A number of cities are considering a ban on new drive-thrus. Here’s a quick summary of what’s happening ‘in that department’:
North Vancouver, BC
Edmonton, AB
King’s County, NS
Toronto
Peterborough
London
Ajax
Mississauga
Sarnia
To show your opposition to drive-thrus, sign the petition here:
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/ban-drive–throughs-in-canada
Previously announced Conservative tax cuts will mean an annual loss of government revenue of $40.2 billion by 2012-2013. Economist Erin Weir has commented, “It is striking that the tax cuts will cost as much as it currently costs to run the government of Canada’s entire non-military side.”
Turning the screws …
Former Harper chief of staff Tom Flanagan recently praised the Conservative government for pulling off “quite a performance,” achieving radical changes with successive revenue cuts without ever tipping their hand about what they were up to. Flanagan described the Conservatives as “turning the screws on the federal government.” and “boxing in the ability of the federal government to come up with new program ideas . . .”
A nation of bullies?
Harper said while many Canadians might yearn for a return to classic peacekeeping — a role that is now all but eliminated — that is not what his government is going to deliver. Canada’s future “peace” missions will involve “the robust use of force,” requiring “a strong, modern, multi-faceted military backed by the political will to deploy.” Given the extreme costs of state-of-the art military equipment, a “modern” and “multi-faceted” military is a recipe for runaway military spending, far beyond the increases the Conservatives have already promised.
It’s a long article, but well worth it if you’ve got 15-20 minutes (or less, if you’re a fast reader).
This article pre-empted some thoughts I was having about the state of Canadian politics and where we’ve been and where we’re being taken. The lack of resistance to the Harper regime is maddening.
So many things have been lost:
Some other things that will likely disappear if we don’t get our act together:
The clock is ticking and we’re running out of time. Let’s do something. Please.
I read this piece and ask myself “is this a big story” or is it something that’s coming from the world of hyperbole and scaremongering?
I mean, bottled water has received a pretty bad rap of late, right? If most cities aren’t considering some kind of bottled water levy, they should be. For starters, it’s a great source of revenue. And for those companies that are just scooping the water from city taps and bottling it, it would be a great way to recoup some of the infrastructure costs that companies are taking advantage of. Finally, it would really put a sting on a product that has a price per litre that outranks the cost of a litre of gas.