FROLITICKS

Satirical commentary on Canadian and American current political issues

Aug 31

Why Urban Politics At Times Appears To Be More Important Than Even National Politics

by bcurry

Think about it.  How many things that your local government looks after affect city dwellers on a daily basis?  Sometimes they may seem fairly mundane, but there is little doubt that they have a direct impact on us.  These include things that have to do with schools, public transit, roads, sewer and water systems, property taxes, urban waste disposal, policing and crime, medical facilities, first responders, etc., etc.  Often local issues far outweigh even those issues under review at the national level, which can seem to be very distant and not always of any direct import to us.

We tend to put more trust in our local leaders, who generally are members of our communities and are easier to contact than one’s national government representatives.  When something is a problem locally, municipal council representatives and urban administrators normally can be more easily accessed in order to file a complaint or raise an issue.  Moreover, this ready access implies that one can trust local officials to respond to our needs and thus are more trustworthy.

However, this level of trust has been somewhat damaged in recent years.  Much of this has to do with the rapid development that most urban centers are experiencing; be it with respect to housing, urban transit, infrastructure, green spaces, and other local developments.  As a result, there is a large amount of possible profits to be made by developers.  This is particularly true in California where a real estate boom drove political corruption, particularly in Los Angeles.  Jose Huizar, a member of City Council had gained control of the influential committee that approves multimillion-dollar commercial development projects across the city.  Reportedly, F.B.I. agents caught him accepting $1.8 million worth of casino chips, luxury hotel stays, prostitutes and a liquor box full of cash from Chinese developers.  As reported by the New York Times, he will become the third recent Los Angeles City Council member to go down as part of corruption investigations. This is part of a much larger circle of staff aides, fund-raisers, political consultants and real estate developers who have been charged in what federal authorities called an “extraordinary” recent wave of bribery and influence-peddling across California .  It is also reported that over the last 10 years, 576 public officials in California have been convicted on federal corruption and racketeering charges, including in San Francisco, South Gate, Bell, Lynwood and Vernon.

Why is it taking so long to uncover such corruption?  Part of the answer may lie in the fact that fewer smaller cities and towns have local reliable media sources such as newspapers and radio stations.  In larger centers, cutbacks in local reporting capabilities have led to a decline in investigative reporting.  In addition, you may have large immigrant populations, largely marginalized communities that do not have the resources to watch their politicians closely.  Increasingly, we have seen the need to have independent auditors to oversee the budgets and financial activities of municipal governments.  Their duties are similar to what one sees at the state, provincial and national levels.  In the U.S., unlike in Canada, municipal politics often involves political parties, Democrats or Republicans.  When a political party controls councils for a lengthy period and enjoys uncontested power, there’s appears to be no real penalty for stepping over ethical or legal lines.

Unfortunately, corruption is most often discovered through more indirect means or third-party observation, particularly when it comes to influence-peddling.  For the most part, representatives in municipal government tend to be trustworthy.  However, the evidence has shown that some developers and businesses are prone to offering certain incentives to local officials in order to influence their choices for major developments and services.  This is why it is so important to have independent oversight of matters related to urban policies, just as it is for those in higher levels of government.  Without it, one risks the possibility of inappropriate decisions being made that will affect all of us locally.  Given the number of critical services delivered locally, city governments do indeed have a good deal of responsibility and accountability.

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Aug 22

American Public Schools Are Failing Minority Students

by bcurry

A recent study out of Stanford University addressed the question of alternatives to affirmative action programs in colleges which were banned by the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in 2023.  The study found that a total of only about 13 percent of students in the admitted class at a group of colleges studied were Black or Hispanic.  For context, Americans of high-school-graduation age today are about 38 percent Black or Hispanic.  In addition they noted that SAT scores often continued to be used as a simplified measure of academic merit.  This was despite the fact that test scores fell out of favour with many colleges during the pandemic.  However, several of the most selective schools, such as M.I.T. have recently returned to them.  Of course, higher income families can afford to have their children tutored in how to pass a SAT itself.

