Changing our National Anthem, plus some brain-puking.

It is being reported on several news sites that the Canadian House of Commons is debating changing a line O Canada from "In all thy sons command," to something a little more gender neutral.

To the Honourable Member who brought this bill forward:

Pull your head out of your ass and take a look around you.

- We have hunger at home and abroad

- We have increased crimes of desperation because of the terrible economy.

- People want the right to become one with the Force on their own terms.

- Confidence in our leaders is at an all-time low.

- Trust in our police officers is at an all-time low.

- There is still a gigantic wildfire in northern Alberta, with about 100,000 Canadians displaced.

- While the economy is already terrible, one of the country's economic powerhouses is pretty well out of business until the fire is dealt with and Fort McMurray is rebuilt.

- Donald Trump might be the next POTUS

- Mexican drug cartels are coming up with new ways to infiltrate Canada, and they're bringing their violence with them.

- Our allies have lost respect for us because of our current stance on ISIS.

- Education costs are way too high.

- Our post-secondary education system teaches too much unnecessary crap for a degree.

- Health care wait times are terrible.

- People are still arrested and charged with impaired driving every day, so obviously we aren't deterring anything with the current system.

- Repeat offenders keep going free and offending again, to the point of premeditated murder of citizens and police.

- So many more REAL problems.

With all this going on in the world around you, your government wants to bring attention to the attention whores who want their 15 minutes of fame for bitching about the wording of one line in the national anthem? Get your priorities straight.

We live in a society where we think we can make people obey the law by passing more laws. People are able to rob others because they know victims are taught to comply for their own safety. We wear pink t-shirts once a year to signify the repugnance of bullying, yet we don't teach our children how to survive bullies. Our young adults are weaker and less healthy than they've ever been, because they aren't active enough and they have only enough time to each something quick, cheap, and easy, like macaroni and cheese.

We are becoming a society of victims.

As individuals, it's time to stand up. Get on your feet and make a decision to make our country a better place. Pay attention to what's happening in government, and tell your representative how you feel about it. Teach your children how to stand up to a bully. Teach your children they MUST stand up to a bully, even if they aren't the ones being bullied. Make the decision to stop the man with the knife robbing the liquor store, even if it's just by making a lot of noise and throwing bottles at him.

Accept your complicity if you see wrongdoings and allow them to happen.

Every citizen of Canada has the right to be heard by their government. If you see the police enforcing a law you disagree with, your beef is not with the police. Your beef is with your local political representative. Change the law. If you do have a beef with the police, write a letter to their superiors. Get off your ass and do something.

Keyboard warriors create modern lynch mobs from behind the safety of their computer monitors. If they don't like something someone said or did according to a 150 word article, they actively try to destroy the person's life through cyberbullying, sending flaming messages, and even pressuring their employer to remove their livelihood to punish their entire family for something they said or did. All this from behind the anonymity of the internet mob. If you don't like something, get off your ass and go handle it. Learn the whole story before reacting.

I'm very concerned about the direction we're headed. Our people are getting weaker, the stupid are getting louder, the dangerous are getting braver, and we are handicapping our peacekeepers because we think rainbows make effective weapons against evil.

Please think on this. Please don't stop at thinking on this. Please get off your ass and do something about it. Write an email to your Member of Parliament. Write a letter to your Member of the Legislative Assembly. Call your City Alderman. Stop by the police station and ask to go on a ride along. Speak up when something uncool is happening. You have the power to create change. Use that power for something positive.

Why I Hate Gender Neutrality

At the risk of being offensive, I'm going to share my feelings on the Alberta government's new "gender neutral" policies.

I believe strongly in equal importance of the sexes, and I believe that men and women's respective strengths and weaknesses complement each other in a yin-yang effect that is important to embrace for a successful and happy life.

I believe that men and women are intellectual equals. Women are naturally more compassionate, and men are naturally more analytical. This makes for an excellent balance in a society of equal rights.

I believe men are more physically suited for hard labour. Women are more physically suited for administrative, academic, or domestic roles. I say this while I work in an administrative role and I am the main cook at home, so I am fully aware that this is an over-generalization, but that doesn't make it less true. I'm definitely better suited to go throw square bales into the back of a truck than my wife is. This is true for most couples. Men's domination of leadership roles is strictly a leftover of the patriarchy, but is slowly lessening.

