Federal Election Called for Oct 19, 2015

[Zarley]

Originally Posted by longsuffering

What makes you think Jason Kenney would be an upgrade on Harper?

Or do you think the Conservatives could select a 'progressive' leader?

Conservative minority with a subsequent leadership change is my ideal outcome as well.

I would hope that the go with a more centrist leader that would implement more prudent fiscal policies along with a liberalization on the social side.

Brad Wall would be a good option but I'm not sure if he speaks French.

[polak]

Originally Posted by Parallex

Price will probably stay the same or go down. If you increase the price then you maintain the criminal element since blackmarketeers will still have significant profit avenues. Basically you want to set it at a price point where smuggling isn't profitable enough to offset risk.

No it won't. Price will go up. Dramatically.
It will be taxed and taxed heavily. It's hard to really compare pricing since there's so many variables but for example, a quarter of legal weed in Colorado costs anywhere from $50 - $105 with the average price in Denver being $75 and the average in the Mountain corridor being $96.

A quarter in Calgary currently is $60.

If having cheaper weed is your goal, than you should be heavily against legalization. Think about Alcohol and Smokes. They increase exponentially in price every time the government looks to increase tax revenue.

Will there be a blackmarket for cheap weed? Maybe at first but it will go away once more and more people who start smoking weed never go to a dealer. Think about it. When is the last time you or anyone you know of age bought blackmarket booze or smokes to save money? If you had only started to smoke after legalization would you seek out a dealer to save 10 or 20 bucks or just suck it up and go to 7-11?

Legalization will up the price, eliminate most of the criminal element and increase the quality of the product.

[CorsiHockeyLeague]

I'm not sure if this has all been posted in one place before in here, but anyway, can't hurt to repost if it has.

The Liberal Party platform is here: https://www.liberal.ca/…/New-plan-for-a-strong-middle-class…
The costing plan for their platform is here: http://www.liberal.ca/costing-plan

The Conservative platform is here: http://www.conservative.ca/…/p…/conservative-platform-en.pdf
The costing plan for their platform is here: http://www.conservative.ca/media/plan/costing-plan.pdf

The NDP platform is here: http://xfer.ndp.ca/2015/2015-Full-Platform-EN.pdf
They have not supplied a costing plan.

[nik-]

Originally Posted by polak

No it won't. Price will go up. Dramatically.
It will be taxed and taxed heavily. It's hard to really compare pricing since there's so many variables but for example, a quarter of legal weed in Colorado costs anywhere from $50 - $105 with the average price in Denver being $75 and the average in the Mountain corridor being $96.

A quarter in Calgary currently is $60.

If having cheaper weed is your goal, than you should be heavily against legalization. Think about Alcohol and Smokes. They increase exponentially in price every time the government looks to increase tax revenue.

Will there be a blackmarket for cheap weed? Maybe at first but it will go away once more and more people who start smoking weed never go to a dealer. Think about it. When is the last time you or anyone you know of age bought blackmarket booze or smokes to save money? If you had only started to smoke after legalization would you seek out a dealer to save 10 or 20 bucks or just suck it up and go to 7-11?

Legalization will up the price, eliminate most of the criminal element and increase the quality of the product.

And what was the price before? There are some insanely high weed prices in the US in non-legalized states. I'm not saying you're wrong and that the price won't go up. I'm just saying you can't compare our current prices to Colorado's legalized prices without knowing the pricing prior.

[EldrickOnIce]

Originally Posted by rubecube

This could very well be why I don't really care about fiscal policies. As a single, childless male, making under $45k/year, who does not belong to a visible minority, nor owns a home he will be renovating, there is dick all for me in any of three fiscal platforms. Well except the Greens, who are promising to wipe my student down the line. So it makes a lot more sense for someone like me to focus on social issues.

But social issues are still all economics and fiscal policy, by extension.
Where are we getting the money from?
How many dollars are there?
Where are we allocating it?

It always comes down to the money.

