Ontario

[Topaz]

Well, its seems the HST will hit Ontarians in their pocket book by increasing the hydro and gas bills by $250.00 per year. The On. govt has said they will give us $1000-2000.00 to help off set the expense but what happens to fixed incomes and the low end of earners when no help is there?? The people on welfare, the government will have to cough up extra for them and what about all the other bills, like, phone, car insurance, house, property?? I guess the only way to not be affected by this tax is to have a COLA, which All workers should have unioned or not.

[Wild Bill]

Well, its seems the HST will hit Ontarians in their pocket book by increasing the hydro and gas bills by $250.00 per year. The On. govt has said they will give us $1000-2000.00 to help off set the expense but what happens to fixed incomes and the low end of earners when no help is there?? The people on welfare, the government will have to cough up extra for them and what about all the other bills, like, phone, car insurance, house, property?? I guess the only way to not be affected by this tax is to have a COLA, which All workers should have unioned or not.

Hey, I didn't vote for Dalton!

I figure if I didn't vote for them, I'm not responsible!

[charter.rights]

Hey, I didn't vote for Dalton!

I figure if I didn't vote for them, I'm not responsible!

Well...I guess there had to be some idiots that voted for John Tory....right?

[August1991]

Well, its seems the HST will hit Ontarians in their pocket book by increasing the hydro and gas bills by $250.00 per year. The On. govt has said they will give us $1000-2000.00 to help off set the expense but what happens to fixed incomes and the low end of earners when no help is there?? The people on welfare, the government will have to cough up extra for them and what about all the other bills, like, phone, car insurance, house, property?? I guess the only way to not be affected by this tax is to have a COLA, which All workers should have unioned or not.

First: Who is going to pay for all these government services that you Leftists want? Martians? (Please don't complain about taxes when you think that government spending is a good thing.)

Second: Why should hydro and gas bills (for example) be exempt from sales tax? If the government wants to engineer society through the tax system, let it do so explicitly. The HST merely levels the playing field, makes thing clear, and then if the Ontario government wants to subsidize a particular activity, it can do so - explicitly.

Third: Low income. The worst way to help low income people is through lower sales taxes (lower PST, GST, HST). (Poor people don't buy much. Duh.) The GST/HST rebate is a better way to help such people. But the best way is lower payroll taxes. No one earning less than $15,000 per year should have a cent taken from their income, and in fact the government should give them money based on hours worked.

[Who's Doing What?]

Well, its seems the HST will hit Ontarians in their pocket book by increasing the hydro and gas bills by $250.00 per year. The On. govt has said they will give us $1000-2000.00 to help off set the expense but what happens to fixed incomes and the low end of earners when no help is there?? The people on welfare, the government will have to cough up extra for them and what about all the other bills, like, phone, car insurance, house, property?? I guess the only way to not be affected by this tax is to have a COLA, which All workers should have unioned or not.

It's called a J-O-B.

I've been on both sides of the fence and there is nothing better for the bank account than a steady job.

[August1991]

It's called a J-O-B.

I've been on both sides of the fence and there is nothing better for the bank account than a steady job.

Been there, done that.

The best is a job with few deductions. Later, when I earned more, I imagined a job with no deductions. And then I imagined a job with positive numbers.

----

IMV, no one earning less than $20,000 should have a cent taken from their payroll in EI or CPP (yet they should be recorded as paying into both). No employer should have to record or pay for such employees.

IMV, we have to change radically these EI/CPP/RRQ systems.

[Mr.Canada]

Low income people need to work harder and stop looking for a handout. As I've said many times I used to live on the streets off and on in Toronto from the time I was about 15 or 16 until I was about 24 or 25. When I wasn't on the street I was in prison basically I pulled myself together, went to school, got a pardon, got a job, stopped looking for handouts and started doing things for myself.

Now I'm doing quite well by societies standards.

People that are poor are there by choice trust me, I know, I lived it. I've seen those people everyday of my life back then. There mindset is that society owes them.

[Topaz]

Low income people need to work harder and stop looking for a handout. As I've said many times I used to live on the streets off and on in Toronto from the time I was about 15 or 16 until I was about 24 or 25. When I wasn't on the street I was in prison basically I pulled myself together, went to school, got a pardon, got a job, stopped looking for handouts and started doing things for myself.

Now I'm doing quite well by societies standards.

People that are poor are there by choice trust me, I know, I lived it. I've seen those people everyday of my life back then. There mindset is that society owes them.

[/quote

Was it through prison that the oppportunity was brought to you? In other words, if you hadn't gone to prison would you still be living on the street?

[Oleg Bach]

Dalton has the piercing eyes of a mentally over extended Scientologist. Often wonder who instructs this perpetually smiling liberal henchmen?

