Dear Editor
Enough is enough. When our school system, health-care system, etc. need additional funds, not only does the provincial government reluctantly give them any, they usually end up cutting their funding or, in the case of the recent budget with health care, actually boast that they gave half what other provinces gave those necessary services.
We've all seen those same politicians currently lined up at the trough eagerly waiting to take even more money out of your pocket in the upcoming PST plebisite, and I say we "educate" them with a taste of their own "medicine" (puns intended). Not only should we say No to an increase in provincial sales tax, I say we should be demanding a one per cent decrease and make them find the money elsewhere by improving efficiency, cutting obscene wages for their CEOs and maybe, just maybe, not cut taxes for two per cent of the wealthiest people in the province and instead raise their taxes. None of those options seem to have been considered. I believe taxpayers need answers as to how we suddenly got into this catastrophic transit mess. These provincial leaders and high-priced CEOs appear to have been asleep at the wheel when studying trends and making decisions on our future transit needs. Instead they tend to focus on their future salary and pension increases.
With all the other taxes by another name we have imposed on us - e.g. levies, tolls, gas taxes, transfer fees, eco fees, health-care premiums, ad infinitum - we are already far too highly taxed. Instead of conceeding billions of dollars to the LNG industry and building dams when alternate sustainable energy sources are available, we could actually have our transit, health-care and school systems funded appropriately, after all, it is our money they are spending and many would say unwisely.
So why encourage them by giving them even more of our hard-earned money?
Gavin Wishart, New Westminster
