Published once a week in Palmer, Alaska, for the Mat
anuska Valley Farmers’ Co-operating Association, for
the purpose of giving news of the Association’s work,
problems and accomplishments.
IT WON'T HURT----MUCH
At the last meeting of the Palmer City Council, it was decided to pre
sent the voters of Palmer with a sales tax resolution, to bo voted upon
by the citizons of our fair city on July 10th. Evidently the boys have
found out that this great imaginary fund that the new City was supposed
to be able to draw on for needed improvements, was pure imagination,
and now aro finding out what everyone else knew, that everything in
life has a price, and someone has to pay the "Fiddler." This fact was
probably painful--because the same people who were going to get grants
of funds to build all the wonderful projects that were to bring Palmer
into full bloom in five years and add llj.,150 people (you count thorn) to
our population--now find that some one has to pay for this grand idea,
so it is to be saddled on the consumers of services and merchandise in
this area.
The sales tax is considered the most vicious tax that has been in
vented in modern history; it taxes the people v/ho are the least able to
pay, and helps "old money-bags" add to his holdings without the addi
tional cost the sales tax places on the little property owner. Already,
some of our super-politicians are stating that the sales tax will be
practically painless; that it won’t cost any one very much. This is a
line of reasoning that will not bear inspection. But, much to our sur
prise a lot of people are falling for it and it may pass the voter ap
proval if it- isn't punctured in time for the election.
To get an idea as to how much it will cost, wo would like to state
that it would have cost the patrons of the Co-op over twenty thousand
dollars last year, and it will be a lot more this year at 2.% on gross
sales. Then, when you add another 10 mill school tax and a possible 20
mill city property tax, besides auto and business taxes, it will prob
ably amount to over thirty-five thousand dollars per year. Now, wo
wonder who will pay this, and have it figured out about like this. It
will bo the consumers who purchase from the various departments. These
are made up principally from} first, the farmers in the Matanuska Vall
ey: second, the employees of the Co-op, and then, the people of Palmer
and the surrounding country, along with the tourists and other tran
sients who will make up a small part of the whole. The farmors will
hive to pay the bulk of the tax becauso they are the largest income
group in the Valley. The Co-op will probably distribute about $750*000
to the farmors, and the Co-op employees v/ill get over $300,000. This
will mean that about 90$ of this money v/ill be spent right here in Fal
mer; or close to a hundred thousand dollars per month. This may be
chicken feed to our local politicians, but seems to us like real money.
There may bo some kind of an anesthetic that will produce the right
kind of feeling so that it won't bo painful, but we haven't been able
to find it yet. It just causes the most excruciating pain that we have
ever experienced, to pay good honest money to be used for experimenting
by little politicians who are so anxious to make a name for themsolves,
that they v/ould use the last dollar that you and I have, to promote
something that they are probably doubtful about, and would not givo one
cent of their own monoy to finance (if they couldn't get yours to do
most of the job.)
Par bo it from us to discourage anyone who i3 trying to develop a new
community in an orderly way; but we must protest when it becomes necess
ary to literally take the food out of children's mouths, to put through
some visionary plan thought out by inexperienced men who want to do
somothing--and don't know how far to go or what to do.
This is one project that will not only "sock tho Co-op", but will
sock a lot of other people who are trying to make a living and get a
hoad. Why now take it easy and be reasonable? Let us not try to lift
ourselves by our own bootstraps. Take a little more time to plan and
build on a firm financial basis. Don't kill "tho goose that lays the
golden eggs." , C.R.R.