Magic Statistics

The province of Saskatchewan implemented a three-year series of tax cuts and increases in deductions and income supplements beginning in 2001.  The Saskatchewan Federation of Labour fought the tax changes tooth and nail, going so far as to claim that the cuts would necessitate closing of hospitals (pdf).

Now, five years later, the actual changes in income tax revenue are on the province’s books for all to see.  Did government income tax revenue decrease after tax rates were reduced?  Well, no, funnily enough, it went up—and by more than the rate of inflation.

Between fiscal years 2000-01 and 2005-06, overall consumer prices went up 11.9%, but income tax revenue rose 15.4%.  For 2006-7, a further 3.2% revenue increase is forecast, compared to Saskatchewan’s current inflation rate of 2.6%.

And doom-mongers in the upper echelons of labour-union management wonder why the voters don’t take them seriously.

via Fighting for Taxpayers.

Previous related posts:

• Widening income gap in Canada?
• BC economy recovering from NDP 1990s slump

France has had its linguistic finger in the dyke for decades, vainly trying to ward off the encroachment of English words into the everyday language of French citizens.  L'Académie Française and similar bureaucracies elsewhere in the French government have served as the country's cultural overseers, but they failed to prevent the adoption of "le weekend" and "le fast-food".  Are they up to the latest and greatest challenge: the neologisms emerging from the worlds of technology and telecommunications?  That’s doubtful.

France's battle to repel the invasion of English words and phrases has tried to produce a new batch of official alternatives destined to be ignored by the French public.

Working deep in the ministry of finance headquarters in Paris, a team of 40 experts assembled to discuss terms the French should be encouraged to use.
. . .
Aided by a group of economic journalists, the crisply named commission for economic and financial terminology and neology discussed options for a range of phrases, such as whether golden parachute should translate to parachute d'oré or parachute en or.

The commission members could not reach a consensus, so it was tabled for future consideration.  After the commission finally renders a decision, in typical government fashion, it must be approved by a higher authority—L'Académie.  When, in the fullness of time, an authoritative pronouncement ultimately emerges from the bureaucratic maw, it will almost certainly be too late: the people will already have accepted the English phrase into common usage.  That scenario has been played out repeatedly.

[E]ven when a phrase obtained fast-track approval - téléchargement pour baladeur for podcasting - it was usually too late to stop the French sticking with the English version.

French terms previously approved by the commission but widely ignored include la bonne heure (happy hour), bloc-notes (blog) and dialogue en ligne (chatline).

Let’s get real: If you had a choice between "téléchargement pour baladeur" and "podcasting", which would you use?

And “bloc-notes” for “blog”?  As a blogger (or should that be “bloggeur”?), I am insulted.