-Edmonton corridor. It will provide opportunities to fundamentally change the character of business in the corridor while expanding the level of social, personal and tourist interaction in the corridor. In the corridor the project will create a new business environment that will encourage and attract the New Economy businesses. These include high-tech, high value-added industry frequently tied to computer, telecommunications and professional services businesses). It will support existing manufacturing and service industry, while fostering the growth of new small businesses across the corridor because of the improved access to smaller communities in the corridor.

Luke Ouellette, Minister of Transportation, said that despite the report the government has not yet decided on whether or not to peruse the massive infrastructure project:

“In keeping with our government’s priority of building the infrastructure Alberta needs for the future, we will continue to investigate various transportation solutions,” said Luke Ouellette, Minister of Transportation. “We have not made a decision on a high-speed rail project, however, this report is a good first step. We will continue to look at all options in order to support Albertans and the province’s economic future.”

For background on this story, read “Mega-bucks Express” by Western Standard reporter Patrick McGee. McGee reports that this rail service could cost nearly $2 billion. And with the Alberta government now running deficits, and the oil industry in crisis due to the devastating New Royalty Framework, this mega project could break the provincial treasury.

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 6, 2009 at 12:57 PM
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Marc Emery’s “Farewell Tour” comes to Calgary; libertarian leader prepares for jail

Marc Emery was in Calgary on Sunday night on the first stop in his “Farewell Tour” that will take the marijuana legalization activist across the country to say “good-bye” to his supporters before his extradition to the U.S. on charges related to selling marijuana seeds.

What might have a been a sad occasion for fans of the Vancouver libertarian publisher and activist turned into a celebration of the progress the “marijuana community” has made in turning public opinion against the unjust laws prohibiting marijuana use. And Emery is responsible for much of this progress. By selling marijuana seeds online, Emery financed Cannabis Culture magazine, political campaigns including the ongoing work of the B.C. Marijuana Party, marijuana-related ballot initiatives across the U.S., and court challenges, including a Supreme Court case.

It’s easy to connect Emery to virtually every organized effort to legalize marijuana anywhere in the world, something the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) was keen to stop. In 2004, U.S. authorities, assisted by the Vancouver Police, arrested Emery. At the time, DEA officials boasted that the arrest would hamper the work of the global marijuana decriminalization movement, confirming the political nature of the arrest.

In May, Emery announced he would be pleading guilty to his charges in order to secure a deal which would see him face 5 years in a U.S. jail, and see his co-defendants, Michelle Rainey and Greg Williams, stay out of jail.

Emery told the Western Standard that he expects to be incarcerated by September and is working to get his business affairs in order. His wife, Jodie Emery, will take over Cannabis Culture and the B.C. Marijuana Party bookstore.

Emery’s “Farewell Tour” will take him to Banff, Alberta on Monday for an event being hosted by Krista Zoobkoff at her store, Hempire. Zoobkoff was the Libertarian Party candidate for the riding of Wild Rose in the last federal election.

(Picture: Marc and Jody Emery in Stampede finery / Emery supporter sacrifices favourite beer drinking t-shirt)

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 6, 2009 at 03:00 AM
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Canadian actor Tom Green in hospital after assault (UPDATED)

Some time ago, I signed up to receive email updates from tomgreen.com, the website of Canadian actor and comedian Tom Green. I can’t remember why I signed up, although I do I enjoy his show, Tom Green’s House Tonight.

Since then, I've been receiving regular emails updating fans on Green’s bizarre activities and antics. Late Sunday night I received an email update that I hope is a bad joke.

BREAKING NEWS - STILL DEVELOPING...

Fullerton, CA (MediaFetcher July 5, 2009) - Actor Tom Green has been reported to be in serious condition and taken to Golden State Regional Hospital after a minor traffic accident that escalated into a physical altercation in Fullerton CA, a suburb 30 minutes south east of Los Angeles.

Witness reports indicate that Tom Green's Mercedez struck a pickup truck towing landscaping equipment. Three men exited the truck and extracted him from the vehicle then began kicking and punching the actor before fleeing the scene. "He didn't have a chance against these men who attacked him before he said a single word to them", replied a visibly shaken onlooker.

Tom Green was unresponsive upon the arrival of police officers and EMT's, but appeared to be breathing according to eyewitness reports.

This story is developing as we await confirmation regarding the eyewitness details and official health status.

