Dear Editor,
 
 "Back in the day", when a majority vote was cast for an elected office, a bond issue, a referendum or whatever, that was the end of the issue. The voice of the voters was heard, accepted and we then moved on to the next issue. It didn't matter if the majority was by a 100 votes, 10 votes or even 1 vote, what mattered was that the majority had spoken.

Apparently that's not how issues are settled in St. James, specifically by the St. James school board. Once again, because the majority didn't vote the way the school board desired, apparently more tax money is going to be spent for some more 4 color brochures until the majority of voters agree with the school board or just get sick and tired of seeing the same issue come up again and again until the voters finally just throw in the towel and stay home on election day, no matter how many times it will take to get it passed.

Oh, but it's not going to cost the tax payers more money, it's just going to be a longer time we have to pay additional tax. But what about the safety of the children?, which is how the advertising to convince us starts with and then is followed by all the other needed projects at a time when people are not only trying to afford gasoline so they can go to their jobs and do all the other required things in our daily life because we don't all have a high 5 or 6 figure salary, but are faced with all the other necessary items that have increased in cost to the point where hard decisions will have to be made in our personal lives.

Yes, no question we should protect the children and perhaps do some of the other projects, but why is it always necessary to ask for more money. Shouldn't the school board get more creative and be looking for alternative ways to do things until we can all take a breather from the price increases and then perhaps reconsider and pass the tax extension if the board can't figure out other ways to get things accomplished.
It seems to me that when a person is near drowning, it's not a good time to ask for a buck until payday. Unfortunately, for the tax payer, payday never comes, but the request for more bucks keep coming.

Gene Huebner
St. James