Let’s face it, low-income Black and Hispanic students are more likely than low-income white and Asian students to live in high-poverty neighbourhoods and attend high-poverty schools.  College admissions officials know that Black and Hispanic students are less likely to attend high schools where subjects like calculus, physics and computer science are taught.  Thus, limiting their ability and chances to be admitted into important disciplines such as science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

Now we are seeing the impact of the loss of affirmative programs, which no doubt previously benefited Black and Hispanic students.  The Washington Post reported in July 2024 that many universities are abandoning race-conscious scholarships worth millions.  As a result of the Supreme Court’s decision, they are forced to consider possible legal consequences in favouring any particular racial group.  Instead, college administrations are looking at possible alternatives to insure greater diversity on their campuses and provide some forms of income support to minorities.

The negative impact has been substantial.  For example, the New York Times reported in August that at M.I.T., Black, Hispanic, Native American and Pacific Islander student enrollment for the incoming class of 2028 dropped sharply after the affirmative action ban.  Their enrollment represented 16 percent of all M.I.T. students compared with a baseline of about 25 percent of undergraduate students in recent years. The comparison to the class of 2027 was also dramatic. The percentage of Black students enrolled dropped to 5 percent from 15 percent, and the percentage of Hispanic and Latino students dropped to 11 percent from 16 percent.  White students made up 37 percent of the new class, compared with 38 percent last year.  On the other hand, the percentage of Asian American students in the class jumped to 47 percent from 40 percent.  This is very likely the result of Asian American students having better access to STEM programs in secondary schools.  As well, Asian American students score higher on SAT
tests than other minority groups, especially Black students who tend on average to score much lower on standardized tests.  These results are not happening just at M.I.T., but also at other universities where they banned affirmative action initiatives as far back as the University of California, Los Angeles, in 1996 and the University of Michigan in 2006.  Both saw significant drops in Black student admissions even as the number of college-age Black residents rose in their states.

The inability of minority groups to access higher education without some form of affirmative initiatives has become quite evident.  Much of the problem lies with the poor quality of primary and secondary education available to low-income neighbourhoods, often populated by minority families.  The way in which schools are locally and state funded has to change in order to offer more standardized and equitable education opportunities.  In the above noted New York Times article, Justin Driver, a professor at Yale Law School, was quoted as saying that the decline in Black enrolment was “as depressing as it is predictable,” with far-reaching consequences. “A paucity of Black students at the nation’s foremost colleges will ultimately have effects on the nation itself,” he said, adding, “What begins on college campuses will ultimately affect the nation as a whole, in every sector of the nation, from governmental leaders to academic leaders to business leaders.”

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Aug 12

The Comedy Hour In American Politics

by bcurry

Let’s get serious.  Anyone watching the American political scene now must be scratching their heads!  Since President Biden stepped aside and Kamala Harris became the Democrat’s presidential candidate, a relatively chaotic situation has emerged.  Donald Trump and J.D. Vance have completely gone off the rails.  In an obvious defensive posture, their attacks on both Harris and her V.P. selection, Tim Walz, have become ludicrous.  Any outside observer like myself can only laugh at some of the things emerging from the two Republican candidates.  Nothing really surprising about Trump and mini-Trump Vance!  Their accusations should become good fodder for the likes of Saturday Night Live.  Moreover, thankfully we have nothing comparable in Canada
at this time.

It all began with Trump questioning whether Harris is actually Black.  Of course, he had originally questioned whether or not former President Obama was actually born in the U.S. Vance then attacks Time Walz over his twenty-four years of military service.  Since when does one veteran attack another veteran over his service to the country?  Then you have Trump declaring that Harris in not “intelligent” enough to run the country.  As if Trump should talk about someone’s intelligence!  Vance’s comments suggesting that Democrat’s are “anti-child” tells one more about his state of mind than anything else.  Expect more name-calling and nonsense from both Trump and Vance.

The fact of the matter is that Kamala Harris has demonstrated that she can be a good campaigner.  She has reinvigorated the Democratic Party and now has a great start to the finish, which the polls and the huge increase in campaign donations have demonstrated.  The emergence of Harris is just what the U.S. presidential campaign needed.  Her crowds and momentum just keep going.  One now has a real race and a real choice.  Trump is now the old guy running on the same old same old ticket.  I can’t wait until the upcoming debates.  Everything indicates that Trump and his Republican Party are in real trouble.  This will no doubt lead to more of Trump’s extreme rhetoric and more and more lies.  Nothing will surprise me.  Unfortunately, this may no longer be a laughing matter. Too much is at stake for not only the U.S.
and democracy, but also for the rest of the free world.

