I can’t belive city hall’s door hasn’t been knocked down with this proposed tax reform. Any situation that will see the middle and upper lower class who are already struggling have a jaw dropping increase in property taxes while the richest homes have their taxes cut is mind blowing that there is so little noise coming from the people. WTF?
—ARB
This article appears in Dec 10-16, 2009.
The ‘real’ Halifax paper did a story on it the other day. Get the pitch forks and torches ready…any minute now….
My back property line is on the Hants County, HRM line. My property is in HRM.
I have no water, no sewer, no sidewalks , no bus service, if its not nice out (& sometimes when it is) the power goes out regularly.
I am not complaining…I chose to live out here & would like it to stay the way it is.
I just don’t see why I’m paying so damn much property tax when the only thing they ever do is pick up my garbage every 2nd week. THat’s right EVERY SECOND WEEK ! ! ! Because I compost to use in my garden, & in 4 years haven’t yet put anything into the green bin !
Now under this new system I’m going to have to pay even fucking more…for NOTHING EXTRA !
Jesus Christ who are these morons who came up with this ?!?
IS the only choice left to me is to move to another county ???? Where perhaps people in positions of authority don’t have their heads all the way up the asses of those with the money !
This so called tax reform is bullshit, unbelievable…its like a make believe script for a slasher movie… you see it, but it can’t be real ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !
I find it funny that people care more about their $50 winter-street parking tickets and not this issue. Slam the fools with massive tax hikes.
Great comments debate raging over on The Coast’s article of this issue. I think Bousquet is making it his mission to get more people right riled about about this issue and win a journalism award or something.
Let’s say two people go into Sobey’s to buy the exact same carton of milk. One is a wealthy doctor who lives in the great depths of the evil Kingswood subdivision (ohh no, not Kingswood! Urban planner’s worst nightmare!), while the other is a single mom of four kids living in North End Dartmouth. How much do each pay for the same carton of milk? Why, the same price, of course, because regardless of their income situation, the milk still costs the same amount to make. Is this wrong? Some would say yes, but most people wouldn’t say so.
More’s situation aside, I see no reason why people should pay different prices for the same services just because their income situation isn’t as good as the next person’s. I could say more, but I really don’t feel like it at the moment.
No, I’m not rich and don’t come from a rich family. I’m living at home with my mom in South End Halifax at the moment (which means I’m 200 pounds overweight playing World of Warcraft in my pee-stained underwear, of course), but not in her basement since she lives in a smallish apartment and has no money.
qpmzwonxeibcruv– that’s a ridiculous argument, for several reasons.
Using your “reasoning,” poor people and rich people should pay the same flat dollar fee for military protection. We should dismantle the health system and have people pay the full cost of every procedure they receive. And health and environmental protection should be charged on a per-person, flat fee basis.
Moreover, rich people may drink milk occasionally, but they very often drink imported wines, an option not open to the poor. They do indeed pay for their wine.
Progressive taxation is the foundation of modern democracy. To be against it is to be basically against civilization.
And if you are against civilization…the terrorists win.
If we have progressive taxation, why not progressive voting too? If I have to pay more for the military, health care and sewer hook ups why do I only get the same say |(one vote) as a poor person who uses more and pays less? Political decisions affect me more if I’m wealthy, why not have more say in how my tax dollars will be spent? As long as the poor hold all the power the rich will continue to be downtrodden and abused.
whoever said crime didn’t pay,wasn’t a politition.
Tim, I don’t think that the folks who are posting against this are against progressive taxation. Geesh, we already have it, it’s called income tax. We also have non progressive taxes, like the HST, which is the same rate regardless. Who ever said that property taxes must be progressive? I’m paying my property taxes out of money that I have left over AFTER I have paid my very expensive income taxes, so why do those taxes have to be progressive too? There is more at work here, it’s not about screwing the poor or middle income guy, but I think it IS about those who choose to mess with our urban plan by continually moving “outside the city because it’s cheaper out there” (Kingswood aside) getting a stick in the eye with higher taxes. If that’s what it takes to control urban sprawl, then count me in.
Tim, progressive taxation is the foundation of “socialism”. Actually, I don’t mind a little progressive taxation and it is probably reasonable that the wealthy contribute more in municipal taxes. The issue with property tax reform is that maybe some of the services provided by the municipality can be provided on the basis of something that resembles a fee for use.
piss on the poor and eat the rich !!! Its always the middle working class that pays the most – no matter what you want to call the tax scale . I have and do match my tax rates and income tax withholds and payments to the rich and poor and I do pay way more in the end run then the rich dudes do . Rich getting downtrodden and abused miles? Think again!!!
maybe we should all just make exactly the same amount of money…then we could all be middle class and get screwed to the same extent.
Yea miles atleast then we can all write off the k-y and condoms !!!!