Let’s make informed decisions

By the time many of you cast your eyes on this issue of SPIN Newsmagazine a historical event in Sun Peaks Resort will have already taken place, with eligible voters casting their ballots in a referendum on the question “Should Sun Peaks Resort become the first mountain resort municipality in British Columbia?”

While I sit writing this piece the answer to this question still looms over the horizon but for those reading SPIN after Jan. 30, 2010 the answer is already clear, the voters have spoken and this community is either set for many new changes in the years ahead or it will plod along under the old model of governance we have dealt with since the resort’s inception.

While some residents have been outspoken about the “should or shouldn’t” to this question, what really gets me is those that speak out without having the proper information.

It’s said education equals knowledge and knowledge equals power, yet some in this community base their ideas and maybe even their votes on rumours and innuendo without really knowing or studying the facts.
Some of the outspoken have never been to a public meeting on the subject, let alone taken the time to review the vast amount of information available to them at www.sunpeaksgovernance.com—the website built strictly for the purpose of educating the public.

The Sun Peaks Incorporation Study Committee spent several years working with the Province of B.C. and several expert consultants looking at governance models, municipal structures, and tax implications that would affect Sun Peaks and all this information was open to public consumption yet people seem to still be oblivious to it.

I am all for a democratic vote and freedom of speech and opinion, but if you want to cast an educated vote then you should spend the time educating yourself instead of wading through an issue with your blinders on.
For or against votes are up to the voter in any election, but at least understand what you’re voting on.