Poetic Perspective (part 14) - Killing Fields

KILLING FIELDS

Broken bones, charred remains

Starved children, power gained

Monopolized industries, private plans

Privatized lands, money in hand

Is it all worth it?

Depends on who you ask

Those that do not understand

Can’t comprehend

How this could even exist

Yet it continuously persists

Too difficult to reverse

So the masses turn away

What can you do if you turned numb day-by-day

Frozen inside, so you blankly stare

You cannot wish the pain, injustice, and misery away

It will exist tomorrow because it exists today

Nothing changes overnight

Processes occur that are out of your sight

Governments give foreign aid, hope played

Foreign aid empowers the military dictatorships to stay

Death squads are dispatched, street gangs sent

To ensure resources are protected and saved
Money absorbed into deep coffers, not a penny spent

No need for lives to be saved when money can be made

Regions fight over shares,
Homes destroyed, lives fractured, no one cares
Opinions and solutions appear from people that are not physically there

No solution, just continuation

Money and careers to be made, no reason for a resolution

The media sells a story, over time it becomes history and fact

If money is to be protected, then the media distorts the truth

Real story fades into the background

Lives vanished into the oblivion, without making a sound

A distraction is created to hide the truth, repeated regularly all day

A scandal, an event, something else needs to be sold

So the real story never needs to be known

So the real story is never told

The killing fields remain, dissenters contained

Those that speak out are labeled, categorized, stigmatized

Terrified, tortured before they pass away

Haunting to see the whole picture while trying not to lose your mind

Hard to swallow the whole picture while you try to live a “normal” life.

Poetic Perspective (part 13) - Philosophy

PHILOSOPHY

Many people wonder but not enough to change themselves?

Then why wonder?

Wonder for the sake of wondering?

Amusement to pass time?

Philosophy is time consuming, soul changing, mind altering, life changing

When done and used right

What else is philosophy for?
It helps one understand and to reason better

Yet many use it in order to fake conversations?
They rarely use it to better others?  Or help others see things for themselves

People use it against others in arguments
People use it to show off, for vain purposes

However, all things are weapons in the hands of the simple minded and ignorant
All things are also weapons when used by the wise and knowledgeable
Philosophy is a deep subject
Which knows no bounds except for the boundaries set by the thinker himself
Once you free the mind, the world around you changes
The words you use, the thoughts you have, the feelings inside you have altered
You see yourself as a part of a whole. A piece of it
The world no longer revolves around you
Only your world, your individualized world revolves around you

Your world is held together by your own thoughts
By your responsibilities in the environment you find yourself in
Philosophizing solely on things, makes you miss out on the ability to understand other things

Limiting the growth of your mind and of the soul

Which when connected as one gives you utter freedom and contentment

Peace and joy and acceptance
Love filtered through your body when you approach another living thing

Poetic Perspective (part 12) - Real Forms

REAL FORMS
Look up at the sky and I find stars, look into the stars and I find light, look into the light and I find you
Look into the light and watch myself change form
I was floating in the darkness, the abyss of nothingness, where light could not penetrate
Now the rays of light that creeped in, has transformed me from here on in

A changed man I stand, a star floating in your glow, circling you, following you, wherever u may go
 I fear no passing away, for I shall return in another form
My energy used for other purposes, for life can never end
Heaven and hell are mental creations so how can 1 suffer when living in a world of sin?
Everything man touches in front of his eyes is doused in lies,
Sprayed over with blood, sweat, excrement, and semen

Lives passed away, many taken without given a chance
Hence we travel aimlessly in this universe, together with others, but truly alone in space like dust existing a million life times ago, now specks of sand
Life fleeting, never lasting, always changing and yet routine.
That is why it’s beautiful, tragic, a fairy tale and romantic

Its people you meet that make up your world
It’s things you read which create your thoughts
Your actions shape your reality
Your reality, your existence
The essence of life, a reason to believe in change, for nothing lasts forever, nor it is consistent

See things as they are, for its all you have left
 You’ll see beauty, wonder, love, and amazement
Miss out on it once, and who knows when the chance appears again in this existence
Take it all with a stride; take a breath when it goes wrong
Believe in yourself, believe in your dreams, never let them be wasted, never think of them as futile or small
See the light not the darkness, see love not hate

Poetic Perspective (part 11) - Sand In A Hour Glass

SAND IN A HOUR GLASS
Time passes away never to return

Unlike sand in an hourglass, it can never be flipped upside down and reversed

A curse
That mankind must always live life forward

Any regrets, all mistakes, every remorse he may feel -stays

Whether it’s valid or not, it shapes his future, his actions, and our future thoughts

As we age we get frailer

Weaker, sicker, rigid, and desensitized

To the scenes in front of us which have shaped our very lives

Many we love -pass away in front of our eyes

Either through disease, accidents, natural causes, or suicides

Many hearts break, too much emotional trauma

How can you turn away from thoughts and ideas that haunt you?

Broken dreams, wrong career, many avoidable misadventures

Negative friends, abusive relationships, and ideas that have failed

Reality is built to break you

The media circulates utter nonsense

Don’t let it consume you
Become you

Or shape you
It’s nothing but propaganda and lies

Time is precious even thought it passes us by

Use it to your advantage and never watch the good inside you bleed out and die

Use time wisely, learning from mistakes, always ready to smile

Poetic Perspective (part 10) - Street Life

STREET LIFE
I smell like urine and feces slumped over in a corner
Aggressive and angry, when provoked I will harm you
I have no home and no one to love me
Now I use various substances in order to be happy

I hurt on the inside so I cry silently
Depressing thoughts make me speak out resentful and violently
I don’t want to hurt anyone so leave me alone
I feel empty on the inside so I escape some more

People judge me as they pass me, lying on the floor
I once used to be somebody, someone with dreams
Now I wake up in the morning, cold and alone, on this hard concrete street
I beg for change, unsure what I’ll use it for

I just need a little bit of money so I don’t hurt anymore
Substances help mostly
So I use it often, abusively
I don’t want to live but I don’t want to die

I don’t want to think about the past, I just want to escape reality and be “high”
If I  “O.D.” so be it, let me be free
No one will know I existed, no one will miss me
No one will even know I passed away and I’m now deceased

The thought saddens me but it’s a truth in my physical reality
I inject more poison so I can be free
Whether its booze, drugs, or nicotine
Now I pass out again on the streets
Repeating the same routine regularly

Poetic Perspective (part 9) - Victimized

VICTIMIZED

Do we choose to be victimized while living in reality?

