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Quote of the Day: “Economic policies need to be analyzed according to the incentives they create, and not according to the hopes that inspired them.” Thomas Sowell

A few interesting articles in TheRecord today. First up is Cheyenne Bholla who has a report on the latest crime statistics from the Region’s Police Board meeting yesterday. It reports some rather startling stats including commercial robberies which were up 86% compared to the last five-year average. Commercial break-ins were up 65% in 2022 compared to the previous five years. Last year, police responded to 1,238 commercial break-ins, Bholla reports. Yet, even with these alarming stats, I predict that TheRecord will continue to report on every obscure activist who wants to reduce the Police budget and bring in some kind of social worker to help with these issues. Nonsense.

On the Insight Page today, we have an op-ed by Dale Beugin who is the Executive Vice President and Rick Smith who is the President of the Canadian Climate Institute. They argue that the provinces aren’t doing enough to completely bankrupt us and devastate our economies in the name of “Climate Change”. Read the op-ed yourself – but at the end, remind yourself that they never put a dollar figure on all of their oh-so-wonderful solutions. Ask yourself why…

Susan Koswan, TheRecord’s resident Chicken Little also has an op-ed on Climate Change. Her column talks about when the Ontario legislature reconvenes next Tuesday 23 February and the (hoped for…) opposition to Bill 23, the More Homes Built Faster Act. She wants this bill to “… never sees the light of day.” And why, you ask??? “The sweeping changes, under the guise of addressing the provincial housing crisis, are undemocratic, and cripple municipal authority and financial ability to plan communities strategically and sustainably.” Oh, so municipal governments like the Region of Waterloo are doing such a great job planning strategically and sustainably in the so-called “housing crisis” that we don’t need this bill, right? Really? Just plain dumb.

Quote of the Day: “Back in my old neighborhood, there was a special contempt for the kind of guy who was always trying to get two other guys to fight each other. Today, it is considered a great contribution to society to incite consumers against producers, tenants against landlords, women against men, and the races against each other.” Thomas Sowell

On a Front Page article back on Friday 20 January 2023, Terry Pender tells us that Kitchener Centre’s MPP announced she’s was resigning her seat to take a tenure track position at the University of Waterloo. The reason? This MPP somehow couldn’t line up day care for her kid. At least that’s the reason she gave. But today, Terry Pender tells us on Page A4 of a single Mom in Montreal, who starting taking nursing courses and took Robert Madej (owner of the tech firm PureFacts Financial) and his younger brother to class with her since she could not afford daycare. “We would sit in the back of the class and we would read or colour,” said Madej in an interview Monday. “After Suzanne started working as a nurse, she started saving money. As she advanced in her nursing career, Suzanne also took night courses in math from Concordia University, and did very well.” Articles of two single Moms – one a complete and total loser and the other, a brave, hard working hero who had her priorities straight.

Quote of the Day: “Blaming economic crises on ‘greed’ is like blaming plane crashes on gravity. Certainly planes wouldn’t crash if it wasn’t for gravity. But when thousands of planes fly millions of miles every day without crashing, explaining why a particular plane crashed because of gravity gets you nowhere. Neither does talking about ‘greed’ which is constant like gravity.” Thomas Sowell

During the municipal election last year, every last poll that was conducted told us that the cost of housing and affordability was the number one concern of practically everyone in the Region. But, on the Front Page today, when a developer wants to build an apartment building at Highland and Spadina in Kitchener, we get a headline that states: “Plan for 17-storey Kitchener rental apartment draws criticism”. The so-called housing crisis is a joke. As I’ve said before, there is no affordable housing issue.

Also on the Front Page today, we have another non-issue: “The federal government is being urged to follow through with its commitment to develop a Black Canadian justice strategy.” And why is that, you ask??? “Black Canadians are consistently overrepresented in Canadian jails: Black people make up less than four per cent of the Canadian population but about eight per cent of the federal prison population.” Oh. O.K. “Canada’s Black Justice Strategy will put us on a path toward a more just and equitable society by addressing systemic discrimination and the overrepresentation of Black people in the criminal justice system, including as victims of crime.” said Justice Minister David Lametti’s Press Secretary, Diana Ebadi. The article states that: “The House of Commons public safety committee said in a 2021 report that systemic racism in policing was a ‘real and pressing problem to be urgently addressed.’ It recommended creating a national strategy to address the disproportionately high rates of racialized people in the criminal justice system.” That might be true for Black and Indigenous people in Canada, but it is not true for Asian and South Asian communities. Why??? Did anyone ever suggest that the reason there are more Black and Indigenous people in prison is because Black and Indigenous people simply commit more crimes???

