Deficit Spending

The topic of deficit spending is again on the rise in Canada. The big question is should Canada abandon it's years of fiscal responsibility to help alleviate the suffering of a growing economic downturn? Is it even possible to remain balanced without severely hindering services even possible is probably the second question on most people's mind.
Deficit spending is probably necessary in 2009. Canadians should not just accept this as a necessary evil but understand it is an important tool. During the prosperous (almost) decade that came to an end sometime around June of this year we were able to run a balanced budget and help shrink the national debt. But, conversely, it should be understood that during economic downturns it is not being irresponsible to push the the federal books into the red. This is how we maintain a similar level of services, like education and health care, throughout the boom and bust of the business cycle.
The important factor in fiscal responsibility is to be sure to place the budget squarely in the black when the economy recovers. It would be easy two or three years down the road to continue running a deficit, even though it is not necessary, but that would be foolish. Reducing public debt helps trim excess from the budget in the form of all the fees associated with servicing the debt.
With the price of oil the lowest it has been in years foreign investment into the oil sands, a large but expensive oil source, has been stifled. Because of this Canada's economy is poised to fall more now than when the economic woes were more focused on the banking system. Canada staved off a lot of the problems with the banking crisis because the regulations in Canada are better designed than in America. This regulation meant that Canadian banks were less affected by the toxic debt. Now that oil has dropped in value, Canada's exports will start to drop significantly.
Now is a good time for the Canadian government to start spending. We cannot restrict the governments actions to what it can do with a balanced budget. Tax revenue, and especially oil royalties, are poised to drop substantially so a balanced budget would mean less spending next year than this year which would not help any one.