Pension Providers

I'm not one that relies on the government for anything. If you think the government owes you something, then you will be very disappointed - hence my ramble on pensions. The Canada Pension Plan has been a shamble for many years. It was put in place to help the working public save for retirement. Well guess what? The government is in charge and has not kept it up with the times. That's not all, the government manages it, so you can be sure it will continue to falter! The provinces are worried and want to upgrade it because guess who has to supplement the retired person who can't afford to live on the pittance supplied by the Canada Pension Plan? Do you really want another deduction or tax by the provincial government to mismanage another government pension plan?
Ok public, here's a thought. Stop buying and start saving! This seems to be a society of, I Want It Now, rather than, I will get it when I can afford it. Priorities seem to be all  skewed towards spend today and worry about the bills tomorrow. Well wake up, because tomorrow is here. The economy will be bad for another 5 to 7 years and you can't afford to go on this way.
I've come from a generation that had a little more discipline -I like to think. We relied on what wages we worked for to survive on and not credit and dipping into our retirement savings. I know it's tough to hold fast but once you get used to it, it works. Save for your own retirement and don't think the government will take care of you. That's a mistake you will regret.
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 Just Saying

The Hot Seat.

I wonder if people really listen? How many newspaper articles, TV announcements and radio warnings does it take to stop people from leaving children and pets in cars during this heat???? I heard another this morning, a 9 month old baby left in a car while dumb ass gets something from Home Depot. Luckily, the child is OK, but is dad? I have taken some time off from my blog but the world pesters me with material to rant about. This one is close to my heart. I am an emergency worker and when responding to these calls my heart skips a beat. We can only hope to get there in time. Come on people, wake up!!! If you leave the new plastic currency in your car in this heat it shrivels up. What do you think is happening to your child or pet????
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What Does Charity Mean To You?

Well, I had to break out of my busy life to give you this one! They came out with the top charity givers in North America. My wife listened intently to the list, voicing her pleasure knowing that these large organizations are giving back. I burst the bubble by asking her what she thought a charitable organization was and asked if she knew that political parties are considered charitable organizations. These large organizations want continued favors with the powers that be to continue making huge profits. The leader on the charity list was Wells Fargo. OK, a financial institution, with the second being Walmart. When it got to the third, forth, fifth etc. I got hot under the collar. They are all oil companies! I wonder what percentage of their donations go to political parties? With the injustice in fuel prices, I'm guessing close to 100%. I'm sorry to through a curve in the feel good moment of the day, but I always look to the bottom of the box. Make sure you do too.
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Things Happen

I have seen and heard media coverage about the Carnival cruise ship and how people dealt with the situation. Some good stories and some bad. What I had a hard time with was the attitudes of some passengers after the ordeal. I know Americans are quite used to suing everyone, but let's cut some slack. I haven't heard and don't think there was any negligence on the part of the owners, so why sue? It was something that happened, and this time they want to compensate the passengers reasonably. Full reimbursement, a free trip and $500. I thought this was quite generous based on what happened in the past. We are all accountable for our actions, but one would hope that people would have a realization that accidents happen and if no malice or negligence was involved, that an understanding would be part of the thought process. I have been through a few horror stories without any compensation, so I hope that people accept the accident and compensation and move on.
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Saint Valentine

I was listening to a radio station yesterday and could not believe my ears. The DJ was complaining about how religion is brought into Valentine's Day. "Why does religion always enter into the picture?""Why can't it stay out of these days?" Yes, why don't we keep it about the chocolate and flowers, and while were at it, let's forget about the birth of Christ and stay with Santa Claus, and also the death of Christ, and make it just about the Easter bunny. I tell you with people like this DJ around, the rest of us look sooooo good.
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St. Valentine's Day

I am a practicing Roman Catholic, but have tried to keep the religious element out of my blog. If you have followed it, you can see that this is hard to do. I don't push my denomination, nor my beliefs, but let my personality and demeanor shine His word through. I thought on this day I would bring forth a quote from a very old book. Those of you that have read it, will know where it is from. This day reflects the importance of one item in which everything else will follow. How successful are you at love? Take the test.     
"Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends."

