Why is it that every time a politician dreams up some pet project (in this case the pets are polar bears) taxpayers have to pay for it The latest comes from Manitoba's Energy Minister Tim Sale and why Canada should ratify Kyoto. Sale believes that ratification of Kyoto will somehow "save the polar bears" in northern Manitoba. To bolster Sale's claim, Conservation Minister Steve Ashton decided that it would be a good idea to charter two planes and fill them with media and staff to head up north to look at the polar bears. The junket cost about $14,000 - and that was just for the cost of the planes.

But Sale's concerns don't end with the polar bears - mosquitoes are also giving him an uncomfortable itch. He claims that "if we have more frost-free days, then we'll simply have more days with mosquitoes." In fairness that is an interesting point, no one likes mosquitoes, especially ones carrying the West Nile Virus, but to use that as justification to implement Kyoto It is a bit of a stretch. Sale did not provide any evidence - anecdotal or otherwise- of his premise that global warming is causing more mosquitoes to be hatched.

The Sales, Doers and Ashtons of the world will have you believe that implementing Kyoto is going to cure all that ails us because popular sentiment suggests if you oppose Kyoto you are aiding and abetting industrial polluters, greenhouse gas emissions, global warming, melting of the polar ice caps, drought, famine, disease and the end of the world as we know it. An Environics poll conducted in September showed that 81% of Canadians favour ratification, but the same poll indicated that nearly 2/3rds of the respondents admit that they have no idea what Kyoto is about.

More interesting though is when respondents were asked to consider the implications of ratifying Kyoto such as reduction in American investment in Canada, support fell to 58%. This is the point that advocates of the Protocol seem to be missing - the more Canadians find out about Kyoto, the less they like it.

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation's annual supporter survey showed that in Manitoba only 27% favour ratification, 29% are against it and 42% are undecided. The high undecided is an indication that too many questions -like costs and implementation strategy- remain unanswered.

Both the federal and provincial government's desire to ram Kyoto through is not only irresponsible but also uninformed. No business in this country would embark on such a huge change to their operation without a business plan so why is it alright for government to do it with our money The money spent on the trek up north to look at polar bears could have been better spent (if at all) on conducting a cost benefit analysis on the ramifications to Manitoba's economy should the Province's Climate Change Action Plan be put in place

Alas the government is once again less concerned with taxpayers money and more interested in a phony public relations exercise to save polar bears or eradicate mosquitoes, neither of which have anything to do with Kyoto.