[William Ashley]

Well, its seems the HST will hit Ontarians in their pocket book by increasing the hydro and gas bills by $250.00 per year. The On. govt has said they will give us $1000-2000.00 to help off set the expense but what happens to fixed incomes and the low end of earners when no help is there?? The people on welfare, the government will have to cough up extra for them and what about all the other bills, like, phone, car insurance, house, property?? I guess the only way to not be affected by this tax is to have a COLA, which All workers should have unioned or not.

Where is the info on how to apply for the rebate?

[PIK]

Where is the info on how to apply for the rebate?

I am sure if you are a taxpayer you will get the rebate.

[Wild Bill]

I've been on both sides of the fence and there is nothing better for the bank account than a steady job.

That's true, but not all jobs pay that well and not all of us have a choice as to what job may be available to us. While it's true there are many simple deadbeats it's also true that we have a large number of "working poor".

That being said, governments don't just tax us to fund the services we collectively demand. They tax us for those services PLUS the percentage of waste involved in having the government be the vehicle to deliver those services!

I've had some experience with how governments go about delivering their services. I doubt if they are even 50% efficient with our tax money. I could even accept figures as low as half of that!

So now Dalton will hit us with another tax increase, especially on things like electricity that most of us have no choice but to buy! Even though we are starting to see programs like the new "MicroFit" that encourage people to set up home power generation systems and use it to offset the cost of what they take from the grid or even make a profit on how much they send back, the initial costs and the length of time before they're paid off are such that only the people rich enough to pay the grid costs anyway can afford to participate in wind and solar programmes!

Even if you get a wood stove and kerosene lanterns to reduce your electricity usage to zero, if you are connected at all to the grid you have fixed costs remaining for the $30 billion dollars of stranded debt built up by provincial governments that used building nuclear plants as a big patronage slush fund for everyone involved and also for the transmission system, or the wires that deliver the electricity around the province.

Anyhow, when harmonized the system will NOT keep whatever federal or provincial tax exemption existed beforehand! If the tax was from one level or the other it will now be applied to both.

I just hope Ontarioans look up and see who's screwing them over this time! Dalton should not get away with this scot-free. Gouging us more instead of tackling public sector inefficiencies is just a cheap shot that cannot be sustained forever.

[Topaz]

Where is the info on how to apply for the rebate?

Info. http://www.rev.gov.on.ca/en/taxchange/families.html

[Wayne McQ.]

Where is the info on how to apply for the rebate?

I lived in NB when the HST was brought in by Liberal Premier Frank McKenna, and Frank told the very same lies that both Dalton McGuinty of Ontario and Gordon Campbell of British Columbia is telling their citizens, that the HST would create investments, it would create jobs, and the biggest fairytale of all, prices to consumers would go down to reflect the savings the corporations would have because they would pass along those savings to consumers....ALL LIES, never happened in NB, NS, OR NL, and won't happen in ON or BC either. Jobs continued to be outsourced to foreign shores, corporations pocketed their savings as a result of this tax shift and still continued to hold out their hands for taxpayers money whenever they wanted to modernize their plants, but no new jobs were created.

If any people think that politicians are there to serve the people, they are absolutely wrong. Politicians are there to carry out an agenda developed and lobbied for by their corporate masters. The only way we are going to be able to wrestle Canada back from the control of the corporations is to change how we elect our politicians. They need to be made accountable immediately whenever they lie, and not wait until the next election. Deals they put in place that are not in the best interests of the people are often far to expensive to reverse, and that needs to change, by recall legislation and not like we have here in BC that is virtually impossible to work. Right now in BC we are trying to force the government into either holding a referendum or repealing the legislation to implement the HST, but that will require obtaining the signatures of 10% of registered voters in each of the riding's. The procedure to recall a politician is even more onerous, and needs to be changed in such a manner is that it is workable. For far too long we have allowed our politicians to lie and steal from the public purse and then go unpunished, and that needs to change.

[Bonam]

Well, its seems the HST will hit Ontarians in their pocket book

Of course. That is the result of socialism. What would you expect?

by increasing the hydro and gas bills by $250.00 per year.

A few % tax increase is gonna raise your hydro bill by 250/year? How much money do you spend on electricity per year that 8% is gonna add 250? Like $3000? I dunno about you but my electricity bill for the whole year is about $300, and a tax hike of 8% on that would cost me $24, not $250.

The On. govt has said they will give us $1000-2000.00 to help off set the expense but what happens to fixed incomes and the low end of earners when no help is there??

$1000-2000 is more than "low income earners" will get taxed in a year in sales tax so they will be getting all their money back.

The people on welfare

should get a job.

the government will have to cough up extra for them and what about all the other bills, like, phone, car insurance, house, property??

