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Who wins with reduced hours at the library?

Take a read and you decide
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Sadly, politics always come down to the numbers.

It starts with numbers. The person who received the most number of votes - wins.

The resolution that received the most number of people voting for it - wins.

But everyone must ask themselves who wins when the number of hours at the library is set to be cut.

Is it the children who attend programming that will certainly have some cuts made to it as well?

The people who find not only books they’d like to read but also a sense of belonging as they socialize with the librarians or other patrons - are they the winners?

What about those that use the internet at the library to stay connected to loved ones or stay informed of what’s going on here in the Lower Similkameen, the country and the rest of the world. Their source of access to internet without being hassled by a business owner is now limited even further so they are definitely not the winners here.

To that end the hundreds of workers that come to the area to work our agriculture sector are not winners either. Often a library is a safe haven for them. A place to sit down, enjoy the air conditioning after a hot day or hard work, connect with people at home, just be. They’re not the winners in this numbers game either.

Who is it then?

The staff that have lost their jobs during this time of flux at the library?

The residents of the Similkameen that have lost a wonderful programming person that hosted dozens and dozens of activities at the library over the years?

Certainly not them.

So it must be the taxpayer that saved $5 to $10 a year (less than 50 cents to less than a $1 a month).

Doubtful they won. They no longer have access to as many wonderful programs at the library that they can attend or take their grandchildren too. And it’s possible other social programs could cost more as the library is much more than a place to take out books.

That only leaves the politicians.

The politician that gets to boast he did not raise taxes to keep hours of operation the same at the Keremeos library could be a possible winner.

But will he be the next time he’s looking for the numbers at the polling station?

That’s up for you to decide.

-T.B.