A Tough on Crime Bill (pg. 4): The wise editors at Maclean's speculate that Canada's lower "serious" crime rate is a result of more cops on the payroll. That can't be right considering that cops only clean-up after a crime has occurred. More cops doesn't mean less crime. It does mean more business for Tim Horton's though. The editors fret that Harper's new "tough on crime legislation" will lead to "grotesque absurdities in the courtroom". But, that's already the case: our laws are very lax on real crime (rape, murder, theft), while being very harsh on activities that turn free citizens into criminals (drug laws, health laws, business laws, transportation laws, the list goes on). More cops chasing the innocent is not a good thing.
Military Pride (pg. 9): I didn't even know our finest defenders of freedom had names like "Air Command". But now Harper's military leaders have decided to revert back to their old (and apparently more glorious) names like "Royal Canadian Air Force". Whatever their names, they're still thugs with guns with no sense of what a military is supposed to do: protect our borders and keep us free.
The Oracle Has Spoken (pg. 9): Warren Buffet wants billionaires to pay more tax. Of course he's not thinking in terms of voluntary payment. Oh, no. He wants the rich to be forced to pay more. Wait for the trickle-down effect. The poorer the rich become, the poorer everybody becomes.
Mideast Madness (pg. 9): While Al-Assad's launching of missiles "willy-nilly into the port city of Latakia" is considered madness, Harper's soldiers' assault on the residents of Afghanistan is considered rational. Uh huh.
From Layoff to Payoff (pg. 11): Some lucky guys at "Smart Technologies" are sharing the 6/49 jackpot, thus making the off-shoring of their jobs to Mexico a little easier to take. That's the good news. The bad news is that their jobs are being off-shored because the boys who calls themselves the government are making it too expensive for their employers to make stuff in Canada. They aren't the first and won't be the last (to lose their jobs).
Quebec Cutting Class (pg. 21): A school is being closed because it is being used as a pawn by the elite in an apparent English Protestant / French Catholic battle. Whatever. Can't the control freaks in that province just leave the schools and people alone and let students learn in whatever language they want? The thinking, I suppose, is that only the government can save Quebec culture through its draconian language laws. Wrong. If the folks are depending upon their government to save their culture, it's already too late.
Montreal is Falling Down (pg. 26): It has been ever since Montreal's Olympic Stadium shed a 55 ton concrete beam on the sidewalk below. Government buildings, government roads and government bridges are all crumbling. How many thousands of people die every year on roads that are owned and operated by the state? Should the roads not be left for private business to own and operate? Private owners and operators would make certain their products are safe because they'd be sued out of existence if people died on their watch. But the government boys just keep on laughing regardless of how many die on their property.
States of Union (pg. 32): The author asks, "Europe's grand experiment seems to be failing. Can it be saved?" Not anytime soon. Just as the Soviet Union collapsed under the mismanagement of central planning, Europe will suffer the same fate. Canada won't be far behind. One hopes, however, that the people will turn to individual freedom and kick out the government boys on their tuchas rather than turn to military or political despots for more centrally-planned solutions.
Riding the Riots (pg. 39): The Prime Minister of the faded British Empire is promising to kick the thugs who participated in the London Riots out of public housing. Hear Hear, Mr. Prime Minister. Jolly good show. However, he's also promised to "turn around the lives of 120,000 of the most troubled families". You just have to laugh at that.
Culinary Racism (pg. 40): The Italian mayor of Cittadella want Turkish kebab vendors off the street. He says that "They aren't part of our tradition", which means that he doesn't like those Turks in his town. Wait for it folks, the oldest mono-cultural societies of Europe are about to spasm in response to their laws of forced integration. Just how ugly things will get will take some time to determine.
Choking the Oil Sands (pg. 48): Big surprise, some environmental fascists are declaring war on oil pipelines. The same oil that flies them around the country and gets them to their protest events on time. Maclean's threw-in a picture of the B.C. white "spirit bear" whose habitat would be impacted by a pipe about 3 feet in diameter. Perhaps the bear has poor eyesight and might bump into it?
Chart of the Week (pg. 55): What a fantastic chart. You gotta see it. It shows that between 1950 and 2009 it has taken an average of about 15 to 20 weeks for the unemployed in the U.S. to find work. In 2010 it shot up to 40 weeks, precisely the time that Obama extended unemployment insurance coverage. If the government pays people to be unemployed for 40 weeks, well, that's what they'll get!
