POLITICS-Amidst the crazy-talk about how Southerners who align themselves to the Confederate Flag are all KKK-sympathizers (they're not, but a new Southern Heritage flag is needed that doesn't alienate black Americans), and amidst the crazy-talk about how those wanting the Confederate flag really also hate the American Flag (they're not, but racists like Farrakhan do), we're STILL dancing around the key issue that infuriates voters/taxpayers: WHERE IS OUR TAX MONEY GOING, AND IS IT BEING SPENT WELL?
There are those among us who are Obama-Zombies and Obama-Haters who are inherently part of the problem, and some of them may be reading this: again, YOU are part of the problem. This Red/Blue state divide has gone beyond "agreeing with, but no fawning clone of" the President or "disagreeing with, but no religiously-fervent hater" of the President.
There are too many clones and fervent haters, when instead there should be issues for adults to confront.
Among them is our political and fiscal and bureaucratic issues surrounding health care, which the Supreme Court opted to back out of and the political and fiscal and bureaucratic issues surrounding education, defense, our socioeconomic safety net...and transportation/infrastructure.
Without the vital transportation/infrastructure that is the floor of our civilization's house, everything atop of it crashes. Forget the environment, safety/security/defense, clean air and water, our economy, and our quality of life.
And the GOP and Democrats are both really lousy at doing it right. And if you think that only "the other party" is part of the problem, then maybe you're kind of lousy, to boot.
For example, while probably presidential hopeful and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has rightfully taken on the predatory public sector unions destroying his state's economy and ability to provide services to the citizenry (which sooner or later will happen here, by the way, either via the proposition/ballot measure or via gubernatorial politicts), but Walker has infuriated both Republicans and Democrats alike on transportation.
Building roadwork on loans...again, Governor Walker? That is by far too often the GOP way of doing things: bonding, and borrowing, and making our children and grandchildren pay for OUR infrastructure needs...when it's clearly been shown time and again that--when presented the right way, and implemented the right way, and funded the right way--taxpayers WILL pay for roads, sewers, bridges, water pipes, rail lines, etc.
The "no new taxes" just won't work, and that's why bipartisan and broad geographic consent is building within Congress for more local input and federal relief for the transportation/infrastructure projects that cities and counties know best that they need.
But before we pile on Governor Walker too much for his history of killing high-speed rail and avoiding new taxes, it's safe to equally pile on California Governor Brown and his history of ramming high-speed rail funding through at over twice the promised cost, and with a lower speed than promised when the high-speed rail bonding measure was barely passed by the voters, and at the expense of voter-preferred transportation projects, like:
1) Airport/rail connections, such as Metrolink/Caltrain service and construction to link our airports and rail systems for both freight and passenger service.
2) Freeway alternatives such as those rail projects which Metro and other transportation agencies are proposing.
3) A series of fiscal and tax-incentive encouragements for individuals and businesses to telecommute and use off-hour commuting.
4) Expediting train/port freight projects, and requiring off-peak-hour truck service, to minimize the competition for our roads between trucks and cars.
5) An open and honest discussion of when adding freeway lanes, and demanding that developers and municipalities adhere to CEQA and environmental laws, are needed in order to improve our environment.
6) An open and honest discussion of when building dams and reservoirs are required before we can encourage more migration and development in the Golden State.
7) An open and honest discussion of when salt-water desalination, alternative energy sources, and the like are fiscally prudent or just cost-ineffective "feel good" and unscientifically proven ideas.
Oh, and by the way, Governor Brown? Your own record on taxes, confronting predatory public sector unions, and explaining why the citizenry will have to pay taxes TWICE or THRICE for the transportation/infrastructure and education they paid for really, really, REALLY stinks.
I've met enough people locally who are moving out of state, and have met enough ex-Californians on my vacations abroad who did move, to know that anyone cozying up to Governor Brown, the state's public sector unions (particularly the educational unions, who have harmed children in more ways than it's possible to ennumerate), and our lousy way of rewarding hard work and fiscal discipline, have no business throwing stones at Governor Walker of Wisconsin, or any other fiscal conservative of either party.
Just wait until BOTH Democratic and Republican mayors of BOTH Northern and Southern California find a way to get past the public sector unions and get a series of limiting proposals to allow taxpayers to have "taxation with representation".
Those ballot measures will pass faster than you can say "Proposition 13 redux".
Furthermore, the problems of overdevelopment, ignoring environmental law, the catering to the 1%, the smashing of our economy, and the inability to spend transportation/infrastructure funding is hardly the bailiwick of the GOP. The face of the Democratic Party has "guilt" spelled all over it for the overaccumulation of the homeless problem in our Southern California region, and the associated human waste accosting our oceans.
The GOP might not say or do the right things, but the Democratic Party is as much if not more responsible for our economic and environmental problems than the GOP.
And if that statement troubles you, Dear Reader, then perhaps one can ask who dominates our state, county and city governments in our once-Golden State.
And the "1%" is divided about equally between non-caring, aloof Republicans and naive, guilty and equally-aloof Democrats by every analysis that's been performed--particularly in California.
So let's cut the partisan garbage, shall we? Doing the right thing fiscally, environmentally, scientifically, and with the right budgetary priorities is something that the GOP and Democratic Parties both do all wrong.
And our lousy transportation/infrastructure funding, and our lousy economy (great for the upper classes, yet horrible for the middle class, my partisan neighbors), and our lousy economy is proof-positive of just that.
(Ken Alpern is a Westside Village Zone Director and Board member of the Mar Vista Community Council (MVCC), previously co-chaired its Planning and Outreach Committees, and currently is Co-Chair of its MVCC Transportation/Infrastructure Committee. He is co-chair of the CD11Transportation Advisory Committee and chairs the nonprofit Transit Coalition, and can be reached at [email protected] He also does regular commentary on the Mark Isler Radio Show on AM 870, and co-chairs the grassroots Friends of the Green Line at www.fogl.us. The views expressed in this article are solely those of Mr. Alpern.)
-cw
CityWatch
Vol 13 Issue 52
Pub: Jun 26, 2015
