Stephen Harper Lies to the People of Newfoundland and Labrador
Thanks to the stab in the back delivered by Stephen Harper’s American style Republicans Newfoundland and Labrador could potentially lose millions in equalization funding every year from here on in. The impact of this budget won’t truly be known for years as our province dies a slow death at the hands of Ottawa.
Harper’s tricky and too cute plan to provide Ontario and Quebec with billions while offering a series of lose/lose equalization options to Newfoundland and Labrador may guarantee his government’s survival but like the cold hearted and opportunistic weasel he is, his survival will be done on the back of Canada’s poorest province.
Premier Danny Williams said the budget is a betrayal of the province, and he wants voters to punish the Conservatives in the next federal election.
"What they've done today is basically and completely shafted us," Williams told reporters. "It's scandalous what they've done, when you think of it."
Personally I can’t wait to see how the three Conservative MPs from Newfoundland and Labrador, Norman Doyle, Fabian Manning and Fisheries Minister Loyola Hearn react to this betrayal. Will they vote in favor or against their own party’s budget plan? I guess the next few days will tell us if they plan to support their people or go the route of retired Liberal MP John Efford who shafted the province for the sake of party loyalties.
One analyst noted, “This budget clearly targets urban voters. The voters Stephen Harper needs if he hopes to win the next election.”
That’s a valid comment but its hardly news. Any party hoping to win a federal election will pander to the high volume of voters in urban areas, especially those in Ontario and Quebec. Nobody can expect them to do anything else and unfortunately the political system of Canada is designed to encourage that.
I don’t personally blame any one party. The problem lies with Canada’s parliamentary system itself and that system is exactly why Newfoundland and Labrador would be far better off calling the entire confederation experiment a failure and simply moving on.
The time has come to get out of Canada before there is nothing left.
Federal parties will always pour every ounce of energy into appeasing the voters of the major urban areas, but what does that say about the future of rural areas? What does it say about the future of Newfoundland and Labrador?
The latest budget out of Ottawa was not met by any smiles in Newfoundland and Labrador, Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia, BC or New Brunswick. While a few modest improvements were included for Alberta and PEI songs of joy were spreading like syrup inside Ontario and Quebec. Enough said.
When a federal government brings forward a budget that denies it ever made a promise, no less than 6 times in writing, and adds insult to injury by actually including a fiscal cap on revenues, the same cap every Newfoundlander and Labradorian fought so hard against during the Atlantic Accord debate, our future is clear.
Our best opportunity to build our economy, pay off our debts and provide a future for our people has just been destroyed with the callous stroke of a federal pen.
There is no future for us in Canada.
Our population is in free fall.
Our resources are being raped for the benefit to other provinces.
Our revenues are clawed back at every turn.
Federal promises mean nothing, no matter the party stripe.
Ontario and Quebec control Canada and they will always guide government policy and budgets.
Our fisheries are being mismanaged into oblivion.
We may not have a say on most issues in the federation but the choice to stay or leave is ours and ours alone.
Gee. Patriot's response is a real big surprise.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you people really expect? That you are so special and unique that you can demand anything you want??
Are you not reading the Budget at all??
No, you are not. Who has read the thing?? Not many.
All you are basing this reaction to is that the Premier says it's bad so it must be bad.
This is a good budget.For all the Newfs out there,you can't expect Ottawa to send you welfare cheques the $2billion) and still earn hundreds of millions in federal transfer payments.Stop the whining.You already get by far the most money per capita of any province in the country.Remember, Dion and the liberals want to slap a carbon tax on major polluters and the refinery in Come by Chance along with all the oil producers in NL are amongst those targeted.At $20-$40 a ton,that will add up to millions lost,so don't just target the tories,target liberals as well.
The Atlantic Accord wasn't touched.
ReplyDeleteQuite moaning and picking fights where there are none. As you earn more as a province you are supposed to recieve less from the Feds. Why should the rules change for you? You don't lose anything you morons....you just can't have EVERYTHING!
It's not our fault if your own people can't wait to leave for better places. Oh, you say it's for jobs, but we all know it's because...well....it's Newfoundland. Enough said.
