I'm continually amazed that "conservative" governments cut their revenues and then complain that they have no money - Ford's walking away from auto license fees is so annoying.
I'm more amazed that people buy the argument that the cupboards are bare, so there's nothing to do but cut spending.
Conservative governments have repeatedly demonstrated that they will engineer a crisis in order to justify privatization, but we seem to keep giving them opportunities to destroy public services for their backers.
And I share your suspicions about them calling themselves "conservative". After all, what are they conserving?
And those fees will be recovered from every ontario tax payer, not just drivers. As a driver, I'd like to thank every hardcore non driving winter cyclist for further subsidizing my car usage.
When you write "Some things are broken, some things aren’t. Some things are broken in a big way, some things are broken in a small way. Some things are fine. Some things are quite good, actually," what things would you consider "fine" or even "quite good" in Canada today?
Well, I think it depends on who you are. But for many -- certainly not all -- something like the Canada Child Benefit would be one example. Certain economic sectors are also, by and large, doing well. For home owners (and this is a good for some that makes an awful problem for others), the value of their properties has been a windfall. Life expectancy is another marker, on which we do well. The new immigration plan is not perfect but it's generally accepted as a good thing and we're preparing to welcome many newcomers.
And for all the fiscal hand-wringing from Conservatives, our public finances are in pretty good shape: Canada has AAA/Aaa ratings from 3/4 of the leading ratings agencies--just this month, Moody's reaffirmed our Aaa with stable outlook rating. Our post-COVID economic and job recovery has been robust with historic lows in unemployment. Just today, StatsCan reported that Canada's economy grew in Q3 at an annualized rate of 2.9%. I would also argue that we are getting our act together on climate change mitigation.
This report may also be relevant to this conversation: "Canada handled the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic and weathered the ensuing upheaval better than several other nations with comparable health-care and economic infrastructure, a new study suggests.
I am still waiting for the provincial governments to raise the two points of HST that Prime Minister Harper gave them with no strings attached. Why would any federal government consider increased transfers before the provinces made the effort? If they did, the federal government would be obliged to contribute because that's the impact of equalization.
I'm continually amazed that "conservative" governments cut their revenues and then complain that they have no money - Ford's walking away from auto license fees is so annoying.
And as we know, that money could have been *much* better spent.
I'm more amazed that people buy the argument that the cupboards are bare, so there's nothing to do but cut spending.
Conservative governments have repeatedly demonstrated that they will engineer a crisis in order to justify privatization, but we seem to keep giving them opportunities to destroy public services for their backers.
And I share your suspicions about them calling themselves "conservative". After all, what are they conserving?
Precisely!
And those fees will be recovered from every ontario tax payer, not just drivers. As a driver, I'd like to thank every hardcore non driving winter cyclist for further subsidizing my car usage.
When can I cancel my Ontario subscription ? Im asking for a friend
Well, I tried to renew mine with a ballot in the fall, but alas...
A good read.
When you write "Some things are broken, some things aren’t. Some things are broken in a big way, some things are broken in a small way. Some things are fine. Some things are quite good, actually," what things would you consider "fine" or even "quite good" in Canada today?
Well, I think it depends on who you are. But for many -- certainly not all -- something like the Canada Child Benefit would be one example. Certain economic sectors are also, by and large, doing well. For home owners (and this is a good for some that makes an awful problem for others), the value of their properties has been a windfall. Life expectancy is another marker, on which we do well. The new immigration plan is not perfect but it's generally accepted as a good thing and we're preparing to welcome many newcomers.
And for all the fiscal hand-wringing from Conservatives, our public finances are in pretty good shape: Canada has AAA/Aaa ratings from 3/4 of the leading ratings agencies--just this month, Moody's reaffirmed our Aaa with stable outlook rating. Our post-COVID economic and job recovery has been robust with historic lows in unemployment. Just today, StatsCan reported that Canada's economy grew in Q3 at an annualized rate of 2.9%. I would also argue that we are getting our act together on climate change mitigation.
This report may also be relevant to this conversation: "Canada handled the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic and weathered the ensuing upheaval better than several other nations with comparable health-care and economic infrastructure, a new study suggests.
The research, published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal on Monday, credits Canada's strong performance to restrictive and persistent public health measures as well as a successful vaccination campaign." https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/canada-response-covid-pandemic-cmaj-1.6502648
I am still waiting for the provincial governments to raise the two points of HST that Prime Minister Harper gave them with no strings attached. Why would any federal government consider increased transfers before the provinces made the effort? If they did, the federal government would be obliged to contribute because that's the impact of equalization.
Great article, as usual. Typo: "desparate"
Oh, yes indeed.