JEWISH KING JESUS IS COMING AT THE RAPTURE FOR US IN THE CLOUDS-DON'T MISS IT FOR THE WORLD.THE BIBLE TAKEN LITERALLY- WHEN THE PLAIN SENSE MAKES GOOD SENSE-SEEK NO OTHER SENSE-LEST YOU END UP IN NONSENSE.GET SAVED NOW- CALL ON JESUS TODAY.THE ONLY SAVIOR OF THE WHOLE EARTH - NO OTHER.
1 COR 15:23-JESUS THE FIRST FRUITS-CHRISTIANS RAPTURED TO JESUS-FIRST FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT-23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.ROMANS 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.(THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE)
EARTH WORSHIP
DEUTERONOMY 17:3-4
3 And hath gone and served other gods, and worshipped them, either the sun, or moon, or any of the host of heaven, which I have not commanded;
4 And it be told thee, and thou hast heard of it, and enquired diligently, and, behold, it be true, and the thing certain, that such abomination is wrought in Israel:
DEUTORONOMY 4:15-19
15 Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of similitude on the day that the LORD spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire:
16 Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of male or female,
17 The likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged fowl that flieth in the air,
18 The likeness of any thing that creepeth on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth:
19 And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and the stars, even all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them, which the LORD thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.
2 KINGS 23:5
5 And he put down the idolatrous priests, whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense in the high places in the cities of Judah, and in the places round about Jerusalem; them also that burned incense unto Baal, to the sun, and to the moon, and to the planets, and to all the host of heaven.
EARTH DESTROYED WITH THE EARTH IN NOAHS DAY(BECAUSE OF SIN,VIOLENCE AND GODLESS PEOPLE)
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)(HAMAS IN HEBREW IS VIOLENCE)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM)(HAMAS) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
HOSEA 4:1-3
1 Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land.
2 By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood.
3 Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth therein shall languish, with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven; yea, the fishes of the sea also shall be taken away.
DEUTORONOMY 28:22-24
22 The LORD shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish.
23 And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron.
24 The LORD shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed
ITS -8 AND I GOTTA ONLY HAVE MY HEATER ON 4 OR 5 HOURS A DAY. BECAUSE MY HYDRO BILL A MONTH WILL BE OVER $120.00 A MONTH. THANKS TO LIBERAL LESBIEN KATHLEEN WYNN AND THE ALT-LEFT LIBERAL-DEMOCRAT-PROGRESSIVES. FOR SKYROCKETING OUR HYDRO BILLS TO PAY FOR THE ENVIROMENTAL GREEN CULT AND CARBON TAXES. AND THESE JACKASSES (DONKEYS) SAY KEEP YOUR HEADS IN THE SAND AND PAY YOUR CARBON TAXES. SO WE CAN FILL OUR LIBERAL BANK ACCOUNTS. AND PAY FOR WINDMILLS AND SOLAR. THAT WILL GIVE US CHEAP HYDRO AND EVERYTHING ELSE. HOGWASH-THIS IS ALL A BUNCH OF LIES. OR I WOULD NOT HAVE TO FREEZE TO DEATH IN MY APARTMENT BECAUSE OF THE SKYROCKETING HYDRO COSTS. THE ONLY TIME I AM NOT OFF MY COUCH COVERED UP. IS IF I PUT STORIES ON MY SITE. EAT OR GO TO THE WASHROOM. OH I FORGOT. THE LIBERALS SAY THE KIDS GOTTA FREEZE TO FOR THE GOOD OF THE EARTH AND CARBON EMMISIONS. THIS IS TOTALLY REDICULAS. AND THIS CARBON TAX-ENVIROMENTAL CULT HAS TO BE STOPPED IMMEDIATELY. AND HYDRO MADE CHEAP SO PEOPLE LIKE ME ON DISABILITY CAN HAVE OUR HEAT ON SO WE DO NOT FREEZE.BECAUSE WE HAVE TO WATCH HOW MANY HOURS AND WHAT HOURS WE HAVE OUR HEAT ON. SO WE DO NOT HAVE $200.00 HYDRO BILLS A MONTH. I FIGURE IF I GOT MY HEAT ON 4 OR 5 HOURS A DAY. NEVER ON HIGH. ONLY LOW OR MEDIUM. MY HYDRO BILL IS UNDER CONTROL AT $120.00 A MONTH. ANYTHING OVER THAT CUTS INTO MY MONTHLY FOOD MONEY.