Donald Trump Elections Presidential Election 2024 Republican Party US US Politics

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Aug 1

In Both Canada and the U.S., Things Will Have to Change in National Postal Services

by bcurry

With the advent of the Internet leading to the ability to communicate via social media and electronic mail, there has been a continuing decline in the need for hand delivered mail provided in both countries by national postal services.  Their entry into more express parcel delivery has also not blossomed as expected given the stiff competition by more cost-effective private sector providers.

In the U.S., the result is that its Postal Service reported a $6.5 billion net loss in the 2023 fiscal year for the 12 months ending Sept. 30, and has said that it will not breakeven next year as first-class mail fell to the lowest volume since 1968.  This deficit is despite the fact that the U.S. Postal Service aggressively hiked stamp prices and is in the middle of a 10-year restructuring plan announced in 2021.  The plan aims to eliminate $160 billion in predicted losses over the next decade, and had initially forecast 2023 as a breakeven year.  However, despite substantial planned reductions in its cost of operations and growth in package revenues, the service is still predicted to not reach breakeven results in 2024.

In Canada, Canada Post lost $748 million in 2023, and now warns of ‘critical’ financial situation. As a Crown corporation, it is projected that Canada Post could run out of money in less than a year, citing declining revenue and stiff competition.  Even with Canada Post’s recently proposed stamp price increase, the Corporation projects that, without additional borrowing and refinancing, it will fall below its required operating and reserve cash requirements by early 2025.  The company noted that the cost of delivering mail and parcels is increasing.  Canada Post has struggled to compete post-pandemic with the rising number of new, privately owned delivery companies that use what it calls a “low-cost labour” business model.  In its most recent report, the Corporation noted that competitors grew rapidly, leaning on their low-cost-labour business models that rely on contracted drivers to provide lower prices, plus greater convenience with evening and weekend service.

If you’re like me, I receive hardly any mail via the postal service.  Like most people, I do my banking on line, read the news on line, have funds directly deposited or withdrawn from my bank account, and correspond most frequently via electronic mail or social media networks.  As for parcels ordered on line (e.g. Amazon), the majority are delivered via private companies.  One can see such delivery vans pretty well every day on our block.

Given this situation and the loss of revenue of both national postal services, one has to ask if mail needs to be delivered directly to homes on a daily basis each week.  Perhaps, one could cut down to every two to three day delivery, accommodating those individuals who continue to rely on written mail for their dealings.  In many communities, notably in rural communities, there will continue to be a need for an outlet provided by a national postal service.  After all, a convenient outlet is most likely the only federal presence in the community.  In urban communities — especially new developments, there are increasingly postal boxes where people can access their mail, thus reducing the need for mail deliverers.  In both cases of Canada and the U.S., traditionally the national postal services were subsidized by the federal governments, and in turn by taxpayers.

Given the rising cost of doing business and declining revenue base, it only makes sense that both national postal services look at creating cost-cutting efficiencies in their operations.  In light of the expected political backlash, such a move will no doubt be tough for both federal governments to initiate.  However, it now seems like they won’t have much choice.

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Jul 21

Concerns Over Refugee Flows Into the U.S. Are Decades in the Making

by bcurry

The current issues surrounding the influx of refugees over the Mexican-U.S. border have been decades in the making.  It doesn’t matter whether it was a Democratic or Republican administration, American policies and initiatives have created the past and current issues surrounding refugees and so-called illegals, particularly from Central American countries.  Anyone who would like to examine an excellent historical accounting of these policies should read a 2024 book by Jonathan Blitzer entitled: “Everyone Who Is Gone Is Here (The United States, Central America, and The Making of a Crisis)”.  Mr. Blitzer is a well known staff writer at The New Yorker.  He describes not only past U.S. policies supporting autocrats and military regimes in countries such as El Salvador and Guatemala, but he also relates stories which put a face on several migrants.