Ok, my last entry:
Why Your Teenager Can't Use a Hammer (pg. 61): The reason is that parents are obsessed with ensuring their kids get a university education. Higher learning means a better job and better pay, right? Well, not if you're selling fries at McDonalds even though you invested 12 years obtaining two PhD's culminating in a dissertation in butterfly migration patterns. Plus, because the government makes the costs of business so high in Canada, all the real jobs are being off-shored to places like China and Mexico. But, I already mentioned that above. Adios Amigos!
Tuesday, 23 August, 2011
Monday, 22 August, 2011
Maclean's Edition Dated August 22, 2011
Where There's a Will, There's a Way (pg. 4): Hurray, Maclean's editors wrote the words "the Western world must wean itself off the notion that current spending can be paid for with IOUs" and that "government must be made affordable for current taxpayers." Keynesian economics is failing before our eyes because it fails to comprehend that it is not spending the creates wealth, but rather savings and investment (i.e., the latter create a lower time preference). Governments have been on an urgent spending spree for decades and have been eating the flesh of their citizens and now all that is left are the bones. Yech.
Public Good (pg. 6): Christine Goetze from Oakville writes, "I find it discouraging that you would equate a desire to work in the public sector with a lack of ambition." Bureaucrats do not lack ambition, Christine. Oh, they certainly do not. They are very ambitious when it comes to taking what is not theirs and inserting their noses into places they should not be, and in punishing the hapless citizens of Canada for going about their daily business. They are very productive indeed with producing the "bads", but very unproductive with producing the "goods" that everyone in the private sector creates. When did being a government employee stop being a shameful thing? A parasite is a parasite, plain and simple.
On Death and Chocolate in a Swiss Clinic (pg. 14): Is assisted suicide the slippery slope to medically-sanctioned murder of those who are not willing to die? Consider this: in Switzerland, the bureaucrats keep statistics on deaths and include a category of death called "involuntary euthanasia". Reminds me of the Fabian Society's greatest "intellectual" (and author) George Bernard Shaw who was captured on film saying:
"You must all know half a dozen people at least who are no use in this world, who are more trouble than they are worth. Just put them there and say Sir, or Madam, now will you be kind enough to justify your existence? If you can’t justify your existence, if you’re not pulling your weight in the social boat, if you’re not producing as much as you consume or perhaps a little more, then, clearly, we cannot use the organizations of our society for the purpose of keeping you alive, because your life does not benefit us and it can’t be of very much use to yourself."
Shaw's Utopia was a world where the clever ones, the smart doctors, scientists and politicians, would decide who lives and who dies. That's where this is going.
The $25,000 Cow (pg. 16): The dairy industry, as Mr. Coyne points out, is heavily regulated by state bureaucrats who aim to fix milk prices by constraining competition. It's a great for the dairy farmers, but no so great for citizens who drink milk or eat products made with milk. The government is not your friend. It is the absolute enemy of competition, of lower prices and of higher quality. It will destroy one industry after another in its goal to create the "superb balance" of competition and monopoly.
The Lawsuit is in the Mail (pg. 19): Canada Post bureaucrats decided to sue a poor elderly couple for failing to keep their walkway free of snow in the winter thus causing a mailman to slip and hurt herself. Sorry, didn't ya know ice and snow is slippery? Could make ya fall. Enter at your own risk. Hey, did this couple tell her it was safe? Nope. Did they invite her on her property? Nope. She entered voluntarily. The judge tossed the lawsuit, but not after the poor couple had to be subjected to the wrath of the government that loves them so. Did they pay the couple's legal bill in stamps?
Edmonton's Death Belt (pg. 20): The author asks "but why"? Drugs, that's why. As long as the manufacture and sale of drugs is kept in the land of criminals, business will be conducted with guns and murder. Al Capone would have agreed.
Nunavut (pg. 23): A ship ran aground and its owners are suing the Canadian government boys because the latter didn't tell the former about some rocks in the water. The water is owned by the government, right? And they let the boat sail in their water, right? Well, the boys are on the hook. Simple as that.
British Columbia (pg. 23): A former city planner apparently used tax money to help buy himself a home. Well, consider that the premier of B.C. uses tax money to help pay for his home. What's the diff? None: they're both using stolen money.
London's Long, Hot Summer (pg. 24): It's not a story about the weather. It's a story of the "rampaging" and "violence" that erupted in London after hundreds or thousands of punks decided that a little crime and fire would help break-up their monotonous days of watching T.V. on the government dole. It's Keynesian economics in action and at the ground level: hoards of unemployed youths tend to light things on fire every now and then. Meynard himself would congratulate the twerps because of all the fix-it jobs they created.
