Words that should be banned: Commonweath Games
Cats: banned words|Because enough is enough!
Yes, Nova Scotia has a black eye after the Commonwealth bid failure.
Yes, the political leadership here is spectacularly uninspired.
Yes, the Commonwealth bid committee sold a bill of goods when they got us into the bid by saying the games would cost $500 million when in fact the number was closer to $1.7 billion.
Yes, the bid committee treated taxpayers like dupes rather than stakeholders.
Yes, Nova Scotia is aging, facing population stagnation and out-migration, experiencing high taxation compared to other jurisdictions, suffering one of the highest obesity rates in the world, lacking recreational facilities, unable to offer university graduates jobs that will sustain student loan payments.
Yes, Nova Scotia is an insular culture anchored in the past, unwelcoming to new immigrants, resistant to new ideas, and suspicious of the enterprise culture that will generate the jobs, larger tax base and population growth to get us out of this mess.
Yes, all of this is true. And yes, the Commonwealth Games bid has shone a light on the deficiencies.
So now, for the sake of everyone’s mental and physical health, let’s do something about it other than hand wringing. Let’s stop talking about the Commonwealth Games and save ourselves from ourselves.
