I realize this letter may come as a shock to a large number of people in light of what I had said in June of this year, however some things do change. I hope the editors and publishers of newspapers situated throughout Saskatchewan will bear with the change of mind and continue to make space in their papers. The change of mind comes about in response to an earnest request from a close and good friend who is now occupying the position of temporary president of SSAI. The previous president resigning just into her second year of office.
Just recently I received a pamphlet from my local MLA asking me to have my say, giving my priorities in regards to government plans. They listed five topics including geographical price discrimination, wireless costs and unbundling cable channels, but not one choice that dealt with health care, treatment of veterans, pensions or the ever-increasing cost of living. My first thought was what it costs taxpayers to print and post this nonsensical piece of paper and my second thought was why do the people we elect to office keep on dodging the real problems that face all Canadians?
Pension reform seems to be on the mind of the minister of finance who is concerned about all the many pension plans being under funded and he wants to take away the plans from the present governing bodies of those plans and put them into the "safe" hands of the federal government. Of course CPP and OAS will also be on the agenda when it comes to reform. The government will be asking those people in their pre-retirement years to pay more for a longer term and receive a great deal less. This will include employers who will also have to match the increased amounts the employee is paying. Does the minister of finance think that maybe we have all forgotten just how much money was lost from those funds when the politicians dipped their sticky fingers into billions of dollars to pay for nonexistent super fighter jets and helicopters and submarines that sank before they went to sea? Subjects such as that never made it to the priority list from the MLA because we all know the ministers responsible for all those debacles could only say, "oops" and that appeared to be a satisfactory answer at that time.
Present day retirees have noticed increases in their pension are getting smaller and occurring less frequently despite the ever-increasing cost of living, but they have also noticed the size of increases politicians award themselves in their pension schemes and how much salary increases CEOs of large corporations award themselves. Is there not a little something wrong in this picture? Those same retirees have already started to voice their concerns in regards to matters such as that and they also want to know what plans the government has for them in their later years. Pushing this responsibility over to provincial government is all well and good provided the responsibility is accompanied by sufficient funds to pay for whatever services will be required. The bad news is there will be many more seniors over the next decade who will need more help in our golden years. The choice is already out there, either help to keep us active and healthy in our own homes with the required support, or pay a huge bill in creating more long-term care institutions. Now put that choice on a "have your say" pamphlet instead of the cable and wireless questions and see what response you get.
However pensioners, retirees or seniors will continue to go about their lives the best way they know, spending a little less here, saving a little more there in order so they don't become a burden on either their family or friends.
The time has arrived when we all need to come together with a strong voice such as SSAI and SSM and every other similar organizations to ensure the government is made aware of how we feel about their schemes and plans for our present and our future. We need all those future seniors to take a walk over to their local senior center and obtain a membership and get active at this time. There's everything to gain and nothing to lose.
It can't all be doom and gloom because Mother Nature is co-operating with us all and sending lots of good weather our way and we have to make sure it's not wasted. Get out there, get a little sun, get a little fresh air and stay active and healthy. The alternative is not that great.
