Canada's first ministers are meeting next week, and the only thing on their agenda is building Canada. Plus, we have a new product to track federal promises.
A bit absent from the discussion are major current issues of 1) our neighbor is turning authoritarian and xenophobic which will impact us in many ways from tariffs, taxes on Canadian companies in the US, and Canadian ending up in detention centers with limited due process 2) the risk of authoritarianism and fascist rise in Canada (how to fire proof our country against this)…note Toronto just passed a law that will make it easier for police to arrest any protesters under vague conditions (freedom of speech?!) 3) you can build all you want but second biggest issue for Canadians is healthcare and it will only get worse until real action takes place (healthcare also eats up a quarter of all public spending) 4) linked to all three issues but not really discussed is taxes and redistribution…can we tax upper classes and reverse inequality a bit to stabilize society and pay for some of the structural cost pressures we will face (defense, healthcare…). Let’s have a broader and deeper discussion please?
Suggested reading list for our times:
Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Explain Everything About the Worldby Tim Marshall
The Next Civil War
Book by Stephen Marche
A bit absent from the discussion are major current issues of 1) our neighbor is turning authoritarian and xenophobic which will impact us in many ways from tariffs, taxes on Canadian companies in the US, and Canadian ending up in detention centers with limited due process 2) the risk of authoritarianism and fascist rise in Canada (how to fire proof our country against this)…note Toronto just passed a law that will make it easier for police to arrest any protesters under vague conditions (freedom of speech?!) 3) you can build all you want but second biggest issue for Canadians is healthcare and it will only get worse until real action takes place (healthcare also eats up a quarter of all public spending) 4) linked to all three issues but not really discussed is taxes and redistribution…can we tax upper classes and reverse inequality a bit to stabilize society and pay for some of the structural cost pressures we will face (defense, healthcare…). Let’s have a broader and deeper discussion please?