Re: Aspen Economics

• Subject: Re: Aspen Economics
• From: Patrick Moore <pmoore@ROGERS.WAVE.CA>
• Date: Sat, 18 Apr 1998 12:55:40 -0700
• Approved-By: jarmo.saarikko@METLA.FI
• Message-ID: <027501bd6b03$f71ba560$1d307118@pmoore.ns.bc.rogers.wave.ca>

David Orr writes:

>I'm not familiar with Alberta govt., but if it's anything like BC's corrupt
>system, the future does not look bright.  In British Columbia, the
politicians
>receive gifts of stock from timber companies.  Talk about conflict of
>interest...>
>The sooner the Al-Pac mill shuts down, the better for the taxpayers, the
>people who live downstream, and the environment.  Cut losses, not trees.

It is quite unbelievable that someone who admits they know nothing about a
situation can be so certain that hundreds of people and their families
should be put on the street. The AlPac mill is suffering from the current
slump in pulp prices. When the price goes back up the mill will be
profitable again. The loan from the Alberta government was a forgivable one
and they have forgiven it, in their judgment for the greater good of the
Alberta economy and community. All governments use subsidies to attract and
keep business in their jurisdictions. I am not in favour of all subsidies
but they will always be used as a way of market intervention. If the
subsidies given to agriculture were removed there would be more trees!

>Of course the govt. is going to bend the rules and look the other way!

Please offer one shred of evidence to support this allegation. Like, how do
you arrive at "Of course" out of thin air?

Cheers

Patrick Moore, Greenspirit
http://www.greenspirit.com
May the Forest be With You

Snail Mail:
4068 West 32nd Avenue
Vancouver, B.C. V6S 1Z6
Canada
-----Original Message-----
From: DavidOrr <DavidOrr@aol.com>
To: FOREST@listserv.funet.fi <FOREST@listserv.funet.fi>
Date: Friday, April 17, 1998 1:31 PM
Subject: Re: Aspen Economics


>You mentioned the Alberta government's investment in the Al-Pac mill,
another
>instance of govt. subsidy to resource extraction industry.
>
It's
>already a money loser so why would they want to let it go down farther,
>faster?  The taxpayers are taking a bath but they don't know it yet.  Keep
it
>going as long as possible and pretend everything's ok.  We'll let some
future
>politicians deal with the economic consequences (not to mention the
>environmental ones).
>
>
>David Orr
>Pasadena, CA

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