The Chu Forums

Yup. Apparently raising the tax on used cars from 7% to 12% wasn't because of the HST. We must have all remembered it wrong.

http://www.vancouversun.com/news/story.html?id=8042817

I think one of the challenges of why the HST was not successful here in BC was not because it was a tax increase/shift, but because it was so poorly communicated and executed. This whole tax on used vehicles thing is just another example.

It's like they're bad genies. They give us what we want, just not the way we want it.

the gov... they are always so trixies...

ok, i've only heard that observation from you.

either case, i was privy to the same information as everyone else. is it the government's fault that people choose not to dig a bit deeper with what's going on and not to be just blinded by the "oh noes, i have to pay more for food" mentality? even if the government told everyone exactly what was going on (which i know they didn't at first, but they tried to in the end), i know for a fact that people like my in-laws can't see past the "more tax = the government sucks" stigma.

so i really don't believe it was about poor communication/execution. i'm not saying that it wasn't poorly communicated or executed, i'm just saying that's not why people are complaining. people complain because they complain.

Anyway - not sure what difference it makes if you've heard that observation from others or not. Does it make it any more or less valid if others have said it?

Yes, people complain because they complain, but it's still good to know why people complain. If you keep writing off people as complaining for the sake of complaining, then this whole HST going back to PST/GST kinda stuff happens.

If the government communicated and executed this better, then complaining may have minimized and we could've avoided this. Don't ignore the power of complaining... it gets things done.

I think there are a number of reasons why people didn't like the HST.
Distrust of the gov't, both provincial and federal, is a big one I think. There's this mindset that nothing the gov't does can be any damn good.

And, imo, the distrust is warranted.

It doesn't help:
When they hear of a $1.6B lawsuit against BC Hydro and that we're not supposed to worry 'cause they've got the money saved up.
When they decide to raise MSP premiums and make cuts to health care (and make it illegal for doctors to offer their services privately).
When so many of our tax dollars are already going into the neverending bottomless pit of translink.
When the gov't comes in like a thief in the night and shuts down the Kits Coast Guard to save money, and a week later declares that they will be creating a new Coast Guard in middle-of-nowhere Newfoundland.

And I'm not the only one with the same observations:

http://members.shaw.ca/DavidCharbonneau/kdn09/HST.htm
http://www.irpp.org/po/archive/nov11/mcarthur.pdf
http://www.ipsos-na.com/news-polls/pres ... px?id=4839
http://fullcomment.nationalpost.com/201 ... t-debacle/

good ole David Charbonneau...