So, number of "fiscal conservatives" have appeared squawking about the LPC having doubled or quadrupled the national debt.

I have a thought experiment for you to consider. /1 #cdnpoli

Let's say for a moment that in February of this year that instead of a virus spreading around the world, that Russia decided to invade via the polar regions. /2

Suddenly Canada has to put the brakes on everything else, and put everything into repelling the invasion. Naturally, this would require Canada to spend huge amounts of money on military equipment and personnel. /3

So much so, in fact, that Canada's normal economic activity would grind to a halt for several months as our various industries pivoted to a "war footing". /4

Using existing fiscal frameworks, the government can't afford to even purchase enough equipment for the needed troops, much less pay the troops. /5

At this point, the government has a couple of choices:

It can simply say "well - we don't have the money, guess we just fold to the invaders", which will still result in thousands of casualties and even more people out of work as the invasion is also collapsing businesses. /6

Or, it can go out and borrow (or print) the needed funds today, and worry about the consequences once the invasion has been repelled. Fewer people will be dead, and most will not have been displaced from their jobs. /7

Either way, the country is going to be rebuilding for years, if not decades after the events, and the fiscal situation in Ottawa is going to be a wreck, likely for 20 or 30 years. /8

... now, by this point, I think you can see where I'm headed.

Fighting a pandemic is no less an existential threat than a foreign invasion. If you're worried about "balancing the budget" right now, your priorities are backwards. /9

The government has to do everything in its power to save the people and state in times of emergency. We sort out the pieces later, because the cost of doing nothing is much, much higher. /10

PS 1: A frequent complaint I see is that "centrally planned economies" don't work. Yet, a "war economy" is by definition one of the most centrally planned economic exercises a government can engage in.