Khushwant Toor writes from Toronto

TAKING a hit form the ongoing recession and being worried about future losses, Wal-Mart Canada Corp. on Feb. 25, 2008, announced that it is closing all six Sam's Club stores it operates in Ontario, Canada. Wall-Mart was being considered as recession proof as its corporate earnings grew in the last months. In fact Wal-Mart has been directly affecting other stores as cash starved consumers opted for a cheaper alternative for their daily needs.

Wall-Mart opened Sam’s club in the Greater Toronto Area to compete with Costco. Sam’s Club is named after Sam Walton, founder of Wal-Mart. Shoppers at both Costco and Sam’s club have to pay an annual membership fee. By closing its 6 locations which were opened five years ago after spending $80 million dollars, Sam’s Club will be laying off 12,000 workers. However, most of them can be consumed at other Wal-Mart stores.

Wal-Mart is in discussions to sell five of the stores to a major U.S. retailer. Home improvement retailer Lowe's Cos. Inc. confirmed later that it is in discussion with Wal-Mart to take over those locations. However, no decision has been made as yet.

Wal-Mart said it is closing the membership-driven warehouse-style Sam's Club stores to focus more on its new supercentre concept. However, Industry observers say Sam’s Club struggled to compete with its rival Costco, which had a longer history and a larger membership base in Canada.

Customer response to our supercentres has been very strong," said David Cheesewright, President and CEO of Wal-Mart Canada. "Today's announcement will allow us to focus our resources on growing this popular one-stop format at a time when Canadians are relying on Wal-Mart more than ever to help them save money during challenging economic times."

Wal-Mart Supercentres are larger versions of Wal-Mart's typical discount general merchandise stores and include a full supermarket, with fresh meat, produce and baked goods.

Wal-Mart said it would open 26 more supercentres this year, including 9 in areas where it is closing Sam's Club stores. But the new stores will not be open until later this year. The 26 stores include expansions of existing stores, relocations, and new stores, bringing the total number of supercentres to 82 out of a total of 312 Wal-Mart stores across Canada by the end of this year. The new stores will create 5,000 store jobs and 5,000 construction jobs, the retailer said.

Wal-Mart is the largest employer in the United States after the U.S. Federal government with over 925,000 employees. It is the largest private employer in the world. It has over 5000 stores worldwide in 10 countries. Each year the company hires 550,000 more employees - three times the number of people the U.S. military recruits every year. In the United States alone, close to 100 million shoppers patronize Wal-Mart stores every week. Its scope of operations uses the world's largest computer (surpassing the Pentagon's) and the world's largest fleet of trucks.

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America a great place for the oil business

Stephen Leahy

WHY do U.S. oil companies -- some of the most profitable corporations on the planet -- receive 20 to 40 billion dollars a year in subsidies from the U.S. government?

And, in a time of skyrocketing oil prices and profits, why did the George W. Bush administration in 2005 authorise an additional 32.9 billion dollars in new subsidies over a five-year period?

"Those are very good questions," said Doug Koplow of Earth Track, Inc., an independent energy information research organisation in Boston, Massachusetts.

"I don't have a good answer other than to say we've been subsidising American oil companies since 1918," Koplow told IPS.

Koplow's 2007 report to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development puts the annual U.S. subsidy at an average of 39 billion dollars a year, when the costs of guarding oil lanes in the Persian/Arab Gulf, and the Alaska Pipeline are included. This does not include any costs from the Iraq war.

Official U.S. government statistics from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) offer a different picture, stating that the oil and gas industry only received 2.15 billion dollars in 2007.

Oil Company Profits Continue to Skyrocket
Big oil companies are swimming in a sea of record-breaking profits while American consumers and taxpayers pay the price. In 2007 , the world’s biggest oil companies reported a combined $123.3 billion in profits, 50% increase since 2004.
-- Source: Friends of the Earth July 2008 report Big Oil, Bigger Giveaways

Company 2004 Profits
(US$ Billions) 2007 Profits
(US $ Billions) % increase
ExxonMobil 25.3 40.6
Royal Dutch Shell 18.2 31.3
BP 15.4 20.8
ConocoPhillips 8.1 11.9
Chevron Texaco 13.3 18.7
Total 80.3 123.3 54%

"The EIA has a very narrow definition of what constitutes a subsidy," said Koplow.

Like many industrialised countries, the U.S. subsidises oil production, not oil consumption. Consumption subsidies reduce the cost of buying fuel to the public while production subsidies reduce the cost of finding and producing oil for oil companies.

Experts agree that both forms of subsidies encourage consumption and thus increase the price of oil.

Estimating U.S. oil and gas subsidies is very challenging. Subsidies rarely involve cash payments. Instead scores of U.S. government agencies and departments create hundreds of programmes to support the U.S. energy sector. And there is no requirement for the federal government to keep track of all this.

Among the most common subsidies are construction bonds and research-and-development programmes at low interest rates or tax-free, assuming the legal risks of exploration and development in a company's stead and income tax breaks. Despite record high prices at the pump, the federal sales tax on petroleum products is lower than average sales tax rates for other goods. And on it goes.