It's pretty clear that the last two Anons live in the urban areas of Canada. It's a typical response to a valid point. Simply put, Harper lied when he said he would remove non-renewable resources and that no province would be harmed financially. Why do you think Sask, BC and others are not happy? I don't see anyone in here calling the people of those provinces bigoted names like "Newf" or saying people can't wait to leave the province because, "Well it's Newfoundland". It's clear where we stand in this hell hole of a Country and it's time we left the upper canadian assholes to their own devices.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to see how long Canada would survive if all the resource based provinces, (Alberta, NL, NS, Sask, etc. ) left. They'd all be begging for pennies in no time.
Artfull Dodger said.....
ReplyDeleteSomething needs to be understood, politics is a game and he with the most marbles wins!
The conservatives under Harper are no different than the liberals, they want to be the governing party and will do whatever it takes to achieve that, even renege on promises made. The conservatives see a possibility of making gains in Quebec, therefore they will pander to Quebec, or anyone else who can give them enough seats, nothing different here folks!
Our federal Conservative elected representatives, Loyola Hearn and Fabian Manning (Norm has tendered his resignation) will do whatever garantees them a job or at the very least a nice golden parachute (pension), so lets not expect anything from these people other than sleight of hand, they are not to be trusted!
In summary, the federal government does not give a rats hiney about what the folks in this province think about the promise broken, our numbers won't adversly affect their agenda. Additionally, the majority of our elected representatives in Ottawa only care about their CARREER, lets not expect anything more than that from thses people!
Regards,
Artfull Dodger
To Artful Dodger:
ReplyDeletePoint well taken.
It is reasonable to assume that our people in Ottawa only care about THEIR CAREER$
On the other hand, Mr Danny Williams should have started a program a long time ago, to deal with our most important natural resource: our PEOPLE.
Pat
The time has come for the people of Newfoundland and Labrador to see the writing on the wall .That as long as we as a people remain in this "Confederation" we are doomed,to the overlords of central canada.I would like to think that the propaganda machine,from Ottawa,that pumps lie's and deciet into blogs such as yours patriot would be somewhat quite on a day such as this.That even they would have enough respect for us as fellow human beings to let us rant and roar,and shake off the lie's from the "Evil Empire" .But,no,I see that they were the first to respond to this out-rage.
ReplyDeleteWhat I am waiting to see,of course, is the reaction from the conservative's in Newfoundland and Labrador.Any Politician .From any party.His first and foremost responsibility should go to the people that he/she represents.Lets see how much money it will take these men.The best of our society that "we" have chosen to represent us .Let us now see there character,as we read the writing on the wall.As Mr Gilles Duceppe,so obvoisly stated about the budget,that, hey it's our money anyway.Until Newfoundland and Labrador ,can stand together like the people of Quebec.Like the people of Alberta.Only then will they relise what has happened to them .But ,I fear that is borrowed time that we do not have .
As Always,Lost-In-Exile
Let us cut this G*D D*mN so called equal opportunities Country loose. What a Sham! And what a bunch of lying and deceitful corrupt politicians.
ReplyDeleteTo Anon who said,
ReplyDelete"I would like to think that the propaganda machine,from Ottawa,that pumps lie's and deciet into blogs such as yours patriot would be somewhat quite on a day such as this.That even they would have enough respect for us as fellow human beings to let us rant and roar,and shake off the lie's from the "Evil Empire" .But,no,I see that they were the first to respond to this out-rage."
I guess you may be right. I don't know if the first two responses were from spin doctors or just the old fashioned mental defectives that often raise their heads in these situations but it's clear the feds are watching at least.
Here are some of the entries on my site log today (those who popped in for a visit):
parl203.parl.gc.ca – Parliament of Canada - 74 visits
ottgate.dfo-mpo.gc.ca – Department of Fisheries and Oceans - 7 visits
dns.acoa-apeca.gc.ca – Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency - 23 visits
webacc.csc-scc.gc.ca – Corrections Canada - 213 visits
(hopefully the last one is just some interested prisoners and not the feds preparing a bunk for me)
Cheers.
