20 Comments
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Anonymous Mongoose's avatar

Maybe, just maybe Ford being a doodoo head will precipitate the well-deserved death of the LCBO, this monopolistic monstrosity that charges more because it can.

It’s almost as bad as the mobility and milk cartels and has no place in the 21st century.

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Milo Hrnić's avatar

It's so weird that Ontario even still has a liquor retail monopoly that is run by civil servants.

Why? Surely the private sector can perform this service much more efficiently and/or cheaper, therefore ultimately bringing in more net tax revenue.

Most of the rest of the world including provinces such as Alberta and Saskatchewan do not see this as so important of a business it can only be performed by the government.

Perhaps Ford would be more pro business if he trusted business to do what business does best and got out of its way? But then we wouldn't earn our well deserved reputation of being overly bureaucratic and risk adverse.

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Anonymous Mongoose's avatar

Bu you see, the LCBO knows best what people want and they "curate" what they sell for your benefit.

Meanwhile, you can hop across the border and buy the same poison for a third of the price...

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PETER AIELLO's avatar

There is so much more to Canada than just listing the woes of Ontario or the GTO.

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Matt Gurney's avatar

Which is why recent Line articles have focused on Alberta, B.C. and Saskatchewan, plus national and global issues.

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Bud Sabiston's avatar

Exactly. Just more from the complicit, the vengeful rhetoric of ‘who would thought…’ ignoring the wonders of a nation of nations.

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Robert Poirier's avatar

Crown Royal is also distilled in Manitoba. Mr. Ford, please keep an eye on the elimination of inter-provincial trade barriers.

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Anne Dunlop's avatar

Ford might well remember that Crown Royal is made in Gimli, Manitoba, Canada.

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JOEL SCH's avatar

Conveniently ignored by Doug, and other's in government is their part in making these plants uncompetitive with the yanks.

It SHOUDN'T be cheaper to ship the heavy, liquid product to a plant in the US to be bottled, in particular a product made with 100% Canadian ingredients.

In the Financial Post there is an article about a critical minerals company (https://financialpost.com/commodities/canadas-hydrograph-move-to-texas?itm_source=commodities) leaving Vancouver to set up its head office in Texas, for a more "business friendly" environment. When will the animated lightbulb go on above Doug and Mark's head that business friendly is NOT an insult?

Ford's dumping the booze stunt was, intentionally or not a distraction from the real competitive issues that industry and business in general face in Canada. For all of Carney and Ford's words I don't see any provincial trade barriers tumbling, not any reduction in regulation or burdensome taxation. Lots of hot air, but no rising balloon.

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Milo Hrnić's avatar

I think the idea is to ship the actual liquor in bulk and then bottle and bag the whiskey closer to the markets. Shipping heavy and fragile glass bottles is very expensive.

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Dennis Ouellette's avatar

Crown Royal is the number one selling whiskey in the USA. Fireball, another Canadian product is the number 2. And Jameson's Irish is the number 3 whiskey sold in the USA with Jack Daniels coming in at number 4. So, it makes all the sense in the world for the plant to move to the USA.

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John's avatar

Jingo Ford took forever to pour out the Crown Royal because none of his hugely paid advisers and event planners thought to remove the flow restrictor that is a feature of most popular liquor brands. Too used to pouring in glasses I guess😆

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Greg Elliott's avatar

Repugnant headline. Does Mr Stinson consider this issue some kind of a joke?

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Marcel's avatar

Well, most of the country considers Mr. Ford to be a joke, so close enough?

Seriously though, if you're somehow offended by that headline, you really need to touch grass and reevaluate some things about your life and mindset.

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Greg Elliott's avatar

Agree on Ford being a joke. A really bad joke

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Anonymous Mongoose's avatar

What is repugnant about it?

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Greg Elliott's avatar

Because it's serious issue, frivolous reference to wine diminishes it

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Anonymous Mongoose's avatar

So humorous takes should be avoided because it's a serious issue?

You can't be serious...

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Greg Elliott's avatar

Yes, it degrades it. Not sure 3,000 Stellantus workers in Brampton would enjoy the double entendre.

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Andy Bruinewoud's avatar

And also like Trump, Ford always chickens out.

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