It is wrong to subject future generations of Native youth to conditions that will not change—isolation far from educational and career opportunities. Human decency necessitates different thinking. The tragedy is that some isolated communities do not have a future and indigenous leaders should consider convincing their members to abandon present sites in favour of better ones.
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In The News —
January 28, 2010
Fruitful Decade For Many In The World
It may not feel that way right now, but the last 10 years may go down in world history as a big success. In economic terms, at least, the decade was a remarkably good one for many people around the globe, says Tyler Cowen, an economics professor at George Mason University.
The raging economic growth rates of China and India are well known, though their rise is part of a broader trend in the economic development of poorer countries. Ideals of prosperity, freedom and the rule of law have probably never been more resonant globally than they've been over the last 10 years, even if practice often falls short. And for all of the anticapitalistic rhetoric that has emerged from the financial crisis, national leaders around the world are embracing the commercialization of their economies, says Cowen.
Putting aside the United States, which ranks third, the four most populous countries are China, India, Indonesia and Brazil, accounting for more than 40 percent of the world's people, and all four have made great strides, says Cowen:
o Indonesia had solid economic growth during the entire decade, mostly in the 5 percent to 6 percent annual range.
o Brazil also had a consistently good decade, with growth at times exceeding 5 percent a year.
o Elsewhere in South America, Colombia and Peru have made enormous progress and Chile is on the verge of becoming a "developed" country.
o To be sure, in Africa, there is still enormous misery; nonetheless, overall standards of living rose in a wide variety of countries there, with economic growth for the continent as a whole at more than 5 percent in most years.
One lesson from all of this is that steady economic growth is an underreported news story -- and to our own detriment, says Cowen:
o In a given year, an extra percentage point of economic growth may not seem to matter much.
o But, over time, the difference between annual growth of 1 percent and 2 percent determines whether you can double your standard of living every 35 years or every 70 years.
o At 5 percent annual economic growth, living standards double about every 14 years.
Source: Tyler Cowen, "Fruitful Decade for Many in the World,"
New York Times, January 2, 2010.
See More "In the News"
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Many people defend equalization as providing roughly equal services across the provinces. Ironically however, equalization often overshoots the mark. Recipient provinces actually end up with better services than the provinces who pay into the system. The federal government should stop the growth in equalization payments. Ottawa should instead motivate provinces to implement better public policy and to invest in growth instead of rewarding mediocrity. Join us weekly across the prairies for our hard hitting policy commentary broadcast across the Goldenwest Radio Network - Click here for a list of 13 stations and broadcast times.
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~2 min
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February 5, 2010 —
Equalization, Unequal Incentives
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~13 min
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February 4, 2010 —
Homes for the Homeless (CFAX)
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~5 min
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February 4, 2010 —
Calgary's Housing Affordability (CHQR)
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~64 min
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February 3, 2010 —
My Life in the Grain Business - William B. Parrish
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~17 min
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February 2, 2010 —
A Kiwi Perspective on Local Government Legislation (CFAX)
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~26 min
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February 2, 2010 —
Manitoba's Failing Grade (CJOB)
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~2 min
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January 29, 2010 —
Too Much Media Is The Message
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~22 min
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January 27, 2010 —
How Affordable is Our Housing? (CFAX)
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~14 min
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January 26, 2010 —
On the Offensive Against Automated Traffic Enforcement (Newstalk)
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~18 min
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January 25, 2010 —
Facts on Daycare (CHQR)
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~2 min
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January 22, 2010 —
Targeted Childcare Policies Deliver More Bang for the Buck
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~18 min
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January 19, 2010 —
Equalization is Bad for All Provinces (CHQR)
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Latest Publications
— February 9, 2010
First Nation leaders should consider relocating reserves to better locations in order to maximize economic and educational opportunities for the next generation: some reserves are simply not economically viable
— February 8, 2010
First Nation leaders should consider relocating reserves to better locations in order to maximize economic and educational opportunities for the next generation: some reserves are simply not economically viable
— February 8, 2010
Non-viable reserves need to be identified by indigenous leaders –and moved, for the sake of the younger generation.
