Federal budget
Colour me unimpressed.
The only real tax cuts are to corporations; the things that will help individuals are (a) minor and (b) deferred for 4 years. Oh, except for the RRSP contribution limit: now it’s higher, so if you’re earning 6 figures, you can put away more. If you’re not earning that much, it doesn’t help — the percentage is the same — and in any case most people don’t max out their contributions. (I am working very hard at catching up now, because that whole compounding thing is good, and because I can do it now, and won’t be able to eventually.)
Most of the budget is all about future promises, the rest is about avoiding Joe Clark’s fate — which was never going to happen, because no one was going to be the party that forced another election less than 12 months later. (Why is everyone saying that? Because it’s true.)
NaPo aside, I like that we’ve got the balanced budget thing happening — the point of a budget isn’t to show off how many taxes you can reduce; I dislike the slow, leisurely repayment of the debt. (I also dislike the lack of debt relief to other countries. However: that is not a budget issue, per se.)
Like most people, I don’t have huge objections to the budget, but I’m also underwhelmed by it. But it really came down to this:
Hey, Stephen, here are some tax cuts and money for defense: will you shut up now? (He did.)
Hey, Jack, here’s some money for municipalities, now go away. (He didn’t.)
Fuck off, Gilles.
February 25th, 2005 at 1:43 am
Heh, I love your summary.
Now, if only we can find out if Canada is on board with the missile defense program, or not. I haven’t been able to divine a clear answer from the “well, sorta, in a way we’re already a part of it, ok not really, but we are kinda” that Celluci/Martin/who was that other guy again? were saying the other day.
Right now it seems like we’re out, but we’ll see.
February 25th, 2005 at 9:12 am
My biggest mistake was in not adding something about “you don’t have enough votes to force an election” to the fuck off, Gilles part.
It still seems like we’re out, except we’re in, but not in the way of being really in, but not quite being out. Enough dithering to keep the Conservatives happy, I guess? I don’t really understand this particular move.
February 25th, 2005 at 1:07 pm
This move can only be understood in the context of Martin acting this way on every single issue. “Well, I kindasorta agree with what my opponents are saying, but not really, but then again, on the other hand…”
I was talking to a friend about him a few months ago, and we agreed that while we’d anticipated that many people (possibly including us) would be unhappy with Martin as PM…no one seemed to expect that he’d be such a LOSER.
February 25th, 2005 at 5:50 pm
But I don’t understand this particular action ever, so it’s just a continuation of a move I don’t understand.
I’m not particularly unhappy with him as a PM, actually, just unimpressed and a bit bored. I wonder if it’s because of the minority government thing or because he’s just like that.