Advocatus Diaboli

This blog is about things, issues, ideas, and concepts on subjects focusing on Canada, Canadian Issues and Affairs and those that affect Canada and Canadians from afar.

Saturday, February 17, 2007

Alberta News and Views - February 12, 2007 - Issue 5

http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/070213/d070213c.htm

Study: Factors driving rural Canada's economy

Technology, prices and demography are key forces driving the economy in the nation's rural areas, according to a new study.

While not unique to rural Canada, these forces provide opportunities for rural areas relative to their urban counterparts, the study found.

The key factor is labour-saving technology, or the increasing value of human time. For example, in agriculture, the price of labour is rising relative to the price of machinery.

This means there is an on-going incentive to adopt labour-saving technology to substitute machines for labour. Consequently, regardless of the price of outputs, such as wheat, lumber or nickel, communities dependent on primary sectors will have fewer and fewer people working in primary industries.

In order to maintain their employment base, successful rural communities will be those that find new goods or services to sell on the market, the study suggests.

The study noted three long-term trends in terms of price — the cost of both transporting goods and transporting information is falling, while the cost of transporting people is rising.

Rural Canada has been gaining an increasing share of Canada's manufacturing employment over the past three decades. The study suggests that the declining price of transporting goods is helping rural Canada to be even more competitive in manufacturing.

This is occurring not only in jobs related to resource commodities, but in newer jobs that are part of the network of just-in-time delivery.

Successful rural communities of the future may be expected to have a manufacturing base, exceptions being those communities with a natural amenity attraction for tourism.

However, the falling price of transferring information can be a double-edged sword for rural areas. On the one hand, rural entrepreneurs can take advantage of new information technologies to sell their goods or services. On the other hand, rural consumers can choose to purchase from outside their local area.

In terms of demography, the study suggests a number of trends.

First, Aboriginal people will remain a driving force for parts of rural Canada. For example, in Saskatchewan, projections show that by 2017 Aboriginal people will account for 21% of the total population, compared with only 14% in 2001. Also, by 2017, Aboriginal children will represent 37% of all children in the province, up from 26%.

The study also noted that rural areas are competitive in attracting key demographic groups, such as young families and early retirees, as well as international immigrants.

The vast majority of new immigrants to Canada choose to live in large metropolitan centres. But 2001 Census data show that a small number of rural regions were competitive in attracting immigrants.

In fact, 9 of the top 30 regions attracting new immigrants in 2001 were predominantly rural regions. As natural population growth continues to decline across all Canadian regions, the ability of rural regions to attract immigrants will drive future growth.

Green News and Views February 12, 2007 - Issue 4

Comment:
It would seem from some of the clips I have posted below that the Green ground on the political bandwagon is getting crowded.

That is why any party that wants to become a force to be reckoned with they need more than one arrow in their quiver.

It will be political suicide for the Green Party to not come out and talk about the other just as serious issues that are affecting the average Canadian.

There are mounting job losses in Ontario, there are humna rights issues that are affecting not only people in other parts of the world, but right here in Canada with the discussion of the renewal of the laws passed in the shadows of 9/11. Do we want Canada to go back down that road, or do we want to come up with a more modern way of dealing with those that might want to harm Canada or its neighbours in the world?

Does Canada want to speak out on human rights issues in China as it did in those issues in South Africa, when we led the fight against apparthite.

Shouldn't Canada renew its east to west transportation infrastructure to be more efficient in helping us to trade with the world, and make it envirnonmentally sound and friendly, so we can develop more customers for our goods, rather than fixate on our friends to the south?

Should Canada work to use its trade to help develop democracy, improve human rights, and bring peace to the world?

Shouldn't Canada be totally self-sufficient in its own energy needs first, and then work on the rest of the world?

Do you know that east of Sarnia, Ontario their oil is imported while the oil from Alberta is shipped south? How does that help Canada to have an energy security plan, when we cannot help keep the rest of Canada warm?

The Green Party needs to be more than an environmental party. If we hitch our wagon to only one horse, we run the risk of being overtaken and swamped by the other parties.

Unless of course we want to be left at the starting gate at the horse race.

Alberta News and Views - February 5, 2007 - Issue 4

A new look at commuting distance
The best way of solving commuting-related problems may not be to move jobs closer to residential areas, according to a new study published recently in Urban Geography.

