Canadian Politics Thread

[Rook]

19 minutes ago, The Lock said:

 

I will say, I'm currently in tech looking for work, and the difference in wages between Canada and the states is definately there. I think this observation is important because it's another missed opportunity. People like me end up in the states more often than not because, while we do have tech jobs here in Canada, it's not nearly on the same level of compete and I do believe we can do better.

 

We have an opportunity to jump on tech, which is always evolving, yet we don't do it enough.

Just don’t get sick my dude!!

[The Lock]

3 minutes ago, Rook said:

Just don’t get sick my dude!!

 

I'll totally go join MAGA! Who need a brain amirite?

[Ryan Strome]

7 minutes ago, Rook said:

We don’t want to be any part of BertaBama

You must be in the lower mainland? The further east you go in British Columbia There's actually a lot of people that are closer to Alberta thinking than they are lower mainland thinking. But generally when you get annexed you don't have much say in the matter.

6 minutes ago, Rook said:

Just don’t get sick my dude!!

His position probably comes with health insurance. 

Edited October 8, 2023 by Ryan Strome

[Rook]

2 minutes ago, Ryan Strome said:

You must be in the lower mainland? The further east you go in British Columbia There's actually a lot of people that are closer to Alberta thinking than they are lower mainland thinking. But generally when you get annexed you don't have much say in the matter.

His position probably comes with health insurance. 

Even with health insurance it can make you go broke.  Buddy of mine is an executive with one of the large insurance company.  Problem is, even with insurance you have to pay often times steep deductibles anytime you end up in the ER.  

[Ryan Strome]

Just now, Rook said:

Even with health insurance it can make you go broke.  Buddy of mine is an executive with one of the large insurance company.  Problem is, even with insurance you have to pay often times steep deductibles anytime you end up in the ER.  

Oh wow I wasn't aware of that. Sounds like car insurance. 

[Rook]

Just now, Ryan Strome said:

Oh wow I wasn't aware of that. Sounds like car insurance. 

Yeah, it’s kinda BS.  We are talking like hundreds of dollars as well.  

[The Lock]

Just now, Rook said:

Yeah, it’s kinda BS.  We are talking like hundreds of dollars as well.  

 

Yeah, honestly if I can go to Europe long-term I will. But it doesn't hurt to get paid in the states for a while while I'm healthy.

[Ryan Strome]

7 minutes ago, The Lock said:

 

Yeah, honestly if I can go to Europe long-term I will. But it doesn't hurt to get paid in the states for a while while I'm healthy.

Greece, Ireland, Netherlands would be my top three.

[King Heffy]

10 minutes ago, Ryan Strome said:

Greece, Ireland, Netherlands would be my top three.

Good choices but I'd have to put Czechia in there too.  Amazing beer and lots of hockey to watch.

[Bob Long]

1 hour ago, Optimist Prime said:

Canadians seem largely unaware that the most important votes happen at the city council/mayor and even more importantly at the Regional District levels of governance. I have studied this over the years and roughly 10% of the votes cast in a federal or Provincial election are cast at the Regional District level. I did the math the last time my area had a Regional District Director election and If only my adult relatives all vote for me i could have won if i was running. That is how little Canadians really care about governance of their day to day lives: but every one of those non voters will scream blue murder if the elected clown does something they dont like 

 

EDIT: now I am really curious how many of teh Freedom Cowboys at the Ottawa Occupation voted in their local Regional Director elections. I am going to strait up guess 5%, about half the 'at large' segment of the population. 

Yep there's all kinds of opportunities to get involved in municipal working groups e.g. where your say matters a lot 

[Bob Long]

1 hour ago, The Lock said:

 

I will say, I'm currently in tech looking for work, and the difference in wages between Canada and the states is definately there. I think this observation is important because it's another missed opportunity. People like me end up in the states more often than not because, while we do have tech jobs here in Canada, it's not nearly on the same level of compete and I do believe we can do better.

 

We have an opportunity to jump on tech, which is always evolving, yet we don't do it enough.

