Justin Trudeau hints at boosting Canada’s military spending

I'll believe it when I see it.

 

[Czech_pivo]

European problems are for Europeans to solve ?

Until they become American (Canadian) problems to solve.

 

[Halifax Tar]

Until they become American (Canadian) problems to solve.

That's a choice we make when we insert ourselves into them.

But Europe should be on point when its European problems, not the US. And if Europe going to expect the US take the lead, it should dame well remember not to bite the hand that feeds them and get in line.

 

[FJAG]

Canada is not a G7 country. It never was. It was brought into the G7 to balance out the Europeans just as it was brought into NATO

I disagree with that notion. See Wikipedia for a quick summary of the G7. In short, Canada has the world's 9th largest economy by GDP and two of the countries with a higher one are China and India who are not members. At the time Canada's GNP even exceeded that of Italy who was already a member of the G6. Trudeau's reputation as a long serving statesman had a lot to do with the invitation for Canada to join.

I don't know where this inferiority complex amongst Canadians comes from. Maybe it's because live next to a big dog that we always seem to undermine ourselves or that recently have had shit leadership that diminishes our international reputation but having the world's 9th highest economy should give us a good bit of pride - not to mention be something which allows us to build a world class military if it wasn't for the fact that we consider defence a discretionary budget item that can be adjusted whenever other priorities require either more spending or a cut back in general spending.

3) By 65, you should have substantial assets behind you. Especially given that most 65 yr olds today had a chance to get into the housing market before it went nuts. So if you have worked and paid off a home, CPP, RRSPs should be enough to cover lifestyle maintenance.

4) The taxpayer should have no obligation on giving you beer money in old age.

You need to remember that OAS is subject to income levels. If you've accumulated that wealth and have a high enough retirement income then you won't get any "free beer money."

 

[Kirkhill]

Not all of us have government pensions guaranteed for life after 20 years. Many of us joined companies that offered guaranteed pensions only to find those pensions stripped away and a lump sum offered instead and we were ushered into the world of the RRSP and the 401K. Union and Management tussled over who had control of the pot. Management decided there would be no pot. The government agreed.

And from the commentary it becomes really clear who has spent a lifetime issuing orders and expecting obedience and who has had to trade for goods and services every day.

I wish you joy of the day.

 

[Good2Golf]

They appear to have arrived at this conclusion organically, based on the current world order, not anything Trump has said.

That support is, I believe, a mile/km wide and an inch/cm deep. It also came from figures from a defence specific poll, so it isn’t normalized against other issues, *but generically captured with an ‘other things’ question.

Of note, it seems to be old codgers who think about spending more on defence…

From the article:

Younger Canadians are taking a different view of the current state of the nation’s defense. Those aged 18-34 are significantly more likely to believe that Canada should leave its defense up to the United States (36% vs. 21% of 35-54 years old and 12% of 55+ years old). This is likely because younger Canadians think that there are more urgent issues that require larger amounts of government spending than defense (66% vs. 54% of 35-54 years old and 41% of 55+ years old).

As for the $100B in OAS, that's not just committed. Unless something changes that is baked in with the current rates we pay and our demographics. So the debate we're about to have is whether caving to American demands for higher defence spending is worth half an OAS cheque

Could be adjusted with an OIC. Don’t believe any current/future government wouldn’t…

 

[Cloud Cover]

Not all of us have government pensions guaranteed for life after 20 years. Many of us joined companies that offered guaranteed pensions only to find those pensions stripped away and a lump sum offered instead and we were ushered into the world of the RRSP and the 401K. Union and Management tussled over who had control of the pot. Management decided there would be no pot. The government agreed.

And from the commentary it becomes really clear who has spent a lifetime issuing orders and expecting obedience and who has had to trade for goods and services every day.

I wish you joy of the day.

Bloody well right.

 

[Halifax Tar]

Not all of us have government pensions guaranteed for life after 20 years.

I/We earn that. I offered my service to the country in exchange for a paycheck and pension.

You could have too.

Many of us joined companies that offered guaranteed pensions only to find those pensions stripped away and a lump sum offered instead and we were ushered into the world of the RRSP and the 401K. Union and Management tussled over who had control of the pot. Management decided there would be no pot. The government agreed.

You made a choice this is how it went. Your future is in your hands. Invest wisely.

