Recently over here in Canader, The Conservative government released information regarding their future policies, which, much to the shock and chagrin of the Opposition, didn’t contain a bail-out to the most important, job-giving industries in Canada. While I’m usually against emulation of American policies, investing in our most important industries is a necessary step to prevent the loss of thousands of jobs. The Conservatives say that through tax breaks they can boost industries, but there’s a problem there. If you lower taxes on a company to save it the money you would have otherwise given it without the breaks, the government loses significant amounts of revenue in the long run. Let me explain! With a bailout, the company will eventually recover, increasing profits, and therefor tax revenue. The increased tax revenue would make up for the massive cost of the bail-out, and the government could eventually just sell back the share of the company it bought for the bail-out. With tax breaks, the company stays in the hands of private interest, and once the company recovers, there would be a debate about raising the taxes, which could damage the bottom-line of the company, jeopardizing jobs.
There’s the issue with the Conservative approach to propping up companies, because that’s what it is, regardless of whether or not it’s a tax break or bail-out. The Opposition is taking out the government on that basis, (sadly) not on some sadistic communist scheme of world domination, as the more right-wing of my friends would have me believe. The Conservatives also were going to remove the program to subsidize parties that receive over 5 percent of the vote. Some cynical bastards may claim that the Liberals were self-serving in opposing this policy, but they were also standing up for the Green Party, who, before the election before last, only got money from a few private donors, and who just managed to launch a national campaign with the federal money Harper was going to cut. The Conservatives nixed the party funding cuts in an effort to discredit the Coalition, assuming they’d drop the issue after the funding was restored. The Coalition carries on, however, despite the promises not to remove the funding.
There are some who claim that this Coalition is in fact an illegal coup d’etat, and that the NDP and Liberals are seizing power from a legitimate government. Forgive me, but that’s not the case. In the Constitution, it allows for those who vote down the government in a non-confidence vote to form a coalition government. Usually, conservatives like to uphold documents established centuries ago. Take for example, the Bible. However, when said document is being used against them, as it is now in allowing the Progressive Coalition to form, they are vehemently opposed to the conditions it creates and they try to steer conversation around the fact that their venerated document actually protects their opponents. The MPs who will make up the Coalition were all elected to have a voice in parliament. This Coalition will get the wishes of those who voted for NDP, Liberal, and Bloc candidates (62% of the electorate) carried out. I call that democratic. Besides, what’s more democratic and collaborative, three leaders from different parties all consulting and compromising, or one dictator of a party leader bullying acts through Parliament? The former, I believe, most reflects Canadian values. And, since the Conservatives are concerned about the maintainance of Canadian values, they shouldn’t be worried!
Excuse the lateness, but I had other stuff going on.