I see it all the time in medtech - we lose skilled people and young companies all the time to the US. It's one area where the Libs should be doing far more.

[Ryan Strome]

18 minutes ago, Bob Long said:

I see it all the time in medtech - we lose skilled people and young companies all the time to the US. It's one area where the Libs should be doing far more.

Man this goes back all the way to like 1950. I certainly don't want to defend the liberals here, but both parties have been more than happy to not incentivize corporations or not invest themselves in Canadian brilliance. For them is just cheaper and easier to ride the coattails of the United States and take advantage of their large rich market. 

How about our own military industry?

How about our own space programs?

How about our own entertainment industry?

How about our own auto industry? 

 

Any of these and so many more I would be more than happy to put billions of taxpayer dollars into as they would have a payoff in the future and a sense of Canadian pride. To be honest, any of what I just mentioned, even if we did one of those things would probably create a ton of unity within this nation.

Edited October 8, 2023 by Ryan Strome

[Bob Long]

1 minute ago, Ryan Strome said:

Man this goes back all the way too like 1950. I certainly don't want to defend the liberals here, but both parties have been more than happy to not incentivize corporations or not invest themselves in Canadian brilliance. For them is just cheaper and easier to ride the coattails of the United States and take advantage of their large rich market. 

How about our own military industry?

How about our own space programs?

How about our own entertainment industry?

How about our own auto industry? 

 

Any of these and so many more. I would be more than happy to put billions of taxpayer dollars into as they would have a payoff in the future.

 

We are agreeing too much today.

Edited October 8, 2023 by Bob Long

[Ryan Strome]

6 minutes ago, Bob Long said:

 

We are agreeing to much today.

Well it is Thanksgiving..

 

Honestly though, it does bug me a lot. I'll give you a couple examples. Look at that balloon the Americans shot out of the air that should have never been the Americans doing that over Canadian airspace hell if the Canadians did that over American airspace we would be in serious hot water. 

 

Just like all the intelligence gathering on India and China, it should not be coming from the United States. We need to invest more in our intelligence gathering. Canadians and politicians being more than happy of taking advantage of the fact we are neighbours to the United States drives me nuts. The only thing Pierre Trudeau ever said that's worth repeating was when he talked about the United States and being next to them. I think he said it's something like sleeping next to an elephant.

 

I remember there was a member on CDC. I forgot his name now, but he was so opposed to spending billions on new fighter jets. He said we don't need them because America will look after Canada. He was one of the biggest critics of Donald Trump yet he was more than happy that Donald Trump would be the commander in chief that would protect Canada. Shameful!

 

At the end of the second world war we had the third biggest navy I believe and the third biggest Air force I believe. There is no reason why this could not continue today. In fact, the only ones that would have an issue with that in my opinion would be the Americans, but I could care less what they think.

 

For years on CDC I talked about pipelines to the east coast and the west coast. We seen when Trump was president joke about the idea of putting tariffs on our oil. We would be absolutely hooped had he have done that and in reality any future president could do the same. So while I made those other comments, we also need to diversify our economy because the United States could absolutely bankrupt us.

Edited October 8, 2023 by Ryan Strome

[King Heffy]

2 minutes ago, Ryan Strome said:

Well it is Thanksgiving..

 

Honestly though, it does bug me a lot. I'll give you a couple examples. Look at that balloon the Americans shot out of the air that should have never been the Americans doing that over Canadian airspace hell if the Canadians did that over American airspace we would be in serious hot water. 

 

Just like all the intelligence gathering on India and China, it should not be coming from the United States. We need to invest more in our intelligence gathering. Canadians and politicians being more than happy of taking advantage of the fact we are neighbours to the United States drives me nuts. The only thing Pierre Trudeau ever said that's worth repeating was when he talked about the United States and being next to them. I think he said it's something like sleeping next to an elephant.

