Commentary on unions in the US and Canada, talking politics, abortion debate in the US and Canada divides, interest rates low markets go high, very old art, and Ignatieff on the perils of the concentration of power.

It’s different up here.

Bloomberg -- The Real Reason for the Decline of American Unions
Today, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released its annual summary of unionization in the U.S.

Commentary on how politics invented marketing, the sanctions bite, dumb office words, why Hollande’s left wing economics will kill the French economy, Naomi Wolf’s dubious science, and the Pacific Opera Victoria’s production of Verdi’s Macbeth.

“Mummy, what happens what your country gets cut off from the global economy and can’t trade with the rest of the world?”

Commentary on China’s imbalanced economy, 21st century power, follow the S&P bouncing ball, the case for staying in gold, life for the erotic novel post-internet, and Canada’s housing bubble.

Capital investment mania.

Financial Times -- China: The road to nowhere
Fears of excessive investment are fuelling debate about whether slower growth is the right course for Beijing.

Rethinking power.

Commentary on the Scream, moral basis of our political choices, why sitting kills you, trapped in an Orwellian-Kafkaesque reality, and where will Wildrose lead Canada.

What was the scream saying?

Financial Times -- So, what does ‘The Scream’ mean?
Tipped to reach a record price at auction next month, Edvard Munch’s painting is one of the world’s most recognisable and disturbing images.

Quote worth noting.