I understand that we have all been discussing the budget and it’s affects on this province. I am sure every Newfoundland and Labradorian has heard numerous times, the ins and outs of the budget: the increase in HST, the gas price increase, the loss of baby bonus and the levy.
I do not have to recite the tremendous cuts on the people of this province.
But I do have to point out some shady misconceptions we have been standing behind. Our province likes to tell the rest of the country that our doors are always open, we are the friendliest bunch you ever did meet, our community laughs and grieves and works together.
Well, that’s a lie.
We do not work together. We ignore the poor and love the rich, just like the rest of the world. Letting the rich dole out a sad $900, while someone making 25k donates a massive portion of their income to pay off this deficit and this budget is decapitating our culture and community in one quick sweep.
Growing up in the 80s I was always told I would never work in my province. The mainland was a place of prosperity and jobs and great brand names and government positions, with money and fabulous houses and wonderful people who knew better than me.
As I grew older, I became attached to Newfoundland. I drove to school on my skidoo, my mother skinned rabbits in our laundry room, my father taught me how to ice skate on a pond and took me into the woods for the weekend. People came in during the holidays for a drink and stayed questionably late until mudder kicked them out to the shed. Every ounce of Newfoundland seeped into my blood and warmed my soul beyond anything I could have understood, until I left.
When I attended university, Mun tuition was higher than it is now and I headed to Nova Scotia to obtain my degree. I ended up continuing my education in Ontario. I was blinded by the misconceptions I had heard growing up about my hometown, an over exaggerated vision of fisherman wandering around on pogy waiting on the shores for fish to roll in.
I eventually returned home. I worked and went to school and started kicking down student loans. I remembered the lays of the land and suddenly I came to realize, this wonderful place may be a part of my future.
Out of a job after the layoffs in 2010, my family found ourselves on the Mainland again, now with a baby in belly, I had to move for the betterment of my future child.
Was I prepared for the grieving and upset I would face when I gave birth off the island? Did I realize how much I would miss our culture and community once I was away? I was very ill prepared. Sure I thought I would miss the taste of salt beef and the smell of fresh air, but I was not ready for the crushing impact it would have on my soul.
One day, my husband came home from work to an exhausted and crumbling wife, with a crying baby, who looked up at him and said “I need to be in Newfoundland.”
“Let’s get you home,” he said.
I was willing to work wherever I had to work. I had just gotten an offer for a paper in a small community in Ontario, which I was excited about and my husband had just started his career but I didn’t care. I had to be home and luckily, my husband got a job in his field and we moved to St. John’s.
I needed Newfoundland in all its glory to survive. I needed the flashes of Signal Hill as I drove to work, the sound of skidoos in my yard, the boats rolling in, the loud horns coming from the dock. I needed caplin on the fire, the sound of my language on every street corner and bumping into people I know and love while I am running errands. It’s what I knew, it’s what I needed and it’s unique to our island.
I settled down when I got home. I bought a house and I met people within my neighborhood. I made sure my daughter was exposed to my traditions and way of speaking and I fell back in love with the place I call home. For the first time in my entire life, Newfoundland had a future for me and my family.
The statement, “There is no place like home” is actually a vital motto for Newfoundlanders. We have to be here. We want to be here. We embrace the history and hold onto traditions while growing and progressing.
Now we are being pushed out.
As a “socialist,” a “leftist” and “activist” (and I use those terms lightly), I have never had an issue paying taxes. I actually think we should work together as a community of human beings to make a better environment for everyone as a whole. In fact, I was prepared mentally for a massive hit with the new budget. I knew things would be changing and we would have to work together to keep this province in an economically stable frame.
I always believed the people of Newfoundland and Labrador were examples of well knit communities that worked together to ensure that everyone reached the best of their potential and everyone had their needs met on some level.
This budget is not only restricting us financially, but it is taking a giant dump on our sense of community. It’s pushing people out of this province who provide great skills and experience that we need. It’s separating us as a unit to become lowly individuals who have to remain focused on our immediate family, because we can’t afford to do anything else. It’s pushing everyone out, getting rid of the artists, musicians, young workers, new students, health care professionals, chefs and every ounce of talent and originality will head to the mainland to raise their family in a financially stable environment.
There is something greatly magical here and truly original. An overwhelmingly, unbearable sense of home mixed with strong traditions and dialect, with doors opened and fires going and slush in the freezer. Everyone’s Nan is down the road and cabins are always being built. I want my kid ice fishing on the weekends, I want her running Quidi Vidi and swimming at Eastport beach. I want her favourite activity to be crib and poker at the age of 10, after roasting marshmallows in the freezing cold summer.
