Promise Made, Promise Kept....

[bluealberta]

..................and the beat goes on:



PROMISES MADE, PROMISES KEPT
"Conservatives deliver real results"

GST Cut – Tax Relief For All of Us

Promise Made: “A Conservative Government will: Reduce the GST by one point right away” (Stand up for Canada - 2006 Conservative Election Platform, page 16)

Promise Kept: Starting on July 1st, Canadians will see one of the largest tax cuts in the country’s history when the GST goes from 7 percent down to 6 percent. Finance Canada estimates the reduction in the GST will save Canadian taxpayers $4.5 billion a year. It means more money in the pockets of every Canadian and that’s something worth celebrating. [more]

Transit Pass Tax Credit - Less Traffic, Cleaner Air
Promise Made: “A Conservative Government will: Give public transit riders a federal tax credit” (Stand up for Canada - 2006 Conservative Election Platform, page 37)

Promise Kept: Starting on July 1st, the Conservative Government will provide a transit pass credit on cost of monthly transit passes. “The transit tax credit will not only save people money, but by taking public transit Canadians will be helping to improve our environment,” said Environment Minister Rona Ambrose. [more]

Conservatives re-build the Canadian Forces

Promise Made: “A Conservative Government will: Acquire equipment needed to support a multi-role, combat-capable maritime, land and air force." (Stand up for Canada - 2006 Conservative Election Platform, page 45)

Promise Kept: The Conservative government began delivering on its commitment to the men and women of the Canadian Forces last week when it announced a series of defence procurement projects aimed at strengthening Canada’s multi-role, combat-capable defence force. [more]

How refreshing. A politician who makes and keeps promises.

 

[Mogz]

RE: Promise Made, Promise

It is refreshing. While Harpers Government isn't perfect (what Governent really is?) i'm happy with it thus far. I'm a Conservative, however I do not blindly throw my lot in with the Conservative Party of Canada. Each election I weigh all the parties and then make my choice. The Conservatives presented a fresh change for Canada and I like it thus far.

 

[JonB2004]

..................and the beat goes on:



PROMISES MADE, PROMISES KEPT
"Conservatives deliver real results"

GST Cut – Tax Relief For All of Us

Promise Made: “A Conservative Government will: Reduce the GST by one point right away” (Stand up for Canada - 2006 Conservative Election Platform, page 16)

Promise Kept: Starting on July 1st, Canadians will see one of the largest tax cuts in the country’s history when the GST goes from 7 percent down to 6 percent. Finance Canada estimates the reduction in the GST will save Canadian taxpayers $4.5 billion a year. It means more money in the pockets of every Canadian and that’s something worth celebrating. [more]

Transit Pass Tax Credit - Less Traffic, Cleaner Air
Promise Made: “A Conservative Government will: Give public transit riders a federal tax credit” (Stand up for Canada - 2006 Conservative Election Platform, page 37)

Promise Kept: Starting on July 1st, the Conservative Government will provide a transit pass credit on cost of monthly transit passes. “The transit tax credit will not only save people money, but by taking public transit Canadians will be helping to improve our environment,” said Environment Minister Rona Ambrose. [more]

Conservatives re-build the Canadian Forces

Promise Made: “A Conservative Government will: Acquire equipment needed to support a multi-role, combat-capable maritime, land and air force." (Stand up for Canada - 2006 Conservative Election Platform, page 45)

Promise Kept: The Conservative government began delivering on its commitment to the men and women of the Canadian Forces last week when it announced a series of defence procurement projects aimed at strengthening Canada’s multi-role, combat-capable defence force. [more]

How refreshing. A politician who makes and keeps promises.

I agree. Its really nice to see a PM keeping his promises. Man, everytime Harper does stuff like this, it makes me hate the Liberals.

 

[Kreskin]

Those promise-keeping bastards.

 

[bluealberta]

I agree. Its really nice to see a PM keeping his promises. Man, everytime Harper does stuff like this, it makes me hate the Liberals.

Why did it take so long? Hating the Liberals (the party and its philosphies) has long been part of my makeup. IMO, they have done more to ruin this country than any foreign country or army could ever do.

Trudeau, Chretien and Martin can join other famous trios like Huey, Dewey and Louie, the Three Stooges, etc.

