JUSTCAWS

  While times of crisis are something to endure and not celebrate, they do provide an opportunity for us to be reminded of what’s really important.  The chaos of Trump and the economic pain he has inflicted thus far on Canada has been manageable, but the toll from the uncertainty grows each day. The threat of the tariff hurricane still looms and if our current trade deal is scrapped next year - look out.  It is for this reason governments have to look at their upcoming budgets and make some tough choices.  Governments like everyone else have to manage money coming in and going out. Just like many of us, they pay interest on the debt owed. When governments spend beyond their means they add to the debt and more of the money coming in from taxes is eaten up just servicing that debt. Last year the feds spent more debt payments than they did on healthcare transfers to all the provinces! To fix this fiscal mess, governments could simply raise taxes, but asking people to p...

  Everything is louder during an election, but all Canadian media and politicians want to talk about Trump's Trade policies. What seems absent is more discussion about how we got here. “Liberation Day” seems as good a time as ever with the U.S. and other countries abandoning free trade in the pursuit of protectionist policies. It is worth asking why the electorate has elected leaders like Tariff Trump? Trade barriers like tariffs are used to protect domestic industries by making either trade difficult or raising the cost of imported goods so consumers will buy domestic goods and protect jobs from domestic industries. The case for eliminating these barriers is that free trade allows countries to specialize in products that they can produce cheaper or have a comparative advantage (ie. lower opportunity cost and or better quality product) over other countries.  The cost savings is then passed on to consumers. This part of the free trade deal has been partially kept.  But bu...

Due to my current occupational hazard, the one topic that I am asked most often is for my view on cryptocurrencies. I haven’t written on this before because it's not a topic easily understood or explained. By this point however, I believe most people have an underlying understanding, or at least have soundbite they can repeat so they sound like they know what they're talking about. Perhaps before getting into what crypto is, it is best to explain what it isn’t. One thing to remember is that crypto currency is virtual, there are no actual physical coins or bills being circulated. When you see an image of Bitcoin (the most popular of the crypto currencies) used in a news story, it is used for visual purposes only - to quote Getrude Stein “there is no there there”. Its value is entirely determined by what investors are willing to pay for it, and the only way to make money is to sell it to someone else at a higher price. If that sounds like any other investment, there are some key ...

  In an astonishing statement to the New York Times in 2015, Justin Trudeau declared, "There is no core identity, no mainstream in Canada,'' and consequently that "makes us the first post-national state."  Or is that the 51st state Justin?   Fully expect the noise surrounding Trump’s Canada as the 51st state joke to only get louder in the opening months of 2025.  So worth looking at what that could possibly mean.  If you believe that any talk of Canada joining the U.S. is just that talk, I beg to differ. A few things would have to line up for it to ever happen, but those things are not as far fetched as you might believe.    Certainly, in peacetime there is not going to be any thought among Canadians of joining the U.S., but a world conflict could definitely change the calculus. Before going down that road however, it's worth looking at what has a better chance of happening and what a closer relationship with the States would look like. ...

  With so many skills that can be done by AI much faster and and sometimes better than humans, it does beg the question what’s left for us? Under this uncertain future, it is no wonder the Ontario Ministry of Education is pushing a greater emphasis in technical, trades based education. As for students who aren’t hands on learners the opportunities in the future seem much less certain. It may even require governments to set parameters on what work humans will never relinquish. We have all read and seen what AI can do. It writes books, reports, essays, and generates art within seconds after be given a few basic commands. In this reality is it worth spending time building skills that will never match the power of artificial intelligence? Of course it is from an intellectual and humanity perspective - but what about practically? Education to a large degree is about teaching the skills necessary for the jobs of tomorrow. Many jobs today simply will not exist in the future for humans i...

With the new school year well underway, I want to talk about that dirty word for students -- homework. It seems it now is a dirty word for some Ontario school boards, too, as they have placed limits on the amount of homework students can be assigned. Some have even gone so far as to ban homework altogether in the early grades. While I can see the merits of reducing the homework burden at the elementary level, I think we do our high school students a disservice if we lessen the expectation of their workload outside the classroom. If anything, in today's competitive global economy we need to raise the bar higher. Telling students to study more and socialize less may be easier said than done. Believe me I know, but we owe it to our young people to keep trying and not give up. When I was in elementary school I was a pretty conscientious student who spent many a night doing at least an hour worth of homework. In Grade 5, I can remember watching with envy from my bedroom window as my sch...

