Blue Like You

Archive for October 31st, 2007

Stephane Dion declares that a Liberal government would consider rescinding Tory GST cut - Ottawa Sun. (H/T National Newswatch).

Definitely one to sway the average voter, Stephane. Well done.

Keep going with your instincts while you sit there on your hands.

And in case anyone missed that, it’s the LIBERALS wanting to raise your taxes federally, just as they likely will provincially here in Ontario.

Any regular readers will know that occasionally I digress into little snippets of real life. This one is rated ‘PG’ which means that my mother should probably skip it.

The scene - Fitness class on Hallowe’en. We were told last week that we could wear costumes, but most of us came as ‘work-out’ people. I did wear an orange tank and black shorts to somewhat salute the day.

Two women actually got dressed up; which is a challenge when you’re also having to work out. One came as a mime, with a black bowler cap secured around the chin with an elastic, white T with bow tie, and black capris with black suspenders and white gloves, the latter of which she eventually had to remove for the weights portion of the class.

The other costumed woman wore a great cat outfit with well-secured cat ears, makeup whiskers and black nose, and a long, black, stuffed, somewhat curly tail attached to the black belt which she wore around her waist.

Cat lady was in front of me, so that tail was somewhat distracting as we bounced up and down during the aerobic portion, but I managed to follow the instructor.

Finally it was time to lay down on our backs, with legs bent waiting for the crunches to start.

Suddenly a howl of laughter erupted from the whole class as we all stared at Cat Lady. It seems that she had shifted her belt around to position her tail in the front, in order to lay more comfortably on her back. There she was, long black, somewhat-bent tail at a 45 degree angle between her legs.

Needless to say, belt and tail were quickly removed.

Some political pundits have been speculating this morning on the seeming rush and strange timing of yesterday’s ‘economic update’, which actually turned into a mini-budget.

Of course, this year’s announcement the day before Hallowe’en seems to be an obvious attempt to give out treats to squash the memories of last year’s Income Trust trick. On the surface at least, one would surmise that this is the strategy.

However, other pundits are wondering why Flaherty would spend all his political capital now, rather than wait for the spring budget.

Don Martin’s take on this is likely as accurate as any - Minority all but begging for an election.

Still, the hurry-up tax offensive makes a suspicious columnist wonder if the Conservatives are plotting legislation the three opposition parties will have to vote against, thus forcing a fall election after all. There could be nothing worse for a Conservative finance minister than entering a campaign saddled with missed spending and tax-cut opportunities.

He’d much rather rush his fiscal blueprint into the Commons under the Conservative flag now than risk waiting for a spring budget.

And as a bonus:

Besides, Mr. Flaherty effectively neutered criticism by rolling the GST cut into a colossal combo of other tax relief that spanned the income spectrum.

Bottom line: A two-income household of four earning $100,000 saves $427 in taxes from just this statement, with hints of more to come in the spring.

That finally paints the Conservatives in true blue colours after they posted several budgets of liberally increased program spending.

True blue. Heh. I like that.

Perhaps only a cynical columnist could see such Machiavellian strategy in a simple economic update, but there may be a grain of truth in it. Or at the very least Flaherty is hedging his bets.

Ironically, with the aid of the Bloc and the NDP continuing to oppose anything Harper lays out, the government is now holding all the cards in a minority situation that no one expected to be able to continue this long.

And so this year, the Hallowe’en trick was played on Stephane Dion.