Ottawa’s own policies defeat its critical minerals push

Ottawa’s own policies defeat its critical minerals pushTrudeau government policies actively and aggressively discourage strategic minerals development Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recently visited the Saskatchewan Research Council’s experimental rare earth refining facility in Saskatoon to tout his government’s efforts to promote rare earth discovery, development, and extraction, along with the refining advances SRC has achieved. He and his ministers have been ‘talking…

Canada is more socialist than Scandinavian countries

Canada is more socialist than Scandinavian countriesUnlike those in Canada, Nordic ‘progressive’ voters are neither anti-business nor anti-capitalist Proponents of evermore expensive government social programs often point to other nations, usually in Scandinavia, as places Canada should emulate. These advocates call those nations, erroneously, Socialist or Social Democratic. However, they are not. It is important to recognize the difference between a…

A global population of eight billion reason to celebrate

A global population of eight billion reason to celebrateOf course, the usual anti-human crusaders predictably decry this milestone Recently, the United Nations estimated that the population of Planet Earth had reached eight billion souls. Despite the chatter of the highly subsidized climate doomster complex, this is quite an achievement – it certainly indicates that the carrying capacity of our world is much higher…

Canada Pension Plan embraces ESG dogma

And that will hurt your retirement

Canada Pension Plan embraces ESG dogmaThe National Post’s recent Canada Pension Plan investment philosophy profile notes that CPP Investment Board (CCPIB) managers have bought into the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) dogma with it comes to screening potential investments. Adhering to ESG limits when making investment decisions, however, exposes the over 20 million working and retired CPP members to added…

Trudeau is wrong. LNG development is feasible

Canada has to step up to the plate and help its allies

Trudeau is wrong. LNG development is feasibleGerman Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s recent visit to Atlantic Canada was an opportunity for a serious long-term strategy to address several different aims: European Union (EU) energy security, East Coast economic development, Canadian energy industry growth (and higher federal tax revenue), and the likely-alarmist crusade to lower carbon dioxide emissions. The result of his visit, unfortunately,…

The marginal returns of ESG investing hurt us all

The first problem with ESG is the lack of firm, objective, and uniform standards, criteria and targets

The marginal returns of ESG investing hurt us allThe adoption of environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards by institutional investors is ultimately a form of woke and green social credit scoring for corporations. It is meant to cajole, if not compel, investible companies to adhere to rigid rules and criteria established by investors or outside entities, such as consultants, to satisfy so-called climate…

How to ensure Saskatchewan’s long-term prosperity

Saskatchewan can’t depend on its current good fortune for its future prosperity

How to ensure Saskatchewan’s long-term prosperitySaskatchewan is the beneficiary of elevated pricing and improved long-term prospects for nearly all of the many commodities it produces: grain, oilseeds, oil, gas, potash, uranium, gold, copper and forestry products. While this is very good news for its citizens and government, Saskatchewan can’t necessarily depend on such good fortune for its future prosperity. Neither…

It’s time for the government to sell or shut down CMHC

It’s unclear if the feds are doing higher-risk, lower-income mortgage debtors any real favours

It’s time for the government to sell or shut down CMHCJust a few months ago, a regular national discussion was about house prices and a lack of affordability. No longer. With house, townhouse and condominium prices cresting, imminent data may likely confirm serious price declines. Mortgage carrying costs are rising as interest rates and debt servicing costs climb. The mortgage qualifying threshold is receding rapidly…

Stabilizing volative Alberta government revenues

And help Albertans cope with the scary roller coaster that is the economy

Stabilizing volative Alberta government revenuesAlbertans received the pleasant news that their deficit-plagued provincial government might bank a surplus for their concluding fiscal year and could very well experience the same this year. The reason for this happy state of financial affairs is the elevated price levels of oil and natural gas – coming just as a resurgence in the…

Via Rail should be shut down or sold by the federal government

Operational and funding costs are huge: $548M in 2019 (before COVID-19) and $597M in 2021

Via Rail should be shut down or sold by the federal governmentInvestment managers and investors should often ask: If I didn’t already own this stock, would I buy it today? By any criteria, Via Rail, a federal Crown corporation, is not a good investment – even under unrealistically favourable assumptions. The federal government should rigorously examine this charitably-designated ‘enterprise,’ then aim it toward one of two…
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