{"id":277,"date":"2011-07-06T18:46:54","date_gmt":"2011-07-06T18:46:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff\/wheat-from-the-chaff-november-2010-2"},"modified":"2011-07-06T18:46:54","modified_gmt":"2011-07-06T18:46:54","slug":"wheat-from-the-chaff-november-2010-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff\/wheat-from-the-chaff-november-2010-2","title":{"rendered":"Wheat from the Chaff : November 2010"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"wp_fb_like_button\" style=\"margin:5px 0;float:none;height:30px;\"><script src=\"http:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/all.js#xfbml=1\"><\/script><fb:like href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff\/wheat-from-the-chaff-november-2010-2\" send=\"false\" layout=\"standard\" width=\"450\" show_faces=\"false\" font=\"arial\" action=\"recommend\" colorscheme=\"light\"><\/fb:like><\/div><div id=\"content\">\n<div class=\"blog\"> <!-- back and forward --> <\/p>\n<p align=\"center\">   <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/12-01-2010_12-31-2010.html\">\u00ab December 2010<\/a> |   <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/index.html\">Main<\/a>   | <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/10-01-2010_10-31-2010.html\">October 2010 \u00bb<\/a>   <\/p>\n<p>  \t\t<!-- This section specifies the layout for each entry --> \t\t \t\t \t\t<a name=\"2010-11-22\"\/><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"date\">Monday, November 22, 2010<\/h2>\n<div class=\"blogbody\"> \t\t\t<a name=\"332\"\/> \t\t\t \t\t\t<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"title\">Buffett Tells ABC Rich Americans Should Be Paying &#8220;A Lot More in Taxes&#8221;<\/h3>\n<p>       <font size=\"3\" face=\"Arial\">Billionaire Warren Buffett has come out and        said the equivalent of 2+2=4. Or =666, if you&#8217;re a neo-liberal hell bent        on even more tax cuts. <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/2010-11-21\/warren-buffett-tells-abc-rich-people-should-pay-more-in-taxes.html\"><font size=\"3\" face=\"Arial\">In        a recent interview<\/font><\/a><font size=\"3\" face=\"Arial\">, Buffett said,        \u201cI think that people at the high end &#8212; people like myself &#8212; should be        paying a lot more in taxes. We have it better than we\u2019ve ever had it.\u201d        In opposition to the trickle-down economics which has pervaded American        thinking for decades (and particularly the massive George Bush tax-cut        agenda), Buffett responded, &#8220;The rich are always going to say that, you        know, just give us more money and we\u2019ll go out and spend more and then        it will all trickle down to the rest of you. But that has not worked the        last 10 years, and I hope the American public is catching on.\u201d <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font size=\"3\" face=\"Arial\">Of course, don&#8217;t feel too badly for the        wealthy. Even the Obama administration is promoting a &#8220;compromise&#8221;. The        upcoming tax cuts promised by the Bush Administration will still go        through, <i>up to the first $250,000<\/i>. This means that the poor,        working class and middle class will not be able to take full advantage        of the proposed tax cut. You guessed it: only the upper middle class and        wealthy can fully utilize the benefits. <\/font>     <\/p>\n<div class=\"posted\"> \t\t\t\tPosted by <a href=\"mailto:cwelch@lexiconic.net\">Colin Welch<\/a> at <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/2010\/11\/entry_332.html\" title=\"permanent link\">7:40 PM<\/a><br \/><i>Edited on: Tuesday, November 23, 2010 7:18 PM<\/i><br \/> \t\t\t\tCategories: <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_americanpolitics.html\">American Politics<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_theeconomy.html\">The Economy<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_themedia.html\">The Media<\/a><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t \t\t \t\t<a name=\"2010-11-17\"\/><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"date\">Wednesday, November 17, 2010<\/h2>\n<div class=\"blogbody\"> \t\t\t<a name=\"331\"\/> \t\t\t \t\t\t<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"title\">Goin&#8217; out in style!<\/h3>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">If the boss is forcing you out, then you        might as well go out in a blaze of glory! <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">Here is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bill-bennett.ca\/\" target=\"_blank\">Bill        Bennett&#8217;s<\/a> quite remarkable exit interview after being removed from        the cabinet of the BC Liberal government: <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.vancouversun.com\/audio\/bennett.mp3\" target=\"blank\">Bill        Bennett faces the media (mp3)<\/a> <\/font>     <\/p>\n<div class=\"posted\"> \t\t\t\tPosted by <a href=\"mailto:cwelch@lexiconic.net\">Colin Welch<\/a> at <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/2010\/11\/entry_331.html\" title=\"permanent link\">8:35 PM<\/a><br \/><i>Edited on: Wednesday, November 17, 2010 9:02 PM<\/i><br \/> \t\t\t\tCategories: <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_bcpolitics.html\">BC Politics<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_themedia.html\">The Media<\/a><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t \t\t \t\t<a name=\"2010-11-14\"\/><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"date\">Sunday, November 14, 2010<\/h2>\n<div class=\"blogbody\"> \t\t\t<a name=\"330\"\/> \t\t\t \t\t\t<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"title\">An analysis of the US economy by Robert Reich<\/h3>\n<p>       <a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/File:Robert_Reich,_Policy_Network,_April_6_2009,_detail.