14 Comments
founding

It would have been so much simpler to give them a rebate on home heating oil as a one off and make it nothing to do with climate action.

Feet full of bullet holes.

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Your view certainly is the same as the Leader of the Opposition - devoid of reality of the context. The reality is that they have not had the ability to fully get off oil for heating homes and their economy is in tough. Ideally, there'd have been another solution but those still on oil are more likely in need of help than others with the means to convert.

If you think this federal government is bad, just help elect the Conservatives.

Progressives should stick to the policy and proposal arguments like that segment who are pushing hard for basic income or at minimum a guaranteed income scheme. The NDP and the federal Liberals are the only progressive parties in federal politics and we don't need another lost decade of Conservative policy.

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So some who have it tough are more special than others?

One thing we have learned from COVID is that with a guaranteed income many people have no problems being lazy at home, not working and just watching Netflix all day. Nothing good comes out of guaranteed income.

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Your comments are flawed on so many levels according to the evidence from numerous studies on what people did during Covid. Secondly, the most free market friendly economist who believes the only purpose of a business to max profits for shareholders advocated a negative income tax for the USA.

Let's look at who is special when it comes to the only tools that the central banks like the Bank of Canada have to fight inflation and that's raise interest rates. The central banks can't discipline capital, but wage earners bear a larger burden. In the lower mainland of BC when interests rose first time home buyers stayed put creating significant rises in rental rates as vacancies fell.

Income inequality is growing in Canada and while not as bad as the USA, it's an issue.

In your world nothing good comes out of guaranteed income. In my view, nothing good comes out of poverty and working poor not able to afford housing and rental housing being torn down for strata units. We're seeing working people in vans and even families. This is unheard of since the Great Depression. Mental health challenges have never been as evident in our streets and communities with rising crime rates due to mental issues and thefts due - in part - to hopelessness.

There's another reality at play. The globe will not survive consumption rates the like of which we are pursuing in the west so guaranteed income schemes are needed for that also.

If people are the drivers of a successful nation, then we need to invest in people and ensure that the weakest among us are cared for.

Ignorance is bliss.

On Covid Supports:

Covid support wasn't a guaranteed income scheme that you probably preferred people not to receive. Businesses including the major ones got government support.

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Nov 1, 2023·edited Nov 1, 2023

Printing money, even for virtuous reasons such as giving money to everyone so that those who actually need it don't have their feelings hurt isn't a viable economic policy. Simply, we can't afford it as a society. There is a limit to printing money before it devalues and interest rates have to go up to stabilize the currency.

If my comments are wrong then what was the point of providing payments to people if not to stay home during COVID? Either a guaranteed income works or doesn't and the empirical evidence shows it encourages people to stay home and not add value to society.

Just remember one thing, even the rich have their limit and resent being taken advantage of to "care for the weakest among us." They will just leave if squeezed hard enough.

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Nov 2, 2023·edited Nov 2, 2023

Ironically the usually progressive thinker and writer David Moscrop actually wrote the kind of story that attracts mindless right wingers like flies to dung.

Here's a producer at CBC asking about share buybacks and using Loblaws as the introduction:

Host: Jayme Poisson

STORIES FROM THIS EPISODE

Front Burner

Can Canada afford big corporate stock buybacks?

JODIE MARTINSON: Hi, I'm Jodie Martinson, in for Jayme Poisson. On Thursday, Loblaw Companies, the country's biggest grocery chain, posted its annual report. And in 2022, a year when Canadians felt the squeeze from skyrocketing, grocery bills increased by inflation. Loblaw posted net earnings of $2.3 billion. Also in 2022, Loblaw spent 1.3 billion on something called stock buybacks, a tool that tends to make investors and executives richer. Loblaw isn't alone in carrying out billion dollar share buybacks. It's increasingly common among Canada's biggest companies. You see it in the oil sector, which has also been enjoying massive profits. But it's happening in other industries as well. Last year, Reuters reported that Canadian companies had repurchased nearly 70 billion in shares. Critics of these share buybacks say they benefit investors and executives, while workers struggle to see their wages increase and customers get squeezed for the profits to make them happen. So to help me pick through this issue, I've got CBC business journalist Pete Evans back on the show. Hi Pete, welcome back to Front Burner.

