[agrimes87]

This one is for the Canadians:

What do you think of the dispute between the Canadian federal government and the Newfoundland provincial government?

Do you think Newfoundland should get the revenues?

[Bryan]

Originally Posted by agrimes87

This one is for the Canadians:

What do you think of the dispute between the Canadian federal government and the Newfoundland provincial government?

Do you think Newfoundland should get the revenues?

I think the disputed revenues should go to me!! I need them far more than the government

[Guido]

I wish I could say for certain! I'm a little biased, my mom's a Newf. I think they should, but only because I know the situation in Newfoundland firsthand from my Aunts and Uncles. They're fortunate that they're teachers, so they aren't as affected by the economy, but they do have friends who have been laid off in the economic downturn since the fisheries were basically cut off.
So, what I'm saying is... YES!

[Symbiotic]

i too, am biased...my dad and all of his family are Newfies......even if they weren't Newfies, i would say that newfoundland should stopped getting screwed over by the federal government.....they'd be better off going back to being a british colony....everything has gone downhill since they became part of canada.....i don't want them to separate, but they would be better off.....

Did anyone hear about what their priemier just did??....he ordered all canadian flags removed from government buildings....not canadian flag flies on provincial property in newfoundland now.....and i support it...i am a die-hard canadian....but the gov. has been screwing nfld for so long that they should(and finally have) take a stand and say "enough is enough".....

[smhatahy]

everything has gone downhill since they became part of canada...

[Symbiotic]

if you vote the 4th choice, and you are american, why are you agreeing?...you said you know nothing about this(i'm asuming yours is the 4th vote for the 4th choice)....if so, what are you trying to say about canada

[Micahb]

No! Equalization is there for a reason

[smhatahy]

if you vote the 4th choice, and you are american, why are you agreeing?...you said you know nothing about this(i'm asuming yours is the 4th vote for the 4th choice)....if so, what are you trying to say about canada

it was just a joke... you just made it so easy with that sentence though

[perhaps]

Aw man. I miss Newfie jokes. I used to know so many of them.

[Symbiotic]

what do you do when a newfie throws a grenade at you?

[smhatahy]

run?

[Symbiotic]

pull the pin and throw the grenade back....

[Boy Genius]

I've heard that as a blond joke before...

Anyway, back on topic: What exactly is this deabte over? Could you explain it to those of us who happen to be uneducated (on Canadian issues) Americans?

[Grasshopper359]

Originally Posted by guitarman_888

i too, am biased...my dad and all of his family are Newfies......even if they weren't Newfies, i would say that newfoundland should stopped getting screwed over by the federal government.....they'd be better off going back to being a british colony....everything has gone downhill since they became part of canada.....i don't want them to separate, but they would be better off.....

Joey Smallwood didn't seem to think so. Being screwed over by the federal government is part of being in Confederation. Every province puts more into Confederation that they get out of it, just like any other family. Prior to joining Confederation, Newfoundland was on their own, left to fend for themselves, and in view of the current fish population situation, I venture to say that they're better off as a part of Canada, rather than trying to hang on to the scraps that centuries of overfishing have left. They've recieved a good amount of help from Ottawa over the years. As for being a British colony, the de-colonisation rush of the 1960s would have almost certainly included Newfoundland, which would have left them as either part of Canada, or an independant country. As an independant country, they would be much worse off than they are as part of Canada, because their national status has no bearing on the fact that for 400 years, fishing vessels from all over the Atlantic have been dipping into the fish stocks, which have drastically dwindled. Their choices would to be either to leave the fishery open, and fish the Grand Banks empty, or close it, and try to manage on their own. Unemployment would be much higher, because it would not be as easy for younger Newfoundlanders to seek employment in Canada - that would require immigration, so they would remain jobless in Newfoundland, piggybacking off what little economy the island would have. If you think that the Rock is in dire straits now, imagine if unemploment was around the 50% mark, the inflation, the cost of living, the tax rate, the worthlessness of the currency, because nobody wants to invest in a weak economy. Forestry could be something to fall back on, but that would require competing with Canada and the US, which is not even remotely feasible. Canada and the US can offer lumber to foreign buyers at a fraction of the cost that Newfoundland could. In order to be economically successful, you have to export more than you import, otherwise, the economy just stagnates. In order to export more than they import, they would have to offer products consistantly lower in price to foreign customers than their current sources, which would be principally Canada and the US. Simply put, they would have to offer Canadian clients lower priced products than their US suppliers, and vice-versa. They would be competing against both Canada and the US for the same business. Newfoundland's economy, faced up to both Canada and the US would be like an ant fighting a tank. Like it or not, economically speaking, Newfoundland is much better off as part of Canada than trying to fight against it.

Having said that, Ottawa made a promise, and should therefore keep it, at least temporarily until the fish stock revives. I realise that Equalisation is there for a reason, but if Ottawa expects to maintain this policy, than they can't go making promises to the contrary. It simply undermines their cause and creates a rift between them and the province in question. If there's one lesson to be learned about Canadian politics, it's that Ottawa can't fight a province and win - the Premiers are much closer to their constituants than the PM is, and now that the conservative parties have finally begun to sort themselves out, it's just a matter of time before the Conservative Party becomes a force to reckon with again. Paul Martin is leading a minority government, and the next election is still three years away. Duking it out with a premier isn't a good idea right about now.

Now the problem is that granting 100% revenue to Newfoundland will cause contention with other provinces. "Well", Ralph Klein says, "Why shouldn't Alberta be able to keep 100% of the revenue from our oil?" and Dalton McGuinty says, "Then Ontario should be able to keep 100% of the revenue from our steel", and so on. Given the fallout of this would leave, I seriously doubt that Martin would go there. He'll cut his political losses in Newfoundland and rely on Ontario and Quebec to make up for it in the next election. As bad as duking it out with one premier is, duking it out with 11 premiers is infinately worse. He has 5 of the 7 seats for Newfoundland and Labrador, but even if he loses all five, he's still got a mandate. He has 130 seats and the Tories would have 104. Compare that with the 54 seats that the Bloc has, which, for the most part, could go either way, if the right words were spoken to tap into the frustration with the Bloc's inaction and lack of purpose. That makes the difference between a mandate and a stint as HMLO. So politically, Newfoundland would be better off on their own, so it would appear, but on the other hand, since politics and the economy are inseparably linked in a democratic society...

100% revenue was a promise that he knew he couldn't keep, so he should never have made it in the first place.

There's no way he'll keep that promise. You heard it here first...

[Boy Genius]

So the issue is over whether or not Newfoundland gets fishing profits?