To be victims each day as we awaken from our beds, as we walk the streets regularly

If we know that society is built a certain way, then why do we expect anything less than what we receive?

Especially when you know how society reacts when we try to be different, when we try and break free?

When we try and dream

That’s when reality makes us victims and suppresses us relentlessly

We say the right things in conversations because we know what we are expected to say

We know how to act in society because we manage to do it each and every day

Yet inside, in our minds and in our hearts, we’re victimized by our crushing realities

We are afraid to be ourselves, even when we are with those we love 

We know even though they love us, it isn’t always unconditionally

Though they’ll smile in front of us, they judge us surreptitiously

Secretly, stealthily

It’s the truth in our realities, in our relationships, it’s what lurks beneath

The disease lives inside the human heart, the human mind

A judgmental society that finds a way to leave us feeling victimized over time

Victimized enough to know our place in the hierarchy of civil society

Victimized enough to know our position when we encounter powerful people daily

Victimized enough to know where we stand religiously and culturally

Victimized enough to know where we stand economically and politically

Victimized enough to know where we stand when it comes to gender and our sexuality

Victims –aren’t we all when we live this reality?

Victims is what society makes of you and me

A cruel fate to be born into this reality, to be able to have all five senses and use our brains actively

Yet not be able to make major changes in society, even those that affect our own minor realities

We fight, we fight, we fight -until there is nothing left

That’s when we have learned how to master reality, we await fatigued, awaiting to release our last breath

We live through others -through poems, through movies, through art, and through friends

Through our children, through our co-workers, through their joys and happiness

Through their sadness, dismay, pain, and hurt

We are victims of our bodies, of our society, of civilization, of the reality we live in today.

Poetic Perspective (part 8) -What If?

   WHAT IF?

What if you can’t tell the difference between the cops and the criminals?

How can you comfort the sick when they are terminal?

What if all the ads on TV are subliminal?

What if this is the reality you are already in?

Where nothing matters and there exists no sin?

What if God was created and a figment of someone’s mind?

What if it was the “blind leading the blind”?
If happiness was sold so that you don’t commit suicide?

A disguise that keeps you alive

For the truth would eat away at you until you faded away and died

Moment by moment eating away slowly on the inside

Like cancer spreading inside your body –there is no way to hide

Just dying to survive

So you can say goodbye

But why say bye when death isn’t the end of life and your soul’s energy is keeping you alive?

What if politicians were thieves and the government worked solely for profit?

What could you do if you did not have firearms to overthrow, replace, or stop it?

What if the poor kept the rich alive and the rich exploited the poor?

Why is it a crime when the poor rise up and want to settle the score?

What if parents scarred, damaged, and traumatized their children?

What would be the point of enabling life to begin?

What if doctors prescribed medicine only for profit?

What if the patient couldn’t afford it?

How could you treat the patient if he refused the medication and stopped it?

What is worst, the cure or the disease?

Slow death in agony? or passing away quickly and easily?

What if demons existed but only in our hearts?

Existed with us since men evolved, civilization expanded, and modern society began to start

Murder, violence, bloodshed, war, rape, and forced incest

Coping mechanisms that failed to deal with our stress

What if killers imitated violence on the TV screens?

Nothing is as it seems?
What you see in front of us, even though it is real, is constructed and make believe

The media tells lies, what’s recorded in history is half a truth, half faked

History written by winners, crooks, and thieves

Making sure, they control your mind and all that you see

Entire groups silenced, exploited, killed off, and left for dead

Entire countries and land ravaged, pillaged, and populations left to starve to death

Peoples, books, symbols, and languages all burnt or erased

Until they are left, as a case study since that was their “fate”

What if society celebrated death by celebrating killers instead of victims?

What if victims were used by those who seek opportunism, money, and those willing to trick them?

Giving them hope and shattering it just as fast

Like watching your dreams die slowly, melting away like bodies in a car crash

Life’s not meant to last and neither are dreams

Only when you eliminate society will you end this disease

Otherwise life is repetitive, no reason to believe we can proceed

No reason to believe this cycle will end and civilization will ever succeed.

Poetic Perspective (part 7) - Zombie Life

ZOMBIE LIFE

Zombies are all around

Sitting, eating, staring while walking passively without making a sound

No need to be dead, zombies move around while still alive

Living in absurdity

Routine, automatic, superficial lives

Some live on the fringes, others just act out

Can’t be helped, damaged from within

The zombie disease is infectious once it penetrates deep within the mind, deep into the skin

“Sinner”, “saints” –even those trying to fit in

It never ends

Another day, another moment –again it begins

Monotonous journey, the days of our lives

Work, school, sleep

Work, school, sleep

It’s how we survive

Bills pay mortgages, bills pay insurance

Very little left for me, so I use credit

Go into debt, only one choice I have left

What do they expect?

Inflation takes away all my earnings

Taxes and union dues most of my pay check

I finish school, straight to work

Work until I retire, quit, or get fired

Then I get hired

Again another cycle begins

Never happy, unsatisfied, yet I continue on

Body aches, soul dying to get free, yet no release for it now

Zombie life, robotic, automatic responses

Now I’m despondent

Zombie life, wired into the system

Social networking websites, phone, text, email, B.B.M –always glued in

How do I plug out when the rest of my days and hours I spend working

It’s my only freedom to escape my zombie routine

Movies, sports, and TV shows enable me to escape reality

And allow me to live

Otherwise, zombie reality is me, it’s how I function while I remain alive

Living a zombie life is how I survive.

