What would selling Enmax mean, some of the practical consequences: Two Perspectives. As a Calgarian. As an Enmaxian, employee or director.
As a Calgarian
Let me assume that we could sell Enmax for $5.0 Billion. That would mean $5,000 per person. Every man, woman and child would receive $5,000. That would fund college educations, apprenticeships, new cars, renovated family rooms, new furniture or desks for the kids homework, holidays, family times and other wonderful things. Or simply, for some, warm clothes and shoes. Wow, what a great thing to do.
And with several months’ lead time, charities would organize campaigns to ask the rich who don’t need the money to assign it to them. In fact, we could have a box in the payment form under which richer and more prosperous recipients could direct payment to charities. Matching funding could be arranged to draw even more money into the charitable sector. In fact, we could see such a wave of giving that we could cease City funding for many departments of social work, whose mission could be much better fulfilled by NGO’s.
Of course, there is the chance that someone will suggest that we allow our civic politicians to manifest their Oedipus complex with new C-Trains, public art, or other such things. But if we are smart, we might think of these like charities and encourage people to direct their share to the C-Train fund or the public art fund, and allow the common folk to exercise their ownership rights.
Then some might think to themselves, “ I like owning a bad ass utility like Enmax, I am going to get some shares in that company.” Well so be it! Like the Enmax motto says “You have the right to choose.”
Other posts on Enmax:
- What would life be like if Calgary sold Enmax?
- You Should not be forced to own Enmax
- What would selling Enmax mean? Perspective 2
- The canary was dead: to begin with
Image: Flickr CC Josh Tintner: Money, Give me Money