Normally, on Page A4 everyday, is a small column of articles called Local Briefs. Robberies, accidents, court reportings etc. Today, it looks like there is a major formatting error on the page where we have one sentence that is the start of an article, highlighted in blue and on its own in a column. I mentioned last week that they repeated a whole column from the Canadian Press on this page within a few days of each other. What’s going on?

The Editorial today is on (what else?) health care. It talks about the $25 Billion (over 10 years) that the Federal government is borrowing from future taxpayers to give to the provinces. The Editorial suggests that: “New strategies are needed for recruiting doctors, reducing their paperwork so they can see more patients, allow expedited credentialing across the country and for new arrivals from abroad. Additionally, have more of the hands-on care done by nurse practitioners or in health-care teams, including nurses and pharmacists (Ontario is moving in the latter direction).” That’s nice. But again as I mentioned last week, just what incentive is there for anyone in the medical profession to do this? They still get paid the same if they invest in creating efficiencies or not… Stupid.

Quote of the Day: “While capitalism has a visible cost – profit – that does not exist under socialism, socialism has an invisible cost – inefficiency – that is eradicated under capitalism through losses and bankruptcy.” Thomas Sowell

The Front Page today tells us that Kitchener MP Mike Morrice backs asylum for non-binary, trans refugees. Ummm…. Just why would my MP want mentally ill people to come to Canada? Oh, I guess it’s because these people mainly vote for the Green Party. Got it.

No Editorial today. Instead we have Andrew Phillips filling in, so to speak. His op-ed is on, what else, health care. He asks: “Want to know why health care is in such a mess?“ He goes on to tell us about “…what New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs had to say… when he told a CBC News interviewer that… ‘I guess we’ll have to innovate’”. Ummm… wrong Phillips. The whole socialist health care model is completely broken. When you throw out the most basic economic theories it can’t help but be a disaster. There is an insatiable demand for health care. That’s why Billionaires have private doctors and nurses on their mega yachts. Since the demand can’t be satisfied (not everyone is a Billionaire *cough*), then the limited supply causes lineups and huge wait times for services. ECON101 kids. But Phillips doesn’t want to touch the basic issue – instead, he wants to just slightly improve the horrendous problem with “innovation”. He tells us: “Enough already with the excuses. Regardless of how much money is coming from Ottawa, the provinces need to embrace innovation and not run away from it.” Nope. Why would doctors spend their own money to innovate? Under our socialist system, they still get paid. And why would hospital administrators innovate? Under our socialist system, they still get paid. And why would hospital Diversity, Inclusion and Equity (DIE) bureaucrats innovate? Under our socialist system, they still get paid. Idiot.

On the Insight Page today, Community Editorial Board member Gary Whetung has another good column on volunteering. I always enjoy and look forward to his well written op-eds.

Also on the Insight Page today we have Keith Ross Leckie, a Toronto-based screenwriter and author. He whines about Bill C-11 and that there isn’t enough CanCon in it for streaming platforms. Ummm… Yea, about that. Canadian taxpayers drop $1.5 Billion on CanCon with the CBC and just how many of these programs make it into Nielson’s top 20 shows every week. None. Wasted money. Moron.

On Page A14. We have an article by Nojoud Al Mallees where she states that: “Employment gains a ‘blowout,’ analyst says Canada adds over 150,000 jobs in January”. Very nice. I wonder how many of those jobs went to people living in the homeless camp on Victoria Street? I wonder how many of those living in tents applied for those jobs?

Quote of the Day: “Often it is those who are most critical of a Eurocentric view of the world who are most Eurocentric when it comes to the evils and shortcomings of the human race.” Thomas Sowell

Great Editorial on the Chinese spy balloon today!!! Everyone should read this and wonder just what Canada’s leaders are doing… And also wonder why Trudeau is so hesitant not to provoke and say anything against the Chinese.

David Macdonald’s bio on the Opinion Page today claims that he is a Senior Economist with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA). And exactly what formal training does Macdonald have in the field of Economics? Oh, he has a MA in Philosophy. Well, that makes me far more of an Economist than he will ever be since I actually have paper on my wall from WLU that proves my Economics credentials. But whatever… The CCPA can call him whatever it wants, I guess. Today, his pathetic little op-ed is on the rate increases over the last few months from the Bank of Canada in their feeble attempt at curbing inflation. But he actually says something semi-intelligent when he states: “The Bank of Canada’s target is to bring inflation down to two per cent, but its strategy to achieve this with higher interest rates is failing on two major counts: it does nothing to lower the cost of everyday necessities like groceries or gas, and it’s leading to higher inflation in housing-related prices.” Correct. When Trudeau devalued the Canadian Dollar by “printing” money, he grossly increased the supply of money. If the supply of goods and services does not increase as much as the supply of money, then the prices of goods will naturally go up. Each dollar becomes less valuable because there are far more dollars chasing goods. This isn’t some sort of magic – it’s just clear economic thinking. But Macdonald wouldn’t dare blame the government for this mess. Instead he asks: “Interest rate increases are putting chronic stress on many Canadian households and it’s not even working to decrease inflation. So why is the Bank of Canada persisting with a failing policy rather than reversing course?” Because they have no other choice. Moron.