Michael Thomas Green was born on July 30, 1971 in Pembroke, Ontario.

UPDATE: I'm happy to report that Tom Green has posted a blog post entitled "Tomgreen.com Was Hacked Yesterday! 4chan Hackers Killed Me Today! I am alive and well! Tell those hackers from the /b/ section at 4chan where to go," a few minutes ago. Here is what he wrote in that blog post:

Hey gang. Just to set the record straight. Our website was hacked yesterday by the 4chan.org bastards! Damn you 4chan! They sent out a mass email and posted several erroneous stories online about my untimely demise. Turns out there is a prank website called www.fakeawish.com that creates these stories. These resulted in the much reported story last week of Jeff Goldblum falling off a cliff in New Zealand. He has since been on the Colbert report. Go tell those /b/ tards over at 4chan where to go!

Here is Tom Green's twitter announcement:

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 6, 2009 at 01:32 AM
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Sunday, July 05, 2009

Nazi children taken away

Last year in Winnipeg, a 7 year old girl went to school with a swastika drawn on her arm. It was later revealed that the girls mother drew the symbol on her daughters arm to send a message to the school; that she was upset about discrimination against white people at the school, which prominently displayed posters boosting minority pride, but not for white people.

Child and Family Services were called in who went to the home of the girl. Once there, they saw neo-Nazi symbols and flags. On the spot, CFS took the girls 2 year old brother away from his family, the girl was taken from the school and never went back home.

Social workers at the time had this to say.

In court documents, social workers say they're worried the parents' conduct and associations might harm the emotional well-being of the children and put them at risk.

I find a threat that the emotional well-being "might" be harmed to be quite non-specific. That could be said of nearly every household in Canada.

Since the kids were originally taken more details about the parents have come out; that the mother may have a mental defect, some drug and alcohol abuse, and instability in the home. These points are moot though since they kids were removed from their parents long before these details came out; they were taken because the CFS workers didn't like the beliefs of the parents.

For now it's neo-Nazi's, later it may be people who teach bigotry about Aboriginals, or homosexuals, or another particular group.

Manitoba Child and Family Services are seeking permanent custody of the children, who have been in foster care since being kidnapped from their parents. The custody trial wrapped up on Friday, which a decision still to be made by the courts, which could take weeks or months.

While I do not approve of racist attitudes and beliefs, I also believe in free speech and free thought, even when I disagree with that speech and those thoughts. It is and should not be illegal to be a racist, promote your racism and teach it to your children; if you want to be able to teach your kids your values then you must allow the same for other people.

Posted by Scott Carnegie on July 5, 2009 at 10:53 AM
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The Idea of America by Pierre Lemieux

Yesterday marked American Independence Day. Last year, the Western Standard published an exclusive monograph by our columnist Pierre Lemieux entitled "The Idea of America" (PDF). Here's how we described the monograph:

What were the revolutionaries -- the signers of the Declaration, the men and women who abandoned their old ties to call America home -- doing all of this for? What was that glorious idea?

Pierre Lemieux, our firebrand libertarian columnist, has produced a monograph entitled "The Idea of America," (PDF) published by the Western Standard, to answer this and related questions. His analysis is, in my judgment, accurate and cutting. Once upon a time, Americans (and Canadians) wouldn't even think of the government when presented with a problem.

Once upon a time, no American worth her salt would ever stand for identification papers, gun control, nanny state regulations, and so on. What happened to those Americans? Maybe they lost their grip on the idea of America, and were coddled and pacified by unparalleled wealth and prosperity. Or maybe they were flummoxed by the snake-oil salesman cum politician, insisting that they could get something for nothing, or frightening them with tales of bogeymen under every bed.

"...consider the first decade of the 20th century," writes Lemieux, "[i]n general, anybody could start a business, find investors, and sell his product without any government license and oversight. There was no SEC, no IRS, no FCC, no FDA, no OSHA, no USCIS (formerly INS), no EPA. The absence of regulation did not prevent the development of vibrant capital markets, and New York City was on its way to becoming the top financial place in the world. The right to keep and bear arms, so typically American in the 20th century, had survived relatively unscathed. There was no witch-hunt and, in a legal fight between an individual and the government, it is the latter that felt handicapped. Writing in 1910, Lord Acton could confidently say that the American people are “more free than any other the world has seen.” In her celebration of American liberty in the early 20th century, Rose Wilder Lane could exclaim: “That is what Europeans meant when, after a few days in this country, they exclaimed, ‘You are so free here!’.”