Poetic Perspective (part 6) - Rock Bottom

ROCK BOTTOM

I can’t pay rent// It’s already spent

On drugs and booze// It’s what I use// So I can stay oblivious and confused

My reality is my worst nightmare// People who I thought cared// Used me making me scarred and scared

To trust, to touch, to want company// Now I want to be alone and escape my misery

Smoke a joint when I awake, save the crack pipe for later// Try not to be hated

I fall asleep wherever I can// Until I feel a guard touching my hands

And shaking me away// That’s how I start my day// Each and Every day

I eat my meals in shelters, I gather food at Food Banks, Clothes from the Goodwill

My will is good/ My mind is ill

I sell my body to whoever needs to use it

Sometimes even for body heat

It’s cold out here and I’m freezing to death// I’m not sure why I haven’t been called to heaven yet

As my body ages, I start to lose teeth

I smell like urine, I haven’t bathed since forever// I don’t remember the date or time, but I do fear the cold weather

Socks with holes// Shoes with broken soles

Nothing to wear that will protect my feet// I wonder aimlessly at times, lost and brokenhearted on the streets// Hoping to get spare change so I can eat

I hit rock bottom, there is nowhere else for me

I lie silently on the streets hoping that no one I know recognizes me

Withering away silently, old, and diseased

If this is what it means to be free// Then someone save me ‘cause I am not free

Living in misery// In front of the world to see
I hit rock bottom// Now there’s very few options left for me.

Poetic Perspective (part 5) -Opportunity Lost, Lessons Forgotten

OPPORTUNITY LOST, LESSONS FORGOTTEN
Technology has evolved but have we as people?

If we have, then how come we still don’t respect other people?

Their views, their opinions, their beliefs

We just seem to think about, “me, me, me”

We find what we believe to be reality

Instead of seeing others as being unique

We see them as being different, as the “Other”, as being diseased

Needing to be cured

If they don’t conform, they are ignored

Pushed to the fringes, stigmatized, and pushed away

So what does that say about civilization today?

Gays and Lesbians, Jews, and Immigrants - tolerated due to “Hate Laws”
Laws used to hide civilization’s flaws

To pretend we’re better than we really are

But watch how everyone stares

When they do not want you there

Awkward conversations and strained words

Absurd because nothing is really shared

Opportunity lost, lessons forgotten

Every generation is the same, we hope for a change

But we forget that we have already got to this stage

Then disaster strikes and we look for scapegoats

All those differences that were tolerated before now seem to, “rock the boat”
Immigration rules change and Refugee laws get created and enacted

Will “progress” go backwards? Will our attitudes and behaviors become retroactive?

Intolerance is bred, hate resumes

Until our whole civilization is engulfed and consumed

Opportunity lost, Lessons forgotten

Poetic Perspective (part 4) -Labor Force

LABOR FORCE
Boring jobs, Tiring jobs, Low paying jobs, Fun jobs

Once your 16, work never stops

4hrs, 8hrs, 12hrs –during shifts

If you do not like what you are doing, you might think you should not exist

Master the routine, otherwise you will become bitter and mean

You start working excitedly in your teens

Working, working, working away –until your body is not what it seems

Bills here, bills there

Money gone, dollars spent –how quickly it all disappears

Never enough, life can seem harsh and rough

Life is strenuous and tough

Sometimes it does not add up

Broken promises of, “Be all you can be”
Why is there a glass ceiling keeping people in mediocrity?

Out of the office and into the streets

Bitter reality, cold faces -await on the crowded and cracked concrete

It is not what you know, it’s who you know and how you suck up

It is money in your bank account, who your family is, and plain good luck

Hard work pays dividends when you are not carrying everyone

Not sure how fair it is when you are carrying the lazy, thoughtless, and dumb

Always be careful because everyone is watching

Make a mistake even once and you could be left sobbing

Union dues and taxes, mean money off your bi-weekly pay check

Making you wonder what you worked for, yelling aloud to yourself, “what the heck?”
Competition abounds, it is all you shall ever see

Someone wanting to take your place, pushing you out into obscurity

Feed your kids, pay your car insurance, and pay off your home

That shall be your lasting legacy for all to see before paying respects in front of your tombstone

Poetic Perspective (part 3) - Mental Health Patient

MENTAL HEALTH PATIENT
I walk around society, afraid to be me
Anxious, nervous, depressed -while living in my everyday reality
I tried so hard to find myself in a society that abolishes individuality and forces conformity
Breeding inside of us all, “team work”, democracy, hard work, and uniformity
Causing me to walk around confused, lost, and oblivious, while slowly losing a part of me
In truth, social norms and social rituals can’t seem to interest me
Why would I want to fit in and never be seen or heard?, just an overused and under appreciated commodity

I asked a lot of “wrong” questions so I’m diagnosed as a mentally ill individual
Someone who needs help and counseling, someone who needs to be “cured” of this mental disease
I have anger issues and trust issues presently, for I feel as if no one has ever truly loved me
How could they understand and genuinely love me, if they have not seen the real me?
I am nothing more than a domesticated animal, trained to fit in
One way or another I’ll get compartmentalized and categorized, until I start to make sense to the intellectuals, other staff members, my bosses, and the police
Whether I’m in prison, a psych ward, or a residential home with “other people” like me
I’ll always walk around uncertain of my actions, uncertain of separating the ‘dream world’ from reality

It’s difficult to breathe at times for the pressures of reality gets to me
I’m suicidal yet hopeless -trying to make it through another day of this absurdity
I want to hurt myself and yet, not cause pain to others
Imagining the pain I would cause to those that cared for me, especially my siblings, friends, and especially my mother
I shudder at the endless possibilities that present itself to me
Or the voices I hear when I am drunk, high, or semi asleep
I hear voices, just like the ones that religious men believe in
Very little separates them from me, our similarities are many, it’s amusing that most can’t see

I live every day, day-by-day, hour-by-hour, moment-by-moment
It’s all I have left, it’s what I dread most, living day-by-day, hour-by-hour, moment-by-moment
Somebody help me, I’m crying out to all of you
I don’t know what I can say or do but I’m doing everything I can to draw attention from you
Help me get through, another day, another hour, another moment
I don’t want to be medicated or high or drunk another day, another hour, another moment
But I can’t live like this either, another day, another hour, another moment
Living the life of a mentally ill patient is the toughest thing I have to do
So don’t judge me as I live in my everyday reality -you have not walked in my shoes, lived through what I have lived through
You are not me, so I don’t need your judgments, insincerity, or sympathy
Just let me be me, leave me alone with my indecisions and insecurities
A mentally ill patient, walking around, breathing the same air as you, in this diseased and complicated unlivable reality.