Rather, this study suggests, people actually like to work in large business districts, and are willing to travel further to get to them.

This research, conducted through Statistics Canada's Research Data Centre program, uses data from the 2001 Census to take an innovative look at commuting in Montréal. It examines what motivates people to travel further to so-called "employment poles", a central business area or large suburban business districts, than to other workplaces.

Among workers who both lived and worked outside the home in the census metropolitan area of Montréal, over one-third (36%) worked at these employment poles, in the city centre or in one of five large suburban business districts.

Their average round trip between home and work was 23 kilometres. This was almost 5 kilometres a day further than the average distance traveled by those working outside employment poles.

The findings challenge the generally held assumption that workers accept the extra travel costs because of the higher incomes and job status offered at employment poles. Instead, income and job status actually play a relatively minor role in explaining why people who work in these large business districts are prepared to live further from their jobs than people who work outside them.

Even after taking into account gender, occupation and income levels of each job, and certain domestic and residential factors, the distance traveled to employment poles remains higher than the distance traveled to other job locations. ("Residential" factors include the choice of residential area and of suburban or urban environment, which control for the possibility that workers simply travel farther to the poles because that is where the jobs are.)

This suggests that there is something about the social environment offered by employment poles that attracts people from further afield. These effects are particularly strong for women. They suggest that women derive more satisfaction than men from the type of environment major employment poles generate.

Green News and Views January 29, 2007 - Issue 3

Comment:
It is probably one of the most astute observations I have seen come out of the hyperbole around climate change, the Clean Air Act, and suddenly call to arms on the environment by either the Liberals, NDP, or Conservatives.

Bob Mills, chair of the House of Commons environmental committee, told CTV's Question Period on Sunday said, "We don't really have to set up a lot of new groups."

What we do not need is another organization chasing the same dollars, chasing after the same goal, and ending up being toothless and useless because it was all for show.

What we need is a very agressive and assertive policing agency that will enforce the letter of the environment law, even the ones we have now, and those that will be brought in.

What we need is a group to make sure the laws that are brought in both in Canada and elsewhere are meaningfull and will address the root of the problem and not just the edges of it to make it look good.

We also need to keep in mind that the environment is not the only thing that our government has going on right now.

We have a free trade pact being negotiated with Pakistan, a leading contributor of terrorists in Afghanistan, as well as South Korea, a continental union plan, a need for the country's infrastructure to be fixed, as well as health care and education. There is the issue of how best to carve up the country into 10 little fiefdoms through the devolution of powers from the federal government to the provinces.

The inertia being caused by current hot button political issue of the environment, on all other important issues before the House of Commons is causing a severe case of myopia in the land.

Canada needs a political party that can walk and chew gum at the sametime.

Alberta News and Views - January 30, 2007 - Issue 3

Comment:
This past weekend I attended a one-day Symposium exploring how biodiversity data from nature channels into sustainable conservation policy at national and international levels in Montreal at the redpath Museum at McGill University. Aside from the food and music I enjoyed, there was some serious nature to what I was there for.

David Green Director of the Redpath Museum, stated that, ‘the scientific community largely failed to have a significant influence in the debate on the Federal Endangered Species legislation.’ He stated, this was a result of, ‘where science was trumped by politics.’ There is a very clear pattern emerging from the Federal Government where scientists need to comprehend the limited role that ‘scientific advice,’ plays in government thinking.

As an example, Marco Fest-Blanchet of the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) suggested that the Federal Government, ‘is reluctant to list northern species and species subject to harvest and economic gain on any protected list.’

Among the presenters was David Cooper, Senior Program Officers of Secretariat of the Convention of Biological Diversity, who spoke of the decline of the ecosystem’s biodiversity and how this, ‘will have negative consequences for human being well being.’ He explained how the framework of the Convention could work to promote sustainable and efficient agriculture, by applying the ecosystem approach to land planning, and our consumption habits.

Annie Webb from the Secretariat of the Convention of Biological Diversity spoke of how through effective conservation and management of biodiveristy will depend in large part, ‘on our understanding of the components of biodiversity.’