Once, maybe, there was America. But what happened to that idea?

"Americans are now caught in the “network of small complicated rules, minute and uniform” that [Alexis de] Tocqueville forecasted. Virtually all activities -- even those protected by the Bill of Rights -- are regulated in some way, and most often in many ways. Just at the federal level, there are probably 4,000 statutes, although it’s hard to tell the exact number, notes a Wall Street Journal reporter, “because the statutes aren’t listed in one place.” And this does not include the regulations. “We continue to claim that nobody is supposed to ignore the law,” wrote French legal theorist Georges Ripert in 1949, “but those who know it are certainly to be commended.” In 2001, federal prosecutors brought more than 80,000 cases. To this must be added the laws, regulations and prosecutions at the State and local levels. It is stimated that 15 per cent of all Americans have an arrest record. France has come to America."

Read the monograph (for a second time, if you've read it already). Pass it on. It's the 4th of July weekend, and the idea of America is still worth fighting for.

Posted by P.M. Jaworski on July 5, 2009 at 10:47 AM
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Saturday, July 04, 2009

Elizabeth May stands firm on marijuana legalization and opposition to mandatory minimums

What does the Green Party have to offer libertarian voters? That’s the question I had in mind when I attended a wine and cheese fundraiser for Elizabeth May in Calgary on Thursday.

The Western Standard has reported on May’s opposition to the war on drugs, her support for Iraq war resisters and the party’s new policy calling for the legalization of prostitution. These policies certainly resonate with libertarians, but is there anything else?

May opened her speech to party supporters by talking about income splitting as a way to relieve the tax burden on Canadians, but didn’t really move her audience until she made a gratuitous attack on Milton Friedman and the free market Chicago School, right before offering her support for Keynesian economics and stimulus spending. On fiscal policy, May is a pretty typical Canadian, I would argue. She doesn’t like deficits, but thinks they can be necessary. She wants taxes to be low, but still high enough to pay for a cradle-to-grave welfare state. She wants Canada to embark on a Green New Deal, an activist government scheme to green the economy.

None of this appeals to me, of course. And Libertarian Party leader Dennis Young, who accompanied me to the event, was visibly disturbed by the anti-capitalist rhetoric.

The evening improved, though, thanks to marijuana legalization activist and writer for Skunk Magazine, Lisa Kirkman. Kirkman, a one time assistant to former Cannabis Culture editor Dana Larsen, pressed May on hemp, marijuana legalization and Canada’s new mandatory minimum law.

May answered without hesitation in support of reforming Canada’s drug laws. She argued that prohibition fuels organized crime; that the government’s hysterical anti-marijuana propaganda is teaching children to mistrust all anti-drug messages; and that mandatory minimum sentencing doesn’t work.

May continues to show courage on social policy, opposing harmful government prohibitions. Her scepticism of big government, however, disappears when it comes to fiscal and economic policy, where she prefers interventionism.

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 4, 2009 at 11:49 PM
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Jefferson vs. Hamilton

In honor of Independence Day, here is a clip from the excellent HBO John Adams miniseries:

Question: who was right? Thomas Jefferson or Alexander Hamilton?

Posted by Terrence Watson on July 4, 2009 at 08:22 PM
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Canadian termites in the global trading system?

Matthew Johnston recently reported on the recent bilateral free trade agreement signed between Canada and the European Free Trade Association, which includes non-EU member states Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. I am of course a great believer in the benefits of free trade. But there’s a problem here. This agreement falls under the recent trend of bilateral preferential trade agreements (PTA's) that more and more countries have been signing as the Doha Round of trade liberalization talks at the WTO breaks down.

In short, PTA’s are not unambiguously good. The Doha Round aimed to bring down the barriers to all markets at once, and this would have brought immense benefits by reducing distortions in prices between domestic and foreign goods and between goods in competing foreign countries. By contrast, bilateral PTA's are often not even a decent second-best solution. They may actually do harm and this is how: By not bringing down the barriers to all markets, they distort the relative prices of imports and exports from different countries. This can lead to less efficient producers' winning out solely because of differences in bilateral trading relationships. This is of course to be weighed against the benefits that come from removing the differentials between the domestic and preferred trading partner. But often the benefits do not outweigh the costs.

