From TheTyee.ca
Don't try to tell Norwegians not to worry about Dutch Disease. Pizzas cost $50. Latest in a series.
Sep 122012
News blog
Sep 112012
The evidence linking Alzheimer’s disease to the food industry is strong and growing.
by George Monbiot, published in the Guardian, 11th September 2012
When you raise the subject of over-eating and obesity, you often see people at their worst. The comment threads discussing these issues reveal a legion of bullies, who appear to delight in other people’s problems.
Sep 102012
From New York Review of Books
…
In my judgment the best course of action is to persuade Germany to choose between becoming a more benevolent hegemon or leaving the euro. In other words, Germany must lead or leave….
Sep 102012
From The Independent
…The problem — and Syria’s army is wise enough to understand this – is that the violence of the present was planted long ago, and there are many in Syria who remember with great bitterness just what kind of ‘special treatment’ has been granted to their relatives over the past years….
Sep 102012
Demographics ditch "Nixon's Southern strategy" of courting whites, leave GOP scrambling.
As Republicans were promoting themselves as a multiracial party from the platform in Tampa two weeks ago, an ugly incident on the convention floor suggested not everyone had got the memo. From the podium a range of speakers of Haitian, Mexican, Cuban and Indian descent spoke of how their parents had overcome huge barriers so they could succeed in the US.
Sep 092012
With no rebound in sight, there’s never been a slump like this
A trillion dollars has gone missing in the United States.
That enormous sum is the difference between the Bank of Canada’s current estimate of how big U.S. gross domestic product will be in 2015 and what the central bank projected four years ago, before the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. brought the world economy to its knees in September, 2008.
“Even in this room, that’s a big number,” Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney quipped in front of a high-powered audience in Calgary on Friday.
The U.S. recession technically ended in June, 2009. But the prosperity of the previous decade and a half has not returned, as anemic growth fails to achieve what economists call “escape velocity.”…
With no rebound in sight, there's never been a slump like this
Sep 072012
By Penney Kome
Something I noticed at the Democratic convention: the Obamas have solved one of the toughest propaganda challenges in opposing the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan. For years now, "Support our troops" has been the rallying cry for the pro-war faction, even as the Bush administration cut funding for essential battle gear (soldiers had to supply their own flak jackets) and veterans' health care. This administration has replaced that with support for military families and a stated end goal of being able to say "Welcome home, soldier!" Now, that's real support for the troops — ending the conflict and bringing them home. Even if not all the soldiers return at the same time, even if the US retains the illusion of being the world's Supercop — this is an administration that pledges never to enter a conflict without an exit strategy in mind. And IMO, that's a breakthrough.
Sep 072012
Tweeps are turning against the Romney campaign's #areyoubetteroff hashtag by a ratio of 5-to-1
After betting big on Twitter ads, the Romney campaign just saw their first sponsored hashtag go wrong. After promoting #AreYouBetterOff to the top of Twitter's list of trending hashtags as a criticism of President Obama's economic policies, a surprising number of tweets came in saying, Yes, they are better off.
But exactly how many tweets were defending President Obama? By our calculations, it's a Mockery Ratio of nearly 5:1….
http://www.buzzfeed.com/tommywilhelm/how-romney-learned-the-hard-truth-about-promoted-h
Sep 072012
From Democracy Now
Sandra Fluke became famous after Republicans barred her from testifying at a congressional hearing in favor of insurance coverage for contraception. Right-wing talk radio host Rush Limbaugh blasted Fluke on his program, calling her a "slut" and saying she should be required to post sex videos online. The episode prompted President Obama to personally call Fluke to offer words of encouragement. Six months later, Fluke took center stage Wednesday night at the Democratic National Convention with a prime-time address. Fluke joins us to discuss the fight for reproductive rights, her support for Obama’s re-election, and her future plans as a women’s
Sep 072012
From The Toronto Star
The premier promised to pave highways. He proferred patronage payoffs. He pounced on public sector unions.
Yet despite Dalton McGuinty’s best-laid plans and pretexts, voters have denied him a coveted majority government for the second time in a year: The NDP snatched the longtime Tory seat of Kitchener-Waterloo away from the two big parties — beating the Progressive Conservatives on their own turf, while beating back the overreaching Liberals.