I believe that being a manly man is something to strive for and be proud of. I believe that being a womanly woman is something to strive for and be proud of. Being a manly man includes being in complete control of (sometimes out of touch with) his emotions, being a leader, some form of physical prowess, commanding the respect of betters, peers, and subordinates in equal measure, being able to put food on the table, and being responsible for the protection of loved ones. I also appreciate the "rites to manhood" like swimming in a mountain river, snaring food, hunting, fishing, camping, building fires, shaving, growing a beard, etc. I'll admit complete ignorance in what it takes to be a womanly woman, but I think it has something to do with being awesome in ways that I can't fathom while still having time to do her hair, but I don't know. I don't think men are meant to understand that. However, men can still tell on a subconscious level how womanly a woman is, and respect her for that.

I believe it is a positive thing to encourage children to learn to be manly men and womanly women. It's more important to encourage happiness of course, but there's nothing wrong with gender roles! My very young son likes to wear nail polish. That's fine, when he's old enough I'm still going to teach him how to sharpen a hunting knife. He'll just have to take it off when he's learning how to stalk a deer because I don't want the deer to smell it.

I believe the best successes are had in parenthood when there is a mother and father both in the household. Single parents or same-sex couples can do just fine, but I think it's more difficult for them.

I believe male and female emotions are very different in how they must be managed. It's a man's job to teach his son how, and a woman's job to teach her daughter how. This is one of the most important lessons of parenthood, because understanding the difference between delayed satisfaction and instant gratification can be the difference between a happy, successful life, or incarceration.

I believe that males and females should only be nude in the same room if they are consenting adults, or young children who don't know the difference but are accompanied by a trusted guardian. Adult men and women want to be nude together? Cool, where's the hot tub? Adults think it's okay to put boys and girls in the same change room? Nope, and I'll take a hard line on that.

I believe it is wrong to compel the overwhelming majority to make lifestyle changes for the comfort of a small minority. The minority must be protected from harm, and they are free to do what they wish as long as it hurts no one. However, it is up to the minority to adapt and compromise, not the other way around.

What I Want From My Government

I think of myself as a free market socialist. Here's what I want from my government:

- Stay out of my life. It's not your business what I put into my body, or do/have in my home. However, if you ask politely, and have a legitimate reason, I'll gladly give your agents a tour.
- Stay out of my business. Unless it has a direct effect on public safety, what I sell and how isn't your concern. How I run my business and what I'm willing to pay is also none of your concern, unless I am doing evil, like defrauding my customers, employees, or tax collectors.
- Keep me safe. Give police and military the training and tools necessary to protect me from people who would do me and mine harm. Allow them to perform their function, and hold them accountable with fair consideration for the position they're in.
- Don't waste time and resources. Pass legislation that makes sense and has a purpose. Don't just pass laws to keep the media saying nice things about you.
- Educate me. Education certainly isn't my right, but it is an investment that will almost always pay huge dividends to the community.
- Keep me healthy. Also not a right, but definitely an investment in the community. I can't contribute if I'm ill or injured, so give me a boost.
- Tax me fairly, in a way that makes sense. Current taxation is far too complicated. How many resources are wasted in simply interpreting the policies and procedures?

Policing Freedom

On the day that America celebrates its Independence Day, I reflect on the main tenet America was founded upon - freedom. Canada was founded in a much different way, but on the same basic tenet. What happened to our freedom?

Sure the United States passed its Bill of Rights, and we passed our Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Now, slowly and democratically, we are giving our freedom away. Especially in America, we have recreated the aristocracy. The rich get richer, the poor get poorer, just like so many times in history before violent uprisings.

We elect our representatives, considering a 40% turnout to be an excellent turnout of voters. That means that the majority of the minority is actually electing our representatives. The rest of us can't be bothered, because we simply can't be bothered. Even if we do vote, we fill out our ballot, and stop paying attention. Whomever we elected can do whatever the hell they want, and we don't pay attention. We are actually happier being told what to do... until someone tells us what to do.

When someone tells us what to do, it is usually a police officer, speaking on behalf of the democratically elected government, which was "democratically" elected by the majority of the people who could be bothered to give a shit and vote. Then we vilify the police officer, who is obviously being an asshole and infringing on our freedoms because he is a jackbooted thug with a gun who feels entitled and is powertripping. Right? Right?

