Joe Oliver and the Reckless Incompetence of the Con Regime

Well I'm sure Joe Oliver is feeling pretty good about the way Statistics Canada was able to fix his lousy job numbers.

And must be toasting his success with some of that water from the tailing ponds he once tried to convince us was clean enough to drink.

While making plans to win the next election by bribing some Canadians with tax cuts.

But sadly for poor old Olly, it appears he doesn't know what's he's doing.

For the jobs he is creating are still mostly lousy part time jobs.

The revised figures were a clear improvement over what had been a surprisingly grim report, but there is still plenty of concern over the fact that July’s gains were entirely due to a rise in part-time employment. Full-time jobs were still down, though only by 18,000 and not 60,000 as the agency had originally reported.

And his plan to create good jobs, by killing them to eliminate the deficit, just so he can get the bribe money, makes absolutely no sense.

Say this for Joe Oliver: he’s nothing if not consistent. The federal finance minister was back at it this past week, banging the drum for the Harper government’s drive to eliminate Ottawa’s deficit at all costs while tempting voters with tax cuts just in time for next year’s election.

But from the point of view of the national good, the Tory fixation on the deficit makes little sense. And nowadays it’s not just left-leaning economists and social activists who are making that point. Some well-credentialed fiscal conservatives are also chipping away at the Tory case.

In a widely discussed paper for the business-oriented C. D. Howe Institute, McMaster University economics professor William Scarth concludes the Tories have it all wrong. He says we’re in “non-normal” times, when interest rates are very low and growth is low or non-existent in many countries. So the government should use fiscal policy to take a more active role in getting the economy moving.

But of course, as the Star editorialists point out, the plan is purely political. The Cons are once again putting their own interests before the interests of Canadians.

It’s an old game, and who knows? It might even work one more time. But it’s far from the best approach to dealing with what ails Canada’s economy.

Joe Oliver is not the REAL finance minister...



And Stephen Harper would do ANYTHING to win the next election.

And the good news? 

If we take the time to explain to Canadians what those tax cuts are costing, good jobs now, and the death of government and medicare later.

The Cons will pay a heavy price for their reckless incompetence.

Stephen Harper will be exposed as NOT a real economist.

And be FIRED.

And Joe Oliver can go back to his old job...



Yup. Cons and economics are a toxic mix.

Con times are always hard times. Or crazy times.

And we can't get rid of them soon enough...

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