“Hands in my pockets” was the catch phrase for a commercial a few years back that told us how bank fees can eat away at our savings. It was appropriate because it aptly described how banks have easy access to our cherished cash. Financial institutions are one of the few places that send you a bill (your bank statement) after they have already taken the funds out of your account. Some of us will comparison shop for days to make sure we are getting a “good” deal – or drive across town to save a few cents a litre while filling up. Seeing the money leave our hands has an impact. When your money leaves out the back door – we tend not to focus on that – but we should. Service Fees are a very profitable part of the financial industry. These small charges add up quickly and can eat way away at your financial estate. When I was in first year at University, my Dad told me to avoid carrying a large amount of cash around, for fear I might lose it. It was good advice, but it meant that I headed to ...

Before you can even begin to get control of your money, you must first find out where it is going. Drawing up a budget is a waste of time if you have no clue how much you are spending. Setting a limit for yourself of $50 a month on clothes — makes no sense if you currently spend more than $100. Before you can chart a new direction for your personal finances, you must find out where you and your money are headed. When I was back in high school — I made some great coin working various jobs for the city. I was rolling in it, and since my shyness toward the opposite sex ensured that I didn’t have a girlfriend, my dough was all mine. Now, when I look back at all that discretionary income I had, I am left with one question — where the heck did it all go? I never tracked my spending. So, I couldn’t tell you how much I spent on entertainment, clothes, or fast food. The only thing I could tell you was I saved nothing. I never could be bothered tracking my spending. In my day (man, I sound old) ...

Newspaper Version:  https://www.guelphmercury.com/opinion-story/9088815-you-truly-are-richer-than-you-think Take into account your non-discretionary spending to take control of your financial future, writes Greg Cawsey Gregory Cawsey Guelph Mercury Tuesday, December 18, 2018 One of the top excuses for young people not taking their finances seriously is they believe they don’t have that much money to manage. They think they can worry about money management when they are older and are working full time. They need to realize that in high school they are richer than they will be for quite some time. Get high school students to look at their discretionary income levels and they soon realize how rich they are. Let’s take a look at a high school student who nets $5,000 in a year working both part-time after school and during the summer. If that student lives at home, rent-free, with their parents or guardians, all of their $5,000 is theirs to spend however they wish. From deciding to go t...

Before making your riches, examine your attitude toward money Developing positive associations with money will help you manage it better, writes Greg Cawsey Gregory Cawsey Guelph Mercury Wednesday, January 9, 2019 Today, I want to discuss a topic viewed by many as a very personal matter. Some adults believe discussing it in public is just plain rude. Some parents avoid talking to their kids about it at all. Their children are kept in the dark, left to find out what they can from the world around them. What is this private, controversial topic of extreme personal consequence? The topic is money — specifically, your money. Surprised? What did you think I was going to say? Unfortunately, adults have trouble discussing important personal matters with young people. Anyone who has sat through one of those uncomfortable facts-of-life talks with their parents already knows what I’m talking about. Well, at least you had “the talk.” When it comes to money, too many families avoid the topic of pe...

In our last lesson we showed you how to easily put aside a portion of your paycheque into a high interest savings account. While you enjoy seeing that money grow, we can now focus on making your walking around cash last. Tracking your spending indicated how much money you need to get by on between pay periods. Whatever that amount is, go to your bank’s ATM and take it out in cash. I told you to use a debit card before — so that you could track where your money was going over a month’s time. We’ve done that — so now we can start using cash to make our purchases. There are many reasons to do this — but a key one is that you will spend less money using cash to buy things instead of debit. Why? You will control your own spending because you will always know how much money you have left. If your bank has provided your account with overdraft protection, you have the option of going into debt if your account balance goes below zero. You pay fees and interest every time you use this dangerous ...