I first saw this argument presented at a lecture at the LSE by notorious free trade advocate and all-around brilliant economist Jagdish Bhagwati, and it can be found in his recent book Termites in the Trading System. There is thus a compelling reason for free traders to regard bilateral PTA’s with ambivalence: They may not actually improve economic efficiency. This is also one more reason why the talks at the WTO are still the best chance for bringing about the potentially immense benefits of freer global trade.

So the failure of the Doha Round really is worth lamenting, and it is also worth remembering the main reason why it has failed: the unwillingness of Western nations to give up their unjustifiably generous support for their agricultural sectors. Canada is hardly the worst culprit in this game, but keeping the Wheat Board around is not really a sign of a willingness to contemplate freer global trade in agricultural products. If Western governments are interested in what could be a real global economic stimulus, they should consider revising their positions on the Doha Round, particularly their intransigent commitment to protecting their agricultural sectors from global competition.

Posted by Malcolm Lavoie on July 4, 2009 at 05:37 PM
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Electing the leader is now top Green priority; May looking for rural riding

At a wine and cheese fundraiser in Calgary on Thursday, Green Party leader Elizabeth May told a packed room of party supporters that getting the leader elected to parliament is now the party’s first priority in the next federal election.

May ran against popular Conservative cabinet minister Peter MacKay in the Nova Scotia riding of Central Nova in the last election and came second. Many party supporters wanted to see May run in a more winnable riding in order to represent the party in parliament. May, who lives in New Glasgow, told the audience that while she has never been comfortable with the idea of being a parachute candidate, she will now consider running outside of Nova Scotia in a rural riding with strong Green support.

May also told supporters that electing the leader was not a priority of the party in the last election, establishing broad-based support across the country was. With 6.8% of the national vote in the last federal election, the Green Party was the only major party to increase its total vote from the 2006 federal election. May is calling this a victory.

While May would only say that she is looking at running in a rural riding, there is speculation that she is considering the Ontario riding of Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound where the Green Party received over 27% of the vote in 2008 or the British Columbia riding of Saanich-Gulf Islands.

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 4, 2009 at 10:27 AM
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Who is Jennifer Welsh?

Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach announced Thursday a 12-member Premier’s Council for Economic Strategy. This is the Premier’s new go-to team for advice on Alberta's ailing economy.

One member of this illustrious team is Jennifer Welsh. Welsh has an impressive resume, but none of her experience or education makes her particularly suited to offer practical economic advice to the Premier on economic matters.

Here’s the biography provided by the Alberta government:

Professor Jennifer Welsh is Professor in International Relations at the University of Oxford, a Fellow of Somerville College and a Trudeau Foundation Fellow. She is a former Jean Monnet Fellow of the European University Institute in Florence, and was a Cadieux Research Fellow in the Policy Planning Staff of the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs. Dr. Welsh has taught international relations at the University of Toronto, McGill University, and the Central European University (Prague). She is the author, co-author, and editor of several books and articles on international relations. She also sits on the Board of Trustees of the Walter and Duncan Gordon Foundation.

Her current research projects include the evolution of the notion of the ‘responsibility to protect’ in international society, the ethics of post-conflict reconstruction, the authority of the UN Security Council, and a critique of conditional notions of sovereignty. She is a frequent commentator in Canadian media on foreign policy and international relations.

So Welsh is a foreign policy expert of the soft power, internationalist variety. Fine. When Alberta separates, raises its own army, and needs a policy on Darfur, someone in the provincial government might want to give her a call. Until then, I have no idea what practical advice Welsh might have for the Premier of Alberta on economic policy. Or why she might have been selected for this Council over other intellectuals and policy experts.

The closer one investigates the Premier’s Council for Economic Strategy the less it makes sense as a genuine advisory council or even as a political showpiece.

(By the way, Welsh co-authored a book on Edmund Burke titled Empire and Community. Anyone read it?)

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 4, 2009 at 12:33 AM
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Friday, July 03, 2009

Sarah Palin will resign as governor of Alaska

Former Republican vice-presidential candidate and governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin, announced this afternoon that she will resign as governor effective July 25.

"Once I decided not to run for re-election, I also felt that to embrace the conventional Lame Duck status in this particular climate would just be another dose of politics as usual, something I campaigned against and will always oppose," Palin wrote in a release on her website.

