Anywhere but here

It’s no secret that Canada’s immigration system makes no sense at all. After spending much time and energy selecting highly-skilled, highly-educated immigrants, we leave them to their own devices, with few job placement programs in place and a patchwork of “bridging programs” that range from expensive, sometimes redundant re-training courses at universities to humiliatingly basiccontinue reading

Best new magazine

I noticed this magazine at Pages the other day and picked it up, assuming it was a special Russia issue of some trendy design magazine. But no — it’s actually the third issue of a stylish magazine about Russia, covering style, art, business, and a lot more. Highlights of this issue include: – an annotatedcontinue reading

Unintended consequences…

Here’s an economic side effect that one might not have seen coming — business is good for Texans selling paraphernalia to cowboy-mad Germans following the wind boom: “Dandy’s Western Wear, the local cowboy attire shop, cannot keep enough python skin and cowhide boots in stock because of all the Danes and Germans who have comecontinue reading

“The Problem”

…is not so much with music downloading, it’s with the math. Let’s look at this piece from yesterday’s Star, shall we? THE PROBLEM Sales of CDs are down 20 per cent worldwide and 35 per cent in Canada, compared to 2006. An estimated 1.6 billion music files are downloaded in Canada each year on “grey-market”continue reading

Bears!

If you have any colleagues who are recent immigrants to Canada, and if you’ve ever mentioned to them that you like to go camping, you’ll undoubtedly be aware that Canada has a bizarre international reputation as a giant frozen wasteland covered with ravening bears which will tear you limb from limb at the least opportunity.continue reading

The (more expensive) staff of life

While inflation in the US has prompted talk of stagflation, the rise in the loonie — and fixed prices for staples such as milk through supply management — has kept Canadian CPI in check, so far. But this morning’s Star highlights one mainstay that’s getting more expensive: The price of an industry standard 40-kilogram bagcontinue reading