blackbird

One concern about providing free heroine to addicts is the question about how long will this be done and how much will it cost? Will it $50, $100 or $200 a day and how much a year? Society could end up supporting thousands of addicts at a cost hundreds of millions of dollars (or billions?) for their lifetime. This could break the public health care system if it was excessive. There are many pressures on the health care system for various kinds of treatments.

What provincial governments do is add increases for permits for all kinds of things in order to hide the taxes. Also, the provincial government has done things that have driven up the cost of electricity to one of the highest in north America. This is not called a tax either but is still the result of provincial government actions. They may also add carbon taxes, increasing the cost of gasoline and other things. If auto insurance is run by the province, they may also increase the cost of auto insurance. This is also not called a tax but ends up as an additional increasing cost. They also charge high monthly charges for people in old folks or care homes than Manitoba for example. They want to seem like they are charging the least amount of actual income taxes, but they can increase the cost of other services which amounts to a form of taxation. The idea is to fool the voter into thinking they are paying less taxes by disguising the taxes in costs for other services. If voters are too dumb to realize that on election day, what can one say? They get what they vote for. Politics is such a dishonest business.

It wouldn't be the first time the Canadian government has acted as anti-Semites. They turned back a ship of Jewish refugees around 1939 that resulted in hundreds more Jews being exterminated in the death camps. The so-called two-state solution or Palestinian cause is a non-solution. These people are at this moment on their massive protests in the west bank. They will never be satisfied and hate Jews. Thinking that Palestinians will be placated and accept Israel is a very naïve way of thinking.

Must have accidently hit some key. Oh I see the button on the bottom right I must have hit (insert other media).

I have re-thought this one and am willing to give it a try. Someone said the drugs are not that expensive, which is good news. Only concern is that this might discourage some from quitting altogether. I hope they can find a way to use this system to also get people into treatment to quit completely. That's the best solution but might not work for everyone. It seems like society is plagued by one big problem after another. Insert other media.url

I have thought on this one and will have to concede, this may be worth a try. The government will have to keep an eye on the cost and if it is going to have serious impact on the costs of the medical system, they may have to re-consider how it is run. But I'm all for saving lives and would certainly give it a try. Good to hear the drugs are not that expensive. Maybe it will work.

I see there are a couple die-hard anti-Semites on this thread with the usual propaganda. Waste of time.

Now the federal government is approving giving prescription drugs to addicts. How's that going to work or get people off drugs? How much will it eventually cost. This is will be another chunk of money taken out of the medical system which could be used to treat people with serious illnesses. There is only so much money available.

Then why is the UN sending a "peacekeeping" force? I agree with you and the war on terrorism. What we are seeing is a UN which thinks they can just go and occupy a place which is at war with terrorists and terrorists are expected to follow the UN rules and just quit fighting. The UN is sending forces there which are sitting ducks. Is the UN going to be on the offensive against the terrorist groups or just waiting to be attacked? Why is it called a "peacekeeping force" and do they have a mandate to attack the terrorists? We have seen so-called UN peacekeeping efforts in other countries in the world where they did not go after the aggressors.

The Canadian government just announced they are going to send a limited peacekeeping contingent to Mali in West Africa but no ground troops. The UN said this is a very dangerous place and about 162 UN peacekeeping troops have already been killed there. It is a place harbouring Islamist militants, ISIS, and al Qaeda fighters. I believe this is a bad idea. The reason is because there are an unlimited number of Islamist militants in various countries who are quite willing to go to wherever they can get into a jihad. What is the point of sacrificing Canadian forces and money in a place like that?

