Finance Minister Mike de Jong says it’s hard to balance the B.C. budget, so he decides to sell off public assets — again. “Forced sales” are always at a disadvantage to the seller.

Yes, it’s tough to balance the budget when you don’t tax sufficiently those who skim off the most from B.C. resources and take in most of B.C.’s personal and corporate wealth.

It’s hard to balance the budget when you “sell” B.C. Rail, a public asset, for a mere billion dollars and then spend the money to foist “smart meters” on B.C. ratepayers. The meter manufacturers and the installer companies got the billion. We lost B.C. Rail.

It’s hard to balance the budget when you carbon tax school districts so as to give their funds to energy companies when the B.C. government funds school districts.

It’s hard to balance the budget when you pay the salaries you do to government and Crown corporation officials.

You can’t blame the unions for the largesse of salaries you pay to your friends and associates.

It’s hard to balance the budget when you don’t tax B.C.’s biggest economic driver — pot.

E.T. MILLYARD

Lillooet