GIVING 'TIL IT HURTS REAL BAD!

Once upon a time, when Maclean’s was a must-read for curious Canadians and fans of Allan Fotheringham, editors of that mind-provoking magazine conducted a fascinating study.
They invited 12 “average” taxpayers from all corners of this diverse country to their Toronto digs to play finance minister for a weekend.
Faster than you can say “Kayne West, jerk of the year,” these budget-minded peeps turned nasty after colleagues criticized their spending priorities or spending cuts.
One person, who didn’t have kids, recommended cuts to an education system he didn’t use. A fit female suggested cuts to health care and more incentives to stay in shape, while another aimed to pare down Canada’s military and law enforcement agencies. It didn’t take long before this group acted like tennis hotheads John McEnroe and Serena Williams at their ballistic best.
It also emphasized what we already knew – money can’t buy happiness, but then neither can no money!
Your scribe was raised in one of those “average income” households where mom mastered the art of stretching a dollar, albeit as the cost of living increased we often contemplated going to KFC to lick the other kids’ fingers.
Always thought mom would make a good finance minister, but then if she was in charge of the public purse we wouldn’t have a $2 million score clock at the Entertainment and Sports Centre, our premier wouldn’t be handing out medals to construction workers and our federal “leaders” wouldn’t be spending millions on attack ads.
You see, when our “contingency fund” ran out at home, she invented every meal you could make with Kraft Dinner and wieners.
Perhaps it’s that “average” upbringing which clouds my view of today’s spend-happy politicos. Especially considering they are spending our money.
Take the Olympics. This 2010 hype machine was supposed to generate a new breed of sports-minded youth to keep them busy and out of gangs. So, after emptying the financial cupboards to host the five-ring circus, we are now cutting sports funding and increasing user-fees for recreational facilities. That sure worked out well, didn’t it?
This was supposed to be a cash cow for the Best Place on Earth. This glorified fundraiser for the IOC was supposed to fill our coffers and make Alberta kiss our rich wallets. So what happened? Do you believe?
It’s strange how in good times our “leaders” didn’t plan too far ahead or put money away for the tougher times. Politicians at all levels were quick to take all the credit (and pay increases) for the boom, but now, of course, it’s not their fault we’re all broke. Praying for gaming revenue to right the ship is now the hope du jour.
I find it disturbing that we’re being told the HST, a local gas tax, another TransLink tax and cuts to health care, education and sports groups are “really good for us” and signs of “responsible leadership.” Who writes this claptrap? And who believes it?
Closer to home, if our civic “leaders” really didn’t anticipate having to spend many millions more to accommodate the AHL, someone should be fired for not doing due diligence. But I believe they knew the extra costs and figured you’d just pay and pay. And you will.
TransLink now wants more money because after paying themselves well to meet behind closed doors they don’t have enough to operate the system. Heck, there are just as many taxpayer muggings as SkyTrain incidents with this group.
As comedian Russell Peters says: “If this keeps up somebody is going to get spanked real bad!”
Let’s hope so. Mom is getting ornery!