Federal surplus: what it means for the election » Who gets the advantage? Davie Wong Columnist H allelujah! After a long eight years, Canada finally has a budget surplus. But what does that mean exactly? It means that Stephen Harper’s long-term financial plan has finally come to fruition. Despite everything that has happened since the global financial crisis in 2007, Canada has finally achieved what Harper and Thomas Mulcair would call success with the budget. Throughout the election campaign so far, the economy has been a huge part of the debates. When Statistics Canada announced earlier this month that the Canadian economy showed signs of indeed being in a recession—as Mulcair and Justin Trudeau so often pointed out—Harper received a lot of flak for failing to revive the Canadian economy as he had promised so many times in the past. But now, with the announcement of the federal surplus, Harper can finally take a breath of relief. This news comes just at the right time, as the Conservatives have received a mammoth amount of negative attention from the Duffy scandal to leaky candidates. Although Canadians want change, Harper finally has the evidence he needs : to tell Canadians that maybe : change isn’t the right way to go : here. : : While the Conservative Party : received the news very well, the : NDP also took their moment : in the limelight. Throughout : the election campaign, Mulcair : has made balancing the budget : his focus. Like Harper, Mulcair : believes that the best course of : action for the Canadian economy : is balancing the federal budget. : With the surplus, Mulcair would : be walking into a year where he : has already fulfilled his promise : and could focus on broader : things such as better healthcare : quality and more affordable, : $15-a-day child care. One party that didn’t : benefit from the surplus budget : announcement was Trudeau : and his Liberal Party. They had : banked their chances in the : coming election on the budget : being another deficit. Their : plan even stated that Canada : would be in deficit until 2019. : For the Liberals, the budget : being positive not only puts : their plan ina bad light, it shows : the country what many have : speculated; that Trudeau is too : inexperienced. Despite all of this, Trudeau : still stands by his and his party’s : plan to run at a deficit until 2019. : He speculates that the budget : being at a positive this year is : a false truth, and, in reality, : the number is only positive : because Harper planned it to be : for the election. Ina statement : addressing supporters on : September 14, Trudeau accused : Harper of “under-spending and : making cuts to Veterans Affairs, : Aboriginal Affairs, to seniors, in : the billions of dollars so that he : could balance the books in time : for his election” A lot of what Trudeau : pointed out makes sense in terms : of political timing. The timing : of the release of the report by aS : Finance Department was mostly : in favour of the current Prime : Minister, who was experiencing : a slide in polls. The timing also : made Trudeau and his party look : silly, and discredited much of : their economic platform. But what do the numbers : say? Well, the numbers say : exactly what has been reported. : This year, the Canadian budget is : at asurplus: a $3 billion surplus to : be exact. The report issued by the : Finance Department reads that : the revenue comes from higher : gains in personal and corporate of hog eee: ea Image via www.voiceonline.com ie Bake! : income taxes than was originally : anticipated. It also showed that : direct program spending was : $1.5 billion less than originally : forecasted. : For the first time since 2007- : 2008, the Canadian budget is at : a surplus. Those are the facts. : Whether it is from a strong : infrastructure, as Harper has : been so focused on, or it is from : making drastic cuts to look : good, as Trudeau believes, the : Canadian budget is finally back : on track. Let’s see how long it : lasts. Oh deer » The story of downtown deer ends in tragedy Davie Wong Columnist he life of one of Vancouver’s most famous unofficial mascots was tragically ended this month. On September 13, around 7:30 p.m., Vancouver Police officers were called to the end of the Lion’s Gate Bridge, where a deer was reportedly struck and killed by an oncoming car. An official statement released by the Vancouver Park Board the next day confirmed the : : have also questioned why the : infamous deer was not relocated : for its own safety. Surely, : someone saw this coming, right? : A deer has no place in a city. fears of many; the deer that had been killed in the collision was indeed the famous Downtown Deer. It didn’t take long for the news of the beloved creature's death to reach Vancouverites, who started trending #DowntownDeer to pay their respects. The young deer rose to fame back in July, when it was spotted roaming around downtown Vancouver, eventually making its home in Stanley Park. As videos and pictures began revealing that the deer was : actually quite friendly, more and : more people began seeking this : elusive creature, combing Stanley : Park and downtown Vancouver : fora chance to spot him. This : was a regular occurrence despite : multiple warnings from park : officials, wildlife experts, and the : BC Ministry of Forests, Lands : & Natural Resource Operations : (MFLNRO) about the defensive : nature of wild animals, such as : this deer. Amongst the many tributes that have arrived, many people The BC MFLNRO said in : a statement that they had been : looking into options to relocate : the deer, but could not find any : before it was too late. On the surface, the task : of relocating a lost deer seems : fairly simple. Immobilize it and : transport it back into the wild, : right? However, as it has come : to light, the task was much more a : complicated than it seemed. The deer had begun relying : on humans for food and had : become habituated to them, so : relocating it to the wild was no : longer an option, as explained in : the same statement. Its friendly : behaviour towards humans : showed that it was likely under : the care or influence of other : humans in the past. Relocating the deer would have resulted in its death due : to its ability to fend for itself, : because it had been relying on : humans for so long. In other : words, it was doomed regardless : of intervention. But is there something : that Vancouverites could’ve : done to prevent such a tragedy? : Ironically, yes. The best course of : action in this scenario is to take > no action at all. In a statement : to the media, Vancouver Park : Board biologist Nick Page said, : “Contact with people can cause : the animal to become dependent Image via www.vancitybuzz.com : and aggressive towards humans.” : This makes it much more difficult : to find sanctuaries to house these : animals. : So it seems that the life of the : most famous deer in the Lower : Mainland has ended in one of : the most ironic ways. Ina truly : Shakespearean-esque style, : Vancouverites have unknowingly : slain the creature they adore so : much. By loving this animal and : trying to save it by feeding it, we : have ultimately killed it.