Roundup: It’s all coming back to me now

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As Jason Kenney continues his bellicose demands for a revival of the Energy East project, it seems that his arguments have a certain familiar ring to them. Wait for it…

Anyone who has paid any attention to the Energy East demands for the past few years will note that there is a definite NEP 2.0 sensibility to them – especially the notion that in the name of “energy security,” we should repurpose this pipeline/build a new segment to the port of Saint John, where there is a single refinery that can handle limited amounts of heavy crude, and that the Irvings should either be forced to accept said Alberta heavy crude at a cost of an additional $10/barrel than they can currently import cheaper, lighter crude from abroad that their current refinery can handle, and that consumers in Atlantic Canada should be made to pay more for their gasoline for the privilege of it coming from Alberta – because I’m not sure that Alberta is going to accept the $10/barrel discount on their crude when they already are suffering from low global oil prices that have made many new oilsands projects economically unviable. Never mind the similarities of this scheme to the original NEP, for which Alberta has created a grand myth about the Great Satan Trudeau (even though the resulting closures in the industry had more to do with the collapse in global oil prices and global recession that happened at the same time) – the cognitive dissonance will not hold.

Good reads:

  • At the end of his Cabinet retreat, Justin Trudeau says that the pandemic will be the theme of the Throne Speech, and the cracks in the social safety net it exposed.
  • Trudeau also released the details of the $19 billion Safe Restart Agreement with the provinces, now that they have all submitted their required documents.
  • Patty Hajdu says that Health Canada is not yet convinced of the efficacy of rapid testing kits for COVID, and wants to avoid creating a false sense of security.
  • Bill Blair says he’s considering establishing a process that would allow more people across the border for humanitarian reasons.
  • The Ethics Commissioner says that former ambassador David MacNaughton, has been improperly lobbying and banned him from meeting with senior officials.
  • Here is a collection of economists’ warnings about any plans for a Basic Income.
  • Here’s a look at the potential problems with the government’s directives not to prosecute people for simple possession – discounting a list of loopholes.
  • Erin O’Toole and his family are in self-isolation after one of his staffers tested positive for COVID.
  • Peter MacKay says he lost the Conservative leadership because “nice guys finish last,” and he was too nice. Okay, then.
  • We have a few more details of the charges against former MP Raj Grewal, which include not disclosing $6 million to the Ethics Commissioner and fraud.
  • A dispute between two First Nations groups in northern Manitoba has scuppered the plan to extend broadband Internet to the region.
  • Chris Selley provides a necessary reality check as to why the Liberals are not going to implement a basic income, no matter how much the caucus wants the policy.
  • Kevin Carmichael notes the problems that people have when it comes to their perceptions around inflation, and what StatsCan and the Bank of Canada are doing.
  • Stephen Gordon and Christopher Ragan make the case to have a robust debate on the future policy direction of the Bank of Canada.
  • Susan Delacourt walks through the reasons why Justin Trudeau is not keen on an election, to the disappointment of many a pundit in this great country.

Odds and ends:

BuzzFeed “Canada” – and I use the term loosely – tried to claim recipes for “Canadian Chocolate Bars” as a generic term for Nanaimo bars. Shenanigans.

They later admitted that it was an imposter, but as a nation who takes Nanaimo Bars seriously, this injustice must be met with reparations.

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One thought on “Roundup: It’s all coming back to me now”

  1. Speaking of nutbars: MacKay actually said he lost because so-cons are firmly in control of the CPC/GOP North. What’s that about hindsight being 2020? Or 2003. Talk about “it’s all coming back to me now”… Maybe he should have thought of that before signing a Faustian bargain with the Great Satan Harper. Lo and behold, his thirty pieces of silver aren’t worth a plug nickel. I hope he’s satisfied with the monster he created. Now the task is to keep it from turning its wrath on Ottawa *whenever* the next election arrives.

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