Artfull Dodger said....
ReplyDeleteI heard an interesting remark today, that remark being that an independant should run in all seven ridings for the next federal election.
Perhaps it's time for the province to make a bold statement!
Regards,
Artfull Dodger
If the people of Newfoundland and Labrador do not see this ,for what it is ,we as a people ,are truely doomed.
ReplyDeleteThe Need for a political party that will build our province to the Statute that she truely deserves has never been more clearly defined in our history.The time for talk is done.The time for writing must now stop.The time for debate has come to and end.
As for canada ,she shall reap what she has sowed.
As Always,Lost-In-Exile
PS: Patriot,if you think that was informative you should check out the reverse look-up Zones ,in your DNS server:)
I have a serious "I Am Sorry" to convey to my fellow Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
ReplyDeleteWhen the now Prime Minister was campaigning for the Prime Ministership, he said that Atlantic Canadians had a 'Culture of Dependence'. I thought of the statement that sent everyone into a frenzy in Atlantic Canada, and I thought to myself, you know, I think that he has really diagnosed the problems here in this part of the country, especially Newfoundland and Labrador.
We all knew of the top notch resources that we were endowed with in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador and we kept asking the question over and over why can't we get ahead? The resources within our province consisted of high quality renewable resources, like Fish and Hydroelectric energy and non-renewable like Oil, Iron Ore, Nickel and different other types of metals, all of the resources which were exported out of here and benefiting other province's economies in a big way, but not ours. After, analyzing what Stephen Harper said, I made the assumption and jumped on the band wagon and said "Yes" it sure sounds like we do have a 'Culture of Dependence", since we allow our resources to be shipped out of Newfoundland and Labrador in the raw state, without the least bit of processing and hence leaving ourselves jobless and without a trace of economies. After all the processing of resources is where the bulk of the jobs are involved. I adhered to that viewpoint right up until this Budget was passed and I was told through the Budget document that the promise made by Prime Minister Harper that would NOT see Newfoundland and Labrador's non-renewable resources included in the formula that would compute the equalization payment for the provinces.
Now that the Prime Minister has gone back on his promise and done an about face and included those resources in the formula and then explained it away by saying the Premiers of the other provinces would not allow him to take them out, well now I know that it doesn't matter one iota about how Newfoundlanders and Labradorians want their resources dealt out. It has all to do with what the other provincial premiers say and nothing at all to do with the fact that Newfoundlanders and Labradorians have sat back and allowed their resources to be sent out of the province without opening their mouths to rebel, and that they were only too willing to accept equalization payments in lieu of the resources. I know that not to be the case with the last resource that went out of here, Voisey's Bay Nickel, since we shouted long and hard on that resource, but Sudbury, Ontario and Thompson, Manitoba were the recipients of that wonderful resource and, of course, both of those cities are where the economies are created from the processing.
I am so sorry I got caught up in the statement made by Stephen Harper and came on side with him, since Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, do not have a "Culture of Dependence', it is vice-versa, the Federal politicians, including, the Prime Minister and the other provinces without resources who are the ones with the 'Culture of Dependence'. The Prime Minister said himself that if he did what the province of Newfoundland and Labrador wanted and went against the other provinces and their premiers, like Quebec, Ontario and Manitoba, etc. that have a dependence on this province's resources, well then the Premiers of those provinces would have the Budget voted down. There is no way for a resource-rich province like Newfoundland and Labrador to make it within Canada. Newfoundland and Labrador can only flourish outside of Canada, and like one of our Senators, George Baker said in The Telegram a couple of years ago, Newfoundland and Labrador is a province that would survive outside of Canada. Our land mass is on the Atlantic Ocean shipping lanes, we are a resource rich province and we just have 500,000 people, these factors should bold well for this province.
Also back in 2000 John Ibbotson wrote a very positive article in the Globe and Mail titled "Newfoundland looking out to sea" in which he named islands in the North Atlantic, like the Alands Islands, Faroe Islands and Iceland that have thrived on far less resources than what Newfoundland and Labrador posses. Mr. Ibbotson's article is a must read for everyone.