“One more hit on the middle class” |
| One more hit on the middle class Posted: 30 Aug 2010 03:31 PM PDT Like a giant boa constrictor they are slowly, but efficiently, sucking the breath out of the lives of Ontarians and of the lifestyles they've come to know. And nobody seems able, or particularly interested, in stopping them. But make no mistake, if you drive a car, your life will never ever be the same after Wednesday. Thanks to Premier Dalton McGuinty's confusing 41 new alterations to the auto insurance industry, the rules of the road are changing forever. Cloaked in gov-speak gobbly-gook — trying to say this is good for you — some new twists and turns will be installed overnight that look like a fleecing. Queens' University professor Erik Knutsen has crunched the numbers and has found more money going to insurance companies and less being paid out in coverage. But mostly he finds confusion. What I see is the plastic-bag tax of the auto insurance industry that will lower your coverage and benefits but not your monthly bill. What I see is a sneaky way to give companies a giant raise at your expense, which in essence is another nail in the coffin for the middle class. You can go check the sports scores now if you want. Of course, this is where they've got you. When it comes to insurance, most bury their heads in the sand until that day when lady luck is not on their side. They just pay their premiums and dig out the policy when necessary. Better take a look at the fine print next time because these insurance slugs are up to an all-out money grab — no matter how they try to sweet talk you into believing otherwise. The next time your policy expires, the companies will be able to lower some of your benefits without lowering the cost of your bill. You will get less for the same price and they will let you buy back those reduced benefits at an undetermined price. It's really nothing more than a rate hike, tucked away in a charade and aided by your government. The fix is in because even though corporations can go off shore and give your job to someone making slave wages, you can't go elsewhere to look for a competitive option. It's really no different than he beyond-the-pale introduction of the HST, eco tax, garbage tax or the smart hydro metres, the implementation of a second vehicle registration fee and land transfer taxes or the electronics recycling tax. Instead of finding away that reward good drivers and punish the bad, this appears to be another heist. Creative fee and tax grabs only leads to more of it. How long before new road tolls or medical appointment fees are introduced? The public is too busy paying taxes to keep track of how this land is becoming is a giant tax, fee and regulation society that builds very little, except massive debt to pay for bureaucratic insanity. It seems the whole game is more about saving their false economy, hand-in-your-pocket jobs than it is in creating a real free market environment. They are rapidly eroding the life we understand and replacing it with a collection business, which seems to be the only industry thriving in Ontario. Once again these snakes are moving the floor beneath your feet. It is true that death by boa constrictor doesn't come instantly. But it still comes. joe.warmington@sunmedia.ca This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
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