I can’t get that anywhere else and I need all my Newfoundlanders to be a part of that. We all have to be here to keep the history strong, the traditions alive and the original culture stable.
So, if we work together and we are known to help one another out, why are we stealing from the poor to keep the rich rich?
How is robbing the working class and stabilizing the rich, an example of who we are? We know better. We all want to stay here, so we all have to work together. That’s how we do. That’s what us islanders do.
How can we stand by and watch our less fortunate neighbours be trampled to death while the MHAs sit high on their comfy seats with their overbloated pockets and government officials are capping the levy on the rich?
That’s not very Newfoundland of us.
Pfffft. The friendliest people there ever there was. How is pushing people out of their homes, and keeping the rich comfy and safe considered friendly?
Well, this island was built by those who lived off the land. If you force us working folk to pay for your mistakes, we will have to leave and with us come our strong singing voices, our jigging feet and our hands covered in trigger mitts. Our tradition will be gone. Shut down those NL tourism commercials, because the advertisement will not be a fair representation anymore. Say goodbye to moose hunting, cod jigging, salt beef cooking, hard bread breaking and the rest of this island as you knew it because all that will be left of it are a bunch of overpaid officials and MUN administration staff wondering where the hell they can get a solid cup of tea.
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22 Comments
What you say is as true as you will ever get it. Sadly, our so called Premier has stated in the media, that there will be no free vote from the Liberal MHA’s. So now our elected politicians are nothing but a bunch of brainless puppets, no integrity and no self esteem. What can Ball do if they vote against the budget? Kick them out of caucus. Big deal. If they vote for the budget, it would be highly unlikely they would get re-elected as a Liberal anyway. But if they vote against the budget, they may have a chance. At least they will get back some of their self esteem and integrity and some sense of satisfaction. Let’s not be puppets, do the right thing.
They can sit as independents and if enough of them do it they can have a non confidence vote and defeat the current government..
Exactly! Ball is a dictator by not allowing the MHA vote as he sees fit for the people he represents. He has to go….NOW…and that can easily be achieved with a mass protest. Easy yes but will we work together and get that done? Nope. Because we are know for sitting on our asses and complaining to each other which does nothing. A lesson could be learned from US citizens here because they don’t take shit sitting down.
Yes if they do the job they wear elected to do, that stand up for the people who put them there.they are garinteed they will be elected again, but I doubt they got back bone enough to stand up to the dictator,,
So very well said. Instead of making the poorer people suffer I think all in government need to take a cut in pay. What in the new budget is affecting them. I would like to know what we can do it change what they have decided to do. I would like for all Newfoundland to shut down and all of us go to Confredarion Building and stay there making as much fuss as possible until they agree to change it. If we all refuse to the changes they will have to do something, they can’t put all Newfoundland in jail. I would go and do this.
Your letter is spot on and is the voice of many young families. There are so many things that money can not buy…..culture and family. It appears there was little thought put in this budget. We were all ready for a stiff budget but this has really hurt people, to the core. People will not leave their homes because there will be no money to spend, they will have to make choices on where to put their money. Unfortunately, people will be sick and unable to to get help closer than 1 1/2hours away….. ambulances just as far. I shutter to think that in the fall there is more to come and I am wondering where it will all end.
Best thing I read all week, Well done.
Very well said all, the comments are spot on , feeling a little panicky for all those young families barely making ends meet , I’m sure lots of people would love to put their kids in sports but can not afford to do so , what about feeding & clothing their children, keeping their homes warm this can not come about , Cathy Bennett & Dwight Ball you have to change this for the safety of our children & grandchildren , please dig deep find your conscience & resolve this awful issue .
Mr. Ball said there will be no free vote for Liberal MHA”S…they should vote against Mr.Ball,sit as Independents have a Non Confidence Vote and defeat the current Government!!
We voted our members in . They are there to represent us .they should meet with us and then they should go to the House and vote the way we want them to. No ifs ,and or buts. If they don’t do this there must be some way to kick them out.
You,re right on Ed ,our member in the Placentia area should call meeting,s in every part of her district and find out what the way the people want her to vote, if she don,t then she should never have put her name on a ballot to represent us in this district .
This is exactly how I feel. I came to Ontario three years ago to get my masters in counseling psychology. My plan was always to come back home and help provide mental health services to the province that is desperately needed. Now it seems better to stay here financially, especially since jobs are being cut. It breaks my heart because I want to help the province, I am extremely home sick and miss my culture and I wanted to raise my family on the island. This budget is such a discouragement to young people who would love to live home.
