The Atlantica Party Alternative Budget 2011

It is unfortunately the case that equality to some doesn't necessarily translate into a preference for seeing that everyone start out in life on as level a playing field as possible. Among the least of several deserving if not creative responses, we'd have to question any proposal that glaringly boasts about the fact that no acknowledgement and no provisions are made for multi-generational injustices, that have otherwise irrevocably set entire communities on a far less than equal trajectory with ones fellow citizens, those of us who have historically fared much better due to centuries of systemic advantages. With the sort of ignorance that we have on display here, the sensible thing to my mind would be to suspect the entire premise of this so called ‘alternate' party.

Why does this right-wing spammer get to hangout around here again?

Actually I would content that the budget is very progressive. Government has a duty to help those in need, ie social services. We view Social Services asa core essential service that needs to be protected and even expanded. The problem in Nova Scotia is that out of control spending has put us in a situation with a structural deficit and growing debt, creating inefficient government and expansions in non-essential services, to such an extent that the core services are threatened. Our budget is designed to restore a firm foundation for essential programs.

It must be like playing whack a mole for provincial governments in general. The McGuinty government is in deficit mode big time, but not all of us in Ontario blame even McGuinty for that. Feds have just about every province on starvation level transfer payments since the 1990s. Tens of billions of dollars were cut from health and social transfers then, and now the country as a whole is not enjoying a $100+ billion dollar infrastructure deficit among a list of other shortfalls in important social spending.

These shortages can be traced to neoliberal ideology in Canada beginning by, and some say as early as 1975 in Ottawa with Bank of Canada policies while others say it started at the federal level in the late 1980s to early 90s. Capital is more globalized since the new liberal financial regime was in place by the 1970s. Federal governments do have policy options to choose from for fuller employment policies and curbing the power of capital. They just choose not to exercise them. We need a federal government with the political will to choose populist policies even once in a while rather than those favouring Bay Street's special interest groups. I think the NDP could be that government one day in the not too distant future and perhaps even by 2015. It will be up to Canadian voters to choose wisely though.

A party of one ain't much of a party.