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Higher minimum wages or less tax on the poor? Progressives versus the traditionalists? Hear the seminar MP3 by clicking here.

Ottawa's Peter Pan Budget

It’s hard to know what to make of this budget. Despite 424 pages, it comes across as the single most un-serious and flimsy budget document in recent memory. It’s the Peter Pan budget, created on a wish and a prayer. It hopes the world economy recovers instead of soberly facing up to the possibility that Canada’s federal government should get our fiscal house in order regardless.

In The News — March 10, 2010
The IPCC's Abominable Snowmen

The scientists who said that Himalayan glaciers will be gone by 2035 have admitted the claim has as much credibility as sightings of the mythical Yeti. It's their fraudulent claims that are melting away, says Investor's Business Daily (IBD).

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the U.N. body tasked with scaring us to death about global warming, has admitted that the claim in its 2007 report about the Himalayan glaciers disappearing was not based on any scientific study or research. It was instead based on one scientist's speculation in a telephone interview with a reporter.

o The IPCC claimed: "Glaciers in the Himalayas are receding faster than in any other part of the world and, if the present rate continues, the likelihood of their disappearing by the year 2035 and perhaps sooner is very high if the earth keeps warming at the current rate."

o As it turns out, the earth hasn't been warming at all, at least not in the last decade, and reputable scientists have said it may continue to cool for decades to come.

o Even if it was warming, glaciologists insist, the sheer mass of Himalayan glaciers made such a prediction laughable.


According to Professor Julian Dowdeswell, director of the Scott Polar Research Institute at Cambridge University:

o Even a small glacier, such as the Dokriani glacier, is up to 120 meters (394 feet) thick; a big one would be several hundred meters thick and tens of kilometers long.

o The average glacier is 300 meters thick, so to melt one even at the rate of five meters a year would take half a century.

o That is a lot faster than anything we are seeing now, so the idea of losing it all by 2035 is unrealistically high; the current maximum observed rate of glacier melt worldwide is two to three meters a year.

Like the infamous "hockey stick" graph purporting to show sudden and man-induced warming, and the Climate-gate e-mails showing the efforts by researchers associated with Britain's Climate Research unit to "hide the decline" in global temperatures, the
Himalayan glacier claim, like the IPCC report itself, is science fiction and not science fact, says IBD.





Source: Editorial, "The IPCC's Abominable Snowmen,"
Investor's Business Daily, January 21, 2010.

See More "In the News"


Canada's Broken Equalization Program

Equalization is a program run by the Canadian government that takes federal tax dollars and transfers them to the provincial governments of less wealthy provinces. The program’s objective is to ensure that all provinces are able to provide comparable government services to their residents. But the program is overshooting the mark. The equalization program sends so much money to the major recipients that these provinces are able to provide services that are actually more generous than what is available in the provinces that have historically paid the most into equalization - Alberta, BC and Ontario.

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.

Professor at Queen's University School of Policy Studies and Author of Uprising, Doug Bland speaks about his research into theories of national insurgencies and use this research as a model to suggest an answer to the question: Where are Canadian and aboriginal relations headed? -- From his Lunch on the Frontier speech March 5, 2010 in Winnipeg

~30 min 

March 8, 2010 — Where Are Aboriginal Affairs in Canada Headed? (Doug Bland)
Equalization is not working as it was intended to, and the program should be fundamentally reformed. From the Frontier Centre's weekly radio commentary that runs in 3 prairie provinces.

~2 min 

March 6, 2010 — Canada's Broken Equalization Program
Executive Director of the Road Safety Awareness Group, Nancy Thomas, discusses the risks caused by photo radar in her Breakfast on the Frontier speech January 27, 2010 in Winnipeg.

~30 min 

March 4, 2010 — The Myths of Photo Radar Exposed (Nancy Thomas)
Director of Research Mark Milke discusses equalization with Rob Breakenridge on Calgary's CHQR AM 770 February 26, 2010. (~7 mins)

~7 min 

March 1, 2010 — The Real Have-Nots in Conferderation (CHQR)
Non-Natives living on reserves should have their rights respected. Imagine if a nearby non-Aboriginal municipality decided to evict all the First Nations from the community. The outcry would be deafening and justifiably so. From the Frontier Centre's weekly radio commentary that runs in 3 prairie provinces.

