Open Forum

How is a voter to be kept well informed if our newspapers write incomplete or misleading articles? "Minnesota cities, counties with local taxes" is such an article.

I have always disliked local sales taxes because far too often they are merely efforts to force the traveling public to pay for things the locals feel they need but they don't want to pay for themselves.

I recently stayed at a motel in Bloomington where I was charged a 6.5 percent state tax and 6.0 percent local tax. Bloomington wasn't even listed as having a local tax. Your article said that St. Paul has a 1/2 percent sales tax and a 1/2 percent use tax, yet I stayed in a hotel and was charged a room tax of 7 percent and an occupant tax of 6 percent for a total of 13 percent.

I don't think people realize just how much they are being forced to pay in taxes; and you can bet that if a new stadium is built that many of us will have to pay taxes for it, even though we don't want it.

Leonard Zimmer

Walker

Get a grip!

This letter is in response to a recent letter concerning gas pricing. Get a grip buddy! Gas stations do price their gas according to the price they buy it at. Some stations, who pump large volumes, will get tankers in every day, so their price could change every day.

I'd like you to name one other business that makes such a low percentage on their product. Station owners are lucky to make six cents a gallon, (right now, that's less than 7percent!) just to stay competitive. Most other retailers are making 40-50 percent or more. There is no greed involved, just people trying to make a living. You feel a tear coming on? My tears are for people who speak of things they no nothing about.

Korli Keller

Pillager