Daily Archives: March 29, 2021

CORPORATE TOTALITARIANISM

I have almost come to believe in the myth of corporate liberalism. And then comes Prof. Mehtas resignation to remind us of the lurking reality of corporate totalitarianism. It seems it never went anywhere. It just dons liberal attire occasionally to brand its products. When it comes to the university, once the educational market is secured, it resumes its predatory habits and a high-cost model of learning is confidently installed in a poor country.

It is possible that my contract may not be renewed at some point in the future. Regardless, my pedagogy is inert to such unannounced threats. Long have I known the nature of institutional cowardice. This is what I expect in the normal course of things, for organised avarice and structural cowardice are ancient cousins.

What has happened does not surprise me in the least. In my Ecosophy classes, we learn that the globalised corporate market, with the devastating technologies at its disposal, is the most acute threat to the health and survival of humanity on earth.

The economic anthropologist Karl Polanyi wrote three generations ago that markets traditionally embedded in human cultures are healthy. But disembedded markets cause pathological mayhem and will ultimately demolish the very substance of human society and nature. Markets in our world today are not merely disembedded; they are controlled almost entirely by insatiable corporations, padlocked in a global system of compulsive structural avarice.

The greatest lie of our time is the myth of consumer sovereignty that is taught to innocent economics undergraduates from the first day at college. The thinly disguised reality of the world is what I like to call investor sovereignty. Ignore the economists. Think Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos. Not the small thela-wallahs wife managing a shoestring family budget.

In such a global environment, the university, like much else, is today under siege from corporations the world over. The viral spread of the internet - especially booming in the pandemic-afflicted age of zoom - may actually put an end to it altogether in some not-so-distant future. Or transform its character to such a degree that only the servile arts of technical training (in engineering or medicine, for instance) will be taught, not the pretentious liberal arts. It would be in the fitness of things for the death of the humanities to presage the end of humanity itself.

With the Bengal elections looming, it is perhaps appropriate to remember Tagore, especially since he is being invoked by all the political parties in the fray. We also study him closely in Ecosophy, especially his interpretation of the ancient Upanishads. While setting up Vishwabharati University a century ago in the hope of reviving Indian and Asian cultures, he said:

Before Asia is in a position to co-operate with the culture of Europe, she must base her own structure on a synthesis of all the different cultures which she has. When, taking her stand on such a culture, she turns toward the West, she will take, with a confident sense of mental freedom, her own view of truth, from her own vantage-ground, and open a new vista of thought to the world. Otherwise, she will allow her priceless inheritance to crumble into dust, and, trying to replace it clumsily with feeble imitations of the West, make herself superfluous, cheap and ludicrous. If she thus loses her individuality and her specific power to exist, will it in the least help the rest of the world? Will not her terrible bankruptcy involve also the Western mind? If the whole world grows at last into an exaggerated West, then such an illimitable parody of the modern age will die, crushed beneath its own absurdity.

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Ashoka University, a despotic democracy and servitude of the quiet kind - National Herald

Environmental collapse

Weve been wondering if Iain Rankin is serious about the environment. Is he really going to drag Nova Scotia into the contemporary world? Will he help us break our provinces embarrassing addictions to 20th-century anachronisms, like filthy coal, clearcuts and forest monoculture? Will he start making the things of the future, or will we continue to throw bad money and good public land at billionaires, who will continue to build elite golf courses and ant-farm housing developments for the dying society that loves them?

It didnt take long and it didnt take much to find out. Just some ignorant words about environmental legislation, bad old Halifax, and the evil of protecting nature all published in the form of an ad in this newspaper on March 20.

Rankins Astroturf environmentalism, a faux-green substitute for the real thing, was too puny to withstand a single rhetorical challenge, and so he gutted his own Biodiversity Act.

So here we are again, pre-modernitys last holdouts, pathetically pretending that we belong within the Western democratic community, when actually we deserve our laggard reputation as North American sub-hillbillies, in the recent words of columnist Ralph Surette.

