Editor: It never ceases to amaze me that people demand more of government in terms of what the government should do, but at the same time, they protest any increase in taxes.
I know that there are inequities in the way taxes are assessed and used, and those are issues that need to be addressed, but surely we know that the money the government has to use primarily comes from taxes of one kind or another.
Years ago, there was a presentation using the set of The Pyramid Game. Each small triangle in the larger triangle represented things people wanted, e.g. social services, housing, infrastructure, health care, education, and so on. As they turned the smaller triangles, explaining what each entailed, they said, “The government is us” meaning that it is the people’s money that will pay for these things in one form or another.
May we keep that in mind as we make demands on the government and may the leaders keep it in mind as they promise benefits without increases in taxes. Just a thought.
- J. Moriyama
Chatham-Kent
