Special rules for the special people

Turfed MPs reap healthy taxpayer funded pensions

Terry Pedwell

Canadian Press
Tuesday, January 24, 2006


OTTAWA -- Taxpayers needn't shed a tear for members of Parliament who were defeated in Monday's federal election or left politics before the vote: they stand to collect $74.6 million in pensions and severance.
Four of the 67 retiring MPs could each collect more than $3 million before they turn 75, estimates calculated by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation suggest.
"Defeated and retiring members will win financially thanks to a gold-plated pension plan and rich severance payments for parliamentarians,'' said federation director John Williamson.
"Shed no tears for retiring or defeated MPs. They are being well looked after by Canadian taxpayers.''

- A huge breakthrough

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - A huge breakthrough: "Yesterday's win is a huge breakthrough for the Conservative Party of Canada and for conservative-minded Canadians in general, many of whom have felt voiceless and increasingly disengaged from national affairs under dynastic Liberal rule.
The challenge now for Harper and his party -- translating the positive message of the campaign into government action -- is monumental, since they will have to forge consensus with the more socially liberal Bloc Quebecois or NDP to attain a simple majority vote on any legislation in the House of Commons.
We wish Mr. Harper all the luck he'll need to get the job done and congratulate him for giving Canadians, finally, a real alternative to corruption and entitlement. "

The Globe and Mail: Conservatives win minority; Martin to step down as leader

The Globe and Mail: Conservatives win minority; Martin to step down as leader: "'Tonight, friends, Canadians have voted for change,' Mr. Harper said, speaking to supporters in Calgary.
'And Canadians have asked our party to take the lead in delivering that change. I tell Canadians we will respect your trust and we will stick to our words.'
Mr. Harper's comments capped a night in which the Liberal's 12-year reign came to an end in a vote that handed the Conservatives a minority mandate but also held that power in check with a solid endorsement of opposition parties as well."

The Globe and Mail: Conservative fiscal plan incompetent, Martin says

The Globe and Mail: Conservative fiscal plan incompetent, Martin says: "A Conservative government would restrict annual spending growth in federal departments and agencies to rates necessary to account for Canada's population growth and inflation: about 2 to 3 per cent annually. The Tories estimate this would free up $9.7-billion over five years. Two departments would be exempted, they say: Indian Affairs and National Defence.
A Harper government would also slow planned growth in federal subsidies and other transfers, including Industry Canada aid to business and Human Resources and Skills Development grants. The Tories expect to save $12.8-billion over five years there, saying actions would not affect currently projected growth rates for transfers to people such as benefits to the elderly and employment insurance, or transfers to other levels of government for health, social programs, equalization or infrastructure."

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - A very Canadian plan

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - A very Canadian plan: "The Tory platform preserves important social programs. But it also proposes concrete solutions for some of the serious problems facing Canada, including high taxes, a weak criminal justice system and out-of-control government spending.
It's a very Canadian platform. "

The Globe and Mail: Editorial: Three reasons why it's time for a change

The Globe and Mail: Editorial: Three reasons why it's time for a change: "Change is essential in a democracy. A perpetual lease on 24 Sussex Drive fuels the sense of entitlement that blurs the line between private gain and public good. Just as bad, a perpetual lease on Stornoway discourages the discipline and moderation required of an alternative government. Without a vibrant, continuing competition for power, a democracy runs the risk of degenerating into hegemony on the governing side and unreality on the opposition side. Both parties need to believe they can win elections � and lose them."

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - Dead party walking

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - Dead party walking: "No, this is the last-ditch attempt of a dead party walking to scare Canadians into sticking with the shameless, corrupt and completely arrogant Liberals. Will it work? We doubt it. The fact that the ads have not only been roundly condemned but also widely mocked on the Internet with bloggers posting frame-for-frame parodies suggests that the Liberals have finally gone too far in trying to demonize their opponents.
When asked for his comment on the military ad, respected retired general Lewis Mackenzie yesterday said, 'It took my breath away; I just couldn't believe anybody could be that dumb.'
But they are. There are Liberals that dumb. In our cities.
We did not make this up. "

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - Tory tax plan lacking

We agree the Tories can do better and when elected will be made accountable to getting Canadian taxes competitive with the rest of the world. PR
winnipegsun.com - Editorial - Tory tax plan lacking: "It's not like there isn't the fiscal room to bring in broad-based tax cuts, either.
The federal government is projecting nearly $55 billion in surpluses over the next five years.
And we all know there are billions of dollars more in government waste that can be slashed, including the $1-billion gun registry.
Canada suffers from one of the lowest productivity rates among the world's developed countries. We need leaner government and a higher performance economy to reverse that.
Most economists agree that one of the best places to start is to reduce Canada's high tax burden.
We thought the Conservatives believed that, too. "

