With Canada's Conservative Party smelling blood dripping from the collective body of their greatest rival, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty added to Grit turmoil.
The former Ontario tory opened the floodgates for support by announcing plans to lower the GST to 5%, slash personal income tax, while also sending relief to corporations with a lowering of tax rates. You can almost hear the sighs of relief across the land. To top it all off, an increase to the basic personal exemption is also planned.
Well, as far as I can tell, the Conservatives are using this fall update to give Canadians what they want to hear in order to grab a poll surge and put a tighter hold on the government.
My question is this, and you should be asking yourself as well, why does the biggest relief go to the rich and corporations while impoverished Canadians are going to continue to be drilled by the BIG BUSINESS LOVE STORY that is Conservative politics in Canada? There was a crucial chance here to make a lasting attempt to better the lives of all Canadians by not only spreading the wealth across the board when it came to a socio-economic scale but also possibly dropping some much needed funds into this struggle we call saving the environment.
Enough of that though, let's look at the GST! Why lower it? Simple reason, people that don't know any better will love it! People that care about Canada's global position and our competitiveness know better than to think that the country will see any lasting benefit from a move that is merely a political trick to gain success.
In other words, sure Stephen Harper and his mob put forth a lot of things that are going to make Canadians very happy...until the environment gives away and the less fortunate drop deeper into the abyss. Welcome to Canada.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Ontario Liberals Romp to 2nd Straight Majority
Ontario voters ushered in the first back to back Liberal majority government in 70 years today with a greater than expected level of support for the 2007 Grits.
Dalton McGuinty looked calm and collected during his acceptance speech to supporters in Ottawa. The Premier has seemingly left behind the shaky, and sometimes hard to watch, appearances for a man that exudes confidence. Most people would be confident as well after putting such a large caucus back into the chairs of Queen's Park.
As most people in Ontario will look back and realize, this election did indeed come down to one issue - faith-based school funding. As much as Howard Hampton (NDP) feels it blocked discusson on real issues and as righteous John Tory felt about the $400 million idea, Ontarians were ready to make it a key issue and not ready to support it.
Any politically minded individual could have told Mr. Tory that putting his name, party, and campaign into the ring with voters and this issue could only turn out negatively. And it of course did! It also cost Tory his own seat as he was defeated by, ironically enough, Liberal Education Minister Kathleen Wynne.
When the province wakes up tomorrow with a new set of legislative inductees it will be retuning for four more years of advancement. Choosing the Liberals was the right thing to do and was prudent for the future success of the Province. The Liberals are putting money back into systems that were hacked and dried clean of life by Tory's predecessor Mike Harris. For McGuinty's team to make 'everything' perfect after the first four years was indeed an impossible goal - and led to some 'mistruths' - but, another mandate and another time frame for the Liberals in the Province of Ontario could be just what Ontarians need to get Canada's most populous Province up and running the way we know it can.
Dalton McGuinty looked calm and collected during his acceptance speech to supporters in Ottawa. The Premier has seemingly left behind the shaky, and sometimes hard to watch, appearances for a man that exudes confidence. Most people would be confident as well after putting such a large caucus back into the chairs of Queen's Park.
As most people in Ontario will look back and realize, this election did indeed come down to one issue - faith-based school funding. As much as Howard Hampton (NDP) feels it blocked discusson on real issues and as righteous John Tory felt about the $400 million idea, Ontarians were ready to make it a key issue and not ready to support it.
Any politically minded individual could have told Mr. Tory that putting his name, party, and campaign into the ring with voters and this issue could only turn out negatively. And it of course did! It also cost Tory his own seat as he was defeated by, ironically enough, Liberal Education Minister Kathleen Wynne.
When the province wakes up tomorrow with a new set of legislative inductees it will be retuning for four more years of advancement. Choosing the Liberals was the right thing to do and was prudent for the future success of the Province. The Liberals are putting money back into systems that were hacked and dried clean of life by Tory's predecessor Mike Harris. For McGuinty's team to make 'everything' perfect after the first four years was indeed an impossible goal - and led to some 'mistruths' - but, another mandate and another time frame for the Liberals in the Province of Ontario could be just what Ontarians need to get Canada's most populous Province up and running the way we know it can.
Monday, October 1, 2007
What does the Liberal Party of Canada really stand for?
