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Here we go again with Austerity.
Us millenials had "austerity measures" since two thousand fucking eight. What the fuck else do they want to cut? There's nothing left!
God damn bean counters and corporatists have fucked up any chance this generation or the next will ever have at any sort of normal life or any form of progress. I'm this fucking close 🤏 to joining the communist party and starting an armed revolution. Fuck's sake. I'm so fucking tired.
The ultimate form is basically what the US has done / is doing: Sell off everything to corporate interests and wash their hands of it.
I’m this fucking close 🤏 to joining the communist party and starting an armed revolution.
The material conditions are certainly evolving in that direction.
General strike until the billionaires are made to pay their fair share. I hope to see it in my lifetime for the next generation’s sake.
We got what we voted for. The only thing that might stop a party being a valid choice is if they don’t have enough seats to win and even then that’s still not really an excuse because you should always vote for a representative if your riding that you actually believe in. The NDP could have won but it’s our collective idea that the Liberals are the default that fucks us over every time.
“I didn’t want the super conservatives so I spat in the face of the people I actually wanted so we could get the normal conservatives.”
Strategic voting is anything but. Strategy would imply planning ahead and foresight but what we do is just terrified, short-sighted, reactionary voting.
Hey, would you look at that, Canada has no liberal party! That thing that no one believes until it happens evey time.
Why don't we arm the postal workers so they count towards our NATO GDP commitments and we get additional rural sovereignty patrols. A little extra training and a small bump in pay and voila!
Not sure how serious you are...
But actually, yes, just not how you have described it.
A significant amount of what a military does is simply logistics. Basically what Canada Post is, is a logistics machine.
The military is important to have. Envisioning a synergy between the military apparatus and providing civil services is something we should seriously be considering. The military should be topping up pilot flight hours with medical helicopter transport. The military should be augmenting resource delivery to remote communities. The military should be involved in postal logistics.
Oh god no. I am full of shit for a joke. The military has a critical function to fulfil and they definitely don't need a side hustle.
We also don't need to amp up what going postal means.
The military does have a critical function to fulfill, no doubt.
That being said, I've personally lived this. Many years ago, I worked with a military contractor. We periodically needed to service equipment in very remote areas. Depending on the conditions we could either get there on our own steam, or depending on the equipment, hire civilian helicopters to get us there.
BUT, from time to time, our goals and military helicopter training goals would align. We and our equipment would stand in for whatever people and equipment the scenario was. In those cases, we'd hitch a ride. It was an absolute win-win.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not talking suggesting having postal workers going door to door strapped with a C7. And I recognize that it could slippery-slope where training objectives are compromised for business objectives.
BUT, there are real cases where collaboration could exist within the public sector. Search and rescue and medical transport are really low hanging fruit. The postal system has opportunities too, I'm sure of it.
I can see the appeal, but in my mind, it's a bad idea. These opportunities of civilian services benefitting from military training for example just take away from the required investments in civilian infrastructure that turn into gaping holes when the military is called to action.
All good, we can agree to disagree. I think your objections are reasonable, but I don't think they're unmanageable. I think the line between military and civilian is A line to subdivide things, but I think public vs private is a better one. As well, expanded military spending to hit Trumps new unilateral benchmarks (which is happening) doesn't necessarily demand a larger instantaiously deployable force. Resources could be earmarked to not leave massive gaps in other civil services. If it has to happen, still fine, dovetailing military out of those roles and backfilling with civilians (even transitioning through reserves) has a shorter turnaround time and more manageable than finding and training more recruits or god forbid a draft.
Anyhow, again, fine to agree to disagree. I hear your stated objections and agree they're valid... I think where we disagree is on if they're insurmountable or not.
Not even insurmountable. Just optimal.
As expected we are going to sacrifice all for increasing the military budget to please Trump and Nato spending
As part of NATO we have made committments to our partner countries in a mutual defense pact. During the long relative peace, we could get away with underfunding our military because there was no threat on the radar. If you haven't noticed, Russia's got a wartime economy and is marching west and our partners in Europe know the terrible risks brewing.
As far as Trump goes, he is THE major reason for the proposed hikes in NATO spending from 2% to 5. Americans are no longer trustworthy defense or trade partners. NATO was configured for a Pax Americana. Now NATO needs to stand on it's own and that includes removing them as a supplier of choice in equipment. The US is effectively a rogue state without the rule of law and can NOT be counted on as a credible part of NATO.
I'd be fine with that if we were simply spending that money entirely within Canada. Invest in some infrastructure. Give me a new job building military death robots, at this point I don't care as long as I get paid. I'll work 16 hours a day building military death robots or winding rotors for drone motors for the national defense as long as it pays me enough to put a roof over my head and food on my table. This should not be a large ask. If we're going to build affordable housing like we did in wartime and invest in defense like we're already at war we may as well have a wartime economy to go with it. Break out the fucking food rations and government workhouses already.
But instead we let costs of living spiral wildly out of control and pretend inflation isn't exploding because the only thing in the consumer price index which isn't skyrocketing is the over-represented falling price of gas, which people aren't using as much of anymore due to WFH and EVs. Then we blow our entire budget of countless billions of dollars on other countries' designs and intellectual property and partnerships where they do all the skilled and value-added work and then we end up employing 1,000 people here if we're lucky, while we have to ask permission to fix it and pay them to train us how to use it.
Yeah, it's our own damn fault for cancelling, selling, giving away, or letting other countries sabotage any of our designs or intellectual property of value and letting our infrastructure for building any of it rot to dust for at least half a century, and there's no easy way back from that. I get it. But knowing that doesn't make it any less infuriating.
I know one sure fire way to save Canada 1-5 billion dollars, quit targeting licensed firearm owners and focus on the root cause of gun violence.
Put them elbows to work carney and give the US shit for their smuggling, repeat offenders should not be given the option for bail or house arrest.