Hey Justin, looking forward to your dispatches under this new moniker. I also enjoyed re-reading your September 2022 piece in the Globe & Mail which pointed out how right-wing populism has "eaten" moderate conservatism. Still, in response to your initial descriptions, I really don't see Bernier's Party achieving a breakthrough, even if, with some deft manoeuvring, PP manages to distance himself from the radical fringe. I.e., I truly don't expect to see here what's been happening in so many other liberal democracies. The People's Party base is just too small, too at odds with Canadians' ingrained sense of solidarity and tolerance.
I'm less thrilled by the term "Chaos Campaign." We've got plenty of chaos as it is, I really don't need to be confronted with more that conveys that sentiment. Besides, why do you believe the upcoming campaign will be more chaotic than any other? It'll be a good old slugfest about five competing visions of where Canada needs to go, with two of them getting the vast majority of the attention, in the new context of the radical fringe having "eaten" conservative politics in the USA.
Time will tell, and your dispatches will help us see how it unfolds.
I think the chaos bit is just baked in. It's not a choice anybody here made: We're facing, as everybody points out, an existential threat. The race is going to be breakneck, with a trade war looming, etc. I think it's going to be chaotic, whether we like it or not!
Remember that most of the world has a housing affordability crisis, a healthcare crisis as populations age and the productivity crisis is deceptive. It's that automation has taken over jobs while productivity increased. This kept the profits from being spread out.
We DO have a greed problem with the corporations and uber-wealthy.
Carney will have the toughest balancing act in history.
Excellent observations! Canada shares similar issues with most countries and mostly for the same reasons - as you have mentioned. It will be a challenge for Carney, but I anticipate his global economic smarts will be a guide. Policy can change the economic landscape to even out peaks & valleys to a more even playing field.
That's true but perhaps tweaking a few rules could still allow the greedy money-addicts to make their money but require a tiny bit less net profit.
Closing tax loopholes, less subsidies?
A bit like how tariff money coming in will be funnelled back to the businesses affected.
They're too powerful to outright tick them off but then we have examples like Costco, who can pay well, give benefits, pay taxes AND make giant profits.
Canadians are just learning how to speak with our wallets but we need to deal with chump first. After he's gone, (if..😬), we can start focusing on our own oligarchs.
A good start is making sure Unions for private corporations have their numbers alongside the news that screams about things like "7% raise!". The news ignores the company's 40% increase in profits.
Both numbers need to be shown.
Carney also understands how management structure is often arranged to send money out of Canada before taxes so it doesn't look like income.
He can't PO big business too much but has to keep to his ethics of fairness and environmental concerns.
As a paid subscriber to bug-eyed, do I have to sign in somewhere separately, or will the short pieces show up in my in box like the bug-eyed ones do. And if the answer is "yes a separate sign-in is required, kindly clearly stipulate where and how.
It had originally been my plan to make this section an opt-in newsletter, but there were some gremlins in the code and everyone got added anyway. So no action required!
Their new attack is whining about Carney's cabinet because mostly Trudeau liberals.
The pushback that's missing is the media pointing out that of the things we CAN control, the Trudeau gov has done really well. Triple A rating again, #1 or #2 of the G7 in GDP most of his term. Lowest unemployment, cut the poverty rate almost in half, from ~15 to ~8.6, reconciliations, tax cuts, VA hospital, clinics and restoration of regional offices, almost completed the entire Lifting Boil Water Advisories project, coastal and forest protection, childcare credit, clean energy projects, dental, Northern indigenous-led childcare, $10 daycare etc. etc
If the media wasn't so afraid of reporting good news, PeePee wouldn't be able to use his the Liberal record as a weapon.
Hey Justin, looking forward to your dispatches under this new moniker. I also enjoyed re-reading your September 2022 piece in the Globe & Mail which pointed out how right-wing populism has "eaten" moderate conservatism. Still, in response to your initial descriptions, I really don't see Bernier's Party achieving a breakthrough, even if, with some deft manoeuvring, PP manages to distance himself from the radical fringe. I.e., I truly don't expect to see here what's been happening in so many other liberal democracies. The People's Party base is just too small, too at odds with Canadians' ingrained sense of solidarity and tolerance.
