Ontarionot!!

How about an update on the economy of southern Ontario? Falling fast! INCO will shut down for several weeks this summer, as will GM. Chrysler has no option but to shut down due to Chapter 11 proceedings in the United States. Stelco is on indefinite shut down and Nanticoke is down to a skeleton crew. Granted, there are stirrings by the federal government about challenging the legitimacy of the moves by U.S. Steel (Stelco's parent company) and INCO, but there's no guarantee's as this is uncharted territory.

So is there any good news? Sure, Canada's banks are on sound footing. The TSX has returned to the heights it reached last November and the real estate market is showing signs of life. So all is not doom and gloom, but the signs of recovery are fledgling at best. In order to move forward there has to be a commitment to change. You're probably thinking "Yes, yes the governments going to implement it's stimulus package they'll spend our way out of this recession and all will be well". This is not what I mean by moving forward.

The roots of this recession run much deeper. It is a problem rooted in the individual spending habits of most Canadians, in fact, most Westerners. We rely far too much on credit. That's it. That's it in a nutshell. In order to ensure our return to prosperity is sustainable we have to change our spending habits. Credit should be used sparingly if at all.