Poetic Perspective (part 2) - Medicated

MEDICATED

Red pills, Blue pills, White pills, Green pills

Small pills, Round pills, Big pills, Chew able pills

Some sedate, some thrill

Some wear your body down, some taken in high doses kill

I need it to be strong, I take it for the pain

I take it so I can sleep, I used it to function today

I take it since my body needs it, since my body and mind are ill

Therapeutic the way it makes me feel

Making all my pain go away, I feel numb, unreal.

Medicine you sniff, medicine you inject

Medicine you take orally –all of them have side effects

Not easy to detect but what can you expect?

“Caught between a rock and a hard place” I feel like I am living in hell

I am dying over time, my body and my mind

My spirit still lingers but I lost the need to stay alive

To stay alive in this state

Is a terrible fate

I scream out in agony but no one can end the agony

Soothing words for a broken soul

Whose life has run its course, whose lifestyle is now taking its toll

On the last days of my life

I wish to die quickly, no need to suffer and stay alive

I think fondly of my early years

Many images distorted, romanticized, while other I see crystal clear

Images of friends, family, loved ones –those I hold dear

I hope they forgive me before I pass away

I do not want to live in pain for another day.

Poetic Perspective (part 1) - Great Depression 2.0

GREAT DEPRESSION 2.0
Decimated populations, Ghost towns appearing
Penniless communities, Broken families
Stock market crashes, Disaster started
Foreclosures on the horizon, Economies shrinking
Suicides rising, Black market thriving
Buildings crumbling, Many left pondering
Petty crimes more prevalent
Past accomplishments erased, Present status irrelevant
Trying to survive, trying to stay alive
What’s worthwhile?
When you lived your whole illusionary lifetime in denial
Now living in a Depression
Human regression, Many unanswered questions
More devastation than a Recession
Companies contracting, Job losses astounding
A process of Hyper capitalism and Globalization, Corporate monopolization
Oligarchies appearing, Plutocracies reigning
Union power fading, Activists disappearing
A process of social engineering
Third World erected, Many dying with new biological diseases after being infected
Opportunities’ fading, No hope left
Grand Depression appearing
Clearing a way for another reality to be created, Old ways of life disappearing
New currency created, Highways built
Old skills out, New skills in
Restructuring reality, Bit-by-bit, Step-by-step
Hard to keep up when very little opportunities remain left
Pensions gone, World governments now privatized
Owned by those who had the money to buy
When the Great Depression 2.0 hit and caught everyone else by surprise.

Canada's Crisis (part 6) –Not Facing our Exploitative Past

Africville: Expropriating Black Nova Scotians
http://archives.cbc.ca/society/racism/topics/96/

Internment Camps 
http://www.vancouverisland.com/general/details.asp?id=44

List of Canadian concentration camps and internment camps  
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_concentration_and_internment_camps#Canada

Internment camps which have existed in Canada (Timeline)
http://www.google.ca/#q=internment+camps+in+canada&hl=en&sa=X&biw=1020&bih=567&rlz=1R2GGLL_en&tbs=tl:1,tl_num:50&prmd=ivns&ei=rPJeTZucL4L48AbIx6m0DA&ved=0CIMBEMsBKAM&fp=e1d57483344a3fed

CANADA HAS A SHAMEFUL SECRET: We just won’t say no to forced labor, child labor, and denial of labor rights
http://shamefulsecret.ca/

Canadian Sweat-Shop Operator in Haiti Reports Banner Year
http://www.socialistaction.org/ca36.htm
(And don't forget about Roots as well. They are make a killing in Haiti presently)

Canada's Private Sector Eyes Haiti Reconstruction
http://www.dominionpaper.ca/node/3302
Canada played a key role in the ouster of democratically elected President Jean Bertrand Aristide in 2004—an act that paved the way for foreign multinationals to take up shop in Haiti, including Canadian sweatshops and mining companies.

What is Canada Doing in Haiti?
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=13280

Vietnam: Canada's Unknown War
http://www.onf-nfb.gc.ca/eng/collection/film/?id=51957
Recently released documents show that Canadian industry and government were significantly integrated into the American war machine, with hundreds of millions of dollars in profits flowing north to Canadian industrial suppliers of the American military.


CANADA in the past has also participated in:
- creating the CHINESE HEAD TAX & CHINESE EXCLUSIONARY ACT.
 - building RESIDENTIAL SCHOOLS for the NATIVES.


FACT:
1.) Canada was historically built for the wealthy off the back of immigrants and the poor. All the Founding Fathers were Rich and owned private contracts to RAILWAY COMPANIES and other PROFITABLE BUSINESSES. As Canada grew, so did their wealth. This enabled them to create the “glass ceiling” for many entrepreneurs and businesses, as well as the systematically hierarchical society that exists in Canada today.  This is why Canada monopolized in all sectors of the work world presently.  Canada started as a monopoly and remains a monopoly with very few companies able to compete with the bigger companies.

2.) Multiculturalism was brought into Canada by Pierre Trudeau for two reasons:
(a) Shortage of a labor force/Shortage of population in CANADA
(b) To keep QUEBEC from SEPARATING FROM THE REST OF CANADA.
By introducing “Multiculturalism” it also created a BRAIN DRAIN on other countries since Canada (because of their POINT SYSTEM, unless you were a refugee) only took the best of the best from other countries. Due to multiculturalism, and during the expansion of multiculturalism, much of the underclass was created in urban cities inside Canada. 

"When the people clamor to be shielded from reality, when they praise their government for keeping things from them, when they choose to conduct their lives within the limits of whatever fantasy the government supplies, then they are no longer consenting to be governed, they are begging to be ruled"  -Michael Ventura

Canada’s Crisis (part 5) –Heavy Foreign Investment

(Due to heavy Foreign Investment and cheap labor, why some people believe that, “TORONTO IS THE NEW DUBAI")

IN DUBAI:
 "’Nakheel, Emaar, Damac and other developers have almost announced bankruptcy, my future depends on them since my company supplies these companies.  Now I am out of money and warehouses are full of stock’.  Dubai is in big trouble. When you consider that Dubai has not financed all the development in its country out of its own pocket (hence the slow down) you realize that foreign investment plays a big part in Dubai's development. “Sama Dubai, which is part of Dubai Holdings and Government owned has closed its doors - in fact they won't even answer the phone anymore! I've been waiting for an article in the paper to announce the cancellation of all their projects but of course that will never come since it’s a Government owned company and the papers are censored. Dubai has been designed, built, and in many cases financed by foreigners”