And from the commentary it becomes really clear who has spent a lifetime issuing orders and expecting obedience and who has had to trade for goods and services every day.

We all make choices. Choose wisely.

I wish you joy of the day.

And you as well.

 

[Kirkhill]

Trump wants Europe to harden up. If the article from the Telegraph I posted is half-ways right he appears to be clearing the way for European troops to enter Ukraine with US blessing. He is apparently happy to supply weapons but not blood or treasure. He does have form in that regard because he did supply Javelins when Obama would not. I think he is planning on a Lend-Lease contract such as that which was sold to the UK in 1916 and 1940.

My guess is that Europe will take him up on the offer, led by the Poles and the Scandinavians. The French will go along for the ride because they don't want to lose influence. Starmer will likely follow suit. The Germans and the Mediterranean will do their best to do nothing.

What happens if the US effectively locks Canada out of its market? Canada will be forced to look East-West instead of North-South and the old Red Line trade route will become necessary. Only now, instead of terminating in London and Sydney it will terminate in Tokyo, Seoul and Warsaw.

View attachment 88945

The Japanese and Koreans, as well as the Europeans, have a demonstrated desire for the things we have to trade, starting with our energy products but also including food, lumber and metals.

The French and the Brits want to sell gucci kit but the Poles and the Easterners are not willing to wait on their timelines or pay their prices. They are more than happy to buy from the South Koreans, Taiwan and Japan as well as Turkey and Israel. And necessity is making a mother of them all.

Canada is not a G7 country. It never was. It was brought into the G7 to balance out the Europeans just as it was brought into NATO.

If the US doesn't want us there and threatens our interests (and doesn't want to buy us out) what is to prevent us re-aligning with the UK and France, Northern Europe, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan? With future growth potential through Turkey and the Stans.

If we are positing counter-factual futures.

Further to my previous...

https://iaac-aeic.gc.ca/050/documents/p81514/138782E.pdf

Western Energy Corridor — Home Page

www.westernenergycorridor.ca

Prince Rupert Port Authority Signs Global Memorandum of Understanding on Multi-Port Multi-Jurisdiction Green Shipping Corridors | Prince Rupert Port Authority

December 6, 2023 The Prince Rupert Port Authority (PRPA) signed the Global Memorandum of Understanding on Multi-Port Multi-Jurisdiction Green Shipping

www.rupertport.com

https://www.manitobacooperator.ca/news-opinion/news/port-of-churchill-charts-new-course/

Manitoba could Become Europe's Weapon Against Russia | Maverick Party

Back in April of 2022, Peter Mackay wrote an article on the port of Churchill titled: “Manitoba could become Europe’s not-so-secret weapon against Russia”. I have been saying for many years in local circles that Western Canada should be making better use of the Port of Churchill, and it is an...

maverickparty.ca

New Canada, Finland, and the United States partnership

Canada, Finland, and the United States have together formed the Icebreaker Collaboration Effort (ICE Pact). The ICE Pact recognizes their joint priority of upholding safety and security in the Arctic, including the continued protection of long-standing international rules and norms.

www.pm.gc.ca

A Green Power Corridor from Prince Rupert to Edmonton to Churchill. Rail, Highway, Pipelines, Powerlines. Ships at both ends. Korean built freighters in the Pacific. Finnish designed ice-freighters in the Bay and the Atlantic.

The Grand Twin Track - or the Short Trans-Canada Route.

By-pass Vancouver, T-Bay, Montreal and the St-Lawrence. As well as the US of A.

 

[Halifax Tar]

Further to my previous...

https://iaac-aeic.gc.ca/050/documents/p81514/138782E.pdf

Western Energy Corridor — Home Page

www.westernenergycorridor.ca

Prince Rupert Port Authority Signs Global Memorandum of Understanding on Multi-Port Multi-Jurisdiction Green Shipping Corridors | Prince Rupert Port Authority

December 6, 2023 The Prince Rupert Port Authority (PRPA) signed the Global Memorandum of Understanding on Multi-Port Multi-Jurisdiction Green Shipping

www.rupertport.com

https://www.manitobacooperator.ca/news-opinion/news/port-of-churchill-charts-new-course/