Joe Tucker, Musquodoboit Harbour

First, it was the announcement of the Biodiversity Act which caught my attention. It seemed like a long-awaited and reasonable bill to introduce when there is so much concern about the health of our forests and the wildlife and plant species that inhabit them. A good starting point for discussion, especially as Iain Rankin based his Liberal leadership campaign on protecting the environment.

I delved into the act a little more and found that it did allow for public discussion before it was to be made law, especially for affected stakeholders i.e., landowners and the general public.

On March 20, I read on back-to-back pages of The Chronicle two paid ads, one promoting the wisdom and benefits of the act, the other forecasting a catastrophe for private landowners if the government got its way. Confusing, indeed.

I was disturbed after finding out that the Concerned Private Landowners Coalition (CPLC), whose website I also delved into perhaps with forest industry priorities at the forefront? received such a massive response to their ad. It was a revelation to read the comments from concerned private landowners who were probably angered and riled up about the government telling them what they could or couldn't do on their properties. I would be interested to know how many of those landowners had actually read the content of the act, as opposed to those whod been completely overwhelmed with concern because of the information and some misinformation presented to them by CPLC.

Then, I heard the act is going to be severely amended. Did I miss the public consultation process, where voices of concern on both sides of the argument could be heard in a more rational and informed way before going forward? Where in the equation stands the Law Amendments Committee, which deals with such issues?

My husband and I own property in HRM and Lunenburg County. We treasure both pieces of land equally, perhaps our Lunenburg property more. We recognize that climate change, invasive species, endangered flora and fauna are real issues. No matter where a Nova Scotian chooses to live, the health of our forests, our lakes and our coastlines are the legacy we leave to future generations.

Perhaps the Biodiversity Act is not perfect, but to hijack it before it has left the starting gate is a travesty. Can we not come together, support its goals, and reach an outcome that our grandchildren might thank us for?

Premier Rankin: listen to all the stakeholders, but dont buckle at the first sign of dissent, especially when it appears to be a knee-jerk reaction to what could be interpreted as a fear-mongering tactic engineered by one lobby group. Its a worrisome sign when we havent even got around to implementing the Lahey report yet.

P.S. I am a member of the Liberal Party of Nova Scotia.

Vivien Blamire, Dartmouth

The recent outrage and shock over the watering down of the revised Biodiversity Act highlights an ongoing reality that has informed resource policy in Canada since the country's inception. We think that because we live in a democracy that in some vague way, resource policy is open to democratic input. This has never been the case.

Resource policy is controlled by a tight network of industrial interests and their representatives in government departments who exercise jurisdictional control over the policy-making process. Any new policy must take into account past agreements, and therefore resource decision-making has been as seen as reactive and incremental.

For there to be any radical shift in policy direction, as the Lahey report calls for in forestry practices, it is necessary to change the makeup of these networks. Over the last 50 years, environmental groups have tried to break open these networks by demanding citizen input into the policy process, but as we have seen on so many occasions, this input is largely ignored in the final policy outcomes, although court-imposed duty to consult requirements have led to some successes for Indigenous groups, as well as court decisions regarding an Aboriginal moderate livelihood in the fishery.

As political economy professorHarold Innis made clear, the staples economy has shaped the very structure of Canada. The conversion of resources into products that create wealth is the reason government departments exist. This was seen to serve Canada well until environmental problems generated increased concern over a range of issues.

So we are in a moment now where citizens no longer trust the government to make decisions behind closed doors because there is the perception that they have fled into the arms of large corporate interests.

What is also clear is that this democratic input into policy-making is largely ignored. For there to be real change in forestry management practices in Nova Scotia, there needs to be a radical restructuring of who is at the table when the real decisions get made. The voices that had to resort to a logging road blockade in Digby County need to enter the halls of power if there is to be significant change in how decisions get made.

Ray Rogers, Sable River

Times are changing. It used to be that the scariest thing progressives could be called was tree huggers. The prevailing sentiment was to never, ever let tree huggers stop economic progress at any cost. Now the net is widening. In their opposition to Bill 4, the Biodiversity Act, the Concerned Private Landowner Coalition warns that this legislation puts control of private lands in the hands of Halifax activists and politicians. Its bad enough to have to cope with rural activists, but those from Halifax? Apparently, those are scary folks, indeed.

