PEACHLAND VIEW
4
OCTOBER 14, 2016
OPINION
PEACHLAND
VIEW
QuoteWeek of the
Linda Bolton
Managing Director lbolton@aberdeenpublishing.com
Dan Walton Editor
dwalton@aberdeenpublishing.com
“
No one’s coming (to the farmer’s market) to get hammered off of hard spirits.” -COUN. PAM CUNNINGHAM ON THE ISSUE OF ALLOWING WINE TASTINGS AT THE FARMER’S MARKET
Paul Graydon Advertising Sales sales@peachlandview.com
Peachland Annick Stoltz
Office Administrator admin@peachlandview.com
Calvin
News Hound calvin@peachlandview.com
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Views
email editor@peachlandview.com
Pardon the penny-pinching politicians The City of Penticton needs to come up with $175 million to keep its infrastructure afloat. That’s a lot of money for a community of 30-something thousand to come up with. And council doesn’t have much choice other than to deal with it. But a massive deficit alone isn’t enough to cripple a community. Frugal politicians and taxpayers commonly share the idea that public debt should be avoided at all costs and minimal when necessary, because owing excessive amounts of money will be detrimental to the economy. When I relate that logic to my personal finances, it makes a lot of sense – because when I’m in debt it means I don’t get to enjoy all of my paycheque. And since I’m partially responsible for the government’s debt, I could have more disposable income if they weren’t so wasteful. But I’ve started to wonder how well that logic adds up. It’s easy to make analogies between the accounting practices of an entire society and those of a family household, even though they’re apples and oranges. Unlike regular people, the government doesn’t have to save for its retirement; it doesn’t get obliged to blow $2,000 on its sibling’s wedding; and its long-term prospects aren’t based on the careers of two people. Of course every
government should protect its credit ratings and minimize interest payments, but a government doesn’t face mortality, so they have all the time in the world to balance their spreadsheets. Nobody’s going to remember that British Prime Minister Winston Churchill put his country so deeply in debt that it took 70 years to pay back, he’ll be remembered for stopping two evil empires from taking over the world. US President John F. Kennedy didn’t get a man on the moon by giving NASA some money that was being saved for a rainy day, he made use of every resource possible to let his nuclear rival know that the West was technological superior. Nowadays we don’t seem to face challenges so sensational. The public enemy has evolved from expansionist dictators into aging infrastructure. And as abhorrent as crumbling roads and corroding pipes may be, voters seemed a little more enthusiastic about defeating Hitler and communism. Nonetheless, it was encouraging that last year Canadians elected the guy who promised to borrow $40 billion over four years to invest in infrastructure. Hopefully Penticton can get a decent slice of it, but as Mayor Andrew Jakubeit said last week, municipal governments face a much steeper funding ratio today compared to
10 or 20 years ago. Whether the governments decide the most palatable form of taxation comes from our property levies, incomes or GST – the public sectors are in the best position to take on the biggest projects and ideas, even if it rarely operates as efficiently as possible. Penticton could choose to forgo some of its infrastructure upgrades to ease the burden on taxpayers, but that could ultimately weaken the tax pool if deteriorating infrastructure causes a hindrance in private commerce. Even though our wallets always feel stretched by tax rates, politicians get scrutinized for nearly every spending measure. And when they cut tax rates, nobody spends their extra disposable income repairing public roads and sewers. Whether we have to replace aging infrastructure in Penticton, stop Nazi Germany from taking over the world, beat Soviet Russia to the moon, or maybe borrow money for a new town hall in West Kelowna – people with big ideas need breathing room to fulfill their visions. Even though many politicians give the profession a bad name, the world works much better when we can have faith in them. The government’s the reason we have nice things. Peachland View Editor Dan Walton
Open Letter to parents in the Vancouver school district Dear editor: Dear parents of public school students: I know many of you are concerned about what’s been happening around the Vancouver school board. I am too. We are focused on making sure the VSB delivers a quality learning experience, unaffected by what is underway. Recently, the BC School Superintendents Association informed us of troubling allegations regarding trustees and a workplace that has become toxic for staff who are vital to your board. No parent wants to hear even a hint that something like that could be happening in the place responsible for leading the education of their children. I want to reassure you that those allegations are being taken seriously and the matter has been referred to WorkSafeBC because of its jurisdiction regarding bullying and harassment in the workplace. As well, we will soon be receiving the full report of the special advisor
appointed in July to scrutinize the financial situation and management practices of the Vancouver school board. Here is my commitment to you: we will work to ensure teachers, principals and staff at the Vancouver school board are supported through this period. The Ministry of Education will remain actively engaged on the education situation in Vancouver. We will move carefully and responsibly through this situation. We remain focused on ensuring the needs of our students and their education is at the heart of what happens. Sincerely, Mike Bernier Minister of Education