There seems to be some confusion about what Mulcair is trying to say,my take on it is that there are way too many eggs going in one basket.
Government kills independent science body
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Well right now, even a conservative-minded assessment confirms a mild form of dutch disease. When we install pipelines and let China control the lever, that problem is going to get a lot worse.
The US dollar may have been deliberately devalued (most likely), however, the primary reason was not to support the mfg sector. From the American's perspective, paying down debt is more efficient to do with devalued dollars. Also, the global financial community also has a large impact on the valuation of a national currency. Based on a variety of factors including the levels of debt, interest rates, tax policies and growth projections (to name a few), FX traders and iBanks will take steps that affect the currency. This occurs on a parallel basis with every other currency and situation at the time.
I suspect that you already know this, however, the message is that it is naive to pinpoint one or 2 factors and conclude a complete cause and effect relationship. Fact is, the Americans had only partial control (a small part at that) in determining the value of their currency.
See above.. Add to that the optics of higher commodity prices is also impacted by the major commodities being traded in USD. It is no secret that the price of an ounce of gold (in part) is a reflection that most are accustomed to buying/selling based on USD.. The value of the dollar drops, the relative price of gold goes up. This applies to oil as well.
The impact on mfgrs does occur as you suggest, however, not exclusively based on fluctuations on energy. Couple the aforementioned with the notion that the mfg sector in North America has been on the decline goes a long way in explaining the hardships the sector has.
Lastly, North American mfgrs are competing directly with international mfgrs of the same/similar products. A significant difference is the cost of labour (and admin) and the tax environment in the nation of operations. It's no secret that North America is a high cost and tax jurisdiction. Mfgrs in Asia and China are at an immediate advantage because of this.
One could say that oil is not the cause of the fluctuation, but a measure of the national economy. Further, the relationship you suggest is not exclusive to oil, other products, services and commodities behave/reflect in a like manner... Does that mean that those industries should be hobbled as well just to prop up mfg?
What is the cost to all Canadians in having a $0.63 rate? We (as a nation) export raw materials and buy the finished product. That low currency drives up the relative cost of living for every Canadian in every sector. Pretending that the mfg sector is as important as it once was (it is dwarfed by other industries in contribution to GDP as well as employment) is disingenious and harmful to all Canadians.
The obvious solution here is to revamp the mfg sector to reflect the competitive environment in which it exists... Germany and Korea with comparable high costs are highly successful, why not Canada?
In part, the move of those corps from Canada to the USA reflected a contraction in the expansionist actions of a couple of decades coupled with the reality that the Canadian ops were not attractive enough to be a compelling reason to keep them alive... CAT is an excellent example.
Mulcair's myopic ideals will kick him, and the mfg sector squarely in the ass. The amount of pollution aka CO2 and/or GHGs are much greater for the group that uses (burns) the hydrocarbons.
Obviously Tommy boy doesn't have a clue about that, but in the end, that trump card will be played and the Dippers won't have an answer other than the protectionist ideal (only for Que and Ont) that he is really supporting
Well this is interesting.
Former Alberta PC premier, Peter Lougheed, predicted in 2007 that there would be a rift between east vs. west if we decided pursue a strategy of oilsands acceleration. Well.. that would mean that the only people fueling this east/west rift is... Harper and the conservatories.
Clash over oil sands inevitable: Lougheed
A war is looming between Alberta and the federal government over pollution caused by oil sands development that will far surpass any previous federal-provincial battle in its political and economic stakes, former Alberta Premier Peter Lougheed predicted Tuesday.
Mr. Lougheed told a Canadian Bar Association convention that a ferocious constitutional clash is all but inevitable, pitting the federal right to protect the environment against the provincial right to develop natural resources.
Mr. Lougheed – who was at the epicentre of similar, historic conflicts in the 1980s involving the National Energy Plan and the repatriation of the Canada Constitution – said that the clash will be “10 times greater” than federal-provincial conflicts of the past.
“The issue is there front and centre, and coming to a head,” he said. “I think the issues we saw before – and I was involved in many of them – were important. I don't minimize them. But they aren't even close to the issue I have just described.”
