Michael J Armstrong
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profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong
@profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
530 followers 120 following 240 posts

Associate professor of operations research at Brock University. I teach quality improvement & game theory. I research the economic aspects of cannabis legalization.
https://brocku.ca/goodman/faculty-research/faculty-directory/michael-armstrong/ .. more

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Environmental science 21%
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profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · Dec 19
This @ca.theconversation.com article summarizes my study of how impaired driving rates changed after Canada legalized recreational cannabis & enhanced enforcement in 2018.

In short: rates grew but mostly unrelated to legalization.
1/7
#EpiSky 🧪
theconversation.com/after-canada...
After Canada legalized cannabis, police caught more drunk drivers
Police reported more drug and alcohol impairment after 2018. The growth seemed more due to enforcement changes and pandemic restrictions than to legalized cannabis.
theconversation.com

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 1d
Under the deal Diageo will give $2M to development agencies, spend $5M on ads, & buy $16M of raw materials in Ontario.
🍸💲

www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
Diageo, Ontario reach agreement to keep Crown Royal on LCBO shelves but plant closure remains | CBC News
Ontario will keep Crown Royal on the shelves in the province's liquor stores, it says, after parent company Diageo agreed to almost $23 million in spending in the alcohol and agriculture sectors.
www.cbc.ca

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 1d
'“The wine side of it is pretty dead, there’s barely anybody buying U.S. wine,” said Ivonne Martinez, president of Alberta Liquor Stores Association. However, demand for U.S. bourbon has surged'

www.theglobeandmail.com/business/art...
Alberta imports of U.S. alcohol are back, but who’s drinking it?
In Ontario, beer, wine and alcohol from south of the border have tanked 95 per cent due to the trade war
www.theglobeandmail.com

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 1d
'Brock plans to reduce staffing by one third across all programs “beginning with administrative assistants, academic co-ordinators and some academic advisors" ... cutting back on those positions will only hurt students'

@brocku.ca @bufa.bsky.social
www.pelhamtoday.ca/local-news/a...
Advisory committee sounds alarm over restructuring at Brock University
President’s Advisory Committee on Human Rights, Equity and Decolonization says staff reductions will hurt students
www.pelhamtoday.ca

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 2d
Ontario universities will be allowed to raise tuition rates up to 2% per year.

So, they'll keep falling behind inflation, but more slowly than they have been for the past decade.
💲🏫

www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
Tuition set to rise, OSAP grants lower with new Ontario post-secondary funding changes: minister | CBC News
The province announced billions in new funding for Ontario's colleges and universities Thursday, along with the end of a years-long tuition freeze and changes to the Ontario Student Assistance Program...
www.cbc.ca

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 2d
Newmarket, ON, decides to maintain its ban on licensed cannabis stores.
🏪

www.newmarkettoday.ca/local-news/o...
'Our position will remain the same': Newmarket council not moving on allowing cannabis stores
Advocates push for reconsideration, but council members say planning control would be needed
www.newmarkettoday.ca

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 3d
This is something I like about studying cannabis legalization's impacts. Even studies finding no significant effect are publishable.

E.g., did legal cannabis lead to more, less, or no change in alcohol use?

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 3d
"Every broken commitment, every tariff threat announced via social media, teaches important economic partners that American trade agreements are not worth the paper they’re printed on. And they are learning fast."
💲
www.cato.org/commentary/t...
Trump’s Trade Policy Is Teaching Partners Washington Can’t Be Trusted
Every broken commitment, every tariff threat announced via social media, teaches important economic partners that American trade agreements are not worth the paper they’re printed on. And they are lea...
www.cato.org

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 3d
"Both countries also experienced a post-war reassessment of their ties to their colonial pasts, evident in the Union Jack occupying the upper left quadrant of each flag. But the efforts to redesign the Canadian and New Zealand flags followed different pathways."

theconversation.com/flag-politic...
Flag politics in Canada and New Zealand resulted in drastically different outcomes
Both Canada and New Zealand experienced a post-Second World War reassessment of their ties to colonialism, evident in the Union Jack occupying the upper left quadrant of each nation’s flag.
theconversation.com

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 4d
Product recall on some Lunaire dried cannabis due to arsenic.
🚫

recalls-rappels.canada.ca/en/alert-rec...
Updated: Great White North Growers Inc. recalls certain Lunaire brand dried cannabis products due to heavy metal contamination - Canada.ca
The affected lots contain arsenic, a toxic heavy metal, at levels above the acceptable limit.  Arsenic exposure is associated with an increased risk of cancer and may harm different body systems: skin...
recalls-rappels.canada.ca

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 4d
Source: Transparency International 2025 report

www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2025/
Corruption Perceptions Index 2025
The Corruption Perceptions Index 2025 ranks 182 countries by their perceived levels of public sector corruption. Find out the scores and read our analysis.
www.transparency.org

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 4d
For perceived absence of public sector corruption in 2025, Denmark remained the least corrupt country worldwide. USA continued its downward trend, while Canada hovered in between.
🏛️💲
#EconSky
This line chart show the corruption perception index for Denmark, Canada, & the USA, from 2017 to 2025. High scores indicate residents see less corruption in the public sector of their country. 100 is ideal, over 80 is very good or "clean". Denmark remains the least corrupt country in the world, Canada has slipped, & the USA has fallen farther.

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 4d
'some workers are being directed toward so-called “restructured” or “new” positions that the university is attempting to reclassify outside the bargaining unit'

Reposted by Michael J. Armstrong

milhistlee.bsky.social
Wayne E. Lee @milhistlee.bsky.social · 4d
We are in production, but we need some help to get over the final hump. You can find out more on our pre-launch page. There will be various rewards for different tiers of support, including custom artwork from Simpsons' animator @annamaltese.bsky.social

Reposted by Michael J. Armstrong

profsavage.bsky.social
Larry Savage @profsavage.bsky.social · 4d
#OSSTF releases official statement on support staff layoffs at #BrockU.

www.osstf.on.ca/en-CA/news/o...

