cannuck

There are a few things about gold that are unique. First of all, it is NOT dependent upon some currency for its real value. Yes, you can convert it into many currencies at various market rates, but when push comes to shove, a gram of gold is a gram of gold. As has been pointed out - it is a valuable, tangible and UNIVERSALLY accepted repository of wealth. People are taught that wars are fought with guns and bullets. Reality is, major conflicts depend on gold - so no self respecting banker in Geneva know for certain who is going to win, so they expect payment in gold. Why do you think the Japanese invaded China and the US flooded it at about the same time with counterfeit USD and bonds? The big one: is gold can not be counterfeit - or more to the point it is easy to verify. Once again, in time of war (including the cold war) one of the top strategic weapons is to print endless amounts of your opponents currency. You could also do just that with crypto currency. Dougie: while I can agree that Smoot-Hawley was one of the worst pieces of legislation the US ever passed, it is pretty much understood that the real damage was done because banks would not lend.

The only effective anti-drug programme I have yet to see is in KSA. When I get off of the plane in Riyadh and the first sign I see is "The penalty for dealing drugs is death" I feel comfortable being among some of the few people who actually understand the situation and deal with it effectively. If over there on the left row of benches you think we can just hire a bunch more bureaucrats to tell kids and young adults to sing Kumbiah and all of their problems will just go away and they will stop using their drugs...while you continue to swill down your drug sold at government stores all over the place. Let's face it: we live in a drug society. We think sick care is done by taking a pill. The think caffeine is just great. We think alcohol is not really a drug. etc. You CAN fix stupid or at least the Saudis can.

Gee. exactly like our dear PM. Except to that you have to add no brain.

accurate assessment It's not just that China is aggressive, they simply don't play by ANY set of rules. What Westerners don't understand about Chinese culture is that it is the results that matter. You simply ignore what had to be done to get them.

What else would you call Chinese export, investment and business practices? In countries all over Asia Pacific and Africa, they came in, raided the resources, killed off competitors with merciless tactics, sold their junk into those markets, moved on to screw over the next place. There are several countries that just don't let China in any more. China does not need to use their military to take over a country, they use their money and business tactics.

The US marketplace at 10x ours is the logical one to use to fight Chinese aggression. China is not just aggressive in business and trade, it is predatory. While Yurp is also a large market, can you imagine the Euroweenies standing up to anyone? It would be as ridiculous as expecting the moron in Ottawa to rise above his Mr. Dressup personna.

Zeit: you pretty much sum up my take on this matter - and probably more accurately and concisely than I would have written. In the end, goal of 2030 is to reduce population. That is one thing that lies at the bottom of almost ALL of our problems in sustainability. What I DON"T like, is the collectivist, Marxist globalist undertones of the UN. What is needed is some kind of clear agenda that the world as a whole can buy, not some socialist pipedream that can be rammed down our throats.

I didn't get to see it all, but what I did see held few surprises. Trudeau continued to show himself as an arrogant idiot, Scheer still seems to lack any testes or life experience - Singh actually carried himself well for the slimey ambulance chaser that he is - landing that fabulous "Mr. Delany and Mr. Deny" punch, Bernier was predictably the only mature, intelligent and reasonable person there, May did not surprise by breaking out of here wingnut niche and Blanchet made it crystal clear that the Bloc is in no way tolerating sovereignty. It was hillarious to see the bloody lot of them pader to PQ by tiptoing around SNC and 21.

just some food for thought. agenda 21:

You haven't been listening to the left, have you? Simply tax the rich...who will gladly just stay here, keep their money here and endlessly reward failure to the very bottom of their bank accounts.

and you would need an intelligent and informed public to get one...not gonna happen.

Nah...they'd be blaming Harper and Trump.

I grew up in a military family, raised on bases. I had friends who's Fathers served as Canadian soldiers IN Vietnam. That was on an artillery base, but there were infantry units there as well. I don't know the numbers nor their actual duties, but you can rest assured a teenage kid who's old man wore our uniform in theater at the height of US involvement doesn't make mistakes about such things. Being strongly anti-Vietnam myself, hearing such a shocking thing from an extremely credible and reliable source is not the kind of thing I will ever forget. It was something that was definitely NOT supposed to be known or discussed. Another thing I remember very well was my Father's multiple exchanges with US forces of new weapons systems, tactics, strategies, etc. during lengthy visits and assignments in USA. The Canadian Army worked VERY closely with the US in the '50s and '60s.

It bothers me that Dimples can't seem to grow a pair and wants to be just like Little Tur......TRUdeau. Bothers me more that the so-called "Conservative" party lets it happen,.

Yeah, sadly Dimples is a Conservative, no a conservative. The notion that you can only elect a red tory is a red herring IMHO. People are looking for some strong leadership and clear difference, again, once more through my eyes. I knew the mushy middle was in deep doo doo when they were too inept to deal with Max and keep him on board. Of course, the REAL problem is that the politicos no longer set the agenda, the media does. With a billion plus in bribe money, the Libs are in far better position to cash in, but not since Erik Nielsen has there been a hope of anyone calling out the incredible waste and debt from our complete ignorance of the financial affairs of this "nation" (yes, tipping my hat to Dougie on that one).

Greens and NDP have no expectation of actually winning a majority, so what they say is pretty much irrelevant. As power brokers in a minority, might be a different story, but I still doubt their election platform will be adopted as policy, never mind legislation - even by a minority co-alition.

Muslims, Jews, Sikhs, etc. who migrate to Canada need to assimilate. The rest are welcome to blow each other to bits - at HOME.

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner. Well, almost. The pressure on the planet due to our economy is a direct result of people wasting all of their time and money trying to figure out how to do the same things in a slightly different way - while NEVER addressing the real problem. I we don't control population pretty soon, it will control (as in destroy) us.

Uh....for the last four years, Canada HAS been the laughing stock of the world.

You should see (I hope both see and hear) just what ELSE the cons have on the little tur....TRUdeau.

Now that an oxymoron (with the emphasis on MORON) for sure.

Smurfs can be sensitive too. Seriously, though: this is just one more of an incredible list of indiscretions that a privileged moron has done who is in absolutely no way mature, intelligent or honest enough to run for mayor of Bumfck nowhere, never mind PM of Canada.

And, I think THAT is also obvious - to anyone with any sense of reason at all.

I think that is obvious

Dougie, not at all the case here. One of Manitoba's main sources of revenue is Manitoba Hydro, and this election is largely about what Pallister has already started to do...downsizing the massive bureaucratic bloat at Hydro (as well as MPIC and others). I agree there are no Conservatives running for or in office in Canada, but Canadians are far too ignorant and complacent to be able to understand genuine conservatism. Also, dogmatic Conservatives are too ideologically limited to understand what social services ARE needed in a modern society. Provinces such as MB and SK were the birthplace of Marxist socialism on this continent and are not going to swing full right overnight - they rightfully need to see incrementally what rewards there can be for constraint, freedom of choice, property rights, genuine equality, competitive marketplaces, etc. This is not limited to Canada. Europe and the USA have crashed their economies by allowing a lot of things (bankng/finance, legal liability lottery, big pharma, etc.) be given the privilege to exploit consumers and taxpayers, actually entire economies - and the opportunity to be corrected in 2008/9 failed because they had sufficient control over governments to be rewarded for their treachery, instead of being flushed down the toilet and subjected to protective legislation as happened after 1929.