~2 min 

February 26, 2010 — Self-Government Shouldn’t Trump Human Rights
Policy Analyst Joseph Quesnel was interviewed by CJWW News, Saskatoon airing on February 19, 2010. (~2 mins)

~2 min 

February 26, 2010 — Reserves Should Be Closer to Urban Centres
The crux of Kuhn’s theory was that science depends on social and economic contexts, or paradigms. Scientists only ask questions and give answers, Kuhn argued, which fit inside the paradigm of the day. From the Frontier Centre's weekly radio commentary that runs in 3 prairie provinces.

~2 min 

February 19, 2010 — A Kuhn-Style Revolution In Climate Science
Public schools are funded by the public and should, like any other public institution, be willing to have their performance evaluated. From the Frontier Centre's weekly radio commentary that runs in 3 prairie provinces.

~2 min 

February 12, 2010 — School Performance Data Should Be Public
Policy Analyst Joseph Quesnel was interviewed by Jim Brown on The Calgary Eyeopener airing on CBC Calgary February 10, 2010. (~6 mins)

~5 min 

February 10, 2010 — Non-viable Communities (CBC-Calgary)
Policy Analyst Joseph Quesnel was interviewed by Kelly Provost and it aired on the Missinippi Broadcasting Corporation on February 8, 2010. (~2 mins)

~1 min 

February 9, 2010 — Remote Bands Urged To Consider Reserve Relocations (MBC)
Current equalization policy is undesirable because of the perverse incentives which subsidise bad policies in recipient provinces. From the Frontier Centre's weekly radio commentary that runs in 3 prairie provinces.

~2 min 

February 5, 2010 — Equalization, Unequal Incentives
Frontier Centre Researcher Fergus Hodgson was interviewed by Adam Stirling on CFAX AM 1070 in Victoria on January 6, 2010.  (~13 mins)

~13 min 

February 4, 2010 — Homes for the Homeless (CFAX)

Latest Publications

Freezing Government Wages is Prudent Cost-Control

— March 11, 2010

Manitoba’s decision to freeze wage growth for its highly paid public sector employees will help ensure the province’s fiscal health, and arguments that the policy will hurt the economy are based on weak economic arguments.



Fair Elections Strong Indicator of High Performing First Nations

— March 10, 2010

Evidence from the Third Annual Aboriginal Governance Index reveals that First Nations with high Electoral rankings perform well overall.



Ottawa’s Peter Pan Budget

— March 8, 2010

The new federal budget was created on a wish and a prayer, on a hope the world economy recovers instead of soberly facing up to the possibility that Canada’s federal government should get our fiscal house in order.



Where Are Aboriginal Affairs in Canada Headed?

— March 8, 2010

PowerPoint slides which accompanied the Lunch on the Frontier speech by Doug Bland in Winnipeg March 5, 2010. Watch while listening to related audio below.



Why 'Have' Provinces are the New Have-Nots

— March 8, 2010

"Alberta people and companies send about $40 billion a year to Ottawa in taxes and other payments. The feds return just $19 billion. Annual net loss to Albertans: $21 billion."



Economic fallout upsets Canadian status quo, norms

— March 5, 2010

"As the economic crisis hit, Canada may have been the best prepared among developed nations when it came to the strength of its banking sector and government finances, but it seems ill-prepared to handle the global fallout."




Recent Updates


View More Policy Notes

Policy Notes - A One Page Policy Discussion

2010-03-11 – Freezing Government Wages is Prudent Cost-Control

2010-03-08 – Ottawa’s Peter Pan Budget

2010-03-02 – Inequalities of Equalization Leave Ontarians Worse Off

» View More Policy Notes

View More Frontier Backgrounders

Frontier Backgrounders - Short Analyses

2010-02-26 – The Global Fiscal Crisis

2009-10-22 – The End is Nigh

2009-09-24 – Manitoba’s Public Sector is Larger, More Expensive Than Most

» View More Frontier Backgrounders

View More Perspectives

Perspectives - Thoughts from the Advisory Board...