Originally these production subsidies were intended to help the nascent industry meet a growing nation's energy needs. Despite record-high prices, that rationale remains firmly in place. In 2007, U.S. oil giant Exxon corporation made history with 40.7 billion dollars in profits, the most any U.S. company has ever achieved in a single year.

And subsidy programmes from 1918 are still in place.

"I'm not aware of any oil and gas subsidy that has ever been phased out," said Koplow, the leading expert on U.S. energy subsidies.

Energy subsidies are often simply hidden from public scrutiny. It's only recently been revealed that 40 companies granted leases between 1996 and 2000 for drilling in the Gulf of Mexico do not have to pay royalties for the publicly-owned resource. This is worth nearly a billion dollars a year in lost revenue to the federal government, according to a 2008 study by Friends of the Earth (FOE), a U.S. environmental NGO, and may ultimately total 50 billion dollars.

That study also revealed that the Energy Policy Act of 2005 would generate an additional 32.9 billion dollars in new subsidies in the form of tax breaks, reduced royalty payments, and accounting gimmicks over a five-year period.

"The report only includes the explicit subsidies we could find," said Erich Pica, an energy analyst at FOE.

"There are a whole lot of others out there that are less explicit," Pica told IPS.

U.S. businesses, for example, can deduct far more from their taxes on the purchase of a large SUV than they can for a fuel-efficient vehicle. "Every dollar spent subsidising oil companies is a dollar not spent on reducing oil use," he said.

These production subsidies do nothing to lower the price of petrol at the pump for U.S. consumers. It simply boosts companies' bottom line, Pica said.

Skyrocketing oil company profits and prices did put some pressure on the U.S. government to cut some subsidies and shift them to renewable energy sources which currently receive very little support. However, the much-touted 14-billion-dollar plan announced in January 2007 has stalled and is unlikely to pass this year, if ever, said Pica.

"It's outrageous that the big five oil companies who made 123 billion dollars in profit last year [ExxonMobil, Royal Dutch Shell, BP, ConocoPhillips, Chevron Texaco]continue to be subsidised by the U.S. taxpayer," he said.

The United States is a great place to be in the oil business. Energy analysts report that the U.S. government charges some of the lowest royalties and receives the least amount of taxes from oil and gas companies to extract a limited resource from public lands.

"U.S. taxes on a gallon of gasoline are 45 cents compared to four dollars in most of Europe," said Janet Larsen, director of research at the Earth Policy Institute, a U.S. NGO based in Washington.

"It's very easy to be in the oil business in the U.S. companies can drill wherever they want and make enormous profits, a lot of which is at the expense of taxpayers," Larsen said in an interview.

And the public is largely none the wiser, she said.

This massive government intervention distorts energy markets, making it very difficult for alternative energy sources to compete without similarly massive subsidies. "And it promotes America's addiction to oil," Larsen added.

While reducing consumption subsidies results in people taking to the streets in India, merely talking about reducing U.S. production subsidies brings floods of silk-suited corporate lobbyists into the White House. And they are welcomed since the oil and gas industry is now a part of the current government, she said.

The energy sector's control of the government is the strongest and clearest evidence of the corruption of the U.S. political process, said award-winning journalist and author Ross Gelbspan.

"The private sector is manipulating the government for its own ends," Gelbspan, author of books on the energy sector's influence over government, told IPS.

Meanwhile the U.S. government said it cannot afford to invest 200 billion dollars in clean energy over the next few years. That investment would be enough to "jumpstart" the clean energy revolution that would see the U.S. able to dramatically reduce its emissions of carbon from fossil fuels, Gelbspan said.

The pace of global warming is already moving into overdrive and will become catastrophic without urgent action to reduce emissions. But action will not come from the White House, no matter who is charge, he lamented.

"We have taken the typical developing country corruption scandal to new heights in this country," he concluded. [Courtesy IPS]

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Indo Candians pay homage to Shahid Bhagat Singh

Gupreet Singh writes from Vancouver

A calendar dedicated to the freedom fighters and the history of Indo Canadian struggle was released. The calendar jointly published by the Indo Canadian Workers' Association in partnership with Radio India was unveiled by the Indian Consul General, Ashok Das at a small event in Surrey on February 23, the birthday of Chacha Ajit Singh.

Chacha Ajit Singh was the uncle of Bhagat Singh, the most revered martyr of India and a great freedom fighter and a farmer leader himself. This is the second year in a row that the two organizations have issued such a calendar. A similar calendar dedicated to the birth centenary of Bhagat Singh was issued last year. This year's calendar is dedicated to Bhai Bhaag Singh, the first Indian martyr on the Canadian soil and the centenary of Madan Lal Dhingra's martyrdom. The two men had sacrificed their lives for the freedom of India from the British occupation while remaining outside their home country. The calendar carries important dates of the Indo Canadian history and has portrait of Bhai Bhaag Singh that was prepared by the Surrey based eminent painter, Sheetal Anmol.

