News

Trudeau’s Canada a House of Cards Waiting to Collapse

Published

9 months ago

2023-09-03

Trudeau's Canada a House of Cards Waiting to Collapse

Canada is under a state of toxicity. It’s unfashionable to say so in centrist circles, but it’s true. The country faces escalating radicalism, toxic polarisation, and low trust. Wealth disparity is increasing. Its federal system could be better, notably in the relationship between Alberta and the national government. Monopolies and oligopolies go amok, exploiting customers.

There are numerous other issues. However, the convergence of a few big obstacles screams House of Cards collapsing! The country’s housing crisis, consumer debt, and high – and potentially rising – interest rates are among them.

They present a picture of hardworking individuals living lives they can’t afford daily. This dreadful scenario occurs no matter how hard people work or how strictly they adhere to the game’s rules – laws they were assured were fair and just.
The Exorbitant Cost of Housing

In Canada, housing is completely expensive. The average home costs around CAD$700,000, while a one-bedroom rental costs close to $1,900 per month.

According to the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, the hourly wage required to rent a one-bedroom flat exceeds the provincial minimum wage. The analysis discovered only three urban regions in Quebec where the minimum wage was more than the rent for a one-bedroom flat.

Housing starts — breaking ground on new buildings — are falling behind as the country booms. They were down 10% in July after a significant increase in June.

No Affordable Homes in Canada

According to the CMHC, the country needs 5.8 million homes by 2030 to achieve affordability, but construction is on track to reach only 2.8 million, less than half of what is required. Building costs, government policies, and labor shortages impede construction attempts.

Even when units are produced, there are far too few purpose-built rentals and non-market options to assist people needing affordable housing.

Those who are lucky enough to own a home face their own set of challenges. Mortgage payments are growing due to high-interest rates, which may climb again in the autumn. Now, 40% of mortgage holders borrow to cover day-to-day expenditures, and nearly 20% need to catch up on their payments.

According to Robert McLister of the Globe and Mail, that is based on data from December, and things have most likely worsened since then. Despite new measures from the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada aimed at keeping people in their houses and pricey financial gimmicks such as extra-long mortgage amortization periods, the prospect of default looms.

However, something has to give at this rate — especially since debtors will face renewal periods and high-interest rates in the coming months and years.

Canadians Floundering in Debt

Households are also heavily in debt. The CMHC cautioned in May that Canada’s household debt, which leads the G7 and will reach 107 percent of GDP in 2021, “makes the economy vulnerable to any global economic crisis.” It also puts it vulnerable to an internal crisis of its own making.

Mortgages account for most household debt, although auto loans and credit cards also contribute. Consumer debt in Canada reached a new high of $2.32 trillion in the spring. People need to catch up on their payments. Simultaneously, inflation and rising prices remain.

The Bank of Canada raised interest rates by 25 basis points to 5% in July, largely due to mortgage expenses, which were the key inflation drivers in June and July. As it struggles to achieve its 2% inflation objective, the bank may raise rates again in September.

In the near term, the bank and Canadians are locked in a vicious mortgage-inflation circle in which mortgage rates fuel inflation, and the bank boosts interest rates to combat inflation, which raises mortgage costs. Even if the long-term goal is to reduce inflation by limiting money supply and expenditure, the short-term spiral is hell.

It will take a long time to reach the 2% inflation target. Meanwhile, Canadians are in a precarious position with high mortgage rates, a lack of home supply, high prices, and a massive consumer debt burden.

As interest rates climb, so does the likelihood and possible number of mortgage, auto loan, and credit card defaults. The chance of job loss is similar.

The Austerity Dance of Justin Trudeau

The Bank of Canada is not mandated nor disposed to care about persons in financial difficulty in the short term. Its long-term goal is to keep inflation at a sustainable level. On the other hand, national, provincial, and local governments are supposed to care about those in need at all times. And yet, if there is a plan in place to protect Canada’s house of cards from collapsing or to make people whole, if it does, it is still being determined what that plan is.

Imperfect and insufficient social welfare programs, such as dental care and prescription drug coverage, are being implemented, but they are insufficient to address Canada’s serious financial crisis.

The Liberal government of Justin Trudeau may also be considering budget cuts. Ministers have been directed to cut $15 billion in spending by October. This could indicate a government less willing to spend significantly in the coming months and years, even as the Liberals sag in the polls and face an election in the autumn of 2025 or sooner.