— February 8, 2010
If we want our kids to be better educated and better equipped to take on the world, openness matters—a lot.
— February 8, 2010
A strong Alberta leads to a more powerful West—which will be positive for all of Canada.
— February 7, 2010
"Corruption disclosed was necessary because the science and the evidence didn’t fit what they wanted. They made the science fit the political goals and stopped at nothing to achieve the end. They succeeded, because beyond manipulations that duped politicians, media and most of the public, they knew many scientists who participated did not understand climate science."
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RE: Why You Pay a Fortune for Airline Tickets
— January 12, 2010
I was extremely impressed with your article about the lack of competition among North American air carriers. I fly within Europe fairly frequently and I am endlessly astonished by their low "domestic" prices in comparison with ours. Keep making noise Mark Milke! You hit the nail on the head. Who knows? Maybe one day the Canadian governments will wake up its slumber and truly support the competitive spirit it purportedly supports! Good for you! -- Email from Eric Scott, Montreal
RE: The Other Name For “Profiling”: Smart Detective Work
— January 12, 2010
I think your article on profiling was very good. As you said - it's just good police work. The example of people destroying their passport while enroute is easily solved - why don't we have the willpower to do it. --Email from Bob Spinney
RE: Climategate: Who’s In Denial Now?
— January 4, 2010
Regarding Ken Green’s article, "Who's in denial now", which appeared in the Dec 28 Calgary Herald, I congratulate, and thank, him for a very well written, thoughtful, and truthful comment on climategate and the reprehensible agenda of the global warming frauds. -- E-mail from Calgary
RE: Shrink Waiting Lists the British Way
— August 14, 2005
With reference to the UK medical system, there is a real crisis at the moment, the same one as here - most of our promising medical students, and theirs, want to specialize and thus progress into Residency. This results in a lack of GPs and how sad it is that a GP is almost looked upon as being "bottom of the pile," these days, prestige wise.Really sad to say, but very few patients have a GP who actually "knows them" and how they tick. At walk in clinics you are liable to get a different doctor each time. The other problem is, and this is the one the UK faces, there is not enough room in the hospitals for all the Specialists. They cannot get "hospital time," as it is called. Many doctors in the UK are facing unemployment and having to go to other countries to practice. I don't know but perhaps we have the same situation, here. - E mail from Robert Kirkpatrick, Winnipeg
RE: Aboriginal Governance Index
— July 6, 2006
You and your colleagues are to be congratulated for the historic and heroic measurement of Band performance. My experience has been that the things that are measured get managed and your study, in my opinion, will be looked back at as the key turning point in the process of solving the problem of how first nations institutions fail first nations people. - Email from Michael Walker, Senior Fellow, Fraser Institute
RE: Floodway: Part of War on Mosquitoes?
— September 26, 2002
I'm currently doing some work in Singapore and asked a
resident why there were no mosquitos. The climate seems perfect for them.
Apparently if you are caught with standing water in your property you are
heavily fined and must pay for spraying yourself. The floodway
modifications seem like a good idea but all the fountains and junk in
peoples backyards likely are a huge factor that would be difficult and
expensive for the city to address unless it hit people in the pocketbook.
- email from Winnipeg resident in Singapore
RE: A Home Run for Winnipeg?
