<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<rss version="2.0"
	xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"
	xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"
	xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
	xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
	xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"
	xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/"
	xmlns:georss="http://www.georss.org/georss" xmlns:geo="http://www.w3.org/2003/01/geo/wgs84_pos#" xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/"
	>

<channel>
	<title>THE INDEPENDENT VIEW</title>
	<atom:link href="http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
	<link>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com</link>
	<description>A blog about politics, economics and other timely topics by Mark Seifred.</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Tue, 08 Mar 2011 17:34:03 +0000</lastBuildDate>
	<language>en</language>
	<sy:updatePeriod>hourly</sy:updatePeriod>
	<sy:updateFrequency>1</sy:updateFrequency>
	<generator>http://wordpress.com/</generator>
<cloud domain='theindependentview.wordpress.com' port='80' path='/?rsscloud=notify' registerProcedure='' protocol='http-post' />
<image>
		<url>http://0.gravatar.com/blavatar/6f19364d9cb032b44581d2965a8463e3?s=96&#038;d=http%3A%2F%2Fs2.wp.com%2Fi%2Fbuttonw-com.png</url>
		<title>THE INDEPENDENT VIEW</title>
		<link>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com</link>
	</image>
	<atom:link rel="search" type="application/opensearchdescription+xml" href="http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/osd.xml" title="THE INDEPENDENT VIEW" />
	<atom:link rel='hub' href='http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/?pushpress=hub'/>
		<item>
		<title>How to Balance the Federal Budget</title>
		<link>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2010/03/04/how-to-balance-the-federal-budget/</link>
		<comments>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2010/03/04/how-to-balance-the-federal-budget/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 04 Mar 2010 21:54:32 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>markseifred</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Canadian politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Economics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Conservative Party of Canada]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[federal budget]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[how to balance the federal budget]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Jean Chretien]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Jim Flaherty]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Liberal Party of Canada]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Paul Martin]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Stephen Harper]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/?p=159</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Canada and many other sovereign governments all around the world currently face a huge dilemma. That is how to best go about balancing the federal government budget, while doing minimal damage to the nascent economic recovery now under way? In Canada, this is a question we dealt with very successfully in the mid 1990s. And now thanks to overspending [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=theindependentview.wordpress.com&amp;blog=10031081&amp;post=159&amp;subd=theindependentview&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2010/03/04/how-to-balance-the-federal-budget/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	
		<media:content url="http://1.gravatar.com/avatar/12a7a2ac13036c890e5e1a6a5174f218?s=96&#38;d=identicon&#38;r=G" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">markseifred</media:title>
		</media:content>

		<media:content url="http://theindependentview.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/cda-surplus_deficit_timeline1.gif?w=475" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">CDA-surplus_deficit_timeline</media:title>
		</media:content>
	</item>
		<item>
		<title>Surprising Facts About the US National Debt</title>
		<link>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2010/01/25/surprising-facts-about-the-us-national-debt/</link>
		<comments>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2010/01/25/surprising-facts-about-the-us-national-debt/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 25 Jan 2010 18:10:46 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>markseifred</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Economics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[US politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Barack Obama]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Democrats]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[George W. Bush]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[independent view]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mark seifred]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Republicans]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ronald reagan]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[US Debt as Percentage of GDP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[US national debt]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/?p=127</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[A recurrent theme in US politics is that Democrats overspend and that Republicans are more careful with the nation's finances. Every time the US has an election, the Republican right tends to call the Democratic left "Tax and Spend Liberals", and make all sorts of charges that the election of Democrats will inevitably doom the country to huge deficits. These charges have been made so many times that most Americans inevitably take this notion as established fact. To verify if the charge is realistic, a close look at the statistics behind the US national debt is most informative.<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=theindependentview.wordpress.com&amp;blog=10031081&amp;post=127&amp;subd=theindependentview&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2010/01/25/surprising-facts-about-the-us-national-debt/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
	