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" font-size=\"3\" border=\"0\" align=\"left\" font=\"size=3 face=Arial \" font-family=\"Arial\" height=\"225\" width=\"225\" hspace=\"5\" src=\"http:\/\/wheatfromthechaff.lexiconic.net\/media\/225px-Robert_Reich,_Policy_Network,_April_6_2009,_detail.jpg\"\/><\/font><\/a><font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">I would encourage you to download        this <a href=\"Robert_Reich.mp3\">speech by Robert Reich<\/a>. [Right-click        on the link and choose &#8220;Save Link As&#8221; or &#8220;Save Target as&#8221;.] It&#8217;s a        cogent Keynesian analysis of America&#8217;s current economic situation,        except that it&#8217;s also a near-perfect Marxian analysis, too, aside from        the Keynesian interventionist strategies. Reich&#8217;s key argument is that        inequality is bad for business, and unless America can address this        fundamental challenge, all of the secondary problems will be insoluble.        The irony is that, in the end, <a href=\"http:\/\/robertreich.org\/\" target=\"_blank\">Reich<\/a>        copies much of <a href=\"http:\/\/davidharvey.org\/2010\/08\/the-enigma-of-capital-and-the-crisis-this-time\/\" target=\"_blank\">David        Harvey&#8217;s Marxist analysis<\/a> of the fundamental contradictions of        capital accumulation. The only real difference is that Reich wants to        save capitalism, while Harvey has no such allegiance.<\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">One interesting contribution by Reich is his        discussion of the &#8220;three coping mechanisms&#8221; that the average American        household has been using over the past 30 years to compensate for the        effective decline in wages: <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">1. moving women into the workforce<br \/>2.        making men work more overtime (a great source of &#8220;improved&#8221; US        productivity)<br \/>3. borrowing money against home equity <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">Reich asserts that these mechanisms have, up        to now, allowed Americans to ignore the problems of inequality. However,        these mechanisms are now spent, and it&#8217;s time American politicians own        up to the fundamental problem: the engine of the American economy &#8211; the        average consumer &#8211; is no longer capable of spending the money that makes        economic growth possible. <\/font>     <\/p>\n<div class=\"posted\"> \t\t\t\tPosted by <a href=\"mailto:cwelch@lexiconic.net\">Colin Welch<\/a> at <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/2010\/11\/entry_330.html\" title=\"permanent link\">5:11 PM<\/a><br \/><i>Edited on: Wednesday, November 17, 2010 5:12 PM<\/i><br \/> \t\t\t\tCategories: <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_americanpolitics.html\">American Politics<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_globalissues.html\">Global Issues<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_technology.html\">Technology<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_theeconomy.html\">The Economy<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_themedia.html\">The Media<\/a><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t \t\t \t\t<a name=\"2010-11-09\"\/><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"date\">Tuesday, November 09, 2010<\/h2>\n<div class=\"blogbody\"> \t\t\t<a name=\"329\"\/> \t\t\t \t\t\t<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"title\">The Neo-Liberal Agenda: The Effects in BC, Part 2<\/h3>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">In my last entry, I wrote about the        pernicious attempts by the BC Liberals (and other neo-liberals) to        promote tax cuts on the basis of improvements in productivity. I        explained that these productivity increases simply haven&#8217;t happened.        This, in turn, suggests that Campbell&#8217;s tax cut agenda is bogus and        self-serving<\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">The question, then, is what has come of the        tax cuts that Campbell&#8217;s government initiated almost immediately after        coming to power in 2001? <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">The best answer is the same answer that we        see in the United States: a concentration of wealth and income that        leads to inequality. <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">The following is a <a href=\"http:\/\/www4.hrsdc.gc.ca\/.3ndic.1t.4r@-eng.jsp?iid=22\" target=\"_blank\">chart        from the federal government<\/a>. The richest quintile in BC made, on        average, 10.1 times the average income of the poorest quintile. The rest        explains itself. <\/font><\/p>\n<p align=\"center\">       <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www4.hrsdc.gc.ca\/.3ndic.1t.4r@-eng.jsp?iid=22\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"586\" src=\"http:\/\/wheatfromthechaff.lexiconic.net\/media\/bc_inequality.jpg\" height=\"659\" border=\"0\"\/><\/a>\u00a0     <\/p>\n<p align=\"left\"><font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">At this point, a<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/davidharvey.org\/2010\/08\/the-enigma-of-capital-and-the-crisis-this-time\/\">        left-wing analysis of our economy<\/a> really starts to make sense.