 

[LonelyWurm]

RE: Promise Made, Promise

I'm not sure why you'd "hate the Liberals". Personally I consider myself a classical liberal (and more Conservative than Liberal), but I think you're being a little partisan here. Yeah, the Liberals made some REALLY big mistakes (NEP, Shawinigate, gun registry, I could go on), but if we review Canadian history, we see that the first major political scandal to rock the federal government was a conservative politician (John A.). And Mulroney killed the P.C. pretty good in his time, too. Scandal and corruption isn't a Liberal Party platform plank, it's humanity, pure and simple. Any government that serves too long is going to suffer from it, and even a couple that are brand new will have its share of troubles.

That said, I have to give Harper a fine and true salute. He's managed to work with a minority government to make real change on matters he said he'd change. The GST, dismantling of the gun registry, fiscal support of the military and our mission in Afghanistan. In short, he's shown himself to be a good leader, a fine politician and an honest fellow, despite the media seemingly wanting his head on their platter.

 

[SaintLucifer]

..................and the beat goes on:



PROMISES MADE, PROMISES KEPT
"Conservatives deliver real results"

GST Cut – Tax Relief For All of Us

Promise Made: “A Conservative Government will: Reduce the GST by one point right away” (Stand up for Canada - 2006 Conservative Election Platform, page 16)

Promise Kept: Starting on July 1st, Canadians will see one of the largest tax cuts in the country’s history when the GST goes from 7 percent down to 6 percent. Finance Canada estimates the reduction in the GST will save Canadian taxpayers $4.5 billion a year. It means more money in the pockets of every Canadian and that’s something worth celebrating. [more]

Transit Pass Tax Credit - Less Traffic, Cleaner Air
Promise Made: “A Conservative Government will: Give public transit riders a federal tax credit” (Stand up for Canada - 2006 Conservative Election Platform, page 37)

Promise Kept: Starting on July 1st, the Conservative Government will provide a transit pass credit on cost of monthly transit passes. “The transit tax credit will not only save people money, but by taking public transit Canadians will be helping to improve our environment,” said Environment Minister Rona Ambrose. [more]

Conservatives re-build the Canadian Forces

Promise Made: “A Conservative Government will: Acquire equipment needed to support a multi-role, combat-capable maritime, land and air force." (Stand up for Canada - 2006 Conservative Election Platform, page 45)

Promise Kept: The Conservative government began delivering on its commitment to the men and women of the Canadian Forces last week when it announced a series of defence procurement projects aimed at strengthening Canada’s multi-role, combat-capable defence force. [more]

How refreshing. A politician who makes and keeps promises.

I am disappointed with Harper's apology and financial 'restitution' to the Chinese here in Canada. Why should taxpayers of today be forced to pay off the Chinese for something that happened so long ago? Were those Chinese forced to come here at gunpoint? They chose to come to Canada even though they knew about the Head Tax. If this is the case, why must we apologise to them for something that was not forced upon them? They had a choice between staying in China or coming to Canada and paying a Head Tax for the privilege of living and working in Canada. It was our country so we had the right to do whatever we wished. If China had instituted a similar policy nary a word would be heard about it. In fact, all companies who wish to do business with China today are forced to hand over a large portion of their profits as part of the deal. How is this different from a Head Tax?

I voted for Harper (I have never voted for anything but Conservative in my entire life) but I must say I have grown disappointed in him. He has moved a little too far to the left to accomodate the other parties. I would have him move much further to the right.

 

[LonelyWurm]

RE: Promise Made, Promise

I don't necessarily agree with the financial restitution, but I do think an apology is not something that should be so hard to get out of a politician. Choice or not, the head tax was certainly a form of systematic racism and that has to be addressed before we can move forward.

 

[SaintLucifer]

Re: RE: Promise Made, Promise

I don't necessarily agree with the financial restitution, but I do think an apology is not something that should be so hard to get out of a politician. Choice or not, the head tax was certainly a form of systematic racism and that has to be addressed before we can move forward.

Why was it racism? They were outsiders. What exactly would our politician be apologising for? If you feel it was so bad then resurrect those who actually implemented the policy and have them apologise. Harper had nothing to do with the laws. We Canadians never had anything to do with them so why exactly is my country apologising for something that was never forced on the Chinese? They were given a choice. Come and pay or stay and don't pay. I fail to see the difficulty here. You do not think the current Chinese regime demanding 50% of all profits made my Western businesses thanks to Chinese labour is racism? Why is it alright for them to implement such policies but not for us? That in itself is racist.

