Two TOP ISSUES for Ontario’s Provincial Election

“We got the governments we deserved. Now, let’s elect the government we need!

In the upcoming Ontario Election, all public concerns can be traced back to two Primary Causes which are clearly the result of Too Much Government in our lives:

     👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Rising Cost of Living for Individuals and Families

     🦺 Failure of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms to protect us.

Ultimately, VOTERS are responsible for BOTH of these Primary Causes. How so?

Consider this. If, over the past 40 years, the majority of voters had elected politicians who would have RESTRICTED GOVERNMENT from growing too big, these issues would not have arisen.

Instead, Canadians chose to elect self-serving politicians who awarded themselves and the unelected leaders of public institutions way too much legislated authority. As their authority grew, they were empowered to built their bureaucratic empires. Money was no object because they had a guaranteed supply of tax dollars and public debt. Today’s massive public sector is a testament to their unrestricted freedom of past and present institutional officials and political leaders to expand their powers of authority and to take control of much of our lives.

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Rising Cost Of Living: The Governments’ Part.

Did you know that …. 53% of the annual earnings of the average citizen goes towards paying taxes and “revenue tools” for our 3 levels of government? I first heard the term “revenue tools” when Kathleen Wynne referred to the many types of fees that her Liberal government relied upon to help pay for her ambitious’ “tax & spend” agenda. These tools include permits, licences, fines, certificates and other payment devices issued by governments.

Did you know that …. the Ontario Government has about 400,000 regulations on the books that it is obligated to enforce with its army of public servants? Unlike private sector businesses which must compete to survive, government enforcement organizations are public monopolies that  face not competitive constraints. As such, governments are always the least efficient and most expensive of all organizations.

Did you know that …. over 75% of all government employees are obligated to be a member of a public sector labour union and pay a tax on their labour (aka union dues)? These union enterprises are stated-privileged Special Interest Groups that enjoy legislated perks at the expense of every other taxpayer who is not a member of these public sector unions. Should Special Interest Groups receive unfair advantages like these unions?

Finally, are supply chains are like the human circulatory system that supports blood and oxygen to every cell in your body. If you block an artery, you suffer consequences. Every supply chain consists of a string of synchronized and collaborating organizations that make and deliver every product that you consume from food to energy to clothing and vehicles. Unfortunately for every consumer, every company participating in every supply chain must also pay taxes and conform to government regulations.

Did you know that …. every cost imposed by governments on these supply chain links are costs that are passed on to you to raise the final price you pay for everything you buy.

What will you do about these Two Critical Issues?

      The evidence is clear.  ‘For profit’ companies have always invested in new technologies in order to increase productivity, reduce operating costs and gain competitive advantage in their markets. Yet consumer prices have continued to rise. Obviously, they must be rising from other variables such as increases in taxation and and the added costs of complying to rising regulation overheads. With this in mind, it’s easy to see why governments have steadily grown in size, scope of authority and cost.

      Of course, the Liberal, NDP and Green Party politicians love to blame “the greedy Capitalist” for rising costs. This simply reveals that their politicians and followers DON’T HAVE A CLUE! And if they are this clueless about the real cause of rising costs, why would any voter trust them with more public responsibilities?

🦺 Our CHARTER Rights Are Ours To Lose.

      The Charter Of Rights and Freedoms became Constitutional Law in 1982. It was negotiated by 10 provincial Premiers  and Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau, and eventually signed by all of them except Rene Levesque, the Quebec Premier.

      The enforcement of the Charter’s provisions is unclear to me. Justin Trudeau and Doug Ford  both invoked “states of emergency” more than once during the pandemic. They claimed these measures were “temporary” suspensions of our Charter rights and freedoms, allegedly  “for the greater good”.

       The Truckers For Freedom 2022 national protest movement was a landmark moment in Canadian and provincial history. It became clear to the nation that our Charter of Rights and Freedoms is not worth the paper it’s written on because no one could stop the Prime Minister and Ontario Premier from their unconstitutional acts of authoritarianism.

      We The Citizens must roll back the government overreach. It has has become the single biggest issue in our lifetime.  It only tool we have to do so within the law is our vote.

How Do We ROLL BACK Government Overreach?

      First, we must understand how and why Trudeau and Ford were able to get away with overstepping our Charter rights so easily.

      It helps to understand the source of their claimed authority? Every leader and every government organization derives their authority from existing legislation. Without a law to provide said authority, no government organization can exists. https://greatguides.lsuc.on.ca/c.php?g=717830&p=5129520

       Elected Leaders are - first and foremost - politicians. They feed on power like piranha on raw meat. They use the powers of their elected office in order to retain and extend their powers. In 1981, I heard this explanation about political power from a former Director employed by the Ontario Government: “The currency of politics is votes; spending taxpayers’ money is simply a means to gain or retain votes”.

Vote To Remove The Source of the Problem

       In every election, the politicians representing the Liberal, NDP, Green and even sometimes the Conservative parties can be counted on making expensive election promises that, if passed as new legislation, will create the authority for further government expansion. When have you ever heard one of those politicians every proclaim the need to repeal legislation that is no longer needed or justified?

       Regardless of your political preferences, isn’t it time to reject every politician who ignores the fact that the government itself is the source of most of our problems?

      Let’s encourage every voter to reject any politician who will not PRIORITIZE their efforts to:

*** shrink and streamline governments so as to significantly reduce their part in increasing our cost of living

*** make sure every level of government in Canada truly accountable to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Introducing the ONTARIO Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

      On the website of the Ontario Libertarian Party (Libertarian dot on dot ca) under the ‘Platform’ tab, you will see an Ontario version of the Canadian Charter.

      The Ontario Charter was created to kickstart an important and long overdue discussion among Ontario’s citizens. This discussion revolves around one simple question: if the federal government is unable or unwilling to respect and defend the 1982 Constitution Act, then maybe it’s time that Ontario declare itself  a “distinct society” as Quebec did years ago. Surely Ontario’s 14.6 million residents deserve at least comparable privileges as those enjoyed by Quebec’s the 9 million citizens.

     While I can’t speak for the Western provinces, maybe they too may wish to begin the negotiations within Canada for their own Charter. The Western provinces have suffered great losses at the hands of the out-of-touch elites in Ottawa. Who could blame them for acting to protect their citizens from persistent federal government overreach and its failure to defend their citizens’ rights and freedoms.

Lest We Forget

      In Canada, we celebrate Remembrance Day each year to hold in our memories the sacrifices that many men and women have made in times of war.m

      Arguably, millions of Canadians made comparable sacrifices during the pandemic in order to fight a war against the SARS Cov-2 scourge. Our elected leaders have an obligation to keep everyone safe using public resources. Their policies and actions must “first, do no harm” in the same spirit as medical doctors.

       Untold thousands experienced harm from lockdown policies and vaccine mandates and many were front line workers who worked tirelessly to care for the sick and keep the rest of us fed and warm. While these Canadians sacrificed, out politicians acted with brazen disrespect with policies that threw many of these souls under the proverbial bus.

      I will NEVER FORGET Or FORGIVE Doug Ford or Justin Trudeau for refusing to meet with the Truckers Freedom Convoy to discuss their legitimate concerns. Canadians should never tolerate elected representatives who so blatantly and willfully ignore them in their time of need and personal crisis.