Doug Pensinger wrote:
>
> Why does the richest, most powerful, most privileged society in the
> history of mankind object so vehemently to investing in the
> infrastructure that sustains them?
>
> Why, rather than insisting on a smaller government, don't we insist
> on a _better_ government?
At the *local* level, anyway, I'd be happier if the government could
figure out how to achieve the same ends in a more money-efficient
manner.
Of course, it doesn't help those paying taxes to the City of Austin that
millions are spent regularly on studies to figure out how to get
something done, and that on at least one occasion, after an election had
been held for the city voters to give their input into something, the
city council dithered for another 5-10 years to do more "studies" and
ended up *not* doing what the voters had originally charged them to do.
This is not a money-efficient manner for getting *anything* done.
Now, I wouldn't mind personally paying a little more in county taxes for
the county-maintained roads to be in somewhat better shape; on the way
to my house, you can tell just where the county line is, by where the
smoother paving job and double-yellow line down the middle of the road
ends, to be replaced by a slightly coarser (and noticeably darker)
surface with nothing painted onto it. That's a piece of infrastructure
I'd really like to see improved. (Now, the county-maintained roads that
get a lot more traffic are nicer, so I may be being incredibly parochial
in my complaint.)
Parts of the national govenrnment could probably use some overhauling to
become more efficient. I don't mind paying the taxes so much as seeing
how they're *wasted* on some things. (Think forcing certain military
equipment on a branch of the armed forces that doesn't *want* that
particular thing, just to keep a factory open in a certain district or
state....)
Julia
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