[Winona Online Democracy]
While most of us are not apposed to taxes, fees or whatever form they take, our disagreements are more on the spending of the money. Fighting the collection is to some the vehicle to protest the way, and result that has come from the money invested. The difficult task is to try to avoid losing focus on what is the intended outcome. When the outcomes or results are clear then the funding becomes easier to achieve. If the outcome becomes clouded by the process, by enlargement of the issue to include compensation, then control of the process provides turf to defend and stagnation to be the winner.
Fire Departments put out and help prevent fires and save lives. Their mission is clear. Do schools need to have Fire Departments? No If Street Departments have the responsibly to clear the streets of Snow and Ice then why does the schools need to also provide similar services around their buildings and parking lots. That is General Fund expense money that can be used in the class room. Duplication of services? Inefficiency? Wasted Taxes? If the schools needed law enforcement in their parking lots shouldn't that be the city's law enforcement not a General Fund expense. Shouldn't transportation, buses, be a city issue not the schools? Is not "public transportation" assigned to cities? Should not the heavy load of social services assumed by the schools be directed or funded by the counties who have that primary roll? Subsidized meals, Community Education functions. Yes, there needs to be cooperation but the roll of schools is so broad that it hurts their funding and the clarity of their educational mission, in the broader public eye. Libraries could be a place to start. If we can save money by all government units "doing their thing" avoiding duplication of services resulting in more bang for the buck and greater focus and clarity on their primary missions? Would that not make it easier to focus added revenues to the specific units of government who have clearer tasks and easier identifiable responsibilities? In my opinion schools should be 100% paid for by income taxes thus in the long haul the investment always pre-funds education expenses for future generations. Library operations should be part a of the schools and funded by a combination of user fees and income taxes. The library does not "add value to my property" and thus should not be paid for by property taxes. Paul Double -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Scott Lowery Sent: Saturday, January 01, 2005 11:23 AM Gee, it seems like this is a microcosm of the larger picture of government funding for schools, human services, and public infrastructure in general. So here's my question for everyone on this New Year's Day: are we as a culture/society (1) willingly and consciously going down the path of reducing public services (as well as scaling back our collective sense of responsibility for meeting human needs), or are we (2) being led down that path by disingenuous public leadership and by our collective unwillingness to look beyond the immediate gratification of reduced taxes? Scott Lowery _______________________________________________ This message was posted to Winona Online Democracy All messages must be signed by the senders actual name. No commercial solicitations are allowed on this list. To manage your subscription or view the message archives, please visit http://mapnp.mnforum.org/mailman/listinfo/winona Any problems or suggestions can be directed to mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] If you want help on how to contact elected officials, go to the Contact page at http://www.winonaonlinedemocracy.org
<<attachment: winmail.dat>>
_______________________________________________ This message was posted to Winona Online Democracy All messages must be signed by the senders actual name. No commercial solicitations are allowed on this list. To manage your subscription or view the message archives, please visit http://mapnp.mnforum.org/mailman/listinfo/winona Any problems or suggestions can be directed to mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] If you want help on how to contact elected officials, go to the Contact page at http://www.winonaonlinedemocracy.org
