The worst part of our current local island government is that the Island Trust's Land Use Bylaw and their Community Plan continues to endorse a convenient platform for a neighbourhood snitch system. Any anonymous complainant can freely initiate a cascade of expensive bureaucratic interference upon their neighbour. As a result, the victims of this cowardly system of enforcement are never allowed to even know the identity of their accuser and yet it costs nothing to complain and often a small fortune to defend oneself.

Are we really so threatened by our island neighbours' actions that we need to continue to endorse this 'prison yard, Orwellian, snitch system'?... Furthermore, statements made in the past by our Island Trustees attempt to soften the impact of their Land Use Bylaw saying it is just a harmless and amorphous document that we needn't worry too much about. The premise being that it is so easily changed and altered... well quite apart from that being a wolf in sheep's clothing! It seems that none of these expensive land use bylaws target issues that really matter! We have witnessed so many times when the Islands Trust has been impotent in challenging such corporate entities as the old Texada Land Corp. on the logging issue and yet small business and individuals are often so much more easily intimidated.

It is therefore the 'little people' who are targeted in our Land Use Bylaws, and it is often yet another exercise in social engineering that attempts to thwart the natural, social evolution of the community whether it is low-income housing solutions like granny suites, light industry or tourist-based accommodation. All of the above provide much needed solutions to the burdens of our health care system, growing population density, aging boomer parents and efforts to establish right to livelihood on Salt Spring.

How much longer can we support a local governance predicated on the concept of an Islands Trust zoo-illogical garden for humans for these fair islands (taxation cost rising as we speak!) They are clearly not solving our bigger problems and only targeting the easy ones, namely, farmers, rooms and suites for rent for low income or our aging parents and our local small business community.

Notwithstanding the shrill cries from those who claim we don't have a Land Use Bylaw strong enough to stop our neighbour from processing Plutonium, it seems utterly idiotic to entrench laws that govern every contingency of human behaviour, however remote. For instance. why does this 'land use' bylaw include the biblical one-liner... thou shalt not create a bridge between any two islands? Seems very myopic of our possible future needs. And ongoing rises in transportation costs.

Imagine as someone already has suggested a bridge to Maple Bay constructed in concert with a tidal power system as a base?

If the the Islands Trust wants to enforce their agenda, let them pay a legitimate Bylaw inforcement agent clearly identified and responsible for lodging legitimate complaints! Meanwhile can we not move on with the local governance study and get broader representation on Salt Spring?

Paul Marcano
AKA Artist3d