Governments must be prepared to support individuals experiencing economic difficulty and will be crushed if the country’s house of cards collapses.

These folks work and strive for the things they’ve been instructed to strive for: a house, a car, an education, and a few respectable consumer goods. They are now abandoned due to a confluence of economic systems, pandemic repercussions, inefficient government policies, and unpredictable global geopolitical processes.

These employees, who ensure the buses run on time and the grocery shelves are filled, make up 40% of the country’s wages yet own only 2.7 percent of its net worth. In contrast, the wealthiest 20% of income controls about 70% of the total.

This wealth disparity is terrible at any time, but it’s especially disgusting in the aftermath of the last few years when the powers that be paid so much lip service to workers — as “frontline” and “essential.” They must not be abandoned in the wilderness while the country fights to resolve its economic problems.

This article by By David Moscrop was first published in Jacobin.com

News

Elon Musk Launches Starlink Satellite Internet Service In Indonesia, World’s Largest Archipelago

Published

6 hours ago

2024-05-19

Kiara Grace

DENPASAR, Indonesia — On Sunday, Elon Musk visited Bali, Indonesia’s resort island, to debut Starlink satellite internet service in the world’s largest archipelago.

In a green Batik shirt, Musk was greeted with a garland of flower petals at a community health center in Denpasar, Bali’s provincial capital, where he and Indonesian politicians launched the Starlink service.

Indonesia, a large archipelago of 17,000 islands spread across three time zones with a population of over 270 million, has been attempting for years to obtain deals with Musk’s Tesla for battery investment and with Musk’s SpaceX to bring fast internet to the country’s distant parts.

AP – VOR News Image

Elon Musk Launches Starlink Satellite Internet Service In Indonesia, World’s Largest Archipelago

During the ceremony, Musk conducted a speed test of the Starlink internet connection with many health professionals from Indonesia’s remote regions, including Aru, one of the country’s least-served and most distant islands in Maluku.

“This can make it really a lifesaver for remote medical clinics, and I think it could be a possibility for education as well,” Musk stated to reporters.

“If you have access to the internet, you can learn anything and sell your company services around the world. So, I think it’ll be quite beneficial,” he explained.

He also inked an agreement to improve connections in the country’s healthcare and education sectors. Details of the arrangement between the Indonesian government and Musk’s SpaceX, the aerospace company that operates Starlink services, were not disclosed.

According to Coordinating Minister of Maritime and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, the launch of the service at a health clinic is consistent with Starlink’s overall aim of offering inexpensive access to high-speed internet services, particularly in underserved and distant areas.

“Our remote regions need Starlink to expand high-speed internet services, especially to help with problems in the health, education, and maritime sectors,” said Pandjaitan, a close supporter of Indonesian President Joko Widodo. He had separate conversations with Musk on Sunday.

Budi Arie Setiadi, Minister of Communication and Informatics, previously stated that local internet providers, who rely on base transceiver stations to transmit signals, are unable to reach the outer islands due to poor coverage. Starlink’s satellites, which are still in low orbit, will help them provide speedier internet with statewide coverage.

Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin states that around 2,700 of the country’s more than 10,000 clinics lack internet connection.

Kids News – VOR News Image

Elon Musk Launches Starlink Satellite Internet Service In Indonesia, World’s Largest Archipelago

“The internet can open up better access to health services as communication between regions is said to be easier, so that reporting from health service facilities can be done in real time or up to date,” he stated.

Musk will also attend the 10th World Water Forum, which aims to solve global water and sanitation issues, during his first in-person visit to Bali.

Musk spoke in 2022 at the B-20 business gathering, which preceded the Group of 20 leading economies’ summit in Bali. He attended the meeting via video link weeks after completing his much-scrutinized takeover of Twitter.

Musk’s visit comes just weeks after Apple CEO Tim Cook met with Widodo on April 17, stating that the business will “look at” manufacturing in Indonesia. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella paid a visit on April 30 and announced plans to invest $1.7 billion in new cloud and artificial intelligence infrastructure in Indonesia over the next four years.

AP – VOR News Image

Elon Musk Launches Starlink Satellite Internet Service In Indonesia, World’s Largest Archipelago

Indonesia, under Widodo, has pushed the growth of the digital technology and information industries in order to accomplish the government’s Golden Indonesia 2045 vision. The Netherlands aspires to be one of the world’s top five economies, with a GDP of up to $9 trillion, exactly a century after gaining independence from Dutch invaders.

