Map and directions to 33 Avenue Rosemount, Westmount, QC, Canada
Welcome to Wednesday Night #1318 Jan 24, 2007
PLEASE PLEASE LET US KNOW IF YOU ARE COMING
and if not, do send comments, thoughts or questions on the proposed topics.
WHEW! We escaped the threat of a July election in Québec by a hair (actually two votes), but now PLQ will have to decide the fate of Jean Charest. Virtually everything to be said about the unfortunate budget has been said by commentators, so we will drop the topic -- for now.
One of our summer-time treats is the semi-annual visit of Olivier d'Auriol, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer of Olivier d'Auriol Asset Management SA and hedge fund guru from La Suisse. (See: wednesday-night.com/Wed1276for Olivier's last visit). His presence this week is particularly timely with the topic being not only on Wednesday Night's menu, but also that of this week's G8 Summit ("G8 summit to call for hedge fund vigilance" ) in Heiligendamm Germany.
Climate change & energy security is also on the agenda of the G8. The position of the United States on climate change appears to remain intransigent
and Mr. Harper has not been reassuring about what role Canada will play in the deliberations. So far, what we have to go by is his not particularly perspicacious comment that “My sense was that there is a feeling of optimism around the table but there are some differences of opinion among various countries and there are still some gaps to be bridged.”
theglobeandmail.com/National And he doesn't seem to have endeared himself to Chancellor Merkel by his speech today to the Canada-Germany Business Club in Berlin harper-germany.html Meanwhile, China, vowing to "blaze a new path to industrialisation", has unveiled its first Climate Change plan whose release may be timed to deflect criticism at the G8 meeting
environment guardian.co.uk climatechange/
The theme of the summit, which opens on Wednesday, is fittingly "Growth and Responsibility", one which we profoundly wish would be taken to heart both at home and abroad by all the leaders who will gather around the G8 table. It is intended to " [live] up to the G8's special responsibility to help create stable and reliable conditions for the global economy. At the same time, however, it makes quite clear that this responsibility must be shared by the larger emerging economies such as China, India and Brazil, and that as globalisation progresses, the G8 will become less and less able to bear the burden alone" g-8.de/Webs/G8/EN/G8Summit/Agenda Thus the increasing importance of the addition of Brazil, China, India, Mexico and South Africa to form the G8+5.
Monday 04 June 2007 Canada can't meet Kyoto: Harper
Climate change is "perhaps the biggest threat to confront the future of humanity today," Prime Minister Stephen Harper said in a speech here Monday that reached for common ground with the European position ahead of this week’s G8 summit.
Wednesday Jun 6, 2007 Climate change takes world stage
G8 Summit. Harper raises eyebrows by asserting Canada's green plan is tougher than Europe's. Dirty air, heat kill 939 here each year
Shades of green Harper and Sarkozy share common values, but are far apart on climate issues Canada's short-term climate-change targets are more ambitious than those imposed by Europe, Prime Minister...
more links
The Middle East continues in conflagration. On Sunday, the New York Times reported that three months after the "surge" to stabilize Baghdad, two-thirds of the city remain out of the US military's control middleeast/04surge; the conflict in Lebanon expands, and hostilities in the Gaza appear to be waning, but have not stopped.
We can only hope that the direct talks between Iran and the United States in Baghdad do indeed constitute "a breakthrough and an opportunity for both countries to deal with pressing issues of national interest as well as security in a region extending from Afghanistan in the east to Iraq and to Palestine and Lebanon in the west news.asp?
Talks on Turkey's application for membership in the EU continue EU-GEN-Turkey-EU.php amidst worries about the need to curb the power of the military.
On the home front, the ever-higher climb of the loonie portends an increase in interest rates. No doubt our favorite Central banker will have a comment.
Monday 04 June 2007
How business is starting to tackle climate change, and how governments need to help
THE current row over climate change sounds all too familiar. Germany, host of this year's G8 summit, is trying to get the world to agree on what to do when the Kyoto protocol on curbing greenhouse gases runs out in 2012. America, which dislikes the tough targets that the Europeans want the world to sign up to, is proposing separate negotiations between the world's big emitters. Environmentalists accuse it of trying to sidetrack the issue. The line-up is much like the one that led to America's withdrawal from the Kyoto agreement in 2001.