I don't claim to be an expert on the reasons why. You can read some of it on this link if you wish. https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10007167 Quote Antisemitism in History: Nazi Antisemitism Related Articles Related Links Comments How to cite this article Within the context of the economic depression of the 1930s and using not only racist but also older social, economic, and religious imagery, the Nazi party gained popularity and, after seizing power, legitimacy, in part by presenting "Jews" as the source for a variety of political, social, economic, and ethical problems facing the German people. Inspired by Adolf Hitler's theories of racial struggle and the "intent" of the Jews to survive and expand at the expense of Germans, the Nazis, as a governing party from 1933-1938, ordered anti-Jewish boycotts, staged book burnings, and enacted anti-Jewish legislation. In 1935, the Nuremberg Laws defined Jews by race and mandated the total separation of "Aryans" and "non-Aryans." On November 9, 1938, the Nazis destroyed synagogues and the shop windows of Jewish-owned stores throughout Germany and Austria (Kristallnacht). These measures aimed at both legal and social segregation of Jews from Germans and Austrians. Kristallnacht, the initiation of World War II in 1939, and the invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941 marked the transition to the era of destruction, in which genocide would become the key focus of Nazi antisemitism. To justify the murder of the Jews both to the perpetrators and to bystanders in Germany and Europe, the Nazis used not only racist arguments but also arguments derived from older negative stereotypes, including Jews as communist subversives, as war profiteers and hoarders, and as a danger to internal security because of their inherent disloyalty and opposition to Germany. Unquote

Yes, I agree with what you're saying. The final solution was the plan or objective to get rid of all Jews in Europe starting with Germany, Austria and Poland. They ran into a big problem when trying to decide who was a Jew. These people were German Jews. The problem was who would be identified as a Jew? Someone with 1/16 Jewish blood, 1/8, 1/4/ 1/2 etc. They finally decided that someone who had three grandparents who were Jews would be considered as a Jew. But I'm not sure what they did if some of the grandparents were only 1/8 or 1/4 Jewish. I heard there are a huge number of people being murdered in South Africa continually. Yes I saw the CBC news reports about the water shortage in Capetown. Looks like a fairly nice city except for the poor areas. It doesn't seem the government is doing much to prepare for the water shortage. I don't understand why the central government doesn't build some large water de-salination plants along the ocean. They are located right on the ocean. It would probably cost a fair amount of money but they should do it anyway. It's looks like people are being left to figure out hhow to solve the water shortage problems themselves, which doesn't make any sense. Water treatment plans are very expensive in Canada. Typically it can cost a couple million dollars to build for a small native community in Canada plus the cost of employing someone to be trained and maintain the plant. Even a small plant is expensive. I know the CBC is biased and only broadcasts certain things and avoids other things.

Notley probably won't get re-elected. Notley and the NDP are a mixture of good and bad. The pipeline is necessary to ship Alberta's oil to international markets. Trudeau already blocked the Energy East project and killed the Northern Gateway pipeline project. The problem with the Alberta NDP it is an environmental party and put carbon taxes and carbon pricing and lots of regulations on Albertans. So it is trying to compensate for that by trying to get the KM pipeline built. Not sure where that is going. I support pipelines and believe they are not that big a risk. There are thousands of kilometers of pipelines in north America with very little problem. The BC NDP is anti industry and bad for our economy in BC.

Just reading the book "The White and the Gold" by Thomas B. Costain. It is the history of the establishment of the French regime in Canada mainly in the 1600s. It is quite a story of the great founders, settlers, governors, explorers and fur traders who first settled in New France (Quebec). I will say right off the top their struggles and wars with the Iroquois were ongoing and brutal at times. The Iroquois were a very large warrior tribe, sometimes called the Five Nations because they fought also with the other tribes and absorbed them into the Iroquois. You were either on their side or you had to be eliminated. There was no middle ground. They wiped out the Huron so they no longer existed as an Indian nation. The Iroquois tried to destroy the French but were not successful in that endeavour. The French built fortresses in a number of places such as Quebec (city), Montreal, and other places. Other neighbouring tribes either joined the Iroquois and became warriors or they were wiped out. The Jesuit missionaries went out to various other tribes to convert them to Roman Catholicism and did manage to convert quite a number. Many of them were killed by natives. Some were tied to the stake and tortured many hours before they finally died. This was the fate of many natives and Frenchmen that the Iroquois captured. At times the brutality was returned by the French to the Iroquois and wars were fought. There were a number of great heroes and explorers among the French who came to New France. King Louis XIV was heavily involved with his minister in France to fund and oversee the settlement of New France. They sent out a number of soldiers to help defend the settlements from the Iroquois as well as sending out the King's girls in groups of 50 or 100 at a time to provide wives for the settlers. There were a lot of rules and regulations on how everything was to be done. It was a grueling existence for many.

