Dear Editor
To seniors concerned about Harper's changes to Old Age Security, all I can say is "you got what you voted for."
Seniors in Saskatchewan voted overwhelmingly Conservative in the last federal election, along with soon to be retirees. They may have based their votes on the social conservatism Harper is famous for, the declining NDP popularity in Saskatchewan and the general dislike of the west for Liberals, but are saddled with all that a Harper majority means for the West.
The Liberals are every bit as fiscally conservative as the Conservatives, so a vote for Harper just means more spending for military and prisons, rather than social programs and supports. If this is your Canada, great. I hope your RRSPs are stable and well endowed. If not, may I remind you the Liberals did a pretty good job for about a decade of balancing budgets, cutting taxes and paying off debt left over from Mulroney?
In Saskatchewan, the Liberals are not popular, but perhaps a vote for the NDP next time would get you a voice for Saskatchewan, willing to stand up against the next BHP takeover, while local Conservative MPs remain silent. Perhaps a vote for the NDP would give you the ability to complain about the Conservatives cutting health-care funding. But last time, you all voted Conservative, so at the end of the day, we have a bunch of no name local Conservative MPs, who say nothing as Harper takes away your social supports, all while finding a way to post deficits the Liberals never allowed.
Nick Henselmeier
Saskatoon
