Growing Government the Conservative Way

"The biggest trick the devil every pulled was convincing people he didn’t exist." - Kaiser Soze (character in the movie, The Usual Suspects).

"We're all socialists now" - George Bernard Shaw

It's bright in Canada's largest city today, but that can only mean that the country has descended closer to the magnesium-white fires of socialist hell.

Yesterday, Canada's new Conservative Party of Canada government released its first budget. I turned to the only part of the Finance Minister's budget speech that really matters these days (since almost all of the money is spent on things that no government should be involved in): the part that talks about total government spending.

There, like the plantars wart that no amount of Compound W can kill, was that combination of phrases that government-growing socialist governments have delivered with each budget, much like a one-two punch, for as long as I can remember:

"...government revenue as a share of GDP is projected to decline from 16.4 per cent in 2004–05 to 15.5 per cent in 2007–08.

"I am proud to say that because of this budget, growth in program spending is projected to fall below the rate of economic growth. As a result, program spending as a share of GDP is projected to decline from 13.7 per cent in 2004–05 to 13.0 per cent in 2007–08."

Let's cut through the bullshit, shall we?

Basically, GDP ("Gross Domestic Product") is a measure of the value of the goods and services produced in Canada in one calendar year. According to this year's budget figures, Canada's gross domestic product was at $1,290B in 2004-2005, and will be at $1,517B in 2007.

So, let's do the math.

TAXING:

16.4% x $1,290B = $211.56B

15.5% x $1,517B = $235.14B

Increase: $23.58B

SPENDING:

13.7% x $1,290B = $176.73B

13.0% x $1,517B = $197.21B

Increase: $20.48B

So, let's give the honest version of the Minister's message:

"I am proud to say that because of this budget, government revenues will increase $23.58B and government spending will grow by $20.48B, by 2007-2008."

In other words: he is proud that he is continuing the socialist tradition of making the government even bigger.

Now, ask yourself: why didn't the minister just come out and say that taxes and spending would increase? Was he unable to do the math? No, that cannot be it: one doesn't need to do the math because the actual taxing and spending figures (not as a percentage of GDP) are printed right in the budget.

The truth, of course, is that - being a Conservative - he has to do what Conservatives always do: pretend that they are not socialists (which, ladies and gentlemen, is what Shaw meant by "We're all socialists now").

The Conservative deception is done by wording everything in the form of a decrease. "Less" must always be qualified with "as a percentage of [something that is growing]".

Courtesy, Little Big Man

"Less is better", they hope lovers of freedom will think, without getting into the details...details that disclose the genesis of the term "Less is more", or "A is not A".

Kind of like "Conservative is not Conservative".