The Alberta Addiction (formerly Advantage)

Unbalanced Budget 2013

Rob Bernshaw, Columnist

At one time there was the Alberta Advantage now is the Alberta Addiction a new catch phrase that is more fitting in the wake of six consecutive deficits that has plunged Alberta into the black hole of debt?

Here is a list of the 6 consecutive deficits including the current 2013-2014 term:


 Deficits in millions.

The above list was courteously provided by  Derek Fildebrandt(Alberta Director) of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.
Here is an excerpt from a recent email exchange between this writer and Derek Fildebrandt.

”Now its very important to know that deficits for this year (2013-14) are not comparable with any previous year in Alberta's history. That is because the government has completely changed the way that they report them. They published a small "operating deficit" figure for 2013-14, but that is almost meaningless and doesn't come close to capturing the actual balance of the government. As such, the CTF has calculated the deficit for 2013-14 ourselves. If you want more information on how we did this, you can read an article we published here”: www.taxpayer.com/commentaries/the-real-deficit

Without this great watchdog organization looking out for us tax payers and holding the ruling parties  accountable by constantly nipping at their heels than this country might be in worse shape than it is now.
We all need to say thank you to Derek and all the other people in this great organization for all the hard work and dedication that is involved in keeping us informed and enlightened throughout the years.

If one takes a look at the 2011-2012 deficit amount of $23 million. Yes that is correct folks $23 million dollars.
Wow one would almost say that the ruling Tories at the time had seen the light and were on the right track of having a balanced budget. Maybe there was a short period of seeing the light and then the darkness closed in once more. It is almost like a heroin addict that was almost able to overcome the addiction but for some unknown reason allowed the heroin mistress too overpower the will to overcome plunging the addict back into living day to day for the next fix.
That is how addictions work if one does not stay constantly on guard after kicking any type of addiction then the addiction will slowly take over and destroy what had once been achieved.


Back in 1976 a forward thinking Alberta Premier by the name of Peter Lougheed had created for future generations of Albertans the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund. It was created for the future of Alberta. Usually when a savings fund is created for future generations money is constantly put into the fund in order for it to grow(not only with continued deposits of cash but along with compound interest accruing the fund should be as good as or even better then Norway’s Sovereign Wealth Fund($710 billion as of Mar 8 2013).

Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, one of the world’s biggest investors, grew by around $100-billion (U.S.) in 2012, sealing one of its best years on record as it benefited from the striking upturn by stock markets.
Known as the “oil fund,” it invests revenue from Norway’s lucrative oil industry for the country’s future. It is now worth around $710-billion, 40 per cent more than the value of the entire Norwegian economy.
~source: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/international-business/european-business/how-norways-710-billion-wealth-fund-earned-134-per-cent-last-year/article9537208/

The current amount in the Alberta Heritage Trust Fund is now $16.4 Billion as of December 31, 2012( a far cry from $710 billion).  It looks like the future generation is here now and this current long term ruling party has seen fit to destroy the Alberta Advantage with a heroine style addiction to spending and misuse of Alberta’s finances.

Rather than save and have a fund like the Norway Sovereign Wealth Fund this current ruling party has seen fit to plunge Alberta into more debt on the road to bankruptcy than we can currently imagine. Premier Peter Lougheed must be turning over in his grave to see what the current Tories ruling Alberta  have done to his vision for us. This is unacceptable and needs to change. What happened to ‘of the people, by the people and for the people’ as it seems to have changed to ‘of the ruling party, by the ruling party and for the ruling party’?

Definition of the adjective addicted and the noun addiction  as found on the worldwide web:
ad·dict·ed

/əˈdiktid/
Adjective

1. Physically and mentally dependent on a particular substance, and unable to stop taking it without incurring adverse effects.
2. Enthusiastically devoted to a particular thing or activity.

 ad·dic·tion
/əˈdikSHən/
Noun

The fact or condition of being addicted to a particular substance, thing, or activity

Here is a short  National Geographic Video of what a heroine addiction does to people caught in its  deceptive trap.