"It is my duty to always protect our great state. With that in mind, my family and I determined that it is best to make a difference this summer, and I am willing to change things, so that this administration, with its positive agenda, its accomplishments, and its successful road to an incredible future, can continue without interruption and with great administrative and legislative success."

Sarah Palin, who was voted the "most controversial celebrity" of 2008, will be replaced as governor by the current lieutenant governor Sean Parnell on Saturday, July 25th.

Some are speculating that this move will give her more time to focus on running for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012.

Politico reports:

By not running for re-election, Palin liberates herself from the political constraints that come with running for president while still in elected office.

Leaving office at the end of the month, the former vice presidential hopeful will be able to travel the country more freely without facing the sort of repeated ethics inquiries she’s been fending off since returning to Alaska earlier this year.

Here is initial video of her resignation:

This story is developing...

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 3, 2009 at 02:21 PM
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What's Palin planning?

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has announced she'll be leaving the post. What's next for the most-intriguing Mrs. Palin?

Posted by Terry O'Neill on July 3, 2009 at 02:08 PM
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Senators Behaving Badly

Don't ya love politics?

Posted by Scott Carnegie on July 3, 2009 at 12:46 PM
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Stelmach asks new Premier’s Council to “think big” about Alberta's future

Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach announced Thursday the 12 members of the Premier’s Council for Economic Strategy. The council will be chaired by business executive and former Liberal cabinet minister David Emerson and will consider long-term goals for Alberta and provide advice on actions the Alberta government can take to best position the province for the future.

“We’ve put together an impressive range of experts from around the globe to advise on how we can best position Alberta for the future - and reach our full potential as a province,” said Premier Stelmach. “I want them to think big and provide an external perspective on our efforts to boost innovation, diversify the economy, enhance our quality of life, and sustain prosperity over the long-term.”

So far, the “think big” strategy of the Alberta government under Stelmach has been confined to big government, big spending and big deficits.

Council members are Elyse Allan, Professor Sir John Bell, Robert (Bob) Brawn, David Dodge, Juan Enriquez, James K. Gray, Clive Mather, Honourable Anne McLellan, Courtney Pratt, Dr. Lorne Taylor and Professor Jennifer Welsh.

It’s a collection of accomplished people, for sure, but will this “ideas incubator,” a term the province is using, really improve the quality of life for Albertans? I don’t think so.

In a recent post titled “Thanks to President Obama, smart is the new fabulous -- and why that’s a bad thing in politics,” I wrote:

While I’m not convinced President Obama’s team is any smarter than the Bush team, I am, however, convinced that it doesn’t matter. Did Soviet central planning fail because the Politburo was staffed with idiots? Of course not. It failed because central planning and socialism doesn’t work due to what economist Ludwig von Mises called the economic calculation problem.

The economic calculation problem is a criticism of socialist economics, or more precisely economic planning. It was first proposed by Ludwig von Mises in 1920 and later expounded by Friedrich Hayek. The problem referred to is that of how to distribute resources rationally in an economy. The capitalist solution is the price mechanism; Mises and Hayek argued that this is the only possible solution, and without the information provided by market prices socialism lacks a method to rationally allocate resources. (Source: Wikipedia)

The danger of inviting the so-called best and brightest into politics is that they believe they can overcome this economic calculation problem. They think they can succeed in engineering a better world where others have failed – and by a better world they invariably mean a socialist one. They’ll work harder, do more research, bring in the best minds and commit themselves fully to the task. The results of these efforts, of course, are always disastrous, and often bloody. Communism, the most ambitious utopian scheme to date, cost almost 100 million innocent lives.

To go from Stelmach’s 12-member public relations team to the mass murder under communism is a bit of a leap, but the thinking is the same: compel outcomes, through the force and coercion of government, that the market -- the freely expressed preferences of consumers -- won’t achieve or is prevented from achieving due, ironically, to government interference.

Putting aside my general suspicion of political brain trusts, central planning and social and economic engineering, the Council seems like a missed political opportunity. The Stelmach government faces a very real threat from the conservative Wildrose Alliance and risks losing its conservative base over issues like the New Royalty Framework, growing deficits and spending, not to mention non-fiscal policy like inaction on reform of the Alberta Human Rights Commission. So why not appoint a beloved Alberta figure like Preston Manning to chair the Council? I don’t find myself in agreement with Manning much these days, but he’s as qualified to sit on this Council as anyone and his appointment would have signalled to conservative voters that the party hasn’t abandoned its base entirely. The appointment of two former Liberal cabinet ministers to the Council, Anne McLellan and David Emerson, sends a very different message.

