In the middle of December it is not surprising to hear that many people have their minds on their money and their money on their minds.
The thing that may surprise you is why this is happening this year.
The Christmas season is not an easy one, especially for families who are suffering in these tough economic times.
Luckily there are local groups out there, from the food bank to the Adopt a Family program, which gives us all the chance to help out and truly make someone’s Dec. 25 that much more special. After talking to locals who ski, the debate about not having a shuttle bus that goes from town up to the ski resort is starting to pick up.
At the end of the day, money is in the middle of this discussion. As the resort looks for partners to run a shuttle, some people are angry because they do not see how a resort can run without the bus that helps people get up and down from the resort.
On the other side of that coin, from the town’s perspective, the discussion has to include the cutting of the community bus earlier this year. How would it look if the town representatives take money and invest it into a system for the resort after saying their own system was not deemed viable?
Other potential partners are also holding back at the present time, and it is tough to blame them with money being as tight as it is.
Local businesses have to be looking towards the start of a new year with hope, but also with the annoyance of switching back to the old Provincial Sales Tax (PST) system.
The people got their way and fought a tax system that they didn’t like, but now through time and effort businesses are once again going to have to bear the brunt of this decision.
Thinking back on all the cash that went into the first change, to go back has to be frustrating to businesses who have been struggling over the past few years.
And perhaps the most expensive part of next year for all of the citizens in British Columbia will be the upcoming provincial election because, whether you like it or not, your tax dollars will be picking up the cost for the NDP, Liberals and others to spend over a month on the campaign trail. In 2005 only 58 per cent of potential voters turned out to cast a ballot and amazingly enough a mere 50 per cent came out in 2009.
It is a shame that more people do not get out to have a say in who will run the province. It is embarrassing to think that only half of the people in a province think it is important to take part in their democratic right.
Of course this leads back to the start of this article. Money, in the end, can influence many choices. Most people have an idea on how they think their cash should be spent, but fewer and fewer seem to want to take the time to get out and have their voices heard.
So in this Christmas season remember to do what you can to brighten a little piece of the world we are in, and think about how much money is going to be tossed around next year for “your” benefit.