Part of how we will understand the components Webb said will be, ‘acknowledgement of the existence of the taxonomic impediment,’ and how easy it really is to remove the impediment, through the Global Taxonomic Initiative (GTI), program of the Convention of Biological Diversity.

From the Canadian Museum of Nature, Roger Baird spoke of how the Alliance of Natural Histories of Canada (ANHMC) to establish a network of museum executives representing independent institutions under the one umbrella to catalogue on a universally accessible data-base the 30,000,000 taxonomic specimens held by these independent institutions, which will give Canadian and world wide researchers an invaluable resource in studying biodiversity.

Robert T. McFetridge the Executive Secretary of the Federal Biodiversity Information Partnership (FBIP), explained the history and goals of the FBIP, which are to provide an integrated response to a core need for leadership to ensure open access to all biodiversity data and information held by the Federal government in Canada.

The World Wildlife Fund’s initiative to create a, ‘first ever global map of freshwater ecoregions,’ was introduced and explained by Rebecca Ng from the WWF’s Conservation Science Program. This innovative program will be turned in to a universally interactive web site.

Green News and Views January 29, 2007 - Issue 2

Comment:
So the environment is 'le hot topic de jour in the House of Commons.' Will they be able to fix the problem and make everything all better again and for ever?

Maybe, but don't hold your breathes.

Even though Canadians feel the environment is the top issue of the day for them, the party who best represents a real change to both the issue of the environment and the way our federal government does the business of politics and democracy, still want to vote for one of the other four tired old political parties.

It might be time for the Green Party of Canada to take a long hard look at the way we do things, and decide it is time to change.

Yes, we can remain the positive party, with positive ideas and policy ideas, but we need to get in the game. Standing on the sidelines whining about the fact the big boys will not let us on the field is quickly becoming a tired and worn out song on a record that has been moved to the back of the shelf in Canadian's minds.

We need to get in the game, and start throwing some very sharp elbows, to have not only the media notice us, but to get Canadians notice us and be prepared to put an 'X,' beside the name of their local Green Party candidate the next time they step in the voting booth.

Oh. There are other issues that are important to Canada and the Canadians but we have a House of Commons and government that think we as Canadians are not smart enough to think about, or concern ourselves about more than one thing at a time.

Maybe it is also time, while the Green Party is climbing into the ring, to show that we too can concern ourselves with thoughtful and meaningful policy and ideas for these issues.

Canada is a complex country with Canadians that are able to have a complex combination of issues we worry and think about on the same plate, that need to be addressed.

Alberta News and Views - January 22, 2007 - Issue 2

Comment:

I hear and read that Alberta will have a new lobbyist and contractor registry this spring.

My daddy always taught me that before you think you have got the horses secure in the barn, you got to shut and lock the door. He also taught me to never give the key to the lock on the hen house to the fox.

The fox and me have two very different ideas on the chickens fate tonight.

If Steady Eddie really wants to earn the respect of Albertan's, and show us he thinks we are not stupid, he needs to make sure the industry of lobbying that is fast becoming a growth industry in law firms, is not exempted by this law.

As someone who is a Registered Federal Government Lobbyist, I am often miffed that I must report my business to the federal government but because of that old lawyer/client privilege thing, lawyers do not have to.

I guess I could go work for a lawyer.

Ralph Klein may not be a lawyer, but his lobbying work will be allowed to disappear into the briefs of the law firm he works at, for Albertans to never know what he is actually doing.

Steady Eddie also needs to explain to us who in the caucus and cabinet of the past Conservative governments, of which he has been a member of, stopped the drafted recommendations for a lobbyist registry and longer cooling-off periods for government officials and politicians from the all-party committee headed by Tory Neil Brown , moving forward and becoming law. Are those same roadblocks now going to be profiting now that they have retired from this backward thinking?

Honest Ed needs to do right here, so he does not become known as Fast Eddy, the used policy car salesman.

Green News and Views January 22, 2007 - Issue 1

Comment:
There is a lot of chatter both by and in the media and politicians of other parties that the Green Party should be allowed to participate in the upcoming Federal general elections televised leaders' debates.

I know in some circles this sounds like the panacea to the Green Party winning a seat in the House of Commons, or to push the Green Party on to the national political stage finally.