Online Gaming Funds Nukes (pg. 33): North Korea is apparently hacking into websites to bring in millions of dollars in on-line gaming money. Typical government theft. The Canadian government does a similar thing: it simply hacks into your paycheque every two weeks.
This May Get Ugly (pg. 34): Yes, indeed. We are seeing the formation of a depression within a depression, just as witnessed during the 1930's. Our economic woes will continue for decades if central bankers and political bureaucrats continue to manipulate their fiat currencies and centrally plan interest rates. China won't be spared. Look for gold (the real money) to soar well beyond $2,000.
Get Ready for Armageddon (pg. 38): It's all about the money, Mr. Steyn, and you are right: the U.S. is on a joyride into oblivion. And Canada is strapped-in and riding to the top right behind 'ya.
Cashing in on Foreign Students (pg. 49): What on earth could be wrong with having rich foreign students study in Canada for a fee? Absolutely nothing. It's win-win: the kids get an education of their choosing, and our socialist educators learn a little about capitalism.
Public Good (pg. 6): Christine Goetze from Oakville writes, "I find it discouraging that you would equate a desire to work in the public sector with a lack of ambition." Bureaucrats do not lack ambition, Christine. Oh, they certainly do not. They are very ambitious when it comes to taking what is not theirs and inserting their noses into places they should not be, and in punishing the hapless citizens of Canada for going about their daily business. They are very productive indeed with producing the "bads", but very unproductive with producing the "goods" that everyone in the private sector creates. When did being a government employee stop being a shameful thing? A parasite is a parasite, plain and simple.
On Death and Chocolate in a Swiss Clinic (pg. 14): Is assisted suicide the slippery slope to medically-sanctioned murder of those who are not willing to die? Consider this: in Switzerland, the bureaucrats keep statistics on deaths and include a category of death called "involuntary euthanasia". Reminds me of the Fabian Society's greatest "intellectual" (and author) George Bernard Shaw who was captured on film saying:
"You must all know half a dozen people at least who are no use in this world, who are more trouble than they are worth. Just put them there and say Sir, or Madam, now will you be kind enough to justify your existence? If you can’t justify your existence, if you’re not pulling your weight in the social boat, if you’re not producing as much as you consume or perhaps a little more, then, clearly, we cannot use the organizations of our society for the purpose of keeping you alive, because your life does not benefit us and it can’t be of very much use to yourself."
Shaw's Utopia was a world where the clever ones, the smart doctors, scientists and politicians, would decide who lives and who dies. That's where this is going.
The $25,000 Cow (pg. 16): The dairy industry, as Mr. Coyne points out, is heavily regulated by state bureaucrats who aim to fix milk prices by constraining competition. It's a great for the dairy farmers, but no so great for citizens who drink milk or eat products made with milk. The government is not your friend. It is the absolute enemy of competition, of lower prices and of higher quality. It will destroy one industry after another in its goal to create the "superb balance" of competition and monopoly.
The Lawsuit is in the Mail (pg. 19): Canada Post bureaucrats decided to sue a poor elderly couple for failing to keep their walkway free of snow in the winter thus causing a mailman to slip and hurt herself. Sorry, didn't ya know ice and snow is slippery? Could make ya fall. Enter at your own risk. Hey, did this couple tell her it was safe? Nope. Did they invite her on her property? Nope. She entered voluntarily. The judge tossed the lawsuit, but not after the poor couple had to be subjected to the wrath of the government that loves them so. Did they pay the couple's legal bill in stamps?
Edmonton's Death Belt (pg. 20): The author asks "but why"? Drugs, that's why. As long as the manufacture and sale of drugs is kept in the land of criminals, business will be conducted with guns and murder. Al Capone would have agreed.
Nunavut (pg. 23): A ship ran aground and its owners are suing the Canadian government boys because the latter didn't tell the former about some rocks in the water. The water is owned by the government, right? And they let the boat sail in their water, right? Well, the boys are on the hook. Simple as that.
British Columbia (pg. 23): A former city planner apparently used tax money to help buy himself a home. Well, consider that the premier of B.C. uses tax money to help pay for his home. What's the diff? None: they're both using stolen money.
London's Long, Hot Summer (pg. 24): It's not a story about the weather. It's a story of the "rampaging" and "violence" that erupted in London after hundreds or thousands of punks decided that a little crime and fire would help break-up their monotonous days of watching T.V. on the government dole. It's Keynesian economics in action and at the ground level: hoards of unemployed youths tend to light things on fire every now and then. Meynard himself would congratulate the twerps because of all the fix-it jobs they created.
