Calgary Libertarian

Another One Bites the Dust, wheres the alberta advantage?

Haworth, a multinational manufacturer of office interiors, which operated a show room and factory in Calgary employing 600 people in the city is consolidating its holdings and moving its operations to the state of Michigan. The state of Michigan is close to approving a tax incentive for the company worth $22.4 million, which I am sure it’s very encouraging to a company looking to save money. This means over 600 new jobs will be moving from Calgary, the supposed best place in the world to do business, to another country. This move will also likely cost jobs in to other companies that might have been supplying the local operations of Haworth. This is yet another example of a lost opportunity for the city, I am against taxes but looking at it from a balance sheet perspective the city should be wanting to make the tax pool larger so the individual burden on every one is smaller.

Our city council is much to busy worrying about the peace bridge or the new east side pedestrian walkway (roughly costing 20 million dollars, hrm almost the same amount as the intensive) to focus on encouraging growth in the business sector. Instead of worrying about how the city is going to pay for the alderman’s pet project and where to nickle and dime the tax payers some more to pay for these pet project, the city should be working on slashing spending and removing itself from the “business of being in business” (Mainly the east side project). If the city could cut its spending it could then cut the tax burden on business which would encouraging companies like Haworth to stay and even encourage other multinational corporations to setup shop here when they too are looking to consolidating holdings, this would result in more jobs and more prosperity for Albertans and Calgarians.

Alberta has always has what was called the “Alberta Advantage” which was a business friendly community coupled with governments working in partnership with business to encouraged growth through lower taxes and less regulation. This is no longer the case both the province and municipalities have been finding any reason to tack on user fees or raise taxes. This has completely eliminated our “Alberta Advantage” the province even dropped this as the provincial slogan, its no wonder the unemployment rate is going up in Alberta and that the oil industry in Saskatchewan and British Columbia have an increase in jobs using our model (The model of freedom), we need to realize that the current ruling party is no longer the party of Ralph Kline or even a conservative party for that matter. I encourage every one that values productive jobs and the freemarket to call there alderman or MLA and tell them to lower taxes , remove regulation and just get out of the way of business. Tell them that you want Calgary and Alberta to be the first place of choice for business to open an office and that you want our Alberta Advantage back!

See our resources page for contact information for MLA and Council Member

The Alberta Team!

PR: wait… I: wait… L: wait… LD: wait… I: wait… wait… Rank: wait… Traffic: wait… Price: wait… C: wait…

I am hearing more and more chatter about a second stimulus on both sides of the border. I find it hard to believe that both governments (ours especially seeing how they call themselves conservative) think that more spending to prop up jobs and prices that the market is so obviously trying to correct is the right solution. The focus on job volume rather then job sustainability and growth is starting to become alarming. Simply giving out money to create jobs the market does not want to exist can not last forever. A job that requires a “stimulus” is not sustainable and if kept employed for an extended period of time will likely cause job losses in other more productive sectors due to the tax burden these sectors will be forced to endure. Also stimulus backed jobs prop up prices that the free market is trying to correct which in the end costs us growth in the economy that could be employing more people which ultimately prolongs the recession that the country faces.

The government should focus on putting money back into the peoples pocket through tax cuts what a great stimulus package every one gets to keep 100% of there dollars for one year, imagine what kind of effect that would have on the spending habits of the people. Plus by allowing people to keep the money they earn they will get to choose where to spend it and when the people choose with there dollars that is the freemarket at work. The money will flow exactly where it should be going and those sectors will grown and create jobs, not by some bureaucrat. The free market is not some omnipotent thing it is simply the people spending there money the way this wish to spend it.

The government can also tear down barriers for companies trying to grow by removing certain regulations. Creating more jobs by making it harder to to business so that companies must hire more people is not sustainable. If companies are allowed to grow at the rate the free market sees fit then those jobs will be created in a more sustainable manner.

Of course the list of what the government can do (maybe I should say stop doing) to properly allow the economy to grow could go on forever, remember the MLA’s and MP’s work for you make sure to call them and let them know what you think about the issues that matter to you. You can’t expect any thing to change if you don’t get active.

Legislation that will allow law enforcement agencies access to email and cell phone accounts without needing a warrant is being considered by our current federal government. Of course there excuse for this incredible invasion of peoples privacy is the usual to catch terrorists, or other criminals, If your not a criminal you have nothing to worry about.

I am sure many people think that is all well in good I guess if you are not a terrorist or currently a criminal, however governments programs always grow and expand. This is a gate way into peoples private lives you could quickly find yourself a criminal simply because we have outlawed some thing you might believe in or currently participate in legally(Things that come to mind, are pornography , online gambling, purchasing online goods outside of the country. All things that are legal but could very well be illegal tomorrow, or even more extreme , freedom of speech for all you bloggers out there. ), The program could expand to even more applications of spying we couldn’t even think of today.

If the law enforcement believe some one might be a criminal and they want a copy of there records to build a case against this criminal they can present what they currently have and justify this invasion of privacy to a judge who can then permit them to act.

Lets not let this one go un-noticed. Call your MP’s and tell them to stop investigating or even considering laws like this.

List Of MPS

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2009/06/19/f-internet-cellphone-wiretap-surveillance-law.html

I Know I missed cure your apathy friday last week. Here is some thing you can do to catch up!!!

A reception is being held for Danielle Smith (WildRose Alliance Leadership Candidate) being held by Dennis Young (Libertarian Party Of Canada Leader) and Mathew Johnston (Publisher Of The Western Standard). This meetup is on Thursday June 25 at 5PM. Please check the meetup calendar for details and location! Don’t miss it! Note the following links:

http://www.stephentaylor.ca/2009/04/danielle-smith-likely-to-run-for-wildrose-alliance-leadership/

http://www.daniellesmith.ca/

Another week has passed, what have you done to cure your apathy?

How about getting involved in this one? TV broadcaster are trying to use the force of the government to make carriers pay more to carrier the broadcaster product to your TV’s. I am not opposed for negotiating more money in a business deal however the problem exists when the broad caster use the government to require shaw to carrier there programming under the law. So this fee to carry is essentially a tax because shaw does not have the choice to not carry. Remember all taxes paid by any business is pushed directly to the consumer companies do not carry tax burdens. If you don’t want your tv bill to go up or if you like me (only has internet) and oppose this on principal contact your MP.

Here is a statement from shaw.

CTV, CBC and Global TV are trying to
convince Canadians that local TV is in trouble. What they’re really doing is
trying to push through a TV tax on all Canadians for programming you get for
free today.

They want this extra charge because they’ve
misspent the hundreds of millions of dollars they’ve already received from
taxpayers, cable and satellite companies. In total, cable and satellite
companies pay $250 million a year in program funding to assist local
broadcasters in producing Canadian television programs – as much
additional funding as is provided by the Canadian government. Where does that
money come from? It comes from the Canadian taxpayers.

The major broadcasters won’t even commit to
using the new money to produce new local content. That’s why the CRTC has
already turned them down twice.

None of us can afford to keep bailing out
companies who don’t know how to control their spending. Help us hold the
broadcasters accountable.

Visit SHAW.CA/NoTvTax to
get the facts and make your voice heard.

Brad Shaw
Senior Vice President, Operations
Shaw Communications Inc.