		<media:content url="http://1.gravatar.com/avatar/12a7a2ac13036c890e5e1a6a5174f218?s=96&#38;d=identicon&#38;r=G" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">markseifred</media:title>
		</media:content>
	</item>
		<item>
		<title>Is Iran&#8217;s Time Running Out?</title>
		<link>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2010/01/19/is-irans-time-running-out/</link>
		<comments>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2010/01/19/is-irans-time-running-out/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 19 Jan 2010 22:52:49 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>markseifred</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[International]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Barack Obama]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[International Relations]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Iran]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Iran military attack]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Israel]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mark seifred]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[US military]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[USA]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/?p=114</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The election of Barack Obama gave much encouragement to those who hope for a negotiated settlement with Iran regarding that nation&#8217;s push to develop its nuclear capability. While I never particularly shared that hope, based on my distrust of their leadership, I have watched with interest how the negotiating process has unfolded.  So-called negotiations with the west have been ongoing for many years now. So [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=theindependentview.wordpress.com&amp;blog=10031081&amp;post=114&amp;subd=theindependentview&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2010/01/19/is-irans-time-running-out/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	
		<media:content url="http://1.gravatar.com/avatar/12a7a2ac13036c890e5e1a6a5174f218?s=96&#38;d=identicon&#38;r=G" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">markseifred</media:title>
		</media:content>
	</item>
		<item>
		<title>The Liberal Party&#8217;s Lost Leadership</title>
		<link>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2009/11/27/the-liberal-partys-lost-leadership/</link>
		<comments>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2009/11/27/the-liberal-partys-lost-leadership/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 28 Nov 2009 01:37:49 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>markseifred</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Canadian politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Iggy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[independent view]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Jean Chretien]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Liberal Party of Canada]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mark seifred]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Michael Ignatieff]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Paul Martin]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Stephane Dion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Stephen Harper]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[the independent view]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/?p=93</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[It is with some concern and a morbid curiosity that I view the decomposing carcass and slow motion train wreck of what was once a major political force in this country. I am referring of course to the Liberal Party of Canada under its' last few leaders, most notably Stephane Dion, and now under current leader Michael Ignatieff. Referencing the title of this blog, The Independent View, I am often asked what that refers to, and why I claim to be an independent. What I mean by Independent is that I have no firm party affiliation. I sometimes vote Liberal and sometimes Conservative. I will admit that the NDP holds no allure for me as I find their far left positions to be more useful to a party in perpetual opposition than to a party facing the harsh realities of government.<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=theindependentview.wordpress.com&amp;blog=10031081&amp;post=93&amp;subd=theindependentview&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2009/11/27/the-liberal-partys-lost-leadership/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	
		<media:content url="http://1.gravatar.com/avatar/12a7a2ac13036c890e5e1a6a5174f218?s=96&#38;d=identicon&#38;r=G" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">markseifred</media:title>
		</media:content>
	</item>
		<item>
		<title>Why Protectionism is a Bad Idea</title>
		<link>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2009/11/17/why-protectionism-is-a-bad-idea/</link>
		<comments>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2009/11/17/why-protectionism-is-a-bad-idea/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 17 Nov 2009 21:42:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>markseifred</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Economics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Canada]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[foreign trade]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[global trade]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[globalization]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[independent view]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mark seifred]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[North America]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[protectionism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[the independent view]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[trade wars]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/?p=44</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[A friend of mine recently sent me an email saying something about how he went to a certain big box hardware store and found that many of the products were made in China, Mexico, India, Pakistan and other countries, and then went to another hardware store and found more North American products there. There were [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=theindependentview.wordpress.com&amp;blog=10031081&amp;post=44&amp;subd=theindependentview&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2009/11/17/why-protectionism-is-a-bad-idea/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	
		<media:content url="http://1.gravatar.com/avatar/12a7a2ac13036c890e5e1a6a5174f218?s=96&#38;d=identicon&#38;r=G" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">markseifred</media:title>
		</media:content>
	</item>
		<item>
		<title>What Obama Could Learn from George W. Bush</title>
		<link>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2009/11/17/what-barack-obama-could-learn-from-gw-bush/</link>
		<comments>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2009/11/17/what-barack-obama-could-learn-from-gw-bush/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 17 Nov 2009 19:56:51 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>markseifred</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[US politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Barack Obama]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fox News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[George W. Bush]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[health care reform]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[independent view]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mark seifred]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[the independent view]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/?p=8</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Let me begin by saying that I like Barack Obama. While I am unlikely to agree with every decision he makes, he appears likeable and intellectually engaged. He represents a welcome change from his predecessor George W. Bush, whose intellectual processes often appeared somewhat less than rigorous, who often seemed to thumb his nose at [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=theindependentview.wordpress.com&amp;blog=10031081&amp;post=8&amp;subd=theindependentview&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2009/11/17/what-barack-obama-could-learn-from-gw-bush/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	
		<media:content url="http://1.gravatar.com/avatar/12a7a2ac13036c890e5e1a6a5174f218?s=96&#38;d=identicon&#38;r=G" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">markseifred</media:title>
		</media:content>
	</item>
		<item>
		<title>This is Not Your Father’s Republican Party</title>
		<link>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2009/11/06/this-is-not-your-father%e2%80%99s-republican-party/</link>
		<comments>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2009/11/06/this-is-not-your-father%e2%80%99s-republican-party/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 07 Nov 2009 05:26:53 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>markseifred</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[US politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Barack Obama]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fox News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[glenn beck]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[health care reform]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[independent view]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mark seifred]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[republican party]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[rush limbaugh]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Sarah Palin]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[the independent view]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/?p=25</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In the United States, the conservative position is generally represented by the Republican Party. The Republicans over the years have had a number of great leaders: Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Ike Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan just to name a few. They have also had their share of intellectual heavyweights. One of my favorite Republican minds of the last 30 years or so was William F. Buckley. Buckley was supremely intelligent and could debate virtually any issue with anybody. He would never resort to low blows or name calling to make a good point. He had a very humorous dry wit about him.
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=theindependentview.wordpress.com&amp;blog=10031081&amp;post=25&amp;subd=theindependentview&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://theindependentview.wordpress.com/2009/11/06/this-is-not-your-father%e2%80%99s-republican-party/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	
		<media:content url="http://1.gravatar.com/avatar/12a7a2ac13036c890e5e1a6a5174f218?s=96&#38;d=identicon&#38;r=G" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">markseifred</media:title>
		</media:content>
	</item>
	</channel>
</rss>
