ROYALTY DOCUMENTARY PROJECT ON CBC RADIO
The CBC is going to interview the producer of the Alberta Royalty Documentary Project on Dec 5th at 7:30 am.
How cool is that?
The CBC will probably ask questions related to the motivation behind making the documentary.
Here is a preemptive answer to those questions: The motivation behind the making of this documentary is the desire to examine the effects that Alberta's recent adoption of the Royalty Review proposals is having on the lives of Albertans.
When the proposals were first announced, Albertan polarized into two camps. One side felt that the Royalty Review proposals would have no effect on Alberta's booming economy while giving Albertans their fair share. The other side felt that the proposals would cripple Alberta's economy and cause more harm than good.
The completed documentary should be able to demonstrate which camp was right by determining if there were indeed any changes in Alberta's economic performance that can be directly attributed to the adoption of the Royalty Review proposals.
Wish us luck.
There is an open call for interviews for those who want to voice opinions on the Royalty Review (Pro and Con).
Suite 600 500 5th Ave SW Calgary
Tuesday, December 04, 2007
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12 comments:
E-mail me I'm in .
You're trying to look neutral, but your bias is fairly obvious. Anyway good luck with it.
Hi Mark,
I am not neutral.
I try to put forward the opposition's best arguments but I can even cobble up a descent sounding phrase.
It's like trying to make an argument in favor of armed robbery or sound neutral on the matter of burglary.
Hi Wild,
If you truly want an argument exploring the pros behing the royalty increases, I suggest you interview those who made statements during the royalty review. Here's a link to the meeting transcripts: http://www.albertaroyaltyreview.ca/public_meetings/
transcripts_submissions.html#transcripts
I believe you will find such organizations as the Parkland Institute and the Pembina Institute and numerous individuals who could repeat the arguments they presented to the royalty review panel.
You may also want to speak with Mark Anielski, who recently wrote The Economics of Happiness, which explores the concept of quality of life. Anielski argues that despite tremendous economic growth in this province, quality of life has actually been on the decline since the 1960s. This argument may provide some insight into the government's decision to change the royalties. (That said, one may have difficulty believing this government is truly interested in improving quality of life, given the social and infrastructure debts and decline in natural capital.)
HI Greg,
I have read the transcripts and I have spoken to many people who feel very strongly that the royalty increase was best for Alberta.
These people may be absolutely sincere but I don't think that the full consequences of their good intentions are known. I have two main concerns...1) Unemployment will affect a large number of people and their families. 2) People's retirement investments will be sharply reduced by drops in investment market value.
We are already seeing this happening so it is not just a hypothetical idea.
There may be some institutions that feel that they are not being funded by the government to the level that allows them to carry out their mandate of social support to the fullest and they make the case that they need more money from the government to do so.
Your last point is very accurate. If this were of such great importance, why is the government currently running a yearly 4 billion dollar surplus when they could have easily spent what they already had collected and resolved whatever needs were being felt?
To take action that causes job losses that will ultimately put more people in a position of being dependent on the government seems to be an exacerbation of the social deficit rather than a resolution.
Hi Ommag,
You are right. It is not an either or position.
Certainly if the politicians felt they needed more revenue, they could raise royalty rates and try to find a balance that does not destroy the economy and yet allows them to do the things that Governments need to function.
Here are the issues that I am most concerned about:
The government said that it was going to raise royalties by 20 percent.
People felt that they could handle the adjustment. 20 percent is not an exorbitant amount to add to the the royalty rates. The details of the Review came out and it turns out that it was not a 20 percent increase but rather an additional 20 percent on the 30 percent that was already in place.
The sleight of hand made people distrustful of the Government and and worried about its motives.
Another issue is of course why it was necessary to impose a large increase in taxes when the government was already in a very strong surplus position. What reason would a government have to make an annual 4 billion dollar surplus into a 6 billion dollar surplus?
The government is not a profit-driven organization (at least in Alberta.)
The final issue for me is this:
The politicians gained political acceptance for the plan by proclaiming that it would not affect the economy because it was carefully calibrated. People respected them and believed that they had done their homework.
It turns out that they had not done their homework because they seemed surprised by the downturn and they started blaming the downturn on other factors like exchange rates.
