Watch What You Wish For...
I've been looking through some of the Alberta newspapers, commentary and blogs today to try to get a sense of what Western Canadians are thinking coming into this upcoming election.
First of all, there are alot of them who are VERY upset that Paul Martin was tossing "un-American" phrases around on last week's campaign trail. Second of all, there are a few out there who actually think that a two-tiered health system will be beneficial to Canada.
I have lived in Canada all of my life, but I also lived in the United States for the past three years. Those were tumultous times, let me tell you. In Canada's debate, I have learned that above all, we have to take a hard look at the state of the United States of America and RUN LIKE HELL in the opposite direction!
I lived in Massachusetts, thankfully as blue a state as you can find in the U.S. and probably one of the very few places in the U.S. where a rational Canadian can set up shop.
My first apartment was in downtown Boston. It was a bachelor apartment for $1200 per month not including utilities. The cheapest rent I ever paid was when I decided to move out of the city into Quincy (a 1.5 hour commute by train) to pay another girl $650 per month to have a room in her 2 bedroom apartment. In that environs, I would say that most middle class people had at least a 1 - 2 hour commute to get into work (everyone had moved way out into the surrounding cities and even as far as Maine and Rhode Island). The crappiest fixer-up house within a 75 mile radius of Boston was $350,000 dollars MINIMUM. The cheapest real estate investments were 75 year old remodeled apartment units selling for $250,000 minimum.
That's just housing.
How about maternity leave? At my workplace, we were entitled to 14 weeks of paid vacation (you also COULD NOT USE any other accumulated sick time or vacation time to get yourself more time with your newborn). That's it. Your kid pops out, they and at 3 months they are suddenly without parents and have to go to daycare. It was ridiculous - at that age the child has not even developed its personality or familial bonds yet! The child's main developmental stepping stones will inevitably be witnessed by complete strangers. That's what the U.S. political system calls "family values". By the way, the website and statistics that I mentioned in my last post specifically states that of all the OECD countries, the U.S., Australia and New Zealand are the only countries left that don't provide full maternal/paternal leave options.
On the subject of daycare, of course the U.S. government has no cash for such luxuries. Most couples I knew with newborn children were rushing around trying to get on the list for a nearby daycare center as soon as the child popped out. Some of these waiting lists had a three year wait period to boot! One colleague of mine indicated that for childcare, a couple has to be prepared to pay A MINIMUM Of $15 dollars per hour. While this is probably not a fair wage for the daycare workers themselves - how many working Americans do you think actually MAKE the $15 per hour to be able to pay for it?
What I have been actively watching is the state of the U.S. economy and the corresponding effects on the middle class. Anyone with any knowledge about economics knows that you cannot run a government on several trillions of dollars of debt and have a stable economic future. The future of the country's economy depends entirely on foreign investors who are holding the government's bonds. If they decide to jump ship, the U.S. dollar could go into a major tailspin.
One of the absolute major problems with the economy has been the U.S. ever-increasing de-emphasis on regulation (with a corresponding outpouring of financial and regulatory support for corporations.) Let's do the round up:
*in the past 15 years the U.S. economy has been growing by about 3% per year. *at the same time wages have not only remained the same, but in some sectors have been falling.
How do we account for an economy which can continue growing while its citizen's incomes have not? CREDIT CARDS. Statistics show that individuals in the U.S. have an historically high level of debt in comparison to their incomes, and that individual savings are at an all-time low. This flows through all members of the society - if you take a look at that report in my last posting and you'll see what I mean - a shockingly low number of adults have individual retirement plans and that's only one group.
If you read Elizabeth Warren's book "The Two Income Trap" you will see that the reason why so many people (who historically would not have been extended credit) have credit now - is because of U.S. deregulation of the credit industry. And you would be shocked to know what they're up to these days! Did you know that in the U.S. it is not illegal for one of your credit card companies to RAISE YOUR INTEREST RATE because you paid ANOTHER CREDIT CARD bill late? Did you know that they can charge any interest rate they like and the number and kinds of fees that they are charging has skyrocketed? Did you know that a person in the U.S. is more likely to get more credit card offers AFTER they claim bankruptcy? This is because (contrary to what used to be popular wisdom) the credit card companies know that they will be able to milk the cash out of these people the longest.
What has been the Bush Administration's response to this kind of blatant abuse of the middle class which has had a direct impact on their economic well-being? This year the Bush Administration passed an amendment to the Bankruptcy laws which would make it harder for most people to claim bankruptcy and which would require persons who claimed bankruptcy to continue paying certain bills (even though a corporation who claimed bankrupcty would have their slate wiped clean!)
Okay right-wingers who are wagging their finger at those bankruptcy claimants who are selfishly abusing the system to buy big screen TVs - WRONG again! READ Elizabeth Warren's book! The top three reasons why Americans are claiming bankruptcy?
1. Unexpected health problems that cost them a trip to the hospital and thousands of dollars on their credit cards.
2. Divorce or separation.
3. People buying houses they cannot afford to live in areas where good schools are available.
Did you know that the REPUTATION OF A PRIMARY SCHOOL is one of the primary determinants of real estate prices in any particular area in the United States?
