A view from a reader on the Liberal platform.....

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Originally uploaded by Oldmaison.

PART ONE - LIBERAL PARTY PLATFORM ANALYSIS

1. Provide start-up capital of up to $100,000 for new businesses and up
to
$60,000 for business expansion and diversification.

NEW: Tories provide cash based on specific companies performance, but
not
always on solid ground, meaning some political elements. New
Businesses
generally have a hard time accessing capital. However, whether this is
a
cash throwaway remains to be seen (depends on the applicants).


2. Ensure a minimum of one per cent of New Brunswick Investment
Management
Corporation's total assets is invested in New Brunswick projects.

This is a disgrace that this even needs to be an issue. To have NB
government not even invest one percent of its pension and investment
funds
in the province says it all about why there is such little investment
in the
province. Liberals brought in the legislation before, and it died when
the
election was called. One percent seems tiny, if people's own
government
won't invest in the province, why would anyone else?

3. Work closely with the federal government to simplify tax regulations
to
facilitate succession planning for small businesses and farms.

Code word for those lobbying for the 'inheritance tax' proposed by
Layton. Is quite meaningless as it depends on the goodwill of another
party.


4. Utilize the Small Business Loan Guarantee Program with Caisses
Populaires
and Credit Unions.

NEW: Credit unions are the best sources of local investment, its nice
to
see them included in this. Banks have been robbing people blind for
decades.

5. Be the model user of our own New Brunswick-made Information &
Communications Technology products.

Debateable, governments use products made locally when they are of
sufficient quality. The argument is easily made that government
purchases
are simply a subsidy for inferior products, however, just about all
products
can be called that, and most of the companies worldwide are propped up
by
their governments in similar ways, why not here? At least it provides
jobs.

6. Work with research institutions, universities and business to
facilitate
the commercialization of New Brunswick ideas.

See Above. "work with", "facilitate" are usually code words for "we
won't
know what we can do til we get in" or more likely "we know but it may
piss
off some constituents so we'll stay mum unless we have to be more
specific"