Regarding Allan Spiller’s statements on Alaska natural resources dividend cheques, in the Aug, 2 paper. Mr. Spiller, while stating Ralph Klein and related conservative ilk took money out of voter pockets, he also implies that it is better that every Alaskan man, woman, and child has received $43,000 in annual dividend cheques since 1982 – the 2017 amount was $1,100. Single person household would have received $1,100, lone parent with child or married with no children $2,200, two adults, one child $3,300 and two adults, two children $4,400. You figure out what each household would have received over ten years. The same truth applies to Klein bucks. A family with eight children received $4,000 while single person received $400 (this is a true story). Why is it that conservative families are always in the business of making money only for themselves, but tout individual responsibility? Why should children, like a day-old infant receive dividends when they haven’t paid any taxes or contributed to getting those resources out of the ground? It doesn’t matter whether it is dividend cheques, Klein bucks or natural disaster relief funds. When children are treated financially equal to adults, single adults will always be the losers even when they have worked more than 40 years, not used EI or maternity/paternity benefits, paid education taxes when they have no children, etc. Families with children are receiving government transfers that singles don’t receive.
Financial fairness for all Canadians, regardless of marital or child status, will only be achieved when Market Basket Measure and net worth and assets are included in financial formulas. The Canada Child Benefit is financially fairer than natural resource dividends (good thing for lone parents and poor families). The Market Basket Measure cost of living scale counts an unattached individual as 1.0, and adds 0.4 for the second person (regardless of age), 0.4 for additional adults, and 0.3 for additional children. "The addition of an adult or child to household does not double or triple the cost of living, but adds smaller percentage to it."
It is time for politicians, married persons and families to stop the financial cherry picking and gaslighting. Instead of spreading half truths it is time to develop fair financial formulas based on MBM and net worth irrespective of what political party person belongs to. Lin Gackle