He said that Alberta's desire to bypass toughened federal environmental laws will cause considerable dispute within the province itself, and will “cause significant stress to Canadian unity.
“The government of Alberta, with its acceleration of oil sands operations, will in my judgment be seen as the major villain in all of this in the eyes of the public across Canada,” he said.
A major source of greenhouse gas and water pollution, the tar sands project is expected to double in size within the next few years.
Mr. Lougheed predicted that the dispute will very likely go before the Supreme Court as a constitutional reference, forcing the Court to decide whether the British North America Act gives the province the right to develop its energy resources as it sees fits.
“My surmise is that we're into this constitutional legal conflict soon,” he said. “And my surmise is that – and this is strong stuff – national unity will be threatened if the court upholds federal environmental legislation and it causes major damage to the Alberta oil sands and our economy.”
Mr. Lougheed said he is convinced that public concern for the environmental is no passing fad and will only increase pressure future minority governments in Ottawa to apply strict pollution guidelines.
Ontario may face a less extreme version of the oil sands constitutional battle, since it will be under great pressure from the federal environmental laws with regard to its auto industry, he added.
Mr. Lougheed told reporters after his speech that it is far from sure which side of the conflict will win at the Supreme Court, particularly considering the Court's penchant for interfering in questions of government policy.
However, he said that, in his opinion, the BNA Act clearly guarantees provinces the “exclusive” right to decide how to develop, conserve and manage natural resources.
In his speech, Mr. Lougheed also:
- Criticized successive Alberta governments for allowing the province's Heritage Savings Stress Fund to “wither,” instead of steadily injecting more money into it. He said the fund should not contain more than $50-billion, not the $12-$13-billion it currently holds.
- Expressed his amazement that there have not been regular first ministers conference held, led by the federal government, to thrash out important political issues.
“I think there should be … an obligation on whoever the prime minister is to have a full-scale, televised first minister's conference each year. I think it is an embarrassment that that has been allowed to lapse.”
- Repeated a concern he first expressed last fall that tar sands development is proceeding in a haphazard way which threatens the environment. “But there is so much momentum there that it isn't going to be easy to slow the process,” he noted.
Clash over oil sands inevitable: Lougheed - The Globe and Mail
Former Alberta PC premier, Peter Lougheed, predicted in 2007 that there would be a rift between east vs. west if we decided pursue a strategy of oilsands acceleration. Well.. that would mean that the only people fueling this east/west rift is... Harper and the conservatories.
Clash over oil sands inevitable: Lougheed
A war is looming between Alberta and the federal government over pollution caused by oil sands development that will far surpass any previous federal-provincial battle in its political and economic stakes, former Alberta Premier Peter Lougheed predicted Tuesday.
Mr. Lougheed told a Canadian Bar Association convention that a ferocious constitutional clash is all but inevitable, pitting the federal right to protect the environment against the provincial right to develop natural resources.
Mr. Lougheed – who was at the epicentre of similar, historic conflicts in the 1980s involving the National Energy Plan and the repatriation of the Canada Constitution – said that the clash will be “10 times greater” than federal-provincial conflicts of the past.
“The issue is there front and centre, and coming to a head,” he said. “I think the issues we saw before – and I was involved in many of them – were important. I don't minimize them. But they aren't even close to the issue I have just described.”
He said that Alberta's desire to bypass toughened federal environmental laws will cause considerable dispute within the province itself, and will “cause significant stress to Canadian unity.
“The government of Alberta, with its acceleration of oil sands operations, will in my judgment be seen as the major villain in all of this in the eyes of the public across Canada,” he said.
A major source of greenhouse gas and water pollution, the tar sands project is expected to double in size within the next few years.
Mr. Lougheed predicted that the dispute will very likely go before the Supreme Court as a constitutional reference, forcing the Court to decide whether the British North America Act gives the province the right to develop its energy resources as it sees fits.