SOURCE – (AP)

News

Canada Fisheries Officers Seize Elvers Worth $500K at Toronto Airport

Published

23 hours ago

2024-05-19

Geoff Thomas

The seized elvers are worth between $400,000 and $500,000: CTV News

Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) officers and Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers seized roughly 109 kg of unlawful elvers at Toronto Pearson International Airport. The elvers were scheduled to be transferred overseas.

The seized elvers are worth between $400,000 and $500,000.

An investigation into this matter for violations of the Fisheries Act is currently underway.

“The magnitude of this elver seizure is an important development,” said Diane Lebouthillier, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans, and the Canadian Coast Guard, in a statement. “It reflects not only the work of Fisheries and Oceans Canada, but also the collaborative efforts of many other government agencies and departments.

“Once again, our message is crystal clear: do not travel to Nova Scotia to illegally fish or export elvers this year, enforcement officers will be waiting for you.”

This seizure was the product of a coordinated operation combining officials from the DFO’s Conservation & Protection Directorate and the National Fisheries Intelligence Service, as well as the CBSA Commercial Operations District and intelligence teams.

The federal government banned the lucrative elver fishery on March 11 following violence and intimidation during last year’s fishing season in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.

Elvers are often flown to Asia and grown to maturity before being sold for food, with mature eels utilized in unagi dishes at sushi restaurants.

The baby eels are valued approximately $5,000 per kilogram, more than lobsters, scallops, or salmon, making them the most valuable fish by weight in Canada.

The DFO announced in March that no elver fishing would take place this year due to safety and conservation concerns. So far, cops have made 149 arrests and seized around 207.7 kg of elvers.

According to federal data, 149 people have been arrested for elver-related crimes this year, with approximately 208 kilos recovered.

Elvers, the fascinating baby eels

Elvers are tiny, transparent young eels that migrate from the ocean into freshwater rivers and streams. These little snake-like organisms make an astonishing journey, swimming thousands of miles to their destination. Elvers perform an important role in the life cycle of eels, eventually maturing into the adult eels we know.

Their migration is a spectacular natural spectacle. Elvers crawl in large groups upstream, overcoming barriers such as waterfalls and dams. Once in freshwater, they will mature for years before returning to the sea to breed and repeat the cycle. Elvers face numerous dangers, including habitat loss and over fishing, making conservation efforts critical for these extraordinary migratory.

News

CNN Pay Tribute to Alice Stewart: A Very Special Woman Dead at 58

Published

23 hours ago

2024-05-18

Geoff Thomas

Alice Stewart, a longtime political strategist and CNN political pundit who worked on multiple Republican presidential campaigns, has died. She was 58. CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer joins Jessica Dean to reflect on Stewart as a friend and coworker.

According to law enforcement officials, Stewart’s body was discovered outside in the Belle View community of northern Virginia early Saturday morning. There is no indication of foul play, and officers assume a medical emergency occurred.

“Alice was a very dear friend and colleague to all of us at CNN,” CNN’s CEO Mark Thompson wrote in an email to employees Saturday. “A political veteran and Emmy Award-winning journalist who brought an exceptional spark to CNN’s coverage, known throughout our bureaus not only for her political acumen, but also for her unfailing kindness. Our emotions are heavy as we lament such a great loss.”

Alice Stewart was born March 11, 1966, in Atlanta.

Stewart began her career as a local reporter and producer in Georgia before relocating to Little Rock, Arkansas, to become a news anchor, she told Harvard International Review. She went on to work as the communications director for then-Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee before taking on a similar role for his presidential campaign in 2008.

She previously worked as the communications director for former Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann’s 2012 Republican presidential campaign, as well as former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, a former CNN analyst. Stewart most recently served as the communications director for Texas Sen. Ted Cruz’s 2016 GOP campaign.

“Alice was wonderful, talented, and a dear friend,” Cruz wrote in a post on X. “She lived every day to the fullest, and she will be deeply missed.”

CNN hired Stewart as a political pundit ahead of the 2016 election, and she appeared on “The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer” as recently as Friday to provide insight on the day’s political headlines.

“We always invited her to come on my show because we knew we would be a little bit smarter at the end of that conversation,” Blitzer stated to Jessica Dean on “CNN Newsroom.” “She helped our viewers better appreciate what was going on and that’s why we will miss her so much.”