 

I remember there was a member on CDC. I forgot his name now, but he was so opposed to spending billions on new fighter jets. He said we don't need them because America will look after Canada. He was one of the biggest critics of Donald Trump yet he was more than happy that Donald Trump would be the commander in chief that would protect Canada. Shameful!

 

At the end of the second world war we had the third biggest navy I believe and the third biggest Air force I believe. There is no reason why this could not continue today. In fact, the only ones that would have an issue with that in my opinion would be the Americans, but I could care less what they think.

 

For years on CDC I talked about pipelines to the east coast and the west coast. We seen when Trump was president joke about the idea of putting tariffs on our oil. We would be absolutely hooped had he have done that and in reality any future president could do the same. So while I made those other comments, we also need to diversify our economy because the United States could absolutely bankrupt us.

And yet despite the leverage the US has there, the Liberal government negotiated a new trade deal with much better terms than the Cons were suggesting we should have accepted.

[Ryan Strome]

1 minute ago, King Heffy said:

And yet despite the leverage the US has there, the Liberal government negotiated a new trade deal with much better terms than the Cons were suggesting we should have accepted.

Listen my post is attacking both parties. I'm not going to come here and play this partisan game on a big issue like this when both have failed miserably.

[Bob Long]

2 minutes ago, Ryan Strome said:

Well it is Thanksgiving..

 

Honestly though, it does bug me a lot. I'll give you a couple examples. Look at that balloon the Americans shot out of the air that should have never been the Americans doing that over Canadian airspace hell if the Canadians did that over American airspace we would be in serious hot water. 

 

Just like all the intelligence gathering on India and China, it should not be coming from the United States. We need to invest more in our intelligence gathering. Canadians and politicians being more than happy of taking advantage of the fact we are neighbours to the United States drives me nuts. The only thing Pierre Trudeau ever said that's worth repeating was when he talked about the United States and being next to them. I think he said it's something like sleeping next to an elephant.

 

I remember there was a member on CDC. I forgot his name now, but he was so opposed to spending billions on new fighter jets. He said we don't need them because America will look after Canada. He was one of the biggest critics of Donald Trump yet he was more than happy that Donald Trump would be the commander in chief that would protect Canada. Shameful!

 

At the end of the second world war we had the third biggest navy I believe and the third biggest Air force I believe. There is no reason why this could not continue today. In fact, the only ones that would have an issue with that in my opinion would be the Americans, but I could care less what they think.

 

For years on CDC I talked about pipelines to the east coast and the west coast. We seen when Trump was president joke about the idea of putting tariffs on our oil. We would be absolutely hooped had he have done that and in reality any future president could do the same. So while I made those other comments, we also need to diversify our economy because the United States could absolutely bankrupt us.

 

Hard to argue against any of that. I do think we are a valued 5 eyes partner, and likely don't know much of what we provide to other partners but I think the help we are getting on India speaks to us being a solid partner.

 

One thing I'd really like to see is Canada becoming a serious player in drones. We have everything needed to be a world leader in that area and it could be a big part of us protecting our north.

 

Not investing far more in our own defense bugs me a lot. 

 

[Ryan Strome]

6 minutes ago, Bob Long said:

 

Hard to argue against any of that. I do think we are a valued 5 eyes partner, and likely don't know much of what we provide to other partners but I think the help we are getting on India speaks to us being a solid partner.

 

One thing I'd really like to see is Canada becoming a serious player in drones. We have everything needed to be a world leader in that area and it could be a big part of us protecting our north.

 

Not investing far more in our own defense bugs me a lot. 

 

Absolutely! We should be producing our own. I mean for crying out loud turkey does and let's be honest they are near bankrupt. I also would agree with you completely that they would be difference makers in the north attack drones and reconnaissance drones. 

 

If you look at us choosing to give tax breaks to Canadians and free everything to anybody who needs it, it comes at a cost of taking it away from defense. While I would like to find the best way to manage both, we need to understand we need to be spending more than 2% Hell we need to be closer to 4% for 10 or 15 years and then maybe drop down to 2%. Canada choosing to go laxidasy on defense and a generation of Canadian supporting that. How many Canadians I've met that have said "Oh America will protect us." It makes my blood boil because the only reason they would be protecting us is because we share a continent with them and we are their neighbour and they wouldn't want an adversary that close. Also if they came into "protect us" They wouldn't be doing it for free. 

