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Our View

Read the rules then vote

It appears that many folks who gladly signed the anti-HST petition at the first go-round are getting a little tired of rallying up enthusiasm for more protesting, at least that is what some of the polls are saying. But it doesn’t mean they are knuckling under and accepting the HST as it is. Unfortunately the fight doesn’t stop at the petition stage, it goes further.  When the Harmonized Sales Tax Voters Guide arrives in the mail, it is imperative that the instructions are followed to the letter, no matter which way you vote.

And add to that the confusion over whether a “yes” or “no” vote portrays your vote. Actually yes means no and no means yes in this scenario. Yes means strike it down, no means retain it.

Also voters need to follow the instructions carefully when they send in their ballot. One envelope has to be put inside another in the proper sequence. Mess this up and Elections BC will discard your vote.

While a straight across 10 per cent HST will strike home with many, it still means that many items previously untaxed are now taxed and that is what people were unhappy about in the first place. Change the tax structure to the way it was prior to the implementation of the HST and no one would be complaining. It is the obvious tax grab and the implementation that has people riled, not the idea of an HST.

Cast your vote, knowing all the facts, in order to follow up on your obligation to the petition you may or may not have signed in the first place. We showed government that the “little people” have the power to implement change.