<\/font><\/p>\n<div class=\"posted\"> \t\t\t\tPosted by <a href=\"mailto:cwelch@lexiconic.net\">Colin Welch<\/a> at <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/2010\/11\/entry_329.html\" title=\"permanent link\">10:01 PM<\/a><br \/><i>Edited on: Wednesday, July 06, 2011 11:46 AM<\/i><br \/> \t\t\t\tCategories: <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_bcpolitics.html\">BC Politics<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_canadianpolitics.html\">Canadian Politics<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_theeconomy.html\">The Economy<\/a><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t \t\t \t\t<a name=\"2010-11-08\"\/><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"date\">Monday, November 08, 2010<\/h2>\n<div class=\"blogbody\"> \t\t\t<a name=\"328\"\/> \t\t\t \t\t\t<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"title\">The Neo-Liberal Agenda: The Effects in BC, Part 1<\/h3>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">I&#8217;ve talked at length about the failure of        the neo-liberal agenda to increase productivity and high-quality        employment, particularly in the Canadian context. But do these lack of        economic benefits pertain to BC? <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">The Fraser Institute certainly doesn&#8217;t think        so. In a <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vancouversun.com\/opinion\/Premier+Campbell+popularity+doesn+match+performance\/3726205\/story.html\" target=\"_blank\">recent        editorial puff piece<\/a> in the <i>Vancouver Sun &#8211; <\/i>surprise,        surprise <i>&#8211;<\/i> two writers from the F.I. extol the virtues of the BC        Liberal government: <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">&#8230; <i>Shortly after coming to power in June        2001, Campbell implemented major tax cuts on both personal and corporate        income and scheduled additional cuts thereafter. Specifically, in his        first budget (2001), Premier Campbell enacted a 25-per-cent        across-the-board reduction in personal income tax rates, followed by        more cuts in 2007 and 2008. The result was a significant improvement in        incentives for British Columbians to work, save, invest, and be        entrepreneurial. <\/i><\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\"><i>His 2001 budget also reduced the general        corporate income tax rate to 13.5 per cent from 16.5 per cent (effective        in 2002); later reductions dropped the rate further to 10.5 per cent in        2010. Thanks to these and other business tax cuts (i. e. elimination of        the corporate capital tax) B.C. now has a more competitive business tax        regime. <\/i><\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\"><i>Controlling government spending has also        allowed Campbell to better manage government debt. From 2001-02 to        2009-10, Campbell&#8217;s government generally balanced the books and on        average recorded a small surplus (0.13 per cent of GDP). Over the same        period, it reduced B.C.&#8217;s net debt to 15.7 per cent of GDP in 2009-10        from 18.5 per cent of GDP in 2001-02&#8230;.<\/i> <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">I won&#8217;t go into the massive capital        infrastructure costs that are not part of the Fraser Institute&#8217;s        accounting of our provincial debt. The real point is the drivel about &#8220;a        more competitive business tax regime&#8221;. In a truly competitive economy,        profits and tax savings are supposed to be reinvested to make a business        more efficient and more cost-effective. That&#8217;s how you succeed in a        competitive environment. But the problem with the Fraser Institute        argument is &#8211; surprise, surprise &#8211; it&#8217;s not happening. <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">In their recent &#8220;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.bccheckup.com\/pdfs\/bccheckup_2010_provincial.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">2010        BC Check-Up<\/a>&#8220;, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of British        Columbia &#8211; no friends of progressive policy &#8211; offer very different        conclusions about BC&#8217;s &#8220;Golden Decade&#8221;. To be sure, they <u>do<\/u>        agree that productivity is important: <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\"><i>Improving productivity should be the        cornerstone of any provincial economic action plan, as productive and        efficient businesses have additional capital to reinvest in both their        workforce and new machinery and equipment. A productive economy allows        BC\u2019s businesses to better compete internationally and will drive the        province\u2019s long-term economic health.