#canlab #cdnpse
OSSTF/FEESO Condemns Lack of Transparency Around Brock University Layoffs
www.osstf.on.ca

Reposted by Michael J. Armstrong

darthputinkgb.bsky.social
Darth Putin @darthputinkgb.bsky.social · 4d
Donald's gift is to make people from the world richest and most powerful country feel they got that way cos everyone was taking advantage of them.
Screenshot of trump complaining about a bridge.

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 5d
"The layoffs come as Ontario’s post-secondary institutions grapple with a prolonged domestic tuition freeze ... Since 2017, OSSTF’s membership at Brock has fallen to 148 from 230"

Brock had already lost 36% of its support staff before last week's cuts.

www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/news/niagara...
Brock University to lay off administrative staff
An undisclosed number of Brock University administrators have begun to receive layoff notices. The St. Catharines university said the staff reduction as part of its broader strategy to streamline oper...
www.stcatharinesstandard.ca

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 6d
"staff that have been offered new positions are also being required to sign a non-disclosure agreement and given a short timeline to accept"

Universities should be banning non-disclosure agreements, rather than demanding them.

Reposted by Michael J. Armstrong

aaronmauro.bsky.social
Aaron Mauro @aaronmauro.bsky.social · 6d
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
Brock University cutting administrative jobs, impacting up to 50 workers: union | CBC News
Employees were called into an all-staff meeting Monday morning to discuss a “new administrative model,” according to the union that represents administrative workers. A committee that advises the univ...
www.cbc.ca

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 8d
Quebec liquor stores will sell-off US products approaching their best-before dates and donate the proceeds to food banks.

Apart from that, Quebec's 11-month-old boycott of US alcohol will continue.
🍷🍸

www.ctvnews.ca/montreal/art...
Here’s why the SAQ is putting some American alcohol products back on its shelves
Nearly one year after the Quebec liquor control board yanked American alcohol from its store shelves, the Crown corporation is putting the bottles back before they expire and donating the proceeds of ...
www.ctvnews.ca

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 9d
FYI @bretdevereaux.bsky.social

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 10d
Grade inflation at Ontario high schools:
“there’s an incentive for schools to give out high grades so they can report that their students are getting into prestigious programs"
🏫

www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
As Ontario high school grades keep rising, graduating students worry about their university future | CBC News
The numbers paint a stark picture of what it’s like to be a graduating student in the province right now, as university admissions ramp up and education experts call for an overhaul of both the high s...
www.cbc.ca

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 11d
On 4 Feb, @brocku.ca Dr Michael Ripmeester will give an online talk about the motivations and expectations of wine club members.
🍷

experiencebu.brocku.ca/event/315648
CCOVI Lecture Series with Michael Ripmeester Professor of Geography and Tourism Studies, Brock University and Grad student Sara Murdoch (MA, Geography), Brock University
Discover unique opportunities at! Find and attend events, browse and join organizations, and showcase your involvement.
experiencebu.brocku.ca

Reposted by Michael J. Armstrong

chriso-wiki.bsky.social
ChrisO_wiki @chriso-wiki.bsky.social · 12d
1/ An authoritarian government begins rounding up people it sees as targets, using a rapidly expanded paramilitary force known for brutal tactics. Because of a lack of detention spaces, it warehouses people in requisitioned facilities. The year is 1933, the place is Germany. ⬇️

Reposted by Michael J. Armstrong

waters-wine.bsky.social
Christopher Waters @waters-wine.bsky.social · 14d
People think of icewine as a dessert wine or something for special occasions, but it doesn’t have to be, explains Inniskillin's Sumie Yamakawa. “We want to open people’s eyes to icewine’s potential.”
www.theglobeandmail.com/life/style/f...
Fostering a taste for icewine in Niagara-on-the-Lake
The star Canadian product isn’t just for dessert
www.theglobeandmail.com

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 15d
FYI @cynthb.bsky.social

Reposted by Michael J. Armstrong, David Murakami Wood

chriso-wiki.bsky.social
ChrisO_wiki @chriso-wiki.bsky.social · 16d
1/ Trump Administration officials have reportedly held several secret meetings with Canadian separatists, who are seeking US$500 billion to bankroll their efforts. It suggests that the Administration is interested in breaking up Canada and absorbing the remnants. ⬇️

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 19d
Source: Statistics Canada, Consumer Price Index, monthly, not seasonally adjusted

www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/t...

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 19d
Prices of authorized medical cannabis & non-prescription medicine were unchanged in 2025, while prescription medicine prices rose 1%.

Since 2018, medical cannabis prices have fallen 16%, while medicine prices rose 6% for prescription & 19% for non-prescription.
💊
This line chart shows Statistics Canada's consumer price indexes for medically authorized cannabis, non-prescribed medicines, & prescribed medicines, relative to Dec 2018.

profmjarmstrong.bsky.social
Michael J Armstrong @profmjarmstrong.bsky.social · 19d
In Canada during 2025, retail prices fell 1.7% for recreational cannabis, rose 5.6% for alcohol, & stayed flat for tobacco.

Since legalization in 2018, cannabis prices have fallen 30%, while prices rose 18% for alcohol & 45% for tobacco.
🥬🍺🚬
This line chart shows Statistics Canada's consumer price indexes for retail store sales of tobacco products, alcoholic beverages, and recreational cannabis, relative to Dec 2018.