Consequences.
This is the word that my son has been mulling over a lot, as of late.
He knows, at age 5, that if he wants to have a lot of fun, it’s best not to be a pint-sized monster because that’s when Attila-the-Mum puts an end to all that is good.
He’s learned that if he wants to watch a bit of TV, he shouldn’t start with a hard negotiation tactic like screaming and crying. That is likely to end a good day of the evil “screen time.”
And, little by little, he’s learned that there is a cost to all things he values, like the top shelf Lego selection. If he wants one of those out-of-reach numbers, he’s going to be putting his pennies aside for more than a year.
You know who else may benefit from these incredibly basic lessons?
The latest batch of council candidates, many of whom say they want to see taxes lowered, a tougher on crime approach to city management and a whole grab bag of political goodies.
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The sad reality is that these things are starting to sound a bit like pipe-dreams rather than political platforms.
For example, what exactly should be done about the downtown crime/drug problem right now? Should we be tough on these men and women who are already suffering and living lives that they probably never envisioned?
Should we revisit the policy of pushing off the streets, despite the fact the electorate already voiced significant disdain about such an idea?
Or, should we acknowledge that this city has a shortfall of services for people who need to detox and have shelter?
What about our fellow Kelowna residents who are mentally ill?
We all know those services have been gone for far too long.
If you wanted to acknowledge those basic facts, you’d have to start thinking a little bit about solutions and the price tag that goes with those solutions.
You know where cities get the money to address its issues? Tax dollars.
Lots and lots of tax dollars. So how much should the tax payer bear? If you say nothing, then the question is what service should be cut?
Nobody talks about what community services they’d slash this time of year or who they would turn to get more. That’s bound to go poorly.
Speaking of things going poorly, one candidate wants to cut out the jobs for at least 200 people in this city to allegedly reduce waste.
Newspapers, he said, are merely filler for his waste bin. Had this candidate taken the time to read one, however, he may better understand the issues that he offers insight into and the economics that drive this city, let alone the generation of legitimate online news, which he claims to appreciate.
Focusing on that online news component alone, it may surprise this candidate to realize that a good portion of it is funded by the print news industry, which is still a money maker.
All the money it brings in gets filtered down to people who can then pay for the rent, mortgages and groceries.
It seems that the idea of consequences is far too complex for many and it would take more backtracking on life issues to really offer clarity.
Like they say, most everything you need know should be picked up in kindergarten.
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