Comment 75827

By Undustrial (registered) - website | Posted April 10, 2012 at 11:43:26 in reply to Comment 75816

It's not the debt:GDP ratio that makes us a "good place to invest" (which I put in quotation marks for a reason). It's the part about giving away natural resources.

The Tar Sands, for instance, are being extracted from public lands via short-term leases (much like logging, etc). This process is heavily subsidized, but the royalties we charge for this oil are more in line with Ecuador than Norway (or even Russia). Throw in some tax cuts, slash environmental laws and govern the nation as if Calgary were the capital, and yes, you'll have a great place for (oil company) investment.

Where's the evidence that social spending is "out of control"? We've been in the midst of cuts and freezes since the 90s. As A Smith constantly points out, our economy may actually be suffering from a lack of public debt, since this too is essential for "investment" (treasury bonds). We don't need to fear printing money in the same way some nations do, since they still need Canadian dollars to buy our large stock of increasingly scarce resources. Anyone else glad we didn't form a single North American currency?

What should nations like Greece do at this point, lacking both our resources and financial autonomy? Default on their debts and leave the Euro.

Comment edited by Undustrial on 2012-04-10 11:44:03

"Today, the notion of progress in a single line without goal or limit seems perhaps the most parochial notion of a very parochial century." — Lewis Mumford

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