Online Gaming Funds Nukes (pg. 33): North Korea is apparently hacking into websites to bring in millions of dollars in on-line gaming money. Typical government theft. The Canadian government does a similar thing: it simply hacks into your paycheque every two weeks.
This May Get Ugly (pg. 34): Yes, indeed. We are seeing the formation of a depression within a depression, just as witnessed during the 1930's. Our economic woes will continue for decades if central bankers and political bureaucrats continue to manipulate their fiat currencies and centrally plan interest rates. China won't be spared. Look for gold (the real money) to soar well beyond $2,000.
Get Ready for Armageddon (pg. 38): It's all about the money, Mr. Steyn, and you are right: the U.S. is on a joyride into oblivion. And Canada is strapped-in and riding to the top right behind 'ya.
Cashing in on Foreign Students (pg. 49): What on earth could be wrong with having rich foreign students study in Canada for a fee? Absolutely nothing. It's win-win: the kids get an education of their choosing, and our socialist educators learn a little about capitalism.
Wednesday, 17 August, 2011
Maclean's Edition Dated August 15, 2011
Tim Hortons Prime Minister (pg. 4): The editors seem think that Harper's hitting a mini-putt in Buffalo makes him a bit of an enigma: "...this country has often struggled to understand Stephen Harper the man." It's not complicated. He's a man with a mission to control every aspect of every citizen's life. The same mission shared by all politicians. There are hundreds like him waiting in line for his job. And they are all eager show you how you need to change to live happily. In their Utopia. Now, get with the program, or else.
Swindling Your Elders (pg. 6): Rob Wipond raises an excellent point: it is extraordinarily easy for doctors or psychiatrists to have someone declared mentally unfit to take care of themselves. Who gave them these "magical powers"? The guys who call themselves the government did, and they are certainly not the friends of the elderly.
Hard-Headed (pg. 9): Some British doctors are claiming that forcing cyclists to wear helmets will cut down on those wanting to pedal around town. No kidding. Why don't those government busybodies just leave cyclists alone to decide for themselves? Certainly everyone knows that wearing a helmet is a good idea. But, in a free society it is the government's role to ensure we are free to choose... not to force our hand in our decisions.
Fading Promise (pg. 9): Surprise, surprise. In the eyes of the Macleans editors, the "Arab Awaking" has stalled. Duh. No kidding. We are talking about "awakenings" in societies that have no history of individual freedom. They all look to their great leaders. If not military, then religious or tribal. The only awakening will occur when they flick-off those who want to control their lives like flees off a dog. I'm not standing around waiting for it to happen. Give it a few more centuries.
The Sky if Falling (pg. 9): Canada needs more engineers because a huge slab of concrete collapsed onto a road in Quebec? We're talking government-run roads and bridges. The owner is Jean Charest. Shouldn't Canada's Health Minister haul him before a judge and charge him under Canada's new "Consumer Protection Act"? Health Canada bureaucrats won't even need a search warrant to arrest him.
May Day (pg. 9): Elizabeth May claims that WiFi radio waves are a danger to bees and kid's health. However, the biggest threat is May's party itself. The Greens are modern-day luddites, but it is not just "mechanization" that they fear. They fear freedom, choice and prosperity because all of those things threaten mother earth. In their view, only the Greens are capable of deciding how you should expend your energy, you Carbon Footprint Consumer, you. Now, turn off your WiFi and get on your bicycle if you want to communicate with someone.
Toronto's Finger Gate (pg. 10): Toronto Mayor Rob Ford wants to close some libraries. Why not simply sell them all to the highest bidder, and let entrepreneurs run them. Why should guys like Ford own and operate libraries? Isn't he busy enough doing his other "important" work for the people?
Sorry, Boss, Metallica's in Town (pg. 11): This one is a head shaker: Swedish bureaucrats have given a heavy metal "addict" the right to listen to his music on the job and take time off whenever he wants to go to concerts. Today, "Human Rights" are anything that state lackeys want it to be. Real justice and real private property would mean, of course, that this person who have to listen to his boss, or get fired (i.e., leave his property). But governments deliver very little justice these days.
The Trouble with Too Much Democracy (pg. 12): Mr. Potter claims that "Sometimes... giving the state a free hand to push through an agenda... is vital to the ... society". Stalin, Hitler, Mao would certainly all agree. However, I disagree. Under no circumstances should the state be given a "free hand". It's hands must be tied. Down Tight. The trouble with "democracy" is that it gives leaders a get-out-of-jail-free-card. They can claim that everything they do is justified because they got the most "tick marks" during the last vote, even though much of what they do is illiberal and against real justice.