Happy St.Valentine's Day
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Self Inflicted Stress

The Toronto Board of Education is concerned over a questionnaire given to elementary and high school students. 50% of the students are worried about the future, family and school. They are strongly considering mental health intervention. What!! Another box to put people in. Listen, I don't know about you, but when I was a child, I had concerns about everything. The Cold War, world starvation, the ozone layer, cancer, and the list goes on. I managed to survive as I'm sure you did. I didn't need to be counseled by a mental health professional and labelled as this or that. Talk about a bubble wrap society. We are not only trying to stop any trauma to our bodies, but now our minds. We are humans, and most of the time we learn by going through the experience and developing strategies and actions that can deal with the situation better next time. If we don't allow these experiences to happen early in life when they are small, then how can we may make a life altering, good decision in the future? Let kids be kids. Guide them and explain consequences of their actions. Give a positive spin on their worries. Keep things as positive around the home as possible. Don't run to the doctor each time you have a hang nail or worry. You should know as parents or friends when to be concerned. Don't worry about being worried.
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Brazen Brazeau

Well, well! Another political folly. It's so easy to stay with a political blog agenda. You just keep on getting material handed to you. Senator Patrick Brazeau is my latest focus. This 'farce' got his position when he was 35 years old. Barely out of diapers, he's to instill mature decisions in the senate? He is aboriginal (Algonquin)- things getting clearer for you as to why he got the position? He has no special skills in any educational field. It seems he has been positioned there because of who he represents. He has tried many maneuvers thus far, from collecting two salaries, one from the senate and the other from being chief, to using another individual's address on the reserve to get income tax exemption. He is absent 25% of the time from the senates 75 sittings a year. He collects about $130,000 a year, plus a top-up for special positions. He can stay until he is 75 years old.
I am not a fan of the senate, and believe it is a huge waste of money. This just continues to prove my opinion. The senate has not vetoed any piece of legislation from the House of Commons since 1939. The special committees it formulates are very poorly attended and never taken seriously. They are mostly used for fact finding and advisory, the old smoke and mirrors in justifying their jobs. An example of this is Brazeau's attendance with an aboriginal committee that he attended only 35% of the time. Let me see, 105 senators at an average wage of $130,000+, that's close to 14 million dollars. That could be a start of the savings at the upper level. What do you think?
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Living Expenses

Is it just me, or are things getting more and more expensive? I am one of those people that keeps a close eye on the small indicators in life. Small changes usually lead to big ones. Every company has an excuse as to why they raised prices. Let's look at the travel industry. In particular trips to Mexico and the Caribbean. My wife and I usually take one or two trips a year down to those regions. Over the last two years I have noticed a substantial increase in the price tag. The industry is pricing itself out of reach for families in this bad economy. They just cannot afford this extravagance any more. It's funny to me that as the economy worsens, the price of everything goes up. I had the pleasure of taking economics in university and have never quite understood why this continually happens. I think the companies that should not be in business anyway, are driven out and only the strong survive. It's just too bad that it takes its toll on the average family out there.  Well, hunker down and put your nose to the grindstone. Save what you can, and we all will get through this tough time.
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True Love

When someone says they married their true love, I hope they have been married for quite a while. I think true love is a verb and not a noun. It is realized only after you have gone through many trials and tribulations in life. If you make it through intact, then you can say you married your true love. Think about how many unsuccessful marriages their are with just the friends, relatives and work acquaintances you have around you. When they got married, I'll bet they thought that it was their true love (noun), only to be divorced or separated a short time later. Not a true love in my book. I think I have the right to say I married my true love. I have been married 28 years, we have gone through some very rough times, and I still can't think of being without her. I think about her all the time and can't wait to be home, when away. I could say a lot more but will leave it for this caption.

