The long awaited release of the latest iphone has proved to be a disappointment to many apple consumers and critics alike. This seems to be a recurring theme with each apple product release, the excitement of the hottest technology continually overrides the value of the product in consumer’s minds. Although this iphone has unsatisfied many customers, iphone sales are still thorough the roof and sales have yet to be impacted. The truth is that the iphone 5 could have been no different from previous models and consumers would still be lined up to get the newest iphone. Marketing at apple is so good that consumers have been brainwashed into buying the product. Apple has done a great job of marketing the very few new features it has added and is pulling off something very few companies would be able to do. Samsung has even tapped into this phenomenon and made commercials about the mindless people who line up for days to get their hands on the latest technology. The bottom line is that what apple is doing is working, even I lined up for the iphone 5 this past September.

An important and fundamental question has recently been raised concerning the potential Nexen Natural Gas company buy out and foreign investment in general. The question Canadians are asking is where do we draw the line? To what extent do we allow foreign investment to control the natural wealth of our country? With the Chinese company, CNOOC, looking into buying out Nexen, the government must bring into question these topics and make a decision about the fate of the company. Although the proposed deal is attractive today, the whole idea of selling off companies dealing with Canadian natural resources is rather short-sighted. If the proposed deal went through, current stockholders would see a 60% increase in value upfront and the company would be bought out for $15.1 billion, while that sounds great on paper, there are many aspects of the situation that need to be considered. Our natural resources are the guaranteed wealth and future of our country, the future must be weighed carefully and important decisions must be made about the policy Canada will uphold in the given circumstances. I believe that Canada’s natural resources aren’t something that can be sold off to other countries; if they need natural gas they can get in line and buy it from us like everyone else.

In the news recently we have seen a great deal about the proposal and protesting of the Keystone pipeline which would transport crude oil from Alberta all the way down to the gulf coast. On one hand it is argued that the pipeline will be beneficial to both the US and Canadian economies and create much needed jobs on both sides of the border, meanwhile many others refute that the pipeline is dangerous for the environment and will not create enough permanent jobs for the project to be worthwhile. I think that this is a major opportunity for Canada which will not only create jobs and benefit the economy immensely, but also fortify US-Canada relations and allow them to rely on us rather than the middle-east for their energy needs. At a time when so much focus is placed on the environment and protesters are able to blindly jump in the way of every government initiative, I hope we don’t lose sight of the importance of all the benefits Canada receives from such a major project and the opportunities it presents at such a key time for international affairs.

ARTICLE:http://www.globalnews.ca/pros+and+cons+of+the+keystone+xl+pipeline+project/6442489765/story.html