 

Another big issue with being a Flunky on military spending is that we have to make it up in manpower to our allies. So when you look at Kandahar which was pretty much the most dangerous place in Afghanistan Paul Martin had no choice but to offer up Canadian men and women because he wasn't prepared to offer up Canadian money and that's sad that our soldiers had to fight in a place that the Americans didn't even really want to fight in.

Edited October 8, 2023 by Ryan Strome

[Johngould21]

4 minutes ago, Ryan Strome said:

Absolutely! We should be producing your own. I mean for crying out loud turkey does and let's be honest they are near bankrupt. I also would agree with you completely that they would be difference makers in the north attack drones and reconnaissance drones. 

 

If you look at us choosing to give tax breaks to Canadians and free everything to anybody who needs it, it comes at a cost of taking it away from defense. While I would like to find the best way to manage both, we need to understand we need to be spending more than 2% Hell we need to be closer to 4% for 10 or 15 years and then maybe drop down to 2%. Canada choosing to go laxidasy on defense and a generation of Canadian supporting that. How many Canadians I've met that have said "Oh America will protect us." It makes my blood boil because the only reason they would be protecting us is because we share a continent with them and we are their neighbour and they wouldn't want an adversary that close. Also if they came into "protect us" They wouldn't be doing it for free. 

 

Another big issue with being a Flunky on military spending is that we have to make it up in manpower to our allies. So when you look at Kandahar which was pretty much the most dangerous place in Afghanistan Paul Martin had no choice but to offer up Canadian men and women because he wasn't prepared to offer up Canadian money and that's said that our soldiers had to fight in a place that the Americans didn't even really want to fight in.

Friends of ours son was stationed in Kandahar, he was following in a convoy and watched 4 of his buddies get hit and killed by a land mine. The kid was one of those who escorted the bodies home to their families. He hasn't been the same since.

Edited October 8, 2023 by Johngould21

[Ryan Strome]

1 minute ago, Johngould21 said:

Friends of ours son was stationed in Kandahar, he was following in a convoy and watched 4 of his buddies get hit and killed by a land mine. The kid was one of those who escorted the bodies home to their families. He hasn't been the same since.

God bless him.

Yes, Kandahar was a nightmare for so many.

 

Sadly being part of a american-led NATO is if you aren't prepared to do what they want, you have to make it up to them somehow. While Canada as a country did make it up to them Canadian citizens paid the price and that wasn't right.

[Bob Long]

2 hours ago, Ryan Strome said:

Absolutely! We should be producing our own. I mean for crying out loud turkey does and let's be honest they are near bankrupt. I also would agree with you completely that they would be difference makers in the north attack drones and reconnaissance drones. 

 

If you look at us choosing to give tax breaks to Canadians and free everything to anybody who needs it, it comes at a cost of taking it away from defense. While I would like to find the best way to manage both, we need to understand we need to be spending more than 2% Hell we need to be closer to 4% for 10 or 15 years and then maybe drop down to 2%. Canada choosing to go laxidasy on defense and a generation of Canadian supporting that. How many Canadians I've met that have said "Oh America will protect us." It makes my blood boil because the only reason they would be protecting us is because we share a continent with them and we are their neighbour and they wouldn't want an adversary that close. Also if they came into "protect us" They wouldn't be doing it for free. 

 

Another big issue with being a Flunky on military spending is that we have to make it up in manpower to our allies. So when you look at Kandahar which was pretty much the most dangerous place in Afghanistan Paul Martin had no choice but to offer up Canadian men and women because he wasn't prepared to offer up Canadian money and that's sad that our soldiers had to fight in a place that the Americans didn't even really want to fight in.

 

yep the irony there is we used to sell drone cameras to Turkey. 

