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Author Topic: Privatize Canada Post, CD Howe says
Fidel
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 5594

posted 13 February 2007 03:44 PM      Profile for Fidel     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
Privatizing Canada Post would improve 'anachronistic' mail carrier: Study

quote:
John Caines, a spokesman for Canada Post, said the Crown corporation has been profitable for the past 11 years, and was a leader in launching online bill payment technology.

"Our service is good now," Caines said. "We're performing our letter mail at about 96 to 97 per cent on time. ... We think we're providing a good service. If privatization would improve on that, who knows?"


I thought CD Howe was supposed to have been a Liberal not a right-wing ideologue. Hmmm, CP is profitable, and the service is pretty good. So why fix what isn't broken ?.

[ 13 February 2007: Message edited by: Fidel ]


From: Viva La Revolución | Registered: Apr 2004  |  IP: Logged
bruce_the_vii
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 13710

posted 13 February 2007 04:38 PM      Profile for bruce_the_vii     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
Privatize Canada Post, that's nice. Only the CD how is about 20 people, that's the funding they have. And these think tanks tend to spout off to rationalize their existance.
From: Toronto | Registered: Dec 2006  |  IP: Logged
arborman
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 4372

posted 13 February 2007 05:15 PM      Profile for arborman     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
I'm curious if a look at CD Howe's financial statements/donors would find any input from, say, Purolator or Fed Ex.

Just askin', you know.

Some things ain't broke and don't need to be fixed.


From: I'm a solipsist - isn't everyone? | Registered: Aug 2003  |  IP: Logged
Fidel
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 5594

posted 13 February 2007 05:46 PM      Profile for Fidel     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
You were close, arborman. And we do still need to find out if donations to the Howe are considered charitable and tax refundable by the feds. I think you may be on to something there.

quote:
In 2000, the Canadian branch of UPS sued the federal government for about $230 million, claiming Ottawa has failed to regulate Canada Post, thus giving it an unfair advantage over private competitors.

UPS alleges the Crown corporation uses its retail outlets, collection boxes and sorting facilities to give unfair market advantages to its courier services.

The decision is in the hands of a tribunal.


The efficiency experts are on the job again. I guess the Howe isn't choosing to notice that with all this privatization that's happened already in Canada, our productivity hasn't improved significantly in Canadian manufacturing. In fact, we're falling behind the Yanks now since NAFTA.

And, I've read that not all Canadian physicians are adept at using electronic health record systems yet. And we can bet that some Canadian hospitals aren't as high tech as some private hospitals in the U.S. But Canadians are still living longer on average. The cases they make for privatizing profits and socializing risk are so unconvincing.

It's like the propaganda campaigns that discover publicly owned liquor and beer stores in Central Canada that just don't have that exotic microbrew stocked that's only really available in Vienna or Vancouver anyway. We have to understand that things could be better with private interests helping themselves to millions of dollars of revenues instead of our oppressive, democratically-elected governments who would only plow the windfalls back into public services anyway. We're oppressed and we don't even know it.

[ 13 February 2007: Message edited by: Fidel ]


From: Viva La Revolución | Registered: Apr 2004  |  IP: Logged
HeywoodFloyd
token right-wing mascot
Babbler # 4226

posted 13 February 2007 05:57 PM      Profile for HeywoodFloyd     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
quote:
Originally posted by arborman:
I'm curious if a look at CD Howe's financial statements/donors would find any input from, say, Purolator or Fed Ex.


Wanna guess who owns Purolator? Or DHL?


From: Edmonton: This place sucks | Registered: Jun 2003  |  IP: Logged
Sean Cain
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 3502

posted 13 February 2007 07:37 PM      Profile for Sean Cain   Author's Homepage     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
Privatize Canada Post? Great idea.

Just look at what privatization did for the airline industry throughout Canada, the railways in Britain, Ontario Hydro, electricity in California, and Highway 407 in the Greater Toronto Area.

Let the success stories continue...

On a more serious note, isn't C.D. Howe the same "research" institute that said high interest rates wouldn't increase public debt or unemployment, and that free trade would create jobs in Canada and narrow the productivity gap between us and the Americans?

I rest my case.


From: Oakville, Ont. | Registered: Dec 2002  |  IP: Logged
Ursa Minor
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posted 14 February 2007 10:50 AM      Profile for Ursa Minor     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
quote:
Originally posted by Fidel:

It's like the propaganda campaigns that discover publicly owned liquor and beer stores in Central Canada that just don't have that exotic microbrew stocked that's only really available in Vienna or Vancouver anyway.
[ 13 February 2007: Message edited by: Fidel ]

In Vancouver, that exotic microbrew is available at a public liquor store. Go figure


From: Vancouver, British Columbia | Registered: Sep 2006  |  IP: Logged
Fidel
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 5594

posted 14 February 2007 11:09 AM      Profile for Fidel     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
I remember Peter Kormos' replies to Norm Sterling and his buddies planning to selloff liquor stores to their wealthy friends in the 90's. The Tories were holding up some U.S. States as model examples. Kormos stands up in the legislature and says, WEST VIRGINIA? about half a dozen times and quoted statistics on that U.S. state's abysmal record for teenage drinking and driving and a few more. It wasn't looking too good for them at that point.

[ 14 February 2007: Message edited by: Fidel ]


From: Viva La Revolución | Registered: Apr 2004  |  IP: Logged
aka Mycroft
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Babbler # 6640

posted 14 February 2007 11:46 AM      Profile for aka Mycroft     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
As if the private sector would be willing to deliver a letter from Come-by-chance, Newfoundland to Old Crow, Yukon for 51 cents.
From: Toronto | Registered: Aug 2004  |  IP: Logged
Palamedes
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 13677

posted 14 February 2007 11:52 AM      Profile for Palamedes        Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
I'm all for allowing the free market to compete, but I see no reason why government shouldn't have its own company competing alongside.

It seems to me that our 'inefficient' government is able to provide low-cost service, while paying the employees well.

I'm not sure what would be gained by privatizing Canada Post - aside from handing over money to private companies who could then raise the prices on us all.

Are there any restrictions on what Private enterprise can do, when it comes to delivering mail?


From: Toronto | Registered: Dec 2006  |  IP: Logged
Martha (but not Stewart)
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posted 14 February 2007 12:04 PM      Profile for Martha (but not Stewart)     Send New Private Message      Edit/Delete Post  Reply With Quote 
Here's an interesting tidbit: "Today, Canada Post Corporation owns 94% of Purolator" (though at one time they owned 95.81%). (link)

[ 14 February 2007: Message edited by: Martha (but not Stewart) ]

[ 14 February 2007: Message edited by: Martha (but not Stewart) ]


From: Toronto | Registered: Mar 2006  |  IP: Logged

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