Before the bubble bursts

One unintended consequence, like a side-ache from dancing the Twist, is that the largesse simply enervates our body politic and delays inevitable reforms. In a relatively slow-growing economy where government spending accounts for about half the total, more cash for old models prolongs the mediocrity of Mills’s “perfect calm.”
Three themes dominate the dated dance music:
Governments can produce cheaper services. The reality of vibrant markets demolishes this, the mouldiest of the tenets. Almost no one believes that governments should run supermarkets to provide cheaper food, or that politicians and bureaucrats can outperform Wal-Mart. Only primitive government accounting systems, which fail to measure real costs, preserve the illusion. Can Manitoba Health deliver cheaper MRIs than the Maples clinic? Only when you treat equipment purchases as a free good, underpay their operators and make the public wait for needed scans. Ditto for many services now delivered by our sprawling public sector, including liquor, car insurance, social services and education.
Government price controls can outguess markets. Two examples, from many. The latest statistics on Manitoba’s rent-control tragedy show higher rents in Winnipeg than in Regina or Saskatoon—both decontrolled in 1992—and a lower quality and quantity of apartments. The collateral damage: little or no residential construction in Winnipeg’s downtown, a huge missed opportunity. For more stupidity, consider the Doer government’s shenanigans with energy pricing, where clean, renewable hydro-electricity subsidizes the consumption of non-renewable natural gas. Massive equalization payments allow us to charge below-market rates for electricity and cross-subsidize energy consumption. The result: one of the world’s most energy-inefficient economies.
Governments can plan for the future. Politicians tend to look backwards, protecting old methods and catering to favoured interests. Consider, for instance, the tiresome debate about transit. More people now “telecommute” by working from their homes than ride transit. Yet the establishment still seeks to pump hundreds of millions of dollars into a system that moves people downtown to fewer and fewer jobs. Ten years ago, few had heard of the Internet, which has revolutionized work, play and shopping. Yet we use yesterday’s assumptions to project ridership decades from now and waste money on outmoded forms.
A “perfect storm” is about to sweep away the “perfect calm” and obliterate such myths. Even the dimmest of politicians are slowly understanding that unreformed healthcare is unsustainable. The main paymasters, Alberta and Ontario, are losing patience with a dysfunctional equalization system. The latter, Canada’s manufacturing heartland, is caught between the pincer of huge competitive pressures from China and rising energy costs. The Institute for Competitiveness and Prosperity, a think–tank funded by the Ontario government, recently criticized equalization’s focus on increased consumption in low-productivity provinces. To boost Canada’s investment and economic performance, it proposes tax cuts instead of “no-strings-attached” subsidies to have-not provinces

FCPP Publications :: The Passing of the Old Guard

FCPP Publications :: The Passing of the Old Guard: "One unintended consequence, like a side-ache from dancing the Twist, is that the largesse simply enervates our body politic and delays inevitable reforms. In a relatively slow-growing economy where government spending accounts for about half the total, more cash for old models prolongs the mediocrity of Mills�s �perfect calm.�
Three themes dominate the dated dance music:
Governments can produce cheaper services. The reality of vibrant markets demolishes this, the mouldiest of the tenets. Almost no one believes that governments should run supermarkets to provide cheaper food, or that politicians and bureaucrats can outperform Wal-Mart. Only primitive government accounting systems, which fail to measure real costs, preserve the illusion. Can Manitoba Health deliver cheaper MRIs than the Maples clinic? Only when you treat equipment purchases as a free good, underpay their operators and make the public wait for needed scans. Ditto for many services now delivered by our sprawling public sector, including liquor, car insurance, social services and education.
Government price controls can outguess markets. Two examples, from many. The latest statistics on Manitoba�s rent-control tragedy show higher rents in Winnipeg than in Regina or Saskatoon�both decontrolled in 1992�and a lower quality and quantity of apartments. The collateral damage: little or no residential construction in Winnipeg�s downtown, a huge missed opportunity. For more stupidity, consider the Doer government�s shenanigans with energy pricing, where clean, renewable hydro-electricity subsidizes the consumption of non-renewable natural gas. Massive equalization payments allow us to charge below-market rates for electricity and cross-subsidize energy consumption. The result: one of the world�s most energy-ineffici"

FCPP Publications :: Yes - We Will Feel Better if We are Taxed More. It's True!

FCPP Publications :: Yes - We Will Feel Better if We are Taxed More. It's True!: "On the second point, my own research shows high taxes make some people spend too much time at work - trying to get back what the state has taken away from their spouses. But these new, high-tax advocates believe the way to stop me from feeling bad about the rich is to tax the high earners more, so bringing everyone back to a similar income. This, they believe, would reduce envy. Hence we�d all be happier. "

It is true that some people just love to be taxed - I am not one of them -chuckle. PR

Liberals losing ground

Liberals losing ground: "It's really a pre-emptive action against what we expect the Liberals will do in the second half of the campaign and that is to launch a barrage of negative advertising,' said Geoff Norquay, Mr. Harper's former director of communications and one-time senior advisor to former prime minister Brian Mulroney.
'What could be more timely with the income trust scandal just getting nicely under way now? I mean, there is yet another RCMP investigation of this government going on right now,' Mr. Norquay said"

City 'exaggerated' need to keep records secret

City 'exaggerated' need to keep records secret: "Many of the city's statements are generalizations which it applies to the information in question without distinguishing between those parts of the information which, if disclosed, could reasonably be expected to result in harms and those parts that are innocuous and/or already available or well-known to the public,' he wrote."