One wonders. Would those activists be the same ones who have private woodlots of their own in many instances? The same ones who voted for newly selected Premier Iain Rankin because he promised to be much more environmentally sensitive than recent governments of all stripes? Would these be the same activists who recognize that Nova Scotias best hope by far is to develop a niche green economy, for the first time ever utilizing our natural resources and natural advantages in a sustainable model for this underperforming coastal province?

If those are the activists we are talking about, perhaps its time we listened to them before it is too late .

Stewart Lamont, Tangier

Re: N.S. Liberals fold under pressure, gut their own biodiversity bill.

Jim Viberts March 25 column comes right out of the environmentalists handbook. Talk about misinformation!

If you go on these environmentalists websites, you see where he got his information. The Biodiversity Act is unnecessary and will be used by the anti-forestry, anti-mining and anti-jobs groups for years to come. The propaganda comes from these well-funded environmental groups and yes, they have been trying to turn Nova Scotia into one big park for decades. One of these groups has 29 full-time paid employees. Their ad on March 20 took up a full page. They are not poor.

Ken Mallett, Wellington (president, Nova Scotia Prospectors Association)

Contrary to the propaganda put out by industrial forestry outfits, rural Nova Scotia is full of people who dont appreciate the pillage of our forests for the profit of a few mills. We know from our neighbours that contractors working in the woods are kept on such razor-thin margins by those mills that clearcutting is the only way they can make money. High volume/low value harvesting is a race to the bottom. We are almost there.

A few of us rural activists, sickened by the planned destruction of forests in habitat necessary to the endangered mainland moose, chose to block some logging roads in Digby County last fall.

Not one of the nine people arrested for refusing to lift our blockade is from Halifax. We live and own land in Yarmouth, Digby, Annapolis and Kings counties.

Furthermore, none of the people who found their way on bumpy logging roads to our encampment to express their support on Nov. 29 came from Halifax. Not one. How do we know? Because COVID regulations at that time restricted people from travelling from the Central Zone. The 50-plus people who joined us that day all came from the Western Zone.

Over the eight weeks that we maintained those blockades, numerous hunters and guides stopped by. We drank coffee and chatted. Conversation would turn to how much they hated all the clearcutting that was driving out wildlife and ruining places they had loved from childhood. At some point, every one of them said: I 100 per cent support you. So much for Halifax activists being the only ones who care about biodiversity.

Nina Newington, Mount Hanley

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VOICE OF THE PEOPLE March 27, 2021 - TheChronicleHerald.ca

The Whitehorse Centre riding encompasses downtown, from the dam on the Yukon River in the south to the edges of the industrial district in the north. About 3,000 people live downtown, according to the Yukon Bureau of Statistics 2020 population report.

Downtowns residential district contains a combination of old and new homes, with few higher-density apartment buildings. The majority of the citys hotels and restaurants are in the downtown core, as well as the Whitehorse Emergency Shelter.

The riding has been represented by an NDP MLA since its inception in 1992. Liz Hanson, MLA and former NDP leader, has been the Whitehorse Centre MLA since 2010.

She won her seat with 44, 62 and 51 per cent of the vote in the last three elections. Hanson retired from politics this year. Three new candidates are running in the 2021 election. They have been profiled here in alphabetical order.

Dan Curtis Yukon Liberal Party

Dan Curtis has been the mayor of Whitehorse since 2012, during which time he prioritized collaboration with First Nations, as well as the territorial and federal governments.

He hopes to bring that collaborative spirit into a new position as the Liberal MLA for Whitehorse Centre.

Something that I want to bring to the table is, really, a good working relationship with everyone, Curtis said. I have a good track record of that team-building, and working together, and having that one-government approach of respectful dialogue and compromise.

Curtis platform focuses on climate change and affordable housing as key priorities for the downtown community.

I think everyone is concerned about the environment, everyone is concerned about vulnerable people, everyone is concerned about safety, Curtis said.

Curtis worked with both Liberal and Yukon Party governments during his term as mayor, and says the contrast between the two pushed him to join the red team in this election.

