Schools:
Actually, the closing of the schools more equates to 30+ students shoved into a room sized made for 20 (the new school rooms are tiny). So a few teaching jobs are lost (unfortunate), the biggest issue really is that those kids going through are now having a substandard education forced upon them by Gordo and his minions.
Also,up until a year or so ago, they were required by law to use the cheapest bid possible for any renovation or new construction... which of course was backed up by an iron clad gaurantee from the cheapest bidder.
At my fathers school, a newly installed light came crashing down... narrowly missing a child. But don't worry, the contractors came back and installed it correctly shortly thereafter. After all, safety and a proper installation is at the top of Gordo's priority list. Kids are expendable and don't vote.
No RAV Line:
Instead, we'd have an evergreen line and probably an extension to the surrey/KG line. It would service more people and take more cars off the road.
However, we are now servicing a route that while busy, won't have a huge traffic reduction due to the line... and I'm not at all sure how many people will take the sky train from the airport...since you still need a bus (or a very long walk) to go from the airport sky train station out to the airport.
Had they run it all the way to the airport, I might support it more. Richmond did need a rapid transit solution, but it was more of an after thought to the RAV line.
Missed Olympics:
This one is very debatable. As I recall, alot of people in the city of Vancouver were opposed (although it passed) to it. Nobody else even got the chance to vote on it (like, everyone else in the province)...even though they will help foot the enormous bill.
The boost to Vancouver tourism could've been achieved at a lower cost, through making the city more pedestrian and bike friendly, through city beautification, and through work on homlessness reduction. Tied in with better advertising, Vancouvers natural beauty and our tourism and businesses would've had a healthy (if not grossly profitable) income for many years to come.
This boost will be a large one for 2-3 weeks, followed by a several year minor boost that is really suspect in its rosy projection, especially given the current economic climate.
I will admit that many jobs have been created and companies made more profitable by the olympic boost. However, the housing boom had a larger effect on the economy... comparatively.
Increased or Decreased Spening:
IF he wasn't spending it on frivolous things, if he actually paid attention to the people that elected him... fewer people would have issues with him spending in a recession scenario. In fact, spending is something a government SHOULD do in a recession.
The problem is, he spent tons of cash on silly things when the times were good, and now he's cash strapped for money when he needs it most. Also, alot of his spending habits are funded in part from cutting social and public services...all the while, demanding no such reduction from crown or private sectors paid out of public funds.
Gordo's catch phrase should be "there's a sucker born every minute".
...
