Free Education For All!

Ignatieff's new plan, post secondary education for all who qualify! Problem is that he is discriminating against those kids who don't have the marks to actually get into university.

OTTAWA — On his recent cross-country tours, Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff has talked often about post-secondary education and how his party plans to make it more affordable so that, “if you get the grades, you get to go.”

Does that mean free tuition? More scholarships? And if so, how would an Ignatieff-led government pay for it?

A chicken in every pot! A student in every university, no matter what lame courses they are taking! Great idea Iggy! It's a game winner with my 17 year old who thinks he won't have to work to put himself through college. He has the grades so he thought it would be great to go for free..... until I clued him into a few realities.

Ignatieff needs to understand basic supply and demand. If everyone gets to go for free, then we will have a surplus of graduates, who will have no jobs. How many arts grads do we need? We already have too many political science, history and sociology grads who can't find jobs, why do the Liberals think we need more?

You go to university to increase your employ-ability by being one of the few who achieve a higher level of education. If everyone goes, salaries decrease. Lawyers are already a dime a dozen because no limitations to enrollment exist. Makes me wonder why they limit the numbers of doctors who can graduate, it should be the other way around.

“We’ve got to be there for them when they’re saying, ‘How am I possibly going to afford post-secondary education?’ Especially in Aboriginal communities, especially in immigrant communities, especially in those working-class families that have never had any member of their family go to college or university before,” Mr. Ignatieff said. “We’ve got to be able to say, ‘you get the grades, you get to go.’ ”

Hello Iggy, aboriginals already get FREE post secondary education, and why should we cater to immigrants who have not contributed to our country? Make them pay more not less to enter our education system. Working class families can afford to send their children to college if they save for it. My parents were "working class" and I started working at age 15 to save for university, I made it through without needing any help from my parents or the government. Sure I had to work two jobs during the summer, but I made it, loan free, and debt free even though I had to leave home to go to university.

I am tired of the lefty mindset that the government (taxpayer) is responsible for people from cradle to grave. Stop it. Only mindless idiots who have no initiative of their own want the government to support them for all their lives. Grow up, pay your own way in life.

Post Expense Records ONLINE To Keep MP's INLINE!

If MP's should have the right to look at all military documents in a time of war and potentially cause the troops harm, why can't the taxpayers see the same MP's expense reports?

Something smells bad here. Why aren't the Liberals and NDP shouting about the lack of accountability if MP's expense reports aren't audited by Sheila Fraser? They should be at the Conservatives throats over this issue. Instead we get this garbage from a Liberal MP....

MPs, Mr. Szabo explained to a reporter, get sued a lot -- for sexual harrassment and wrongful dismissal, for example -- and naturally they have to fight, settle or pay out these lawsuits on the taxpayers' dime. “If [expenses] were opened to the Auditor General and open to the public, all of a sudden people would jump to conclusions without having all the facts,” he said. “If you identify the member, or the law firm or all this other stuff, all of a sudden people could say ... what’s wrong with this member, this member is getting sued all the time.”

Let's use his argument and turn it to the Afghan issue....

If [documents] were opened to the MP's and open to the public, all of a sudden people would jump to conclusions without having all the facts.

It's apparently a win for DEMOCRACY when the MP's get to see all the documents regarding the Afghan war, but DEMOCRACY would be distorted if the taxpayer got to see what MP's are spending our money on. Silence.

I can understand why the Conservatives would be reluctant to allow the audit. Our biased media would only report on supposed Conservative wrong doings, and give the opposition parties a pass. If you doubt me, why hasn't the media reported on Liberal MP Pablo? Why hasn't CBC or CTV been hammering on his accident where he failed to blow, and was therefore arrested? How about Pat Martins assistant yelling and protesting at the Ann Coulter lecture? Silence.

Given that the media is on the oppositions side, why is the opposition fighting an audit of their expense accounts? They have the majority at committee, they could order it done, but they refuse to allow the audit. What are our MP's hiding? Where is the transparency? The accountability? Silence.