No, the government does not have to do any such thing. But, in socialist Ontario, I'm sure that's exactly what will happen, and taxes (or deficits) will keep rising ever higher to pay for it.

[Jack Weber]

Of course. That is the result of socialism. What would you expect?

A few % tax increase is gonna raise your hydro bill by 250/year? How much money do you spend on electricity per year that 8% is gonna add 250? Like $3000? I dunno about you but my electricity bill for the whole year is about $300, and a tax hike of 8% on that would cost me $24, not $250.

$1000-2000 is more than "low income earners" will get taxed in a year in sales tax so they will be getting all their money back.

should get a job.

No, the government does not have to do any such thing. But, in socialist Ontario, I'm sure that's exactly what will happen, and taxes (or deficits) will keep rising ever higher to pay for it.

Socialism???

It's a tax shift off the corporate books and onto the individual tax payer!!!!

Not Socialism...Corporatism!

Edited April 8, 2010 by Jack Weber

[madmax]

Of course. That is the result of socialism. What would you expect?

How did you get this

buttbackwards??? This is the opposite of socialism. It's what corporate globalists desire. This is traditional Liberal & Conservative Tax Policy of the past 21 years!

A few % tax increase is gonna raise your hydro bill by 250/year? How much money do you spend on electricity per year that 8% is gonna add 250? Like $3000? I dunno about you but my electricity bill for the whole year is about $300, and a tax hike of 8% on that would cost me $24, not $250.

$1000-2000 is more than "low income earners" will get taxed in a year in sales tax so they will be getting all their money back.

should get a job.

No, the government does not have to do any such thing. But, in socialist Ontario, I'm sure that's exactly what will happen, and taxes (or deficits) will keep rising ever higher to pay for it.

You are living in a Pro Business, Global Capitalist privatizing Ontario that is poorly managed and fiscally irresponsible.

That is traditional with NeoConservative Economic policy.

Why do you think the Federal Conservatives are running a RECORD DEFICIT after a few terms of incompetent fiscal management.

The Ontario Liberals aren't better.

Your rant on "Socialist" Ontario is absurd and stupid.

[Moonbox]

Madmax I'll agree with you that there are some issues with our tax system and Free Trade etc, but you generally tend to ignore that the deficit happens for two reasons.

Social spending (past and present) is a HUGE part of our national debt and a main reason why taxes have to be high in the first place.

You can blame corporate cronyism all you want for the deficit, but that's not where most of the money is going.

[Bonam]

How did you get this

buttbackwards??? This is the opposite of socialism. It's what corporate globalists desire. This is traditional Liberal & Conservative Tax Policy of the past 21 years!

No, I don't care about the quibbling about what specific type of tax it is, and whether that type of tax increase is supported by the liberals or the conservatives. The OP is complaining about a tax increase. What do the taxes pay for? Mostly, social programs (health, education, welfare, etc), that is, the need for these increases in taxation is a symptom of socialism.

Edited April 8, 2010 by Bonam

[Jack Weber]

No, I don't care about the quibbling about what specific type of tax it is, and whether that type of tax increase is supported by the liberals or the conservatives. The OP is complaining about a tax increase. What do the taxes pay for? Mostly, social programs (health, education, welfare, etc), that is, the need for these increases in taxation is a symptom of socialism.

It's NOT just an increase...It's a tax shift!!!Off the corporate tax rate and onto the individual tax payer.That's not socialism one iota!Why do you think the National Ctizens Coalition is against it???

Why do you think we are being bribed with our own money??

This is neoliberal,Friedmanite,globalist,free trade tax policy to a tee!!!!

[Bonam]

It's NOT just an increase...It's a tax shift!!!Off the corporate tax rate and onto the individual tax payer.That's not socialism one iota!

"Not socialism one iota" would be cutting all taxes to like 1/10th of what they are now and canceling the government's social spending.

[Jack Weber]

"Not socialism one iota" would be cutting all taxes to like 1/10th of what they are now and canceling the government's social spending.

Good grief...

Kevin O'Leary,ladies and gentlemen!!!!

[Moonbox]

Kevin O'Leary,ladies and gentlemen!!!!

Because spending hasn't increased at all under McGuinty right? RIGHT?!?

[Topaz]

IF anyone wants to know what is taxable under the HST here's the website http://www.rev.gov.on.ca/en/taxchange/pdf/taxable.pdf

[Topaz]

After looking at this I notice that heating and electricity will go from 5% to 13%!! This not counting the increases the Energy board seems to give the utility. They probably have investments in hydro and natural gas! Buying a house under $400,000 no change except, you, the real estate seller, will pay 13% on commissions, so I`m sure they will try to get their money back from the buyer/seller somehow.