PM hails national climate change deal, but without Saskatchewan, Manitoba-The Canadian Press – DEC 9,16-YAHOONEWS
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau declared victory Friday in his campaign to craft a national "framework" agreement on climate change — even though Saskatchewan and Manitoba refused to sign on to the deal and British Columbia claimed a major carve-out.Even as Trudeau was asserting the provinces and territories "are all in this together," it was painfully apparent that major divisions remain.Carbon pricing, said Trudeau, "will apply across 100 per cent of this country" starting at a minimum $10 per tonne of emissions in 2018 — a shot fired squarely across the bow of the most vocal holdout, Saskatchewan's Brad Wall.It's just one part of a wide suite of climate policies designed to push Canada toward its international 2030 climate pledge to cut emissions 30 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030.The measures include previously announced policies on everything from clean technology and green infrastructure to electric vehicles and building efficiency — but there was no detailed accounting of the associated greenhouse gas reductions.A graphic at the end of the framework asserts the plan pulls Canada within 44 million tonnes of the 524-million tonne GHG goal — a gap that can be closed with "additional measures such as public transit and green infrastructure, technology and innovations, and stored carbon (forests, soils, wetlands)." The hard math of cutting greenhouse gases, however, was all but lost in the furious politicking Friday.B.C. Premier Christy Clark, who is facing an election next spring, said she'd won a "B.C. annex" in the final agreement that will allow her province to effectively opt out of the annual $10 a tonne increase in carbon pricing once the rest of the country reaches B.C.'s current $30 per tonne price in 2020.Not so, Environment Minister Catherine McKenna told The Canadian Press after the closing new conference."Our benchmark is our benchmark," said McKenna.Alberta Premier Rachel Notley, meanwhile, said that while her province is bringing in its own $20 per tonne tax next month, she didn't buy Clark's contention that western provinces will be paying twice the carbon price of Quebec and Ontario in five years."I'm not entirely convinced that as of 2022 that that would be what the numbers are," Notley said.Manitoba's Brian Pallister, who has been pressing the federal government for concessions on health care funding, withheld his support solely for the purpose of extracting additional help from Ottawa in dealing with escalating health costs.And Wall and Trudeau openly squabbled during the closing news conference as the two continued a debate that appeared to have started behind closed doors.At one point Trudeau rolled his eyes and shook his head in apparent exasperation at what the Saskatchewan premier was saying.One such exchange happened when Trudeau was asked how the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president might impact his climate mission.Trudeau shared the message delivered by U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden, who sat down with the premiers earlier Friday, and tried to allay concerns about a derailed fight against climate change by saying many of the trends towards cleaner energy were well established and would continue.But then Wall said the Canadian government would want to bring its values on climate change — including carbon pricing — into trade negotiations, potentially including NAFTA, which he thinks would not go over well with Trump and the other Republicans now dominating Capitol Hill."I'm just saying, let's not be naive as Canadians," said Wall.Trudeau shot back: "I think all Canadians know that Canadian climate policy will be set by Canadians, not by whoever happens to be president of the United States."At another point, Wall questioned the point of imposing a carbon tax on Saskatchewan's citizens and then simply refunding it to them, as Trudeau said he was free to do."What's the point? How does that change behaviour?" Wall asked."There's a lot of good analyses of how impactful carbon pricing is and I recommend it to everyone to take a look at," Trudeau said with a tight smile.Wall is ideologically opposed to the idea of a carbon tax; B.C. already has a carbon tax but Clark wanted — and seemed to get — assurances that Ontario and Quebec's cap-and-trade carbon market would impose an equivalent carbon price.And it was Clark who came closest to scuttling the whole deal Friday.Minutes after she broke from the talks late Friday to tell reporters no agreement was likely imminent, word emerged of a compromise that accommodated Clark's concerns.Quebec's carbon market is currently trading permits for about $8 per tonne, with a forecast the price will rise to $16 per tonne once Ontario's market is fully up and running with Quebec and California in the Western Climate Initiative.Clark said that's not fair to provinces like B.C. and Alberta with carbon taxes of $30.However, Paul Boothe, an economics professor at the Ivey Business School and member of the non-partisan Canada's Ecofiscal Commission, said there's no reason provinces must have identical tax rates, pointing to differing provincial sales and income taxes across Canada."I think this fairness discussion is a bit of a red herring," Boothe, a former deputy finance minister in Saskatchewan, said in a telephone interview."What we're trying to do is meet our (emissions) target at the lowest possible cost, not the highest cost."Ideally, B.C. and Alberta companies should be free to buy carbon credits from other jurisdictions instead of paying the carbon tax, which would ensure emissions reductions are achieved at the lowest price available.Whether such a trading plan emerges remains for another day. Clark insisted B.C. might find another option for cutting emissions in 2021 rather than raising the province's carbon tax, as per Ottawa's stipulation.Trudeau put his best face on a hard-won and seemingly fragile compromise."I want to thank all of the premiers for being here today, for coming into this meeting with some strongly held views, but also with a willingness to work hard on behalf of all Canadians."