Ralph Klein: fiscal hero or leper? - Linda McQuaig
  Thinking oil-rich Alberta has something to teach us Canada about fiscal management is absurd.
 

Consumer news:
Buyer beware: prescription drugs on the Net - Lanny Boutin
  Are Canadians bypassing the system to buy drugs?
 

Prison call centre drives 100% of pollsters crazy - Pat Daley
  Criminals could collect information and use it for illegitimate ends.
 
 

The Restructured Airline Market in Canada - Michael Janigan
  Ways to level the playing field between passengers and airlines.
 
 

Liberation Musicology - Eben Moglen
  "Victory" over Napster actually calamity for record companies - but good for artists. A link to The Nation.

Save Napster and music on the Net - Jim Kempkes animation
  Join the M3P Campaign - Make Mighty Megacorps Pay.
(You need Shockwave^® software to view this cartoon and others in the Straight Goods cartoon gallery - it takes a few minutes to download, but it's not hard to install and it's absolutely free.)

Politics:
Steelworker election highlights leadership-membership disconnect - Paul Weinberg
  Is there a disconnect between union leaders and members?
 

Spin from Ontario Grade 10 literacy test builds political support for Harris - Susan Adamson
  But results are meaningless except as government PR.
 

US Multinationals use WTO to lower boom on Canada Post - CCPA

No Money ... No HIV/AIDS Drugs! - Lorne Nystrom
  Canada must act to keep drug companies from holding Africans hostage with an epidemic.
 

Parking Grounds Vs. Commons Grounds - Dawn Marie Sloane
  A school trustee takes a stand against destroying public spaces. A link to Halifax Live.

The Straight Goods Report - Ish Theilheimer, Publisher

Frontlines:
National electoral reform campaign to launch at Ottawa conference

New! From our cyber-neighbours: TheSocialEdge.com
Camp Fear - Bruce Selcraig
  Boot camps for young offenders.

Mind Abuse - Rose Dyson
  Media Violence in an Information Age.

CANADIAN TRIVIA from the Trivia Guys
When was golf last played in the Olympic Games and what was the Canadian connection?

Coming soon: Days of Decision On-line Forum on the Future of Canada's Democratic Left An on-line conference bringing together journalistic inquiry, expert commentary from across Canada, and on-line grassroots input in lively, open and accessible fashion. The Forum is being conducted in partnership with the Douglas Coldwell Foundation. The Forum will be nationally publicized, in conjunction with a range of participating organizations and events (to be announced). By finding the right people to ask and asking the tough questions, it will generate fresh thinking on reviving the democratic Left in Canada. By putting the whole discussion on-line and opening up discussion forums, people everywhere will be able to take part.