<\/i> <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">Unfortunately, BC isn&#8217;t doing particularly        well in terms of productivity: <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\"><i>Despite the infusion of investment and        human capital in the past five years, BC\u2019s labour force productivity        stagnated. All of Canada suffers from a labour productivity gap with the        US, but <b>BC\u2019s productivity has remained below the national average for        many years.<\/b> To a large degree, poor productivity explains the lower        real wage in BC, as a less productive workforce affects profit margins        and decreases the amount of capital that can be reinvested. This        deterrent to investment, over the long-term, could erode BC\u2019s ability to        compete against the US. One of the more notable results in this year\u2019s        BC Check-Up was BC\u2019s productivity gain of 2.1%, the best result in our        comparison. However, to some extent, this gain was the result of        rationalization in the forest industry, which means that BC\u2019s turnaround        in this critical indicator was linked to the loss of many jobs in a        vulnerable sector, rather than increased investment in machinery and        equipment and human capital. <\/i><\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\"><i>Labour productivity rests not only on        capital investment, but also the quality of the labour force itself. <b>BC\u2019s        labour force educational attainment is still lower<\/b> (63.1%) when        compared to Alberta, Ontario, and Canada as a whole (64.3%, 68%, and        66.4% respectively); it also grew slowly during the past five years        (3.8% compared to the national average growth rate of 4.7%). And        employment in the sciences declined in 2009, by 0.6 ppt, as layoffs        occurred across many sectors where these skills are needed. <\/i><\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">This lack of productivity helps explain why        BC has the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theprovince.com\/business\/Despite+decrease+child+poverty+rate+still+highest+Canada\/3177186\/story.html\" target=\"_blank\">highest        child poverty rate in the country<\/a>, and some of the worst real wages        of any province. Indeed, the effects are quite staggering: <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\"><i>In 2009, BC\u2019s real hourly wage was        $23.89, compared to $27.24 in Alberta, and $24.48 in Ontario. <b>Labour        compensation per worker was even more skewed, at $44,568 in BC<\/b>,        compared to $64,516 in Alberta and $48,612 across Canada. Finally, the        female\/male wage ratio in BC is lower than it was five years ago (from        0.87 in 2004 to 0.84 in 2009), in stark contrast to all other comparison        jurisdictions, where it has generally risen.<\/i> <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\">The only question remaining is this: After a        decade of massive tax cuts for businesses, what have they done with all        that money?<\/font><br \/><font face=\"Arial\" size=\"3\"> <\/font>     <\/p>\n<div class=\"posted\"> \t\t\t\tPosted by <a href=\"mailto:cwelch@lexiconic.net\">Colin Welch<\/a> at <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/2010\/11\/entry_328.html\" title=\"permanent link\">6:17 PM<\/a><br \/><i>Edited on: Tuesday, November 09, 2010 10:42 PM<\/i><br \/> \t\t\t\tCategories: <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_bcpolitics.html\">BC Politics<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_education.html\">Education<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_theeconomy.html\">The Economy<\/a><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t \t\t \t\t<a name=\"2010-11-06\"\/><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"date\">Saturday, November 06, 2010<\/h2>\n<div class=\"blogbody\"> \t\t\t<a name=\"327\"\/> \t\t\t \t\t\t<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"title\">The Neo-Liberal Agenda in BC: Reduce, Just Don&#8217;t Shift<\/h3>\n<p>       <font size=\"3\" face=\"Arial\">Aside from shifting taxation from the        business sector to the middle class (like in the HST), the neo-liberal        agenda seeks to reduce the overall <i>size<\/i> of government,        particularly in relation to GDP. A classic example of this reduction in        government can be found right here in BC. Below is a chart from the BC        government&#8217;s 2010 budget document called the &#8220;2010 Financial and        Economic Review&#8221;. [Please double-click on the chart to see the full        scale view. The yellow highlighting indicates the NDP years in between        the Socreds and the Liberals.] <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font size=\"3\" face=\"Arial\">We can see that, in the second-to-last        column, spending has gone down significantly &#8211; relative to our overall        capacity to pay. The poor economy and the Olympics have changed that        recently, but the overall policy trend of the BC Liberals is clear. It        may not <i>seem<\/i> significant, but