The Hatchet is a weekly podcast and newsletter dedicated to exposing power and money in Canada. Hosted by Arshy Mann, The Hatchet delivers important, original a...
Canada’s Economy Is Even More Screwed Up Than You Think
Support us at hatchetmedia.substack.comI think we all know that the Canadian economy isn’t doing great. In the years after the pandemic, inflation surged and everyday people had to deal with ever-rising prices on all kinds of staple goods.The former governor of the Bank of Canada Stephen Poloz said recently that it’s likely that Canada’s already in a recession, and we just don’t know it yet.And now, even the people in charge of the economy are in chaos. Chrystia Freeland, the finance minister resigned, claiming that she can’t tolerate the political gimmicks being forced on her by the Prime Minister’s Office.And the threat of massive tariffs from the incoming Trump administration could pulverize Canadian industry in upcoming years.But the problems with Canada’s economy go much deeper than even all that. For the last few decades, economists have pointed to Canada’s absolutely anemic rates of productivity, which measures how efficient an economy is.The housing crisis continues to be one of the very worst in the world. And no political party seems to be offering up any real solutions to any of our problems.And that’s why I wanted to talk to John Rapley. He’s an economics columnist for the Globe and Mail and the author of a number of books, including Why Empires Fall: Rome, America and the Future of the West, and one of the sharpest thinkers on all things economic.We caught up with him while he was in South Africa and on the day after Freeland’s dramatic resignation.Featured in this episode: John RapleyTo learn more“The ‘vibecession’ is real, and economists must do some soul-searching” by John Rapley in The Globe and Mail“Bless this house: Why Canadians put so much faith in the housing market” by John Rapley in The Globe and MailWhy Empires Fall: Rome, America, and the Future of the West by Peter Heather & John RapleyThe Hatchet is a podcast and newsletter dedicated to exposing power and money in Canada. Every week, we’re going to deliver important, original and fascinating journalism about how this country actually works, and we’re going to do it in a way that no one else can.Music: I dunno by grapes (c) copyright 2008 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. Ft: J Lang, Morusque Get full access to The Hatchet at hatchetmedia.substack.com/subscribe
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How the Indian Government Extorts Canadians Into Becoming Spies
An open secret among Canadian Sikhs is only now being spoken about publicly.For years, Indian officials have used visa approvals to extort and blackmail their critics in Canada. They’ve coerced Canadians to spy on their fellow citizens or denounce their political beliefs in writing, in exchange for the privilege of being able to visit loved ones in India.It’s just a small part of the foreign interference machine that India has built on Canadian soil.Featured in this episode: Stewart Bell (Global News)To learn more“Investigation: Visas have become an Indian foreign interference tool” by Stewart Bell & Jeff Semple in Global News“Contract to Kill” by CBC’s The Fifth EstateSupport us at hatchetmedia.substack.comThe Hatchet is a podcast and newsletter dedicated to exposing power and money in Canada. Every week, we’re going to deliver important, original and fascinating journalism about how this country actually works, and we’re going to do it in a way that no one else can. Get full access to The Hatchet at hatchetmedia.substack.com/subscribe
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First Came Bread. Are They Fixing the Price of Meat and Potatoes Too?
The price of food keeps rising. And for the last few years, we’ve had a national debate about whether or not that’s the fault of the mega grocery chains.But the CEOs of Loblaws, Metro and Sobeys claim that it’s not their fault. We should be looking further up the food chain for the real culprits.They might have a point. Everywhere you look in the food industry, you’ll find rapacious corporate oligopolies. The grocery chains might have fixed the price of bread. But there’s credible accusations that other companies are fixing the price of meat, potatoes and much more.Featured in this episode: Jeff Yorga, Keldon Bester, Denise HearnTo learn moreThe Big Fix: How Companies Capture Markets and Harm Canadians by Denise Hearn & Vass BednarFrom Plow to Pantry: Monopoly in the Canadian Food System by Andrew Nixon & Keldon Bester“Alleged 'potato cartel' accused of conspiring to raise price of frozen fries, tater tots across U.S.” by Rhianna Schmunk in CBC News“Sask. cattle producers call for meat pricing investigation, transparency” by Kendall Latimer in CBC NewsSupport us at hatchetmedia.substack.comThe Hatchet is a podcast and newsletter dedicated to exposing power and money in Canada. Every week, we’re going to deliver important, original and fascinating journalism about how this country actually works, and we’re going to do it in a way that no one else can. Get full access to The Hatchet at hatchetmedia.substack.com/subscribe
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Canada's Criminal Bank: A Triptych on TD
TD Bank has over a hundred thousand employees, almost two trillion dollars in assets and it’s a foundational part of the Canadian economy.It’s also a criminal enterprise.TD Bank has now admitted that for years, they helped launder hundreds of millions of dollars in drug money in the United States. But TD’s bad behaviour goes much further back. And leads us a lot closer to home.Featured in this episode: Michael Sallah (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette), Robert Cribb (Toronto Star)To learn more“TD Bank’s dirty laundry: Inside the cultural shift that seeded a money laundering crisis, succession woes and a leadership exodus” by Tim Kiladze, Rita Trichur James Bradshaw and Stefanie Marotta in The Globe and Mail“Pirate of the Caribbean” by Bryan Burrough in Vanity Fair“How Italy’s ’Ndrangheta mafia allegedly infiltrated Canadian banks” by Brian Fitzpatrick, Robert Cribb, Jared Ferrie, Alessia Candito, & Alessia Cerantola in The Toronto Star, OCCRP & La RepubblicaSupport us at hatchetmedia.substack.comThe Hatchet is a podcast and newsletter dedicated to exposing power and money in Canada. Every week, we’re going to deliver important, original and fascinating journalism about how this country actually works, and we’re going to do it in a way that no one else can. Get full access to The Hatchet at hatchetmedia.substack.com/subscribe
The Hatchet is a weekly podcast and newsletter dedicated to exposing power and money in Canada. Hosted by Arshy Mann, The Hatchet delivers important, original and fascinating journalism about how this country actually works, in a way that no one else can. hatchetmedia.substack.com
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