 

[LonelyWurm]

RE: Promise Made, Promise

Harper is a figurehead of the government, the agent of racism that never formally apologized for the errors it made. And secondly, how do you go from attacking my view on apologizing to a group who were marginalized in our nations history to claiming I'm somehow racist? The Chinese government has not been mentioned in this debate, nor have I remarked on it in any other thread on this forum, and yet you are somehow attempting to claim I have an opinion on it that just happens to fit your bizarre theory I'm some evil racist.

No, I don't support the Chinese government in any way; I believe it is inherently undemocratic and suppresses dissent using violent means, and I believe its human rights record in the past few decades alone should be reason enough to support its overthrow. However, that wasn't at all what you initially brought up, and you should probably allow others to consider a matter before you assign them an opinion out of hand.

 

[SaintLucifer]

Re: RE: Promise Made, Promise

Harper is a figurehead of the government, the agent of racism that never formally apologized for the errors it made. And secondly, how do you go from attacking my view on apologizing to a group who were marginalized in our nations history to claiming I'm somehow racist? The Chinese government has not been mentioned in this debate, nor have I remarked on it in any other thread on this forum, and yet you are somehow attempting to claim I have an opinion on it that just happens to fit your bizarre theory I'm some evil racist.

No, I don't support the Chinese government in any way; I believe it is inherently undemocratic and suppresses dissent using violent means, and I believe its human rights record in the past few decades alone should be reason enough to support its overthrow. However, that wasn't at all what you initially brought up, and you should probably allow others to consider a matter before you assign them an opinion out of hand.

Why should any Canadian government apologise to the Chinese? Canada should not be doing apologising of any kind. We did not drag them here on slave ships. If the policy was so racist, why did the Chinese keep coming here even though they knew about it? Would you openly enter into a society you knew to be racist? That makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. So what are we apologising for?

They were marginalised in our nation's history? How so? I have always known about them and their 'contributions'. What is the problem here? They run about saying they built our railroads. So did many other ethnic groups yet we are asked only to remember the Chinese did it. Why the special attention? That is racist. The claim is that the Chinese did so much for our country. They helped to build our railroads and as such are free to lay claim to my country. Italian construction workers build many homes in Toronto. Does this mean the construction workers own them? No. They were paid a fee to build them just as the Chinese immigrants were paid by Canadian businesses to build the railroad. I fail to see the problem here and any sane reason why we apologised to them. It is bad enough we apologised to them but forcing the Canadian taxpayer to pay them financial restitution when the Chinese knew what they were getting into when the arrived upon our shores?

 

[FiveParadox]

Let us keep in mind that in order to keep his first promise, The Right Honourable Stephen Harper, P.C., M.P., the Member for Calgary Southwest and the Prime Minister of Canada, he directed that income taxes be increased, and that the income tax exemption level be dropped—more Canadians now pay income tax, and they're going to pay more. (Not to mention the fact that lower-income Canadians save less on the G.S.T. cut than higher-income earners.)

In order to keep the promise of the Government of Canada in relation to the transport tax credit, The Honourable Rona Ambrose, P.C., M.P., the Member for Edmonton—Spruce Grove and the Minister of the Environment decimated her own Environment Canada, accepting an eighty per cent cut in funding to her department, and terminating several programs.

In terms of the Prime Minister's promise in relation to the acquiring of new equipment to the Canadian Forces, this Government lied to the House of Commons—time and time again—saying that no decisions had been made in relation to procurement for the Forces. Lo! and behold, only days after the House had adjourned for the Summer, The Honourable Gordon O'Connor, P.C., M.P., the Member for Carleton—Mississippi Mills and the Minister of National Defence, announced procurements for the Forces—dodging questions and debate in the Commons.

 

[Dexter Sinister]

Or we could talk about the promise to exclude resource revenues from the equalization calculations, which is now being spun as just a suggestion for discussion rather than the clear commitment it was in the campaign. This government is no different from any other in the "Promise Made, Promise Kept..." department.

 

[bluealberta]

Oh, Five, you and Dex are consistent if nothing else.

Personally, given the success that Harper is having, and the poll results that continue to show him well out in front, I am prepared to at least give him some time to continue to fix the problems the Liberals have caused this country over the last several years. It will take some time, as there are so many things to fix, but Harper has proven over the first five months of his mandate that he is a man of action, in thought and deed. The more I see, the more I like.