The problem with this push, is that the vast majority of voters don't watch the forum, either live or dead (delayed broadcast at another date). Nor do they watch the previews or chattering heads that analyze these things for the tired old grey mass broadcast media.

Hence the reason both the debates and analysis is done in the off-prime time hours of the television networks' time tables.

A better solution for any party that wants to spark an interest in them that is going to truly help them, and push them to victory on the national political stage, is to go tot he alternative media, and host a leadership debate, including inviting the other leaders. The rule would be, it would be a true debate following the debating rules that have been used for centuries, and be focusing on the real issues, and putting forward real solutions and ideas for Canadians to see and hear.

This would be helpful in luring the non-voter, fallen away voter, and the yet to vote youth to the polling booth. The research shows that those three groups are tired of the same same old in this country's politicians and political theatre.

A true virtual debate, held on the internet, on Much Music, and via pod-casting. Available for anyone, anywhere, and at anytime.

In fact if the leaders really wanted to debate and discuss their ideas with Canadians, this national debate should also be truly interactive. Unmanaged, unscripted, and sans-Peter Mansbridge.

People now get most of their news and information from sources other than the grey old mass media.

Alberta News and Views - January 15, 2007 - Issue 1

Commentary:
The first critical test of Ed Stelmach’s leadership as premier is not to find a way to shrink his cabinet, but to bring in a new government that is open, honest, and transparent.

After all, that was number one of the items on his list of five priorities on Honest Ed’s campaign website is, ‘… to govern with integrity and transparency.’

It has obviously been taken off the agenda of Honest Eddie when he says that some of his donors deserve anonymity as far as the donations they made to his leadership campaign is a signal that he is not being honest with the voters and taxpayers of Alberta.

A big step towards the new government being open, honest, and transparent, is to have all donors to all MLA’s campaigns, leadership campaigns, and such published and open for scrutiny before appointing them to cabinet.

By doing nothing less and keeping his very own donors under wraps it shows that when and whatever Honest Ed may talk of democratic reform, opening up government, or getting the sleaze out of the government, he is lying.


How will we know that the people who Honest Ed puts on the panel of experts to study the question of oil and gas royalties, aren’t there because they were on that list of hidden donors?

How much did membership on that hidden list cost? What is the expected return?

To think that Honest Eddie, or any person running for public office, can simply make a promise to anyone who is giving him money to run for the privilege of holding the highest and most powerful political office in Alberta, is either naïve, or just play stupid.

People, who run for public office, are not running for an office in the private sector, hence the use of the word public, in the term public office. It means all those that helped him or financed his run were doing so in the glare of public light.

Doing this will not stop people from donating, if they have no ulterior motives other than to see the best person win the election. If there are other motives then not donating because they cannot stand the light of day, then the voters and taxpayers of Alberta are better served by them not being a part of the process.

If to do otherwise, Honest Eddie, must have something to hide, and that something must be something he does not want Albertan’s to know about, or it is something that cannot stand the exposure to light and is under a rock for some reason.

Honest Ed, live up to your nickname and come clean. Come clean and show Albertan’s that you are truly different. To not be honest tells Albertan’s that Honest Eddie is going to be no better than the immediate past Premier and government will still be a closed-door frat organization.

Now that Honest Ed has sold that one out to the highest bidders what is next?

Issue 1 - Alberta News and Issues - It's Back!!!

This Just in - So Much for Honest Ed's new way of doing business...

EDMONTON - A Calgary fundraiser set for next week is offering exclusive access to Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach and several of his ministers for $5,000 to help wipe out leadership campaign debts.

Tickets to a reception at Stampede Park are selling for $500 each, but a smaller `more exclusive' event is also offered for a minimum donation of $5,000.

The events are being held to raise money for Stelmach, Finance Minister Lyle Oberg, Health Minister Dave Hancock, and former cabinet minister Mark Norris, who was also a leadership contender.

An e-mail from an event organizer says both events will offer those willing to pay with an excellent opportunity to spend time with the new premier and ministers to discuss issues of mutual interest.

The premier could not be reached for comment and his spokesman referred calls to a leadership campaign official, who said such fundraisers are a reality because `there are bills that need to be paid.'

Liberal Leader Kevin Taft says this type of event should be illegal, while NDP Leader Brian Mason says this represents an enormous lapse in judgment by the new premier.