Not every Newfie wants to be here. I travelled overseas and found a home finally outside Newfoundland. Japan. I never felt comfortable here, I cannot handle the cold and how expensive it is to be here. Yes, it is more expensive to live here than Japan. So not everyone here wants to be here, I have to be here to get my education and then I am back out west to Vancouver — which also is cheaper to live now than here and better weather with more things to do. If I was to live in Canada the rest of my life it would be in Vancouver.
I was never attached here, and never missed it when I left. So if you want a voice, sell and leave. That will allow the rich to pay off the deficit and then go back when it is paid off, if you love it here. However, I am immigrating to Japan, I get paid better, have a lot healthier foods (the best in the world is French and Japanese foods), convenient and safe… and I think earthquakes are safer than having to deal with crime here. It isn’t as safe as it was and it isn’t going to last like this, I agree.
Vancouver is cheaper to live than here?? 1.083 million average home price and 1.83 million for detached home in Vancouver. I guess you plan to never own a house. 1550 average rent for a 1 bedroom. Spare us all the drama and exaggerations . Tough times ahead no doubt and there’s a lot of high paying fat jobs to trim but don’t preach BS. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.
these so call people like Dwight Ball and Cathy Bennett that say they are there to help us are only there to help there rich friends and them self I witch I could turn back time I would off never vote for them because as long as they are in office people well keep leaving this province and the worst thing is no one cares that in this government.so it’s time to stand up and take back our province from these ungreatfull people that are trying to steal from us
Just to say thanks to everyone that helped. Submitted assignment a few days ago – could have written far more in the end than the word limit allowed. Found it all very interesting and con&2ul#8d17;t have done it without all the help that was so generously offered. Thank you again and a special thanks to Skully for making the initial post and allowing my request for help to be posted here and for suggesting I try Spooks Forum. You rock, Officer Skully, ma’am *saluting*
Where has Democracy gone. THIS Liberal Government is a Dictatorship.
Where is Democracy. This Liberal Government is a Dictatorship where the will being of the People are ignored.
Well said, I thought all governments were “government of the people , by the people and for the people. Let me know when this happens. Sad reality of this budget will be the out migration of our young people.
Thank you for that article it made my day. I am a proud Newfoundlander that lives in Ontario. I’ve been here for 15 years and as sad as this is to read about the beautiful place I still call home it made me smile reading your words about how wonderful of a place it is and how our people are. There’s no place on earth as close knit and as proud as Newfoundlanders. I wish everyday that I could be there. I come home every August for a month and smelling the salty air when I get off the plane always gives me goose bumps. When the month is over and I have to leave, it takes me weeks to get over it. It’s a special place.
The only thing I can say is hold on as long as you can people because once you leave and you’re here on the mainland you will long for all those things you just said. The culture, the people, the way of life. Newfoundlanders have braved worst times then this and came out on top. I beg you all to hold on, before u end up like me and a slave to wanting to be somewhere that you can’t. I have 15 more years to work before I can finally say goodbye to my mainland home and once again be where you are.
You nailed it there Gina. I was one of those who moved back after being away from the island for 20 years. And was doing well where I was living. Vancouver , BC. I had a successful architectural Design business and I was also working in the arts – theatre, film & TV – where I was working regularly in that field as well. I am and always will be a self-employed artist. Little did I know when I returned here to NL to give back to the community and province where I am from did I realize that I would meet up with such opposition and hurdles to try and achieve the goals I had set for myself. I established a theatre company in my home town and right from the first meeting I was met with that “unfriendly” attitude from Confederation Hill. The first comment was “well don’t expect to much as we are funding enough people like yourself now” – Wow – what a comment coming from the department of Tourism and Culture. We pride ourselves on our culture yet we don’t support it. Instead they will spend millions on reports and marketing rather than on the product they are writing about or promoting. Between that and the reams of bureaucratic crap that is placed in our way to even attempt to fundraise in order to go it on our own two feet, I fear that this budget will spell the end of artists like myself to stay here and seek our vocation to contribute to the cultural economy. We escaped this one by the skin of our teeth but I fear that October’s may be a different story.
Gina,
You’ve managed to explain feelings I’ve been having, with varying degrees, since I left 25 years ago. To some extent I’ve been able to suppress the feelings of loss and depression, at least for a few years, but they are now coming back as strong as they have ever been. Our people are our culture and we must do all we can to allow them the opportunity to make their lives in Newfoundland and Labrador. Don’t end up like me, thinking there was more I could have done to stay, and counting the days to my return.