Strike two against you right wingers who are all pro-privatization of schools. (The third strike on this matter comes from my knowledge of a girl from Southwestern Ontario who went to work for a private school in Michigan that was owned by the company that owns DOMINO'S PIZZA!!).
I've said it before and I'll say it again - CORPORATIONS' ONLY PRIORITY IS MAKING MONEY. SCHOOLS' PRIORITY SHOULD BE CHILDREN. HOSPITALS" PRIORITY SHOULD BE PATIENTS. THE TWO ARE INCOMPATIBLE. IF a corporation has to cut costs in order to increase profits - they are going to cut costs - even if it negatively impacts on their service to patients.
Which leads me to my next point. Canada's health system might not be great BUT IT IS BETTER THAN NOTHING AND/OR RELYING ON INSURANCE COMPANIES TO PROTECT YOUR HEALTH.
When was the last time you made a claim to your insurance company about ANYTHING? Truth is NONE OF US LIKE TO MAKE CLAIMS TO INSURANCE COMPANIES BECAUSE WE KNOW THEY WILL:
1. nickle and dime the items we are claiming for
2. stall in processing payment
2. raise our rates when all is said and done
How would you like to have to take these into consideration at a time when YOUR CHILD NEEDS TO GO TO THE HOSPITAL?
Well this is what it is like for most Americans on a daily basis. For 30 million of them without health insurance, they have to think about going to the hospital or the doctor or the dentist the same way you and I have to think about whether we are going to buy a new CD or pair of jeans... CAN I AFFORD THIS RIGHT NOW?
Hard to think of it that way when you are in an AMBULANCE BLEEDING TO DEATH FROM A CAR ACCIDENT!!!
READ THE BOOK "CRITICAL CONDITION" that I mentioned in a prior post. IT IS AN ABSOLUTE MUST READ FOR ANYONE WHO THINKS THAT PRIVATIZATION IS THE WAY FOR US TO GO. In Canada we complain about how much tax we pay but the truth is, in my experience the income tax level was pretty much the same between the two countries, but in the U.S. I had to pay $135 PER PAYCHEQUE for family health insurance converage. For most Americans, their health insurance costs are $10,000 per year on average. A friend of mine was off work for one summer and in order to keep her family's health insurance in place until September, she had to pay $500 per month. This was an insurance plan through the employer which the employer was not contributing to for this period. This rate is actually cheap compared to if an American has to purchase insurance on their own (and not with the purchasing power of their employer).
I have must more to say about de-regulation in America and its effects on the economy as well. More next time!
First of all, there are alot of them who are VERY upset that Paul Martin was tossing "un-American" phrases around on last week's campaign trail. Second of all, there are a few out there who actually think that a two-tiered health system will be beneficial to Canada.
I have lived in Canada all of my life, but I also lived in the United States for the past three years. Those were tumultous times, let me tell you. In Canada's debate, I have learned that above all, we have to take a hard look at the state of the United States of America and RUN LIKE HELL in the opposite direction!
I lived in Massachusetts, thankfully as blue a state as you can find in the U.S. and probably one of the very few places in the U.S. where a rational Canadian can set up shop.
My first apartment was in downtown Boston. It was a bachelor apartment for $1200 per month not including utilities. The cheapest rent I ever paid was when I decided to move out of the city into Quincy (a 1.5 hour commute by train) to pay another girl $650 per month to have a room in her 2 bedroom apartment. In that environs, I would say that most middle class people had at least a 1 - 2 hour commute to get into work (everyone had moved way out into the surrounding cities and even as far as Maine and Rhode Island). The crappiest fixer-up house within a 75 mile radius of Boston was $350,000 dollars MINIMUM. The cheapest real estate investments were 75 year old remodeled apartment units selling for $250,000 minimum.
That's just housing.
How about maternity leave? At my workplace, we were entitled to 14 weeks of paid vacation (you also COULD NOT USE any other accumulated sick time or vacation time to get yourself more time with your newborn). That's it. Your kid pops out, they and at 3 months they are suddenly without parents and have to go to daycare. It was ridiculous - at that age the child has not even developed its personality or familial bonds yet! The child's main developmental stepping stones will inevitably be witnessed by complete strangers. That's what the U.S. political system calls "family values". By the way, the website and statistics that I mentioned in my last post specifically states that of all the OECD countries, the U.S., Australia and New Zealand are the only countries left that don't provide full maternal/paternal leave options.
On the subject of daycare, of course the U.S. government has no cash for such luxuries. Most couples I knew with newborn children were rushing around trying to get on the list for a nearby daycare center as soon as the child popped out. Some of these waiting lists had a three year wait period to boot! One colleague of mine indicated that for childcare, a couple has to be prepared to pay A MINIMUM Of $15 dollars per hour. While this is probably not a fair wage for the daycare workers themselves - how many working Americans do you think actually MAKE the $15 per hour to be able to pay for it?
