XPost: bc.politics, van.general, vic.general   
   From: gregpcarr@yahoo.ca   
      
   On Tue, 30 Mar 2010 17:02:29 -0700,  wrote:   
      
   >> On Tue, 30 Mar 2010 13:20:23 -0700,  wrote:   
   >>   
   >>>By Michael Smyth, The Province  -  March 30, 2010   
   >>>   
   >>>HST legislation could lead to Liberals' demise   
   >>>   
   >>>The provincial government is poised to introduce its HST implementation   
   bill as early as   
   >>>today-- delivering on one of the most brazen broken promises in B.C.   
   political history.   
   >>>   
   >>>Don't forget the governing Liberals promised during the last election not   
   to bring in   
   >>>the   
   >>>hated 12-percent harmonized sales tax -- a commitment they made in writing   
   and delivered   
   >>>to the very businesses the tax will hurt the most.   
   >>>   
   >>>One of those sectors was the B.C. Restaurant and Foodservices Association,   
   which asked   
   >>>the   
   >>>Liberal Party directly what their position was on the HST. As we stand on   
   the brink of   
   >>>this ignominious betrayal of B.C. voters, it's appropriate to revisit   
   exactly what the   
   >>>Liberal position was on this tax: "While some British Columbians have   
   suggested that a   
   >>>harmonized PST and GST might be beneficial, others have pointed out that it   
   would extend   
   >>>the PST tax base to a broader range of goods and services that are   
   presently exempt from   
   >>>provincial sales tax.   
   >>>   
   >>>"Such items that are currently PST-exempt include energy-efficient   
   appliances,   
   >>>membership   
   >>>fees for clubs and gyms, newspapers and magazines, taxi fares, restaurant   
   food and the   
   >>>professional services of architects and accountants. This is a major   
   concern.   
   >>>   
   >>>"The B.C. Liberals are also mindful that a harmonized GST would reduce the   
   provincial   
   >>>government's ability to unilaterally adjust sales-tax rates. The harmonized   
   GST would   
   >>>make   
   >>>it harder for future provincial governments to lower or raise sales-tax   
   rates, which   
   >>>reduces flexibility.   
   >>>   
   >>>"In short, a harmonized GST is not something that is contemplated in the   
   B.C. Liberal   
   >>>platform."   
   >>>   
   >>>The exact same commitment was made in writing by the Liberals to the   
   Greater Vancouver   
   >>>Home Builders Association: A major concern. An inflexible tax. Not   
   contemplated under a   
   >>>Liberal government.   
   >>>   
   >>>Now, less than a year later, get set to have it rammed down your throat,   
   without a word   
   >>>of   
   >>>regret or an apology to the people who believed what they were told before   
   the election.   
   >>>   
   >>>Is it any wonder the Liberals have fallen as far as they have in the polls?   
   Getting   
   >>>slammed with a $2-billion tax grab is bad enough. Getting slammed after   
   you've been   
   >>>promised that it wouldn't happen is even worse.   
   >>>   
   >>>Could this betrayal of B.C. voters cost the Liberals in the next election?   
   Party   
   >>>insiders   
   >>>are worried, though they're hoping B.C. ers don't want NDP Leader Carole   
   James as   
   >>>premier.   
   >>>That might be true, but consider this: The once-mighty B.C. Conservative   
   Party is   
   >>>starting   
   >>>to attract some support on the political fringes. In a recent Angus Reid   
   poll, the B.C.   
   >>>   
   >>>Conservatives got 18-per-cent support in the north and eight per cent in   
   the Interior.   
   >>>   
   >>>That's not enough for the Conservatives to win an election, but it could   
   split the   
   >>>right-wing vote in enough key ridings to help the New Democrats win crucial   
   seats.   
   >>>   
   >>>Former premier Bill Vander Zalm has taken his anti-HST petition drive to   
   the very   
   >>>communities where the Libs are most vulnerable -- cities such as Prince   
   George, Dawson   
   >>>Creek, Fort St. John and Castlegar.   
   >>>   
   >>>These are the places where an anti-HST grassroots brush fire could burn the   
   Libs. Now,   
   >>>by   
   >>>introducing their broken-promise HST bill in the legislature, they may be   
   authoring   
   >>>their   
   >>>own misfortune.   
   >   
   >   
   >"gordo"  wrote in message   
   >news:g1t4r5he6ogg4m00h5blor76cfrvl12eou@4ax.com...   
   >> All true.It is just now being introduced into the legislature so the   
   >> best thing that would happen is that we boot out the liars at the next   
   >> election.   
   >   
   >   
   >Thing is - British Columbians don't have to wait that long to solve the HST   
   issue.  If   
   >enough signatures are gathered from each constituency, a REFERENDUM has to be   
   held to   
   >decide the fate of the HST - no waiting for "the next election".   
   >   
   >Let's bloody do it.   
   >   
   I concur all it takes is 10% of the voters signatures in each of the   
   85 ridings. Enough with apathy.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)