If the opposition is so sure that those Afghan documents are necessary for an understanding of what went on during a war, why are they hiding their expense account documents? Maybe the Speaker needs to rule on this issue, the same way he ruled on the last one...open up the books, it is the taxpayers rights that are being trampled here.

I guess the opposition thinks a witch hunt to find an Afghan hit with a shoe is more important than taxpayers finding out that we have been hit with bricks.

So, if the opposition can whine and use Parliament as a tool to get documents for purely political reasons, then taxpayers want Parliament to do the same with our MP's.

Open up the books! We are not talking chump change here, we are talking about $500,000,000! See all those zeros, that's our money, and we have no clue how it is being spent. Let Sheila audit those books! This refusal looks bad on all parties. I guess the opposition can't find a way to make it so that only the Conservative MP's would be audited, if they could, they would be demanding that Sheila Fraser get a look at the expense accounts. Seeing as how every MP would be treated as equal, they are opposing it.

MP's should post their expense records online, that might keep them inline!!

It's Time To Listen To Us...the Taxpayers!

Forget about the MSM, they are so biased that even my Liberal parents don't want us paying over $1 billion a year for the CBC anymore. Even Global Edmonton had a piece about proroguing Parliament, they went to a citizens ceremony and asked NEW Canadians what they thought....no, really they did! Born Canadians don't even have a clue what proroguing is let alone new Canadians. That's how low the MSM has to stoop, my respect for Gord Stenke just took a huge nosedive. Guess we won't switch from Fox News to watch Global local news anytime soon. Aren't they crying about local news coverage being cut? I won't feel bad anymore if that happens.

Forget the opposition, they are socialists who want everyone to be as miserable as they are. Have you ever known a happy, content lefty? They have no clue what Canadians think, want or feel. Wild hair greenie NDP MP Linda Duncan was at the ceremony, whining about not being able to work....duhhh lady, what were you doing at the ceremony than?

It's time to listen to US, you know the voters, and most importantly the TAXPAYERS!! Let the opposition whine and cry and stomp their feet about non-issues, we need to tell the governments, at every level what we want our money spent on.

You can make a good start at the federal level by going to this page, and giving them some ideas for the budget.

Consulting with Canadians

I already filled in my wish list, and top of the list is extending the Home renovation Tax Credit program!

This program is a win for everyone. The homeowner gets renovations done, which increases the value of their home, plus they get a tax credit. The trades get more work because homeowners are doing their renovations sooner than they might have. Businesses are getting more orders for everything from landscaping materials to new appliances. The government gets to DIRECTLY impact the taxpayer by giving them some of their money back. A new road is great, but taxpayers need to see some actual reward and this program provides it to them.

My second wish was that ALL charitable organizations, and lobby groups would get de-funded.

My third wish was for CBC to have to survive or die without the $1 billion a year from taxpayers. You would think that CTV and Global would like that to happen, but from the reporting of those stations, it appears that they are all one big lefty family.

My fourth wish was for no tax increases to get back into a balanced budget. If they just leave Alberta, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland alone, we will fill the federal coffers again. Also as civil servants retire, don't rehire.

It's time they listen to the taxpayers, but they can't hear you if you don't tell them what you think, so take the time to go to the budget site and tell them what you want. Remember 60% of Canadians are going to propose all those lefty free spending ideas, like environment, daycares, free university type issues while ignoring fiscal responsibility.

Eco-Scam Paid For BY Taxpayers.

Here's the headline to the latest eco-scam:

Canada could cash in on climate change battle

CALGARY --Canada could cash in on the battle for climate change should countries around the world spend the trillions of dollars the International Energy Agency contends is necessary to boost carbon capture and storage, it was predicted Tuesday.

Businesses and governments need to pony up between US$2.4-trillion and US$3.4-trillion before 2050 for carbon-capture and storage projects, the IEA said in a 46-page report. While Canada is going to have to invest billions to develop CCS techniques, that could translate into big profits down the road.

