THE VIEW FROM OUT AROUND: THE CONCEPTION CONUNDRUM

I have talked about this silly $1000 baby bonus promise made by the William's Progressive Conservatives during the last election before. When you factor in the cost associated with raising children, the $1000 bonus is not much of an incentive.

That said, it is a step in the right direction if it is part of an overall commitment to lessen the burden on parents when it comes to educating, clothing, feeding and covering the costs of participation in sports and art programs.

The problem with the program is that some people just could not wait to start procreating in the hopes of earning that $1000. It would seem that as soon as the commitment was made, some folks started qualifying for the cash. It turns out that the measure will not be effective until after this spring's budget.

A world gone mad
The Charter

The early birds, it seems, won’t get the worm from the provincial government’s baby bonus and a few mothers on the Burin Peninsula are not taking it lying down.

A new mom went public on VOCM’s Backtalk after she was told by her MHA’s office that her baby born last fall won’t net her the election-promised $1,000 for her contribution to the population growth.

Though the rules are not clear, it seems prospective mothers will have to wait to get the nod from Danny before they know they were impregnated or gave birth at the eligible time. It’s funny (almost) as it seems one woman was told in order to be eligible she had to become pregnant after March 31—now in all reality, who can tell the date of conception with absolute certainty? What if it was one minute before midnight, who can argue such intimate details successfully?