He noted as follows: “From the 1980s to the early 2000s, the story of the southern border was about the United States and Mexico.  At the time, migrants entering the US tended to be single Mexican men looking for work.  But around 2014, a different population started to arrive on a scale Americans had never before seen.  These were children and families from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras — traveling north to seek asylum.  In just about every respect, the US was unprepared for this shift.”

Notably, each of the last three American presidents have had to deal with a major humanitarian emergency at the border, while also deepening involvement in two major civil wars in Central America, often in the name of fighting communism as alluded to by President Ronald Reagan back in the early 1980s.  While rebels in these countries were fighting for people against authoritarian regimes, social injustice and military atrocities, the U.S. was backing those same regimes through military aid and covert operations carried out by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).  Government led violence and massacres became common place, forcing many families and individuals to flee these countries.

Today, one can add Venezuela to the list as the most recent migrants are from that single country.  Many Venezuelans had expected to join large existing communities of their compatriots in places such as Florida and Texas.  How did the governors of some states react to this latest influx?  They simply began a program of busing or flying recent migrants to cities such as New York, Washington, Chicago and Philadelphia.  Interestingly, the destinations were cities run by Democrats who supported the Biden administration’s more open immigration policy. Soon, some neighbourhoods in those cities started looking like Texas border towns.

As reported recently by The New York Times, in two years Texas alone bused more than 119,000 people to Democrat-led cities, shifting both migration patterns and the debate over immigration.  The list of targeted cities apparently just keeps expanding.  As noted, Texas governor Greg Abbott took what otherwise might have been the slow diffusion of migrants from the border to cities and towns across the U.S., and directed it at just a few places.  The White House called it a “political stunt.”  Such expensive state policies of course do nothing to address the real issues as to why people are fleeing these countries in the first place.  The U.S. has to better address the realities of violence, poverty, cartels and the drug trade, and the inability of Mexico itself to deal with the migrant problem, both economically and politically.  The detrimental impact of climate change will only add to the nature of agricultural and industrial decline in that part of the Third World.

What is most disconcerting is that under former President Trump, parents and their children were deliberately split up.  Unfortunately, hundreds of parents who eventually were deported did not even know what had happened to their children in the U.S.  Such separation was inexcusable and inhumane.  Let’s hope that another potential Trump presidency would not introduce such a policy in the name of creating some kind of uncertain deterrence factor. 

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Jul 16

Inordinate Influence of Super PACs in Upcoming U.S. Elections

by bcurry

In my blog back in December 2023, I briefly touched on political action committees (PAC).  Differences in Governance Systems in Canada and the U.S. Do Matter | FROLITICKS  In the United States, a PAC is a tax-exempt organization that pools campaign contributions from members and donates those funds to campaigns for or against candidates.  I also noted at that time that there is no end to the hundreds of millions of dollars that candidates can gather from such sources as PACs and Super PACs.  The term Super PAC has seen occasional use since the 1980s, but now has a well established specific meaning and widespread use derived from federal court decisions made in 2010, including the U.S. Supreme Court.

Now it has been reported that a new group, America PAC, is being funded by several wealthy tech entrepreneurs in Mr. Musk’s social circle and is said to likely draw financial support from the SpaceX and Tesla founder himself.  Apparently, some of Elon Musk’s closest friends have helped start the new Super PAC aimed at helping former President Donald J. Trump in the 2024 presidential race.  In the spring, the New York Times reported that one leader of America PAC had told a friend that the group expected to have a major donor who would make donations in four batches, adding up to as much as $160 million over the course of the Trump’s campaign.

I noted in the above blog that one major difference between Canada and the U.S. is how candidates in the election process are funded.  In the U.S. there is no end to the hundreds of millions of dollars that candidates can gather from such sources as Super PACs.  On the other hand, in Canada contributions to candidates are far less and are regulated by stricter controls enforced by an independent agency, namely Elections Canada. 

Candidates in both dominant American parties have no choice but to depend on PACs to fund their campaigns.  This includes whenever both parties have contested primaries.  Candidates are now forced to compete for the allegiance of a small group of wealthy donors who can write six- and seven-figure checks.  One has to question how much such increasing dependence will influence their positions on policies once elected?  It is also well known that contributions from PACs can also play a major role in influencing sitting members when it comes to ballot initiatives and legislation.  It’s also recognized that many elected politicians have to begin raising campaign funds during their last year in office, often turning again to the previous campaign contributors. 