 

[I think not]

Ha, an honest politician? That's a laugh.

 

[Dexter Sinister]

Oh, Five, you and Dex are consistent if nothing else.

Which is not something you can say about politicians, and doesn't address the issues either. The point really is that "Promise Made, Promise Kept..." is not consistently true of any political leaders, of any stripe, once they achieve power.

The more I see, the more I like.

Well there's a surprise. I'm inclined to give Harper the benefit of the doubt for a while too, but for different reasons. We shall see what comes of this, but I'm quite comfortable predicting he'll turn out to be no more consistent than any other politician. First thing he has to do is learn to delegate a little better; I get the impression he's a little nervous about some of the more extreme elements in the party and doesn't entirely trust his ministers.

 

[bluealberta]

Oh, Five, you and Dex are consistent if nothing else.

Which is not something you can say about politicians, and doesn't address the issues either. The point really is that "Promise Made, Promise Kept..." is not consistently true of any political leaders, of any stripe, once they achieve power.

The more I see, the more I like.

Well there's a surprise. I'm inclined to give Harper the benefit of the doubt for a while too, but for different reasons. We shall see what comes of this, but I'm quite comfortable predicting he'll turn out to be no more consistent than any other politician. First thing he has to do is learn to delegate a little better; I get the impression he's a little nervous about some of the more extreme elements in the party and doesn't entirely trust his ministers.

First, compared to his two immediate predecessors, Harper can only be described as honest. Secondly, your last statement tries to bring up that old hidden agenda crap. Get over that, already, okay? I mean really, if there actually was a hidden agenda, would not Scotty Brison, Belinda Stronach and Keithy Martin have told the rest of the Liberal party by now? Or maybe they were actually just moles put in by the CPC to make sure the Liberals lost. Hell, I like that idea, Brison becoming leader will totally destory the Liberal party!!!

There is no hesitation, there is no hidden agenda, other than keeping his commitments. I again suggest that he has only been in power for five months, and with so much to fix, it is really one step and one day at a time. For the first time in many a year, I am actually excited about where Canada is going, both nationally and internationally. We are getting some respect back, something that was totally lost under the lying and cheating Liberals.

 

[gc]

RE: Promise Made, Promise

Harper promised to reduce taxes for every Canadian. With the increase in personal income tax on the lowest tax bracket and the decrease in basic personal exemption, many people (myself included) will pay more tax under this conservative government. Promise Broken

Harper promised that his government would hold itself to a higher ethical standard. Promise Broken

Harper promised an elected senate, and then appointed an un-elected senator. Promise Broken

Haper promised to address the fiscal imbalance, yet his solution is for provinces to raise taxes, as if this is some new and innovative solution. Promise Broken

Harper promised to improve the living conditions of Natives. With the cancellation of the Kelowna Accord, it's hard to see how this is possible. Until Harper does something substantial to improve the living standards of Natives, Promise Broken

I admit that Harper has kept a lot of his promises. Unfortunately, many of the promises he has kept I disagree with.

 

[gc]

Secondly, your last statement tries to bring up that old hidden agenda crap. Get over that, already, okay? I mean really, if there actually was a hidden agenda, would not Scotty Brison, Belinda Stronach and Keithy Martin have told the rest of the Liberal party by now?

If harper has a hidden agenda, why would Scott Brison et al. know about it? I doubt harper discusses future policies with his entire caucus. For example, did Stronach know that harper was planning to cut the GST? Somehow I doubt it, otherwise the liberals could have used that information for their benefit. The announcement probably wouldn't have had as much impact if it had already been leaked by the liberals. If harper has a hidden agenda, we wouldn't know about it yet. He has a minority government that is trying for a majority. He is smart enough not to do anything to indicate a hidden agenda so long as he only has a minority. Now I'm not saying harper does have a hidden agenda, I'm simply saying that there is no way to know for sure either way.

Brison becoming leader will totally destory the Liberal party!!!

Now there I can agree with you.

 

[SaintLucifer]

Or we could talk about the promise to exclude resource revenues from the equalization calculations, which is now being spun as just a suggestion for discussion rather than the clear commitment it was in the campaign. This government is no different from any other in the "Promise Made, Promise Kept..." department.

I absolutely do not agree with the promise to exclude resource revenues from the equalization calculations. He only made this promise because he is Albertan. That province owes its very existence to Ontario. That is about all I have to say on the subject.