Front Burner Transcript for February 27, 2023

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Nov 2, 2023·edited Nov 2, 2023

I'm not sure if it's worth replying given your total lack of understanding how Canada's economy actually works along with some of the outrageous statement in your comments. Any who calls themselves a genius of any sort is less likely to be one.

The Government of Canada does not print money! You need to learn what the Bank of Canada does and what private lenders do in this regard.

You may have confused empirical evidence with anecdotal stories told by right of centre politicians when it comes to studies of basic income across the globe.

Corporations and their shareholders are well off when the most ignorant among us are shilling for them. In the last year ending in June 2023 there was $170 billion in share buybacks by Canadian corporations. This was to avoid the 2% tax on share buybacks effective Jan, 2024. The other option for excess cash on the balance sheet is invest in growth. This is what they avoided as an example: 2% of $1,000,000 is $20,000. Estimates of this tax impact was $2.5 billion over 5 years. Since August of this year the government is tweaking the rules so it won't be that full 2%.

Share buybacks are paid out of EXCESS cash across multiple corporate sectors who despite the pandemic made record profits! Food corporations - record profits in a pandemic. A bag of mixed vegetables that was "Always $4 " at Superstore is now "Always $6" yet a 4.54 kg bag of carrots at Costco is $8.

The first quarter of 2020, business share of GDP was its highest ever and one reason was that small businesses weren't fully functioning and many Canadians were out of work.

To suggest that only job holders add value to society is to besmirch the value of homemakers, caregivers and volunteers.

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Nov 1, 2023·edited Nov 1, 2023

Kico, you are projecting. Not a good habit to get into.

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I thought it was a tweak on a policy that's still hitting all drivers, and just a long list of commercial consumers that nobody outside of their fields ever hear about. (It takes heat to can food; every can of food feels the carbon tax.)

The question at voting time still comes down to a few parties, and do you want the one that's trying, within economic and popularity limits, to do what they can about carbon emissions, or the party that is actually pursuing policies that would increase them?

I know the Liberals are in the polling basement, but I can't help but think this year's fires did far more damage to to the Conservative side than anybody suspects; some things take time to sink in.

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It's a fair piece but a little overdramatic on 'wails of a dying government' theme. Ironic that this is a 'controversy' in Canada. yes it's good old fashioned patronage, the same kind the Conservatives will enact shortly after taking power, if that is, they do. You seem to be convinced. Still think Pierre Poilievre is weasel looking and acting. Atlantic Canada got a bone,-good for them. Even if living in Ottawa is the pits, and the hypocrisy of governments gets you down, you got to admit we got a pretty cushy country. Lame, I know, but looking around the globe we're still pretty damn lucky.

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Weasel looking and acting. Yes, I agree with that statement as well as everything else you made note of. PP the weasel. Long may he do something, someplace else.

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We don’t need the conservatives in, it will not only hurt Canada but our lives will end in death. These conservatives who are really Trump republicans already cruelly crucified me. I’m literally hanging by a thread. Now I’m being pushed to sell my vehicle so they can cut me for 4 months and leave me with no shelter. I worked hard my whole life but not to be harmed and kicked under a semi. If the liberals don’t get in, our country is doomed. Maybe write about the sabotage and slander by conservatives then downing our spirits. Pierre is a very evil man. And I’m tired of being constantly bullied by these Tories, they took away my retirement and my story wasn’t told. These Trump loving Canadians should just move to the states and leave our country alone and hate needs to be addressed our youth are royally threatened with a dark future

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your first paragraph is probably one of the best summaries of government I've read. Thank you!

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any of the betting firms giving odds on how soon the weak and not particularly bright PM Trudeau throws one of his intelligent and capable female cabinet ministers under the bus in a desperate attempt to save himself? Let's see, won't be the french one as he's banging her (Montreal Gazette), not the non caucasien one as that could hurt the 905 vote... CF is fucked.

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