The Chicken Littles of the manufacturing industry are
running around saying "The Sky is Falling" because of the Canadian dollar being near parity. The question becomes is it the "loonie's" performance or is there a deeper issue for consideration.
The Canadian manufacturing sector and by extension the export business is certainly being "hurt" by the rise of the Canadian currency. Yet in my opinion there are other mitigating issues that are causing the panic and it is being unearthed now due to the dollars trajectory.
Canadian companies have allowed themselves to get sloppy and inefficient because they didn't need to be at the top of their game. It has engendered the
dangerous thought process of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it", and many questioned the need for continuous (and creative) improvement -- because why bother? The Canadian dollar will always be there to protect us -- "The Good North Loonie Weak and Low!"
Now the screaming has begun and the pandering to the government for bailouts has begun. Yet before the government starts handing out dollars to what can be a very long "bread line", it is important that they first consider looking into the effectiveness of the enterprises that are asking for money.
If an individual becomes unemployed, there is tremendous rigour around the actions and activities that they should take in re-asserting themselves in the workplace. Why doesn't the same type of rigour apply to corporations?
If companies are asking for government money (i.e. my tax dollars) then this should be provided on a short term basis, contingent on an improvement plan which demonstrates how they will become competitive regardless of the state of the currency. From what I've read to date, there is just a desire for the hand-outs -- no strings attached and this could become a recurring visit to the public trough -- so that inefficiencies are rewarded.
The cry for the bail-out smacks of Hem -- a character in the popular book "Who Moved My Cheese", who eventually starves because he keeps on waiting for things to go back to the way they always were -- and has great faith in that occurring. From my perspective, if he can't get out of the box -- let him starve!
running around saying "The Sky is Falling" because of the Canadian dollar being near parity. The question becomes is it the "loonie's" performance or is there a deeper issue for consideration.The Canadian manufacturing sector and by extension the export business is certainly being "hurt" by the rise of the Canadian currency. Yet in my opinion there are other mitigating issues that are causing the panic and it is being unearthed now due to the dollars trajectory.
Canadian companies have allowed themselves to get sloppy and inefficient because they didn't need to be at the top of their game. It has engendered the
dangerous thought process of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it", and many questioned the need for continuous (and creative) improvement -- because why bother? The Canadian dollar will always be there to protect us -- "The Good North Loonie Weak and Low!"Now the screaming has begun and the pandering to the government for bailouts has begun. Yet before the government starts handing out dollars to what can be a very long "bread line", it is important that they first consider looking into the effectiveness of the enterprises that are asking for money.
If an individual becomes unemployed, there is tremendous rigour around the actions and activities that they should take in re-asserting themselves in the workplace. Why doesn't the same type of rigour apply to corporations?
If companies are asking for government money (i.e. my tax dollars) then this should be provided on a short term basis, contingent on an improvement plan which demonstrates how they will become competitive regardless of the state of the currency. From what I've read to date, there is just a desire for the hand-outs -- no strings attached and this could become a recurring visit to the public trough -- so that inefficiencies are rewarded.
The cry for the bail-out smacks of Hem -- a character in the popular book "Who Moved My Cheese", who eventually starves because he keeps on waiting for things to go back to the way they always were -- and has great faith in that occurring. From my perspective, if he can't get out of the box -- let him starve!
