Elections form of warfare.

• Author: MICHELS, BOB
• Position: Brief Article

Here we go into what some claim is the "New Millennium". As such, we should give some thought to the future, knowing that the future is being made today and that the outcomes of the recent federal elections in the U.S. and Canada will cast long shadows over what will come to pass.

Elections are strange events. Elections, by their nature are a form of warfare, with winners and losers. Like any war, it is seemingly impossible for the combatants to avoid the ethical trap of, "You do what you have to, to win." Witness the bizarre events in Florida that led to apolitical circus and crisis in the U.S. presidential election beyond any science fiction writer's wildest imaginings. And, think about our recent federal election.

The central issue of both elections was "What to do with the billions of surplus dollars being generated and the billions more expected in the future?"

In Canada, the "How to spend the surplus?" issue was built on two unchallenged assumptions. First, our economy will continue to grow, following recent trends. Second, the government eliminated the deficit by cutting costs. True? Hardly!

In Canada, unlike the U.S., it took the largest tax gouge in our history to finance "The largest tax reduction in history." Somehow evil was transformed into virtue by the magic of an election. History was revised. Fiction became fact. The result? All the parties built their election campaigns and promises on how to spend a surplus that might not ever be.

Here are some realities:

1. The Ontario [read, "except Northern Ontario"] economy is booming with 850,000 new jobs created since 1995, almost 180,000 in 1998 and 200,000 in 1999, the two best years in Ontario's history! The rest of Canada is getting a free ride to prosperity on Qntario's coat tails. If Ontario's economy goes sour, so too goes the Canadian economy and goodbye surplus.

2. The United States may be experiencing the end of its greatest period of economic growth ever. They are our largest customer. Ontario and Canada are getting a free ride on the coat tails of U.S. growth and prosperity. If the economy of the United States goes sour, as now expected, so too does the economy of Ontario...