Submitted by Mister Tee on Wed, 02/06/2008 - 6:43pm.
Sam,
I listened to your comments on OPB on the drive home.
You referenced Big Oil in those comments? Big oil who? A bunch of convenience store owners and retail gas stations hardly constitutes "Big Oil". I'm certainly not a "Big Oil" fan, but I'm glad the OPA was advocating against this tax. New and exciting ways to increase our taxes should be a last resort: we're not City Hall's ATM machine.
It takes big brass ones to suggest (the above thread begins with "at my request") that you support referring this new tax to a public vote. If you behave like a populist demagogue, you are unlikely to become our next Mayor. Even if the tax is approved by a public vote, you harm your chances of running for higher office if you treat the taxpayer like an adversary, rather than your constituents.
I appreciate your energy and enthusiasm, but the big budget capital projects (rail, couplets, Tram) and PDC scams have siphoned off HUGE amounts of money and staff resource allocation. If you really cared about our existing infrastructure, I don't think it would have reached the level of disrepair that is now revealing itself.
Maintenance of our existing physical plant and infrastructure needs to be a higher priority with, or without, new taxes.
More leadership, less populism.
Sam,
I listened to your comments on OPB on the drive home.
You referenced Big Oil in those comments? Big oil who? A bunch of convenience store owners and retail gas stations hardly constitutes "Big Oil". I'm certainly not a "Big Oil" fan, but I'm glad the OPA was advocating against this tax. New and exciting ways to increase our taxes should be a last resort: we're not City Hall's ATM machine.
It takes big brass ones to suggest (the above thread begins with "at my request") that you support referring this new tax to a public vote. If you behave like a populist demagogue, you are unlikely to become our next Mayor. Even if the tax is approved by a public vote, you harm your chances of running for higher office if you treat the taxpayer like an adversary, rather than your constituents.
I appreciate your energy and enthusiasm, but the big budget capital projects (rail, couplets, Tram) and PDC scams have siphoned off HUGE amounts of money and staff resource allocation. If you really cared about our existing infrastructure, I don't think it would have reached the level of disrepair that is now revealing itself.
Maintenance of our existing physical plant and infrastructure needs to be a higher priority with, or without, new taxes.