2010-02-20 – Atlanta: Ground Zero for the American Dream

2010-02-17 – When Welfarism Takes Over, Disaster Will Follow

2010-01-08 – Climate conference organizers asked for trouble in Copenhagen

» View More Perspectives

View More Policy Series

Policy Series - Longer Reports & Studies

2010-02-24 – The Real Have-Nots In Confederation: British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario

2010-02-16 – Opportunism and Exploitation: Climate Change Activism and Hostility to Liberal Civilization

2010-02-08 – Respecting the Seventh Generation:A voluntary plan for relocating non-viable Native reserves

» View More Policy Series

View More Conversations

Conversations - with Policy Innovators

2009-11-13 – Brian Lee Crowley, Founding President of AIMS, the Atlantic Institute for Market Studies

2009-07-31 – Dr. Madhav Khandekar, Retired Environment Canada Scientist

2009-07-08 – Dr. Kenneth P. Green, Environmental Scientist

» View More Conversations

View More Special Reports and Publications

Special Reports and Publications

2010-02-23 – 2010 International Property Rights Index: Canada outranks USA; but Improvements Needed

2010-02-01 – Behind The Classroom Door

2010-01-25 – 6th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey

» View More Special Reports and Publications

View More Rural Renaissance Notes

Rural Renaissance Notes

2009-09-02 – How U.S. Protectionism is Killing Canada’s Livestock Producers

2009-02-26 – Food Safety: Quality Matters, Not Just Price

2009-02-17 – President Obama Is COOLing It

» View More Rural Renaissance Notes

View More PowerPoint Slides from Events

PowerPoint Slides from Events

2010-03-08 – Where Are Aboriginal Affairs in Canada Headed?

2010-03-03 – The Myths of Photo Radar Exposed

2010-02-12 – Wastewater Problems in Cottage Country

» View More PowerPoint Slides from Events

View More Aboriginal Voices from Ground Zero

Aboriginal Voices from Ground Zero

2010-03-04 – Where’s Aboriginal Leadership on Human Rights?

2010-02-09 – Time To Debate The Viability Of Some Reserves

2010-01-26 – Wanted: A New Vision for First Nations

» View More Aboriginal Voices from Ground Zero

View More Worth a Look

Worth a Look - In our Virtual Library...

2010-02-28 – Health Insurance: Clear Diagnosis, Uncertain Remedy

2010-02-25 – Labor in Denial as ETS Fairyland Fractures

2010-02-23 – Denial Not Just For The Deniers

» View More Worth a Look

View More Modern Environmentalist

Modern Environmentalist

2010-02-15 – IPCC Corruption Included Ignoring Facts and Science

2010-02-07 – Climategate Necessary to Cover Incorrect Climate Basics of IPCC

2010-01-23 – Climate Cools But Arctic Ice Scares Continue

» View More Modern Environmentalist

View More Charticles

Charticles - A Graphical Look at Issues

2010-03-10 – Fair Elections Strong Indicator of High Performing First Nations

2010-03-05 – Canada’s Cropland: Becoming Better Protected From Erosion

2010-02-19 – Canada v. Europe on Patient Rights: Canada Lags

» View More Charticles

View More Frontier Centre in the Media

Frontier Centre in the Media

2010-03-08 – Why 'Have' Provinces are the New Have-Nots

2010-03-05 – Economic fallout upsets Canadian status quo, norms

2010-03-02 – USA 15th in Property Rights Protections. Behind...Finland?

» View More Frontier Centre in the Media

View More Interactive Policy

Interactive Policy

2009-03-14 – The Frontier Goods & Services Interactive InfoMap

2008-09-15 – Saskatchewan Carbon Capture Opportunity Cost Calculator

2008-09-11 – Alberta Carbon Capture Opportunity Cost Calculator

» View More Interactive Policy

View More Frontier Media Appearances

Frontier Media Appearances

2010-03-01 – The Real Have-Nots in Conferderation (CHQR)

2010-02-26 – Reserves Should Be Closer to Urban Centres

2010-02-10 – Non-viable Communities (CBC-Calgary)

» View More Frontier Media Appearances

View More Frontier Radio Commentary

Frontier Radio Commentary

2010-03-06 – Canada's Broken Equalization Program

2010-02-26 – Self-Government Shouldn’t Trump Human Rights

2010-02-19 – A Kuhn-Style Revolution In Climate Science

» View More Frontier Radio Commentary

View More Frontier Audio (Speeches/Events)

Frontier Audio (Speeches/Events)

2010-03-08 – Where Are Aboriginal Affairs in Canada Headed? (Doug Bland)

2010-03-04 – The Myths of Photo Radar Exposed (Nancy Thomas)

2010-02-03 – My Life in the Grain Business William B. Parrish)

» View More Frontier Audio (Speeches/Events)

View More Frontier Channel - Video

Frontier Channel - Video

2009-12-18 – Healthcare Consumer Index Coverage (CBC SK)

