I see your argument more clearly now... I guess it's an unfortunate result of disparities in the poorest living conditions between countries. The poorest x% of

I see your argument more clearly now... I guess it's an unfortunate result of disparities in the poorest living conditions between countries. The poorest x% of people in Canada probably live better than the poorest x% of people in South Africa (the only country I can imagine that fits your stats above). If government officials were putting in granite countertops in housing developments in South Africa, I'd be up in arms too. In Canada, and on a scale as small as Medicine Hat, they can probably afford, both literally and figuratively, to put nice finishes in public/subsidized housing developments. (Especially if that money is earmarked for local purposes and can't be sent elsewhere. I guess "Collect local (taxes), spend local" isn't too bad of a motto.)