When a democratically elected government, whether municipal, provincial, or federal makes a stupid law, don't fight the guy who has been told by that government to enforce it. He is going to win. It's not his job to debate with you, or explain it to you, or reason with you, or even decide if it's right or wrong. It's his job to impose the will of the government on you. If the will of the government is stupid and unfair, it's still his job. He doesn't have to like it, but he does have to win the fight. Period. The police officer's job description in two sentences: "Impose the will of the government. Period." Fortunately, we live somewhere that the government's will is usually benevolent, so Community Policing, involvement, serving, and protecting, is part of that will.

Before you get pissed off at a police officer for enforcing a stupid ass law, maybe take a look at the jackasses that voted for the people who passed that law. Then go have a chat with the elected officials. Take part in the democratic process. Don't complain that the rules are stupid and get mad at the guy whose job it is to enforce them, get involved and help CHANGE THE RULES.

Minimum Wage: Myopic, Ineffective, and Harmful

There has been a lot of talk about increasing minimum wage in Alberta ever since the NDP was elected to a majority government. The current minimum wage in Alberta is $10.20 per hour, unless you're a liquor server. If you're a liquor server, it's $9.20 per hour because you are supposed to make decent tips serving alcohol. The government wants to increase minimum wage to $15.00 per hour by 2018. The government feels this will reduce poverty in Alberta, but in reality it will actually increase poverty for families. It will do absolutely no favours for minimum-wage earners, and it will do severe damage to rural economies in Alberta.

The Flawed Logic

Few people remember it, but the New Democratic Party actually used to be called the Communist Party. They are considered much more socialist than communist in this age, but we are already seeing the beginnings of communism from this government. Think back to junior high social studies. The first thing that a communist government does when it comes into power is called Redistribution of Wealth. While this sounds like a wonderful idea to the lower class, a cool idea to the middle class, and a terrible idea to the aristocracy, it truly is just a bad idea on the scale of a province. Trying to redistribute wealth in a province of a much larger country will simply drive the wealthy to other jurisdictions. Alberta has been thriving for decades largely because other provinces have tried to redistribute wealth, and that has driven the wealthy towards Alberta.
There is a saying among the proletariat classes: "From below, everyone above you just looks like an ass." We resent the wealthy because we are envious of what they have. Step back and take a look at the larger picture. It is the wealthy who invest money in our province. They pay taxes (although arguably not enough), they invest in charities, they spend money on community initiatives (parks, etc), and they are the members of service clubs. I am a Rotarian, and when I joined Rotary, I heard the joke that some clubs are considered ROMEO's. That stands for Rich Old Men Eating Out. That is a large part of what several service clubs do with their time, but it's at those dinners that they discuss where they can invest their money and volunteer their time to help people. So many communities around the world have benefitted from the wealthy spending their time in clubs like Rotary, Lions, Kin, Knights of Columbus, Stonemasons, Kiwanis, and so many others. These clubs aren't exclusive to the wealthy by any means, but it's definitely the wealthy that provide the lifeblood and make the initiatives of these clubs possible. If the wealthy all move to other areas of the country, or other countries, we will only suffer as a whole. We all want a bigger piece of the pie, but it's there to earn. Take careful risks, make good choices, get educated, and make it happen. Don't rely on electing the right person to legislate it to you. That's lazy, weak, and whiny.
The main idea behind increasing the minimum wage to $15.00 per hour is that the "living wage" in Calgary is $17 and change. Those in favour of a minimum wage increase argue that you cannot make a living and support your family on the current minimum wage. In order to live in relative comfort, you must make at least $17 in Calgary. The main problem I have with that is that I don't think anybody is actually expected to make a living and support a family on minimum wage. Minimum wage jobs are meant to be entry-level jobs for people who are just joining the work force, and they have minimal skills, minimal experience, and minimal employability. These people are youths, students, underachievers, or people that have fallen on hard times. The kid pumping your gas, or carrying your groceries, or sweeping your shop floor are the ones who are making minimum wage. They are learning what it's like to be in the workforce, to be part of a team, to show up on time, and to learn to earn more. That's what these jobs are meant for. As the people in these jobs learn, they will receive wage increases, or promotions and no longer be minimum wage earners. As they improve themselves with knowledge, experience, and education, they will make more money. If they don't make more money, they will leave the job they're at and go work for someone else. Wages are policed by Adam Smith's Invisible Hand of Capitalism, because if you're not happy with what you're making, you're going to work for someone who's paying better. It should not be the government's role to police wages. The exception to this is servers, who rely mostly on tips, and as a result can make just as much money as anyone else, if they're good at what they do and work in a busy restaurant or bar. However, higher minimum wages will destroy these restaurants and bars, so servers won't be able to make any money at all, will they?

