Dear Editor:
I understand that we are paying for a trip to New York (area) for various New Westminster "officials." According to media reports, the committee will be heading there to get information about handling a disaster like superstorm Sandy.
It was clear to me that all the info could be attained from sources such as the internet, as many items were detailed and those details did not come from a visit, so what's the point of a visit?
I am completely against such trips as a waste of money. I suspect someone will say, "It's not much money." And that attitude is prevalent in government and is why my taxes keep going up. If the trip costs less than $20,000 it would amaze me. Even if we paid a consultant (not another one!) $200 per hour, they'd have 100 hours to produce a huge report that can sit on the shelf and be obsolete before the next election.
This trip should be cancelled. Want the info? Ever hear of Google? It's a neat internet service that lets you search for such information for free (a dirty word at city hall I'm sure).
If the trip goes ahead (inevitable I am afraid), I look forward to the public report detailing what was learned and the total costs being shared to understand if I got good value for my tax dollars.
I doubt good value is to be had.
Rick Miller, New Westminster
