So let it be written…
Well, here we go again.
Today marks the first day of Canada’s 42nd Parliament. What acts of world-class federal government munificence shall we behold?
Last Friday in Malta, and only three weeks into his new job, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pledged $2.65 billion to help poorer countries combat the effects of climate change. I don’t remember any mention of such a plan during the election campaign, do you?
Perhaps the gift had already been wrapped and therefore was, um, under wraps. Or maybe the Mediterranean sunshine made Trudeau feel particularly “sunny.” You know, thank the Liberal gods it’s Friday, and carpe diem, eh. Here’s $2.65 billion, and what the heck, a round of drinks on me (Ah, Malta…).
Seriously, the problem with most Liberal prime ministers is they seem to share the delusion they are prime minister of the world, not just Canada. They play hero on the world stage with our hard-earned tax dollars, driving us Canadians deeper into debt and requiring us to tighten our belts.
Back during Jean Chretien’s run, well before Harper’s regime, the Liberal government of the day tossed money at Haiti and Korea, forgave Brazil’s debt, financed an international airport in Cuba, and financed a monument to an African government that ended up razing a ghetto, of all things, to make way for it.
I remember Canada providing Mexico with $1.5 billion after that country’s Peso collapsed, the same week 12,000 people lined up at a General Motors Plant in Ontario just to pick up a job application.
I had an opportunity back then to ask Chretien about the rationale for providing Mexico with such a great heap of Canadian taxpayers’ money.
“We have internationally agreed that if one of the partners gets in difficulty the other nations come to rescue,” he replied. “That is, if eventually we are in trouble, others come to our rescue.”
Personally, I wouldn’t hold my breath on that.
Call me a cynic. Or sane. Take your pick.
The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development released a report in 2008 indicating that Canada’s poverty rate is among the highest in the world’s 34 wealthiest nations within the OECD and I imagine things have not got much better since then.
Only last month, the 2015 Report Card on Child and Family Poverty in Canada, by Family Service Toronto, revealed that 1.34 million Canadian children live in poverty.
What is the role of good government, if not to spend taxpayers’ money wisely on the taxpayers themselves?
Trudeau pledges $2.65 billion to help save the world from climate change. Who’s to say it won’t be spent on palaces and tanks?
Canada is in debt. Ergo, this $2.65 billion must be borrowed before Trudeau gets to give it away. And who gets to pay for it, with interest? Your children, my children, and their children’s children. And us too.
Think about that the next time you or a loved one is waiting for medical attention at your local hospital’s emergency ward.
Think about that next time you see someone lying on a frozen Canadian sidewalk, wrapped up like a mummy inside blankets and quilts, and find yourself wondering if they are alive or dead.
So let it be done.
What do you think? You can email Tom at tom.zytaruk@thenownewspaper.com