First, let me state that I’m not a fan of Rachel Notley or Joe Ceci. I’ve always voted either NDP or Green, but I was hoping that Notley and the gang would behave more like Roy Romanow (fiscally responsible NDP premier), and less like Bob Rae (spending like a drunken sailor NDP premier).
So, what to do about the carbon tax? First of all, we must recognize that climate change has been studied since 1824, when Joseph Fourier presented his essay on the greenhouse effect to the Academie Royale des Sciences in Paris. (If you think it’s a hoax, then present your evidence; my email address is below).
Second, we must admit that Norway is smarter than us. They literally have a trillion dollars in the bank (that’s about a quarter of a million dollars for every man, woman and child in the country). Unlike us Albertans, they invested their oil revenues instead of pissing them away.
And finally, we must do something about it. I suggest that we double…no wait, quadruple the carbon tax (which would add about 25 cents to a litre of gas*). But before that, we have to have a Constitutional Amendment that every single cent of it has to go into the Heritage Trust Fund. And then, we have to have another Constitutional Amendment that only the interest from the Fund can be used; the principal cannot be touched…ever…especially by clowns like Notley and Ceci (I’ll also give Idiot Awards to Redford, Stelmach, Klein, and Getty, since Peter Lougheed is the only real hero in this story).
*Perhaps we should exempt purple gas, since farmers put food on our table, and they generally have a valid need to drive longer distances than the rest of us.
Then, maybe in fifty years or so, our children and grandchildren might put in a good word or two for us, instead of pissing on our graves.
If you agree with the need for a substantial carbon tax linked to a Heritage Trust Fund that politicians won’t be able to screw around with, please consider sending Rachel Notley an email:
email link:Rachel Notley
If you want, simply copy and paste the following message into the email.
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Rachel Notley
Premier of Alberta
Dear Premier
As a proud Albertan who is ashamed of the fact that the Heritage Trust Fund has been ignored and/or pillaged for decades (at $17 billion, it is only about 1/70th the size of Norway’s trust fund), I implore you to introduce a motion into the legislature to make a couple of constitutional amendments. The first amendment would see every penny of the carbon tax put into the fund. And the second amendment would make it so that only the interest that the fund generates would be accessible to Albertans (ie, the principal would be untouchable in perpetuity). If this were to happen, I would be happy if the carbon tax were doubled or quadrupled.
Oh yeah, and please tell Joe Ceci to quit spending like a drunken sailor.
Sincerely,
Joe/Jane Albertan
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Good idea? Bad idea? If you have any feedback for me and any other readers who might happen upon this page, just give me a shout:
email link:Evan Bedford
Society and Sustainability (and maybe some other stuff) 