Tag: politics

Canada, Economy, Risk, Roam

Benjamin Tal economist CIBC – Canada -US trade future

Colin Henderson

Benjamin Tal, deputy chief economist at CIBC World Markets 10/04/25 Despite all the calls to diversify Canada’s trade, the country will end up more dependent on the United States once tariff negotiations have concluded, according to a well-known economist. “We are in the midst of a global trade war, and in a global trade war, like in the Cold War, you have to choose sides,” Benjamin Tal, deputy chief economist at CIBC World Markets, said. On Wednesday, U.S. President Donald Trump turned his global trade war into a faceoff with China after he announced a 90-day reprieve on higher reciprocal tariffs levied against other countries, but raised … Continue reading Benjamin Tal economist CIBC – Canada -US trade future

banking, Economics, Geopolitics, Innovation, Risk, Social Theory

US Tariffs Set to Make world economic and military History

Colin Henderson

It is worth capturing this moment. It has the potential to be elevated to a moment in world economic history in the same vein as Bretton Woods, World Trade Organization, United Nations, and many other bedrock areas that preceded and followed WWII. The broad perspective was to encourage World stability in economic terms and those tools were designed to create a global platform of stability that would make WWxx things of the past. Here we are 80 years later and the flaws in those tools with their commensurate inability to adapt have created a global world of bad actors yet … Continue reading US Tariffs Set to Make world economic and military History

AI

The Canadian roots of Elon Musk conspiracist grandpa

Colin Henderson

Raised in Saskatchewan, Joshua Haldeman was a tech-utopian, politician and apartheid fan In considering programming and definition of AI the complications and social drivers that brought a chiropractor from Saskatchewan to be the grandson being the richest and arguably most powerful man in the world has many frames of thought and dynamics in producing such a person. Read on for an unbelievable yet true profile. By Geoff LeoMar. 20, 2025 Joshua Haldeman was just one of thousands of Saskatchewan farmers who lost their land in the drought of the Dirty ’30s. While that trauma shaped the lives of everyone who … Continue reading The Canadian roots of Elon Musk conspiracist grandpa

AI

“The Technological Republic: Hard Power, Soft Belief, and the Future of the West” by “Alexander C. Karp, Nicholas W. Zamiska”).

Colin Henderson

First Draft book review – Colin Henderson March 7th, 25 My first draft notes on this important new book.  “The Technological Republic: Hard Power, Soft Belief, and the Future of the West” by “Alexander C. Karp, Nicholas W. Zamiska”). 1 First Draft book review – Colin Henderson March 7th, 25 1 Conclusion 6 Preface The Author reflects on his philosophy broadly and more specifically what is wrong and missing in the American approach to invention and use of technology. It is a powerful message that in simple terms could be viewed as a direct reflection from the 60’s and Rand … Continue reading “The Technological Republic: Hard Power, Soft Belief, and the Future of the West” by “Alexander C. Karp, Nicholas W. Zamiska”).

AI

Valuing the Deep State: A Nine-Part Series by Francis Fukuyama

Colin Henderson

Francis Fukuyama’s nine-part series on the advantages, dangers, and complications of bureaucratic autonomy. Francis Fukuyama A compilation of Francis Fukuyama’s nine-part series on valuing the deep state, originally published on his Frankly Fukuyama column via Persuasion. Part I: Valuing the Deep State Why the hostility towards the “deep state”? In the first installment of his series, Francis Fukuyama pushes back on anti-bureaucracy sentiment and makes the case that a high-capacity, professional, and impersonal state is critical to the success of any society. Part II: The Origin of States To understand the deep state, start by exploring human nature. Fukuyama traces how humans have … Continue reading Valuing the Deep State: A Nine-Part Series by Francis Fukuyama

AGI, Social Theory

The Dark Side of Modernity(Alexander)

Colin Henderson

In “The Dark Side of Modernity,” Jeffrey C. Alexander critically examines modernity’s contradictory character, depicting it as both a historical period embodying Enlightenment ideals and a social condition marred by suffering and destructive impulses. He discusses how key theorists like Weber, Simmel, Eisenstadt, and Parsons tackled modernity’s dual nature, emphasizing that contradictions should not be resolved but accepted. Civil inclusion and anti-civil exclusion are intertwined, highlighting modernity’s endemic frictions. Alexander advocates for social amelioration through emotional repair and cultural performance, maintaining that acknowledging modernity’s duality fosters realistic approaches to social justice and improvement. Continue reading The Dark Side of Modernity(Alexander)

Canada

NP View: A roadmap for Canadian prosperity

Colin Henderson

This country can be very wealthy if Ottawa gets out of the way Published Feb 08, 2025  •  Last updated 1 hour ago  •  4 minute read Parliament needs to be recalled immediately because, even though U.S. President Donald Trump’s across-the-board 25 per cent tariffs have been put on pause, the threat remains. Instead, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau hosted a “summit” with business and labour leaders in Toronto on Friday morning. While Trudeau gave a speech at the summit, the most significant thing he said came after he shooed reporters out of the room so he could speak privately with investors. When he thought the … Continue reading NP View: A roadmap for Canadian prosperity

AI

Labour’s ambitious AI Opportunities Action Plan sets a strong vision to leverage AI technologies for UK economic growth. How realistic are these plans, and do they come at the cost of AI safety, the previous government’s priority?

Colin Henderson

Labour starts the year strong with the publication of its AI Opportunities Action Plan. It presents a bold vision for leveraging AI to drive economic growth and improve public services. Labour’s plan prioritises securing sovereign AI capabilities for the UK’s economic future and is a clear supportive signal to the UK tech sector. This marks a policy shift away from AI security towards economic growth as a guiding principle of AI policy. While the focus on investing in infrastructure such as computing power and a National Data Library is welcome, this vision comes with significant challenges, particularly in terms of addressing … Continue reading Labour’s ambitious AI Opportunities Action Plan sets a strong vision to leverage AI technologies for UK economic growth. How realistic are these plans, and do they come at the cost of AI safety, the previous government’s priority?

AI
Colin Henderson

Trump’s Project 2025 agenda caps decades-long resistance to 20th century progressive reform Colin Gordon, University of Iowa For much of the 20th century, efforts to remake government were driven by a progressive desire to make the government work for regular Americans, including the New Deal and the Great Society reforms. But they also met a conservative backlash seeking to rein back government as a source of security for working Americans and realign it with the interests of private business. That backlash is the central thread of the Heritage Foundation’s “Project 2025” blueprint for a second Trump Administration. Alternatively disavowed and embraced … Continue reading