A man sleeps on the street.
A man sleeps on the street. Credit: Jon Tyson / Unsplash Credit: Jon Tyson / Unsplash

Policies that once distributed wealth more evenly have been and continue to be dismantled. It is a threat to democracy too.                           

In today’s problem plagued world, there are not any problems creating wealth. Never In our entire history has there been such extreme wealth. However, we do have an extremely serious distribution of wealth problem. 

It couldn’t be clearer the signs of a society in decline are everywhere. 

record homeless encampments, overwhelmed food banks, increasing violence, shootings, stabbings, assaults, auto thefts, car jackings and home invasions are up.

Underlining it all is a rise in child poverty, which was supposed to be eliminated   by 2,000. There is something seriously wrong when a country as rich as ours can’t ensure   all children have the needed food to grow and develop and parents can’t get affordable, safe and secure child care.  Fewer and fewer people show up to vote.  Only 17 per cent of the people voted for Ontario premier Doug Ford.   Just like the US, anger, resentment and distrust of government is growing fast.  There is something seriously wrong while at the same time the five richest billionaires double their wealth over the past four years according to the CBC.   The gap between the haves and the have nots is growing at a record rate.    It is important to note there were no food banks until 1981 when, because of a terrible recession and need they were created.   There is something seriously wrong when instead of addressing the reasons for food banks, they have become a permanent feature of our society and we are under constant   pressure to keep them supplied with food and cash donations. 

The common sense policies

In the 1980’s UK prime minister Margaret Thatcher and US president Ronald Reagan brought in tax cuts, deregulation, now called “cutting red tape” and privatization. They claimed it would fix  the economy and  benefit everyone. Critics called it “trickle down” economics.”  The theory being that wealth would trickle down to everyone. Trickledown economics   made a resurgence under both Canadian Conservative prime minister Stephen Harper and Former Ontario premier Mike Harris’s “Common sense” revolution in which tax cuts, deregulation and privatization were the center piece.  Now “common sense” is Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre’s main talking point. Tax cuts in particular are the main policy of Conservatives everywhere.  The wealthy have been very successful at making the public believe tax increases on the working 

Class is bad and made every politician in every party terrified of announcing any kind of progressive tax increase. The logical conclusion that tax cuts, deregulation and privatization will lead to prosperity is this. Let’s cut taxes to zero, lets eliminate all regulations and let’s privatize every public service including   the water and the air.  Then, then we will have prosperity for all.  

What would Dickens say? 

Charles Dickens was a critic of the uber wealthy of his times and creator of the greedy grasping Ebenezer Scrooge character. In the 1830s, Dickens wrote “the rich will take the widows mite and the orphan’s crumb.” Never in our entire history, has so much wealth been accumulated by so few while at the same time so many suffer deprivation. These billionaires and their now trillion-dollar corporations have done everything, they can to avoid paying taxes which has been enabled by their political friends. Dickens would have roundly criticized us in the strongest possible language. 

Big Tax cuts for the wealthy and their corporations, were done under the cover of tiny tax cuts for the public.      Conservatives like Ford and Poilievre like to say   they want to leave more money in your pocket. You have to ask yourself has having a few more dollars in your pocket due to all the tax cuts since 1995 made any difference in your life at all?  I’m betting you, your family and people you know have had trouble accessing healthcare, education and childcare.    

Poilievre says “everything feels broken and only “common sense” can fix it” Now you can say, yeah, 30 years of “common sense” policies broke the country.  Where is the leader who says It is time to end the insanity of trickle-down policies? History has clearly shown the pathway to affordability and prosperity is a   progressive tax system and that public services and public enterprise works very well for both public and business prosperity.  Reversing tax cuts for the wealthy and their corporations is not raising taxes; it is restoring funding to rebuild our once civil society. 

If we don’t take that path, Dickens would say, “Are there no prisons?” Are there no shelters? Are there no foodbanks? And“Let them eat cake.”