Quote of the Day: “Not since the days of the Hitler Youth have young people been subjected to more propaganda on more politically correct issues. At one time, educators boasted that their role was not to teach students what to think but how to think. Today, their role is far too often to teach students what to think on everything from immigration to global warming to the new sacred trinity of ‘race, class and gender.’” Thomas Sowell

Guio Jacinto is an economic researcher with the United Steelworkers. He holds an MA in Political Science from York University. His bio on the Insight Page today tells us he is a “Political Economist”. Ummm… O.K. I guess. His op-ed deals with the increase in imported steel products from “China, South Korea, India and Turkey.” After going through a few statistics, he has writes this gem: “Meanwhile, 100 Canadian steelworker jobs at Gerdau Cambridge, a long products producer, have remained laid off as a result of the ‘temporary’ idling of its electric arc furnace in 2013 due to a surge of imports.” Really??? When I looked into this layoff, I came across this: “Company officials say the work currently done at the shop will move to a larger plant in Whitby.” The quote is from this page from CTV News: https://kitchener.ctvnews.ca/cambridge-steel-plant-shuts-down-melt-shop-100-out-of-work-1.1401184 So, Mr. Jacinto, is the layoff really “due to a surge of imports”??? Of course, Jacinto, the “Economist” doesn’t explain that cheaper steel imports means the products produced from these imports are also cheaper and therefore benefit consumers that purchase them. Pathetic.

Quote of the Day: “To suggest that ‘society’ can simply ‘arrange’ better outcomes somehow, without specifying the processes, the costs or the risks, is to ignore the tragic history of the twentieth century, written in the blood of millions, killed in peacetime by their own governments that were given extraordinary powers in the name of lofty goals.” Thomas Sowell

This is the third time in 10 days that TheRecord has referenced a report by the Council of Canadian Academies. This body (CCA) published a paper on misinformation and how this effected COVID-19 vaccinations. The report called “Fault Lines” (which TheRecord never links to) can be found here: https://www.cca-reports.ca/reports/the-socioeconomic-impacts-of-health-and-science-misinformation/ One of the main conclusions of this paper is that: “Between March and November 2021, misinformation contributed to vaccine hesitancy for an estimated 2.35 million people in Canada. If those people who believed COVID-19 to be a hoax or exaggerated had not delayed or refused vaccination, then, by the end of November 2021, there could have been ‘…2,800 fewer deaths’”. This stat was mentioned in TheRecord back on 27 January 2023 by Nicole Ireland of the Canadian Press. Graeme MacKay also had some kind of pathetic Editorial Cartoon on that day as well. This “2,800” number is discussed on Page 82 in the paper. The Editorial today discusses this paper and also draws the same conclusion: “The health-care cost is one thing. But more tragic is the personal toll, of needless illness and death, caused by skepticism in the science of COVID-19 and misgivings about the vaccinations that protected against it, all the result of false information.” But – both the paper from the CCA and the Editorial make the obvious mistake when they suggest that vaccine hesitancy is strictly from “misinformation” and this alone caused these deaths. I can think of many reasons that some people would not want to be vaccinated. First of all, some people have a definite distrust in the current Liberal government and hate being told or mandated on what to do. A genuine fear of needles is clearly another reason why many Canadians did not want to be vaccinated. Is a fear of needles “misinformation”? And I think that way the COVID vaccine was created (Trump’s Vaccine) may also have had something to do with a reluctance of getting jabbed. I also don’t think that we can characterize sheer laziness as “misinformation” – but apparently, the authors do… By the way, the CCA is funded by taxpayers – $54 Million since 2009…

Quote of the Day: “Those who disdain wealth as a worthy goal for an individual or a society seem not to realize that wealth is the only thing that can prevent poverty.” Thomas Sowell

What a complete and total ass Graeme MacKay is. Today, he mocks Galen Weston, Chairman and President of Loblaw Companies. Weston, if you remember, locked the prices on all of No-Name products last year in response to the rapid increase of food prices. At the time, he mentioned that they would remain in effect until February. In his Editorial Cartoon today, we see Weston throwing our a big yellow padlock out of a big yellow balloon while the words to “Up, Up and Away” are printed as a background to the cartoon. So, when Weston announced the price freeze, was this just a marketing ploy? Yea, maybe, but I also took advantage of some of those prices. So, now that the freeze is over, are prices going to rise for the No-Name products? Maybe. But MacKay seems to think that Weston isn’t constrained by markets and seems to believe that Weston can raise prices indiscriminately. What an ass.

