03-25-2019, 04:29 PM
quote:
Originally posted by Punaperson
kalakoa: 'I think it's time all the taxes were replaced with a simple fee "for the privilege of living in Hawaii". At least then people might understand how much it really costs, so they can plan accordingly.'
We have always had this - it's been nicknamed the 'paradise tax' for as long as I've been here ( over 50 years on several different islands ). Paying more to live here, with lower wages for the same comparable jobs, because it is far, far away from the mainland, and all the attendant issues that come from living where some material things might be more convenient or accessible, but life is in general much harder. Having just recently had the opportunity to travel to many places both on the mainland, and throughout the South Pacific, I have yet to encounter the utopia you seem to yearn for, where government works well, efficiently, and justly according to your perspective. All the places I was able to visit ( several places in New England, Virginia, the Carolinas, Florida, Colorado, Nevada, California, Washington, Vancouver ( Canada ), Fiji, Philippines, Palau, Thailand )have issues with local government, how money is collected and spent. Here in Puna we have a small population, where one voice can actually be heard and make a difference. Appreciate what you do have, instead of grumbling about what perfection eludes you. Everyone who purchased land in any of the Puna subdivisions should have had an idea ( or at least a huge clue ) about what they were getting themselves into. Buying a lot
way off any pavement because it was ' affordable ' , and then grumbling about the lack of connectivity, whether it was physical by road, or broadband/wifi, is sadly only buyer's remorse.
Grammar - too many beers