I see such a stark contrast of values and the ability to really pull everyone together, Curtis said. I didnt have the same experience in my first four years as mayor, compared to my next four years, so it wasnt very difficult to see that my values line up with the Liberal Party.

Curtis said he wants to utilize territorial and federal funds to update some of downtowns aging infrastructure, and develop better plans for safety at the Whitehorse Emergency Shelter.

I think its a wonderful opportunity to use the skills and knowledge that Ive been afforded during my time as mayor, and Im looking to put some of that into practice, Curtis said.

Eileen Melnychuk Yukon Party

Eileen Melnychuk is an educational assistant and president of the Victoria Faulkner Womens Centre. She also serves on the board of the Whitehorse Community Thrift Store and Volunteer Benevoles Yukon. She has been nominated twice for the citys Volunteer of the Year award.

The fact that Im a born-and-raised Yukoner, I have a really strong, vested interest in the future of Whitehorse and the Yukon, Melnychuk said.

Melnychuk is running on a platform focused on tackling the cost of living, electrical rates, housing and education.

The Yukon Party has some really strong plans to bring affordable land to market, by working hand-in-hand with Yukon First Nations and municipalities, Melnychuk said.

As an educational assistant, Melnychuk is an advocate for better supports in the public school system.

I see, on a daily basis, the needs of our students, and I see that those needs are not being met, Melnychuk said. Melnychuk wants to see stronger mental health support for students and teachers, and a reversal of the recent decision to move special needs students off IEPs.

The Yukon Party candidate is also prioritizing economic diversification, which she says is a strong aspect of the partys platform that will lead the territory out of the pandemic with support for the private sector.

I have seen first-hand the boom-and-bust economy that we have had forever, she said. I think that the Yukon Party has some really solid plans to explore initiatives putting the focus on local technology and local talent With the creativity of Yukoners, theres a real opportunity here to explore.

Emily Tredger Yukon New Democractic Party

Emily Tredger is a speech-language pathologist and the executive director at TeegathaOh Zheh, which supports Yukon residents with disabilities. She is also the president of Queer Yukon. She said that in her work, she often hears of the problems Yukon families face, and that inspired her to run for office.

I really love doing that work, but it was not uncommon for me to call a family and say, Do you want to do some speech therapy? and they would say, Yes, but what we really need is a place to live, Tredger said. As a speech therapist, I couldnt help them with those things like housing and food security.

Tredger hopes to tackle those issues as an elected official. Her platform focuses on housing and mental health support.

Having more affordable housing and better protections for tenants is a really big priority for me, she said, noting the NDPs plan to cap rent increases.

Im also really proud of our plan to have a walk-in mental health clinic I think when youre in crisis, its not a good time to be trying to navigate systems. There are so many barriers to accessing health care, and this is a way that we could really reduce them.

Tredger said the NDPs inclusive mandate inspired her to run for that party.

I knew right away I wanted to be on Kate (White)s team, I have so much faith in her as a leader, and I think a lot of people in the Yukon really connect to her, she said.

I really think that NDP values are what will make the Yukon the best place it can be, for everybody.

Contact Gabrielle Plonka at gabrielle.plonka@yukon-news.com

Election 2021

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Getting to know the candidates in Whitehorse Centre - Yukon News

Its been another fast-paced week of the election campaign.

Nominations closed March 22, with the Green Party running no candidates this time. On Wednesday, an NDP candidate stepped out of the race after some distasteful social media posts from 2019 and 2013 went public. The deadline to step out of the race has now closed, so all candidates are locked in until election day.

Party press conferences did not slow down. Were now at the half-way point. In random order, heres what the parties were saying this week:

Liberals

The Liberals held daily announcements this week, including plans for sport, arts and housing.

Housing has been a big topic this election. The Liberal plan to address the unaffordability issue includes developing and releasing 1,000 new lots in the next five years and working with private sector partnerships to develop new land.

On March 19 the Liberals released their plan for improving healthcare, which recommitted to implementing the 72 recommendations in the Putting People First report, including offsetting the cost of fertility treatments, a bilingual health centre in Whitehorse and building a secure medical unit at Whitehorse General Hospital.

