So JT is all about the XL pipeline, which is insanely disappointing. I can appreciate the economic factors involved, but it's only a matter of time until that line bursts open somewhere and the cost of cleaning it up outweighs the original benefit. Besides, there's other ways our country can make money.
I was really hoping Trudeau would step up and crush Harper in the next federal election, but I'm having some serious doubts (mostly from this and him supporting the Nexxon deal with China). I think he'll still take that election, but I don't think he's going to be a great PM.
http://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/justin-trudeau-praises-alberta-premier-for-keystone-efforts-1.1265794
I am a pretty environment-conscious individual. I do not drive a car; I bike, walk and/or take public transit instead. I don't drink or purchase bottled water. I re-use Everything and anything I purchase, from using the bags my bread comes in to carry my lunch to work in lieu of wasting a ziploc bag, to using old gatorade bottles as water bottles, to wear the same shoes until they, literally, fall apart. (albeit, running shoes. I have nice dress shoes for when keeping up appearances becomes important.)
I buy local produce even when it is over-priced and of inferior quality to that imported from Mexico and farther. Even though I LOVE sushi, I only eat renewable fish farm fish. I open my windows instead of turning on my air conditioning, I use a space heater in the room I am in instead of cranking the heat in my home and I hang my laundry rather than using the dryer. (Though, this is not a huge sacrifice because I usually wear soccer jerseys or suits, most of which have to air-dry anyhow.)
That being said, the Oil Sands are expected to produce $4 TRILLION of economic production over (I think) a 40 year life span. In a global economic crisis where Canada has been LARGELY spared the immense set back suffered by nearly every other country in the world except Germany (Who instead get to finance the reckless spending of the rest of the European Union in return for their sound economic policy), one of the only reasons we are not suffering as much as America is the oil sands.
While I do not support SUBSIDY of the oil sands, because $4 Trillion dollars doesn't need financial assistance from me or the every day tax-payer, I do support the oil sands exploration for a few reasons.
1) It is a distinctly Canadian innovation, and many nations, Russia being the main one, are paying Canadian firms some heavy cheddar to teach them how to squeeze a liter of oil out of a gallon of oil sand.
2) It is a necessary evil to exploit every fossil fuel resource we have. I don't believe in reliance on fossil fuels on principle, but NOT exploiting your fossil fuel resources would be akin to being the One guy in the Bomb Rush who pulls his knife out instead of his AK hoping that "Since I'm not going to shoot anyone, they won't shoot me either." (Good luck with that)
3) If you can find a better way to make this country $4 Trillion over the next 40 years.... I'm all ears, and so is the government.
On an ideological standpoint, I totally agree with your stance, but at the same time, there is a saying.
Ideology + Experience = Cynicism
And cynicism is realism with the volume turns up.
The reality of the situation is, if we don't exploit the oil sands, someone else will. Might as well tax the shit out of it and make our nickel.
With all the oil we churn out, we gotta sell it to SOMEBODY, and that bitumen isn't gonna miracle itself to refineries and tankers on the coast for export.
Everyone loves the idea of Wind Power until they find a turbine in their backyard......
Besides, we've sold most of our interest in the companies that do the oil sand exploiting to Chinese interests, anyhow. While this seems counter-intuitive, it may be a brilliant tactical ploy by Harper to sell off our interests, then, once the Chinese interests are all-in and ready to kick production into high gear, pass a bunch of hippie legislation (which I'm sure Trudeau will do for him as well) that increases safety standard, demands remuneration for all the environment impacts to the environment and the families displaced by the exploitation and putting it on the corporations themselves to pay out the nose to do so.
In laymens terms, he may be inviting the Chinese out to dinner at a 5 star restaurant, ordering lobster and Prime Rib with a $2,000 bottle of wine, and then sticking them with the bill.
Brilliant politicking IMO. You can say it's dishonest, but calling politicians dishonest is like saying that sh1t stinks. If they weren't, they would be petty excuses for politicians now wouldn't they be?
my 2 cents