Also on the Opinion Page, Andrew Phillips (oh boy…) tells us about the appointment of Amira Elghawaby by Trudeau as our new anti-Islamophobia representative. He mentions the uproar in Quebec when Elghawaby criticized Quebec’s Bill 21. He suggests that the fact that there is real push back to appointment is exactly the reason we need her since any criticisms must be based on Islamophobia. He strangely neglects to mention that fellow TorStar columnist Elghawaby called Canada Day “dominant, European, Judeo-Christian storytelling”. The fact that this appointment has blown up on Trudeau is simply his fault. Just why do we have an anti-Islamophobia representative anyway?

No Editorial today. Instead, there is an op-ed from TorStar columnist Susan Delacourt who says something about Trudeau.

On the Opinion Page today, TheRecord’s own Chicken Little tries to draw some kind of spiritual relevance from the movie Groundhog Day. Susan Koswan says: “The almost universal support for the movie from Catholic, Jewish and Buddhist religious leaders, as well as Wiccans, is noteworthy. Finding common ground among disparate groups is rarely easy. And when we do, especially in these highly divisive times, we need to nurture and maintain those connections.” Huh??? I think her Best Before Date has long passed…

Quote of the Day: “This is the age of the complaining classes, whether they are lawyers, community activists, radical feminists, race hustlers, or other squeaking wheels looking for oil. No society ever thrived because it had a large and growing class of parasites living off those who produce.” Thomas Sowell

On Page A5 today, there is an article by Tara Deschamps of the Canadian Press that is almost exactly a word for word duplicate of an article by Tara Deschamps of the Canadian Press on Page A12 from Saturday 28 January 2023. What a joke TheRecord has become. What a bunch of idiots in the newsroom. Every day after I finish reading my paper, I always ask myself: “Am I getting my money’s worth?” More and more frequently, the answer is a resounding NO!!!

No Editorial today. Instead, there is an op-ed from TorStar columnist Althia Raj. She has another Pierre Poilievre is bad and Justin Trudeau is just dreamy column. *cough*

Quote of the Day: “Have we reached the ultimate state of absurdity where some people are held responsible for things that happened before they were born, while other people are not held responsible for what they themselves are doing today?” Thomas Sowell

On the Front Page today, Paige Desmond writes about the decision yesterday made by Justice Michael J. Valente that ruled the region’s bylaw to evict trespassers on regionally owned properties violates their rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to life, security and liberty of the person. He stated that he refused the injunction application by the Region “because of the Region’s lack of effort to connect with residents and meet their unique needs.” Wow. Desmond tells us that this is a precedent setting legal decision. She asks: “How the decision will impact two other large encampments at 150 Main St. in Cambridge, on regional property, and on Roos Island in Victoria Park, owned by the City of Kitchener, isn’t yet known.” Well, I know how it will impact these places. It now means that no region, city, town, hamlet or cross roads junction can evict trespassers who plop down a tent unless each region, city, town, hamlet or cross roads junction make an “effort to connect with residents and meet their unique needs.” Wow. The word “extortion” comes to mind…

Hey – we have an Editorial today!!! Nice. Oh, it’s about the Greenbelt. *cough*

You know what they say about a broken clock? Well, today, on the Insight Page, Bob Hepburn is actually correct when he suggests in his op-ed that: “Housing solutions are out there”. He tells us about Julia Deans, President and CEO of Habitat for Humanity Canada and her solutions to the so-called housing crisis: “First, enact zoning laws that allow increased density and supply. Second, reduce municipal red tape that ties up development for years. Third, increase the amount of land designated for affordable housing.” Oh, you mean implement market based solutions and restrict government involvement in private business decisions??? Oh, how original. I’ll bet that Hepburn was grinding his teeth when he wrote that…

On the Insight Page, Simeon Kibaalya from TheRecord’s Community Editorial Board has a heart breaking story about the upcoming 40th anniversary of his father’s murder in Uganda by Idi Amin’s agents. Terrifying to read. And after learning about stories like this, I am ever so grateful that I live in Canada and I’m also grateful that men and women like Kibaalya have found Canada to call their new home. But, let’s not forget that after Amin was disposed, he was able to live out his life, not a prison cell, but in luxury in Saudi Arabia.