On March 25 they announced they would focus on building a new fieldhouse facility, a new gymnastics facility for the Polarettes Gymnastics Club, aim to host the Canada Winter Games in 2027 and said they would look into bringing varsity sports to Yukon University.

At an infrastructure announcement, the Liberals touted their $2.25 billion five-year capital plan, which was presented this month alongside the budget. Projects included a new school in Whistle Bend, a new recreation centre in Dawson, a new health and wellness centre in Old Crow and a number of new firehall buildings.

The Liberals have also committed to building a new Arts and Heritage Centre in Whitehorse, which would house a permanent art collection and cultural artefacts.

NDP

The NDP announced they would be supporting expectant parents and couples trying to get pregnant with more funding for fertility treatments, midwifery and a birth centre.

Over the weekend the NDP announced they would be putting the back in the Yukon as an official government policy.

On Monday, leader Kate White made an announcement from Riverside Grocery promising an Eat Local Buy Local rebate that would offer a yearly debate for Yukon-based businesses that buy local products.

The NDP also said they plan to help seniors and elders access in-home care and utilize paramedics more widely.

On March 24 the Yukon NDP committed to increasing the minimum wage for workers to $15.20.

In Haines Junction NDP leader Kate White promised to improve life outside of Whitehorse. Promises included a scheduled bus service across the territory, more recreation opportunities for kids, more tablets and computers in schools, better emergency services and equal pay for rural librarians.

The NDP also wants to see rural internet capped at $100 per month. White said the goal is aspirational, and the NDP is confident there are avenues to investigate when they are in government.

Many of the campaign promises aimed at improving life in rural communities hinge on aggressive recruitment of professionals like healthcare providers and mental health counsellors. The party also wants to extend government jobs outside of the capital.

Yukon Party

Last week the Yukon Party came out with plans for green jobs that include green building and retrofits and training for Yukoners to pursue those skills.

The party is also advocating for teachers to receive a tax credit to write-off supplies they buy for work and promised to replace the Ross River School.

The big announcement this week was their answer to the Liberal child care plan. Instead of reducing the cost of registered daycare by up to $700 a month per child, the Yukon Party plan is to provide $500 per child per month to all families with children under the age of five and $100 for children between the ages of five and 10.

Leader Currie Dixon said their plan allows families to decide which childcare options work best for them.

On March 25 the Yukon Party also committed to freezing power rates for two years. When asked about how the party would be able to make up for lost Yukon Energy revenue, Dixon said the government budget would compensate for the shortfall.

The Yukon Party has also committed to building a new gymnastics facility for the Polarettes Gymnastics Club.

The party also came out with a suite of anti-red-tape promises that include examining the regulatory burden on local businesses and minimizing new regulations and administration costs.

Contact Haley Ritchie at haley.ritchie@yukon-news.com

Election 2021

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Housing, families and THE Yukon: Election promises from this week - Yukon News

The council's governance and leadership structures have been challenged in the wake of Operation Aloft

22 Mar 2021, 10:30Sarah Townsend

Government officials are to take over the running of Liverpool City Council amid an ongoing corruption investigation by Merseyside Police, communities secretary Robert Jenrick is expected to announce this week.

Place North West understands that a report into procurement practices within the council, commissioned by central Government at the end of last year, has been completed and given to Liverpool City Council chief executive Tony Reeves and acting Mayor of Liverpool Wendy Simon for review.

The report is to be examined more broadly by the council in the coming days, before secretary of state Jenrick makes an anticipated statement on Wednesday announcing the outcome of the study as tipped by the Daily Telegraph at the weekend.

A Liverpool City Council spokesperson said: The inspection report is due to be published by the Government in the coming days. Until that time, we are unable to comment.

The Government commissioned strategic advisor Max Caller, a former electoral commissioner and chief executive of London boroughs Hackney and Barnet, to produce the report on Liverpool City Council following a string of local scandals including the arrest of former Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson in connection with Merseyside Polices Operation Aloft probe into building and development contracts.

Anderson was arrested on 4 December on suspicion of conspiracy to commit bribery and witness intimidation and was later released on bail. He is currently suspended from the Labour party on unpaid leave and no charges have been brought. The police had arrested 10 other people, including the city councils head of regeneration Nick Kavanagh, in connection with Operation Aloft over the course of the previous 12 months.

