Author Archives: haroldchorneyeconomist

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About haroldchorneyeconomist

I am Professor of political economy at Concordia university in Montréal, Québec, Canada. I received my B.A.Hons (econ.&poli sci) from the University of Manitoba. I also completed my M.A. degree in economics there. Went on to spend two years at the London School of Economics as a Ph.D. student in economics and then completed my Ph.D. in political economy at the University of Toronto. Was named a John W.Dafoe fellow, a CMHC fellow and a Canada Council fellow. I also was named a Woodrow Wilson fellow in 1968 after completing my first class honours undergraduate degree. Worked as an economist in the area of education, labour economics and as the senior economist with the Manitoba Housing and Renewal Corporation for the Government of Manitoba from 1972 to 1978. I also have worked as an economic consultant for MDT socio-economic consultants and have been consulted on urban planning, health policy, linguistic duality and public sector finance questions by the governments of Manitoba, Saskatchewan,the cities of Regina and Saskatoon, Ontario and the Federal government of Canada. I have also been consulted by senior leaders of the British Labour party, MPs from the Progressive Conservative party, the Liberal party and the New Democrats on economic policy questions. Members of the Government of France under the Presidency of Francois Mitterand discussed my work on public sector deficits. I have also run for elected office at the municipal level. I first began to write about quantitative easing as a useful policy option during the early 1980s.

Polit 204 E, Concordia University Introduction to Canadian Politics course outline

Poli 204/E 2017 Introduction to Canadian Politics Professor Harold Chorney Course outline H553 Tuesday 2:45 to 5:30 pm Office hours Thursday 3:30 to 4:30 others tba. The study of Canadian politics is a complex field which draws upon a number … Continue reading

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Yellen announces 25 basis point rate increase. Will this dampen Trump’s infrastructure stimulus ?

The chair of the Federal Reserve Janet Yellen has announced a small but policy significant increase in their targeted range for interest rates from 0.25% to 0.50 % to 0.5% to 0.75%. The over night funds rate sits at 0.41% … Continue reading

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Renzi stays on for budget approval at request of Italian President

The Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has agreed to stay on pending budget approval. This should help calm nerves for the short term in Italy and abroad. The markets appear to have absorbed the initial shock of the referendum defeat … Continue reading

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Renzi loses Italian referendum He resigns . Italian politics thrown into turmoil. Market disturbance may follow.

The No side decisively rejected the Italian constitutional referendum 59.3 % to 40.7% . As a consequence the Prime Minister Matteo Renzi announced his intention to resign. The right and left parties will be eager to capitalize but none of … Continue reading

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François Hollande’s decision not to run creates whole new scenario in next spring’s French Presidential election.

This past week President Hollande of France announced he would not seek a second term in next April’s presidential election. This decision taken by Hollande was a realistic decision given his very poor polling results, his failure to solve the … Continue reading

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Austrian far right extremist candidate for President Norbert Hofer is well behind in exit polls. Green candidate Alexander Van der Bellen leads

Exit polls from the Austrian presidential election show the Green party candidate Alexander Van der Bellen the lead with 53.6% of the result. Norbert Hofer has apparently conceded defeat. Official vote count results will be available late tonight or Monday … Continue reading

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Italian referendum could trigger resignation of Prime Minister Renzi and follow on banking crisis.

This Sunday the Italian people vote on a referendum to restructure the constitution to diminish the power of the regional governments and the Senate and “modernize” Italian governing structures. Mr. Renzi has made victory in the referendum a personal goal … Continue reading

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François Fillon right wing austerian Republican defeats centrist Alain Juppé in party presidential primary in France 67% to 33 %

The die is now cast in the Republican opposition party in France . François Fillon ran on a budget slashing austerity program and defeated Alain Juppé decisively for the party presidential candidature. The election will be next year and the … Continue reading

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Fidel Castro Has Died. Born August 13, 1926 he was an Heroic Figure to some an authoritarian Caudillo to others but also a major figure on the world stage for 60 years.

The whole history of Latin America in particular and the cold war in general bears the imprint of Fidel Castro’s influence. Canada despite clear ideological differences over democracy, freedom of speech and human rights was a friend of Cuba and … Continue reading

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Jill Stein raises cash to finance recount in Michigan,Wisconsin and Pennsylvania where vote is very close and computer scientists and analysts worry vote tampering might have occurred.

There is a fundraising campaign underway to raise 2.5 million dollars to finance a recount in three key battleground states with a total of 46 electoral college votes. The Green party chief Dr.Jill Stein has already raised 1.9 million $ … Continue reading

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