RBC is under intense scrutiny this week, but it seems the company is not alone in exploiting temporary foreign workers. (Photo: Francisco Diez / flickr)
bay street
Book review: Thieves of Bay Street
Thieves of Bay Street: How Banks, Brokerages and the Wealthy Steal Billions from Canadians
(Random House Canada,
2012;
$32.00)
The Harper government claims that Canada's finance industry is stable and well regulated. In Thieves of Bay Street journalist Bruce Livesey makes the case that the Canadian government and the courts turn a blind eye to scams, rip-offs and blatant frauds by brokers, investment houses, banks and corporate executives.
Livesey -- who has worked for CBC, PBS, and the New York Times -- reminds readers of the billions lost by investors in Bre-X, Principal Trust and Sino-Forest Products. He makes the case that brokers, investment dealers and banks who defraud their clients rarely face criminal charges. He points to the failure of securities commissions in Canada to bring charges against Conrad Black and David Radler.
The demands of Occupy everywhere!
Demands of the Occupy Movement. One child's perspective. A loving compassionate future for all of Earth's Children. No More Violence! Created by a father and daughter team.
Thousands march in #Occupy Bay Street in Toronto
Copyright © 2011 Toronto Video Activist Collective Part of the "Occupy" movement and the Global Day of Action - #OCT15
Thousands march in "Occupy Bay Street" - Toronto, Canada (Turtle Island) - October 15, 2011 #OCCUPY Camera: AL Editing: YJJ & AL
George Soros: The billionaire who likes government regulation
George Soros has invested $8 billion around the world promoting free speech, civil society, and ways of making governments accountable. Noted for their early work in Eastern Europe, his Open Society Foundations grew out of a philosophical conviction: that political oppression could not co-exist with open debate over the nature of society.
Recently, the multi-billionaire hedge fund operator has found a flaw in his own reasoning, which he has shared with readers of the New York Review of Books.
Out with the bad, in with the good
Canada has tested the limits of the power of inertia in economic policy. It is time for something new.
The current industrial strategy dates back to 1988; its basic document is the free trade deal signed with the U.S. by the Mulroney government. Other than the NDP, no parliamentary caucus has questioned the not so hidden agenda behind the FTA/NAFTA -- economic integration into the faltering U.S. Empire -- so it would be fitting for Jack Layton and his party to take the lead in putting forward a renewed economic agenda for Canada.
Establishing a NDP plan for the next economy means replacing some bad ideas with some good ideas.
The perils of financial memory loss
Wouldn't it be nice to get back to the way things used to be? Faced with unfortunate events, that response is understandable (if not particularly practical). That kind of wishful thinking was behind the financial markets' exuberant but short-lived rebound in the spring.
Back on March 10, the CEO of Citibank revealed the then-astounding news that his company would actually make a profit in the first quarter. On reflection, this shouldn't have been too surprising -- after all, his bank, with other U.S. financial institutions, is the recipient of $1-trillion in no-risk government handouts. That'll help the bottom line any day.
