Corporate Tax Freedom Day now arrives on Feb 1 next week as corporate income tax has been slashed to 8% of all government revenue at a cost of $13 billion a year.
Notice that invisible hand of the marketplace giving the PotashCorp green piggie a surreptitious extra little push in the vid?
That's because Saskatchewan PotashCorp was the “leading cash hoarder” between 2000 and 2010, porking away over $5 billion for a rainy day that only ever rains on you.
PotashCorp CEO Bill Doyle of Chicago pulled down $11.6 million in benefits in 2010. While his base salary was only $1.17 million, he also aced a $2.06 million bonus for 2010, in addition to $3.7mil in stock options and $4.5 mil in pension benefits.
Speaking of pension benefits, who exactly does Steve have slated to make up all that lost corporate tax revenue?
Low income pensioners, apparently, according to his SOTU delivered from Davos, home of the .01%.
But wait a minute. Aren't Freedom 75 guys his main voter demographic?
Damage control alert! Urgent update from PMO-bot quickly spreads across the media :
"The memo tells MPs to counter opposition attacks by pledging there will be substantial notice and an adjustment period so that any cuts don't impact benefits to those close to retirement. The talking points say other Canadians will have time to adjust."Yeah. Time to adjust. Flashback to Steve in 2008 :
"I think there's probably some great buying opportunities emerging in the stock market as a consequence of all this panic," Harper told reporters as the S&P/TSX fell for the fifth straight day."On CBC's The Current (9:40 mark) this morning - Privatizing Water - Elizabeth Brubaker of the water privatization lobby group Environment Probe said Canada needs at least $90B, maybe more, to invest in water and sewage utilities in Canada and only corporations have the money to do it.
And why is that? Because we have starved government revenue for a decade by slashing corporate taxes.
Hope all you 'Freedom 75' Harper supporters are paying attention here.
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Friday night update : Stephen Maher totally nails it. Tories have put Canadians in a hole
Sunday am OAS quotes :
Con MP Shelly Glover on CTV : "There are no changes that are going to be occurring with our seniors with regards to OAS at this point", plus complaints about media bring it up
PMO Office : "Fact: If we do nothing, OAS will eventually become too expensive and unsustainable", plus complaints about media bringing it up.
Hey, it was Steve who brought it up.
Confused? The Jurist explains.
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12 comments:
They aren't.
Just like prairie farmers aren't.
Just like armed forces veterans aren't.
There are way too many idiots in this sad country who have no fucking idea what their best interests are let alone how those interests might best be served.
And that statement is intended to cover people right across the political spectrum, no party excluded, no demographic excluded.
Canada is essentially fucked now. There's no chance whatever for a return to the country we might remember from the first years of the new millennium. There's not even a chance any more that we could return to the country of 2005. And we can't remake it either.
Fucked.
What you and I treasured about the place is now shit and what was shit is now considered treasure by the new masters.
There's little left to do but weep.
Cut the crap, Carmichael! Things can change for the worse, but they can also change for the better. Sitting there wailing that the good old days are gone will not help us fight the forces of destruction. And we still have a lot to treasure.
Carmichael's got a point. It's shit now and until Unrest. What TF is there to treasure when he goes after the seniors? Women and Grey Brigade is the only hope now. Will we rise up or bend over? That's the only question now.
While I don't intend to go over the edge quite as far as Carmichael, it sure does appear that we are now Thomas Frank's New Kansas.
In other words it would appear that huge swaths of our population has been convinced to vote against their own best interests.
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But in 2012, that old thing (voting against economic interests) continues? NOooo. That equates to people not caring about their own quality of life and work. Even unions, lol. Dismal fail on the unions/people's part. So then, what to do, education? Gov't sure as hell isn't going to invest in that. You twitter people need to develop new hashtags. :)
Hey peeps, see post update.
Stephen Maher really nails it, including Steve's fudgy Davos bragging numbers.
Excellent 2004 interview with Thomas Frank, Ross, on people being Conned into voting against their own interests. Thank you for that. And it continues today - the reframing of class war into a culture war that never mentions economics - and holy shit but Newt Gingrich is back again too.
"Carmichael" : with heartfelt respect, and I really mean that ... Before we entirely throw in the towel here ...
Steve has the support of the 40% of the 60% of eligible voters who actually voted - that's just 24%, 24%!, and that's with 98% of mainstream media who endorsed a party in the last election endorsing Steve. The biggest thing he has going for him is voter disgust with the whole process. No need to help him out with that.
Yes, the Canada you and I loved as a liberal democracy - to the extent it ever actually was one and we disagree on that I know - is not coming back. The disgusted people will eventually ask something different of it and they are currently running at 76% opposed to what is going on now.
Carmichael, I've deleted your last comment because I won't have you address other commenters here as c*nts. I'm quite happy to have you call me one if you want to make the rest of your comment look ridiculous but I don't have time to check with everyone else to see if they are offended at being so addressed. Knock it off.
Wow, folks, I hope you enjoy the next 3.5 years in your beds with the blankets pulled over your heads because we're fucked.
Well, fuck that bad attitude! I'm sick and fucking tired of this negative shit coming from those who consider themselves progressive. There's lots we can do. There's lots we *have* to do.
And first up, let's take back our power. Let's do something other than whine and cower. Alison's been my inspiration, blogging her ass off here at Creekside.
And for what? To hear all y'all whine and complain about the good shit she finds? Shit that's gonna help us bring down the HarperCons.
We can make a difference! And if you don't believe that then shut the fuck up and get the fuck out of the way of those of us who believe we can. We don't need to hear your fucking doubts. We have them, too. But we're determined as hell to take back our democracy. And we will. And we'll do it with or without you!
And now I need some sleep. I just spent 5 fucking hours writing my own fucking blogpost. And goddammit, I had fun!
Alison, if you need to delete this, go ahead. My liberal use of the fucking word, fucking, may be over the fucking top. I'm tired. Boo fucking hoo.
Harper is going after his old supporters. I can't wait until he goes after his loyal Jewish and Christian supporters. They'll become his enemies of Harper's Canada.
Harper: "What? I bet you don't believe in Jesus. What's your name?"
Other guy: "Jesus."
You all might want to take a look at this. Pension clawbacks? Look what Harper is going to get ... http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/01/19/mp-pension-most-expensive-stephen-harper_n_1216677.html?ref=tw
I wonder if people who didn't vote or parked their votes with the Conservatives cringe when Emperor Stevie scolds the EU nations for not taking austerity seriously enough? What a repugnant, self-satisfied puke.
Bush Jr comes across as a freaking diplomat in comparison. But what really galls me is that he announces his agenda not to Canadians he supposedly represents but to a foreign audience - as a "this is how you do it buddies" pugilistic stance.
And speaking of Bush Jr, when he proposed changes to social security benefits for seniors, he had to scurry back big time on that proposal. Perhaps that's why all the MPs have marching orders to soften the blow with this so called "phased in" approach. Again, Harper's default position is that those approaching retirement are greedy enough to think that the next generation being screwed is not their problem.
And a great piece it was too, Regina Mom
PMO Hates Gays & Greens, Judges & Nurses, AKA "Foreign Radicals"
Skinny : Also younger Harper.
Anon : Honestly I don't know how Steve can be expected to struggle along on a $5M pension.
BY : Mulroney and Chretien also had to scurry back from announcements of OAS changes.
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