see, the problem is that doug just doesn't understand how markets work - unlike trudeau, who is tapping into the power of market forces to save the world.

see, here's how it works, doug.

what all of these people need to do is innovate to find ways to save costs. that's the brilliance of the plan - by forcing a 30% (to start.) increase in the cost of living on people, you throw them in the lake, and they can sink or swim as they figure out how to adjust.

that's the magic of markets - people won't drown in the lake, they'll figure it out.

so, those old liberals may have argued for things like funding for r&d, subsidies for green energy, punitive regulations and whatnot, but the new (or neo) liberals aren't like that, anymore. contemporary liberals understand the power of markets, and have faith in them to figure it out.

you need to keep up, doug. oh, ye of little faith.

(ed: what the fuck am i supposed to do when the right-wing blowhard is criticizing the centre-left for being pro-market reform? where do you come down in a backwards reality like that? to an extent, ford is right - a carbon tax may be an effective minor constituent of a larger plan, but it's really the only thing this government is interested in doing, and, as such, it probably really will merely lead to inflation. but, they want inflation, anyways - they think it's good for investors, which is the class they actually represent. 

so, ford's diatribe here may be facile, but he's making a valid point: what the liberals are doing is not substantive climate policy and probably will hurt a lot of their own voters rather profoundly, with minimal actual change in emissions.

but, you know, it's kind of too bad - if consumers can't innovate their way into inventing better products to buy, they'll just have to suffer for it. because climate change is about consumption - not production. it's our fault, for existing within the system; it's not their fault for designing it and forcing it down on us at gun point.)