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We look forward to your company.
Diana & David Nicholson
dtnicholson@wednesdaynight.net
Tel: +1 (514) 934-0023
Hi David and Diana
Alas another week goes by without my being able to participate except vicariously. Nonetheless I'll put my oar in the G8 water by suggesting something in the context of climate change. I refer to a BBC TV programme that David may be able to record and use segments of to stimulate discussion.
This -- to me-- is the fascinating, startling and frightening (in its implications) BBC documentary "Global Dimming" available at
BBC Global Dimming 50:07 more bbc
Global dimming appears to have lessened the impact of global warming but as we clean up the atmosphere paradoxically the attenuating effect of global dimming also will be lessened, resulting in even more global warming. Scientific temperature models for global warming have failed to take global dimming into the equation. Thus, even the inadequate reduction targets set by certain nations are now being seen as even more inadequate.
You may have seen a related item in today's issue of Global warming 'is three times faster than worst predictions'
and refers to research that found Arctic ice has declined by 7.8 per cent a decade over the past 50 years, compared with an average estimate by IPCC computer models of 2.5 per cent. I don't know if this is linked to a change in global dimming but it does show that the scientists' models are in need of improvement.
As ever, David Mitchell
Monday 04 June 2007 Heavy bondage
ALTHOUGH the S&P 500 index has just recorded an all-time closing high, bond investors are not celebrating. The 30-year Treasury yield has moved above 5% for the first time since last August, and ten-year yields have been pushed sharply higher in Germany and Britain.
Hello D&D,
If all goes well, I would like to be there this WN.
Could report on the boom in Calgary and Vancouver, but more importantly, on the possible change in direction on the N.A. markets!!
Have I turned bearish? Or just looking for a more substantial correction?
Is it time to overload the Energy stocks?
Ask me!
Ron Meisels
Thursday 6 june 2007 To day NYT Podcast | Menu
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Santa's sled had no competition from the Airbus A-380. The long tale of woe is a worthwhile read at iht.com- airbus.php | video
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A few more links to stimulate some thought and/or items you might have missed
Environment
We don't think it's any secret that we rely heavily on the BBC, frequently for the excellent coverage of Science & nature and Technology. (Superb coverage of climate change issues including Sir Nicolas Sterns' review) However, we also commend whoever is responsible for the collection of links that accompany any major news story. Tonight, it is Mexican presidential politics a topic we have touched on all too infrequently.
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goto pengrowth.com/ then Go to webcast multimedia under Index
Monday 04 December 2006 Pengrowth Energy Trust Announces Extension of Its Offer to Purchase Outstanding Convertible Debentures
 Stephen S. Poloz VP EDC Economics Weekly Commentary
Canada's Banks Are Exporters too - May 30, 2007
Even those who have heard about the various forays into the global economy by Canadian banks tend to think of them as a domestic business. Well, think again.
Canada's banks are big, at least by Canadian standards - global standards are another thing altogether. Of course, virtually every dollar of Canada's more than $1 trillion in GDP is touched or facilitated by a bank. However, the Canadian banking industry contributes about 3% of total GDP directly, or something in excess of $33 billion annually. Domestically, they employ some 250,000 people, about 1.5% of total employment. Past issues | his WN page
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Wed1317 30 May 2007 and very nice to have Richard Schultz OWN back and Filmmaker John Curtin a winer for film on Life and Times on Terry Mosher Dangerous When Provoked First look at Andrea Mandel-Campbell, author of Why Mexicans Don't Drink Molsons ....next water, our most precious resource ...then the increasing value placed on the Canadian dollar keeps rising then Canada, Kyoto and sustainable consumption and The visit of Governor Schwarzenegger to Canada becoming more energy efficient then a new face [Ken] Constantine Kostarakis |
Tom Haslam and Margaret Duthie then Robert Landori-Hoffmann & FATAL GREED and Douglas Lightfoot and his son Brian
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