N.S. minister accuses think-tank of producing 'junk'

The Fraser institute a political organization pretending to be a think tank producing nothing of value? Say it isn't so!

Good for this guy! The Fraser Institute is crap. They pass themselves off as a non-partisan charity. To me a charity shelters the homeless and feeds the hungry. The Fraser Institute would probably find it efficient to feed the homeless to the hungry. It's an insult that they are a Canadian charity.

And non-partisan? Give me a break. Does anyone, other than Revenue Canada (who maintain their charity status) really think that the Fraser Institute is even remotely non-partisan? Producing these think-tank reports and releasing them with maximum fanfare near elections? Baloney.

The Fraser Institute should, of course, be free to say what they want to say, but they should have their charity status revoked along with the rest of the "think tanks." And likewise, the Minister should be free to call out crap when he sees it.

Good find Scape!

I've heard them referred to as "stink tanks".

"Porta-thoughties"

BRAVO!

I'm quite happy to see someone in a position of authority taking the Fraser Institute (and their various child organizations) to task on this, especially since they are one of the more media prominent think tanks out there. I've posted several times in the past on the problems with the Fraser Institute, above and beyond their political leanings. One such post is . Not to mention it's easy to catch them out on their sourcing.

I know Lemmy (a resident expert) and bootslegga have also both posted such things in the past, so no doubt they were pleased to see someone take the Fraser Institute to task as well -- no doubt we will shortly be seeing a response come out in the Vancouver Sun denouncing this in the defense of whatever they are calling learned incompetence, skewed "science" and purposeful obscuring of facts these days.

Well, it's not because you don't agree with something that it is 'crap' or 'junk'. I've read some books from the Fraser Institute on the economy of Québec and they were quite accurate. They have a libertarian point of view. It's sure that if you are a social-democrat, you won't like their reports. I don't like most reports, politics and media because they have a left wing ideology. I don't call them names tho.

Proc, they are partisan....Ralph Klein and Mike Harris are among their "fellows". They are funded and staffed by current and former executives from industries such as big pharma, who are the primary beneficiaries of the policies they propose. LIke the NS minister said, its not a conicendence that their 3-worst Premiers according the FS report are all non-conservatives up for re-election this year. And this NS minister was rated highly by the institute, so it cleary wasn't a case of sour grapes. It's the junk science that makes them crap.

You have to keep in mind what is going on at think tanks, do some transactional analysis. In reality it's some 9 to 5 guy trying to produce new ideas, on a limited budget. It isn't always going to be deep stuff.

So you're saying they are respectable just because they support your political view?

Sorry, but this post makes you sound like a hypocrite...

I thought think tanks were political organizations by definition. Advocacy + research = think tank. The presence of advocacy in that equation inherently makes them political.

I kinda like that research has a place in that equation (since it's so rare everywhere else), but I never thought of anything from a think tank as apolitical or pure research.

I thought think tanks were political organizations by definition. Advocacy + research = think tank. The presence of advocacy in that equation inherently makes them political.



I think along the same lines. But Revenue Canada does not. As long as the organization in question does not specifically and by name advocate for a political party, and does not financially support a political aprty, they are not deemed political, and they maintain their charity status.