Change the conversation, support rabble.ca today.

Statistics Canada released new data this week on high income trends in Canada with nary a mention of the Atlantic Provinces. From a Canadian comparative perspective, the data told a story that was more striking for most of the rest of the country and in particular, Alberta, Ontario, B.C. and Quebec, where 92 per cent of the top 1 per cent of tax filers are found, with only 3.4 per cent in Atlantic Canada.

The inequality that exists in Atlantic Canada also tells a story that demands illustration.

Change the conversation, support rabble.ca today.

One of goals in my paper, The Petro-Path Not Taken, was to compare Norway and Canada-Alberta's record in distributing petroleum wealth amongst persons and amongst provinces. Norway has been very effective in distributing oil wealth amongst it regions and its population. Its level of income inequality is one of the lowest in the world.

Canada's level of inequality, on the other hand, has been among the fastest growing and now among the highest in the OECD.

Change the conversation, support rabble.ca today.

You couldn't have made it through 2012 without running into a story about income inequality. Chances are, it made you think about how you fit into the story. That's "entirely constructive," as Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney called the awakening triggered by the global Occupy movement.

A year later, some people think it's time you go back to sleep. A new debate is emerging in Canada: is inequality worth discussing at all? On the "no" side are four main arguments, all deeply flawed:

-  Canada is not like the U.S.

-  The growing gap is not growing in Canada anymore