Troy Media

Romance is in the (alpine) air in Zurich

By Judy McEuen, Travel Writer

ZURICH, Switzerland

Don’t be discouraged by Zurich’s identity as the financial capital of Switzerland. Behind the business persona of the city is a romantic setting complete with snow-capped mountains, pristine alpine lakes and dreamy architecture.

How green regulations helped create the SUV

- Ben Eisen, Policy Analyst and Kenneth Green, Advisor, Frontier Centre for Public Policy In light of the new vehicle fuel efficiency standards set by U.S. President Barack Obama (and matched here in Canada), and the volatile fuel prices of recent years, some automobile market observers have declared the imminent death of the SUV. “It’s about time,” said a representative of the Sierra Club back in 2005 when SUV sales first began to decline “you wonder what people were thinking.” For the Sierra Club and like-minded groups, SUV sales can’t decline quickly enough.

Future of newspapers befuddles journalists

- Terry Field, Media Columnist, Troy Media Reporters, editors and media researchers gathered in Montreal this past weekend to discuss the impact and potential of social media in news gathering and presentation.

Kudos to Manitoba’s Education Minister

Michael Zwaagstra, Research Associate, Frontier Centre for Public Policy Manitoba teachers may soon have the option again of deducting marks for late assignments. Education minister Nancy Allan has acknowledged her department’s directive to school boards - -the one that forbids teachers from using academic penalties to penalize lateness- -is problematic.

Despite the downturn, Canada’s economy will still drift West

By Todd Hirsch, Senior Economist, ATB Financial My how the mighty have fallen! The one-time engine of the national economy, western Canada sputtered dramatically in 2009.

Should we be forced to vote?

- Heather MacIntosh, Program Director, Democratic Development and Human Rights, Sheldon Chumir Foundation for Ethics in Leadership At 40.6 per cent, Alberta, in 2008, had the lowest voter turnout ever in a Canadian provincial election. That sounds even worse when we consider that PEI's turnout, the year before, was 84 per cent. Such dismal electoral participation makes it time to consider mandatory voting in Alberta.

Taxes are code for “collateral damage”

Mark Milke, Director of Research, Frontier Centre for Public Policy "War never solved anything" someone once said, which is as wrong as one can be on the subject. In the Second World War, war from the Allies solved the problem of Germans encamped where others didn't care for them: Poland, Belgium, France and Holland for starters.

Alberta’s equalization concerns off target

By Luc Turgeon, Assistant Professor, University of Ottawa and Jennifer Wallner, Assistant Professor, Universities of Regina and Saskatchewan Alberta once again is in an uproar over equalization, the federal transfer program intended to ensure that citizens in all provinces have access to reasonably comparable public services at reasonably comparable levels of taxation.

How the Great Recession Concentrated Public Minds

Ben Eisen, Policy Analyst, Frontier Centre for Public Policy The deep recession from which the Canadian economy appears to have emerged caused real pain for hundreds of thousands of people. Jobs were lost, hours cut, and retirements postponed. It does not trivialize the hardship suffered by so many to point out that that same hardship concentrated the minds of those in government on how best to manage public money. In the process, governments have identified a major long-term threat to Canada’s fiscal health at the federal and provincial level: the rapidly escalating pay levels of public servants.

Greek tragedy offers lessons for Canada

- Gwyn Morgan, Columnist, Troy Media The failure of Greece’s small economy would be internationally irrelevant if it weren’t for Euro-egotists such as French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who can’t bear the indignity of letting one of their own drown in dysfunction.

United Nations costs more than it’s worth

-Jesse J. Leaf, Senior Editor, Troy Media Get a globe and spin it. Jab your finger down at random and, without doubt, you will have located a spot entangled in war, revolution, rebellion, terrorism, famine, plague, drought, dictatorship, poverty and/or illiteracy. If I told you the year was 1810, you wouldn’t be surprised. If I told you the year was 2010, tragically, you wouldn’t be surprised, either.

Earth Hour: Verging on the Occult

- David Seymour, Senior Policy Analyst, Frontier Centre for Public Policy If previous Earth Hours are any indication, this Saturday’s annual ritual will possess a curious blend of contradictory properties. Switching off the lights for an hour will have little effect on climate change, practical or symbolic, yet it will likely follow the established trend of growing participation each year. All good contradictions deserve an explanation, but the most likely ones in this case don’t bode well for our Western liberal Enlightenment tradition.

Freezing public sector wages a good idea

- Ben Eisen, Policy Analyst, Frontier Centre for Public Policy Manitoba's provincial government recently announced that in response to a looming $600-million deficit for this fiscal year, the province would freeze the wages of public-sector employees for the next two years.

How Ottawa let Mohawks practice evictions and undermine individual dignity

-Joseph Quesnel, Frontier Centre for Public Policy If the Mohawk community of Kahnawake wanted a way to end up on the six o'clock news, attempts to evict 26 non-Natives from their reserve was the perfect way to do it. As most readers now know, those not meeting the Kahnawake reserve's community membership code - many are involved in romantic relationships with Mohawks and some are long-time caregivers for resident members - were given 10 days to leave.

Canadian interest rates will soon start to inch upward

- Todd Hirsch, Alberta Business Columnist, Troy Media The chatter around water coolers and board room tables over the last couple of weeks may have focused on the Olympics but, now that the Games are over, everyone will get back to that other favourite topic du jour: where are interest rates going?

Post-Olympic BC will get a lift from tourism and housing

Dr. Roslyn Kunin, BC Business Columnist, Troy Media VANCOUVER, BC, Feb. 27, 2010/ Troy Media/ -- Shh, talk softly. March is coming into Vancouver not like a lion or a lamb, but with a major hangover from the biggest and best party that the Vancouver-Whistler area has seen in a very long time.

Lawyers salivating over governments’ addiction to gambling

Gavin MacFadyen, Legal Columnist, Troy Media When we were children, there would inevitably come a time when we would protest in a pique of self-righteous indignation that, "You're not the boss of me!" That same sentiment stays with us the rest of our lives. We become convinced that our personal freedom trumps all comers and no one has the right to stick their nose into our business.

The Greediest Generation: Baby boomers and their public debt

By Mark Milke Former NBC anchor Tom Brokaw wrote in his book The Greatest Generation of that cohort which survived the Great Depression and beat fascism. It was a laudable tribute to their sacrifices.

Calgarys fingerprints all over Vancouver Games

By Todd Hirsch Alberta Business Columnist Its hard to believe that its already half over! After a 22-year wait, the Olympic Winter Games have returned to Canada, and the party has been unforgettable. Despite a few glitches and some criticism that the Games have received, VANOC and the citizens of British Columbia are pulling off an amazing event, one that Canadians will always remember.

Marines Near Marjah Hold First Meeting With Elders

HELMAND PROVINCE – A patrol of Marines and Sailors of Combined Anti-Armor Team 1 and Charlie Co, 1st Bn, 3rd Marine Regt, held their first impromptu meeting with village elders, and only moments later came under hostile fire from Taliban attackers.