Power to the taxpayers. Remember us?

The PM, Premiers and Territorial leaders got together in Ottawa to discuss the looming economic crisis as it applies to Canada.  Everybody had their hand out and the only person to be potentially screwed by this will be the taxpayers.

These guys just don't get it.

If you want to support the North American automotive industry then give Canadians a tax break when they buy or lease a North American car or truck.  Don't just give it to the industry.  Give the money to the people who do the buying and they can give it to the industry in a fair trade for something they need!

Rather than the typical way that governments fund infrastructure projects, wherein the feds give one third, the provinces one third and one third to the municipality, the feds should pay the full costs.  That way the taxes paid by homeowners do not rise.   The homeowners can then spend their money on other stuff, like a new North American car.  Similarly the provinces can do a better job with hospital wait times with the money they save.


Let's think about NAFTA and jobs.  NAFTA makes it easy to move an entire industry to low wage Mexico.  If you have an industry that spews toxins, move it to Mexico where environmental standards are lower.

Let's think about controlling imports from places like China until they begin to raise their standards of living, employments and environmental protection.  It may put Wal-Mart out of business but that is their problem - not ours.

Harper shares our pain

In peril of being called a cynic, I wonder what the real reason is behind the meeting that PM Harper has set up with Provincial and Territorial Leaders on November 10. He says that he wants to discuss the economy.

In the two and half years of his first mandate, Harper ignored the other leaders. He never even invited them to lunch.

Now, the economy, which Harper and his parrot, J. Flaherty maintain have strong fundamentals, is falling apart faster than a $2 haircut.

The cynical-MysteryMan wonders if Harper is using the occasion to try to share the blame for his bonehead moves of reducing the GST, and therefore his revenues, and increasing program spending at a rate three times the rate of inflation and twice that of the Liberals' more spend-wielding years, resulting in impending deficits.

Oh, to be a fly in the room on Nov 10. Harper will have to contend with the Premiers of NL. Ontario, Quebec and BC - gentlemen that he treated like cow manure during the recent election. I wonder if he will declare the agenda for the meeting as a confidence motion?

There are only a few recourses for Harper in the meeting.

1) He can treat everyone as his opposition and declare no consensus, and force an election to try to get a majority government;
2) He can suck up to the Premiers and offer them support in these hard-pressed times, then declare the meeting as an attack on federal coffers, resulting in loss of confidence and call an election to get another crack at a majority; or
3) He can cancel the meeting, declare no confidence in his own government and call an election to try again to get a majority.

See the trend here?