There are numerous issues before Congress concerning the high tech industry, most notably as to the dominance of several major industry players such as Elon Musk with his evident tilt to the right, especially in commentary on his social media site X.  We know that companies such as Amazon, Google and Meta are facing investigations under the competition rules, while TikTok and X are facing probes intended to force internet companies to more aggressively police their platforms for illicit content.  In addition, both Canada and the U.S. are closely watching the impact of a recent new European Union law meant to encourage competition in the tech industry.  In addition, there are the issues surrounding the use of artificial intelligence (A.I.) within the high tech industry and possible future government legislation.

PACs exist for many other industries/sectors (as reported by the OpenSecrets.org website) and include such big contributors in agribusiness, tobacco, forestry and forest products, communications/electronics, telecom services, construction services, entertainment, defence and defence aerospace, commercial banks, real estate, insurance, health services, and pharmaceutical manufacturing to name but a few.  Obviously, such lobbyists reflect a number of current and important sectors when it comes to government policy reviews and initiatives.  OpenSecrets.org estimated that in the 2018 election the top ten PACs donated a total of over $29 Million (directly, and via their affiliates and subsidiaries) to federal candidates.

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Jul 8

More Than Just the Temperature, Politics Is Getting Very Hot South of the Canadian Border

by bcurry

Canadians are becoming very concerned about what is happening with respect to the upcoming American elections.  Many of us, myself included, closely watched the televised debate between President Biden and former President Trump.  Clearly this was a defining moment for both presidential candidates, and especially for 81 year old Joe Biden.  Almost immediately, one could see that something was not quite right with Biden.  Frankly, it was hard to watch and one could only feel a sense of sorrow and dread for his haltering performance.  Sorry, something is not quite right in the Whitehouse.  All kinds of excuses and denials began to emerge from his immediate family, his Vice-President and several key Democrats.  Now, the pressure is apparently on from several top Democrats to reassess Biden’s continuation of his campaign and leadership.  However, the President insists that he will continue to run and that he is capable of performing the duties of the most important leader of the Western world.

So where does that leave us?  The U.S. is Canada’s largest trading partner and closest ally without doubt.  The prospect of another presidency under Donald Trump has major implications for our relationship, especially in the domestic and international settings.  Given Trump’s campaign promises, nothing that would result has much benefit when looking at future U.S.-Canada relations.  No, this is not an exaggeration!  Right now, the Canadian government is closely examining each and every statement released by Trump.  Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who is seriously lagging in Canadian polls, may even use the possibility of a future Trump administration to suggest that he is most qualified to confront Trump on matters of trade and defence.  Remember that Canada had to fight tooth and nail to get the Americans to agree to Canada’s new trade agreement with the U.S. and Mexico — the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement or USMCA — back in 2018.  There are some experts who claim that Canada lost out in agreeing to the USMCA, especially with respect to each country’s monetary and exchange rate policies and their trade in autos.  One has to wonder if Trump will push to reopen the USMCA to the detriment of the Canadian economy?  More tariffs anyone!

Between now and the November elections, a lot of things can happen.  However, time is running out for the Democrats.  Like a significant number of American voters, most Canadians believe that President Biden should step aside.  Given his latest public appearances and debate performance, there is a lot of concern about the President’s cognitive capabilities.  Donald Trump and the Republicans will continue to harp on the President’s general health, using it to increase their polling results.  Most observers believe that President Biden’s chances of winning the election are increasingly slim.  More importantly, what will the situation mean for the Democrats in congressional and state gubernatorial elections?  All 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and 34 of the 100 seats in the U.S. Senate will be contested.  Trump may not get the popular vote, but all he needs is a simple majority (270) of the 538 electoral votes to win the election.  At this time, the odds are that he could very well achieve this.

In the still unlikely scenario in which Biden steps down as the nominee, the delegates to the Democratic National Convention in August in Chicago would suddenly be charged with picking a new nominee.  Who that nominee would be is still anyone’s guess.  There is little doubt that an intense and hot debate is going on among Democrats behind the scene.  The heat keeps mounting every day and President Biden must be feeling it right now.  To my knowledge, at no time in the history of United States has such a development occurred between the two major parties!  With all the ongoing speculation, mainstream and social media are having a field day.  When it comes to the divisive nature of this issue for the Democratic Party, no one can really comprehend where it’s going at this time.  I, like many Canadians, hope that the Party can resolve the issue prior to the Convention.  Personally, the situation makes it very difficult to support President Biden’s bid for a second term in office.  The world is watching, including our adversaries.

