Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Excellent letter to editor, Vancouver Sun

Bleeding residents dry will destroy the province

Letter To The Editor Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Last week saw another round of price announcements and tax-increasing policy decisions on the part of the provincial government, its monopolies (BC Hydro, ICBC) and its regional creatures (TransLink, Metro Vancouver).

Looming on the horizon is the provincial budget with threatened carbon taxes. All are the utterly predictable results of British Columbia's devotion to big government.

Our Lower Coast chattering classes in politics and the media blather on about the wonderful economy that supports all this nonsense. Since few venture beyond the Lower Mainland or south Vancouver Island, little do they realize the despair of places like Chetwynd, Mackenzie or Fort Nelson. The engine of our economy, forestry, has collapsed, full stop. Forestry revenues can no longer support urban circuses like the Olympics, Vancouver convention centre and expanded public transit in Metro Vancouver.

Government micromanagement, pandering to special interests, failure to control the pine beetle outbreak and our soviet-style forest land tenure system are at the root of this collapse. Provincial hostility has driven away investment to the point we can no longer provide customers with competitive products.

B.C. is in for a rude awakening: This is not going to end well.

F. Patrick Jordan
Tsawwassen

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