More bailout baloney

Enough already!

 

Robert Poole reports in a column in the Wall Street Journal that the United States Conference of Mayors has given Washington a “wish list’ full of “pork” projects as its stimulus request.  The projects include:

 

“A wish list that is 11,391 projects strong! What vital infrastructure projects would cash-strapped taxpayers get for their $73 billion? Here’s a sampling:

- Hercules, Calif., wants $2.5 million in hard-earned taxpayer money for a “Waterfront Duck Pond Park,” and another $200,000 for a dog park.

- Euless, Texas, wants $15 million for the Midway Park Family Life Center, which, you’ll be glad to note, includes both a senior center and aquatic facility.

- Natchez, Miss., “needs” a new $9.5 million sports complex “which would allow our city to host major regional and national sports tournaments.”

- Henderson, Nev., is asking for $20 million to help “develop a 60 acre multi-use sports field complex.”

- Brigham City, Utah, wants $15 million for a sports park.

- Arlington, Texas, needs $4 million to expand its tennis center.

- Miami, Fla., needs $15 million for a “Moore Park Community Center, Tennis Center and Day Care” facility. The city is also desperate for $3.6 million to build a covered basketball court and a new tennis court at Robert King High Park. Then there’s the $94 million Orange Bowl parking garage you are being asked to pay for.

- La Porte, Texas, wants $7.6 million for a “Life Style Center.” And Oakland, Calif., needs $1 million for Fruitvale Latino Cultural and Performing Arts Center.”

Mr. Poole then goes on to point out how the money should be spent instead for much needed infrastructure projects.  His analysis makes a good point – but isn’t the more serious problem why we have so many public leaders in cities and towns who simply lack common sense?

Instinct tells most of us that projects like the above are not what the public expects right now.  Shouldn’t ducks be the last ones who need a bailout?  Aren’t they designed to float naturally, through rain, snow, sleet and hail (like the Post Office which may need a bailout as well.)  It is the rest of us who are in over our heads in living expenses and taxes.

 

Who started to use the term “bailout” to describe what the government is doing?  Doesn’t “bailout” mean to use a bucket to cast water out of a leaking, sinking ship?  When the economic ocean liner is sinking, the government should not be pouring more money into a leaking vessel.  The ship owners need to put their fleet in dry dock for awhile and analyze why the boat developed holes to begin with.  We need fewer yachts – more dinghies will do.

 

Of course, there is another meaning of bail-out.  Like bail out of jail.  When it comes right down to it, we are risking doing just that.  Giving much too much money to people who wasted so much already – increasing temptation, corruption and waste.  Our leaders could not foresee the coming crisis and how their policies set the wheels in motion for the breakdown.  Why do they have the incredible arrogance to think they know the answer now? – and that the answer is to spend more.

 

I fear that all the bailouts are like so many boys each with a finger in a dike.  However, unlike the Hans Brinker story, no one comes and makes permanent repairs.  The government instead mimics private industry by spending money it does not have. Who will be there to bail it out?

 

Who will rescue us from ourselves?

 

Michael D’Angelo

 

Robert Poole – Stimulus Shouldn’t Be an Excuse for Pork

 

US Conference of Mayors Report