One reason why the Jews focused on the Nazis is because Nazi Germany under Hitler and his inside circle of extreme anti-Semites put all their energy and hatred into destroying the Jews and their final solution. They controlled the media through the Minister of Propaganda and put a lot of effort into brainwashing the masses and drumming up hatred against the Jews. I read a good part of the book "God's First Love" by Friedrich Heer, a German or Austrian. The history of Christians and Jews over 2000 years. When I say Christian I mean Catholics as they were the main group during most of the 2000 years. It paints a clear picture of the followers of Romanism fostering anti-Semitism for most of the 2000 years. There is a series of documentaries on Netflix right now called "Hitler's Inside Circle". That shows a lot of what happened. They clearly were obsessed with the Jews.

I don't claim to have all the answers, but have looked into many things for years. Most of the electorate appear to be just as ignorant of the issues and quite willing to vote on emotion, impulse, good looks, and talking points. That's the biggest problem with democracy. There is no requirement for any kind of knowledge. People are told to get out and vote, do their duty as if this is all that matters. Ignorance doesn't matter. At least it's better than China's or Russia's one-man dictatorship, which they are stuck with permanently.

I saw that on CNN also. The Roman church was departed from Christianity and not a true church at that point. Those crusaders going into the Rhineland and killing the Jews were not Christians. They couldn't have been because that is not what the Bible or Jesus told Christians to do. The Bible condemns killing people. The Roman church has a history of persecuting genuine Bible believers. They had a 500 year Inquisition when they tortured and killed anyone who disagreed or questioned anything that the Roman church said or taught. True Christians have to follow the Bible and the teachings to be believed as Christians. The Roman church has demonstrated down through the centuries they are not a true church. It would be pointless to debate the wars over the holy land and Israel and Jerusalem if you do not believe and have some knowledge of the Bible. Wars were often fought by people who were not Christians. People do have a right to defend themselves and their property. King James did not have the Bible translated to favour himself. The King James Bible is based on reliable copies of the original Greek and Hebrew manuscripts. The Holy Bible or Holy Scripture as it is called is God's revelation for mankind. All these debates about who did this or that in Africa and other places is a endless debate which will solve nothing. Many of the people who fought in those places were probably not Christians. The world's history is a history of wars. The only thing that matters is what God taught in the Bible, in English the King James Bible of 1611, or also called the Authorized Version. Communism is a diabolical ideology which is contrary to the Bible. Capitalism is not an ideology in the same sense because it is free enterprise which recognizes the right to own private property. It is not confiscating property to redistribute it as Marxism does. The Bible teaches that man has a fallen sinful, corrupt nature and needs to be born again in order to be saved or get into heaven. Everlasting life only comes by accepting Jesus Christ as one's savior and lord. Read the gospel of John. The most important thing in life is where we are heading for eternity, would you agree? Jesus said I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man comes to the father but by me. The problems of the world result from the wicked human heart. This is what the Bible teaches. Nothing can be solved by brute force or illegal means. God calls people to become his sons and daughters and follow Jesus. This is for eternity and much better than being embroiled in the hopeless struggles in this corrupt world. God is going to be sending his Son back to earth and he will establish his kingdom on earth which will be peaceful. To be a part of that one must become born again or a child of God first. Cheers.

The law does allow appeal if there are grounds for it. But just disagreeing with the jury's decision is not grounds. Any ground for appeal has to be based on an error in the process of how the trial was conducted or a technical matter, not the decision itself.

Canada has an abundance of certain natural resources which we sell on the world market. Those resources actually belong to Canada. If another country wishes to buy them and put a tariff on them, that's fine. The tariff should be added to the price and if the foreign buyers still want to buy it, fine. It's all fine. The consumers in the buying country end up paying for the added tariffs. It creates an artificial high price in order to encourage or force the consumers in the U.S. to buy U.S. natural resources or products. There is no net benefit because the U.S. consumer is the one subsidizing some local industries, but negatively effecting other U.S. industries. It's a kind of consumer paid for make work project.