 
Happy up and coming Valentine's Day.
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Pen Me In

The Germans have just created a high tech pen that vibrates when you make a mistake. I guess that teachers are becoming obsolete. Some schools have taken out cursive writing as part of the curriculum, so I guess the pen can take over. Why learn anything? Just let technology do it all for us. Learning and understanding in school, is a part of training the mind for later on in life. It formulates structure, problem solving, ingenuity. We have to train the brain and work it all the time or it will wither away. It is like a muscle, work it, and it will stay healthy and strong. If we continue to get technology to take over these tasks, we will have a bunch of zombies for a population. I am a terrible speller, thank you spell check, but I still practice to get better. As a matter of fact, this blog has helped not only in spelling, but sentence structure. If I had a vibrating pen that did corrections for me, I would have scratches all across my page. Try and keep it simple. Don't look for the easy way out. Use technology as a tool to add to your life, not take it over.
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How Great Thou Art

Kathleen Wynne has just been elected as the new Liberal Leader and our MPP Jim Wilson comes out with a statement that tries to slight her from the onset. "I am willing to give her a chance to be premier, provided she immediately comes forward with a plan to turn the province around." Wow! Jim. You and your party would be able to turn things around right away, despite the world economy and other governments having trouble staying afloat. It's incredible how great people are when they don't make any decisions. I, as well as you out there, have seen governments come and go with the decisions they make. Some are good, but many bad. The opposition parties are always quick to criticize and say their plan is better. Then, at some point, they get in power and the excuses roll out, blame shifting, sidestepping-the political shuffle. I've got an idea, let's wait until someone makes a decision or mistake before you attack. If you attack, come up with a better idea or position. There are better people than you out there, Jim, so why not keep it positive and help a minority party make better decisions with a joint effort. Not a crucifixion. Quit trying to look great and help this province grow and prosper.
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Kudos To Mayor Mike MacEachern

The big city can learn a thing or two from small town New Tecumseth. This municipality is growing and realizes that essential services need to be increased and has adjusted the tax rate to cover the costs. The township and it's Mayor should make a copy of the reasons for their tax increase plan and send it to Toronto.  They are keeping money for 6 full time firefighters in the 2013 budget to cover fire protection during the day when volunteers are working. What a concept, population increases and the need for essential services increases. Wow! A Mayor of a small municipality with a responsibility to the electorate in mind. More people, more services needed. Pretty basic, don't you think? Lesson to learn Toronto. A country boy teaching a city boy how it's done. Toronto Mayor Rob Ford is cutting essential services as the population continues to explode.  This is a road to disaster and someone will die because of it. With an increase in population comes more crime, more people sick, and more fires.
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Best Buy - Worst Employer

How would you like to go to work in the morning only to find the doors locked, and a notice on the door that states the store is closed down? Here you are working for a living, not one of these squawkers who complain that you owe me, and sit on the couch. Now you don't have work to pay the bills. It will be hard for these workers to rebound and find other work, and I pray they do. I don't like businesses that treat their loyal workers in this manner. They are heartless, ruthless, and care very little for anyone but themselves. I will not buy at this store or on their on-line site. I will find what I need elsewhere and give my business to employers who show a little more dedication to the employee. I know how business works and understand the bottom line. I have seen more reputable organizations close down locations before, but with warning and a chance for the worker to relocate or look for other work before their last paycheck. I don't know how long this 'DEPRESSION' is going to last, and no one does. All I can say is, keep your purchases lean, buy only what you need, and keep a stiff upper lip. I think we have a long way to go!!
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One Tax Rate

I have always been a big proponent of a one tax rate system. It would mean that everyone above a certain income, would pay a flat tax. Loop holes and complex tax calculation systems would be eliminated. It would also mean that the average tax rate would drop. The wealthy and businesses would pay their share, without all the tax advantages they now use. It would also eliminate a large portion of the 27,000 tax Canada workers that spend their time figuring out the taxes you send in. That is a big savings. The money you spend getting your taxes done would also be saved. The fairness in the tax system would also be improved.
If you look at who pays most of the taxes in Canada, you would see that the middle income earner does. They are the majority and can only take advantage of limited tax relief areas. How many middle income earners do you know who max our their RRSP contributions? Just look at which part of society is in the most debt. The middle income earner is in trouble and need help. Decreasing the tax rate and making it more fair would help in this trying time. We have a long way to go before we see improvement, so lets start with taxes.
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Black Is Back

