The recent decision by a U.S. judge to allow the City of Detroit to potentially shed billions in debt is raising concern among some for a Canadian city.
最近美国联邦法的裁定,将使得底特律摆脱数十亿美元的债务,这引起了很多加拿大城市的关注
Some fear that Detroit's financial situation, which is the largest public bankruptcy in U.S. history, may be replicated in Calgary as the cities share similarities including reliance on a few key major industries and heavy investment in infrastructure.
有些人为底特律的财务问题担心,这是全美历史上最大的公共破产,同样的情况可能重复发生在卡尔加里,和底特律的问题相似,严重依赖少数关键产业和大量投资基础设施
Detroit was the once-mighty symbol of the United State's manufacturing strength but faced a long, slow decline in population and auto manufacturing.
底特律是美国制造业昌盛的往日代表,但是现在却面临的人口和汽车制造业的长期慢性衰退。
High demands for Detroit-made industrial products, mainly automobile production starting in the 1950s, lead to rapid economic growth and a large tax base, reports Joseph Arvai for The Global and Mail.
对底特律制造的工业产品的需求,开始于1950年代的汽车制造,带动了经济快速增长和课税基础。
The tax base was used to justify huge investments in infrastructure, which dwindled as residents started to move away, and key industry players moved away as competition rose and they found cheaper, more innovative alternatives.
课税基础,用来刺激大型资金投往基础建设,也随着人口搬离而减少,支柱企业,由于竞争的加剧,会寻找更便宜更有创新精神的替代地。
"Just like in Detroit, much of Calgary’s current growth is built on an industrial base that is at the mercy of fickle consumers, and is increasingly under siege from competitors," says Arvai.
“和底特律的情况非常相似,卡尔加里经济增长所依靠的工业,受到消费者取向的影响,而且和竞争者的交锋不断加剧”
"Even if industry’s and government’s much-hyped pipelines are built, it’s only a matter of time before alternatives to energy from Alberta dominate the global marketplace," he adds.
“就算工业界和政府对石油管道的修建大肆炒作,只不过关系到何时轮到是阿尔伯特省的能源来统治世界市场”
Cities can take on large debts for infrastructure projects, but provinces enforce strict rules on how much debt can be inccured, CBC News reports.
城市会因为基础设施建设背负巨额债务,不过省内已经设置严格的条例限制上线,CBS新闻说。
"If they get into trouble — even with those rules — then the province would step in with a supervisor to help them," said Enid Slack, director of the Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance at the University of Toronto, earlier this year when Detroit first declared bankruptcy.
“如果他们陷入麻烦,即使有这些法规,省里也会介入监管帮助他们”,Enid Slack在今年早些时候底特律宣布破产的时候说,他是多伦多大学市财政与管理学院的主任。
Many took to social media to share their thoughts if bankruptcy was in Calgary's future.
很多人通过社交媒体分享自己的想法,卡尔加里未来会不会破产。
"Calgary is not Detroit & Canada is not the USA," said one user on Twitter, adding that the cities had many structural differences and that the article was flawed.
“卡尔加里不是底特律,加拿大也不是美国”,有人在推特上说,同时还补充,两座城市有结构性的不同,那篇文章看起来没有破绽。
"Could this really happen to Calgary? Yes, it absolutely could. We're a one-horse town," said another.
“这种事情会发生在卡尔加里么?是的,完全可能,我们只是个偏僻的小镇”另外有人说
Sun News television personality Ezra Levant took offense to the article, calling the author a, "Total kook. Embarrassment to the University of Calgary. Self-hating westerner," on Twitter.
太阳新闻电视台的Ezra Levant对文章感到动怒,在推特上对作者说“纯粹的疯子,卡尔加里大学的耻辱,自我厌恶的西方人”
Detroit's bankruptcy also means that the city will negotiate with its creditors, including retirees who are owed pensions, bondholders, insurers and other vendors.
底特律的破产意味着,这座城市将和它的债主进行谈判,债主包括退休员工,债券持有者,承包人和其他售主。
Judge Steven Rhodes turned down objections in his ruling from unions, pension funds and retirees, which, like other creditors, could lose under any plan to solve $18 billion in long-term liabilities.
联邦法官史蒂夫洛兹驳回了工会,退休基金,退休员工对裁定的反对,和所有债权人一样,无论实施任何计划都将损失180亿美元