Constituents of the Elmwood—Transcona riding in Manitoba got some good news last week.
Area MP Lawrence Toet was a busy man on Thursday, when it was announced that a local community club would receive $63,000 of federal cash to upgrade their decrepit play structure and that $100,000 in federal funding had been allocated to the Transcona Nationals Football Club for upgrades to their facilities.
That’s a lot of cheddar to be spreading around, though the area can certainly use it. Referred to colloquially as “Trashcona,” Transcona is often inaccessible by local transit, leaving the unfortunate residents to sometimes feel isolated from the rest of civilization. Certainly the improved recreational facilities are to celebrated in such a cultural void, and may even delay some area youth from entering Winnipeg’s booming Crime Industry.
Not to be outdone, neighbouring MP Vic Toews was running around in late 2012 making it rain around his constituency of Provencher. Vic burned gas on the taxpayers’ dime to celebrate funding announcements of $5,617 to the Lac du Bonnet Regional Library, over $25,300 in federal funds to the Sprague and Area Community Arena, and over $15,000 in federal cash to the Pine Falls Pool to fix up the diving board and make the facility more accessible. Show ‘em how it’s done, Vic!
Small improvements to facilities like these in small and isolated communities like Sprague, Pine Falls, and Trashcona are a commendable use of public funds. Sometimes living in these hell-holes communities, it is easy to believe that the government could care two-shits if you live or die. A little cash money from the government now and again is like a sliver of light after a long, cold night in the wilderness. Keep that shit going, guys. Prove it all night!
What grinds my gears is when these rinky-dink (though much needed) funds are then trumpeted in multi-million dollar advertising campaigns that make it out as though the Conservative Party of Canada is single-handedly saving our nation from economic collapse with every diving board they improve, every park bench they replace.
Pork barreling public funds into strongholds of support is nothing new in politics, but why don’t you give it a fucking rest with the campaigning disguised as funding announcements. You’re just doing your fucking jobs, after all.
Toronto Sun the Albatross