Shortly after Andersons arrest, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government sent a letter to Liverpool City Council asking for evidence that the council is now operating properly and in line with its dutygiven the seriousness of the issues.

The council was ordered to disclose by 11 December details of any of its upcoming property development or disposal plans, and its strategy to secure effective governance given the string of high-profile arrests.

Caller, meanwhile, was tasked with examining processes within key departments as well as general auditing and governance at full council level. Jenrick said at the time that given the seriousness of the issues identified through the police investigation, he wanted direct, independent assurance that the council was compliant with all performance measures set by the Government. A deadline of 31 March was set for publication of the report.

Frank McKenna, chief executive of Liverpool business membership organisation Downtown in Business toldPlace North West: Were not 100% sure yet that Whitehall will send in officials though it may continue to view the city council as a bit of a basket case even if it doesnt. I think the handling of the Liverpool mayoral process in recent weeks has not given Whitehall much confidence in how the council runs its processes.

On the plus side, I believe Tony Reeves and his executive will be able to demonstrate that they are turning things around and this will give the Government some cause for optimism. Looking at all the significant development projects planned at present, and the strength of the citys private sector, the latest events are clearly a distraction, and I believe Liverpool can look forward with confidence.

Notably, however, today is the last day of the council-run disciplinary hearing for Kavanagh following his two arrests by Merseyside Police last year, and any decisions and subsequent action taken by Liverpool City Council will be closely scrutinised by Government officials.

It is rare for Whitehall to send in officials to take over the running of a local authority though not unheard of. In 2014, then-communities secretary Eric Pickles ordered a team to go in and manage the finances and management of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets for a two-year period.

A Government-commissioned report by auditor PwC had identified a worrying pattern of divisive community politics and alleged mismanagement of public money by the mayoral administration of Tower Hamlets, and Pickles reportedly took action after failing to receive assurances from the councils leadership that it would take steps to strengthen its governance.

Similar Whitehall intervention measures have been either put in place or threatened at the London Borough of Barnet and at Northampton Council in recent years, amid concern over local finances and leadership.

Separately, Liverpool City Council came under fire at the weekend for the price at which it sold land to a property developer in 2017. Cllr Richard Kemp, leader of Liverpools Liberal Democrats, challenged the council on why it had sold a plot on Norfolk Street to Elliot Group for 925,000, which Elliot had subsequently valued at 5.7m in 2020.

However, the price differential was due to Elliot securing planning consent for the development plot in the interim, which significantly boosted its value, the companys founder Elliot Lawless said in a statement.

Planning gain is a widely-accepted concept in the development industry and, of course, among local authorities, the statement said. On buying the plot, Elliot Group went on to incur significant expenditure to bring forward a planning application.

The price for the site was set by the vendor and the sale process overseen by lawyers from both sides of the transaction.

Liverpool City Council declined to comment.

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Whitehall poised to send in Liverpool takeover squad - Place North West

BJP and Bagga underestimated the emotional pull that the College Street Coffee House as it is known to differentiate it from other branches has exercised over generations of Bengalis. Ever since the Coffee House was set up in 1942 in the vicinity of Calcutta University and Presidency College, it drew passionate youth, students, writers, poets and artists besides activists who all wanted to usher in positive changes. It was always a secular place, embraced fierce debates and claims a galaxy of icons and legends as its patrons.

The heritage building, once home to philosopher and social reformer Keshab Chandra Sen, over the years hosted among others Satyajit Ray, Aparna Sen and Amartya Sen. Before independence it hosted many brainstorming sessions of Indian revolutionaries.

In an interview, celebrated author Sunil Gangopadhyay, who stopped going to the Coffee House because he felt it should be left for the younger lot, recalled, The poets had their own table, the short story writers theirs, and the film-makers their own. Artists Prakash Karmakar and Bikash Bhattacharjee and playwright Mohit Chattopadhyay would be around.

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BJP and Baggas stunt of storming the College Street Coffee House has come back to haunt them - National Herald