Tuesday, October 09, 2007

What's the matter with you people? 

Bike Trail Jim and the trainoholics are now thinking we need to "change public opinion" on a gas tax. Gary reports:
The problem isn�t money; the problem is politicians like Rep. Shuster and Rep. Oberstar whose waste of taxpayers� money is robbing legislatures of the money needed to maintain roads and bridges.

I�ve said before ... that the Shusters and Oberstars of the world need to dramatically reduce the amount of money spent on earmarks. It�s galling to hear them say that We The People need to change. That�s wrong-headed thinking. They need to change. They need to stop piling $24 billion worth of earmarks into Highway Bills. They need to stop funding Bridges to Nowhere with those earmarks. They need to stop using the Highway Trust Fund to build bike trails and interpretive centers.

Of course public opinion is killing them right now. The earmarks just in the 2005 transportation boondoggle (a bipartisan affair signed off by President Bush, to his shame) are enough to give pause to the idea that public opinion is wrong. Before you get more money from taxpayers, you should have an accounting for what you've already taken in. We'd ask no less of our children and their allowance, wouldn't we? Why should politicians be any different?

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