$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$     Total Islands Trust Budget 

 $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$         42 %  paid by Salt Spring Island taxpayers. 

 

Let's repair the damage then preserve, protect  and take care of our own (Salt Spring) Island.  

 

Protesting Too Loudly?

 

Regarding George Ehring’s response to Norbert Schlenker’s accusation (at the Nov. 1 All Candidates meeting), that the OCP Focus Groups were "stacked with political supporters" of Ehring and Lamb, please Mr. Ehring, spare us your self-righteous indignation. I fear thou doth protest too loudly.

 

As is well known, Ehring is a longtime NDP insider, and, has written stinging articles in the past lashing BC Liberals. In one 2002 article, in "Our Times," a Canadian labour magazine, entitled “Is there a school for liars?”( http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa5404/is_/ai_n21324050)  Ehring wondered aloud:

 

 “Where do politicians learn to be such adept liars? In an excellent book about democracy called Who Will Tell the People?, author William Greider makes this observation: ‘Politicians are held in contempt by the public. That is well known and not exactly new....What is less well understood (and rarely talked about for the obvious reasons) is the deep contempt politicians have for the general public.’ I have been thinking of this, watching British Columbia's astounding Liberals, whose contempt for the people is breathtaking, and whose willingness to lie to us utterly shameless. And so, I have been wondering: Where do these politicians learn to be such accomplished and bald liars? Is there a school where politicians go to learn to lie? Are there seminars? Is there an army of skilled facilitators, teaching them to smile right into the camera and lie through their teeth? I want to know.”

 

Well I personally want to know if Ehring found, attended, and successfully graduated from that particular school.

 

Please, take a breath and imagine now, Ehring’s reaction to the following scenario:  

The BC Liberals announce the establishment of 9  provincial task forces to look at housing, the economy, the environment, tourism, energy, ferries, population, water and agriculture, and then they appoint 2/3 of the positions on those task forces with (according to a published list) Liberal supporters.

 

Given the slant of his written opinion piece, does anyone really believe Ehring wouldn’t be screaming blue bloody murder, and leveling charges of bias at the Liberals? And, it’s not hard to imaging Carole James’ blood pressure going through the roof as she made her condemnation of those Liberal appointments to the media.

 

And yet, when Schlenker makes a similar observation about local politics (“Every focus group was stacked with political supporters of our trustees with a few token opponents thrown in for balance.”) , providing written documentation to support his view,  by Ehring's reaction one would think Schlenker had just accused him of kicking small animals and/or abusing sheep.

 

Ladies and gentlemen. When you run for political office, you should be prepared to take responsibility for your decisions. When Kimberly Linegar and I selected the members of the Vacation Rental task force, we were careful to appoint a wide selection of people on both sides of the issue, because we felt it was important to hear both sides. Our appointments included Ehring, on the extreme anti-vacation rental side, who had approached me the day before I was elected and told me he couldn’t vote for me because I told him I was prepared to consider Vacation Rentals, and thought there could be a satisfactory, middle of the road solution found.

 

So, enough of the indignation Mr. Ehring. You appointed who you wanted (which was your right as a Trustee), but please don’t condemn someone for bringing into question either who you appointed, and/or why you appointed them in particular. Given your record, and a similar set of circumstances, you would likely have made exactly the same kind of accusation.

Will the Trust Be Destroyed?

 

George Ehring, Christine Torgrimson and Gary Holman have all rolled out the "Islands Trust will be destroyed if Salt Spring incorporates" myth over the past couple of weeks trying once again to scare voters. They have repeatedly said the Trust will be weakened if Salt Spring incorporates.

 

A year ago I wrote the following article in the Driftwood, to which no one, including George or Gary, responded to:

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It would take a few full articles in the Driftwood to systematically rip apart all of George Ehring's rather smug/snide/snarky salvo against the members of Islanders for Self Government, and his views on the havoc the possible incorporation of Salt Spring would wreak, so, in this column I will take on just one issue he has raised, and leave the rest for later, or to others.

 

Over and over again, like an old, scratched, 78 rpm record, I have heard those who are opposed to the incorporation of Salt Spring parrot the now famous local myth – "If Salt Spring incorporates, the Islands Trust will be destroyed!"  This Chicken Little, "the sky is falling," tale appears to have become the last vestige of warped reasoning as to why Salt Spring should NOT incorporate.

