I think that at a certain level of income it becomes counterproductive to not contribute the maximum to RRSP's to shift the tax burden to a time when there is no income (loss of job, economic catastrophe).
If you have children, I would balance this with giving them the maximum experience and RESP. Investing in your children is not only extremely smart, but has returns which are not measured in percentages.
If you are young contributing the maximum possible and giving yourself the tax free loan from your RRSP to help with a downpayment (on a shoebox in Calgary these days) is the way to go. I think the government should double or triple this amount based on home prices. Promote ownership, promote savings and balance it out. Obviously, the loss is on the compounded tax free saving which is rendered in an abode.
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