In all the drama with Trudeau’s disastrous firing of Chrystia Freeland, a big story got lost in the mix. The Trudeau Liberals have lost all control of spending and the massive deficit should be causing angst and outrage among citizens. Instead, the focus is now on parliamentary intrigue. When economic discussions reach the billions, most people tune out. We just can’t relate to dollar values that high. Canada’s debt has blown well beyond $1 trillion, and the interest payments per year to service it are $53.7 billion per year. It’s a staggering number that must be broken down to comprehend its magnitude and how it relates directly to Canadians. Think of it this way. It costs $1,340 per year for every man woman and child in Canada just to service the debt. If children and unemployed are removed from the equation, it adds up to $1,790 per year for every taxpayer. There is no benefit to be seen from the money poured into debt servicing. No social programs. No infrastructure. Not even business subsidies. It is money poured into the abyss and the amount is going up every year.The debt itself is monstrous and we must start planning to pay it down. To help put things into perspective, imagine a million dollars. That’s a lot of money for most individuals. If you took $1000 bills and stacked them until it reached a million dollars, the stack would be about six inches high. To reach a billion dollars, the stack would have to become 500 feet high. To reach a trillion dollars, the stack would become 154km high. Canada’s federal debt is $1.2 trillion. Every man, woman and child is sitting on $30,000 in unsecured debt and its growing.The Trudeau government has desperately been trying to spend itself back into popularity and the bills are adding up. The civil service has been bloated by 40% in the last decade while services have become worse. The government has initiated plans to provide dental services, pharmaceutical coverage, housing, daycare services and school lunch programs just in the last year. None of these services are being delivered effectively, but the costs are exploding.For the Liberals to have blown their projected deficit numbers by 50% in a single year demonstrates profound fiscal irresponsibility and incompetence. Not only that, their gamble in mortgaging the future of young Canadians has failed. The Trudeau Liberals are less popular than ever.Justin Trudeau’s Liberals will never embrace responsible financing. They are all in with trying to purchase the support of Canadians with their own money and they will stick to that tactic until they are finally ejected in a general election. Jagmeet Singh will support every new spending initiative the Liberals propose. The only complaint Singh may make is that the spending isn’t high enough. Leading the NDP means never having to be beholden to economic reality. As Hayek said, “If socialists understood economics, they wouldn’t be socialists”.The hole is deep and it’s only going to become deeper in the next year. Especially if a trade war with the United States erupts.Austerity is inevitable and it will be a Conservative government that has to deal with it.While conservatives tend to be more inclined to support lower spending, conservative politicians instinctively shy away from openly calling for cuts. In the 1990s. high interest rates forced leaders from all parties to make cuts including layoffs. Lower interest rates of today may tempt the next government to kick the can down the road and avoid the deep cuts we need.Citizens can’t let themselves become distracted and forget to pay attention to the looming fiscal catastrophe in Canada. Changing the government alone won’t necessarily lead to the cuts we need. Layoffs will happen and the optics of unemployed civil servants will be bad. Citizens must make it clear to the government when the time comes that they support the cuts and won’t put up with anything less than deep cuts.It's Christmas season, then there is a break in parliament, then there may be a new Liberal leader, then there may finally be a general election. In all that time, it can be easy to forget the threat carrying a massive public debt presents. The austerity will only hurt more the longer it’s deferred. It’s not just up to politicians to take care of the economy. Citizens must become and remain engaged until the budget is balanced and the debt begins to shrink. We owe it to our kids.