 

I actually don't see the need for a conflict or us-vs-them between investing in military tech companies and social programs. Military investments always require some types of deals where cash goes to universities, e.g. so there's an immediate benefit there in future R&D. Then they get to be high paying employers and pay lots of taxes. All buying more from the US does is hand them all those benefits. 

[Ryan Strome]

5 minutes ago, Bob Long said:

 

yep the irony there is we used to sell drone cameras to Turkey. 

 

I actually don't see the need for a conflict or us-vs-them between investing in military tech companies and social programs. Military investments always require some types of deals where cash goes to universities, e.g. so there's an immediate benefit there in future R&D. Then they get to be high paying employers and pay lots of taxes. All buying more from the US does is hand them all those benefits. 

Yeah, they take our best and brightest to work in those industries and then sell the product back to us at an inflated price because any military hardware sold from the United States has something like a 10% fee on top. 

 

It's just like people in here Wonder time and time again Why we had to go with the f-35? Why not a different jet well it's because the United States bullies us into enriching their programs. The f-35 offered the least amount to Canadian industry. In fact, Canadian industry has to bid on it all to get any work.

 

Gripen would have been an immediate door opener to the r&d you were talking about and the technology transfer is key as is the fact that this Swedish company would be investing in this country. But nope, we get bullied around by our southern neighbour.

Edited October 8, 2023 by Ryan Strome

[Mac]

It is sad for all canadians that the turd still is in power destroying this country. But a small fringe group sill votes him in. Pathetic.

[Boudrias]

14 hours ago, Ryan Strome said:

Yeah, they take our best and brightest to work in those industries and then sell the product back to us at an inflated price because any military hardware sold from the United States has something like a 10% fee on top. 

 

It's just like people in here Wonder time and time again Why we had to go with the f-35? Why not a different jet well it's because the United States bullies us into enriching their programs. The f-35 offered the least amount to Canadian industry. In fact, Canadian industry has to bid on it all to get any work.

 

Gripen would have been an immediate door opener to the r&d you were talking about and the technology transfer is key as is the fact that this Swedish company would be investing in this country. But nope, we get bullied around by our southern neighbour.

Great alliances are based on mutual respect. Deep down I don't think Americans respect Canada. As a Canadian I ask why should they? We don't pay our way from a military perspective but it is worse than that. The USA realizes that Canada is a weak partner who can be played to support American economic interests. There is no political will inside Canada to chart a more responsible or economically independent course. If there was Canada would have embraced the energy opportunity presented in 2014 and used that revenue to chart a more independent future. It was a golden opportunity to follow the Norwegian model. Many of the fiscal issues faced by Canada today could have been financed by energy revenue. The realpolitik of the world is that Russia, China and OPEC are not our friends. The Americans view us a store house of strategic reserves to be exploited when needed. Worst of all is that Canadians are their own worst enemy. We are complacent, financially illiterate and now wear underwear into the showers. 

[NewbieCanuckFan]

8 minutes ago, Boudrias said:

Great alliances are based on mutual respect. Deep down I don't think Americans respect Canada. As a Canadian I ask why should they? We don't pay our way from a military perspective but it is worse than that. The USA realizes that Canada is a weak partner who can be played to support American economic interests. There is no political will inside Canada to chart a more responsible or economically independent course. If there was Canada would have embraced the energy opportunity presented in 2014 and used that revenue to chart a more independent future. It was a golden opportunity to follow the Norwegian model. Many of the fiscal issues faced by Canada today could have been financed by energy revenue. The realpolitik of the world is that Russia, China and OPEC are not our friends. The Americans view us a store house of strategic reserves to be exploited when needed. Worst of all is that Canadians are their own worst enemy. We are complacent, financially illiterate and now wear underwear into the showers. 

To be fair, you can say that of the US.

 

The US, unlike China for example, is a net exporter of oil.  They grow enough food to feed themselves.  But they can't get their own house in order when they have the means to be completely self-sufficient.