Wham!

I really have to laugh at the sheer naivety of Jim Flaherty and his government.

Two years ago, they arrive at the head of the country in the middle of an economic boom and are annoyed to discover that the government is running large surpluses. So, masterful financial managers, they come in with two successive years of candy budgets and largely eliminate the surplus, leaving only a slight cushion of a few billion dollars.

This all looks fine in good times, but now, suddenly, things have gotten tricker. The economy is slowing down fast and may actually end up in recession. So obviously the government's revenue is declining, which, considering the size of the budget cushion, isn't good news.

Flaherty obviously didn't understand that in times of economic boom, large surpluses are normal and make it easier to deal with the inevitable downturns. Now, he's facing declining revenues and has already spent all his cards.