The original plan was almost certainly to implement the cuts quickly and deeply -- early on in a majority government whenever Harper was able to achieve it. But every engineering project runs into problems and Harper has two. The first is a result of his decision to stay in power as long as possible and to take the long view of implementing his agenda. The result of this choice (a scorched earth policy of massive changes over four years was his other option) is that Harper actually has to govern the country in such a way that he is able to stay in power long enough to accomplish his goals.

His master plan did not include the worst crisis in capitalism in 80 years. This crisis is no ordinary problem as it goes to the core of what Harper believes in. If you are going to dismantle the state and hand over most of its current operations and responsibilities to the private sector you had better be sure the private sector isn't a corrupt, ideologically-addled, basket case. Suddenly, the state Harper loves to hate is absolutely critical to saving capitalism -- just as it was following the last big crisis in the 1930s.

In short, Harper's contempt for democratic governance and the activist state is running up against a capitalist reality that can't be ignored. If he proceeds with huge cuts to federal spending, Harper risks driving the economy into a long and severe recession, something that would endanger his chances of re-election. After all, the core of Harper's carefully crafted image is his role as a competent economic manager.

Who will take out their cheque books?

Harper's other problem is his naïve assumption that his tax incentives will have any appreciable impact on corporate giving (or enough individual giving) to actually create the conditions for an American-style voluntarism capable of taking over the social role of government. The Big Society scam being implemented by Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron has been widely ridiculed, with 60 per cent of Britons believing it is just a cover for government cutbacks.

Harper is so contemptuous of advice from others -- and of actual scientific evidence -- that his ideology and objectives easily get disconnected from reality. Business and the wealthy elite in Canada have never had a genuine commitment to the country. There are no Warren Buffetts in Canada. The corporate sector has for decades preferred to get its snout ever deeper in the public trough rather than be innovate or take risks. The likelihood that it will respond to this initiative is close to zero. Indeed, at virtually the same time that the government was announcing its new plan, an analysis of corporate giving revealed one, that it going down and two, that it was being tied more and more to the narrow interests of companies’ bottom lines. These are companies, by the way, that are sitting on some $450 billion of idle cash. If they won't give now, when will they?

I predict that Harper will be doubly betrayed by his cherished private sector. Corporations and rich Canadians will ignore his initiative. And the capitalist system itself appears ever more headed for catastrophe.