Millions of Canadians seem willing--even eager--to get a chance to vote for Paul Martin whenever he calls the next federal election. That he would win the Liberal leadership and be in a position to call an election by next February was never in doubt. But why Canadians seem so eager to vote for a Martin-led Liberal party remains a mystery if you compare what he did as finance minister to what Canadians say their values are.
Public services and privatization
Paul Martin began his budget speech on February 27, 1995, with the following words:
“Mr. Speaker, there are times in the progress of a people when fundamental challenges must be faced, fundamental choices made, a new course charted. For Canada, this is one of those times. Our resolve, our values, our very way of life as Canadians are being tested. The choice is clear.
“We can take the path too well-trodden of minimal
Another dusty day in Orange Farm near Johannesburg: red earth split in cracks, long dry dirt roads leading to the freeway that leads to the city. The sun above is a huge fiery ball sucking up whatever moisture its rays fall upon. Africa. Nothing here is more vital to life than water, and yet it is here that struggles for access to this basic “staff of life” are the most desperate.
Business interests in BC are lobbying hard for tax cuts for corporations and wealthy individuals. These kinds of tax cuts are regressive, because they would primarily benefit those at the top of the income ladder--those who need a break the least. Tax cuts would also reduce the revenue needed by governments to fund the public programs and services most of us depend on.
Recent revelations about private surgical clinics in Vancouver offering quick service to patients willing to pay a "facility fee" have once again sparked debate about private clinics. Doctors who run these private surgical clinics argue their private services will decrease waiting times for others.
Experience and evidence from across Canada and around the world, however, does not support this claim.