Within the banking sector, “finance” is the practice of lending large amounts of money to anyone willing to pay the interest charges–unless they are Canadian citizens and small business owners. For governments, “finance” means squeezing taxpayers, selling our grandchildren’s birthright, or borrowing to maintain a minimum level of security for citizens who don’t need it. New Conservatives would like financial dithering to replace everything else we’re interested in as the official culture of Canada. Finance is not to be confused with meaningful commercial activities, which involve capital investment on physical machinery, and hiring workers.