Mr. Harpers Excessive Deficit

I canÕt take credit for the following article. I should point out it came from a local politicianÕs mass mail out and I happened to read it over coffee today. I am not advocating one government over another Ð but I am certainly going to amplify what I have said in the past Ð our current government put us in this mess and should be taking responsibility for it rather than patting themselves on the back for being the so called ÒSaviours of the Canadian EconomyÓ. Here is the article: ÒCanadaÕs capacity to recover from the recession depends on our fiscal strenght. Sadly that strength has been depleted by Mr. HarperÕs government. When he took power in 2006, Stephen Harper inherited a thriving economy that was generating solid growth and more new jobs every year. Debt and taxes were falling faster than ever before. Annual surpluses were running at $13 billion per year. Our banking, housing and pension systems were secure. Stretching forward five years, federal fiscal flexibility totaled $100 billion. By 2008 Ð BEFORE the recession arrived Ð the Harper government had frittered those benefits away. They needlessly hiked federal spending by three-time the rate of inflation. They recklessly ignored warning about housing and banking risks growing in the United States. They wiped-out all the contingency reserves and prudence factors that had been embedded in previous budgets as Òfiscal shock absorbersÓ against nasty surprises. All of this Ð BEFORE the recession. So when the downturn came, our country was already in deficit Ð quite unnecessarily. The recession made it worse, but the underlying problem was already there, after less than three years of Conservative rule. itÕs no comfort to say ÒweÕre doing better than othersÓ. ThatÕs a mugÕs game when those ÒothersÓ are in decline. It doesnÕt take much to look a little better against weak competition. Claiming weÕre the Òleast badÓ doesnÕt mean ÒweÕre goodÓ. It simply means this government has lowered Canadian standards. It means Mr. Harper is prepared to settle for much less than Canada once aspired to be.Ó This article, as stated earlier came from a local politician. I wonÕt say who Ð as I donÕt want to start any unnecessary feuding or political stand offs. I was simply intrigued by the article because it says out loud what many of us are afraid to say. That is, Òthis government has lowered Canadian Standards. It means Mr. Harper is prepared to settle for much less than Canada once aspired to be.Ó I also like the part about how the government Òignored warnings about housing and banking risks growing in the United States.Ó Truth is truth Ð no matter who states it. I have lost confidence in our current government. But as I said in my previous rants Ð I donÕt think there is anything really that much better out there. I actually believe that our political parties act like nothing more than high school rivalries. They only care to beat each other at the election game Ð rather than actually doing whatÕs best for CanadianÕs. We have lost our voice. How can we be heard?? I am open to suggestions!