As parliament prepares for the Conservative Party's speech from the throne on October 16, 2007, a question on the minds of Canadian voters is, ‘What does the Liberal Party stand for?’ What follows is not in any way an official statement on behalf of the Liberal Party. It is, rather, what we think the Liberal Party does, and ought to, stand for.
In a speech given 26 June, 1877, nineteen years before he became Prime Minister, Wilfred Laurier defined his liberalism, and the liberalism of his party, by saying that he “is one of those who believe that in all human affairs there are abuses to reform, new horizons to discover and new forces to develop.” This has been the guiding philosophy of the Liberal Party since Laurier’s time and it has met with great success.
We should heed Laurier’s words. While Canada enjoys an enviable position in the world, our current prosperity is not felt equally by all our citizens. There are improvements to be made, and we have the opportunity to discover new ways of making them. The Conservative Party has failed in this regard. For example, Prime Minister Harper’s budget was a wasted opportunity that spent money recklessly and lacked a coherent vision for the country.
Stéphane Dion is the only leader proposing a coherent vision for the country. Mr. Dion calls his liberal philosophy the three pillar approach. The first two pillars – social justice and economic prosperity – have constituted the backbone of the Liberal Party since Laurier’s time and we know that their combined pursuit has been indispensable to Canada’s success. We also know that social justice and economic prosperity have come with an environmental cost. The third pillar – environmental sustainability – is Mr. Dion’s unique contribution. The three pillars are, as Mr. Dion rightly maintains, indispensable to one another, and to Canada’s continued success.
Just as we need to see where reforms must be made at home, we must cast our gaze outward to see where they are needed around the globe. Providing a secure environment in which peace and prosperity can be pursued through the combined effort of international organizations, national governments, and local activists is an indispensable role for Canada abroad. Canada is engaged is such a mission in Afghanistan right now. It is a mission sanctioned by the United Nations and our continued presence in Afghanistan is at the request of the Afghan government. The security our military provides is indispensable for the humanitarian work being done in that country. While some of our NATO allies are shirking their responsibilities, the Liberal Party should not advocate the same for Canada.
In Mr. Dion’s three pillar liberal philosophy the Liberal Party has a coherent philosophical vision for Canada. Canada is fortunate that it can pursue such lofty visions, and it is our party’s obligation to create similar opportunities abroad by providing the peace and security in which they can be pursued.
In a speech given 26 June, 1877, nineteen years before he became Prime Minister, Wilfred Laurier defined his liberalism, and the liberalism of his party, by saying that he “is one of those who believe that in all human affairs there are abuses to reform, new horizons to discover and new forces to develop.” This has been the guiding philosophy of the Liberal Party since Laurier’s time and it has met with great success.
We should heed Laurier’s words. While Canada enjoys an enviable position in the world, our current prosperity is not felt equally by all our citizens. There are improvements to be made, and we have the opportunity to discover new ways of making them. The Conservative Party has failed in this regard. For example, Prime Minister Harper’s budget was a wasted opportunity that spent money recklessly and lacked a coherent vision for the country.
Stéphane Dion is the only leader proposing a coherent vision for the country. Mr. Dion calls his liberal philosophy the three pillar approach. The first two pillars – social justice and economic prosperity – have constituted the backbone of the Liberal Party since Laurier’s time and we know that their combined pursuit has been indispensable to Canada’s success. We also know that social justice and economic prosperity have come with an environmental cost. The third pillar – environmental sustainability – is Mr. Dion’s unique contribution. The three pillars are, as Mr. Dion rightly maintains, indispensable to one another, and to Canada’s continued success.
Just as we need to see where reforms must be made at home, we must cast our gaze outward to see where they are needed around the globe. Providing a secure environment in which peace and prosperity can be pursued through the combined effort of international organizations, national governments, and local activists is an indispensable role for Canada abroad. Canada is engaged is such a mission in Afghanistan right now. It is a mission sanctioned by the United Nations and our continued presence in Afghanistan is at the request of the Afghan government. The security our military provides is indispensable for the humanitarian work being done in that country. While some of our NATO allies are shirking their responsibilities, the Liberal Party should not advocate the same for Canada.
In Mr. Dion’s three pillar liberal philosophy the Liberal Party has a coherent philosophical vision for Canada. Canada is fortunate that it can pursue such lofty visions, and it is our party’s obligation to create similar opportunities abroad by providing the peace and security in which they can be pursued.
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