— With files from Joanna Smith-Bruce Cheadle, The Canadian Press
A look at details of framework agreement on climate change-The Canadian Press – DEC 9,16-YAHOONEWS
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau won the agreement Friday of eight provinces and all three territories for an "historic" pan-Canadian framework on clean growth and climate change.The agreement is intended ensure Canada meets, or exceeds, the 2030 goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 30 per cent below 2005 levels, as promised at last year's U.N.-sponsored climate change summit.The core measure is imposition of a national price on carbon, starting at $10 per tonne of carbon emissions in 2018, rising to $50 per tonne by 2022. The federal government will impose that price in provinces that refuse to adopt their own carbon pricing regimes.In a concession to British Columbia Premier Christy Clark, outside experts will evaluate the effectiveness and comparability of different carbon pricing mechanisms, with an interim report due in 2020 and a final evaluation in early 2022.Beyond that, the first ministers agreed to:— Develop new building codes to improve energy efficiency. — Deploy more charging stations for electric vehicles. — Phase out coal-fired power by 2030 and expand clean electricity systems. Trudeau says the goal is to have Canada powered by 90 per cent clean energy in 13 years. — Reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas sector. — Protect and enhance carbon stored in forests, wetlands and farm land. — Set an example by driving significant emission reductions from government operations. — Deliver annual progress reports on implementation of the agreement.The Canadian Press-@YahooFinanceCA on Twitter
Manitoba refuses to sign climate framework over health spending concerns-[The Canadian Press]-YAHOONEWS-December 9, 2016
OTTAWA — Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister staged a one-man protest of sorts Friday, refusing to sign on to Justin Trudeau's pan-Canadian climate change framework without first getting an agreement on more federal money for health care.Manitoba is one of only two provinces that wouldn't support the climate agreement finalized in Ottawa following a first ministers meeting between the premiers and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.It came as no surprise that Saskatchewan wasn't on board: Premier Brad Wall has long opposed putting a national price on carbon.But Pallister's opposition was unexpected, his rationale even more so.When asked his reasons, Pallister indicated that the Trudeau government's intention to cut in half the annual rate of increase on health care transfer payments to three per cent in April was simply unacceptable.The provinces and territories are united in their opposition to changing the funding formula, saying they fear a dramatic impact on health delivery. The premiers have called for a separate meeting to discuss the issue."I am concerned about the health of our health care system and so I have an obligation because that's the first concern of the people of my province to raise the issue," Pallister said."We need to have a partnership on supporting health care in a sustainable way and right now we don't."Trudeau did not acknowledge Pallister's concerns during Friday's joint news conference with the premiers and indigenous leaders, other than to say the issue will be discussed in earnest at a meeting of federal and provincial health and finance ministers on Dec. 19.However, health funding was a hot topic of discussion among first ministers at a later working dinner, which lasted some three hours. Provincial officials said no progress was made on the issue over dinner."Absolutely nothing changed," confided one.Earlier in the day, the premiers tried but failed to push health care funding onto the formal agenda of the first ministers' summit on climate change.As chair of the premiers, Yukon's Sandy Silver advised Trudeau at the outset of the meeting that premiers wanted to talk about federal funding for health care, said sources familiar with what was going on behind the closed doors.The prime minister quickly directed the discussion back to the environment.Push-back against the federal health plan was on full display Friday morning as the premiers emerged from their own meeting, which was focused on health spending, before joining Trudeau.Wall said he wished there was more time to discuss health with Trudeau."We could have been talking about it last night, but there was this other thing," the Saskatchewan premier said, referring to a state dinner Trudeau hosted Thursday for U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden.Wall said he hopes the federal government is urgently looking to get a new health accord with the provinces in place by year's end.Some provinces have shown a willingness to accept a reduced annual increase in health transfers if, at the same time, the federal government agrees to put more money, over a longer period of time, into a health accord that targets improvements in home care, mental health services and innovation.So far, the federal Liberals have promised $3 billion over four years, specifically for home care, but they've signalled a willingness to expand that.Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne said she wants the federal government to present an "evidence-based" increase in the annual transfer, stressing that the offer presented so far "is not enough.""It is not going to meet the needs of the people in this country," she said. "It is not going to meet the needs in each of our individual jurisdictions."Wynne said there is room to talk about trade-offs between the health transfer payments and additional targeted health investments."I think those areas are things that we need to talk about, but that's why we need to have this conversation about health care and that's why we need to have it at the first ministers level," she said.— Follow @kkirkup on Twitter-Kristy Kirkup, The Canadian Press
Coding, climate, rescues: 3 ways federal politics touched Canadians this week-[The Canadian Press]-YAHOONEWS-December 10, 2016
OTTAWA — The widespread mockery and ridicule around the Liberals' approach to electoral reform that marked the beginning of the week in federal politics was almost a distant memory by the end of week, as U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden came to Ottawa to plead solemnly for Canada to defend liberalism around the world.The mydemocracy.ca online voting quiz brought out the cynical side of Canadian political humour, with no end of clever social-media jokes and Photoshopping about the country's various political animals — all at the expense of the Liberals.But serious politics soon overtook sarcasm as First Nations chiefs, Biden and the premiers descended upon the national capital to hold counsel with the prime minister and his cabinet about the environment, health care and Canada's place in the world.There were other moves worthy of notice all the same: government promotion of coding, announcements on military equipment and talks on climate change were all concrete manifestations of politics this week. Here's a run-down.-CLIMATE-The long-awaited first ministers meeting on climate was initially shaping up as anti-climactic, given the federal government's efforts to till the soil for a national emissions-reduction plan. It would be vague, but widely supported, and put the country on a solid path to cutting greenhouse gases.But history knows that friction often ensues when premiers and the prime minister get together, and Friday's meetings were no different.Aboriginal leaders balked at being left out of the afternoon session. Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall turned up his nose at any suggestion of a carbon tax, eliciting a civil but terse exchange with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during the closing news conference.B.C.'s Christy Clark said she wouldn't sign anything that treats western oil-producing provinces the same as hydro-hungry central Canada, but won concessions that will allow her government to decide when to raise its own price on carbon.And Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister flat-out refused to sign on without first getting additional federal help for mounting health care costs.-CODING-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau dropped by the Ottawa offices of Liberal high-tech darling Shopify on Monday to throw his weight behind an effort to expose more children to computer coding.Researchers say there will not be enough skilled Canadians to fill the jobs being created by the tech sector in coming years. And they're urging more exposure to the building blocks of computer programming for students of all ages.The skills mismatch is of central concern to Trudeau's policy efforts leading up to the next budget expected in February.So far, most of the efforts to teach kids coding take place in after-school clubs or summer camps. British Columbia and Nova Scotia have made coding part of their school curricula. But education is a provincial responsibility. Will Trudeau and his budget be of any help? -SEARCH AND RESCUE-After 14 years of fussing around with scandal-plagued procurement attempts, the federal government has finally announced a way for Canada's military rescuers to do their jobs without risking the need of a rescue themselves.Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan and Procurement Minister Judy Foote say they will spend $2.3 billion to replace the aging search-and-rescue planes with 16 new Airbus C-295s, which will start arriving in 2019.The current fleet is between 20 and 40 years old, and is involved in more than 350 rescue missions every year, often saving lives. The fleet has long been in need of replacement, but an initial attempt more than a decade ago was deemed to be rigged. Then, the process slowed to a crawl and the prices started to soar — even as the planes fell into disrepair.The saga seems to be over for now. Unless, of course, there are lawsuits from competitors.Heather Scoffield, Ottawa Bureau Chief, The Canadian Press.