each percentage point of GDP        translates into hundreds of millions of dollars, dollars which        disproportionally affect the population in the bottom half of the income        scale because a much greater percentage of its income relies on        government transfers and services. <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font size=\"3\" face=\"Arial\">This kind of economic analysis also explains        why the government can claim it is spending more on services like        education and health &#8211; in absolute terms and relative to previous years        &#8211; but it also shows why the growth of our economy has exceeded our        government&#8217;s provision of services. And it further explains why claims        that health care care spending is &#8220;out of control&#8221; is a <a href=\"http:\/\/www.policyalternatives.ca\/publications\/monitor\/unsustainability-myth\" target=\"_blank\">myth<\/a>.        Spending is going up, for sure, but it&#8217;s not out of control &#8211; except        when tax cuts dramatically reduce <a href=\"http:\/\/www.policyalternatives.ca\/publications\/monitor\/unsustainability-myth\" target=\"_blank\">a        government&#8217;s revenue<\/a> and, relative to that, health takes a much        bigger proportion. But, if that&#8217;s the case, the story should <i>not<\/i>        be health care, but our government&#8217;s determination to return us to the        19th century, and to take us back to a social Darwinist,        I&#8217;m-all-right-Jack society.<\/font>     <\/p>\n<p align=\"center\">       <a href=\"bc_expenses_2010.html\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"501\" height=\"273\" src=\"http:\/\/wheatfromthechaff.lexiconic.net\/media\/smallexpenses-1.gif\"\/><\/a>    <\/p>\n<div class=\"posted\"> \t\t\t\tPosted by <a href=\"mailto:cwelch@lexiconic.net\">Colin Welch<\/a> at <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/2010\/11\/entry_327.html\" title=\"permanent link\">12:23 PM<\/a><br \/><i>Edited on: Sunday, November 14, 2010 9:11 PM<\/i><br \/> \t\t\t\tCategories: <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_bcpolitics.html\">BC Politics<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_canadianpolitics.html\">Canadian Politics<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_theeconomy.html\">The Economy<\/a><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t \t\t \t\t<a name=\"2010-11-01\"\/><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"date\">Monday, November 01, 2010<\/h2>\n<div class=\"blogbody\"> \t\t\t<a name=\"326\"\/> \t\t\t \t\t\t<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"title\">The Georgia Straight on Post-Secondary Spending in the Valley<\/h3>\n<p>       <font size=\"3\" face=\"Arial\"><u>The Georgia Straight<\/u>, and its online        version, the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.straight.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">straight.com<\/a>,        are useful sources for news, investigative journalism and media        criticism. Amid its pop culture pap and racy personal ads, the <u>Straight<\/u>        can deliver articles of surprising quality on topics rarely seen in BC&#8217;s        corporate media. <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font size=\"3\" face=\"Arial\">Here&#8217;s a recent article on the imbalance of        spending on post-secondary institutions on the south side of the Fraser        River compared to the north. It&#8217;s amazing what a little bit of research        and empirical analysis can do: <\/font>     <\/p>\n<p>       <font size=\"3\" face=\"Arial\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.straight.com\/article-354726\/vancouver\/region-faces-education-gap\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.straight.com\/article-354726\/vancouver\/region-faces-education-gap<\/a><\/font>     <\/p>\n<div class=\"posted\"> \t\t\t\tPosted by <a href=\"mailto:cwelch@lexiconic.net\">Colin Welch<\/a> at <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/2010\/11\/entry_326.html\" title=\"permanent link\">5:16 PM<\/a><br \/><i>Edited on: Monday, November 01, 2010 5:30 PM<\/i><br \/> \t\t\t\tCategories: <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_bcpolitics.html\">BC Politics<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_education.html\">Education<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff2\/archives\/cat_themedia.html\">The Media<\/a><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><!--end blog --> \t<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u00ab December 2010 | Main | October 2010 \u00bb Monday, November 22, 2010 Buffett Tells ABC Rich Americans Should Be Paying &#8220;A Lot More in Taxes&#8221; Billionaire Warren Buffett has come out and said the equivalent of 2+2=4. Or =666, if you&#8217;re a neo-liberal hell bent on even more tax cuts. In a recent interview, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-277","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/277","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=277"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/277\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/lexiconic.net\/wheatfromthechaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=277"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}