Furthermore, while it is well understood by those outside the political classes that Alberta’s’ energy sector drives the rest of the economy in the province, only three members of the Council come from this sector: Bob Brawn, Jim Gray and Clive Mather. This is no accident. Stelmach has made it clear that he wants to see diversification in Alberta’s economy, with more jobs coming from things like green energy, bio-sciences and high-tech manufacturing. It’s not a bad vision for the province, but the way to get there is to lower taxes and decrease regulatory costs that might keep these industries away. Taxing oil and gas companies into bankruptcy to pay for government schemes to engineer a Green New Deal is the wrong approach.

When the energy sector in Alberta is performing well, there’s a feeling in the province that anything is possible. Oil money in the private hands of fearless Alberta entrepreneurs flows freely into a broad range of business ideas. It’s what made the province wealthy and vibrant. Premier Stelmach’s “think big” model for the future is a throwback to Soviet-era economic thinking and is an insult to the laissez-faire culture of Alberta.

Posted by Matthew Johnston

Posted by Western Standard on July 3, 2009 at 11:18 AM
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The Right to An Eyesore

In 1963 Penn Station, in New York City, was demolished. Based on the baths of Caracalla, and designed by the legendary firm of McKim, Mead and White, it was one of the finest examples of Beaux Art architecture in America. Its replacement was a mediocre piece of design described, rightly, by theNew York Times as a tin can. The destruction of Penn Station galvanized a movement to preserve old and artistically significant buildings. This was fine, as far as it goes. The 1960s, however, were in many ways the high watermark of twentieth century statism. If there's a problem, went the attitude, there ought to be a law. Elaborate systems of historical classification were in tme set up, curbing the rights of property owners, should the state deem their building historically significant. Since one man's historically significant is another man's eyesore, this has naturally lead to some bizarre bits of paternalism:

The building is in fact the Third Church of Christ, Scientist. Built in 1971, it exemplifies a form of modernist architecture with a well-picked name: “brutalism.” The poured-concrete walls are high, and their starkness is emphasized on the east side by an extended slab from which several cold, metallic church bells hang. “There’s no great reaching to the heavens in the architecture,” said Chris Derosa from Oakhurst, N.J., a tourist who recently walked by the church. “There’s nothing emotional there.”

This type of modernist architecture has impoverished urban streetscapes across the country. Far from an aesthetic movement, brutalism conceives of itself as a cultural revolution, one that replaces bourgeois ornamentation — moldings, columns, entablatures, and steeples — with featureless concrete façades to provide the New Socialist Man with “machines for living” in the egalitarian and classless society that this architecture would supposedly help to create.

Another example of exceptions making bad laws.

Posted by PUBLIUS on July 3, 2009 at 06:29 AM
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The Portuguese Solution

For a backward country, they're pretty far ahead of us:

While other states in the European Union have developed various forms of de facto decriminalization — whereby substances perceived to be less serious (such as cannabis) rarely lead to criminal prosecution — Portugal remains the only EU member state with a law explicitly declaring drugs to be "decriminalized." Because more than seven years have now elapsed since enactment of Portugal's decriminalization system, there are ample data enabling its effects to be assessed.
Notably, decriminalization has become increasingly popular in Portugal since 2001. Except for some far-right politicians, very few domestic political factions are agitating for a repeal of the 2001 law. And while there is a widespread perception that bureaucratic changes need to be made to Portugal's decriminalization framework to make it more efficient and effective, there is no real debate about whether drugs should once again be criminalized. More significantly, none of the nightmare scenarios touted by preenactment decriminalization opponents — from rampant increases in drug usage among the young to the transformation of Lisbon into a haven for "drug tourists" — has occurred.

Of course the central problem for Canadian policy makers seeking to end the Drug War is the Americans. Unlike many Leftists I don't think the Americans are the main originators of harm and evil in the world (quite the opposite), except in this case. America's War on Drugs, along with its short-sighted monetary policy, have cause an enormous amount of easily avoidable harm in the world. While trafficking is still a serious offense in Portugal, the essential approach is correct: people addicted to hard drugs are sick and need help, not punishment.