DEUTERONOMY 17:3-4
3 And hath gone and served other gods, and worshipped them, either the sun, or moon, or any of the host of heaven, which I have not commanded;
4 And it be told thee, and thou hast heard of it, and enquired diligently, and, behold, it be true, and the thing certain, that such abomination is wrought in Israel:
DEUTORONOMY 4:15-19
15 Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of similitude on the day that the LORD spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire:
16 Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of male or female,
17 The likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged fowl that flieth in the air,
18 The likeness of any thing that creepeth on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth:
19 And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and the stars, even all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them, which the LORD thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.
2 KINGS 23:5
5 And he put down the idolatrous priests, whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense in the high places in the cities of Judah, and in the places round about Jerusalem; them also that burned incense unto Baal, to the sun, and to the moon, and to the planets, and to all the host of heaven.
EARTH DESTROYED WITH THE EARTH IN NOAHS DAY(BECAUSE OF SIN,VIOLENCE AND GODLESS PEOPLE)
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)(HAMAS IN HEBREW IS VIOLENCE)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM)(HAMAS) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
HOSEA 4:1-3
1 Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land.
2 By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood.
3 Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth therein shall languish, with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven; yea, the fishes of the sea also shall be taken away.
DEUTORONOMY 28:22-24
22 The LORD shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish.
23 And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron.
24 The LORD shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed
ITS -8 AND I GOTTA ONLY HAVE MY HEATER ON 4 OR 5 HOURS A DAY. BECAUSE MY HYDRO BILL A MONTH WILL BE OVER $120.00 A MONTH. THANKS TO LIBERAL LESBIEN KATHLEEN WYNN AND THE ALT-LEFT LIBERAL-DEMOCRAT-PROGRESSIVES. FOR SKYROCKETING OUR HYDRO BILLS TO PAY FOR THE ENVIROMENTAL GREEN CULT AND CARBON TAXES. AND THESE JACKASSES (DONKEYS) SAY KEEP YOUR HEADS IN THE SAND AND PAY YOUR CARBON TAXES. SO WE CAN FILL OUR LIBERAL BANK ACCOUNTS. AND PAY FOR WINDMILLS AND SOLAR. THAT WILL GIVE US CHEAP HYDRO AND EVERYTHING ELSE. HOGWASH-THIS IS ALL A BUNCH OF LIES. OR I WOULD NOT HAVE TO FREEZE TO DEATH IN MY APARTMENT BECAUSE OF THE SKYROCKETING HYDRO COSTS. THE ONLY TIME I AM NOT OFF MY COUCH COVERED UP. IS IF I PUT STORIES ON MY SITE. EAT OR GO TO THE WASHROOM. OH I FORGOT. THE LIBERALS SAY THE KIDS GOTTA FREEZE TO FOR THE GOOD OF THE EARTH AND CARBON EMMISIONS. THIS IS TOTALLY REDICULAS. AND THIS CARBON TAX-ENVIROMENTAL CULT HAS TO BE STOPPED IMMEDIATELY. AND HYDRO MADE CHEAP SO PEOPLE LIKE ME ON DISABILITY CAN HAVE OUR HEAT ON SO WE DO NOT FREEZE.BECAUSE WE HAVE TO WATCH HOW MANY HOURS AND WHAT HOURS WE HAVE OUR HEAT ON. SO WE DO NOT HAVE $200.00 HYDRO BILLS A MONTH. I FIGURE IF I GOT MY HEAT ON 4 OR 5 HOURS A DAY. NEVER ON HIGH. ONLY LOW OR MEDIUM. MY HYDRO BILL IS UNDER CONTROL AT $120.00 A MONTH. ANYTHING OVER THAT CUTS INTO MY MONTHLY FOOD MONEY.
