What would you do with $2 million dollars?
Some would buy a fake lake. But not a real fake lake. That's cruel.
As part of its extravagant spending spree on the G8/G20 summits later this month, the Conservative government is now on the defensive for a $2 million indoor lake being built in downtown Toronto, complete with a dock, Adirondack Chairs and walls of canoes. According to the government, it is a necessary expense to showcase and market what Canada has to offer.
I'm not the first, and certainly won't be the last, to say that this is absolutely idiotic. The billion dollar security bill is outrageous and the rest of the spending is ridiculous. The fake lake epitomizes everything that is wrong with the G8/G20 summits.
Apart from the fact that the government is throwing vast sums of money at the summits while operating at a record deficit and while lots of Canadian people & programs could use that cash, we need to remember exactly what all this spending is for. It's for a three day conference that will, let's be realistic, come to nothing more than a consensus to meet again and discuss further. At best. And lots of issues aren't even on the table, like the embarrassing abortion and environmental policies the head-in-the-sand government stomps around with.
The "marketing what Canada has to offer" argument is fair until you look beyond the words in quotation marks. Lots of countries that host these international conferences like to market different aspects of the country to increase tourism or just boast. So what are we marketing? The bloody Muskokas.
Listen, I love the Muskokas. It is a beautiful area with some of the greatest lakes and cottage country in the world. But let's get realistic for a second. Anyone living in southern Ontario knows that much of the Muskokas is now an exclusive playground for the elite. What was once a relatively remote and affordable escape for Ontarians has been turned into a cottage country club, where century-old cottages are being torn down daily to make way for McMansions. You might be on the water, but don't kid yourself, those behemoths aren't cottages. And good luck affording one unless you work in the highest offices of Bay Street. This is not representative of Canada
And the canoes? Yes, we love canoeing in Canada. But the Conservative government doesn't. Last year, the government sneakily passed an amendment to the Navigable Waters Protection Act that basically changed the definition of what navigable waters are, making it much easier to develop on popular canoeing and kayaking routes. Canoeing and kayaking groups were far from impressed. And more recently, they're using a loophole in the Fisheries Act to legally classify some Canadian lakes as toxic mining waste sites. Please, come enjoy our waste-filled lakes!
The last thing I'll touch on is how Harper is increasingly eroding Canada's international reputation. He touts our stable financial system, which he is not entirely responsible for. Apart from that, we look like fools on the international stage. Our environmental record is dismal and we seem to be competing with China in the race to best stymie climate change negotiations. Everywhere you look these days, Canada seems to be the sore thumb sticking out in the world. And not in a good way, whether it be on a global bank tax, international abortion funding or on the fishing of endangered tuna. For the G8 and G20 leaders, attending Canada's summits must be like going to your classmate's party only because your mom told you you had to.
I remember many years ago feeling very proud to be Canadian when my father told me how many Americans attach a Canadian flag patch to their gear when travelling abroad because being Canadian was enviable. My bank likely won't collapse and I get a GST cheque in the mail every three months, but I fear that I won't be able to give my children the same message.
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