The immediate casualties of war and conflict are measured not only in blood and treasure, but also in historical truth. And 69 years to the day since the Allied firebombing of Dresden, we are reminded that no particular event has been more neglected in the popular Western narrative of the Second World War than the event labeled by witness and American novelist Kurt Vonnegut as the “greatest…
By Yaël Ossowski The immediate casualties of war and conflict are measured not only in blood and treasure, but also in historical truth. And 69 years to the day since the Allied firebombing of Dresden, we are reminded that no particular event has been more neglected in the popular Western narrative of the Second World War than the event labeled by witness and American novelist…
Canada’s Electoral Reform Answers Critics and Shapes Up System By Yaël Ossowski | PanAm Post As per usual in Canadian federal politics, a genuine reform bill is tabled in the House of Commons and an onslaught of doom-and-gloom scenarios are painted by opponents to the Conservative government of Stephen Harper. When Minister of State for Democratic Reform Pierre Poilievre introduced the Fair Elections Act in Parliament last week, one…
By Yaël Ossowski | Vermont Watchdog With an office and desk housed within the Vermont Department of Taxes, Gloria Hobson is not your average salaried government employee. In fact, based upon her job description and title, one would argue her work serves as the ultimate paradox: a “taxpayer advocate” with a state government paycheck. Since 2001, Hobson has acted as Vermont’s taxpayer advocate, a fully-salaried position ranked as any other…
By Yaël Ossowski | Vermont Watchdog On the trail of scammers, Vermont aims to set up financial guard dogs to sniff out companies offering high-interest predatory loans to elderly pensioners. A proposed state law would put a stop to companies offering seniors quick cash for their monthly pension checks. “I was approached by AARP over the off-season talking about this becoming one of their fears,” said state Sen. Kevin Mullin, R-Rutland,…
PanAm Columnist Presents Cryptocurrency to Austrian Libertarian Movement Yaël Ossowski writes the “Question the Narrative” column with the PanAm Post, and he is a true international man — dividing his time between Canada, the United States, and Europe. Recently, he introduced bitcoin to a mixture of libertarians and economics enthusiasts in Austria. Here is that presentation. Ossowski says bitcoin is something “our generation, specifically, can use to really…
One of my stories about Executive Order 12333 made it into the Washington Examiner newspaper. Mad about government spying and snooping? Look at Ronald Reagan’s executive order YAËL OSSOWSKI • | JANUARY 22, 2014 AT 7:07 PM American uproar over revelations of mass government spying has provoked a significant revision of the actions of U.S. spy agencies across the board. While ire has been focused at the Obama…
Government Thwarting Potential to Be Energy Powerhouse By Yaël Ossowski | PanAmerican Post As a progressive party with green tendencies, the Parti Québécois minority currently at the head of the Quebec provincial government is no friend of the natural gas industry. And that’s to the detriment of ordinary Quebecois. It was made self-evident from the moment of the party’s election in September 2012, when Martine Ouellet, the…
By Yaël Ossowski | Vermont Watchdog In keeping with Vermont Watchdog‘s mission of keeping state government accountable, a quick peek at the state payroll is always important. The state of Vermont has 7,805 public employees, according to the Department of Human Resources, a number that has stayed relatively stable for a decade. The average state employee in Vermont is 47 years old, gets paid $52,686 and has worked for the government…
By Yaël Ossowski | Vermont Watchdog All of the problems in Vermont seem bad enough to warrant paying big for mental health professionals. A recent examination of the employee state compensation database in Vermont shows the highest-paid public employee in the state is a “private secretary” for the Department of Mental Health. While he’s not actually a secretary, his job title has not yet been publicly disclosed as allowed by…