PM hails national climate change deal, but without Saskatchewan, Manitoba-The Canadian Press – DEC 9,16-YAHOONEWS
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau declared victory Friday in his campaign to craft a national "framework" agreement on climate change — even though Saskatchewan and Manitoba refused to sign on to the deal and British Columbia claimed a major carve-out.Even as Trudeau was asserting the provinces and territories "are all in this together," it was painfully apparent that major divisions remain.Carbon pricing, said Trudeau, "will apply across 100 per cent of this country" starting at a minimum $10 per tonne of emissions in 2018 — a shot fired squarely across the bow of the most vocal holdout, Saskatchewan's Brad Wall.It's just one part of a wide suite of climate policies designed to push Canada toward its international 2030 climate pledge to cut emissions 30 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030.The measures include previously announced policies on everything from clean technology and green infrastructure to electric vehicles and building efficiency — but there was no detailed accounting of the associated greenhouse gas reductions.A graphic at the end of the framework asserts the plan pulls Canada within 44 million tonnes of the 524-million tonne GHG goal — a gap that can be closed with "additional measures such as public transit and green infrastructure, technology and innovations, and stored carbon (forests, soils, wetlands)." The hard math of cutting greenhouse gases, however, was all but lost in the furious politicking Friday.B.C. Premier Christy Clark, who is facing an election next spring, said she'd won a "B.C. annex" in the final agreement that will allow her province to effectively opt out of the annual $10 a tonne increase in carbon pricing once the rest of the country reaches B.C.'s current $30 per tonne price in 2020.Not so, Environment Minister Catherine McKenna told The Canadian Press after the closing new conference."Our benchmark is our benchmark," said McKenna.Alberta Premier Rachel Notley, meanwhile, said that while her province is bringing in its own $20 per tonne tax next month, she didn't buy Clark's contention that western provinces will be paying twice the carbon price of Quebec and Ontario in five years."I'm not entirely convinced that as of 2022 that that would be what the numbers are," Notley said.Manitoba's Brian Pallister, who has been pressing the federal government for concessions on health care funding, withheld his support solely for the purpose of extracting additional help from Ottawa in dealing with escalating health costs.And Wall and Trudeau openly squabbled during the closing news conference as the two continued a debate that appeared to have started behind closed doors.At one point Trudeau rolled his eyes and shook his head in apparent exasperation at what the Saskatchewan premier was saying.One such exchange happened when Trudeau was asked how the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president might impact his climate mission.Trudeau shared the message delivered by U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden, who sat down with the premiers earlier Friday, and tried to allay concerns about a derailed fight against climate change by saying many of the trends towards cleaner energy were well established and would continue.But then Wall said the Canadian government would want to bring its values on climate change — including carbon pricing — into trade negotiations, potentially including NAFTA, which he thinks would not go over well with Trump and the other Republicans now dominating Capitol Hill."I'm just saying, let's not be naive as Canadians," said Wall.Trudeau shot back: "I think all Canadians know that Canadian climate policy will be set by Canadians, not by whoever happens to be president of the United States."At another point, Wall questioned the point of imposing a carbon tax on Saskatchewan's citizens and then simply refunding it to them, as Trudeau said he was free to do."What's the point? How does that change behaviour?" Wall asked."There's a lot of good analyses of how impactful carbon pricing is and I recommend it to everyone to take a look at," Trudeau said with a tight smile.Wall is ideologically opposed to the idea of a carbon tax; B.C. already has a carbon tax but Clark wanted — and seemed to get — assurances that Ontario and Quebec's cap-and-trade carbon market would impose an equivalent carbon price.And it was Clark who came closest to scuttling the whole deal Friday.Minutes after she broke from the talks late Friday to tell reporters no agreement was likely imminent, word emerged of a compromise that accommodated Clark's concerns.Quebec's carbon market is currently trading permits for about $8 per tonne, with a forecast the price will rise to $16 per tonne once Ontario's market is fully up and running with Quebec and California in the Western Climate Initiative.Clark said that's not fair to provinces like B.C. and Alberta with carbon taxes of $30.However, Paul Boothe, an economics professor at the Ivey Business School and member of the non-partisan Canada's Ecofiscal Commission, said there's no reason provinces must have identical tax rates, pointing to differing provincial sales and income taxes across Canada."I think this fairness discussion is a bit of a red herring," Boothe, a former deputy finance minister in Saskatchewan, said in a telephone interview."What we're trying to do is meet our (emissions) target at the lowest possible cost, not the highest cost."Ideally, B.C. and Alberta companies should be free to buy carbon credits from other jurisdictions instead of paying the carbon tax, which would ensure emissions reductions are achieved at the lowest price available.Whether such a trading plan emerges remains for another day. Clark insisted B.C. might find another option for cutting emissions in 2021 rather than raising the province's carbon tax, as per Ottawa's stipulation.Trudeau put his best face on a hard-won and seemingly fragile compromise."I want to thank all of the premiers for being here today, for coming into this meeting with some strongly held views, but also with a willingness to work hard on behalf of all Canadians."