Builder Hastie collapses, risking 2,000 jobs in Middle East
http://www.thenational.ae/business/industry-insights/property/builder-hastie-collapses-risking-2-000-jobs-in-middle-east

DUBAI -A morally bankrupt dictatorship built by slave labor
http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/commentators/johann-hari/johann-hari-a-morally-bankrupt-dictatorship-built-by-slave-labour-1828754.html

Why Dubai’s problem relates to TORONO:
ELLIS DON (Ellis Don is an employee-owned global construction services company headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. It maintains offices throughout Canada and two in the United Arab Emirates, and also operates in the United States and the West Indies).
"In the brutal Canadian construction recession of the early nineties, Ellis Don very nearly went bankrupt” (This "RECESSION" is worse than in 1992.  In order to save the company during the RECESSION OF THE 1990’s, Ellis Don LIQUIDATED much of their assets.  A SIMILAR TREND CAN HAPPEN IF THE HOUSING BUBBLE AND CONDO BUBBLES BURST TODAY with Ellis Don again being forced to liquidate much of their assets in order to save the company).

Alleged price-fixing at G.T.A construction companies: 
http://www.thestar.com/news/crime/2013/01/31/alleged_pricefixing_at_gta_construction_companies.html

Canada's Crisis (part 4) –Ontario’s Debt Crisis

"To put Ontario’s debt in perspective, we recently compared Ontario's indebtedness to that of California. After all, the Golden State has gained international notoriety for its deficits and government dysfunction. In fact, California now has the lowest bond rating in the United States and its own Treasurer, Bill Lockyer, called California’s finances “a fiscal train wreck".  Unfortunately, U.S. states do not measure net debt, which is a standard measure of indebtedness that compares total debt adjusted for financial assets. To compare Ontario and California, we examined what is referred to as “bonded debt.” This is basically the debt of the province (or state) that remains outstanding in the form of marketable bonds. On every measure of indebtedness, Ontario is markedly worse than California. Ontario’s debt is almost two-thirds larger than California’s bonded debt even though California is a much larger jurisdiction in terms of both the size of its economy and its population. Specifically, California’s bonded debt is $143.9 billion as of 2011 while Ontario’s is $236.6 billion, two-thirds larger than California.  As a share of the economy, Ontario’s debt (38.6 per cent) is more than five times larger than California’s debt (7.7 per cent). Ontario’s per capita debt ($17,922) is over four-and-a-half times that of California ($3,833). Think about that – Ontarians are handing their children a debt load between four-and-a-half and five times that of Californians.  And there is a real cost to this debt today. Ontario spends a little over three times the amount of revenues on interest costs as California: 8.9 per cent versus 2.8 per cent. More specifically, Ontario spends roughly $10 billion a year on interest costs, about $750 per Ontarian per year just paying the interest on already accumulated debt. That’s money not spent on health care, education, roads, or public safety. The official response from the Ontario Ministry of Finance is one of denial, which echoes the lack of response by the government to the warnings of the Drummond Commission. Indeed, other sections in our report come to the same conclusions as the Drummond Commission: the status quo in Ontario will lead to marked increases in debt that could put the province in harm’s way.  Across every comparable indicator, Ontario’s indebtedness is decidedly greater than California. For those Ontarians who look at California in puzzlement over its inability to solve its deficit and debt challenges, the Ontario-California comparison suggests Ontarians look inward. The time for Wynne and her government to act on spending and deficits is now, so that more dire choices in the future are avoided" 

"For the comparison with Greece, the report says that country’s net debt-to-GDP ratio was 37% in 1984, “exactly where Ontario’s [ratio] stands today.” Greece, one of the European countries most battered by the global recession, now has a debt-to-GDP ratio of a remarkable 163%. The report argues that if Ontario continues with policies that only serve to slow the rate of spending growth, 'Greece offers a cautionary tale”

EVEN THOUGH GREECE WAS IN DEBT by 37% (where Ontario is presently), GREECE STILL BORROWED, PAID FOR, AND HOSTED THE 2004 SUMMER OLYMPICS. ONTARIO IS BORROWING, PAYING FOR, AND HOSTING THE 2015 PAN AM GAMES.  GREECE HOSTING THE 2004 OLYMPIC GAMES SPED UP THEIR ECONOMIC DECLINE BECAUSE IT MADE PROFITS FOR A FEW, PUT THE CITY INTO DEBT, AND MUCH OF THE JOBS ASSOCIATED WITH THE OLYMPICS DISAPPEARED ONCE THE OLYMPICS ENDED.

Southwestern Ontario cities dealing with growing numbers of empty or abandoned structures:

http://www.theobserver.ca/2013/07/17/testament-to-southwestern-ontarios-grim-economy-many-cities-are-dealing-with-growing-numbers-of-empty-or-abandoned-structures-that-send-out-all-the-wrong-signals
“Many Southwestern Ontario cities dealing with growing numbers of empty or abandoned structures.  Nothing screams an economy struggling more than empty or abandoned buildings. They tell of jobs and tax revenue siphoned away, and so little demand for new development that worn-out shells of the past can be left standing instead of being knocked down and replaced by new buildings”

Canada's Crisis (part 3) –The Banking Crisis

“Bail-in policies are appearing in multiple countries in direct relation to 'Too big to Fail' (T.B.T.F) banks to convert the funds of ‘unsecured creditors’ into capital; and those creditors, it turns out, include ordinary depositors. Even ‘secured’ creditors, including state and local governments, may be at risk.  Derivatives have ‘super-priority’ status in bankruptcy, and Dodd Frank precludes further taxpayer bailouts. In a big derivatives bust, there may be no collateral left for the creditors who are next in line.  ‘Too big to fail’ now trumps all.  Rather than banks being put into bankruptcy to salvage the deposits of their customers, the customers will be put into bankruptcy to save the banks.  The big risk behind all this is the massive derivatives boondoggle managed by banks. Derivatives are sold as a kind of insurance for managing profits and risk; but they actually increase risk to the system as a whole” (The Derivatives boondoggle is explained in SIDE NOTE 3 down below in this article)

