OK, who is standing for the Community Council?

[NickB]

.
If there are less than five candidates then we lose our Community Council.

If there are less than ten there is no election.

[longshanks]

Sorry folks.
Should have posted earlier but my internet connection has been down for the last week due a cocked up switch from Orange internet to BT internet.
The fact is, despite previously saying I would stand (and tremendous private and public support from the likes of NickB, Mona, the Pirate, Seventh, Blubber and the Viking) I, reluctantly, have decided not to stand. I won't register this as a vote on the poll as the not standing option is rather superfluous.
My reason is that the position lasts for four years and I am currently actively planning to emigrate* from the U.K. So it would be wrong to be elected and then stand down shortly after.
Longshanks
* to a place which is not fiscally bankrupt, which has a fair taxation system, where the government does not interefere with our freedom of choice, which is not a nanny state, where there is no pc rubbish, which is warmer and drier, and where traditional christian values are still respected.
G'Day

[Eric the Viking]

Enjoy your new life on the moon and don't eat too much green cheese

[NickB]

.
A worryingly low number are saying they will definitely stand. However, I expect some of the existing CC - who are not all avid users of this forum - will also have put themselves forward.

It would be nice to think that there will be plenty of candidates from all walks of island life to form the next CC - or will we end up with either no CC or a predictable handful of well-meaning retired folk?

[longshanks]

.
A worryingly low number are saying they will definitely stand.

I wouldn't worry Mr Admin sir.
You may be suffering the delusion that everyone on these islands regularly use the internet, let alone log into this website.
I would guess that at the most there are only 15 to 20 people here who are semi-active on this forum.
That's about 3% of our population.
So three candidates from a tiny group of people is pretty good. Who knows how many of the 97%, who never visit this website, will be standing?
Like I said, stop worrying.

Soothing Shanks (not standing by choice)

[longshanks]

Enjoy your new life on the moon

Oh, you old cynic Eric.
A good reason to leave the U.K is our level of debt.
1. We now owe just under one trillion pounds.
Interest will have to paid on this each year and the debt will have to be repaid (The Treasury borrows money by selling Gilts, all have a redemption date, some up to 30 years but the vast majority are less than ten years.)
To service and repay the debt we face a future here of:
either
much higher taxation.
or
drastically cut services
or
drastically cut public sector pay and pensions
or
Government induced very high inflation
or
a mix of the above.
2. In addition (off balance sheet) we have a future public sector, and state, pension liability of another trillion pounds.
3. And (!) the taxpayer has insured toxic liabilities amounting to half a trillion pounds from The Royal Bank of Scotland, Halifax Bank of Scotland, Northern Rock, Dunfermile Building Society, Alliance and Leicester, and Bradford and Bingley.
Quality of life in the UK is bound to suffer dramatically over the next ten or so years. My feeling is "get out while you can".
Of course there are other factors in my decision such as:
Surveillance Society
Erosion of Freedom of Speech and Freedom of Choice
etc, etc.
Plus I fancy living where the climate is much more pleasant.

Cobber Shanks (realistic by choice)

[NickB]

You may be suffering the delusion that everyone on these islands regularly use the internet, let alone log into this website.

Not really . . . you have a point.

However, the 'views' figures for threads - plus my own conversations with people - suggest that for every active poster on here there are probably at least four people who read it but don't post. Of course, they probably don't vote in polls either. That was the point of the Open Polls section which allowed people to vote without being signed in, but I still can't think of any way to set that up to avoid abuse from determined poll-riggers.

On the bright side, even if only 3% of us are active on here then we are much livelier than Oban, where active users of the OT forum seem to make up less than 0.25% of the population. I think that says a lot about the vibrancy of this community.

[Seil Blubber]

will we end up with either no CC or a predictable handful of well-meaning retired folk?

Or a few local landowners with their own planning issues uppermost in their minds?

[Seil Blubber]

A good reason to leave the U.K is our level of debt.

So you spend the first few decades of your life helping to run up the debt then bail out when you are asked to pay some tax, leaving the rest of us to help pay your share.

[longshanks]

we are much livelier than Oban, where active users of the OT forum seem to make up less than 0.25% of the population.

Interesting.
I don't look at the OT forum (well, I did when it started but found that the Longshanks name had already been registered so I thought to hell with it).
I agree, I had a quick look just now. Very few postings for a town of Oban's size and very few threads which are of much interest. Saw some familiar names on the memberlist, though.

Loyal Shanks (backing SeilChat by choice)