The Wage Scale

In a blog post I wrote a few years ago, I alluded to the concept of "relative wage." Someone else may have come to this concept before me, but this I conceived it on my own, so if my theories don't mesh perfectly with what you've already read in an economics textbook, it's because I didn't read that textbook. My theory is that all wages are relative to the minimum wage. If you make $12 per hour, but minimum wage is $5 per hour, your wage is $7 per hour relative to minimum wage. Imagine wages as weights on a scale. When you weigh food on a scale, you have to zero the scale first, right? If you're going to weigh soup in a bowl, you must first put the bowl on the scale, and zero it. That way when you measure the soup, you get only the weight of the soup, not the bowl. Minimum wage is that zero point. If you make $20 per hour, with our current minimum wage of $10.20 per hour, your relative wage is $9.80 per hour. If we change the zero point by increasing minimum wage to $15 per hour, your new wage is $5 per hour. Does this still sound like a good idea?
The most obvious myopia of increasing minimum wage is that it will devalue everyone else's wages. For instance, I have worked the same job for almost 5 years, but I haven't seen a wage increase. Even though minimum wage has increased 3 times in the past 5 years, my wage has stayed the same. I suspect that is the case for a great many people. My relative wage has actually decreased 3 times in the past 5 years, and yours may have, too. Unless you work for a very generous employer who has increased your wage at a rate higher than all the minimum wage increases that have been imposed on us, then your relative wage has also decreased. The naïve people of our middle and upper classes think that increasing minimum wage will cause employers to increase everyone else's wages, too. We're just redistributing the wealth, right? Wrong.

The Effect on a Rural Economy, and the Hospitality Industry

In a hypothetical anecdote, I'm going to refer to a shoe store in a small rural town, not unlike my current town of Taber or my home town of High River. Jane has been running this shoe store since the mid-90's, and employs 5 people. She has 2 high school girls working in the evenings, making minimum wage, 2 people in the daytime making a relative wage of $7, and a manager responsible for the scheduling and helping with administration, making a relative wage of $12. It's a fairly prosperous business, and she pays herself a relative wage of $18 and she supports her family on that. Of course, minimum wage is $10.20, so her students make $10.20, her full time salespeople make $17.20, her manager makes $22.20, and she pays herself $28.20. This is a decent situation. The government increases minimum wage to $15. Legally, she has to pay her students more, so they get a raise up to $15 immediately. This comes directly out of her own pay of $28.20, so now she makes $12.60. (hey! She is paying herself less than minimum wage!!! Who is going to protect her from that?) She wants to give her other employees a pay increase to be fair to them, so she increases the price of shoes. Because every other store owner in town is doing the exact same thing, the price of everything is going up, so people can't readily afford to buy new shoes at the increased price. She starts selling fewer shoes. One of her full-time sales people is dissatisfied with a relative wage of $2.20, so she quits, leaving the owner short-staffed. She doesn't save any money on that because, she is now selling less product. She ends up closing in evenings because she can't afford the minimum wage of her students, so they're now without work. Again, she doesn't save money because she's not selling any shoes in the evenings, now. Our heroine continues to try selling more shoes at the higher price so she can pay her staff more and still support her family. She can't. Eventually, she gives up. What choice does she have? Next week, she is selling shoes for Wal-Mart in Calgary for $17, because that's the only possible way she can support her family. Every small business owner in my hypothetical town goes through a similar problem, so now my hypothetical town becomes a shadow of its former self, employing nursing home workers because retired seniors are the only people who can live there.
This sounds like a worst-case scenario, but I'm seeing evidence of it happening already. Take a drive through downtown Taber. How many empty storefronts do you see? SAAN is gone, the Bargain Shop is gone, the men's clothing store is gone, so many stores are gone! There are other factors, but I promise this is a big one. It's not profitable to own a small store anymore, so nobody does. When your store can only afford to pay you less than you'd make at Wal-Mart, you go work at Wal-Mart. It's the only thing that makes sense.

What can we do?

Please contact your local MLA. It's surprisingly easy. Click on https://www.assembly.ab.ca/net/index.aspx?p=mla_home and select your area. Send them an email. You can either write how you feel, or just simply send them a link to this post and tell them you are not in favour of a minimum wage increase. They work for you! Tell them what you want them to do. Please. It's the right thing to do to protect your job, your business, and your livelihood.