I'm going to state something with which very few of you will disagree, but challenges the central myth of conservatism: Conservatives cannot manage economies. They're dismal at it. They don't build, they wreck and destroy and cheapen and get giddy about anything that invigorates nature, red in tooth and claw.

I'm making this un-astounding, but needed-to-be-said argument for two reasons: first, the federal government is announcing its budget today; second, city of Toronto operating budget deliberations have received much attention and two of the city's leading mayoral candidates are chiming in on ways to cut costs and trash public services.