Furthermore, while I cited some government stats, as I said not all were from government Web sites. Regardless, it’s very questionable that you can legitimately call those stats “government propaganda” particularly when the majority don’t even paint a favourable picture of the government.

With respect to your last comment (9 April) I appreciate that you’ve taken considerable time to offer your thoughts here but whatever you’re trying to express, just isn’t coherent.

With majority of Quebec shown over and over again they long to be in Canada no matter how many referendums they have, economically separatists accomplished nothing but to lose businesses for Quebec like each referendum before. So how can you help but not feel sorry for the majority that wants to stay in Canada. Socially federal funding that is in place would be a good place for Stephen Harper to put some propaganda in play putting letters in with those cheques emphasizing they won’t be coming in anymore and remember the millions it cost to change the name of Toronto Airport to Person International. I look at Quebec and see a majority wishing that Duceppe and his separatists would separate from Quebec and leave them alone. Nobody wants a liability like the separatists rather an asset that would help build a strong team to prosper globally with the rest of Canada; Duceppe and his separatists are not this. Do you realize how many people would give up everything they have to live in a country like Canada or the US and reap the rewards? I’m not the only one that sees Duceppe and his separatists as a liability as I glance through newspapers and internet reading comments about Duceppe and his separatists as Nazi, blockheads, living in the dark ages and a whole lot of other comments I could fill this page with, coming from coast to coast from boarder to boarder including Quebec. I look at Gilles Duceppe and he reminds me of Napoleon Bonaparte, not the French version but the Bugs Bunny version. I also find the separatists he leads like the ones that followed James Warren Jones who founded the “Peoples Temple” in Jonestown. James Warren Jones had the followers consume a Kool Aid like substance that was made with poison. It was classed as “The greatest single loss of American civilian life in a non-natural disaster until the events of September 11, 2001, the tragedy at Guyana also ranks among the largest mass suicides in history.” as recorded by Wikipedia. “Napoleon” Duceppe and his followers will never allow progress were jobs, economic recovery, inner harmony and a stronger Canada “WITH QUEBEC” that would be more prevalent, by taking on a shape of the FLQ. The terrorism this time is through political propaganda by the self-centered(Duceppe) and weak minded(separatists). I hope this time Canadian government cuts off all levels of government funding, sets boarders and leaves Quebec with their multi million dollar costs it takes to run a referendum. I’m sure that would take the savory flavour of referendum out of the mouth of resistance and put millions back into the stomach of economic Canadian growth. It’s obvious that tough love is the way to go with Quebec to alleviate the referendum addiction. I just feel bad about the rest of my brothers and sisters stuck inside those provincial walls that have to endure such imprudent times caused by a few, but as a Canadian I guess where all in the same circumstances, so lets put it back into proper perspective and do it right this time.

JFK
twitter.com/economicblow

Joe Knipfel
St. Catharines, ON
twitter.com/economicblow

Here’s an analogy. Let’s suppose that I have two pyromaniac friends. In our pretend scenario, the first went out a couple weeks ago and burned down 67 houses, the second burned down 75 houses, and I went out and burned down 31 houses. Because my friends burned down more houses than me, does that make what I did any less of a problem? It’s still not a good thing.

Additionally, other countries are not Canada. They have very different societies, their economic environments have different regulations and stresses, their governments operate differently, etc. What may be manageable and acceptable in one society is not necessarily in another. I think the structural debt the Conservatives seem bent on continuing, will eventually require changes to our society which lead it down the wrong path: a path that degrades Canadian society rather than builds it.

I’d also like to respond your point about pollution. The article you linked to unfortunately doesn’t cite much evidence in its very sarcastic claim that Canada is one of the world’s top three polluters. It’s almost entirely anecdotal. I notice it was written by someone named “Joe Knipfel” I’m not sure if that’s you or not (based on your initials). In any case that’s fine, I see nothing wrong with reading someone’s anecdotal story about some experience. But let’s take it a little more seriously than one person’s anecdotal evidence. An article like that really needs some background, supporting data, otherwise I’m afraid that people like myself will not take it for much more than a flawed, if not colourful opinion.

In fact, although Canada’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions aren’t the highest in the world, per capita, they’re way beyond other countries. Again, different countries, different situations, but what we all have in common is a shared planet with a global problem. There is no excuse for Canada to be producing such large quantities of GHG per capita. But I don’t want to talk opinion here, let’s look at what authoritative sources have to say based on real evidence and data collected.

The government of Canada web site says

“Although Canadians make up less than 1% of the world population, Canada contributes about 2% of global GHG emissions and has one of the most GHG-intensive economies in the industrialized world (Canada ranked 5th in GHG intensity among OECD countries in 2005)…. Canada’s GHG emissions per person and its emissions intensity are second highest among the G8 economies.”

You can see how and where the government’s data was collected on the site, under methodology. But in case you don’t want to trust our government’s web site, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which requires regular reporting on emissions from countries shows a very unsettling comparison of Canada against other countries. The graphs and charts here show Canada’s GHG problem hasn’t been reversed yet. Explore the UNFCCC site, it has plenty of charts and data to keep you busy considering how bad our pollution problem really is.

How about the Conference Board of Canada’s studies on socio-economic performance? It states

“The Conference Board’s overarching goal is to measure quality of life for Canada and its peers. But a country must not only demonstrate a high quality of life—it must also demonstrate that its high quality of life is sustainable.

There is growing recognition that gross domestic product (GDP) produced at the expense of the global environment, and at the expense of scarce and finite physical resources, overstates the net contribution of that economic growth to our prosperity. Canadians understand that protecting the environment from further damage is not a problem for tomorrow, but a challenge for today. Without serious attention to environmental sustainability, Canada puts its society and its quality of life at risk” The Conference Board of Canada further backs that up with a series of charts and data reporting on Canada is doing–rating Canada 15th worst out of 17 peer countries.”

Since you seem to like comparing us with our neighbours, at another page the Conference Board of Canada, based on the data collected, not anecdotes, states

“Canada is one of the world’s largest GHG emitters. Canada ranks 16th out of 17 OECD countries on GHG emissions per capita and scores a “D” grade.3 In 2005, Canada’s GHG emissions were 22.6 tonnes per capita, almost double the 17-country average of 12.4 tonnes per capita. Canada’s per capita GHG emissions were also almost four times greater than Norway’s, the top performer.”

And finally take a look at a much broader, in-depth view on Canada’s environmental record in comparison to other industrialized nations in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). This report spans two decades of data, and was produced by David R. Boyd, an environmental lawyer, a Senior Associate with the Eco-Research Chair of Environmental Law and Policy at the University of Victoria and an Adjunct Professor with Simon Fraser University’s School of Resource and Environmental Management. In the report:

“The study provides accurate, independent information about Canada’s track record in protecting the environment. All of the statistical information comes from data verified and published by the OECD.

The results prove that Canada has one of the poorest environmental records of the industrialized countries. The primary finding is that for the twenty-five environmental indicators examined, Canada’s overall ranking among OECD nations is a dismal 28th out of 29.”

Please reconsider your anecdotes for future articles. You might find there are other perspectives than your feelings during one particularly nice day.

JFK
twitter.com/economicblow