[Fozzie_DeBear]

Oil and Gas royalties are from an non-renewable resource (that will likely be obsolete or uneconomic long before supply runs out)...

The best thing you could do is create a savings fund from O&G royalties and use it to smooth out volatility in the economy and invest in diversifying the economy.

Income tax evolution and the introduction of a sales tax may not be popular (what tax is popular?) but the money has to come from somewhere.

Government inefficiencies are somewhat inevitable (Government programs lack a direct feedback mechanism, like the market, to kill under performers. Dumb policies can live on much longer than they should).

Nevertheless, trimming the fat in the Government can do more harm than good if it is done carelessly and kills good economic diversification projects that took a lot of investment to get inertia but need time to bear fruit (e.g. investment in Science).

The sooner Albertan's focus on building the next economy and managing O&G like its a limited time offer (because it sure is) the better.

If that means new taxes on those most able to afford it, introducing the lowest PST in Canada, and getting the Heritage Fund back on track I am all for it.

If people think that cutting Government services is a simple, sufficient and easy way to get through this crises and put the economy on track for long term success...I respectfully disagree.