If the politicians wanted to be fair, they should have released the royalty plan with an honest assessment of what the fallout of a royalty rate hike could be.
Hiding the potential of an economic contraction from people by claiming that the economy would not change is deceptive and unacceptable in Alberta.
I have a good name for your documentary.
"The Sky is Falling; or, Economic Fundamentals from Free-Market Fundamentalists"
I hope you're planning on publishing all of the sources you've consulted for your sweeping statements, such as "Unemployment, once unheard of in our province, is now on the rise while jobs that were once well-paying are now retreating to minimum wage..."
Give me a break.
Hi Ryan,
Unemployment is on the rise.
I directly know a number of people who have been laid off their jobs.
Alberta's economy was so hot that these guys will probably find work in other sectors that were unable to find people.
However, with 1/3 of oil investment pulling out in 2008, there is going to be unemployment. I know that the relationships between investment and employment is subtle but believe me when I say that the absence of investment will result in unemployment.
You have said that we are subscribing to the "sky is falling" canard.
My question is this: if a few of my friends have already been laid off, is their unemployment worth the government getting a bigger surplus than it already had?
Is it reasonable to have 10,000 people (current estimates gained from oilfield supplier associations)lose their jobs just so that politicians can have 6 billion dollars in surplus money instead of 4 billion?
I think not.
Of course some people don't really care if working people are put out of work. I suspect that Ryan is one of these.
This documentary is measuring the effect of an adopted policy on our province and we will publish all sources of our information.
This blog is just informing people of what we are finding.
Know why we have surplus money? Cuts to education, health and infrastructure.
Know why we have bad roads, education, and healthcare?
Cuts. This government has surpluses not because it spends so much, it's because it spends so little. We have a social and infrastructure deficit to pay back. Least the oil companies can do is pull their weight.
"Is it reasonable to have 10,000 people (current estimates gained from oilfield supplier associations)lose their jobs just so that politicians can have 6 billion dollars in surplus money instead of 4 billion?"
Are you aware of the job shortages in this province, numbering in the tens of thousands? The old adage that rightwingers are so fond of is apt in this situation. I hear there are plenty of jobs out there. Get a job.
Know how many foreign temporary workers there are in Alberta? Almost 20 000. Those are jobs that could be filled by Albertans, but the economy is overheated. This isn't just a strong economy, it's an out of control economy with plenty of jobs to spare.
Don't hand me this "you don't know, you haven't lost your job" bull. You think the oil companies care about that? Think they would dip into their RECORD profits to ensure people don't lose their jobs? Not bloody likely. I'm sure you patriotic Albertans even give a shit about the tens of thousands of autoworkers in Ontario that are getting laid off. Oh yeah, I forgot, your documentary is fueled by oil money. I expect a real non-biased opinion from you. Give me a break.
Hi Ryan,
You hate foreigners.
You despise colored people.
To you, a boom is bad because it brings colored people near you.
When people come looking for work and they happen to have colored skin, you get offended by them.
Nice.
Don't you know that racism was booted out of Alberta in the 1950s when the KKK was run out of the province by Albertans?
You want to reserve Alberta jobs for whites only?
You have another point that needs to be addressed.
You seem to think that a labor shortage is bad.
It isn't.
Labor shortages force wages up. This is far better than labor surpluses that send wages downwards towards minimum wage and reduce the choices that ordinary people have.
Of course, those who hate foreigners also hate it when people have high paying jobs. They would rather have us standing in Pogey lines waiting for governmental support. Ryan, you sound like one of those people.
You think this documentary effort is funded by oil companies?
For your information, I am an independent Albertan citizen fighting against stupid socialist policies that are supported by people who think that prosperity should be denied to rank and file Albertans. Oil companies don't want to have any part of this project. In fact we were kicked off some of their property while we trying to shoot some footage. They are cowardly and fearful of reprisals if they take part.
You point out that Ontario is losing jobs. Why do you think that is?
It is obvious...Ontario has overloaded their industries with taxes making them uncompetitive in the world. They set policies up to 'get their fair share' and now they face layoffs. What can we in Alberta do about that?
We help them out by inviting them to come work here because we need them. But of course you Ryan don't want foreigners in Alberta so I guess we shouldn't.
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