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| Julianne Olson |
Vote yes! Vote no! While Boone political advocacy committees aren’t as sharp at creating glossy advertising, they at least know how to get their point across in a succinct fashion.
These obnoxious flyers seen all over town are advertising the sales tax referendum to take place Aug. 31 at all Watauga County precincts.
This sales tax referendum would enact a quarter-cent sales tax increase to pay for a new county recreation center and a community center for the Eastern part of Watauga County.
When beginning research for this article, I felt like I had an angel and a devil sitting on either side of my shoulder.
As a citizen, it’s my job to figure out which flyer I deem as the angel and which as the devil.
But as a journalist, it’s my daunting task to be intelligent enough to see different sides of the same issue, and not so much with worrying about which character on my shoulders I identify with.
I’ll just go ahead and preface this by saying that I can see the side of the Appalachian State University student.
I can see the side of the liberal parent or senior citizen in favor of a sales tax for a recreation center and community center.
I can even see the side of the riled-up conservative who is not likely to be thrilled about the possibility of a tax hike.
Those who oppose the hike in sales tax aren’t convinced the extra quarter cent per dollar is going towards the recreation center and community center.
Clearly, the Watauga County Board of Commissioners created this massive scam so they could use the citizen’s money for their own enjoyment, or for the dreaded general fund.
“Under state law, we are not allowed to put on the ballot what the tax will be used for,” Board of Commissioners Chair Jim Deal said, according to the High Country Press.
“We would like to, believe me. I can tell you with all certainty that it will be used for the recreation center and eastern community center.”
As a broke college student, I’m not pumped up about the possibility of paying an quarter-cent per dollar I spend buying way more clothes than I need, or anything else I buy other than groceries.
That’s right, grocery taxes will not be increased.
However, an extra quarter-cent per dollar I spend is not going to deter me from buying the things I want. I’m in the prime stage of my life, when I have disposable income to feed all the things I want.
This brings me to the simple fact that most students on this campus do not have children to worry about taking to the recreation center or retired parents who are to the point of needing a place to hang out because they have nothing else to do but compare notes on Viagra experiences.
Kids and retired parents are certainly not in my five-day forecast, or for that matter, my five-year forecast.
Currently, I’m concerned with graduating college and then finding a job.
Call me selfish, but I’m almost certain the rest of the student population would agree with me.
While I agree childhood obesity is something we should try to avoid, once again, most students on this campus are not concerned with that. We’re not even really concerned with our own obesity.
While I know college students are supposed to be growing and developing our understanding for others during our time in the safe bubble, I can’t wrap my mind around the idea of paying more sales tax on my Gladiola Girls clothing.
If the county wants a recrea2tion center and community center so badly, then they should just increase property taxes, which are more likely to affect the demographic that would be utilizing the cause of our tax hike.
At the end of the day, whether you’re a liberal or a conservative, a young parent or a college student, or a retiree or a member of the booming work force, none of us are avid fans of taxes because it requires our money.
Determining who the devil and angel are is up to you as a citizen of Watauga County. I’m just the journalist.
Olson, a sophomore journalism major from Winston-Salem, is a senior news reporter. |