No, I don't think Christians waving bibles were the ones who committed crimes. That is not what missionaries or ministers do. They are not soldiers or military men. There have been many other people who went to other countries for their own reasons. I am just reading a history book now of the first European (French) settlers who came to Canada in the 1600s. Some of the Indian tribes were very hostile (Iroquois) and tried to destroy them. People who tried to settle in various countries often faced hostile natives and people who did not want the settlers. This is how countries and continents were settled. It doesn't mean people should not have settled there. Everyone had to come from somewhere else at some point in time. Everyone descended from Adam and Eve according to the Bible. (Genesis) The original manuscripts of the Holy Scriptures were written by men who were inspired by God to write what they wrote. This was preserved down through the ages and translated into the English language King James Version in 1611. The message of the Bible has nothing to do with exploiting natural resources or conquering people or illegal acts. The missionaries brought the gospel to people in many countries and continents who had not heard about it. There are Christians in some of the most undeveloped countries in the world in all continents. Taking land or nationalizing banks and industries sounds more like a Communist revolution which is a very bad thing. 100 million people were killed by the Communist revolutions in the 20th century. It was a failure. The bible says the human heart is wicked. Revolutions do not change the heart. The people involved will be still corrupt and apt to do evil things. God forbids taking property away by people that do not own it. It would be a form of stealing. Not to mention violence being criminal or crimes against humanity. Many countries in Africa fought civil wars and killed each other by huge numbers. Remember Rwanda. That was not very long ago. All this is barbaric and does not solve anything. Christians do not believe in revolutions or taking things by force that do not belong to them. Only the Bible has the answers for life and eternity. If one wishes to be part of God's family, he needs to be born again. That is how one becomes a child of God and receives eternal or everlasting life. The Bible is central to that. The New Testament and the gospel of John is a good place for a person to start if one wishes to find out how to receive eternal life. "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him." John 3:36

Yes because the forests are crown land. I think the timber companies get permits to cut on certain crown land and then pay the government a stumpage fee which is so much per cubic meter. All the land in the U.S. is privately owned which makes it difficult to compare the two operations. But it is a fact that some countries have an abundance of lower cost natural resources that other countries don't. Other countries might have other types of resources. Not all countries have the same natural resources. Each country can sell their natural resources for whatever they can get and what the world market will sustain. Nobody has to give them away for below their value.

Right! I see on the bottom of the page "Make America Great" hats are advertised. I wonder if I bought one if I would be safe wearing it in Canada or would it be hazardous.

I think you pick the worst case scenarios in history. But that is the history of the world. Bad things happened, but they also happened in Europe, and throughout the world. Mankind has been brutal. But the answer is not violence or discrimination. I believe Jesus is the answer and the King James Bible. Answering unfairness or injustice with revolution or violence is a big mistake. It will never end. Society will just be corrupt and crime will continue on. Those that live by the sword will die by the sword is a saying. Jesus taught a different way in the King James Bible. He taught to love thy neighbour as thyself. Skin colour should not be a factor. Man needs to be born again by the Spirit of God. Salvation by faith in Jesus Christ through grace. Ephesians 2:8 John 3:16

No use worrying about it. There will always be something going on that one could "worry" about. Doesn't help. Just carry on with life and whatever happens with the trade deals will happen.

I new a number of dairy farmers in northwest BC. They have a quota system where you have to buy a quota to get into the business. Quotas are expensive. Land is expensive. Equipment is expensive. Buildings are expensive. People have to make a living wage. I think the present marketing system protects farmers from being gouged. They get a predictable price for the milk. They don't look overly rich. Just normal incomes that they need to support their families. I would oppose any change which would do great harm to the system and drive some out of business. I don't know where the milk in the supermarkets actually comes from, but we need to support our dairy farmers. Also, it's difficult to compare running a dairy farm in Canada with running one in the U.S. There are probably many different variables. Some of land in Canada is very expensive as for example in the Fraser Valley near Vancouver. Lower mainland real estate is out of sight. That has to be figured in to the equation as well. Land in some U.S. states might be much less expensive. We can't compete on the same basis.