Excited Delirium

Stories about Excited Delirium, the Shock Economy and a little fiction here and there.

Daily Archives: September 13, 2008

Assessing the Criminality of Recent Gas Price Increases

Another hurricane is fast approaching land that’s more 2,000 km away from most Canadians.

Meanwhile, in Alberta (about 3,000 km away from most Canadians), the oil keeps flowing.  South.

And 3,000 km away in St. John’s, Danny Williams is warning all Canadians to stop voting for Conservatives.

Another day in the oil industry.  And the people of Ontario pay dearly for it.

The recent massive and uncalled for increase in the price of gas clearly establishes some issues with the pricing of gas and oil in Canada.  We are net exporters.  We are the world’s largest supplier of fuel to the United States.  We are paying international prices that are controlled by speculators as opposed to supply and demand (full story here ) and WE STILL DO NOT HAVE A PLAN TO TAKE CARE OF OURSELVES.

This is shameful.  It’s criminal.  Retired people will be freezing and cutting up their heirloom dining tables before we stop pumping to California and the rest of the ‘lower 48′.

We have to put pressure on ALL of our leaders (so far, it only seems to be Jack Layton) to step up to the plate and clarify his plan to protect Canadian consumers.

We need to point to numbers:  since the Harper Conservatives have taken control of this country with a tiny minority, the price of gas has increased nearly 100%.  Stephen Harper wants to cut $0.02 off that increase without trying to get to the bottom of why we’re being ripped off so greatly.

Imagine the economic value of the transfers involved.  Every year, the average Canadian probably spends about $2000-$4000 on gas for their cars and $1500 for natural gas for their homes.  So, let’s say the annual gas bill is about $5000 (I know I’m blurring products, but stay with me).

With roughly 10 million households in Canada, that amounts to $50 billion per year being sucked out of our economy.  With an unjustified and criminal 10% increase in gas like we saw the other day, that amounts to the complete elimination of the GST!!

We now see why renewable programs always wind up on the back-burner.

People:  a penny here or there to account for diesel prices is not going to solve our problems.  We are beholden to massive international conglomerates that could care less about the economic well-being of Canadians.  Our petro-dollar is killing all of our stable industries and giving resource producers a one-time boost in revenue.  This is not sound policy.

As Canadians, we have to understand that and support a political party that will stand up for Canadians and not just say "I’ve learned over the years not to comment on day-to-day gas price fluctuations."

A mantra for Jack: Replace, Retool, Revive

Jack’s got the opportunity to win.  Stephen Harper is actually mimicking his every move, thinking that he’s got Dion beat.

When Jack decries the ridiculous increase in gas prices, Steve follows along.  What happened to the mighty market, Steve?

Anyways, the other day I was watching Dion make his presentation for the ‘Green Shift’ plan and he used this quote a number of times:  ‘Laissez-Faire, I don’t care’.  I’m sure it’s been around for a while, but it was timely and really does sum up Steve’s approach to the world.  For Steve to start to pretend to care about high gas prices now is a complete insult.

That got me to thinking:  Jack needs a catchy slogan.  And I’ve got it (please take if you think it will help):

Replace

  • Replace the Conservatives
  • Replace the mentality of letting people struggle on their own
  • Replace the mentality that the market is the only way (although we all know Steve is the country’s leading socialist with the promises he’s made in the last month)
  • Replace Canadian Democracy and make it work again

Retool

  • Retool the manufacturing industry and get our country ready for the 21st century rather than the Victorian age
  • ‘Retool’ the Canadian image on the international stage
  • Retool our approach to industry issues, particularly those that deal with consumers that have been left to the whims of cost-conscious corporations
  • Retool our attitude that the corporation isn’t the only way to get things done in Canada.  Co-ops, non-profits, charities and other organizations all play an important role and should get encouragement from a New Democrat goverment

Revive

  • Revive what we used to be:  a strong country that believed in principals of fairness, equality and opportunity
  • Revive our international image:  become peacekeepers instead of warmongers
  • Revive our economy
  • Revive our environment
  • Revive the livelihood of all Canadians

There.  I’ve said my peace.  I’ll be very pleased to hear Jack say this :)

Conservative ‘Democracy’

The same people that turfed a local MPP in Ontario are the people that are helping Steve spin his way to a potential majority.  Here’s a link to a story about what happened to Bill Murdoch , the Conservative representative from Bruce-Grey in Ontario who had the following to say about John Tory:

He should certainly be looking for other jobs in the community and we should probably go to a full-blown election for a new leader.

For those of you who don’t know, John Tory is the man who’s the leader of the Conservative Party of Ontario, but who has failed miserably in his attempts to actually get elected.  As such, the Conservatives in Toronto have been without a leader for years, leaving the Liberals to do as they please in Ontario.

THANK GOODNESS FOR THAT.

So, when you’re trying to decide on who to select for the Federal election, please people:  don’t be so gad-damn selfish and fall for Steve’s BS when it comes to spending your money on promises that they’ll never deliver (especially to Ontario).  Try thinking about the future of this country instead.

This action in Ontario is just a teeny little glimpse into what these people think about democracy, speaking out and challenging ‘strong leadership’.

You get silenced.  And then you get sent to the Tar Sands.

Tell it like it is: Anyone Who Claims Palin is Ready for Presidency is a Fucking Moron

If it were up to me, I’d much rather see Michael Palin running as vice-president nominee , but I guess the world isn’t that fortunate.  With him we’d at least get someone that can actually distinguish between humour and slapstick (or lipstick) and knows where a few countries (including Canada ) are other than those scripted into the speeches that some God-sucking cretin is writing for them.

Anyways, here’s the original story .  It’s a good one!

Is Sarah Palin a Granny?

At 44, she seems a little young to be a grandmother (and at the helm of the world’s most destructive country), but the CBC has investigated her background and is raising these questions:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7Coy1OAQXY

So … was ‘Trig’ her first grandson or fifth child?

Did the Republican Party really do its homework when they picked Sarah Palin as Vice-Presidential running mate?  It seems unlikely.