[rubecube]

Originally Posted by polak

No it won't. Price will go up. Dramatically.
It will be taxed and taxed heavily. It's hard to really compare pricing since there's so many variables but for example, a quarter of legal weed in Colorado costs anywhere from $50 - $105 with the average price in Denver being $75 and the average in the Mountain corridor being $96.

A quarter in Calgary currently is $60.

If having cheaper weed is your goal, than you should be heavily against legalization. Think about Alcohol and Smokes. They increase exponentially in price every time the government looks to increase tax revenue.

Will there be a blackmarket for cheap weed? Maybe at first but it will go away once more and more people who start smoking weed never go to a dealer. Think about it. When is the last time you or anyone you know of age bought blackmarket booze or smokes to save money? If you had only started to smoke after legalization would you seek out a dealer to save 10 or 20 bucks or just suck it up and go to 7-11?

Legalization will up the price, eliminate most of the criminal element and increase the quality of the product.

You can currently get a quarter for $55 at the dispensaries here in Victoria. Now obviously that's not currently being taxed, so it's likely to go up, but I don't think you'll be seeing $100 quarters anytime soon.

[rubecube]

Originally Posted by EldrickOnIce

But social issues are still all economics and fiscal policy, by extension.
Where are we getting the money from?
How many dollars are there?
Where are we allocating it?

It always comes down to the money.

Totally, but maybe that's why I'm not really concerned about tax cuts and things like TFSA going away in favour of social programs, because they're not things that benefit me. Mind you, neither do most of the social programs I'd like to see funded, so who knows. I generally dislike people so I'm trying to figure out where my streak of altruism comes from and if it's somehow actually self-interest.

[EldrickOnIce]

Originally Posted by rubecube

Totally, but maybe that's why I'm not really concerned about tax cuts and things like TFSA going away in favour of social programs, because they're not things that benefit me. Mind you, neither do most of the social programs I'd like to see funded, so who knows. I generally dislike people so I'm trying to figure out where my streak of altruism comes from and if it's somehow actually self-interest.

haha outstanding

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by nik-

And what was the price before? There are some insanely high weed prices in the US in non-legalized states. I'm not saying you're wrong and that the price won't go up. I'm just saying you can't compare our current prices to Colorado's legalized prices without knowing the pricing prior.

It will probably go up a little. It will have to stay low enough to convince people to stay out of the black market, but buying from a safe and reliable source will be worth a slight mark-up to most people.

An eventual mark-up in price would be great for keeping pot from more young people as well.

[nik-]

Originally Posted by FlamesAddiction

It will probably go up a little. It will have to stay low enough to convince people to stay out of the black market, but buying from a safe and reliable source will be worth a slight mark-up to most people.

An eventual mark-up in price would be great for keeping pot from more young people as well.

It would be worth a slight mark-up, I agree. However, you're also eliminating the vast majority of the "danger pay" from it. Large grow ops grow it (either government or private, hopefully private) and sell it in bulk right to the distributors. I'm betting prices stay pretty much the same, varying by strain potency or rareness.

[Senator Clay Davis]

The name I've seen mentioned a few times as possibility for next CPC leader is a name from the PC era: Jean Charest. Definitely a more moderate choice, though I wonder if he can get enough support from the current base to become leader.

[rubecube]

You know what they say about desperate times. Mulcair is now in favour or legalization, despite only being in favour of decriminalization a month ago, and being against decriminalization when he ran for the NDP leadership.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/cana...tion-1.3269664

[Coach]

Originally Posted by rubecube

Totally, but maybe that's why I'm not really concerned about tax cuts and things like TFSA going away in favour of social programs, because they're not things that benefit me. Mind you, neither do most of the social programs I'd like to see funded, so who knows. I generally dislike people so I'm trying to figure out where my streak of altruism comes from and if it's somehow actually self-interest.

Agreed with Eldrick, this is hilarious.

