Thursday, October 15, 2009

A lesson for politicians (esp Jenny Rowan) on investment vs spending/theft

I no longer have the energy to blog about the Kapiti roading debate. There's not much more to add from me. Sandhills Motorway good. Jenny Rowan get lost. Especially with your latest attempt to compare the Kapiti roading issue with the Samoa tsunami, you rude, offensive excuse for a human.

OK, so clearly the Samoa reference made me bristle. But I bristle further when politicians, especially, it seems, the likes of Jenny Rowan, throws us a dangerous word, that is little understood by the masses: investment.

So, here is today's lesson. Listen carefully, Rowan, for if you make this mistake one more time, I may be moved to more libelous activity.

Having just spend $281,000 of ratepayers' money on developing an engineering submission, that was then rejected by Council itself, we are told that such "investment" is necessary for economic analysis.

So, if it is an "investment", presumably I will get a return that has increased my investment's original value?

Of course not. The problem lies in that I did not get to choose how I invested my own money, where or how I invested it, and I have no say in whether I reinvest it. And, even if the Council stuffs up the "investment" of my money, it faces no financial penalties or hardship.

But, unfairly, I do.

If I had a say on my investment, and I chose to invest it in this way, I would admit that I made a mistake, and I would learn from this for future investment decisions. But, Jenny Rowan, you gave me no choice as to how my money would be invested. Is it fair, then, to penalise me for your misuse of my funds? Funds that were never intended for investment? No, it is not. It is theft. But you get away with it because you know I have no right of compensation.

Jenny Rowan, and most other politicians, display zero understanding of basic economic terminology. "Investment" is not the same as "spend". When you, Jenny Rowan, buy your fags, you are not "investing"; you are spending. When you buy engineering analysis for a submission (and claim it is "economic advice"), you are not "investing"; you are spending. When the government (hopefully) builds the Sandhills Motorway, it is not "investing"; it is spending.

Get it right. Stop lying to me about how you are using my money, and stop this dishonesty. You have clearly demonstrated that you do no know the principles of investment, and, therefore, you do not know what is best for me or the other ratepayers in this district. Your use of ratepayers' money is corrupt.

Sadly, economic illiteracy won't go away when I vote Jenny Rowan out of office (not that I ever tried to vote her in), because politicians conveniently ignore the difference between investment/spending/theft.

3 comments:

gravedodger said...

Very basic stuff O M but the trick is to get the dopey pollies to see the difference as they have never invested in anything in their miserable troughing lives. It is not as if the difference between investing and spending is hard to grasp but I guess if one has lived their entire life financed by other peoples money, I guess that would explain their ignorance.
Well said.

Libertyscott said...

I really hope the government has the courage to seriously bulldoze this through. Fastrack the redesignation of the WLR route to motorway, buy the small number of properties needed, and pour money into investigation and design (which will take another year because the alignment is different and interchanges are needed, but most of the WLR work can be reused).

If done well then work on this road should commence Summer 2010. It can be followed by extending north to Otaki and the Otaki Bypass. Meanwhile, Transmission Gully can slip down the priority list.

senzafine said...

Totally agree.

Its become very clear to me that 'career politician' Jenny Rowan studied at the Helen Clark school of politics.

I didn't think that it was possible to be more disgusted over a politician than i was over Clark. But in light of mayors recent performance over the expressway issue, I am finding my disgust levels growing to unprecedented proportions.

As liberty said, I hope the govt has the steel to push through the Sandhills route, as contrary to what council has submitted, that is what we, the people want.