Damn You, and Your “Responsible” Budget!

Let me be clear, I don’t have anything against the Liberal Party of Canada.
Historically they have done some pretty interesting things, and had some very interesting leaders, who have benefited this country for electing them.

However, this incarnation of the Liberal Party of Canada just gives me the creeps.

I hate appointed leaders, nothing makes me more angry then party brass around a board room table anointing the leader of a political party that is suppose to represent Canadians especially when that leader shouldn’t buy the support of other leadership hopefuls in 2006.

I wasn’t thrilled when Harper ran in 2003, as a merged party shouldn’t have either of the former parties’ leaders running the show,

I wasn’t thrilled at the 11 month delay in 2006 which basically gave the Conservatives an unelected majority government while the Liberals samples eight potential leaders

And I wasn’t thrilled that Ignatieff was anointed rather then elected.

But in the first two cases, at least the unwashed masses got to have some input into selecting their leader, and the problem with men in smoke filled rooms selecting a leader is that those men rarely if ever understand the plight of the working class stiffs like me.

Last year was like watching a tennis match at the US open when it came to where the Liberals stood on issues.

March 2009 – We will support this reckless spending the government is putting forth, but we want them to submit reports as to where the money is going…

You know, do what a government is legally required to do anyway when it comes to spending tax payer money…

They even went as far as to create a cute “onprobation.ca” website to show us how they were like vigilant hawks who would strike down at anyone who abused us minions as we toiled in the fields.

But of course they lost interest in actually doing the job of the opposition party of Canada, and went back to whining that being in opposition is beneath Canada’s natural Governing Party, as the website now simply re-directs to the Liberal Party home page and has down so for several months…

So much for that….

September 2009 – They voted against legislation that would have made the Home Renovation Credit Law,

Yeah, you know that credit they supported in March that most of us spent when it was warm in summer so we could do the work on our “honey do” lists like replace tiles, have the roof fixes, finish the basement…basically all the stuff that most sane Canadians don’t wait till Fall to get started on when the credit is set to expire in February.

Because now, they are against reckless spending…
Yet they are not interested in keeping the Conservative accountable for this reckless spending they are now against, which they were for in March when they were in favor of the reckless spending in the first place…

Get all that?

As I sat there within thousands of dollars of renovation materials receipts in my hands for the first time in a long time I actually cheer the NDP as they did the right thing and supported passing the legislation the Liberals should have passed in the first place.

I wrote my MP, and I tend to never do that because writing my MP is like going into Best Buy and complaining to the guy who sells TV’s that I am unhappy with the quality of company XYZ’s TV’s, he may smile and nod, he may even show some apathy for my situation, but at the end of the day he/she has no real power to make any real choices because they have to pull the party line anyway.

My Liberal MP replied to my frantic “Ummmm dude? I spent a few grand doing work around the house under the promise I would write some of it off, and you supported that in March, and now you are punking me?? Really? REALLY???”

His response was basically;
The legislation has passed, and the reno credit is law.

When in reality,
The legislation had passed despite his party not supporting it, and had the legislation been voted down we would have hit the polls, and I may have never seen my credit ever again.

I may vote Liberal in the future, but never ever ever again will I vote for him.
Taking bread out of my mouth is one thing,

Offering me bread, putting butter on it, handing it to me, and trying to slap it out of my hand as I put it in my mouth is another.

Now here we are in February 2010;

The Conservatives have leaked parts of their budget.

No Tax Cuts
No New Spending

While I am disappointed that the Reagan approach to cut taxes to stimulate spending which historically increases government revenue anyway (also used successfully in Ontario by Mike Harris)

I am pleased that spending is under control,
But of course, that is terrible.

It’s being called a do nothing budget…

This is the problem with the opposition parties,
There is no right answer.

And in a minority government that creates a real legislative quagmire.

We have been in election mode since the day after the 2004 election, every political party wasting time in Parliament hoping for a soundbyte they can use in a election which could happen any day…

This of course at the expense of governing.

The Liberals are now against restraint,
The same fiscal restraint they were for when they opted to stop supporting the budget they supported in March in September.

They want to spend billions on daycare, they feel that not spending money that we don’t have is “doing nothing”,

As a normal Canadian who actually has to work for a living at a honest to goodness job, I call not spending money that I don’t have something very different,

I call it “reality”.

But what do I know?