#equalization

It started of as a cry for equality,

Which can’t be said has been fully achieved.

Yet there are some who stray from equality to power consolidation.

Is it a movement to empower women or a movement to bring down men,

No doubt the patriarchy has had its fair share in fuelling this hatred.

But should we not remember why Feminism started!

It began as a cry for equality, which is still to be achieved.

Then why does it stray from an equitable distribution of power to a power struggle,

Neither gender is above the other.

The struggle for equality still continues, empower it,

But don’t be misled into motivating the fuels of hatred.

Why does one have to hate the other?

In order to be equally respected,

Why does one have to prove themselves to the other!

Let us remember,

It is not a battle of the genders but instead,

A battle of rights and equality.

Equality comes with respect,

And not by dragging others down.

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The formula itself asks what a province’s revenue would be if all its tax rates equalled the national average. Alberta would raise $12,327 per person, more than any other province, followed by B.C. at $11,052. Quebec is far behind, at $8,123, and Prince Edward Island lags even further, at $6,648, according to Finance Canada calculations. Equalization tops up provinces below the national average, which is why a province as populous as Quebec receives payments.

One can certainly disagree with providing more transfers to lower-income regions, but this is hardly a coherent argument against a program designed to do exactly that. Instead, many argue that it is unfair to Alberta, because of the province’s large deficit and deep recession. But these arguments don’t hold water, either.

Yes, Alberta’s recession has shrunk its economy by 12 per cent between 2014 and 2017 – but it remains on top. Alberta’s GDP per capita was nearly $77,500 last year, compared to the national average of $58,000; Quebec’s was $50,000. A strong economy means high income, and Alberta’s median household income was $93,000 in the last census, while more than two in three Albertans are employed today; both figures are higher than those in all other provinces.

Alberta’s large deficit also does not entitle it to equalization. After all, Alberta chooses to have low taxes and high spending, made possible by the luxury of high oil and gas royalties, which have now been reduced. Alberta’s politicians need to come to grips with the fiscal reality, not look to Ottawa for help. And while Quebec may be running a surplus, its taxes are double those in Alberta.

While watching Steve Albini mix a song on 'Mix with the Masters' he implemented a very interesting eq technique that I haven't seen done before. When eq-ing a kick drum to get the low end thick and punchy - think 60 hz boost - he used an auxiliary on the channel strip to send a duplicated signal to an outboard eq (I believe it was a Massenburg Parametric). He dialed in a sound he liked on the outboard eq with a low frequency notch boost and then returned the duplicated eq track to another channel on the SSL console. From here, on the duplicated eq channel, he used the same auxiliary to send the newly eq-ed signal back to the outboard eq, thus created a feedback circuit (the eq, eq-ing itself). Steve likes to do this because it focuses the area of the eq tightly. The auxiliary send on the new eq channel can't be too high because then feedback is actually audible...a little goes a long way. He blends this parallel eq’ed kick drum track with the original kick drum to taste. 

I use a similar approach when using delay in my mixes...sending the signal to be delayed to an auxiliary channel (adding an eq and 100% wet delay plugin), then creating the amount of feedback I want by sending an aux (make sure it’s pre fader!) to the same auxiliary channel - because it’s being eq-ed every time it’s sent back through the channel, the delay naturally fades the repeats in a musical way (think fading into the distance - rather than repeating pristinely).