Talk About Bad Priorities - State Level Political Class Insanity

It is no secret that state governments in this country are mostly in very bad financial shape. Revenue shortfalls, outsized pension and health benefit expenses for state government retirees, higher than merited state government employee wages, etc. have caused state governments and the politicians that operate them to cut back on essential services including medical, educational, and other social programs. One would hope that in the face of such economic straits, that all state level politicians were focused on solving the financial problems and finding ways to do more with less.

However, hope is never a good assumption to use when discussing the American political class. Today's post proves that again. It is an easy post to write since the bulk of it comes from an outstanding article by Esme E. Deprez, writing in the May 30, 2011 issue of Business Week. The article went through some recent state government actions which I have compared to the current financial crisis situation within that state:

• Arizona is facing a $1 billion budget shortfall, which is about 11.5% of its entire budget, but recently passed legislation that named the Colt single action revolver as the official state firearm. This was after conducting debate on the Colt vs. other weapons.
• Maine is about 16% short in its budget needs in fiscal 2012 but recently passed legislation that named the whoopie pie as the official state treat. This was a compromise name since the same legislators also wanted to make the wild Maine blueberry pie the official state dessert.
• New York is in really bad shape with a $10 billion and 19% budget deficit but is working hard in debating whether sweet corn or the onion should be the state's official state vegetable.
• North Carolina has a $2.4 billion and 13% budget deficit but the state government has been busy making NASCAR the official state sport and gold the official state mineral.
• Not to be outdone, Texas, with a $13.4 billion and 31% deficit, has been really busy, naming western swing as the state's official music, the Mexican three tailed bat as the official state flying mammal, and the Dutch oven as the state's official cooking implement (you cannot make this stuff up!). By the way, the Dutch oven is also popular in Utah where the state legislature took time to make it the official state cooking pot.
• Oklahoma has a half a billion dollar shortfall but has busy making "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" the state's official gospel song.
• Wisconsin has a budget deficit of $1.8 billion and 13% deficit but is weighing the legislative option of naming the cream puff as the official state dessert.

Unbelievable but not unexpected. We have reviewed the bad priorities of the Federal political class many times. We have discussed how Federal taxpayer money has been spent to study when dogs became man's best friend, to replace windows in a visitor's center at Mount St. Helen's that has been closed for years and is unlikely to ever reopen, to study bugs on an island off the coast of Africa, etc. despite record levels of national debt. Expecting the state level political class to have the right priorities is just to much to expect.

The ship is sinking, financially speaking, but the politicians in state office either do not have the ability or stomach to fix the leaks. They would rather focus on the trivial rather than the traumatic. Pathetic. These are just another set of examples of why the political process changes proposed in "Love My Country, Loathe My Government" are so important to implement. Those currently serving need to be replaced by people that will focus on what is important and pressing, even if it means the state has to go without an official flying mammal, an official dessert, an official song or a an official mineral.

Which leaves just on unanswered question: why are state level politicians so concerned about honoring Dutch ovens?


Our book, "Love My Country, Loathe My Government - Fifty First Steps To Restoring Our Freedom And Destroying The American Political Class" is now available at http://www.loathemygovernment.com/. It is also available online at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Please pass our message of freedom onward. Let your friends and family know about our websites and blogs, ask your library to carry the book, and respect freedom for both yourselves and others everyday.


Please visit the following sites for freedom:

http://www.loathemygovernment.com/
http://www.cato.org/
http://www.robertringer.com
http://realpolichick.blogspot.com
http://www.flipcongress2010.com/
http://www.reason.com/
http://www.repealamendment.com