“My surmise is that we're into this constitutional legal conflict soon,” he said. “And my surmise is that – and this is strong stuff – national unity will be threatened if the court upholds federal environmental legislation and it causes major damage to the Alberta oil sands and our economy.”
Mr. Lougheed said he is convinced that public concern for the environmental is no passing fad and will only increase pressure future minority governments in Ottawa to apply strict pollution guidelines.
Ontario may face a less extreme version of the oil sands constitutional battle, since it will be under great pressure from the federal environmental laws with regard to its auto industry, he added.
Mr. Lougheed told reporters after his speech that it is far from sure which side of the conflict will win at the Supreme Court, particularly considering the Court's penchant for interfering in questions of government policy.
However, he said that, in his opinion, the BNA Act clearly guarantees provinces the “exclusive” right to decide how to develop, conserve and manage natural resources.
In his speech, Mr. Lougheed also:
- Criticized successive Alberta governments for allowing the province's Heritage Savings Stress Fund to “wither,” instead of steadily injecting more money into it. He said the fund should not contain more than $50-billion, not the $12-$13-billion it currently holds.
- Expressed his amazement that there have not been regular first ministers conference held, led by the federal government, to thrash out important political issues.
“I think there should be … an obligation on whoever the prime minister is to have a full-scale, televised first minister's conference each year. I think it is an embarrassment that that has been allowed to lapse.”
- Repeated a concern he first expressed last fall that tar sands development is proceeding in a haphazard way which threatens the environment. “But there is so much momentum there that it isn't going to be easy to slow the process,” he noted.
Clash over oil sands inevitable: Lougheed - The Globe and Mail
Won't be much of a clash... The sands will be ramping up for years to come and you can either get with the program or stand on the sidelines and watch the gravy train whistle by.
If you think that Harper's making a smart decision with his environmental gaffes, you're more naive than I thought.
The smart thing for Harper to do is to admit environmental concessions, and that will actually give him more freedom to pursue his agenda. The more the government fails on the environment, the higher the cost to his next election and that means the gravy train won't be whistling at the whim of China come 2015.
Where would manufacturing be without the oil sands? Full steam ahead gobbling up super expensive imported energy that is needed to manufacture goods or will goods only be produced seasonaly using bio-fuels and on windy days?
These gaffes would be?
Fails by whose standards?.. The IPCC?
Here's a thought - how about the cost be deferred directly to all consumers of the oil/gas? The energy required to extract will be penalized, but even more money will be raised via hitting the everyday users and the heavy industry that relies on the commodity for energy, transportation, heating, etc.
There's your comprehensive solution.. You up for it, or would the inconvenience be a little too much for you to bear?
.. And considering that we are dealing with a provincial jurisdiction here - in the event that some fool like Mulcair gets in, all he can do is wring his hands and rail to the heavens about the impending demise of humanity.
You live in a very bizarre fantasy world MF
Some like this will be in the headlines.....
Inflation inches higher to 2% Transportation, energy cost increases are major factors in April increase
Inflation inches higher to 2% - Business - CBC News
At least Flossy will have a reason to b*tch about the high cost of food and support his truther theories about the the mass starvation realized by it
I see my work here is done.
I'll come back when you guys are able fabricate something relevant.
I'll come back when you guys are able fabricate something relevant.
You were working at it? Try working out how to run a smelter or forge on wind power. That'll keep you really busy clear through til death.
On the upside, we can show Flossy some direct and compelling examples of what compounded inflation looks like.
Here's the instructions for the fabrication you requested. Use it well, I believe you will benefit tremendously from it.
*yawn*
It's getting quite pathetic now petey.
Maybe you should put down the crackpipe get back to laying pipe out west. You've got 3 years left.
And same goes to you good sire - cap'n morgan.
Please, both of you gentlemen let me know when you would like to return to the discussion.
Funny isn't it?
I don't have high hopes in Flossy 'trying' to work at it.. He's working at employment right now, but as we can see, his productivity is based on haunting internet forums all day.
My productivity is based on time cards - which I have no problem whizzing through and getting rewarded via $$$.
You know, American dreamy kinda stuff.