G20 Breakdown

The University of Toronto has decided it will close for 4 days during the G20 summit.   The school is 15-20 blocks of dense city from the G20 meetings. They are saying the closure is because the G20 ‘designated speech’ march will be ending couple of blocks away at Queen’s park.  Hyper-sensitive?  Overreaction? What is the labour and community march going to do that is such a threat to the University (especially for 4 days!)

Looks like U of T students will have to go out to the marches now – they’re both pissed off and have the free time!

It makes you wonder what the University is really doing.  Maybe they are giving up the space to G20 security so they cast an even wider net.

I only have time to put forth a few links, as I am traveling for work right now and will be a bit indisposed the next few days. But I have some original articles in the pipeline for next week…

Anarchist group claims responsibility for Tuesday’s bank firebombing
A fine and balanced reportage and analysis of the Royal bank bombing in Ottawa.

And here is another take, from a blog I can’t seem to find the author of. It doesn’t seem like a particularly politically or social justice minded blog, which is quite refreshing for such a strong opinion and critique. The author simply feels strongly.

Germany moves to clamp down on speculative trading

Germany moved Tuesday to clamp down on speculative trading as it sought to ease market volatility that many believe has helped cause the current crisis hitting Greece and the eurozone.
Germany’s securities market regulator Bafin immediately banned naked short sales of certain securities, in particular the government bonds of the 16 countries that use the euro.

Moderators skipped question on Gulf oil spill at Harper forum

If you are watching, this gys modus operandi is so simple and transparent: ‘Anything beyond the economy, including issues frequently covered by the national media, is a “sideshow,” the Prime Minster said.’

And even if you went with the economy angle, it was still “Like other participants, she was asked to submit questions last Friday for the Monday. Here’s what she proposed:

“In light of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill and the reluctance of the companies involved to accept responsibility, what new control measures for oil drillers will the Canadian government put in place to reduce the risk of oil spills in Canadian waters, and ensure the continuance of our marine ecosystems and the sustainability of our fisheries?”
She said she tried to put an “economic slant” on it, hoping that it would be answered. But it wasn’t to be.
She wasn’t the only one disappointed, either. Two students interviewed by Le Devoir, who did not want their names used, told the Quebec newspaper the questions they posed to the Prime Minister were re-written by his team.
They pointed in particular to the lone question on maternal health. “The initial question included mention of abortion but it as rewritten to remove the controversial passage,” one of the students indicated, suggesting it was altered by the “people in Stephen Harper’s office.”

Orders of the Day: Don’t worry, banking sector — Canada’s back, and we’ve got yours!

In an effort to stave off the creeping menace that is the global bank tax, Canada is, we’re told, dispatching a tiger team of ministers to Mumbai (Finance Minister Jim Flaherty), Shanghai (Treasury Board President Stockwell Day), Washington (International Trade Minister Peter Van Loan) and the National Press Theatre right here in Ottawa (Industry Minister Tony Clement) as part of a “worldwide campaign” against the insidious initiative, in hopes of killing it deader than a dodo-shaped doorknob before next month’s G8/20 summits. After all, it’s our International Year — shouldn’t we get to set the agenda?

1. A report from the G8 Halifax protest
Includes pointed criticism of the G8 and Harper’s narrowly focused approach to maternal health. “Where are the G8 leaders when women, many of them mothers, are raped, tortured, and/or killed at work, whether they’re working in Maquiladoras in Mexico or doing sex work in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside?”

2. G8 development ministers are leaving Halifax without making any specific financial commitments for child and maternal health. The Harper government also hasn’t been very clear about what it plans or initiatives on that front. Non-funding of abortion is the only area where they have made their plans fully known.

3. Various questions and concerns have come up about the G20 pronouncement last week of recovery and growth:
G20 growth forecasts don’t add up

G20 wary of overconfidence; Greece cast long shadow

4. Excellent technical report by Andrew Jackson on prospects for the G20 in Toronto, found on the Progressive Economics website. He says that in a number of ways, panic has turned to complacency regarding global capitalism’s prospects.