I just finished reading another article about Equalization and the subsidization of ‘have not’ provinces. It was written by Lorne Gunter, another conservative thinker from Western Canada.
What annoys me most about the ‘right’ in Canada falls in two areas:
1) The hypocrisy of those that fully support the massive subsidization of the agriculture industry (just because it is based primarily in western Canada) while hammering subsidization in Atlantic Canada. (now to be fair that is mostly politicians who need to get elected)
2) The growing distain and frustration with Equalization and subsidization in Atlantic Canada. I have read close to two dozen articles in national and western Canadian papers in the past few days hammering Equalization and drawing the conclusion that Ontario and the West is much poorer than it would be if it didn’t have to ‘subsidize Atlantic Canada’.
Now, this is particularly annoying because there is almost no thought given to fixing the problem. These rightwing idealogues would cut but don’t say what the implications of their cuts would be. Occassionaly, one will say that this would initiative a health migration of labour out of Atlantic Canada to Alberta, et. al.
Well, that conclusion lacks the intellectual rigour that these righties claim to use. A mass migration out of Atlantic Canada would only increase the problem of delivering government services in Atlantic Canada. Taypayers would leave.
So, if the righties want to have a ‘third world’ economy right in their back yard, they should continue to push this agenda. If the righties can do this in good conscience, so be it.
But maybe these pseudo-intellectuals could give a few minutes more thinking about a more proactive solution such as supporting an economic revival in Atlantic Canada.
But don’t expect that to happen. I got my MBA at a school of Austrian economists and public choice theorists and when mainstream journalists start talking about ‘rent seeking’ and ‘vote seeking’ I start to shudder. These guys are now mainstream.