 

George once again supported the myth, with his rather off hand comments last week, when he suggested it is only common sense if 40% of the Trust budget was taken away (by the incorporation of Salt Spring) the Islands Trust would likely be destroyed.

 

However, just like any other good and believable propaganda which is intended to strike fear into the hearts of well meaning citizens and thereby control the uninformed masses, no one has ever really questioned, or explained, exactly how this threatened, and terribly awful, destruction would actually occur.

 

The following is the simple math (in five short paragraphs), and the rationale, to once and for all, clearly expose this myth for what it is...a bold faced lie.

 

When Salt Spring incorporates, the Islands Trust planning staff, and office overhead, for Salt Spring, will no longer be needed - anywhere within the Trust area – no transfer of staff, just the shut down of the Salt Spring operation. According to the latest Trust accounting, that would result in a reduction in Islands Trust expenses in about the $600,000 range. So, remove that from the current trust budget of about $5 million = $4.4 million. 

 

Salt Spring will continue to pay about $300,000 for what is known as Trust Area Services, so, take another $300,000 out of the balance = $4.1 million.

 

Currently the other islands pay about $3 million of the budget, so, take away those current contributions and we are now left with $1.1 million, which is the amount of “shortfall” which will have to be made up by the other islands, and not so coincidently, represents the subsidy to other islanders Salt Spring taxpayers have been paying, year after year – now literally in the millions of dollars!

 

So, a $1.1 million tax increase* (see comment below), distributed evenly amongst the other islands amounts to a per person tax increase of about $70  (Total population of Trust Area - 25,366 – 9,780 (Salt Spring) = 15,586 people. $1.1m divided by 15,586 people = $70+).

 

Now, using the same figures, and considering that Salt Spring Islanders have, to this day, subsidized those other islanders to the tune of about $110/year, ($1.1m divided by 9,780), I would say those other islanders would be getting more than a fair deal – in fact, in an apples to apples comparison, a helluva deal.

 

There’s the math. Now, how would the impact of Salt Spring's incorporation actually unfold at Trust Council after Salt Spring incorporates?

 

The Islands Trust Council will have one very simple resolution to make. Here’s a proposed draft of it, which would likely be moved by the Chair of the Financial Planning Committee of the day:

 

“I move the Islands Trust Council hereby direct staff to prepare a draft budget for consideration of Trust Council at the next Council Meeting, to show the proportional tax increases on each island, which will be necessary to maintain the current level of planning services provided to them by the Islands Trust.”

 

The only question after that will be whether the Islands Trust Council, itself, (a) votes to increase Trust taxes on the other islands to maintain the current level of services, (b) votes to reduce some of the planning services on the other islands, thereby reducing their potential tax increase, or (c) votes to disband the Islands Trust.

 

Let’s be doubly clear here. It would be the 26 elected Islands Trust Trustees, sworn to uphold the Islands Trust Preserve and Protect mandate, who would make that choice.

 

Thus, it is not only unlikely (c) would ever be passed or even considered an option, but, since the Trustees would actually be breaking their sworn oath of office, they would likely be immediately removed from their office by the Province for attempting to break their Trust.

 

I mean, really, people....does anyone actually believe Island Trustees would vote to disband the Islands Trust? Anyone? Anyone?

 

So, ground control to our Colonial Emperors and your loyal, but myth-guided, followers and wabble wousers (apologies to Monty Python).....please, give the rest of us a break, and stop telling us the lie that the incorporation of Salt Spring will somehow magically lead us to the dark side, and the inevitable destruction of the Islands Trust.  All it will lead to is a fairer tax requisition for every island in the Trust Area, including Salt Spring.

 

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*So, there you have it, but, now, a little ironic update. The Trust’s revenue (read taxes) has been increased by $1.8 million over the past 3 years. Take away 40% for Salt Spring’s contribution and voila! You have a $1.08 million increase for the rest of the Trust Area, just $20,000 short of the $1.1 million figure in my article.

 

In other words, over the past 3 years, the Islands Trust has increased taxes on the other islands to within spitting distance of the amount they would have to pick up over a three year period if Salt Spring incorporated.

 

Was the Trust weakened during Ehring’s term of office because of the increases? Is it wavering on the brink of extinction? Did the Trustees on the other islands vote against the last 3 budgets in the fear the Trust would be destroyed? Have taxpayers on other islands revolted? Or, is the bloated Trust bureaucracy doing just fine, thank you very much?

 

So, George, Christine and Gary, give us all a break, and stop the silly fear mongering. The only place the sky is falling is in your minds.