capitalism

Any time of year is a good time to discuss poverty but the subject has obvious resonance at Christmas. Thus, unsurprisingly, Pope Francis recently wrote about the necessity of compassion for those on the margins.

In Evangelii Gaudium, the Pontiff covers much ground. He urges deliberate, thoughtful action for the world's poor and warns against the folly of loving money and worshipping consumer goods. These are calls with which no thinking, compassionate person should disagree.

You might think the federal Conservatives, who added $125-billion to the federal debt since 2008 and will add another $21-billion by the end of March, might be shy about unnecessary expenditures. Alas, that’s not the case, as it appears Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his colleagues would rather hand out cash to corporate Canada instead.

In just the first two weeks of January, the prime minister announced another $250-million for the Automotive Innovation Fund—a federal subsidy program that provides the auto sector with taxpayer cash for research and development.

In Fidel Castro’s recent interview with Atlantic Monthly columnist Jeffrey Goldberg and in response to the question, “Is the Cuban economic model still worth exporting?”, the retired dictator made this admission: “The Cuban model doesn't even work for us anymore.”

Several days later, Castro backpedalled. He claimed he actually meant the opposite. “My idea,” said Fidel, “is that the capitalist system no longer works for the United States or the world. How could such a system work for a socialist country like Cuba?