Manitoba could Become Europe's Weapon Against Russia | Maverick Party

Back in April of 2022, Peter Mackay wrote an article on the port of Churchill titled: “Manitoba could become Europe’s not-so-secret weapon against Russia”. I have been saying for many years in local circles that Western Canada should be making better use of the Port of Churchill, and it is an...

maverickparty.ca

New Canada, Finland, and the United States partnership

Canada, Finland, and the United States have together formed the Icebreaker Collaboration Effort (ICE Pact). The ICE Pact recognizes their joint priority of upholding safety and security in the Arctic, including the continued protection of long-standing international rules and norms.

www.pm.gc.ca

A Green Power Corridor from Prince Rupert to Edmonton to Churchill. Rail, Highway, Pipelines, Powerlines. Ships at both ends. Korean built freighters in the Pacific. Finnish designed ice-freighters in the Bay and the Atlantic.

The Grand Twin Track - or the Short Trans-Canada Route.

By-pass Vancouver, T-Bay, Montreal and the St-Lawrence. As well as the US of A.

Can you get ships out of Hudson's Bay all year round?

What ever makes Canada filthy rich I'm cool with.

 

[Kirkhill]

Can you get ships out of Hudson's Bay all year round?

What ever makes Canada filthy rich I'm cool with.

Can you get ships out of T-Bay, Toronto, Montreal and Quebec all year round? How about the Baltic? Across the top of Russia? And no we don't need nuclear ice-breakers. We used to make our fortune shipping high value cargoes seasonally out of Churchill, furs.

The Western Corridor would tie BC and Manitoba Hydro, Oil Sands, Natural Gas, Coal and Uranium all together. Add in some mini-nukes and some sites to return fissionable waste to the point of origin for storage or reprocessing.

And there is indigenous interest in all points along the route. They too would like to be filthy rich.

 

[Quirky]

What ever makes Canada filthy rich in a green economy I'm cool with

Yup.

 

[Kirkhill]

I/We earn that. I offered my service to the country in exchange for a paycheck and pension.

You could have too.



You made a choice this is how it went. Your future is in your hands. Invest wisely.



We all make choices. Choose wisely.



And you as well.

Life happens to us all.

 

[Halifax Tar]

Can you get ships out of T-Bay, Toronto, Montreal and Quebec all year round? How about the Baltic? Across the top of Russia? And no we don't need nuclear ice-breakers. We used to make our fortune shipping high value cargoes seasonally out of Churchill, furs.

The Western Corridor would tie BC and Manitoba Hydro, Oil Sands, Natural Gas, Coal and Uranium all together. Add in some mini-nukes and some sites to return fissionable waste to the point of origin for storage or reprocessing.

And there is indigenous interest in all points along the route. They too would like to be filthy rich.

I wasn't critiquing you, that was a question.

If not let's get ice breakers and open up those shipping lanes full time.

 

[Kirkhill]

I wasn't critiquing you, that was a question.

If not let's get ice breakers and open up those shipping lanes full time.

That too.

 

[IKnowNothing]

Not all of us have government pensions guaranteed for life after 20 years. Many of us joined companies that offered guaranteed pensions only to find those pensions stripped away and a lump sum offered instead and we were ushered into the world of the RRSP and the 401K. Union and Management tussled over who had control of the pot. Management decided there would be no pot. The government agreed.

And from the commentary it becomes really clear who has spent a lifetime issuing orders and expecting obedience and who has had to trade for goods and services every day.

I don't think anyone is talking about doing away with OAS/GIS- just framing it properly as the tax payer funded welfare that it is and adjusting formulas and caps to align with a justifiable goal.

 

[Czech_pivo]

I don't think anyone is talking about doing away with OAS/GIS- just framing it properly as the tax payer funded welfare that it is and adjusting formulas and caps to align with a justifiable goal.

Oh, I'm for phasing out the OAS completely. Base the phasing out on an age bracket/timeline and start moving it to a slow and complete death.

As the increase to the max income level of the CPP climbs, so does the reducing of the OAS to those at a younger age. The max CPP income contribution level really should be well over 150k/yr, not 65k/yr.

Giving someone 800+$/month based on the fact that they merely were born here and 'just showed up to the party' without necessarily contributing to the party is a bit too Socialist for my liking. Instead, why not make the CPP payments to those at the lower income/wealth level tax free?