“The CEOs of Canada’s five banks work literally within a few hundred meters of each other in downtown Toronto.  This makes it easy to monitor banks.  They also have smart-sounding requirements imposed by the government:  if you take out a loan over 80% of a home’s value, then you must take out mortgage insurance.  The banks were required to keep at least 7% tier one capital, and they had a leverage restriction so that total assets relative to equity (and capital) was limited.  But is it really true that such constraints necessarily make banks safer, even in Canada? Despite supposedly tougher regulation and similar leverage limits on paper, Canadian banks were actually significantly more leveraged – and therefore more risky – than well-run American commercial banks.  For example JP Morgan was 13 times leveraged at the end of 2008, and Wells Fargo was 11 times leveraged.  Canada’s five largest banks averaged 19 times leveraged, with the largest bank, Royal Bank of Canada, 23 times leveraged.   It is a similar story for tier one capital (with a higher number being safer):  JP Morgan had 10.9% percent at end 2008 while Royal Bank of Canada had just 9% percent.  JP Morgan and other US banks also typically had more tangible common equity – another measure of the buffer against losses – than did Canadian Banks. If Canadian banks were more leveraged and less capitalized, did something else make their assets safer?  The answer is yes – guarantees provided by the government of Canada.  Today over half of Canadian mortgages are effectively guaranteed by the government, with banks paying a low price to insure the mortgages.  Virtually all mortgages where the loan to value ratio is greater than 80% are guaranteed indirectly or directly by the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (i.e., the government takes the risk of the riskiest assets – nice deal if you can get it).  The system works well for banks; they originate mortgages, then pass on the risk to government agencies.  The US, of course, had Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, but lending standards slipped and those agencies could not resist a plunge into assets more risky than prime mortgages.  The systemic strength of the Canadian system is camaraderie between the regulators, the Bank of Canada, and the individual banks.  This oligopoly means banks can make profits in rough times – they can charge higher prices to customers and can raise funds more cheaply, in part due to the knowledge that no politician would dare bankrupt them.  During the height of the crisis in February 2009, the CEO of Toronto Dominion Bank brazenly pitched investors: 'Maybe not explicitly, but what are the chances that TD Bank is not going to be bailed out if it did something stupid?'  In other words:  don’t bother looking at how dumb or smart we are, the Canadian government is there to make sure creditors never lose a cent. With such ready access to taxpayer bailouts, Canadian banks need little capital, they naturally make large profit margins, and they can raise money even if they act badly”.   

“The Conservative government claims that Canadian banks had more sensible investment policies. It is true that the banks did not indulge in as much wild speculation as US and European banks, but only because the Canadian government had not gotten around to de-regulating the banks.  However, contrary to government claims, Canada’s five largest banks (RBC, TD Bank, Scotiabank, BMO and CIBC) were bailed out. The banks’ borrowing from the US Federal Reserve peaked at $33 billion, while loans from the Bank of Canada peaked at $41 billion in December 2008. In addition to this, in an unusual move, the Canada Housing and Mortgage Corporation (CHMC) bought $69 billion of bank held mortgages from the banks – in other words a $69 billion injection of cash. To put this bail-out into perspective, the money would have “made up 7% of the Canadian economy in 2009 and was worth $3,400 for every man, woman and child in Canada.” (CCPA, 6, 2012). In early 2009 CIBC, BMO and Scotiabank were bankrupt, only staying afloat with government support which was equal to or greater than the value of the companies. Nevertheless, while being bailed out the five biggest Canadian banks reported $27 billion in profits. In addition, their CEOs remained among the highest paid 100 CEOs of Canada’s public companies and received substantial raises. This raises the question – are Canadian banks too big to fail? The amplitude of the financial support given to Canadian banks in 2008-2010 suggests that the Government of Canada, the Bank of Canada and the big banks themselves believe that the major banks are ‘too big to fail’ and will be bailed out irrespective of the cost.  Meanwhile, the 2013 Canadian federal budget, released on March 21^st, makes provisions for possible bank defaults that raise some serious questions. Chapter 3 “Supporting Jobs and Growth” in the budget lays out the framework for bankrupt Canadian banks to recapitalize themselves using ‘bank liabilities’ (Economic Action Plan, 2013, pp. 144-145). The budget states that:  “The Government proposes to implement a “bail-in” regime for systemically important banks. This regime will be designed to ensure that, in the unlikely event that a systemically important bank depletes its capital, the bank can be recapitalized and returned to viability through the very rapid conversion of certain bank liabilities into regulatory capital. This will reduce risks for taxpayers. The Government will consult stakeholders on how best to implement a bail-in regime in Canada. Implementation timelines will allow for a smooth transition for affected institutions, investors and other market participants.” (Establishing a Risk Management Framework for Domestic Systemically Important Banks”, pages 144 and 145).  The proposal disingenuously does not define “bank liabilities.” Bank liabilities are the debts incurred by a bank, what a bank owes. While a bank has traditional business liabilities and debts (for electricity, office supplies, employee wages), the bulk of a bank’s liabilities are financial, of which the most important liability category is clients’ deposits. In its present wording, the proposal seems to allow insolvent banks to use clients’ bank accounts to recapitalize themselves.  During March mainstream media reported that Cypriot depositors were going to get a ‘haircut’ to pay for Cyprus’ economic crisis. The Cypriot government, agreed to a Troika (IMF, ECB and EU) imposed plan to seize up to 40% of the money in people’s accounts with more than 100,000€.  This strategy became known as a ‘bail-in.’ As a result of these levies, many small, family businesses will face ruin, and many middle class savings will be severely hit. The news that everyday Cypriots will be losing parts of their savings was alarming, but seemed far removed from the reality of most Canadians’ lives until the release of the 2013 budget.  The Finance Department issued a statement emphasizing that depositors’ money would not be used to help stabilize an insolvent bank and that instead, Canadian banks would have to rely on their own capital. Under the proposed Canadian plan, banks would set aside contingent capital, such as shares, which could be quickly converted to cash to provide liquidity and stabilize their operations should a crisis hit. It also stated that depositors’ accounts will continue to remain insured through the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC), preventing tax-payers from taking a hit like they did in Cyprus in case of a bank default.  Ministry of Finance’s statement, that banks will have to rely on themselves, seems to support the budget’s conclusion that “this risk management framework will limit the unfair advantage that could be gained by Canada’s systemically important banks through the mistaken belief by investors and other market participants that these institutions are ―too big to fail”.  The Tories are claiming that the Canadian state will not back failing banks. However, they also claim that the banks did not receive a bail-out in the last financial crash. It is clear that if, or when, the next financial crisis hits, Canadian banks will be vulnerable. Canadians have one of the highest rates of household debt in the world, standing at 165% of disposable income. Household debt was 128% of disposable household income in the USA in 2007, the year before the economic crisis hit. Much of Canadians’ debt is tied up in housing mortgages and there is still a housing bubble in many parts of Canada. Without state intervention the next financial crisis will be devastating. If banks are expected to convert their liabilities (especially if these remain loosely defined) into regulatory capital, there would just be all the more reason for depositors to make a run on their banks in case of an economic crisis.  In the case of a Canadian ‘bail-in,’ depositors holding under $100,000 would probably be safe, as accounts up to $100,000 are insured by the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC), a Federal Crown Corporation. However, anything above $100,000 could hypothetically be seized. In such a scenario small businesses and the middle class could be severely hit.  If deposits under $100,000 were included, either the CDIC insurance would have to be voided, causing a huge political row, or the CIDC would be bankrupt and so the government would have to bail it out. The CDIC does not have nearly enough money to cover all the deposits it insures. The 2012 CDIC report shows that the Crown Corporation is increasingly pessimistic about its own ability to intervene successfully (guarantee deposits) in the case of bank insolvency. According to its annual report, the CDIC insures $622 billion and but only has $2.4 billion in funding and a $18 billion borrowing limit. The 2013 budget proposal indicates that in private the government is less confident about Canadian banks than it states in public. The proposal also shows that if there would be a problem with Canadian banks, the government would mainly go after the middle layers of society, those with accounts exceeding $100,000, while ‘respecting’ the CDIC. The poor, those with under $100,000 in savings would probably be spared, as would the very wealthy, assuming that they have their assets in complex financial portfolios, stock options, and off shore accounts.  What does all this mean in the end? The 2008-2010 bail-out and the proposal in the 2013 Federal Budget mean that Canadian banks are not as safe as the Canadian government and the big banks claim. Moreover, the ongoing secrecy about the 2008-2010 bail-outs also casts serious doubt over the sincerity of Flaherty’s statement and his assurances that taxpayers and depositors will remain untouched in the event of a bank becoming insolvent.  Nowhere does Flaherty propose to make the rich pay for a future crisis anymore than they did for the last one. He has made sure that the big banks and the inflated salaries of the top management are protected".


