Editor,
As the official non-mayor of Carmel, I hereby authorize my fellow-Carmelitarians to capitalize on the rare opportunity to use the Rule of Five Zeroes.
It goes like this: Our population is estimated at 100,000. That’s a 1 with 5 zeroes (for slow readers). That means, whenever you see official estimates in the millions, just erase 5 zeroes and you know what per-capita costs are involved. How it works:
$101 million in new bonds — $1,010 per man, woman and child Carmeleons.
$25 million for land acquisition for an elite hotel, etc. — $250 apiece.
$10 million to lure that hotel — $100 from each Carmelodian pocket.
$3-5 million for a merry-go-round — $30-50 per person (no information on how many rides each gets).
Rule of Five Zeroes.
Magic.
Bill Shaffer, Carmel
