Mark Twain once said: Loyalty to country always. Loyalty to government when it deserves it.
And for those following civic affairs in New Westminster of late (or our own Letters to the Editor page, which has overflowed in recent weeks on this topic), it would seem there's a growing contingent in this city whose loyalty is dwindling - or gone already.
The controversy over the $59-million loan the city needs to cover the office tower construction will come to a head in the next few days, as the deadline looms for local residents wishing to voice their opposition by way of signing a petition. It's anyone's guess whether there will be the required 4,500-plus signatories, by the time city hall closes on Tuesday afternoon, for the issue to go to a referendum.
During elections, we rarely if ever make individual endorsements, but we always endorse engagement - finding out about the issues, thinking about the past and future, and then taking the time to actually cast the ballot. We do the same now - talk to your neighbours, read the coverage in local media (past stories and letters are all available online at www.royalcityrecord.com) and decide how you feel on this issue.
And then, take action, if you feel it's the right thing to do, by signing a petition.
Only time will tell what will ultimately come of the tower project and the impact it will have on city coffers, but we can already see the impact it's having for residents.
Like the HST debacle, this is an issue in many ways of "optics" - whether or not the tower and the loan prove to be positive or negative, the way in which the process has been carried out doesn't look good. When voters feel tricked, it always comes back to bite the politicians in power at the time - come the next municipal election, we'll see how much "loyalty" the incumbents can maintain.
