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I agree that the provinces are just wining. However some of them are struggling and the provinces could use some help. I actually which they would put more of that money on the provincial debts. BTW I am from Nova Scotia. Despite how much people complain about waiting lists, any time I went to the hospital I never had to wait that long. The provinces may be winners but less the feds want to contribute to health care the less say they should have in how the provinces spend there dollars.
Manitoba isn't the richest province either; not the poorest but not the richest. It may sound strange arguing against federal funding to support provinces, but I'ld rather see federal taxes reduced. The city government is complaining and mayor Glenn Murray held townhall meetings in an attempt to restructure city taxes, including a substantial increase. I argued strongly against the new taxes. We have the federal GST, we don't need a 1% city sales tax as well. And Glenn wanted to eliminate the business premises tax but keep the home-based business tax. Why give small business with an established store front or office a break, but not home-based business? Shouldn't government provide the most support for the smallest and earliest business? But we had a plan to get rid of the GST: pay down the debt to reduce interest until the surplus increased from $17 billion to $28 billion, the net revenue for the GST. Interest on the debt is well over net revenue for the GST so it would work. But the surplus has been reduced to $3 billion and the liberals campaigned on a tax-and-spend platform. What happened to our great finance minister, Paul Martin? During the election he actually said he has no intention of abolishing the GST. Now that he's Prime Minister has he lost it?
By the way, federal health care funding has been more than restored. It's now higher than ever in Canadian history; a fact the provinces don't want you to know. Check out the federal finance department's web page http://www.fin.gc.ca]http://www.fin.gc.ca
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That aside, his policies stink. There's been little noticeable job recovery despite the economy seeming to recuperate a bit. There are more Americans without health insurance now than ever before. We've got over 800 dead soldiers, more wounded, and *the* pretext for the Iraqi war wasn't simply to oust Saddam & Sons.
From my view it seems that questioning authority is alive and well. I applaud Americans, but not foreigners, criticizing our leadership as long as they keep it peaceful and intelligent.
Believe me I would love nothing more than to have someone better than Bush to vote for but John Kerry is not getting my vote. The President has made some mistakes that I hold him responsible for:
1) No WMD in Iraq-I think the CIA told him what they thought he wanted to know but he's still the one responsible.
2) Not allowing the US appointed administrator of Iraq to buy parts from France and Germany to fix the electrical power system-some needed parts were small, simple things that would have kept the power on for 24 hours.
3) Not re-hiring the Iraqi army soldiers-some of them became insurgents
4) Not turning over Iraq to their own elected government sooner.
5) Activating the Arkansas National Guard unit and sending them to Iraq-those guys should have never been sent over there
6) Increasing the national debt
7) No futuristic vision for NASA
8) He shouldn't have publicly accused North Korea, Iran, and Iraq of being threats even though they were.
9) His cowboy image has hurt the USA's image around the world and I wish he would stand up straight when talking at a podium rather than leaning on it with one arm.
But he has also showed leadership. He stood with the firefighters at the rubble of the world trade center and said those who knocked down these buildings will hear all of us soon and before long the Taliban was on the run.
The economy is a tricky thing. Believe it or not the government is doing the right things, Alan Greenspan knows what he is doing. The economy is a roller coaster, it naturally cycles up amidst speculation that everything is great and in doing so it always goes too far. Suddenly people realize that it's doing better than it really should, it outpaces itself, and they begin to save their money and pull it out of stocks amid fear of the coming recession. Not long after that a recession comes and the economy cycles down but it always goes too far down. The economy has to recover because the population continues to grow, more people mean more baby clothes, more food, bicycles, cars, weddings, and more houses.
I just don't know John Kerry and what I've seen tells me that he is not someone who stands up and says what he believes. He stands up and says what he thinks you want to hear. He doesn't talk about specific details of his plans, if he has any. His campaign is completely about him being a different choice than Bush but where is he going to lead the country? He says he is going to be better for the USA but I want to know exactly how it's going to be better. How is he going to provide more financial aid for those attending college? What are his plans for the military? What changes is he going to make in our foreign policy? There are too many unknowns. At least with Bush, I know what I'm getting.
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You intend to vote for Bush because "I know what I'm getting"? After listing all those "mistakes" (1 to 9) . . . you want still more of that? How much worse could he be and not risk impeachment?
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So, we're still talking about American politics. I could add that I was working for a Canadian company from April 2000 through September 2001, but most of that company's customers were American companies. The economy in the U.S. went into recession soon after George W. took office, specifically my employer didn't get any new customers in February 2000 or later. The U.S. economy had declined due to government policies, not the attack of 9/11. After 9/11 my employer decided the U.S. economy wouldn't recover so laid off half the staff, I lost my job on September 14, 2001, but again I had very little to do at work since the previous February. Cindy commented on this board that the Canadian economy was doing fine and had a federal budgetary surplus while the U.S. economy was declining, despite the fact Canada has such close ties with the U.S. In fact, each province does more trade with the U.S. than other provinces. The previous reported Canadian federal surplus was $17.1 billion, in 2001 the surplus was slipping but it was still a significant surplus. Then George W. instituted duties on softwood lumber, dairy, grain, berries from Quebec and declared Saskatoon berries (June berries) to be not fit for human consumption. This is an obvious attempt to either improve the U.S. economy at Canadian expense, or drag Canada down with it so our sound management doesn't make George W. look bad.
If it sounds like I'm against George W. that's because I am. I was living in Miami, Florida, during the last U.S. presidential election, so I think I'm qualified to have an opinion. However, I don't know John Kerry; I'm not in the U.S. this time. Is he any better on trade issues? Will he make peace with the world or start a war with Iran, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and/or North Korea and drag Canada in with him?
I think I'll continue to harp for fair trade and peace, and stick to Canadian politics for detailed involvement.
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The economy in the U.S. went into recession soon after George W. took office, specifically my employer didn't get any new customers in February 2000 or later. The U.S. economy had declined due government policies, not the attack of 9/11.
Correct me if I'm reading too much into you here, but are you suggesting that GW brought down the US economy in the span of a month? :hm:
Never mind the fact that it was starting to lag in '99.
But again, more American politics in the "Canadian politics" thread. Yet they're so entertwined. The US is Canada's biggest trade partner, and vice versa. We have a huge and fairly open border, people cross over to go to restaurants, bars and casinos, it isn't a big deal. Living along that border (I can see Canada from my driveway) really highlights the symbiotic relationship between the two countries. Americans getting cheap Canadian prescription drugs. Canadians coming over to see specialist doctors. American tourist dollars getting a boost from a favorable exchange rate. The policies of one country affect the other, though with the US certainly being the 'dominant' partner. We're so closely linked that we aren't really "foreign" in any meaningful sense. We use miles and feet, how quaint. They have funny colored money and silly tokens with the Queen on them. Haha. At least to many along the border, Canadian politics is viewed more like the politics of a neighboring state than a foreign country. Half the local radio stations cover it, people this side of the border just tune it out for the most part because it's not their thing, it seems no more significant than who's running for Governor of Ohio.
I guess my point is that many Americans, specifically those with regular contact with Canadians, don't see it as a foreign country but more as a big weird state. Maybe some break it down by Province. The interest in American politics in Canadian media only reinforces this perception. Hearing a tv pundit blast George Bush's policies in a Beer Store instead of a 7-11 doesn't exactly bolster the image of Canadian otherness. Eh.
Build a man a fire and he's warm for a day. Set a man on fire and he's warm for the rest of his life.
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