So, it's a cash cow, but only if we taxpayers supply the cash in the first place. Then the companies can cash in and make money, sounds like a good plan, for the companies. Kind of like we were promised savings with wind and solar, but quickly found out that we were lied to. Not only does it cost us more to install wind and solar, but it hits our pocket book with higher energy costs as well.

I was talking to my Mom this weekend and their gas in BC is at 1.01, ours is at 84.9, could it be the carbon tax that BC implemented? Just what is it getting them? Is their air any cleaner? No, CO2 is not a pollutant. Are they still dumping raw sewage into the ocean in Victoria? Where is that extra money going? Anyone???

Carbon capture and storage has morphed into a darling among industry players, policy wonks, and environmentalists as a key technology necessary to curb climate change. However, critics argue placing enormous amounts of hope on a technology that has not been fully proven is dangerous. Groundwater could become contaminated and the energy exerted building the infrastructure alone could temper the benefits, critics say.

Groundwater could be contaminated? With CO2? It's not a pollutant. Save the BILLIONS and improve our health care here in Alberta. Give us a public and private mix.

This carbon capture idea is just as big a scam as carbon credits. The thing is that it looks good politically. It lets people think they are being eco-friendly when we are wasting money better used to solve real problems, like handicapped people living below the poverty line.

While Canada's oil and gas industry -- the oil sands in particular -- have been slammed as a menace in the fight against climate change, coal-fired power plants are expected to host most CCS projects.

Hey Ontario, you are going to love sending even more money out west so your coal fired plants can continue to operate. I suspect your manufacturing sector will be getting huge orders to help building those carbon capture monsters, so we will all be happy, even the eco-nuts, who can not argue against this technology, because it's exactly what they have been pushing for. In the end it's a little better than a carbon market scam, because at least the money stays here in Canada and provides jobs.

The only losers, the taxpayers of course!

The Bloom Is Off The Boom!

I don't like any bailout, not even one little bit. It goes against every Conservative principal in my body. It goes against every good economic principal you will find in any economics textbook. So far we have been focusing on an auto bailout, but what happens if the oil sands needs help?

Manufacturing in Ontario is not just about the auto industry. Think "dirty" oil. That's right the oil sands are a major source of manufacturing in Ontario, and right now the bloom is off the boom.

Some oilsands math
Gary Lamphier, The Edmonton Journal
Published: Thursday, November 13

One day, it would be nice if the oilsands bashing lobby deigned to explain a few things to the rest of us.

Such as. If the oilsands are shut down -- as the good folks at Greenpeace would very much like -- or even significantly scaled back, where will the billions of dollars in federal equalization money that Alberta's (oilsands-dependent) taxpayers ship to Ottawa each year, come from in future?

Just wondering. It's a small-minded little nitpick, I realize. With Ontario now a "have-not" province, and the country's manufacturing sector flat on its back, you'd think Quebecers, among others, might like to know. Especially in the middle of a provincial election campaign.

Ontario's Biggest-Ever Trade Mission Seeks Oilsands Contracts

Economic development ministers rarely work the floor at a trade show but that's what Ontario's Sandra Pupatello did last week in Edmonton at the National Oilsands Buyer/Seller Forum. "We've brought 208 people here representing 134 companies," says Pupatello (shown at left). "This is the largest trade delegation ever assembled by Ontario, even bigger than our trade mission to China [in 2005]."

Clearly, Ontario industry is hungry for bitumen-fueled business. Central Canadian metal-working companies and other suppliers, suffering from slowdowns in auto manufacturing and forestry, see the oilsands as their most promising opportunity for growth. Government preparations for this forum included a 282 page directory of potential oilsands suppliers in the province, available in printed and digital versions. Trade officials even produced a lapel pin combining the Alberta and Ontario flags.

