Dear Editor,
A curmudgeon and I enjoyed coffee and conversation today. While we are both opinionated, we agreed that we can have different opinions without the need for weaponry. We agreed that dialogue involves the sharing of ideas, and where these ideas differ, lies the challenge of debate. He鈥檚 a pretty good guy, and willing to listen as well as share his rationale for a particular belief. He is even open to being enlightened by new information.
He brought up the idea that urban and rural homeowners are taxed unequally, and he felt it was an unfair benefit to the rural dwellers. I don鈥檛 know if he is correct, but I allowed the statement to stand unchallenged. What I did point out is that rural property owners don鈥檛 benefit from shared services the way city people do. They are most likely to have a septic system instead of a city sewer. They may be on a well. They don鈥檛 get garbage pick up.
This lead to further discussion about the value our tax dollars have. I think we get excellent value for the small amount we pay annually. I like the parks, the library, the fitness centre. We benefit from close proximity to the fire station. He was surprised at how little my tax bill is, but then he remembered that I live in a condo, and he lives in a single family home. He started to feel sorry for me, because I have strata fees. Strata fees can also be considered a form of taxation.
He buys a lawnmower, mows the lawn and waters the garden. The cost of painting his house, buying a new furnace and water heater, and having the roof replaced are in addition to his heating costs and much higher tax bill. While he has these costs and chores, I write the monthly cheque and benefit from sharing the costs of these services with my neighbours, plus I get to play my guitar while he has chores.
We might actually all benefit from higher taxation, if the money was used for housing the homeless, treating the drug addicted and mentally ill, ending child poverty, improving our health-care system, and honouring our treaty obligations. Many object loudly to tax increases. There are costs involved in living in society. We can share the costs, and benefit from the services, or turn our backs and watch the ensuing chaos.
Richard Penner, 91原创 City
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