The real unemployment in Canada currently might be 21.6%

Whatever the unemployment rate actually is, we know the numbers released and quoted as the official "unemployment rate" are artificially skewed downward.

That's a problem in and of itself, but I think it leads to a larger problem, in that the people who skewed it in the first place start believing thier own lies.

I think this is happening.

They were Liberals in government who did the skewing in the 1990s. How can you convince them to de-skew? Look to the NDP to un-skew what hath been skewed by the original skewers.Sk'you won't be disappointed.

Fidel wrote:

They were Liberals in government who did the skewing in the 1990s. How can you convince them to de-skew? Look to the NDP to un-skew what hath been skewed by the original skewers.Sk'you won't be disappointed.

Fidel, what stops the NDP from being disciplined by the very neoliberal agenda that has disciplined European states? Or developing states? Entertain me with a tall tale.

Nothing, which will be one of the challenges for an NDP government in economic areas, and others.  I would hope when NDP intiatives are blocked or coerced, however, the NDP will tell us, and let us know just how much soverienty the Liberals and Conservatives have sold.

What has really been happening over the last couple of decades is no real increases in wages, coupled with job loss and job erosion.

As long as StatsCant can tell us we can lose four jobs at $25.00 ph, and a year later see two jobs created at $15.00 ph, and report to everyone that we've seen a gain of two jobs we're not dealing with reality at all.

Better economic indicators:  The number of tractor trailors crossing from Windsor to Detroit.  How often you get stopped at a rail way crossing for a frieght train.    The amount of backyard fireworks you see on May 24.

1) A large part of the Canadian economy is fossil fuel and hydro-electric power exports. These are imports which corporate America could not replace easily in a global market. And Canada has an obligation to the rest of the world to help curb corporate America of its voracious appetite for cheap Canadian fossil fuels. We've been giving the stuff away for many years to the US when comparing oil royalties and natural resource export tax regimes in other countries.

Banks are profitable in Canada, and especially since the big bank heist of 1991. They can afford to pay higher taxes to the feds and still make hefty profits. And so on it goes. There are many profitable corporations in Canada in spite of recession. If they want to sit on their natural resources in Canada while operating closer to their home countries and maintaining employment in the US and elsewhere, then there are ways that a federal government could force them to deal.

2) Canada exports raw materials and massive amounts of total energy to the US(Canada is the largest single supplier of corporate America's energy needs), and Canada imports finished products from the US. Canada is the largest export customer for the US and their exports and have been since the 1950's. That country would not be in the driver's seat in the event of a trade war. Even Iggy stated as much last year in reference to Canada's energy exports. Canada could revert to trading with the US on a case by case basis with managed trade deals. Auto Pact was a good example of a managed trade deal working for many years in Canada. We did it before NAFTA, and we could trade freely with the US again given the political will.

In fact, Canada is only middle of the pack on federal tax revenues (as a percentage of GDP) among OECD nations and below the overall average. As I was saying before, we don't even come close to even the EU-15 average. In Nordic countries where social democrats have ruled or been in political opposition for long periods, it's even higher.

Actually, I should have mentioned Linda McQuaig's Cult of Impotence wrt J.M. and his first point about capital flight. Near the end of the book McQuaig mentions an interesting conversation she had with Canadian economist Pierre Fortin. Since the end of Bretton Woods, all countries have policy options available to them from a new menu. Fortin and certain other economists and politicians believe we can have job creating populist policies if we want to as opposed to policies friendly to bondholders and Bay Street bond salesmen, ie. the creditor class. Ottawa could allow the value of the Canadian dollar to fall against other currencies for a time. Fortin doesn't believe foreign or domestic holders of Canadian debt and currency would abandon Canada for very long. Canada is a treasure trove of not only valuable natural resource wealth but of skills and talented workforce as well. Canada could be a world beater with the right leadership instead of our leaders in Ottawa acquiescing to the wishes of marauding capital and multinational corporations. Layton did his doctoral thesis on international capital flows. I think Jack would understand these issues as well as or better than any Canadian political leader today.