Conservatives - Party for Men, Rich?

[maplesyrup]

So the Conservatives are going to vote against the throne speech, and the rest of the country says: "Who Cares".

[Big Blue Machine]

Conservatism is more than cutting taxes.

[Alberta Socialist]

Conservatism is more than cutting taxes.

Yeah, theres moral self-righteousness and bigotry too!

[Big Blue Machine]

Looky here, you're the only socialist in Alberta. The NDP or the Liberals will never be in government in Alberta ever.

[maplesyrup]

BBM....you sound like you are a bit wet between the ears. Never say never when forecasting events, unless you are using your crystal ball.

[Guest eureka]

Playfulfellow:

Read the Reform Party Caucus statement of 1988 to find out how Harper intended to destroy healthcare. He was the principal author of that document. He has never disavowed the position though he has been careful not to raise it.

[Slavik44]

Conservatism is more than cutting taxes.

Yeah, theres moral self-righteousness and bigotry too!

Would you like a Pie with that?

[JWayne625]

I think we need to cut taxes, especially federally and provincially. The only two growing industries in Canada are bread lines, and government bureaucracy. We need to cut in both of these sectors. Where bread lines are concerned, it is shameful that we even have them in a counrty as rich as Canada. The federal government under Mulroney 14 years ago made a committment to eliminate child poverty, and today under a Liberal Government things are worse than they were back 14 years ago, so obviously child poverty is not a Liberal priority. Government has simply found other places to waste tax dollars, IE: Sponsorship, that Chretien definitely had a direct hand in, as was recently revealed. Of course the Clerk of the Privy Council now says that Chretien is not legally responsible, even though he signed many of the documents. By the way, is anyone here nieve enough to believe that the politicians who were behind this fiasco will ever wind up in a courtroom?

We need to start cutting the size of government from the top down if we are truly looking to save tax-dollars. By cutting from the top down you are starting with enormous salaries, so it will displace far fewer people in achieving large savings. Traditionally cut have been from the bottom up and consequently has displaced large numbers of middle class workers, and that is not desirable. Logically, it makes more sense to eliminate the least number of positions, but God forbid we give these highly paid leaches their walking papers. Since it is senior bureaucrat's who usually make the decision of who goes and who stays, I can't picture them making out their own pink slips.

Tax cuts need to be made so that ordinary working people can keep more of the money they earn, instead of struggling from week to week with what is left of their paycheques after taxes. I can't see that happening under the Liberal's since all they have managed to do is grow government, which leaves less and less for the Canada's priorities, priorities as defined by ordinary Canadian's not government bureaucrat's, and politician's.

[maplesyrup]

The fact that the Conservatives are threatening to vote against the throne speech makes me think they are poor losers. To be expected for sure, but how sad:

Duceppe snubs Rideau Hall

NDP Leader Jack Layton will go to Rideau Hall on Monday.

"I'm just going to tell her that we're available to make Parliament work," Layton said

[Black Dog]

Conservatives - Party for Men, Rich?

What next: "The Sky: Blue?"

I think we need to cut taxes, especially federally and provincially. The only two growing industries in Canada are bread lines, and government bureaucracy.

DO you have any proof that government is growing?

As I pointed out in another thread, the Canadian federal government axed thirty-five thousand people from the rolls between 1993 and 1997 alone.

The total civil service employment as of about 1999/2000 is a grand total of, wait for it, 275,000 people, serving a country of over 30 million.

That's a mere 0.92% of the Canadian population. Shit, the civil service isn't even keeping pace with population growth.

We need to start cutting the size of government from the top down if we are truly looking to save tax-dollars.

I find calls for the continued slashing of the public service to be a little off base, considering so many of the problems we see today (declining health care and education, crumbling infrastructure) have been compounded by the vigorous cuts to government services at all levels during the past two decades. That's not a coincidence.

Tax cuts need to be made so that ordinary working people can keep more of the money they earn, instead of struggling from week to week with what is left of their paycheques after taxes

1. Taxes at the bottom end are high relative to income levels due to the existence of the PST, GST, medical insurance premiums user fees for government services, and so on and so forth. In other words he kind of regressive measures favored by groups like the Conservatives.

And sure, our taxes can be considered high, but relative to what? Your own skewed perspective that takes no account of what it takes to run a country that has a functioning social safety net instead of that joke they call a safety net in the United States?

We're certainly not getting as much bang for our buck precisely because political conservatives have been conducting a no-holds-barred war on anything to do with government provision of services and taxation except insofar as it has to do with anything that coddles rich people, like the preferential treatment of capital gains, or corporate welfare.

[Guest eureka]

The total of civil service in all levels of government peaked in 1992: shrank by about 15% until 1998 and then increased somewhat after that. It is still significantly less than in 1992.

That, even though the population it serves is probably about 15% higher than in that year.

And no, I am not going to provide a link. I have been through this before and took the trouble to inform myself.

[kimmy]

NDP Leader Jack Layton will go to Rideau Hall on Monday.

"I'm just going to tell her that we're available to make Parliament work," Layton said

Syrup! I'm surprised this didn't merit a whole thread of its own!

Layton to make Parliament Work!

The last hero of Canadian politics!

I'm sure that would be a meeting of profound importance.

Layton: "Your Excellency! I'm here to tell you that the NDP is bringing New Energy to Parliament Hill! I'm here to tell you that we are On The Move! I am here to tell you that we are Bringing Canadians Together and we're going to Make Parliament Work! I'm here to tell you that the new Green Economy is going to--"

Clarkson: "Jack, I'm sure this is all terribly interesting, but I must be off. My plane is waiting."

-kimmy