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Jun 24

What Millennials And Generation Z Have In Common

by bcurry

Over the last decade, a lot has been written about today’s younger generation, most notably the so-called millennials and Gen Zers.  As you are aware, millennials are between 28 and 43, and Gen Z generally refers to those ages 12 to 27.  Some observers believe that millennials had it bad financially, but Gen Z may have it even worse.  Millennials did go through two recessions, including the Great Recession of 2008.  Many struggled to get jobs, particularly following the Great Recession, when the nation’s unemployment rate hovered around 10 percent for over a year. Their wages took a massive hit, too.  On average, millennials lost about 13 percent of their earnings between 2007 and 2017.  Gen Z has gone through the recent pandemic, and came out seeing a totally different labour market, especially for recent college graduates.  Both the millennials and Gen Zers have faced tough labour market conditions, making it harder to get good paying jobs, especially among blue-collar workers.  Now, they are facing ever increasing debt loads and tough housing costs, making it difficult to purchase that important first home.  Indeed, Gen Z is the first generation where recent college grads are more likely to be unemployed than the general population.  In addition, both groups left college with significant student loan debts.

Why is this scenario important?   First of all, millennials were the largest generation group in the U.S.
in 2023, with an estimated population of 72.7 million.  Millennials recently surpassed Baby Boomers as the biggest group, and they will continue to be a major part of the population for many years.  Add in Gen Zers, who made up 61.3 million of the American population, these two groups now represent a major, if not the biggest voting block in the U.S. They will play a key role in the upcoming American elections next November, something both the Democrats and Republicans are well aware of.

Can President Biden appeal to the youth vote?  Biden and the Democrats have relied heavily on their vote in the past.  However, with the current inflationary economy and difficult employment situation, I wouldn’t count on it.  Since they may not necessarily favour former President Trump, they may instead simply decide not to vote.  Such an outcome would have a major impact on both political parties.  Among women in both groups, there may be more hope for the Democrats in light of the Republican stance on abortion, particularly in Republican led states.  This has yet to be seen.

Although Trump’s popularity among young adults, aged 18 to 34, plummeted as he tried to overturn the 2020 election, Gallup’s 2023 surveys of U.S. adults indicated that his popularity has rebounded since.  Forty-two percent of young adults saw him favourably in October 2020, but that dropped to 28 percent in January 2021.  His favorability bounced back to 42 percent by December 2023, especially among young Hispanics and Blacks.  Younger voters, under the age of 30, feel worse about the economy than older cohorts.  Not surprisingly, in the latest New York Times/Sienna poll, for example, Black voters feel as bad about the economy as their white counterparts and Latino voters feel even worse.  Will his recent conviction have an impact?

What is also interesting is the fact that following the January 6, 2021 assault on the Hill, Trump’s popularity took a significant dip among younger voters.  However, the improvement in Trump’s favorability now can be partly attributed to the fading memories of January 6 and the tumultuous year that was 2020.  As in the case of the last election, social media will once again play a significant role in influencing the views of younger voters more than any other age group.  The question becomes whether younger voters will believe everything posted on social media or will also look to main stream media sources for their information?

There is little doubt that bread and butter issues will dominate the electoral scene this year more than any other issue.  How millennials and Gen Zers view the economic platforms of both political parties will more than likely determine the final outcome of the election.  With so much in common, both parties will have to take major steps to win over their votes.

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Jun 12

Is Inflation On The Way Down?

by bcurry

This past week, both the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and Statistics Canada indicated that the general inflation rate trend is gradually going down.  As a result, the Bank of Canada reduced its central bank rate by a quarter of a point.  However, such an interest rate reduction will not immediately affect mortgage and loan rates offered by the banks and other financial institutions.  Also, for the average American and Canadian, the cost of living is still high as demonstrated by food prices and the costs of homes or rents in urban centers.  These costs do not necessarily have as much to do with inflation as they do with regards to other domestic issues and foreign markets.  For this reason, there is little likelihood that food costs, rents and housing costs will decline in the near future.  There is a general lack of affordable housing across both countries and the impact of climate change is already being felt in the agriculture sector.  We will have to wait to see what the U.S. Federal Reserve will do with respect to the current central bank rate.  With inflation sticking at a level above their 2% target, they’re apparently downgrading their outlook for interest rate cuts.