Why do we keep entertaining this pompous, arrogant, irritating man? Conrad Black will be hosting a TV interview show called The Zoomer. Moses Znaimer, a bit of an odd man himself, has put this together. Conrad is a jailbird who steals from the poor and gives to himself. He slighted Canada, yet still wants to live and work here. I would think twice about who you watch and support. I want to support people that love Canada and want to be Canadian. Yes, he may have a lot to say, and you can be sure it will be from a rich man's perspective. I like real Canadians, ones that have lived a real life fighting to get ahead. I want that perspective on life. Not, how many million's of dollars does it take to make me happy?
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House Tax Rate

The city of Toronto still baffles me. The colourful, mayor Ford is trying to cut services to keep taxes low for the residents of the city. Very commendable, but these services are important for a world class city. I live in the country and my tax bill for the municipality is the same as Toronto this year, in the past it was higher. I get very little, in the way of services as compared to Toronto. In the country, we only have the essential services. No street lights, limited police service, no recreation facilities, limited ambulance service, volunteer fire service, and the list goes on. Yet, I pay the same housing taxes as Toronto.  The mayor should look outside the city and realize that his tax rate calculator is very low and should reflect the services you get. Costs go up for these things.
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Nickel and Dime

Governments continue to make the same mistakes each year. When you have a deficit, they think you should attack the fixed costs at the top of the pyramid. How has this been going for you? I look worldwide and see very little improvement when you take this old philosophy. Public sector costs are pretty fixed and unless you want to decrease services and affect detrimental services, you have to come up with another plan. Think about your own household. You have rent, or mortgage, car payments, food, insurance, gas and clothing. There are probably others depending on the family, but you can see where I'm going. These are costs which don't change from year to year. It is the same for cities and provinces - where you conserve is the smaller nickel and dimes. Eliminate the gravy, the icing, this will get you to where you want in the long run. Think of it as bringing a lunch to work, rather than buying a $5 to $10 meal. Eliminate the Tim Horton's and bring your own coffee. Have a drink at home rather than the bar. Make supper rather than going out for your meal 3 to 4 times a week. You will be amazed at how much you will save each year. It is the same for any city and province. Get rid of the fluff and leave our services alone. Nickel and dime your costs down and watch the deficit diminish drastically. I am a business major and have reduced my expenses this way all my life. It works!!! End of story.
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TTC - Tiny Tot Charges

Another brain storm by the Toronto Transit Commission. The TTC is looking into limiting, and maybe charging for strollers on their transit lines. "They take up too much room", they say. Now that's how you encourage people to take the transit and leave the car at home. Again another blow for intelligence. Next they will talk about how wheelchairs should be charged extra. Then, heavy-set people paying for two, because they take up extra room. Have these decision makers ever existed in real life?
Let's think about when the majority of people with strollers, travel. If you're in a stroller, you are probably pre-school age. I would think that the chores done with these children are done during the slower times for travel on the TTC. So what are you doing? I don't know just which small interest group they are listening too, or if they came up with this themselves. What happened to tolerance and understanding? Obviously this is the 'all about me' thought process.
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Bill 115

I know I am spending a bit of time on this topic, but I am sure it will affect many areas of the working public, and in turn you!! It is hard enough to find the right person to vote for in each election, and when you have a Premier that strips people of their rights, I get concerned. Dolton McGuinty, I mean Dalton, turns around and repeals the Bill but, does not reverse the contractual effect on the recipients. Now how can I put this in other terms? I will take away the right for you to work for two years, then reverse it, but you still can't work for two years. I will take away your right of free speech for two years, then reverse it, but you still can't voice yourself for two years. You think this is scary? Take a look at Tim Hudak's platform. I think we just may have another communist leader here. I have never seen such a control freak platform in my life. This guy would scare Hitler!! I think in the next election we should really take a good look at the big picture. Vote wisely, and not for a traditional party. It better be the best person for the job, because it will affect everyone. The public sector workers fought for fair contracts which helped directly with the private sector. Remember what goes around, comes around!!
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