What I have been actively watching is the state of the U.S. economy and the corresponding effects on the middle class. Anyone with any knowledge about economics knows that you cannot run a government on several trillions of dollars of debt and have a stable economic future. The future of the country's economy depends entirely on foreign investors who are holding the government's bonds. If they decide to jump ship, the U.S. dollar could go into a major tailspin.
One of the absolute major problems with the economy has been the U.S. ever-increasing de-emphasis on regulation (with a corresponding outpouring of financial and regulatory support for corporations.) Let's do the round up:
*in the past 15 years the U.S. economy has been growing by about 3% per year. *at the same time wages have not only remained the same, but in some sectors have been falling.
How do we account for an economy which can continue growing while its citizen's incomes have not? CREDIT CARDS. Statistics show that individuals in the U.S. have an historically high level of debt in comparison to their incomes, and that individual savings are at an all-time low. This flows through all members of the society - if you take a look at that report in my last posting and you'll see what I mean - a shockingly low number of adults have individual retirement plans and that's only one group.
If you read Elizabeth Warren's book "The Two Income Trap" you will see that the reason why so many people (who historically would not have been extended credit) have credit now - is because of U.S. deregulation of the credit industry. And you would be shocked to know what they're up to these days! Did you know that in the U.S. it is not illegal for one of your credit card companies to RAISE YOUR INTEREST RATE because you paid ANOTHER CREDIT CARD bill late? Did you know that they can charge any interest rate they like and the number and kinds of fees that they are charging has skyrocketed? Did you know that a person in the U.S. is more likely to get more credit card offers AFTER they claim bankruptcy? This is because (contrary to what used to be popular wisdom) the credit card companies know that they will be able to milk the cash out of these people the longest.
What has been the Bush Administration's response to this kind of blatant abuse of the middle class which has had a direct impact on their economic well-being? This year the Bush Administration passed an amendment to the Bankruptcy laws which would make it harder for most people to claim bankruptcy and which would require persons who claimed bankruptcy to continue paying certain bills (even though a corporation who claimed bankrupcty would have their slate wiped clean!)
Okay right-wingers who are wagging their finger at those bankruptcy claimants who are selfishly abusing the system to buy big screen TVs - WRONG again! READ Elizabeth Warren's book! The top three reasons why Americans are claiming bankruptcy?
1. Unexpected health problems that cost them a trip to the hospital and thousands of dollars on their credit cards.
2. Divorce or separation.
3. People buying houses they cannot afford to live in areas where good schools are available.
Did you know that the REPUTATION OF A PRIMARY SCHOOL is one of the primary determinants of real estate prices in any particular area in the United States?
Strike two against you right wingers who are all pro-privatization of schools. (The third strike on this matter comes from my knowledge of a girl from Southwestern Ontario who went to work for a private school in Michigan that was owned by the company that owns DOMINO'S PIZZA!!).
I've said it before and I'll say it again - CORPORATIONS' ONLY PRIORITY IS MAKING MONEY. SCHOOLS' PRIORITY SHOULD BE CHILDREN. HOSPITALS" PRIORITY SHOULD BE PATIENTS. THE TWO ARE INCOMPATIBLE. IF a corporation has to cut costs in order to increase profits - they are going to cut costs - even if it negatively impacts on their service to patients.
Which leads me to my next point. Canada's health system might not be great BUT IT IS BETTER THAN NOTHING AND/OR RELYING ON INSURANCE COMPANIES TO PROTECT YOUR HEALTH.
When was the last time you made a claim to your insurance company about ANYTHING? Truth is NONE OF US LIKE TO MAKE CLAIMS TO INSURANCE COMPANIES BECAUSE WE KNOW THEY WILL:
1. nickle and dime the items we are claiming for
2. stall in processing payment
2. raise our rates when all is said and done
How would you like to have to take these into consideration at a time when YOUR CHILD NEEDS TO GO TO THE HOSPITAL?
Well this is what it is like for most Americans on a daily basis. For 30 million of them without health insurance, they have to think about going to the hospital or the doctor or the dentist the same way you and I have to think about whether we are going to buy a new CD or pair of jeans... CAN I AFFORD THIS RIGHT NOW?
Hard to think of it that way when you are in an AMBULANCE BLEEDING TO DEATH FROM A CAR ACCIDENT!!!
READ THE BOOK "CRITICAL CONDITION" that I mentioned in a prior post. IT IS AN ABSOLUTE MUST READ FOR ANYONE WHO THINKS THAT PRIVATIZATION IS THE WAY FOR US TO GO. In Canada we complain about how much tax we pay but the truth is, in my experience the income tax level was pretty much the same between the two countries, but in the U.S. I had to pay $135 PER PAYCHEQUE for family health insurance converage. For most Americans, their health insurance costs are $10,000 per year on average. A friend of mine was off work for one summer and in order to keep her family's health insurance in place until September, she had to pay $500 per month. This was an insurance plan through the employer which the employer was not contributing to for this period. This rate is actually cheap compared to if an American has to purchase insurance on their own (and not with the purchasing power of their employer).
I have must more to say about de-regulation in America and its effects on the economy as well. More next time!
posted by Annette | 3:13 p.m.
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