Ashok Das not only congratulated the organizers of the event, but also pointed out that there was not a single woman at the ceremony though the women had played a significant role in the freedom struggle. He also cautioned the immigrants to remain vigilant against the subversive forces, which are determined to create disturbances in India. The Radio India Managing Director, Maninder Singh Gill urged Das to review the blacklists of the Sikhs, who became involved in the separatist activities following political events of 1984 and now wish to join the national mainstream of India. The Indo Canadian Workers' Association President, Surinder Sangha agreed. He asked Das to review the cases of those who turned into separatists out of emotions and are now willing to rejoin the national mainstream. He clarified that his association has always been critical of pro Khalistan separatists.

Later, two Punjabi scholars, Dr. Darshan Gill and Dr. Raghbir Singh Sirjana released the portrait of Bhai Bhaag Singh. Bhai Bhaag Singh was the President of the Khalsa Deewan Society, Vancouver.

He had encouraged the former Sikh soldiers, who had served in the British Army to burn their medals in solidarity with the revolutionaries, who were fighting against the British occupation of India back home. Others present on the occasion were the Khalsa Deewan Society President, Kashmir Singh Dhaliwal, the Guru Nanak Sikh Temple Vice President, Sadhu Singh Samra and other Indo Canadian Workers' Association members, Kulwant Dhesi, Surinder Dhesi, Dilbagh Bassi and Girdawar Bassi.

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Writer quits Gurdwara body in Surrey, BC

RANJ Dhaliwal (Randheer Singh Dhaliwal), author of the best selling novel 'Daaku', has resigned as Vice President-elect of the Surrey Guru Nanak Sikh Temple Society Surrey/Delta.

The Sikh Youth Slate was elected into office on November 24, 2008 and Sikhs from all across the globe celebrated with prayers that the Sikhs had finally won back the Surrey Gurdwara that has been amidst controversy for over a decade with accusations that the outgoing President had been charged with drinking and driving, and the issue of the violence that had erupted when almost 80% of the congregation left the Gurdwara when the Executive of the Society decided it was not going to practice Sikhism as per the ten Gurus orders by re-installing the tables and chairs. The newly elected Sikh Youth have not taken office yet based on a technicality that occurred a month prior to the election that the defeated slate brought forward over a week after the Sikh Youth had won the election, which the courts are still in the process of resolving.

Ranj Dhaliwal has been recognized as one of the positive role models in the South Asian community that speaks out against gang violence, and is a regular on many radio and TV programs aimed at
helping the youth and parents understand each other.

Ranj Dhaliwal asserts, "I joined the Sikh Youth committee to make a difference and help keep youths away from the gang life with much needed resources and programs that our Sikh Youth committee wanted to implement at the Gurdwara. I wanted to help the divisive community unite and let go of the past issues they've had, but I do not want to waste the congregation's money in court dealing with these matters. Besides, these court hearings and all the discussions on the legal issues has taken me away from writing, speaking publicly on the ever growing gang violence that the Lower Mainland is faced with, and helping at-risk youths. Leaving this committee will give me a chance to put my energy to better use, and allow me to continue working on my next novel."

The Honourable Justice Smart had stated in his oral reasons for judgement on February 4, 2009 that the election and outcome of the election was fair.

According to Dhaliwal , “During the court proceedings, Justice Smart had commented that if he was to validate the Sikh Youth committee as the Executive of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara Society Surrey that the opposing parties, which include Balwant Gill, defeated party leader who is personally represented by a lawyer, and the Society, which Balwant Gill is the outgoing President of and gives instructions to the Society lawyer as well, will most likely appeal the decision, so it is in the best interest that the matter go trial so that the Sikh Youth committee can be validated as the Executive properly without a chance that the outgoing Executive and defeated parties could appeal.”

Why doesn?t Ranj Dhaliwal want to go to court? He had this to say, "Well, for one thing, I find it an absolute waste of money litigating religious matters in court, especially when the Sikh religion's disputes are to be handled at the Sikhs' highest court, which is the Akal Takht in India across from the Golden Temple, and the other is that our Sikh Youth committee ran on the platform that we want to change how the Gurdwaras are run and we said we would not be wasting Gurdwara monies in court battles. Going to court and challenging elections is what has always happened in Gurdwara elections for decades, but we wanted to change that. This just shows how badly a change is needed. I guess this is our first test on the message we ran on during the campaign - we said we won't drag on lengthy court matters and here I am stepping away from this."

Ranj commented on a new election, "I have proposed to the Sikh Youth committee that they ask the Sikh-run Gurdwaras in the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley to come together and form a new Sikh Youth committee to run in the next Gurdwara election. This way the entire community will be involved in finally putting an end to these elections at the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey because the committee would be running for the Sikh Nation as a whole and not for any personal reasons as our opposing parties have in the past. Imagine the Sikh Youth slate selected by the Sikhs of the Punjabi community defeating all parties that oppose them by a landslide that cannot be challenged by anyone? If that were to happen then Sikhs would finally be able to make the Surrey Gurdwara the way our Gurus had wanted it to be."

Dhaliwal went on to say, "I'm not stepping away from Sikhs, but I am stepping away from this wrong that has plagued our community for decades - the wrong that every election is fraught with court battles. I don't see myself serving a purpose in any further court hearings as a committee member, so I have humbly resigned as Vice President-elect."

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