Write Direction: One of those days by John Blackbourne

I WOKE up this morning feeling cynical.

Yes, it was one of those days when the morning news said that the government is to provide cheaper electricity for all its citizens.

When I listened a bit longer, it said we would all be getting our electricity with a saving of $64 per year.

Wow. Wasn’t that exciting news, but I had been hearing something similar for at least two years, and it had not yet happened.

“Hope springs internal” the old saying said but I was still engulfed by doubt.

What happens when the government’s tax on fuel for our cars runs its discounted time & reverts to its full attack on our vehicles’ running expenses?

The alleged electricity saving for the year would then be overrun by petrol price rises for our two cars in the first month.

But “oh no” there is still more to worry about. I thought that we were to expect higher electricity bills due to the constant need to effect repairs to our run-down poles and wires of their transmission lines.

Plus, the further need to finance newly planned transmission lines for these new solar farm installations which are supposed to save us more money because their power is less expensive than the present coal fired production method.

Well, good luck with all of that is what I heard at the coffee shop this morning. Don’t tell me that there could be others feeling cynical too.

Surely this is just another reason why the voting intentions of the general public, as detailed by recent opinion polls, say that a high proportion of voters are simply fed up with the grossly cynical spin of governments.

Next, we are likely to be told that getting “second hand” AUKUS subs will be a great deal after our government has committed billions of dollars to American manufacturing facilities in order for them to build us new ones.

I wonder if our contract has a refund policy for that change of mind?

It probably doesn’t really matter because it is only taxpayers’ money providing that largess and should help us reach that magical one trillion-dollar deficit that we appear to be in such a hurry to achieve.

Because it’s nearly tax time, I hope my fellow voters might get the opportunity to visit their accountant so they can ask him if racking up losses to that level is a good idea and if reverting to secondhand equipment might be a sound way for governments to solve their funding dilemma.

By John BLACKBOURN