SPLOST approval was premature, spends too much on 'wish list'

Editor;

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The Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax referendum on the Nov. 4 election ballot was barely approved by voters, many of whom did not realize the implications of this premature request by our county officials. Continuing this 1 percent sales tax for improvements to our infrastructure of course is a good idea, and I wish it was 2 percent and would reduce our ever-increasing property taxes.

But asking for approval two or three years ahead of time is certainly unsound in our sagging economy. With job losses and personal and commercial businesses tanking, county tax receipts will be suffering as well after the next home value assessment is lowered by 20 percent or so.

The SPLOST wish list included a $6 million parking garage at our government complex, an extravagant request of county taxpayers, to mention one example. Our future slow economy should elicit some realistic ideas by county leaders, such as redirecting this money toward walking and bike paths along our county roads, leading to more healthful and economical lifestyles -- for our school children, too. You old-timers remember walking a mile or two to school, don't you? Then we could build a nice bicycle park in our government complex.

Does the Republican philosophy call for small government and self-reliance, or not?

With our national tax policy driving corporations off shore and Democrats refusing to develop our own oil reserves, we will not repeat our wonderful economic booms of the past.

S.G. von Schweinitz

Appling