— October 15, 2003
Very impressive. I was quite pleased to see you address the New Deal - I'm very interested in seeing where it leads. I'd still make my way back to WPG if its economic health were stronger. I am particularly interested in your points on capital costs (and how public corps are not reflecting through their prices the true costs of capital) - this is a very important area that you are addressing. Good to see!. E-mail from Ottawa (October 20, 2003)
RE: Eat Beef to Help the Environment
— February 21, 2008
Cattle ranching is spreading like a virus across the planet, gobbling up our precious, ecologically diverse and carbon dioxide absorbing forests. It is no exaggeration to say that the expansion of ranching is a crisis that must be stopped, if life on Earth as we know it is to continue. Richard Brunt, Victoria
RE: Five Ways To Help Save The Earth--And Money
— April 2, 2009
Mark Milke certainly pointed out more constructive ways to save the planet than the symbolic gestures of events such as Earth Hour. The disappointment expressed by the EcoLiving Events executive director, Judi Vandenbrink, that "there are a lot of naysayers out there" who don't understand the symbolism, leads me to believe a lot of us are not willing to be brainwashed by hypocrites like Al Gore and the rest of the climate-change zealots.
The other day, I celebrated my 53rd birthday in near-identical blizzard conditions as the day I was born. Apparently, the winter conditions in 1956 had not been seen since the early 1900s. Gee, could this be a 60-year weather cycle? Cut the symbolism. Adopt Milke's five tips and really make an immediate difference. -- E-mail from Calgary
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2009 Local Government Performance Index
Some cities present glossy accounts of their performance with numerical measures while others can’t bring themselves to present adequate financial statements. If every city in Canada performed as well as the best cities, the entire country would be dramatically better off.
Ideas for Rural Voters
In some cases, this means that government should set the stage for economic growth and then just get out of the way. Two examples, oats and hogs, come to mind. In both cases, governments removed marketing impediments, and those actions resulted in the creation of improved opportunities for value-added agricultural processing. Investment and jobs followed.
Reforming Wheat Board Elections
A more rational way of weighting votes would be along the lines of economic interests. This would bring CWB governance in line with the more common business and Australian wheat board models, those with more “shares” or economic interest in the company have more at stake and therefore get more votes.
Aboriginal Women and Basic Human Rights
In another recent high-profile case in Manitoba, a woman from the Pequis First Nation was raped over a 26-year period before reporting the incidents to police. She had been treated so badly for so long, she was finally contemplating suicide. Sadly, more than 400 band members from Pequis, most of them women, wrote letters of support for the man accused of these crimes.
Alligator Eats A Crow
If you must compare me to a reptile can I be a crocodile? They’re bigger and meaner.
The Cause of Global Warming
Three of the four methods of measuring global temperature show no signs of global warming:
* Proxy measurements (tree rings, sediments etc) for the past 1000 years
* Weather balloons (radiosondes) for the past 44 years
* Satellites (MSU Units) for the past 21 years.
The fourth method, surface measurement at weather stations, gives an averaged mean global rise of a mere 0.6°C over 140 years, but is intermittent and irregular. Individual records are highly variable, regional, and sometimes, particularly in remote areas, show no change, or even a fall in temperature.
Climate Experts Respond to Arctic Climate Impact Assessment
hose examples demonstrate that Arctic climate has and will continue to exhibit intricate patterns not reliably reproduced by global climate simulations, thus underscoring their scientific incompleteness and need for advances in Arctic climate science, in measurements, theory and models.
Bring on Canada’s Autobahn
For many trips between Canadian metropolitan areas, it takes less time to travel through the United States on its motorways than on the Canadian roads. There is also a long section of roadway in the British Columbia interior that a Calgary talk show host referred to as a “stagecoach” trail. Canada pays an economic price for this lack of a world-class highway system, both in terms of manufacturing and tourism.
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Help Support New Thinking
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Upcoming Events
Wastewater Problems in Cottage Country
with John Ilg, Process Engineer, FWS Industrial Projects Ltd.
February 10, 2010 — Winnipeg
The Sky Is Not Falling – Putting Climate Change on Trial
with Bruno Wiskel, Professional Geologist, Author and Speaker
February 12, 2010 — Calgary
Upcoming FCPP Appearances
State of First Nations
Speaker: Don Sandberg, Director of the Aboriginal Frontiers Project
Date: February 13, 2010
Time: Go to: www.ctstv.com for local viewing time in Calgary, Edmonton and Ontario
Place: Faith Journal Show - CTSTV
Studio interview with Don Sandberg, Frontier Centre for Public Policy, and Laura Deedza airing February 13 - 14, 2010.