 

[PrairieFella]

I disagree with that notion. See Wikipedia for a quick summary of the G7. In short, Canada has the world's 9th largest economy by GDP and two of the countries with a higher one are China and India who are not members. At the time Canada's GNP even exceeded that of Italy who was already a member of the G6. Trudeau's reputation as a long serving statesman had a lot to do with the invitation for Canada to join.

I don't know where this inferiority complex amongst Canadians comes from. Maybe it's because live next to a big dog that we always seem to undermine ourselves or that recently have had shit leadership that diminishes our international reputation but having the world's 9th highest economy should give us a good bit of pride - not to mention be something which allows us to build a world class military if it wasn't for the fact that we consider defence a discretionary budget item that can be adjusted whenever other priorities require either more spending or a cut back in general spending.



You need to remember that OAS is subject to income levels. If you've accumulated that wealth and have a high enough retirement income then you won't get any "free beer money."

We have little dog syndrome being adjacent to the global hegemon. On any other part of Earth we'd rightfully consider ourselves an economic powerhouse and a robust middle power. It's also important to remember there more to the stories than numbers, GDP numbers do not control fort the vicious income inequality of the USA which is currently an order of magnitude higher than the peak of pre-revolutionary France (yes, not an overly useful comparison based on material conditions but still interesting food for thought).

Sure we're in a bit of a slump right now but we are still one of the greatest societies ever manifested on earth and would do well to remember that. We will recover.

There's my anti-doomer statement for the week haha.

 

[Czech_pivo]

We have little dog syndrome being adjacent to the global hegemon. On any other part of Earth we'd rightfully consider ourselves an economic powerhouse and a robust middle power. It's also important to remember there more to the stories than numbers, GDP numbers do not control fort the vicious income inequality of the USA which is currently an order of magnitude higher than the peak of pre-revolutionary France (yes, not an overly useful comparison based on material conditions but still interesting food for thought).

Sure we're in a bit of a slump right now but we are still one of the greatest societies ever manifested on earth and would do well to remember that. We will recover.

There's my anti-doomer statement for the week haha.

Devils Advocate here - are we this because of the fate of geographically - both in terms of what bounties our land holds and based on the fact that we have in essence 1 and only 1 neighbour who has been 'like' us cultural, religiously and ethnically since the very beginning - and NOT based our on ability to achieve anything really remarkably?

I look at a country like Holland - tiny in size, lacking in alot of natural resources, surrounded in the past with many many larger rivals, population about the size of Ontario - and I ask myself, why do they have sooo many internationally recognized business and a standard of living at a minimum on par with ours and we dont' have even more than we do? Why are we Canadians still 'drawers of water and hewers of wood'?

 

[IKnowNothing]

As the increase to the max income level of the CPP climbs, so does the reducing of the OAS to those at a younger age. The max CPP income contribution level really should be well over 150k/yr, not 65k/yr.

I'm not in favour of increasing the CPP max, nor do I see the connection. As a wager earner I would rather have that take home income to invest as I choose, and as an employer I don't want to bare that cost. People in that income band should be able to figure it out for themselves, with CPP as it is as a defined benefit jump off point.

And unless you're using those higher contribution caps to institute a "progressive" payout scheme that sees ROI decrease for the high earners (using them to fund higher low income payouts), this plan does zilch to replace OAS as a retirement support for lower income retirees.

 

[Czech_pivo]

I'm not in favour of increasing the CPP max, nor do I see the connection. As a wager earner I would rather have that take home income to invest as I choose, and as an employer I don't want to bare that cost. People in that income band should be able to figure it out for themselves, with CPP as it is as a defined benefit jump off point.

And unless you're using those higher contribution caps to institute a "progressive" payout scheme that sees ROI decrease for the high earners (using them to fund higher low income payouts), this plan does zilch to replace OAS as a retirement support for lower income retirees.

The CPPIB is one of the best run sovereign pension funds in the world. By increasing the salary contribution threshold it takes the lack of planning/foresight out of the hands of those less able to manage their retirement and allows of the better financial situation that they end up being in when they hit 65yrs of age.

OAS is 'funded' through the general tax revenue that the Federal Government receives each year. By reducing that payout, it would allow for the Federal Government to reduce the amount of tax required in order to generate the 68$ billion in 2022 it costs to fund it.