Whistleblower joins Tory ticket

Whistleblower joins Tory ticket: "OTTAWA -- Former Groupaction vice president Jean Lambert, one of the original whistleblowers in the sponsorship scandal, will be running for the Conservatives in a bid to become member of parliament for the Eastern Townships riding of Shefford.
Lambert, 49, is the second sponsorship scandal whistleblower to become a candidate for the Tories. Allan Cutler, the civil servant who blew the whistle on questionable practices within the civil service concerning the sponsorship program, is also running for the Conservatives in the riding of Ottawa South.
Lambert said Friday he was proud of the role that he played in bringing the sponsorship scandal to light."

Voter cyiisim -How do you believe them?

Osprey Media Group Inc. - Brantford Expositor: "While he may vote Conservative, Walton doesn't see much difference in how different parties would distribute federal resources. He thinks voters are weary of the constant stream of promises from political leaders.

I think people are getting a little tired of their making a new promise every day.'"

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - Harper by default

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - Harper by default: "It was not an inspired performance -- not by any of the four -- and there was certainly no knockout blow delivered.
But, since we can't believe essentially anything Martin promises based on his party's literally scandalous track record; since we can't take Layton's bombastic socialism with much more than a grain of salt; and since Duceppe has merely bystander status outside Quebec -- we'd give the first English debate to Harper, purely on points. "

winnipegsun.com - Manitoba - What's the problem?

winnipegsun.com - Manitoba - What's the problem?: "'When did we lose our freedom in this country?' said Corlett, who says he just wants to get better and return to work. 'Why do they have to control us?'
Corlett needs an MRI so his doctor can make a diagnosis and decide whether he needs surgery or not.
In the meantime, he can't even lift his arm, much less work on airplanes.
'I can't work because they don't have work for a one-armed person,' said Corlett.
Like many patients who will use The Maples clinic, Corlett didn't have to pay out-of-pocket for his MRI. Instead, his insurance company did. Like many Manitobans, Corlett has private disability insurance and it's in his insurance company's best interest to get him an MRI as quickly as possible so he can be treated and return to work.
In fact, the insurance company was planning to fly him to Calgary for an MRI until The Maples announced it would be providing MRIs.
'Why do I have to go to Calgary when we've got one in Winnipeg?' said Corlett.
Precisely.
How can government possibly have a problem with this? Government sends Workers Compensation Board patients to clinics for preferential treatment.
Why can't a private insurance company send one of its clients to a clinic, too?
The Supreme Court of Canada ruled in a recent Quebec case that government cannot prevent people from buying private insurance and using it to obtain medical services if government is not providing that service in a timely fashion.
Clearly, the Manitoba government is not providing elective MRIs in a timely fashion.
So I'd say The Maples clinic has the blessing of Canada's top court.
Besides, if people like Corlett aren't getting their MRIs in Manitoba, they'll go out-of-province for them and they'll take their "

winnipegsun.com - Election News - Voters don't trust politicians: poll

winnipegsun.com - Election News - Voters don't trust politicians: poll: "OTTAWA -- A whopping 76% of Canadian voters believe politicians are blowing smoke and making lofty election promises they don't intend to keep, according to a Leger Marketing/Sun Media poll.
The poll of 2,013 Canadians conducted from December 9-13 says 17% of respondents believe politicians plan to implement the pledges they make.
The most cynical voters are in Quebec and Ontario, where 78% of respondents said they don't trust the leaders to keep their promises. "

It appears that we Canadians are not stupid ,complacent believers in our political leaders -just cynical. That is not surprising based on our "Political non performance and lack of delivery. PR

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - Green deserves day

winnipegsun.com - Editorial - Green deserves day: "It's a mockery of democracy to include the Bloc, which has no relevance to most Canadians, and exclude the Greens, a national party that has piqued the interest of younger voters who already feel alienated by our current political process."

Good point-Just how democratic are we really ? Not allowing a registered national party to speak , one with 6% of the national vote -is neither democratic or nor wise. They have a right to be heard not censored by mediia default. PR

1885 tax becomes an issue in 2006

1885 tax becomes an issue in 2006: "The Tories, Mr. Harper noted in a statement, have 'long recognized the terrible historical wrong of the Chinese head tax. It is time for Parliament and the Government of Canada to recognize this grave injustice and to apologize for it.'"