Harper challenges the opposition to vote against the government in what Ralph Goodale, the Liberal House Leader quite rightly called a 'phony war'. Nobody objects to the $25 a week giveaway. Almost everybody objects to cancelling the previous governments deal with the provinces on childcare in a year. It's a false dichotomy to suggest it's one or the other, part of a pattern of Harper's distortion of the facts on the issue. We can and should do both.
The exception to that 'almost everybody' is Canada's religious right. Who Harper has turned to in a surprisingly open display of how ideology, rhetoric and fundamentalist religiosity rather than the facts drives Conservative policy on childcare. The Christian Right doesn't approve of women in the workforce, or the public sector - and that's what it boils down to.
Thursday, April 20, 2006
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3 comments:
Yeah, I agree 100% I remember watching the news the other day when he started his new campaign of lies. The NDP and the Liberals had said all along that they were going to back the bill assuming that it was worded to their satisfaction. This has been the party line mantra for all three opposition parties and will remain that way for so long as Harper doesn't try any funny business trojan horse manuevers which the Cons like to put in their legislation.
"Nobody objects to the $25 a week giveaway."
Really? I do. I think it is absolutely disgusting. I pay lots of taxes and I don't mind. But I do mind my money being given out as a baby bonus. If my tax money is being spent on your children then it should be through regulated public institutions. My tax money should be used to assist families through public (not private) health care, schools and day care systems. Not handed out in checks for parents to spend as they please. That way my money is not being used to buy SUV's plasma TVs etc.
I support my tax money going towards opening up day care spots for children. If parents choose to stay home and therefore their children don't need day care, then good for you, you are doing what you think is best for your child and you are getting to spend a lot more time with your children then parents who have/choose to work. That is your choice and it should be its own reward. Why should the rest of us give you a financial reward for that? We are already contributing (as we should) to your child's health care. When your child goes to school we will be contributing to that [I support my tax money going to help educate children at a PUBLIC school. I oppose my tax money going towards tax breaks for parents of children being sent to private schools (ala Harris and Eves). If you want to send your children to a private or religious school, then you can pay for it. It is not my fault that you refuse to use the public system.]
Some of us would like some part of the taxes that we pay going towards making sure that there is a cleaner environment and more livable planet for your children to grow up in. Again. My tax money should go towards the public good. Better schools, better health care, better environment, more day care spot: Yes.
Giving a handout to all parents to spend as they choose: No.
It's not a childcare plan agreed, it certainly wouldn't cover even a fraction of a parent's childcare costs, but on top of a real, concrete public daycare program it could be helpful to parents.
The Liberals could have defused Harper's childcare 'plan' during the election by simply co-opting it. '$1200 a year to parents? Sure we'll do that and create real public childcare spaces with our plan.'
Boom. In one move they would have co-opted the Tory plan and highlighted it's weaknesses at the same time. Instead they sneered at parents with slurs about beer and popcorn.
The Liberals needed a time out if only to re-aquire basic political reflexes.
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