I'm less thrilled by the term "Chaos Campaign." We've got plenty of chaos as it is, I really don't need to be confronted with more that conveys that sentiment. Besides, why do you believe the upcoming campaign will be more chaotic than any other? It'll be a good old slugfest about five competing visions of where Canada needs to go, with two of them getting the vast majority of the attention, in the new context of the radical fringe having "eaten" conservative politics in the USA.
Time will tell, and your dispatches will help us see how it unfolds.
Thanks Erwin!
I think the chaos bit is just baked in. It's not a choice anybody here made: We're facing, as everybody points out, an existential threat. The race is going to be breakneck, with a trade war looming, etc. I think it's going to be chaotic, whether we like it or not!
(It's also just good marketing.)
Remember that most of the world has a housing affordability crisis, a healthcare crisis as populations age and the productivity crisis is deceptive. It's that automation has taken over jobs while productivity increased. This kept the profits from being spread out.
We DO have a greed problem with the corporations and uber-wealthy.
Carney will have the toughest balancing act in history.
Excellent observations! Canada shares similar issues with most countries and mostly for the same reasons - as you have mentioned. It will be a challenge for Carney, but I anticipate his global economic smarts will be a guide. Policy can change the economic landscape to even out peaks & valleys to a more even playing field.
I think Carney is up to this challenge.
Canada does not have the influence to change that money increasingly is funneled to the 1%
That's true but perhaps tweaking a few rules could still allow the greedy money-addicts to make their money but require a tiny bit less net profit.
Closing tax loopholes, less subsidies?
A bit like how tariff money coming in will be funnelled back to the businesses affected.
They're too powerful to outright tick them off but then we have examples like Costco, who can pay well, give benefits, pay taxes AND make giant profits.
Canadians are just learning how to speak with our wallets but we need to deal with chump first. After he's gone, (if..😬), we can start focusing on our own oligarchs.
A good start is making sure Unions for private corporations have their numbers alongside the news that screams about things like "7% raise!". The news ignores the company's 40% increase in profits.
Both numbers need to be shown.
Carney also understands how management structure is often arranged to send money out of Canada before taxes so it doesn't look like income.
He can't PO big business too much but has to keep to his ethics of fairness and environmental concerns.
Sorry for the long meandering thoughts, lol
Love that you're doing this. I'm going to restack.
Can’t believe how similar our musical tastes are. Anyway, looking forward to this new newsletter.
It's going to be all cancon on Chaos Campaign!
This is a great one justin Ling, so glad I get it.
As a paid subscriber to bug-eyed, do I have to sign in somewhere separately, or will the short pieces show up in my in box like the bug-eyed ones do. And if the answer is "yes a separate sign-in is required, kindly clearly stipulate where and how.
You do not!
It had originally been my plan to make this section an opt-in newsletter, but there were some gremlins in the code and everyone got added anyway. So no action required!
🍿 Looking forward to your posts more than ever now!
W Carney as Liberal leader. Prediction: another Liberal/NDP minority gov't.
Poilievre is disarmed, yet "it's all Trudeau's fault" will be sufficient to block a Liberal majority.
NDP: Jagmeet is effectively out of the picture, but NDP centrist riding will still NDP.
Their new attack is whining about Carney's cabinet because mostly Trudeau liberals.
The pushback that's missing is the media pointing out that of the things we CAN control, the Trudeau gov has done really well. Triple A rating again, #1 or #2 of the G7 in GDP most of his term. Lowest unemployment, cut the poverty rate almost in half, from ~15 to ~8.6, reconciliations, tax cuts, VA hospital, clinics and restoration of regional offices, almost completed the entire Lifting Boil Water Advisories project, coastal and forest protection, childcare credit, clean energy projects, dental, Northern indigenous-led childcare, $10 daycare etc. etc
If the media wasn't so afraid of reporting good news, PeePee wouldn't be able to use his the Liberal record as a weapon.
Hi Justin,
Just wanted to make sure I’m not missing out. Have you started sending out any of these newsletters yet? Thanks!