Politically, this situation does not bear well for the governing parties in both countries.  The economy, and especially inflation and high interest rates, is still the priority concern for most voters.  Remember the old adage: “It’s the economy stupid”.  In light of the coming American elections next November, the possibility of major economic improvements is increasingly unlikely every day.  The same can be said for the Canada’s federal government and its ruling Liberal Party under Justin Trudeau, which could call an election next year. 

In general, the current economy has also particularly hurt younger voters, such as Generation Z and the Millennials.  They have been especially affected by the lack of affordable housing and the continuing difficulties surrounding the cost of living and failure of wages to keep up with rising costs.  Their votes in coming elections will be very important and may very well determine which parties are successful in their bids to govern.

Both the Federal Reserve and Bank of Canada have admitted that maintaining very low interest rates over the last decade has contributed to the current economic dilemma.  For example, it created a major imbalance in how the mortgage markets operate, encouraging many people to overspend and helping to cause incredible rising costs in housing.  In addition, new housing developments could not keep up with the created demand.  As a result of the pandemic, there was also a substantial increase in construction costs due to the resulting scarcity of materials.  It has taken some time for the markets to rebound and for supply chains to catch up to the subsequent demands.

While the markets did well during the pandemic and continue to do well, this primarily benefited the large corporate sector and shareholders, but not average Americans and Canadians.  Many of them suffered wage and job losses during the pandemic, and many have not recuperated those losses after the pandemic.  The pandemic significantly altered our economies and our lives.  The consequences will be around for years to come.  Just look at subsequent changes to our labour markets.

Yes, it would appear that the inflation rate is slowly on the way down.  However, for the existing political parties it may be too little and too late.  For the average person, the damage has already been done, resulting in a great deal of anger, frustration and increasing division in political views.  There is little doubt that both the Federal Reserve and Bank of Canada will continue to be cautious in how they handle the central bank rates.  Fearing any potential new inflationary pressures on the economy, don’t expect any major changes in the near future.

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Jun 3

American Extremist Right-Wing Groups Have Gone Just Too Far

by bcurry

What do the Catholic Charities, the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, the Jewish Family Service and Lutheran Immigrant and Refugee Service (now called Global Refuge) have in common.  They are American charities that have helped new immigrants and refugees in numerous ways, but are now being threatened and under attack by extremist right-wing factions in the U.S.

As noted by the New York Times: “For decades, Catholic Charities and other faith-based organizations have played a crucial role helping federal authorities and local governments manage influxes of migrants. Their work has been funded with bipartisan support in Congress, even through the presidency of Donald J. Trump, who often vilified immigrants.”

These extremist groups have accused non-profit charities of flying migrants all over the country, profiting from illegal operations, trafficking women and children while holding them prisoner in their shelters, and facilitating migrant smuggling.  All ludicrous accusations to say the least! 

Via social media, extremists and their leaders are putting out all kinds of disinformation to their followers.  For his part Steve Bannon, the former White House strategist, called Catholic, Lutheran and Jewish groups that help immigrants “demons” and “anti-American.”  The dangers are clear.  Many charity members are now literally being threatened and harassed, particularly after the names and phone numbers of staff members at shelters are being released via social media and other means.  On occasion, volunteers at the facilities have been sent home, and employees who continued to work were advised to keep a low profile.  Increased costly security measures have had to be provided at the shelters themselves for fear of attacks by extremists.

There is something terribly wrong when such well-known and respected charities are demonized in this way, with numerous Republican politicians jumping on the band-wagon.  They are only trying, as supported by their faith and values, to help people, no matter where they came from, what’s their ethnicity and how they arrived in the country.  It is indeed a sad reflection on the divisive nature of the American people views at this time that some could openly support such vicious actions against employees of charitable groups, who in turn are now being routinely targeted.

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