2009-12-18 – Frontier Event Picketed (CTV Regina)

2009-12-11 – Explaining the 2009 Local Government Performance Index (Seymour)

» View More Frontier Channel - Video

View More Frontier Recommended Video

Frontier Recommended Video

2010-02-28 – How I Was Not Al Gored Into Submission

2010-02-20 – Tom Brokaw Explains Canada

2010-02-10 – The Green Police

» View More Frontier Recommended Video

Feedback @ Frontier
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: Poverty Policies Tend to Impoverish — September 15, 2007
Perhaps letter writer Andrew Bonner should have taken more than just a quick glance around the world when discussing the successes and failures of laissez-faire economics. Ironically, the letter writer lives in London, England, which is proving to be one of the great success stories of laissez-faire economics in the past quarter century. Through reduced regulation and an increased focus on attracting foreign investment, this centre has reversed its general decline and is now, arguably, the most important financial centre in the world and certainly in Europe. Yet another success story is a short plane trip away in Ireland, where economic growth rates have been among the highest in Europe for years, due in large part to low taxation and low government spending policies. Meanwhile, on the continent, in the so-called high-tax countries of France, Italy and Germany, economic growth has been stagnant, resulting in high unemployment and social discourse. Even Sweden, which is often cited by proponents of social welfare policies, has felt the rising pressures on its fiscal policies. In light of this, the people of Sweden recently elected a more fiscally conservative government, as did the French and Germans. It is incorrect to blindly state that the best way to alleviate poverty is the inefficient and wasteful social welfare systems currently in place in Canada and Manitoba. - Letter to editor, Winnipeg Free Press, Craig White, Winnipeg
RE: The Minimum Wage - Forbidding People to Work — February 8, 2005

One of your best articles yet, and one of the most convincing on the minimum wage issue, and ending with a possible solution. - Email from Winnipeg

RE: High Performance Winnipeg? — October 27, 2006

Peter Holle urged Winnipeggers to envision our city in 2011 as one operating on a "competitive model", relying on "advanced measurement techniques" and "eliminating bureaucracy". Coupled with performance bonuses, customer service surveys and public-private partnerships, Holle's vision is a dream for free-market policy wonks who live for technocratic efficiency. Sadly, his vision would be a dystopia for regular Winnipeggers.

What Holle doesn't spell out is that his ideas would further widen the gap between the rich and poor in our city. Privatizing municipal services and contracting out would further weaken the quality of services we receive while simultaneously eroding the living standards of unionized workers. Performance bonuses for police would increase the ruthlessness of a service already plagued by criticisms of abuse of power and racism. An ethic of care and community would be replaced by one of self-serving egoism and "devil-take-the-hindmost". Maybe instead of having one in four Winnipeg children grow up in poverty, we could aim for one in two. Finally, instead of ideas of participatory municipal citizenship, Holle offers up an emaciated view of Winnipeggers as consumers shopping for services from an administrative "board of directors" (i.e. city hall).

It may be a "confident and cool" city for those with the cash, but for many it would simply be perilous and cold. Sorry, Mr. Holle, but your high-performance Winnipeg sends shivers down my spine. E-mail from PATRICK MCGUIRE in Winnipeg

RE: Manitoba's Water Regulations-Regulate First, Ask Questions Later — April 13, 2006
Well done on this – it is good information and extremely timely. E-mail from Winnipeg
RE: Three Million Manitobans — June 3, 2003
"Always interesting reading..." Email - Moncton, New Brunswick

"I REALLY enjoyed this article. It contains the kind of "beyond the box" thinking that I wish could be found in governments, of any political stripe. Well done." Email - Winnipeg, Manitoba