Posted by PUBLIUS on July 3, 2009 at 06:27 AM
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Jacked

Like Icarus really. A socialist, mustachioed Icarus:

By throwing in his lot with the Liberals, led then by Stéphane Dion, the NDP leader saw a chance for real power. However, his ambitions came crashing down when Governor General Michaëlle Jean agreed to Prime Minister Stephen Harper's request to prorogue Parliament, sending MPs home.
Since his power play, Layton's party has lost the momentum it had during the 2008 election and his personal popularity has nosedived.
While part of the NDP's decline can be traced back to Layton's role in the failed coalition, it is the growing strength of the Liberals led by Michael Ignatieff that is really pushing the party to the margins.
When he was compared to the hapless Dion, Layton looked good but the changing Liberal dynamic has voters wondering what he stands for, other than opposing everything the Conservative government proposes.

But we'll still have the memories.

Posted by PUBLIUS on July 3, 2009 at 06:25 AM
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Thursday, July 02, 2009

Addiction is not a disease

The general consensus in our society is that addiction is a disease. The general consensus also is that there is no such thing as a miracle.

How, then, can "victims" of alcoholism or drug addiction cure themselves, by themselves, without any traditional or scientific medical intervention? If not by a miracle, then by what?

It seems that one of the two above-noted consensus beliefs is incorrect. Either addiction is not a disease. Or miracles do, indeed, take place. Or, perhaps, both are wrong.

Read more of my thoughts here, in my latest Tri-City News column.

Posted by Terry O'Neill on July 2, 2009 at 06:01 PM
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The Shotgun

Friday, July 10, 2009

Celebrate Bahamas' Independence Day while you can; it’s quickly losing its sovereignty to the OECD

Thursday, July 09, 2009

Polygamy, The More the Merrier?

Free enterprise used to stimulate the Alberta economy; today, it’s government: Mark Dyrholm

NDP demands whistle-blower legislation for health workers. What about teachers?

Hot Room Live

In the Hot Room tonight... 8:15pm Eastern / 5:15pm Pacific

Legalize It - Part 1

Middle Class For A Change

Wednesday, July 08, 2009

Alberta Tories refuse to name nuclear lobbyists: NDP

Flooding Bail-Outs

The Summer's Best Album?

In defense of Bill 44

An experiment in voluntary taxation could be Michael Jackson’s most valuable legacy

More British Nanny State Files

Libertarians are the future of the Republican Party: Eric Margolis

Citizens insisting on their freedom are a terrible inconvenience to government: Marc Emery

On this date in history, a young man lost his faith in capitalism

Alcohol Prohibition Still Alive

Don't Rain on My Homicide

"Hate law is in danger of being seen as an ass"

The Last Days of Jefferson

Boring as Hell

Tuesday, July 07, 2009

Stelmach’s promise hits the right note: CTF

Will Jason Clemens become new executive director of the Fraser Institute?

Is there anything Obama doesn't know?

Mark Mullins to leave Fraser Institute

Marc Emery’s “Farewell Tour” rolls through Banff: A report by Krista Zoobkoff

Big government blues

The Last Best West

Honour Among Tyrants

Monday, July 06, 2009

Private individuals fill the void of public sector garbage strike in Toronto

John Stossel on Canadian health care and free lunches.

New report brings Edmonton-Calgary corridor high speed rail closer

Marc Emery’s “Farewell Tour” comes to Calgary; libertarian leader prepares for jail

Canadian actor Tom Green in hospital after assault (UPDATED)

Sunday, July 05, 2009

Nazi children taken away

The Idea of America by Pierre Lemieux

Saturday, July 04, 2009

Elizabeth May stands firm on marijuana legalization and opposition to mandatory minimums

Jefferson vs. Hamilton

Canadian termites in the global trading system?

Electing the leader is now top Green priority; May looking for rural riding

Who is Jennifer Welsh?

Friday, July 03, 2009

Sarah Palin will resign as governor of Alaska

What's Palin planning?

Senators Behaving Badly

Stelmach asks new Premier’s Council to “think big” about Alberta's future

The Right to An Eyesore

The Portuguese Solution

Jacked

Thursday, July 02, 2009

Addiction is not a disease