Thread by @John1MD

1/
Me: "So it dawned on me this morning. Equalization is not what it is being portrayed as."

You: "Yes, we know, Dr. John, its about Albertans being richer and being in a higher tax bracket".

Me: "But, wait. Its actually much worse than that. Let me explain"

2/

2/We are all starting to understand that equalization and the resulting transfer payments tend to give Alberta less and other provinces more. Also, that individual Albertans pay more into it, but this is a function of them actually being in higher income tax brackets. 3/

3/So now I am hearing the language start to soften. Which is what the govt does, they change the message to make it morally easier for Albertans to digest. Now, they are talking about simply restructuring how it works. Instead of the feds collecting the taxes and then /4

4/returning the money back to the provinces 'in the form of transfer payments', they should let the provinces collect those taxes directly. Less red tape. Then, it will even be offered that Alberta will transfer some money to the feds in any case to distribute to have not /5

5/provinces. So, everyone will be happy then right?

Well, here is the realization I made this morning. Healthcare and Education moneys are hiding inside those transfer payments that are on the returning end of the equalization equation. And, these transfer payments /6

6/are the only leverage the feds have on the provinces to enforce the Canada Health Act (and I imagine there must be something called a Canada Education Act that is similarly enforced through withholding transfer payments.

So, if Kenney gets his way, there will be less /7

7/ leverage on him to have to abide by such national acts. This will be one of the last chains removed from him, no longer stopping complete privatization of our public institutions. If Kenney pulls this off, we will have private for-shareholder-profit hospitals for the rich /8

8/ and dilapidated public hospitals for the rest of us. All the money will go to corporate cronies. Similar things will happen to public schools as well.

This just got much more scary than before.