RE: Let's Dance the Dutch Minuet on Schools — March 31, 2003
The Frontier Centre's highlight on the Dutch Education System demonstrates that our current education model and governance structure can be changed to achieve better performance, accountability, and value for both students and taxpayers. Only those with vested interests, fear of change, and/or disbelief in the room for improvement would be afraid of learning from the success of others. - E-mail from S. Mark Francis, Winnipeg
Frontier Flashback
Rapid Wage Growth for Federal Public Servants
This rapid rate of wage growth for federal public servants is unsustainable. Canada’s federal public service alone employs almost 300, 000 people. As a result, rapidly growing salaries among public servants places a huge strain on the country’s finances. If the rate of wage growth in the public sector were held to the level of wage growth in the rest of the economy, the cost of public administration in Canada would have been a $2.5 billion less in 2008.
Why Free Trade Works
Trade spurs competitiveness, efficiencies and innovations; protectionism reduces competition, rewards in-efficiency, and stifles innovation. Trade puts the consumer first, ALL consumers in fact; protectionism puts the producer first, particular and politically favoured ones. Trade enhances the international division of labour and thereby fosters prosperity; protectionism hampers the division of labour and takes us a giant step backward to Robinson Crusoe economics.
Environmental Policy: Process and Spending but Few Results
Public spending on the environment, broadly defined, has exploded. Canada’s Sir Humphreys, sensing a golden opportunity, started expanding their empires, all the while assuring their ministers, “There are lots of good things happening.” What are we really getting for all this money and, more importantly, what are we seeing in the way of real environmental changes such as cleaner air and water, more wildlife, endangered species recovery and better flood control?
Ends Versus The Means
The hallmark of quality public policy is a focus on the ends of policy, not the means. Fine, let's have a publicly funded system, but let's not pretend that a monolithic government provider is the best way to deliver services or that the government needs to own hospitals and schools to achieve superior outcomes.
Don’t Regulate the Suburbs: America Needs a Housing Policy That Works
Areas with less land-use regulation consistently sustain affordable housing prices, while regions with greater regulation consistently sustain prices that are unaffordable to the majority of those living in the region.
Former NDP Strategist Les Campbell
In the NDP, and Canadian politics in general, we hear nothing but the same tired old clichés. In the end, politics is about ideas. Political parties are about putting forward ideas which then clash, hopefully in - another cliché I guess - the marketplace of ideas. The most successful parties, for example, Tony Blair's Labour Party have gone through a renewal process which included the formation of a related think tank that was thinking "out-of-the box." This was crucial to its success.
Exporting Manitoba Schools
The idea that our education and health services are potentially lucrative export opportunities is not a common one in Manitoba. With a supportive policy framework that encourages excellence and customer service, both these areas could become major drivers of our economy by generating revenues, creating jobs and strengthening our feeble tax base. This vision will not suit the “have-not” thinkers in our province. It’s for the bold and confident, who believe public service does not have to be an oxymoron. We can and should pursue it aggressively.
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.
Patients' Medical Freedom Grows
Ferrie argues that the Manitoba Medical Association's quasi-judicial power to regulate alternate therapies might have been appropriate in a time when Canadians hunted for beaver pelts. Now the Internet contains all the latest medical research. We don't need as much protection because we have more information.

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How Hot Will It Get? with Dennis T. Avery, Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute and Co-Author - March 18, 2010


Upcoming Events

How Hot Will It Get?
with Dennis T. Avery, Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute and Co-Author
March 18, 2010 — Calgary

Democratization of the Capital Markets
with S. Mark Francis, Business Consultant/ Stock Exchange Advisor
March 24, 2010 — Winnipeg

Free Agent Nations: The Rise of Independent Contractors over Employees
with Ken Phillips, Co-Founder and Executive Director,Independent Contractors of Australia and Author of Independence and the Death of Employment (Connor Court)
March 30, 2010 — Saskatoon

Beyond the Indian Act: Restoring Aboriginal Property Rights
with Dr. Tom Flanagan, Professor of Political Science, University of Calgary and, André Le Dressay, Director of Fiscal Realities
April 5, 2010 — Regina
April 6, 2010 — Winnipeg

Beyond the Indian Act: Restoring Aboriginal Property Rights
with C.T. (Manny) Jules, Chief Commissioner, First Nations Tax Commission &, Dr. Tom Flanagan, Professor of Political Science, University of Calgary
April 6, 2010 — Winnipeg


Higher minimum wages or less tax on the poor? Progressives versus the traditionalists? Hear the seminar MP3 by clicking here.

Upcoming FCPP Appearances

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

Organizational Structure & Design HPG
Speaker: Peter Holle, President
Date: March 25, 2010
Time: 7 - 9:00 p.m.
Place: University of Manitoba, Room E2-160 Engineering Building

A discussion on creating high performance policy by maximizing transparency, neutrality and separation; distinguishing between private and public goods; and locating services at the most appropriate level of government. University grad school lecture, not open to public.

Manitoba Policy Blueprint for the Future
Speaker: Peter Holle, President
Date: March 30, 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



Thu March 11, 2010

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