We have little say about what officials do with our tax dollars AFTER they are elected, so we MUST ensure that we have a really good idea of what they are going to do with them BEFORE we elect them. Given the extraordinary amount of debt that Ontario taxpayers are facing at all levels of government (including, in Guelph, at the municipal level), the key question that voters should ask all candidates during the provincial, municipal, and federal elections in 2014 and 2015 is “Are you going to deal with government debt or are you going to run it up even more?”
Left-leaning parties and candidates want to spend more. They believe that voters are like children and they must take care of us by providing more and more services. They know our debts are huge but keep putting off dealing with them.
Right-leaning parties and candidates want to deal with our fiscal situation now. They respect voters enough to tell them the “hard truth”.
The good news is that the Federal government will be in a position to start paying down debt in 2015, when Harper’s Conservatives eliminate deficit spending. Unfortunately, we have a LONG way to go at the provincial level and, in Guelph, at City Hall.
Voters deserve to be told the “hard truth”. Therefore we need political leaders and government officials who are courageous enough to face the wrath of some voters so that they can better serve all voters.