But I also think there's truth to it. I'm probably going to get flamed, but I'm sure people think I'm a Utopian socialist already so here it is:

It is selfish. It's rooted in the will to survive. Some people's will to survive is still rooted in money, because it's what we need to buy the things we need to survive. But I (and I think many in our age range) actually see the potential for life to end (or at least become terrifyingly difficult) if significant changes aren't made in the way we all live. Unfortunately, policy changes in Canada are not enough to complete global change that we need, but I do think that's where that impulse comes from. 50 year olds care about their next 20 years, which is "I need enough money to retire in relative comfort". We care about our next 70, which is "Holy f***, depleting resources with money grubbers blocking actual change. Holy s*** you mean we can use these renewable things and have tech available now but we just don't?" "Holy christ, it may sound crazy but I legitimately think humanity could take a serious hit in my lifetime without doing something about this stuff."

[Blaster86]

Originally Posted by Senator Clay Davis

The name I've seen mentioned a few times as possibility for next CPC leader is a name from the PC era: Jean Charest. Definitely a more moderate choice, though I wonder if he can get enough support from the current base to become leader.

If he becomes leader, I think we see a CA/Reform split.

[longsuffering]

Originally Posted by Senator Clay Davis

The name I've seen mentioned a few times as possibility for next CPC leader is a name from the PC era: Jean Charest. Definitely a more moderate choice, though I wonder if he can get enough support from the current base to become leader.

I lean towards believing that the old Reform Party faction hold the balance of power within the Party. I'd enjoy watching a leadership race unfold. It could get ugly if there were to be enough support for a moderate/progressive candidate to win the leadership.

Would the Reformers pack up and restart their own Party again?

[2Stonedbirds]

Interesting article...

http://m.torontosun.com/2015/10/13/w...on+%7C+Toronto

[puffnstuff]

Originally Posted by V

So Justin wants to get rid of UCCB, income splitting and the increased TSFA limits? Ouch, that's three things that hurt me directly. I thought I was middle class, and Justin's saying he wants to help the middle class, but I'm having a hard time understanding how he's trying to help me.

This. Exactly this. You arent the only one.

[Slava]

Originally Posted by Blaster86

If he becomes leader, I think we see a CA/Reform split.

Originally Posted by longsuffering

I lean towards believing that the old Reform Party faction hold the balance of power within the Party. I'd enjoy watching a leadership race unfold. It could get ugly if there were to be enough support for a moderate/progressive candidate to win the leadership.

Would the Reformers pack up and restart their own Party again?

I doubt it. When you really step back and look this CPC is absolutely nothing like the Reform Party. It has completely abandoned everything they were fighting for, and represents that openness and accountability angle in name only.

[FlameOn]

Originally Posted by Iggy City

I mean can you even imagine...free drugs, safe injections sites, brothels. Harper is seriously concerned for Canadians.

"Justin [Trudeau] refuses to acknowledge the damage that drugs do to families and communities," Harper, referring to the Liberal leader, said in a written statement from his office.

"He wants to allow the sale of marijuana in corner stores and increase the number of heroin injection sites, dangerously misguided policies that would only make drugs more accessible to our children."

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/britis...jabi-1.3268011

That is not what is claimed in Chinese... It's claimed in the ad that Liberals want to sell pot to kids and open brothels in neighbourhoods. A blatant and outright lie.

What is particularly insulting from all this is it only appears in Chinese and Punjabi newspapers. It really shows how horrible the mindset of CPC campaigners are to think that there is no need refine the lie at all as these ethnicities are easily fooled and clearly ignorant. Then again, given what the CPC position is on "new stock" Canadians I can't say I am horribly surprised by this.

[polak]

Originally Posted by nik-

And what was the price before? There are some insanely high weed prices in the US in non-legalized states. I'm not saying you're wrong and that the price won't go up. I'm just saying you can't compare our current prices to Colorado's legalized prices without knowing the pricing prior.

Yeah it's hard to find a number but one article I found said black market weed was going for $40 bucks for an eighth (omg) and the legal equivilant goes for $60-$70 depending on the dispensary.

Sorry, I'm looking up the articles on my phone since I obviously don't want that on my work computer