Dear Sirs: The readers of The Covington News have been inundated with several articles, advertisements, and columns the last few weeks on why passing SPLOST on March 15 is such a good and needed thing.

And honestly, I must give kudos to the pro-SPLOST forces for their political savvy and success with framing the issue in a way that virtually guarantees passage — either pass this or see your property taxes go up. That’s a no-brainer, right? There does exist, however, another scenario: SPLOST does not pass and property taxes do not go up. How does this happen? It’s simple. We hold the feet of our elected officials to the fire and demand that more spending cuts are made, more redundant positions and departments are eliminated, and public salaries and benefits begin to become more in line with their private-sector counterparts.

With all that said, SPLOST looks set to pass and it’s really just as well. I say this because I really don’t have any confidence in the aforementioned scenario ever happening. If SPLOST fails, we will likely see property taxes go up. However, with real estate values still tumbling, we will most likely see de facto increases in the future anyway. But that’s another discussion for another time.

I’m planning on exercising my civic duty in two weeks and most likely being a part of the losing side. And that’s OK. I will walk out of my polling precinct with my head held high knowing that I made a principled vote.