The Benefits of Mental Illness (pg. 13): It might be good for leaders to be mentally ill during times of crisis according to the author. If that was the case, then shouldn't all our current crises be resolved by current leadership?
Political Correctness Gone Mad (pg. 22): Canadian bureaucrats are being hauled before the UN due to a concern about the use of the term "visible minorities". Right. The UN, after all, is the ultimate socialist creation: a global top-down military machine filled with Marxist do-gooders who want nothing more than to lead a world of slaves. The UN are bad people. Very, very bad people.
Leaving Hope Behind in Kandahar (pg. 29): "The U.S. forces destroyed my village", one Afghan resident said. And Canadian soldiers were more than happy to help out. The soldiers aren't leaving "hope" behind, they are leaving destruction and dead bodies. Go Team!
Swindling Your Elders (pg. 6): Rob Wipond raises an excellent point: it is extraordinarily easy for doctors or psychiatrists to have someone declared mentally unfit to take care of themselves. Who gave them these "magical powers"? The guys who call themselves the government did, and they are certainly not the friends of the elderly.
Hard-Headed (pg. 9): Some British doctors are claiming that forcing cyclists to wear helmets will cut down on those wanting to pedal around town. No kidding. Why don't those government busybodies just leave cyclists alone to decide for themselves? Certainly everyone knows that wearing a helmet is a good idea. But, in a free society it is the government's role to ensure we are free to choose... not to force our hand in our decisions.
Fading Promise (pg. 9): Surprise, surprise. In the eyes of the Macleans editors, the "Arab Awaking" has stalled. Duh. No kidding. We are talking about "awakenings" in societies that have no history of individual freedom. They all look to their great leaders. If not military, then religious or tribal. The only awakening will occur when they flick-off those who want to control their lives like flees off a dog. I'm not standing around waiting for it to happen. Give it a few more centuries.
The Sky if Falling (pg. 9): Canada needs more engineers because a huge slab of concrete collapsed onto a road in Quebec? We're talking government-run roads and bridges. The owner is Jean Charest. Shouldn't Canada's Health Minister haul him before a judge and charge him under Canada's new "Consumer Protection Act"? Health Canada bureaucrats won't even need a search warrant to arrest him.
May Day (pg. 9): Elizabeth May claims that WiFi radio waves are a danger to bees and kid's health. However, the biggest threat is May's party itself. The Greens are modern-day luddites, but it is not just "mechanization" that they fear. They fear freedom, choice and prosperity because all of those things threaten mother earth. In their view, only the Greens are capable of deciding how you should expend your energy, you Carbon Footprint Consumer, you. Now, turn off your WiFi and get on your bicycle if you want to communicate with someone.
Toronto's Finger Gate (pg. 10): Toronto Mayor Rob Ford wants to close some libraries. Why not simply sell them all to the highest bidder, and let entrepreneurs run them. Why should guys like Ford own and operate libraries? Isn't he busy enough doing his other "important" work for the people?
Sorry, Boss, Metallica's in Town (pg. 11): This one is a head shaker: Swedish bureaucrats have given a heavy metal "addict" the right to listen to his music on the job and take time off whenever he wants to go to concerts. Today, "Human Rights" are anything that state lackeys want it to be. Real justice and real private property would mean, of course, that this person who have to listen to his boss, or get fired (i.e., leave his property). But governments deliver very little justice these days.
The Trouble with Too Much Democracy (pg. 12): Mr. Potter claims that "Sometimes... giving the state a free hand to push through an agenda... is vital to the ... society". Stalin, Hitler, Mao would certainly all agree. However, I disagree. Under no circumstances should the state be given a "free hand". It's hands must be tied. Down Tight. The trouble with "democracy" is that it gives leaders a get-out-of-jail-free-card. They can claim that everything they do is justified because they got the most "tick marks" during the last vote, even though much of what they do is illiberal and against real justice.
The Benefits of Mental Illness (pg. 13): It might be good for leaders to be mentally ill during times of crisis according to the author. If that was the case, then shouldn't all our current crises be resolved by current leadership?
Political Correctness Gone Mad (pg. 22): Canadian bureaucrats are being hauled before the UN due to a concern about the use of the term "visible minorities". Right. The UN, after all, is the ultimate socialist creation: a global top-down military machine filled with Marxist do-gooders who want nothing more than to lead a world of slaves. The UN are bad people. Very, very bad people.
Leaving Hope Behind in Kandahar (pg. 29): "The U.S. forces destroyed my village", one Afghan resident said. And Canadian soldiers were more than happy to help out. The soldiers aren't leaving "hope" behind, they are leaving destruction and dead bodies. Go Team!
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