What New Zealand can learn from Local Government Amalgamation in Canada
Speaker: Peter Holle, President
Date: February 17, 2010
Time: 6:00 pm
Place: Buddle Findlay Law Office, State Insurance Tower, 1 Willis Street, Wellington, New Zealand
At various times in Canada there have been moves to consolidate and amalgamate cities in different regions of the country. The reasons given in support of these policies have centred mostly around achieving greater efficiencies from larger economies of scale. But the experience has mostly been negative to mixed. Costs have increased while democratic accountability has decreased. As suggested by the Tiebout Model from the school of public choice economics larger city units have harmed the citizen customer of public services by removing their ability to vote with their feet when choosing the basket of municipal services offered by their local governments.
Peter Holle, the founding President of the Frontier Centre for Public Policy, a Western Canada based public policy think tank, will review the Canadian experience and discuss the practical realities of amalgamation in Canada in this seminar at the Law & Economics Association of New Zealand (LEANZ).
For more details contact: Matt Burgess at matt02@gmail.com
Telecommuting: Being There Without Being There
Speaker: David Seymour, Senior Policy Analyst and Director, Saskatchewan Office
Date: March 3, 2010
Time: 10:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. (approx.)
Place: Delta Bessborough, 601 Spadina Cres, Saskatoon, SK
Sustainable Saskatchewan Conference Telecommuting is a stealthy alternative to the more conventional transportation solutions which governments often promote. For more details e-mail: alicia.curle@seda.sk.ca
High Performing First Nations - Measuring Community Health and Governance
Speaker: Don Sandberg, Director of Aboriginal Frontiers Project
Date: March 4, 2010
Time: TBD
Place: Westin Hotel, 11 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa, ON
AFOA 10th Anniversary National Conference The Frontier Centre for Public Policy released its third annual Aboriginal Governance Index (AGI) in the summer of 2009. The AGI is a result of surveys conducted in 98 First Nations across the Prairies with over 5,100 on reserve residents. The Index found that three measurements are the best indicators of the overall health of a band: 1) A trustworthy election process; 2) Transparent government and institutions and 3) Competent band administration. The O’Chiese First Nation in Alberta took the top spot on the Index. At this session there will be a discussion of the measurement/indicators that resulted, common indicators among the top ten reserves and what set those communities apart and contributed to their high ranking. Contact Micheline Belanger for more info Phone: 819.827.5031, Toll Free: 866.775.1817 or Email:
Manitoba Policy Blueprint for the Future
Speaker: Peter Holle, President
Date: March 18, 2010
Time: 8:45 a.m.
Place: Winnipeg Realtors, 1240 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg
Booming Saskatchewan is on the verge of matching Alberta's flat income tax. Beleaguered Ontario is pushing to trim transfer payments. Alberta is under pressure to slash public spending and reform healthcare. Sales tax harmonization is happening in most provinces. How can Manitoba avoid being left in the dust in these turbulent times? Frontier's Peter Holle maps out how western Canada's only "have not" province can pull itself out of the slow lane.
For more details contact: Shaila Wise at 786-8854 or swise@winnipegrealtors.ca
Transparency and Accountability in the Public Sector - Panel #3
Speaker: Joseph Quesnel, Policy Analyst
Date: March 20, 2010
Time: 4:35 pm (approx.)
Place: John Dutton Theatre - Calgary Public Library
Hosted by the Macdonald-Cartier Society. For more details contact Immanuel Giulea at 514.577.2669 or immanuel@macdonaldcartier.com
 
Tue February 9, 2010
| Symbol | Current Price |
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| Canadian $ | 0.9369
| | US $ | 1.0674
| | S&P/TSX | 11115.30
| | Dow Jones | 9908.39
| | NASDAQ | 2126.05
| | Crude Oil | 72.79
| | Wheat | 1.94
| | Uranium | 65.00
| | Potash | 101.51
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