The economic crisis and collapse in oil prices have pushed the sector to the brink, resulting in the delay of some $40-billion in new projects, taking 800,000 barrels a day of expected production growth -- about half of what had been expected -- off the table, according to CIBC World Markets.

Meanwhile, existing projects are close to losing money at today's oil prices. According to a recent Merrill Lynch report, many oil sands projects need US$38 a barrel oil to break even. Oil prices settled at US$46.28 a barrel on Friday, keeping projects in the black for now, but curtailing developers' ability to fund expansion.

Industry watchers say companies that scaled back won't be rushing to jump back in, even if oil prices recover above US$90, the level many say is required to build new projects.

Other problems would have to be resolved: mounting costs, tight financing and, of course, environmental challenges. The oil sands' poor image could lead to even tougher environmental legislation.

The implications of a no-growth period for the oil sands are grim, not just for Alberta, but the entire country. The oil sands boom has been Canada's economic engine over the past decade. The country's rise as a major global oil producer would stall and the United States would see its energy security options reduced.

For the last decade the oil sands have been driving the economy, now we have Saskatchewan and Newfoundland entering the have provinces because of oil, but for how long? Meanwhile Toronto Liberals, Quebec separatists and the NDP think the gravy train is never ending. They are busy plotting the downfall of our elected government so they can throw money at the unions. Those same unions that will not compromise, those unions that except the taxpayers to bail them out so they can continue to live in lala land on the taxpayers dime.

Quebec is so union heavy that they are like the mafia, that's why Quebec continues to suck 8 BILLION more out of Canada than they put in. I am sick of it, and so are the intelligent Quebecers. What does Quebec think will happen if the oil sands slow down? It really ticks me off when they spout off about their $7 a day, daycare that the rest of Canada is paying for. They are too ignorant to be embarrassed about freeloading on the rest of Canada. They think it is their right because they are special/different/unique. Well the fuse is getting shorter out here, and Iggy is not going to sell any better in the west than Dion did, so the divide will continue.

The bloom is off the boom out here in hicks ville Alberta, and the east better get prepared for the consequences, it's not going to be pretty. Alberta is debt free, and has some reserves for a rainy day, so we will be okay, can Quebec say the same thing?

Governments Are Like Vampires

Governments are like vampires, they suck your blood, and in return you proclaim undying (HA) love for them. Governments produce nothing. Understand that? They do not produce and sell "widgets", nor any other product they can sell.

Governments suck up our tax dollars, and if we are lucky, we get some benefit from how they spend it. Benefits like roads, schools and hospitals, those are good and something we as a society need. Too often the government uses our tax dollars to buy votes. Look at how they spend your money, make a checklist, then challenge them on things you consider useless. I am talking all levels of government, municipal, provincial and federal.

As an individual, I set goals and priorities, I work to make them come true. Who sets the governments goals? Supposedly we do, but the only time most people have a say is during an election. Once every four years. So, who is controlling how our taxpayers money is spent? Special interest groups. They include immigrant groups, gay and lesbian groups, daycare groups, unions, feminists, environmentalists, First nations, etc. Everyone has their hands in the governments pocket....oh wait, that would be our pockets.

Governments suck up our hard earned dollars, and return what exactly? Municipalities blame provinces for lack of infrastructure, the provinces blame the feds for lack of funds, the feds blame provinces and municipalities for not spending the funds they give them properly, and they then, at all levels, tax us more, because we are the vampire's victims, we are the undead, that endless piggy bank the governments can tap anytime they want, and we the undead, let them. Look at the new carbon tax in BC, no protests, nothing, because we are made to feel guilty about what we are not doing as a society. A 7.5% property tax increase in Edmonton, not even a squeak.

Pollution, our fault
Wait lists, our fault
Potholes, our fault
Poverty, our fault
Homelessness, our fault
Crime, our fault

It's all our fault. Time to get the garlic and wooden stakes out. Time to get rid of the vampires, they are sucking us dry, and making us think we deserve it, because every failure is our fault, always.