— With files from Joanna Smith-Bruce Cheadle, The Canadian Press
A look at details of framework agreement on climate change-The Canadian Press – DEC 9,16-YAHOONEWS
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau won the agreement Friday of eight provinces and all three territories for an "historic" pan-Canadian framework on clean growth and climate change.The agreement is intended ensure Canada meets, or exceeds, the 2030 goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 30 per cent below 2005 levels, as promised at last year's U.N.-sponsored climate change summit.The core measure is imposition of a national price on carbon, starting at $10 per tonne of carbon emissions in 2018, rising to $50 per tonne by 2022. The federal government will impose that price in provinces that refuse to adopt their own carbon pricing regimes.In a concession to British Columbia Premier Christy Clark, outside experts will evaluate the effectiveness and comparability of different carbon pricing mechanisms, with an interim report due in 2020 and a final evaluation in early 2022.Beyond that, the first ministers agreed to:— Develop new building codes to improve energy efficiency. — Deploy more charging stations for electric vehicles. — Phase out coal-fired power by 2030 and expand clean electricity systems. Trudeau says the goal is to have Canada powered by 90 per cent clean energy in 13 years. — Reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas sector. — Protect and enhance carbon stored in forests, wetlands and farm land. — Set an example by driving significant emission reductions from government operations. — Deliver annual progress reports on implementation of the agreement.The Canadian Press-@YahooFinanceCA on Twitter
Manitoba refuses to sign climate framework over health spending concerns-[The Canadian Press]-YAHOONEWS-December 9, 2016
OTTAWA — Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister staged a one-man protest of sorts Friday, refusing to sign on to Justin Trudeau's pan-Canadian climate change framework without first getting an agreement on more federal money for health care.Manitoba is one of only two provinces that wouldn't support the climate agreement finalized in Ottawa following a first ministers meeting between the premiers and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.It came as no surprise that Saskatchewan wasn't on board: Premier Brad Wall has long opposed putting a national price on carbon.But Pallister's opposition was unexpected, his rationale even more so.When asked his reasons, Pallister indicated that the Trudeau government's intention to cut in half the annual rate of increase on health care transfer payments to three per cent in April was simply unacceptable.The provinces and territories are united in their opposition to changing the funding formula, saying they fear a dramatic impact on health delivery. The premiers have called for a separate meeting to discuss the issue."I am concerned about the health of our health care system and so I have an obligation because that's the first concern of the people of my province to raise the issue," Pallister said."We need to have a partnership on supporting health care in a sustainable way and right now we don't."Trudeau did not acknowledge Pallister's concerns during Friday's joint news conference with the premiers and indigenous leaders, other than to say the issue will be discussed in earnest at a meeting of federal and provincial health and finance ministers on Dec. 19.However, health funding was a hot topic of discussion among first ministers at a later working dinner, which lasted some three hours. Provincial officials said no progress was made on the issue over dinner."Absolutely nothing changed," confided one.Earlier in the day, the premiers tried but failed to push health care funding onto the formal agenda of the first ministers' summit on climate change.As chair of the premiers, Yukon's Sandy Silver advised Trudeau at the outset of the meeting that premiers wanted to talk about federal funding for health care, said sources familiar with what was going on behind the closed doors.The prime minister quickly directed the discussion back to the environment.Push-back against the federal health plan was on full display Friday morning as the premiers emerged from their own meeting, which was focused on health spending, before joining Trudeau.Wall said he wished there was more time to discuss health with Trudeau."We could have been talking about it last night, but there was this other thing," the Saskatchewan premier said, referring to a state dinner Trudeau hosted Thursday for U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden.Wall said he hopes the federal government is urgently looking to get a new health accord with the provinces in place by year's end.Some provinces have shown a willingness to accept a reduced annual increase in health transfers if, at the same time, the federal government agrees to put more money, over a longer period of time, into a health accord that targets improvements in home care, mental health services and innovation.So far, the federal Liberals have promised $3 billion over four years, specifically for home care, but they've signalled a willingness to expand that.Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne said she wants the federal government to present an "evidence-based" increase in the annual transfer, stressing that the offer presented so far "is not enough.""It is not going to meet the needs of the people in this country," she said. "It is not going to meet the needs in each of our individual jurisdictions."Wynne said there is room to talk about trade-offs between the health transfer payments and additional targeted health investments."I think those areas are things that we need to talk about, but that's why we need to have this conversation about health care and that's why we need to have it at the first ministers level," she said.— Follow @kkirkup on Twitter-Kristy Kirkup, The Canadian Press
Coding, climate, rescues: 3 ways federal politics touched Canadians this week-[The Canadian Press]-YAHOONEWS-December 10, 2016
OTTAWA — The widespread mockery and ridicule around the Liberals' approach to electoral reform that marked the beginning of the week in federal politics was almost a distant memory by the end of week, as U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden came to Ottawa to plead solemnly for Canada to defend liberalism around the world.The mydemocracy.ca online voting quiz brought out the cynical side of Canadian political humour, with no end of clever social-media jokes and Photoshopping about the country's various political animals — all at the expense of the Liberals.But serious politics soon overtook sarcasm as First Nations chiefs, Biden and the premiers descended upon the national capital to hold counsel with the prime minister and his cabinet about the environment, health care and Canada's place in the world.There were other moves worthy of notice all the same: government promotion of coding, announcements on military equipment and talks on climate change were all concrete manifestations of politics this week. Here's a run-down.-CLIMATE-The long-awaited first ministers meeting on climate was initially shaping up as anti-climactic, given the federal government's efforts to till the soil for a national emissions-reduction plan. It would be vague, but widely supported, and put the country on a solid path to cutting greenhouse gases.But history knows that friction often ensues when premiers and the prime minister get together, and Friday's meetings were no different.Aboriginal leaders balked at being left out of the afternoon session. Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall turned up his nose at any suggestion of a carbon tax, eliciting a civil but terse exchange with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during the closing news conference.B.C.'s Christy Clark said she wouldn't sign anything that treats western oil-producing provinces the same as hydro-hungry central Canada, but won concessions that will allow her government to decide when to raise its own price on carbon.And Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister flat-out refused to sign on without first getting additional federal help for mounting health care costs.-CODING-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau dropped by the Ottawa offices of Liberal high-tech darling Shopify on Monday to throw his weight behind an effort to expose more children to computer coding.Researchers say there will not be enough skilled Canadians to fill the jobs being created by the tech sector in coming years. And they're urging more exposure to the building blocks of computer programming for students of all ages.The skills mismatch is of central concern to Trudeau's policy efforts leading up to the next budget expected in February.So far, most of the efforts to teach kids coding take place in after-school clubs or summer camps. British Columbia and Nova Scotia have made coding part of their school curricula. But education is a provincial responsibility. Will Trudeau and his budget be of any help? -SEARCH AND RESCUE-After 14 years of fussing around with scandal-plagued procurement attempts, the federal government has finally announced a way for Canada's military rescuers to do their jobs without risking the need of a rescue themselves.Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan and Procurement Minister Judy Foote say they will spend $2.3 billion to replace the aging search-and-rescue planes with 16 new Airbus C-295s, which will start arriving in 2019.The current fleet is between 20 and 40 years old, and is involved in more than 350 rescue missions every year, often saving lives. The fleet has long been in need of replacement, but an initial attempt more than a decade ago was deemed to be rigged. Then, the process slowed to a crawl and the prices started to soar — even as the planes fell into disrepair.The saga seems to be over for now. Unless, of course, there are lawsuits from competitors.Heather Scoffield, Ottawa Bureau Chief, The Canadian Press.
