What?! Maureen Dowd and I agree on something?

You're sure to hear an echo if you read Dowd's take on Obama's oil spill response along with mine.

Dowd's piece

Mine

Oil Rig Not The Only Thing That's Been Blown Up

The oil is still pumping out of the ruins of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico. Albeit, the oil is now mixed with the heavy mud being pumped into the pipe, but as of today, the "top kill", the latest in a series of everything-but-the-kitchen-sink fixes, has not worked. This spill has given credence to the environmentalists who claim that oil spills are a matter of "when" and not "if." They have also raised legitimate questions about regulation and safety precautions on off shore drilling platforms. But one other thing this spill has done is to expose President Obama as a mere shadow of the inspirational second-coming that many had hoped. That dream, which had been on life-support more or less since day one, has now passed on. Obama has been shown to be just like most other politicians, steeped in so many briefings and so much bureaucracy as to be detached from the reality on the ground. Much has been made of this spill being Obama's Katrina, a comparison that looks laughable on the surface. But Katrina destroyed what was left of George W. Bush's image as a down-home, compassionate guy. Remember all the talk about Bush being the one voters wanted to have a beer with? That died with Katrina. Obama has now been shown in a similar light. Gone is the inspiration, the colour, the energy. Obama is now cold, detached, indifferent. You can see it in the way he parses his words, in the way that even what is to be an emotional visit to the Gulf Coast is scripted, parsed and teleprompted. You can see it in the way he speaks now too. What was once great oration is now dull, meaningless and calculated. He bobs his head from left to right and then back again at such regular intervals that it leaves me convinced it must be timed and rehearsed: "Right teleprompter...one...two...left teleprompter...one...two..." Whereas Bush or Clinton would be down in Louisiana, knee deep in sludge, shucking oysters and hugging locals, Obama is at best, arms-length, approaching the oil spill as the lawyer and professor that he is. With the oil still pumping into the Gulf, the coming days will determine not only how long it mars the beautiful Louisiana coast, but also to what extent it stains this president.

HST Keeps Getting Better and Better....

...and I mean that in the most sincere way. I've been very clear about where I stand on the HST: I think it is a smart economic policy, which will boost competitiveness, drive job-creation, save government money, and strengthen our economy. And now I've found yet another reason to applaud this new tax policy. The government recently released a list of items that will be taxed and not taxed by the HST. (You can find that list here.) On that list, you'll see that when the HST starts on July 1, it will apply to adult clothes bought for children. Currently, if you buy adult clothes you pay the full 12% tax of GST and PST. However, if you claim you are buying the items for a child, you can save the 7% PST right at the register. With the HST, that will no longer be allowed and it's about time. Having worked in retail for years, I can personally tell you that this PST exemption was wildly abused. I know of countless times I removed the PST from an item that I knew was for the adult who was buying it, not their child. I had tourists coming to my store who could barley speak English, but were well informed to say "No PST". I distinctly remember thinking about all the money being lost to untruthful shoppers and I am thoroughly impressed that the government has abolished this practice. I am sure that some big-boned teenagers would really do need adult clothes will be put out by this change, but for the most part this is a smart move that will close a pretty big loophole for tax evasion that currently exists at every checkout and register in the province.

Britain Gets it Right.....Eventually....Sort of

It's been almost a week since the British elections and finally we found out who was going to be the new Prime Minister. UK voters delivered the Conservatives, under David Cameron, to power, a mere 21 votes shy of a majority. They ousted, unfortunately not zealously enough, PM Gordon Brown from office and despite all the sound and fury about Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg (Britain's Obama, they were told), even knocked his party down 6 seats. So here it was, after 13 years of Labour Party rule, which has seen increasing social breakdown, ever-ballooning debt, a growing nanny state and myriad other problems, the British voters had clearly voted for a change in government. How shocking it was to then see Brown try to hold on to power and form a deal with the 3rd place Liberal Democrats. This parallels between this UK election and our own most recent vote are striking. The Conservative party wins the most seats and votes in a minority government and the 2nd and 3rd place parties (in our case, the Liberals, NDP and Bloc) try to form a coalition. At least here, the people's clear choice was allowed a chance to govern first. I did not support the coalition, but at least it coalesced around real, salient issues in opposition to the government. Brown and Clegg's deal would have simply been a coalition of the losers--and would have been an affront to the voters. But, it all worked out in the end...sort of. Yes, the Conservative Party leader will be the next UK Prime Minister, but as Britain is about to find out, minority governments produce weak, watered-down governments and policies. At a time when the country is facing some real strife, some tough decisions, a minority government, even one propped up by a formal coalition, means decisiveness and commitment will be hard to come by.

The Greeks Have No One to Blame but Themselves

Yesterday, Greek protesters threw petro-bombs into a bank that was open for business and full of patrons. The protesters were decrying the austerity package the Greek government was going to approve and lead to slashing the public service, cutting the government budget, and hiking taxes. The Greeks have no choice here, the country is broke and on the verge of defaulting on its debt. This would drag the Euro down and likely topple the other debt-ridden countries, the aptly-named PIGS (Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain) and plunge the continent and perhaps the world back into recession and crisis. Those protesters, you know, the ones who have lived on a diet of milk and honey without worrying about the bill, they killed 3 people. The people trying to go about their daily lives, had to flee the bank as it burst into flames. Three souls couldn't get out the front and tried to make it to the roof. They were overcome by the smoke and flames.

For years, the people of Greece have demanded governments spend and spend and governments obliged. The Greek people now must pay the price for their unsustainable lifestyle. Greece is a country where more than a quarter of the economy occurs under-the-table, hidden from taxation; where the majority of people evade their taxes; where public service wages have risen an average of 30% since 2006; where people get bonuses for showing up to work on time; and where a socialist government has imposed huge taxes, spent wildly and stagnated growth. Sorry Zorba, but you have no one to blame but yourself.

Talk About The Revolving Doors of the Justice System!

Kash Heed the on again, off again, on again (and now off again) Solicitor General of BC has stepped down again. Kash Heed stepped down the first time because controversial (and it turns out, illegal) campaign literature attacking his opponent was sent out to voters in his riding. When this news broke, Mr. Heed did the honorable thing; Mr. Heed said he didn't know anything about the flyers, but stepped down anyways while a special prosecutor looked into it. Good job. The special prosecutor then came back and said Mr. Heed was clear of any wrongdoing, but several others involved in his campaign broke election laws, notably his campaign manager and his financial agent. Now, while this may raise legitimate concerns over Mr. Heed's judgement and his abilities to manage a campaign, let alone a ministry, the story should have ended there. Unfortunately, the premier reinstated Mr. Heed into cabinet a tad quickly it would seem, because the special prosecutor now has admitted a conflict of interest: the law firm he works for donated to Heed's campaign. Sigh. So Mr. Heed had to resign yet again, because the investigation may have been tainted. And thus, a scandal that should have died a quiet death has new life breathed into it. This really shouldn't have been a big issue but it fits the current narrative of a government in turmoil, a party on the ropes. The funny thing is that the government really did nothing wrong on this file. Mr. Heed resigned when he should have. An investigation was called. Mr. Heed was reinstated when he was found innocent. And with the new information, there really was no other choice but for him to resign again. But my, oh my, when it rains it pours.