We need to fundamentally change how capitalism works, in part by recognizing intangible assets like human and natural capital
The COVID-19 crisis is less than a month old and as necessary steps are taken to mitigate the pandemic, another larger and much more dangerous crisis is looming. Should the medical shutdown extend into the early summer, what might the economic consequences be? The answer is a lot of short-term pain with a distant possibility…
The battle for the values it was fought for – the defense of justice, rights and freedoms – never ceases
In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row. It was at the funeral of his close friend and comrade Alexis Helmer that Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae was first moved to write his (now famous) poem. At the time of writing he was physically and mentally exhausted, resting in the back of…
Trudeau is just the man to heal the wounds. After all, he’s been dressing up and imitating so many different cultures that he identifies with everybody
“Hey, buddy,” Chuck smiled as he leaned across the fence, “you’re goanna find this hard to believe, but I’m beginning to feel sorry for your boy Justin. I mean, the whole world’s jumping on his bones over this black-face thing. “Cripes,” he continued, “even that disgusting Jeffery Epstein is getting better press than your man.”…
In my youth, I was embarrassed by Canada’s (seemingly) anachronistic constitutional monarchy. Why must we have a Queen, I raged? She doesn’t even live in our country. Why can’t we be a republic, like the United States? It wasn’t until recently that I began to question this view. Looking south of the border, I’m reminded…
There are ways to reorganize some of our basic services, and we can rev up a new research-and-development engine of growth
During an early-morning chat over the fence, Chuck seemed more subdued than usual. “Just read the blue-ribbon panel’s report on Alberta’s finances,” he moaned, referencing the provincial-government-commissioned report led by former Saskatchewan finance minister Janice MacKinnon, “and it’s bad. We’re in debt up to our necks, the oil business is up the tubes and after…
If I were king of Alberta, I’d instruct ATB to use its credit reserves to start buying up Alberta debt on the bond markets
“It keeps getting worse, buddy,” proclaimed Chuck from across the garden fence. “Four years of socialist rule and we’re heading for debtor’s prison. Thank God the PCs are back in.” “They’re not Progressive Conservatives anymore,” I retorted, “they’re UCPs – United Conservatives – and exaggerating the debt is what conservative Conservatives do, it’s called austerity…
Too many valuable assets never get identified, measured or capitalized on a company’s financial statement. Those include workforce and corporate reputation
I remember it well: the CEO of the company stood before the cheery assembly of wide-eyed employees brandishing a newly-released report and declaring, “This is the start of our next great journey together, building a more sustainable company and a better, more sustainable, future.” I then followed the CEO and his team to their top…
It is time for conventional banking institutions to enter the 21st century
I once chatted with a group of technology specialists and one of them asked an important question: “I know what intellectual property is, but what’s an intellectual asset?” It seemed to me that this is the most important concept in the modern world of tech, for (presently invisible) assets are the missing link in creating…
C’mon Canadians, break out of the grim consensus, do your homework and invest your TSFA in the Canadian economy. The banks won't
The great Canadian experiment Justin Trudeau represents is struggling. It seems our very Canadian desire for consensus and safety are undermining the prosperity upon which all our other virtues depend. The desire for consensus – worthy in its own right – seems to be undermining the ancient principle of private property. For centuries, the norm…
The rise of angry populism has illustrated one critical truth – CEOs and other business leaders need to align their actions with the greater good
The most common criticism of capitalism is that it has no history of working for the benefit of society as a whole. You may be surprised to learn that major schools of thought believe this is a virtue, not a fault of capitalism. If you had asked the late Prof. Milton Friedman, former head of…
My good friend Chuck came by the other day and dropped a bomb. "I finally agree with you, we're screwed, and those damn economists are to blame!" "Well", I smiled, "I've been saying that for years, but a true-blue conservative like you ... what changed your mind?" "Look around man ... the economy is flat…
The author of A 21st Century Economics for the People of a Living Earth, is convinced that we’re threatened … but not doomed.
Are homo sapiens so ignorant, greedy and short-sighted that they will blindly jump into the abyss? As a former geologist, I can tell you that on present form (exponential population growth, rapid species expansion into all corners of the globe, etc.), humanity is in the footsteps of almost every other dominant-species mass extinction in Earth’s…
Blame free-market globalization, and the accompanying wage stagnation and declines in middle-class living standards
Even Donald Trump’s most ardent supporters admit that he's impulsive and about as presidential as a bull in a China shop. In normal times, Trump would never have been nominated by the Republican Party and would certainly not have been elected president of the United States. But these aren't normal times. Far from it. After…
Canadians’ savings are sheltered and foreign investors are reluctant. Laundered money fills a crucial investment gap
You could make a case that in the absence of illegal laundered money, there would be almost no risk investment capital in Canada. The problem with laundered money is huge. Recent estimates put the value of laundered money in Canada at $46.7 billion; other more realistic estimates have it in the range of $130 billion.…
The shocking rise of identity politics has shattered social unity, which seems to be unraveling like a cheap carpet. And that led to self-centred white identity
Jesus said it first but Abraham Lincoln said it best: “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” We live in divisive times, with multiple challenges. But the greatest threat to our civilization is not climate change (as damaging as that may be), nor is it growing inequality or reconciliation with Indigenous peoples. The astonishing divide…