It's The Economy, Stupid

You have probably noticed all the interest in shale gas and related developments in British Columbia.  There was concern over a state-owned Malaysian firm offering billions of dollars to buy into a northern BC shale play.  Now Chevron wants in…

Two years ago the NB2026 Roundtable identified literacy, education and training – under the rubric of learning – as one of the principal roadblocks to New Brunswick’s development and prosperity and set out to do something about it. A two…

Long before New Brunswickers were using natural gas in their homes (at least this time around – gas was used 100 years ago in Moncton) my father used to intone “now you are cooking with gas” when someone was getting…

I have the opportunity to work with Clare on a new economic development effort.  It’s a very interesting community – a number of vibrant industries and a dynamic cultural and linguistic context.  But it is suffering from the challenges facing…

A good article in The Economist this week discusses the development of shale gas in Britain.   There are a few points that are worth summarizing: The Chancellor is looking at tax incentives to woo shale gas firms to Britain because…

As I have written in the past, I don’t believe we are currently living in overly consequential times. We are not facing the massive economic upheaval of the 1930s nor are we facing world wars or massive poverty. In truth…

I think it is safe to say New Brunswick’s information and communications technology (ICT) sector is more entrepreneurial than most other sectors of the economy. Young entrepreneurs finding innovative ways to tease out better business intelligence from social networks or…

It must be fun to be an editor at the NY Times.   Obama’s auto bailout was a grand, principled effort that saved an industry.  State and local handouts to the auto industry is the terrible corporate welfare.  It is true…

There is an excellent article in The Economist this week about Maine and the rapid increase in the export of baby eels – earning as much as $5,700/kilo.   Think about that the next time you are haggling about 50 cents…

From my recent TJ column on changing consumer spending habits in New Brunswick Statistics Canada released a broad set of data this week on household expenditures. The recent trends in spending reveal some interesting facts about New Brunswick consumer spending…