“Since the financial crisis of 2008, Canada’s banks have become the darlings of the financial world, lauded by experts and observers for weathering the global storm arguably better than banks anywhere else in the world.  But according to an influential U.S. finance blog, that status is an illusion, and Canada's banks face potential catastrophe if their assets drop in value.  According to 'Tyler Durden', the pseudonymous blogger behind Zero Hedge, 'there is one place that has been very much insulated from the whipping of the market, and one place where banks are potentially in just as bad a shape as anywhere else in Europe.  That place is...CANADA'.  Durden's argument centers around the Canadian banks' tangible common equity ratio - a measure of banks' ability to absorb losses. Durden reports that all of Canada's major banks have a TCE ratio below 4 per cent, meaning the banks could be insolvent if their assets lose more than 4 per cent of their value -- a narrow margin indeed.  According to Boyd Erman at the Globe and Mail, such a scenario could happen if Canada's housing market weakens considerably.  'In Canada, the concern would have to be the housing portfolios, the biggest chunks of Canadian banks' assets," Boyd writes. "If you believe that housing is in for a severe correction in Canada, and that Canadians won't repay their mortgages when the value of their homes falls, and that the banks will have to take significant write downs on the portions of their mortgage portfolios that are not insured by the federal government, then maybe you will come to the conclusion that Mr. Durden is onto something."  A chart comparing world banks' TCE ratios shows that all of Canada's six largest banks are among the 21 banks with the lowest TCE ratios, or the highest risk of becoming insolvent if the economy goes south.  CIBC's TCE ratio places it fourth in the world, with only Societe Generale, Deutsche Bank and Credit Suisse showing lower ratios. The National Bank, Scotiabank, RBC, TD and BMO all make the list as well, with five of the banks showing TCE ratios below 4 per cent, meaning a 4 per cent decrease in the value of their assets could sink the banks.  Canada's banks commonly report TCE ratios of 6.5% or better, but as the Globe's Boyd explains, those ratios are based on risk-weighted assets rather than total asset values.  'Risk weighted assets adjust for the chance that the assets will go bad, and that's hardly a science. Total assets doesn't allow for such judgment calls', Boyd writes"


