$1 billion price tag for G20 security and climbing

London G20 2009 security cost $30 million why is Canada spending $1 billion

The Harper government’s $1 billion estimate for the G20 Summit has to be a joke. They can’t be serious. That is the most ridiculous waste of taxpayer’s money in recent memory.

Fresh on the heels of his $43 billion Stimulus Boondoggle, our big spending Prime Minister is out to break the bank on security. The G20 summit is mostly about politicians doing photo ops and lots of media coverage of the street protests.

At the $1 billion price tag, protesters are getting the best free advertising in history.

In comparison, the Brits only spent $30 million last year to put on the same show in a city known for terrorist bombings. The US only spent $18 million in Pittsburgh which has a murder rate 2.8 times higher than Toronto. Can we just hire them to do this job?

That price tag does not include meals, hotels, transportation or hookers. Just the cops to turn a really nice city into an armed fortress.

This is the second time in a year that Canada has become a police state. Wasn’t the heavy-handed security enough for the neo-Fascists amongst us? Are they setting us up for martial law, perhaps using terrorist threats as the excuse?

That amount of money would make a dent in some of Canada’s social problems like poverty or employment for those living in poverty. It would buy assistive devices for all the Canadians with disabilities who can’t afford a wheelchair or hearing aid.

You could buy a home security system with two-way voice communication and pay a security company to monitor and maintain it — for 2,583,333 years.

Toronto transit officials could build the Sheppard East Light Rail Transit line.

Calgary could have used the cash to pay for a long-planned tunnel linking northeast communities and businesses to Calgary International Airport.

The security plan has forced the city to shut down one of Canada’s most-recognizable tourist attractions — the CN Tower. It’s also forced the Toronto Blue Jays to shift a key three-game series with the Philadelphia Phillies to Philadelphia.

That $930 million could have done wonders to boost Blue Jays attendance. It could have paid for a ticket in the 200 level of the stadium for every man, woman and child in the country — for a premium game, like one featuring the Phillies and Halladay.

It could also have covered the Blue Jays entire team payroll for the next 10 years.

Or maybe the federal government could’ve bought the Washington Nationals, moved them back to Montreal and built them a decent stadium.

Throw in $205 million for the Colorado Avalanche and $143 million for the Atlanta Thrashers moving the Avalanche back to Quebec City and the Thrashers to southern Ontario.

Think 19 top scholars for $200 million was a good deal? How about another 94 for $930 million?

We could’ve given the 500,000 Canadian college and university students a real edge next September. The money could have bought each of them a 64-gigabyte Wi-Fi-only iPad.

Or the federal government could have forgiven the student debt for:

33,214 graduates in Atlantic Canada, where the debt at graduation is $28,000 (the highest in Canada).
Or 71,538 graduates in Quebec, where the average debt at graduation is $13,000 (the lowest in Canada).

How about a year’s supply (about three litres) of maple syrup for every man, woman and child in the country. There’d be enough money left over to mail souvenir containers of the stuff to the leaders and their entourages. And maybe even a T-shirt, too.