http://fildebrandt.ca Derek Fildebrandt on politics, economics, war and fun Sun, 05 Sep 2010 19:06:35 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Supporters: We are closing in on the goal of raising $600 for the Army Run in support of injured soldiers and military families. At $355, we are 59% of the way there! I've been training hard to not completely embarrass myself, but there is still more to do in raising money and ... http://fildebrandt.ca/2010/09/army-run-update/ The Liberal Party of Canada ripped-off the annual "Teddy Waste Awards" today, an annual event hosted by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. The Teddy Awards - which hand out "Golden Sows" at an event to unwilling recipients for wasting taxpayers' money - was held for the 12th year in a row ... http://fildebrandt.ca/2010/08/libs-rip-off-taxpayers-fed-teddy-awards/ The most divisive debates in Canadian society normally revolve around two things: language and region. East versus west, French versus English, Toronto versus the Rest of Canada. We are united in our disunity. At the centre of both language and regional tensions is a 100 year dispute between Ottawa and ... http://fildebrandt.ca/2010/08/will-the-real-rough-riders-please-stand-up/ The Telegraph Journal is reporting that the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) is eying an office in Halifax in order to establish a regional pressence as Atlantic Canada's taxpayer watchdog. As a CTF director, I know nothing about this (...) but in the spirit of injecting some excitment into Atlantic Canada's ... http://fildebrandt.ca/2010/07/1094/ An edited version of the following article appeared in the Winter 2009 edition of The Taxpayer. Since this article's publishing, Parliament has taken steps to limit the practice of "10 percenters." What is another word for ‘free money’ on Parliament Hill?  ‘Taxpayer money’, ‘your money’, ‘not my money’ are ... http://fildebrandt.ca/2010/07/10-of-the-problem-mp-junk-mail/ The European Union (EU) has many fascinating parallels with the Canadian federation. Unspoken by many, the most obvious is that it is propped-up primarily by only two members: Germany and Britain in the EU and by Ontario and Alberta (now joined by BC and Saskatchewan) in Canada. The corruption that fiscal ... http://fildebrandt.ca/2010/06/germanys-breaking-under-weight-of-eu-pay-attention-canada/ Until today I was a grudging (and rare) holdout of support for Ontario's move from an archaic PST to a more universal HST. With a single capitulation to threats of blockades by radical native groups, the federal Conservatives and provincial Liberals - backed by both opposition parties - have ensured ... http://fildebrandt.ca/2010/06/the-death-of-my-support-for-the-hst/ Below are a few scenarios as to how the vote on Bill C-391 could turn out. But first, the context. The federal long-gun registry has finally begun to stare death in the face as it emerges from the Public Safety Committee. As every opposition member on the committee ... http://fildebrandt.ca/2010/06/long-gun-registry-vote-scenarios/ Less than two weeks ago, Frank Klees quoted the CTF's Gas Tax Honesty Report in Question Period at Queen's Park, stating that, "the only thing that should surprise Ontarians about Dalton McGuinty is if he doesn’t surprise them with new taxes after every election." Well today, Premier McGuinty's thrice appointed ... http://fildebrandt.ca/2010/06/more-faux-green-taxes-for-ontario/ With former prime minister Jean Chretien now firmly attached to the walls of Parliament (again), its time to remember the last prime minister to hang. And no, Kim Campbell doesn't count. In 2002, Brian Mulroney's portrait was added to the majestic halls of Parliament Hill's Centre Block outside of the House ... http://fildebrandt.ca/2010/05/canadian-herritage-moment-chretien-hangs-mulroney/