"Not only does the BoC not have any gold holdings in foreign countries to ask for, it lacks any substantial gold holdings at all.  The Bank of Canada today holds less gold than at any other point in its 79 year history. The total reserve of just over 3 tons pales in comparison to the highest level recorded in its history at 1,023 tons in 1965. This means that there are about 0.003 ounces of gold sitting in reserve at the BoC for every Canadian, or just a little under $5.80 at today´s market prices.  Of course, one can easily ask what difference it makes. Like all fiat currencies, the Canadian dollar is nonredeemable. If you go to your bank and ask for something in exchange for a beautiful new twenty dollar bill the best you can hope for are two tens.  Even though it is nonredeemable, the gold in a central bank´s vaults serves two purposes.  It is an asset that is steady in value and aids central banks in maintaining their operations. Central banks are not so different than private banks. Both hold assets and liabilities and in the BoC´s case, its assets include government of Canada bonds and its liabilities are comprised mostly of the currency outstanding. Central banks, much like private banks, don´t wish to go bankrupt. Partly this is to protect their independence. Central banks covet their independence from the governments that grant them their monopoly right to control the money supply. If the Bank of Canada entered insolvency tomorrow, there would be a bailout coming from Ottawa. And you better bet there will be increased political attention on the BoC´s operations as a result. I´m sure that central bankers at the BoC are not gluttons for the paperwork, overtime and other forms of pain this could entail.  Of course, the BoC could only enter insolvency if its assets lost value below its liabilities. (It's liabilities, being compromised mostly of currency, are fixed at par value, and as such cannot change in value.) A potential source of a loss of value on its assets could come from default and whether partial or full amount the assets it holds. The government of Canada is not the least fiscally responsible one in the world. Yet as I have outlined here, Canada ranks among the illustrious peer group of the United Kingdom and Portugal as the only other developed country to have debt-GDP levels above 90% for the government, household and corporate sectors. (Maybe this extreme indebtedness will help Mark Carney feel at home as he returns to the UK to take over the Bank of England´s helm).  Holding gold erases the possibility that a central bank will have to turn to its government for help, along with the increased oversight that will come with it.  The second reason why gold in a central bank´s vault makes sense is that, well, something has to be there, and it might as well be gold. In order for a central bank to alter the money supply without causing undue disruptions to the economy, it must undertake a process called sterilization. This relatively simple procedure involves buying or selling an asset whenever the money supply is increased or decreased. If the central bank did not do this important step, it would be forced to give newly issued money directly to some parties, resulting in large wealth re-distributions.  It is commonly argued that instead of holding gold in its vault and not earning interest on it, the central bank should just hold another risk-free asset in the form of government bonds. It will earn a little interest on these bond holdings, and thus be able to pay off some of its operating costs.  This strategy is indeed cost reducing for the Bank of Canada, with an important caveat. The government of Canada must make good on the bonds that the BoC holds. Increasingly it is becoming clear that the government is jeopardizing its financial stability by spending beyond its means and running deficits.  And this brings us to the core part of the argument. Her Majesty´s Government of Canada runs a deficit in part because it is cheap to do so. Interest rates on federal bonds are quite low. One reason why these interest rates are low is because the Bank of Canada stands ready to continue buying these debt issuances in a bid to hold on its own balance sheet as it increases the money supply. By pledging to purchase and hold on its balance sheet federal bonds, the BoC allows the government to take on a more precarious financial position than would otherwise be the case. The culmination of this process could be a loss on the BoC´s assets, if the government gets to the point of default.  Gold is not a barbarous relic for a central bank. The Bank of Canada, by shedding its gold reserves to the point where it holds less than Bolivia, Bangladesh, Cambodia, or Macedonia, has placed itself in a difficult position. Refraining from buying federal debt now would cause interest rates to rise, and potentially endanger the government´s solvency. While this outlook is none too pleasing, the threat of insolvency would send a strong signal to Ottawa to get the government´s finances back on track. Threatening to recommence gold purchases to hold in its reserves at the expense of government bonds is an easy option available to the BoC. The federal government doesn´t have to listen to too many people, but in this case, the Bank of Canada has the ability to make the government an offer it can´t refuse".


SIDE NOTES:
1.) When the Global Economy Crashes, "Canada's real estate is estimated to collapse by 90% (highest), 25% (lowest)".  It will probably be somewhere in the middle of both of those numbers but regardless, it's still something to think about.  We know the crash is coming, it is a matter of time, and it is unavoidable.  The economy itself presently is shrinking.  The effect of the crash on National Economies and the Date it occurs is what's left to speculate about.  Historically, Crashes have occurred during the end of the Summer season and during the Fall season.  It is a possibility it could occur around that time again in 2013 or 2014 because the Economy globally has continued to contract since 2008 with minimal gains or recovery.  The way it is working now, it works perfectly for the Elite, and the Wealthy, and Big Business. They are getting what they want bit-by-bit, day-by-day. They really do not need to completely tank the Canadian economy. Full time jobs are turning into part time jobs, Major companies from the US are coming into Canada (ex: Target, Nordstrom, etc.), Mergers and Monopolies are occurring everywhere, people have accepted the new norm of working 2-3 jobs, the infrastructure is eroding everywhere and needs heavy investment which the government(s) on all levels do not have the luxury to afford, and Inflation is rising (among other things occurring presently). This formula works for the Elite and Big Business presently. The only thing they are unable to do presently is get the Free Trade Agreements signed and to find a way to introduce Privatization into the Transportation and Medical Industry which I believe they will need the economy to tank for that to happen and have Canadians accept it. If they want to speed it up and bring it all down, they have the power to do it overnight and all they have to do is pop one if not two bubbles and the trickledown effect is imminent . Either way, the Elite and Big Business are slowly moving forward and creating a Third World economy in Canada. There is no going back to before 2008 and the reality we lived then.

2.) "Our economy is based on being a 'Fire Economy' –finance, insurance, and real estate- which puts us in major trouble for job losses when the Economy crashes and people start defaulting. A 'Fire Economy': is New York City's largest industry, a prominent part of the service industry in the U.S. overall economy, as well as being a prominent part of other Western developed countries. Criticism exists on the internet and in the blogosphere for the shifting of North American economies to a FIRE economy at the expense of a manufacturing and export-based economy. As the consumer of last resort, many believe that North America has eschewed productive elements of its economy in favor of consumption to its long term detriment".

3.)  How large is the Derivatives Market? $1.2 QUADRILLION IN NOTIONAL VALUE; AT LEAST $12 TRILLION IN CASH AT RISK.
You read that headline right. By at least one estimate, in 2010 there was a total of $12 trillion in cash tied up (at risk) in derivatives as defined above, all of which controlled contracts connected to assets valued at $1.2 quadrillion.  Here’s how we got those numbers — be sure to differentiate the two values, cash value vs. notional value, as explained below.  Big Risk: $1.2 Quadrillion Derivatives Market Dwarfs World GDP.  One of the biggest risks to the world’s financial health is the $1.2 quadrillion derivatives market. It’s complex, it’s unregulated, and it ought to be of concern to world leaders that its notional value is 20 times the size of the world economy. But traders rule the roost — and as much as risk managers and regulators might want to limit that risk, they lack the power or knowledge to do so. A quadrillion is a big number: 1,000 times a trillion. Yet according to one of the world’s leading derivatives experts, Paul Wilmott, who holds a doctorate in applied mathematics from Oxford University, $1.2 quadrillion is the so-called notional value of the worldwide derivatives market. To put that in perspective, the world’s annual gross domestic product is between $50 trillion and $60 trillion. To understand the concept of “notional value,” it’s useful to have an example. Let’s say you borrow $1 million to buy an apartment and the interest rate on that loan gets reset every six months. Meanwhile, you turn around and rent that apartment out at a monthly fixed rate. If all your expenses including interest are less than the rent, you make money.  But if the interest and expenses get bigger than the rent, you lose"