Dear Editor:
RE: “Primarily ceremonial,” April 27.
I’m always astounded at the knee-jerk replies to news stories that are essentially meant to stir up government institutional bashing exemplified by the typical right-wing voter, as that which is reflected in Craig Sullivan’s letter to the editor.
They question the relatively minuscule spending of some insignificant but necessary budget line that a news story has sensationalized, and in turn they end up attacking the very leaders and branches of government which were specifically put in place to ensure the democracy that we all enjoy is secured for future generations.
Sure, always question government revenue and spending policies, but instead of only responding like Mr. Sullivan does, I encourage your readers to dive deeper into revenue and spending issues.
Start by researching modern monetary theory. Economist Stephanie Kelton has a simple Ted Talk about it. Next, guide your research by inquiring into why incomes of the working class have fallen far behind the incomes of the CEO corporate class over the last 50 years. Follow that with asking why governments feel the need to provide multi-national corporations with huge financial windfalls (like that recently provided to VW) to entice them to locate on home turf. Also crucial in this educational journey is to review the history and progress of the globalization movement, who initiated it, and why.
I’m confident that sincere inquiries by critically thinking individuals into these sorts of topics and questions will conclude with a solid understanding that the very last thing we need to curtail with the hope of addressing (the myth of) government debt are the minuscule amounts spent on the PM’s vacations and the ceremonies related to the role of the governor general.
David Fast,
Ariss