Oil Profits Flow Outside Canada; Environmental Costs Stay Inside Canada - It's Just That Simple

Submitted: 9:05am, 19 May '12


Andrew Coyne: There is a method to Thomas Mulcair’s ‘Dutch Disease’ madness
 Andrew Coyne, National Post, May 18, 2012 
http://fullcomment.nationalpost.com/2012/05/18/andrew-coyne-there-is-a-method-to-thomas-mulcairs-dutch-disease-madness/#Comments


Coyne,

You suggest one advantage Ontario has for the higher dollar is - cheaper machinery.

However, what that really means is less machinery being made in Canada.

Also, no one seems to want to do an actual analysis of all this.

The big argument Harper and the Con's make is that the tar sands create jobs in Ontario as well. However, no one seems to volunteer just how many jobs.

What is the ratio of jobs lost in Ontario compared to jobs gained.

With Harper and the tar sands the only thing that flows outside Canada faster than the oil are the profits.

Harper and the Con's also talk of job creation in the West.

But, how many are highly specialized that Ontarians simply don't have the training or experience to fulfill - as compared to the US where they have been going around the world extracting other counties oil for 100 years.

It is the private oil companies that do the hiring.

They are international ventures that produce oil in many countries. They have their own skilled labour pools and you can betcha they will bring them in first. The Western Tar sands is a mega make work project for the US (and a hand full of other countries), but not Canada. We see this paradigm at work in the F-35's as well.

Another by Alberta is the transfer payments - but no one seems to volunteer how much transfer payments.

Or, more importantly in the 145 years of Confederation what's the net transfer payments out of Ontario compared to into Ontario, or how much into Western provinces compared to how much out of Ontario.

Harper, Flaherty and the other Con's are being very hypocritical about wanting to grow jobs.

The biggest stiffling factor in job creation and our economy (and most if the other developed economies) is the high cots of oil and gasoline at the pumps.

If Harper really were interested in the Canadian economy and not simply creating wealth outside Canada and very specific sector of the Canadian demographic, he would put his efforts into some way of reducing the cost of oil and gasoline for all Canadians.

Harper calls Canada an oil superpower - well, Harper, how about using some of that 'power' to help all of Canada.

Mulcair is right (morally) that the financial burden of cleaning up the environment is bing pushed off to our children and our children's children.

The profits are flowing outside Canada but the environmental damage isn't.

It's just that simple.

Lloyd MacILquham cicblog.com/comments.html