Why would this writer equate what the long term Alberta Tories are doing with our precious tax dollars and other revenue coming into the government coffers to a heroine addiction?  Let us take a look at what addictions do to people once entrapped in their sweet and sticky trap of deception. Addictions of any kind start innocently enough in  a persons life and the reasons for getting trapped within addictions vise like grip are as varied as there are people. Is there one main event that triggers an addiction or many events along the pathway to the future that eventually leads one down a long dark spiral to addictions doorway? Once passed through that portal of death it is a long hard journey back to the light of day(if one ever has the opportunity to return).

Does what took place in the video seem similar to what is happening here in Alberta and other jurisdictions where there is a Cash Utilization issue? Living day to day and minute by minute in an effort to raise enough money for the next fix along addictions trail of loss and sorrow.

What is Cash Utilization one may ask? In a nutshell it is how one manages or utilizes the finances coming into their lives in order to provide for their immediate needs and for future goals.

The question to be asked here in regards to the above statement would be: Is one spending more than they take in?
Is addiction to poor Cash Utilization the monkey on the back of the current Alberta Tories the
reason why after years of deficit after deficit Alberta is now in the position to take the next step downward towards a debt ridden future that will now be passed onto the next generation of tax payers? Will going into debt be a viable solution to satiate the perceived immediate needs of today?
Is the Alberta taxpayer a possible contributor to this current addiction?
With many years of a boom economy where one could spend and buy whatever one wanted has this current long term Tory regime only provided what the dealer requested and that is more and more services and infrastructure to meet the perceived needs of the day?

The result of poor Cash Utilization of our precious tax dollars and other revenue streams is to spend like there is no tomorrow in an effort to always maintain the high or initial rush of exhilaration from  a fleeting euphoria that passes almost as quickly as it began.

How does this equate to the Alberta Addiction?
Without proper cash utilization techniques it does not matter the amount of money one makes or brings in one will always desire more to satisfy their insatiable addiction in order to fulfill an empty perception of not enough. Whether ones brings in $40,000 a year or $40 billion a year if one is not able to utilize the cash on hand  one could bring in triple those amounts and still not have enough.

As time passes the distinct feeling of more cash is needed to feed the insatiable addiction of poor Cash Utilization. With this or any other type of addiction the perception of enough is never enough and therefore debt is incurred in a slow and gradual process of one deficit after another until all the savings are depleted and a stronger fix is needed as each consecutive deficit only provided a temporary reprieve until massive debt came ringing at the Alberta Tory door.. Now does this debt bell ring the death knell for the Alberta tax payer of today and future generations?

Alberta was once debt free but that is no more and all because a poor Cash Utilization addicted Alberta ruling party is unable to get in to an addiction recovery program in order to overcome this poor Cash Utilization addiction.
Bankruptcy may be a possible addiction recovery program that other countries are close to achieving(some have already achieved it) and Alberta may be in a future position to achieve.

With a mindset of spending for the moment in order to survive to the next moment is poor utilization of resources and one may end up on the street as the heroine addicts in the video did.

Is there hope for the ruling parties of the day?

Anything is possible at any time if proper cash utilization techniques are used to bring consistency amidst the cycle of the boom and bust Alberta economy. With constant and steady management of our precious tax dollars and other forms of revenue throughout these cycles then proper Cash Utilization will be the rule of the day and not the exception.

For a brighter tomorrow proper Cash Utilization is the key for a better debt free future where  Alberta is once more talking about the Alberta Advantage and not the Alberta Addiction.

Quote:
Government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the Earth.
~Abraham Lincoln(American President spent his Dash from February 12, 1809 to April 15, 1865)~ 

What do  you think Alberta?


Related links:
(converting millions to billions for those interested)
http://easycalculation.com/million-cal.php
http://www.finance.alberta.ca/business/ahstf/
http://www.taxpayer.com/