It’s so easy to criticize politicians when they’re not doing what you want. But when they act in a principled way, no matter how it turns out, any criticism seems petty. This is how I feel about Premier Wynne now. While trying to establish herself with a new cabinet and a hostile legislature, she [...]
Bixi, We Hardly Knew Ye
Bike sharing, like car sharing, is a fine civic idea that has yet to prove itself commercially. It’s such a cheap way of relieving pressure on overloaded roads and transit, who cares whether or not it breaks even financially? Add in the environmental, health and aesthetic benefits (Bixi riders tend to make less noise and [...]
Casinos and the public service: a collision of motives
The Province’s hard driving campaign to promote gambling in Ontario has become an ethical train wreck. The surest sign is the sudden defection of people from high levels of public trust into the employ of casino promoters. Their recruitment by the industry is a sign of desperation. Their unconcealed service of private interests, while engaged [...]
A Wynne-Wynne for Gambling in Ontario
I was hoping that the new premier would act on her convictions and take a stand against a Toronto casino. Unfortunately she doesn’t think that her convictions are affordable. Instead she makes the argument that we need more gambling to reduce the provincial deficit. While the OLG’s media blitz seems to have ended, and I’d [...]
Reconsidering colleges as corporations
My astute new colleague, Genevieve Tran, took me to task for blithely suggesting community colleges should make it a priority to improve their performance as corporations ( colleges as corporations ). I had argued that they weren’t designed for the competitive environment they find themselves in 45 years after they were founded. Genevieve didn’t disagree, [...]
Plodding to “yes” on an economic no-brainer
Skeptics have an easy time dismissing claims about failsafe investments in the economy. My favorite example, the $40 million Downsview Aerospace Campus, probably suffers from this. The return on investment sounds too good to be true, and skepticism tends to trump opportunism when public sector spending decisions are made. When governments demur from an expensive [...]
Playing Better Odds: Let’s Fold Toronto Casino’s Losing Hand
I don’t want to think about casinos any more, but I don’t know how to avoid the issue. The rolling barrage of OLG advertisements cannot be ignored. Now that we have a Premier and a Mayor again, it might be hoped that the OLG can be reigned in, but that hasn’t happened yet. A joint [...]
Bottoms up, Toronto!
I don’t know much about politics, but I recognize an injustice when I see one. The Mayor is being criticized for behaving like an alcoholic, as if incoherent speech and erratic behavior is new to Toronto City Council. Anyone remember the plastic bag or shark fin soup bans last year? Sometimes the whole Council acts [...]
Consultants using their powers for good in a corporatized post secondary future
I was interested in how community colleges compete for resources in a crowded market like the Greater Toronto Area. Colleges were originally designed to deliver and administer educational programs in response to the needs of the economy and to the government that funds them. Now they’re under pressure to enroll far more students with less [...]
IF YOU’RE SERIOUS ABOUT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT…
Like most Torontonians who’ve been drawn into the casino debate, I’m not an expert in economics or the gambling industry. But I share the sense of skepticism aroused by government’s desperate pressure to turn public opinion. Today, for example, the media reported that 52% of Torontonians are in favour of a Toronto casino. This survey’s [...]