Comments on: How many bites at the ratepayer apple? http://www.baybuzz.co.nz/archives/1140/ What's new, funny, perplexing in Hawke's Bay Wed, 16 May 2012 04:50:07 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.3 By: Duncan Lennoxhttp://www.baybuzz.co.nz/archives/1140/comment-page-1/#comment-3856 Duncan Lennox Wed, 10 Sep 2008 23:39:13 +0000 http://www.baybuzz.co.nz/archives/1140#comment-3856 As a community we need to severely limit and control the boundaries within which councils (and government) can legitimately operate. The reason taxes and rates grow exponentially is the legitimate spheres of government activity have not been clearly drawn. While I agree that things such as Splash Planet and the new sports arena are bottomless pits, they are merely symptoms of the real infection.It keeps coming back to whether we believe governments know best what to do with our money or whether people should have personal freedom and personal responsibility. Sadly, Big Brother mentality is alive and well. Once in power, few politicians, whether national or local, are keen to divest themsalves of that power.Sir Roger Douglas and his team are amongst the few pollies who believe in reducing political power. Hopefully, Roger will be the "Comeback Kid" in the up-coming elections. As a community we need to severely limit and control the boundaries within which councils (and government) can legitimately operate. The reason taxes and rates grow exponentially is the legitimate spheres of government activity have not been clearly drawn. While I agree that things such as Splash Planet and the new sports arena are bottomless pits, they are merely symptoms of the real infection.

It keeps coming back to whether we believe governments know best what to do with our money or whether people should have personal freedom and personal responsibility. Sadly, Big Brother mentality is alive and well. Once in power, few politicians, whether national or local, are keen to divest themsalves of that power.

Sir Roger Douglas and his team are amongst the few pollies who believe in reducing political power. Hopefully, Roger will be the “Comeback Kid” in the up-coming elections.

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