Don't Balance It On My Account.

Boy, one thing I like to hear is that a state is balancing it's budget and not raising taxes. And ya know what? Most states are doing a pretty good job at it. Oh, some states still have a ways to go, but the important thing is, they're trying and succeeding. There are just a few things that bother me about that though. I just read that a lot of states are balancing their budgets by means that aren't necessarily in the peoples best interests. Take state parks as an example. Millions of people visit state parks each year and especially in these difficult economic times, they're visiting even more. Well that is, if their favorite state parks are still open and still providing all their services. Now it's true, most wealthy folks don't bother with state parks too much. they're too busy jetting off to here or there for vacations in the Caribbean or the French Riviera, or Paris in the spring, or Vail in the winter, but then they're only about one percent of the people. So if the state governments close or curtail state parks, it doesn't hurt the rich. But it does hurt the rest of us. So why is it so important to close state parks? In order to save money, shrink government and not raise taxes on the wealthy. Well, that seems like the honorable thing to do. Do you suppose those folks would have gotten elected if they had campaigned on the promise to close state parks? Eh, maybe not, but it didn't hurt to promise not to raise taxes on the oil and gas industry, at least in Pennsylvania. And state parks aren't the only areas of savings that bother me a bit. I think the absolute worst place to cut, is in education. But then I didn't get elected to any state government. Come to think of it, I didn't run. Come to realize it, I should have run. Not that I would have won election, but at least then I wouldn't feel so guilty about not showing more interest in what happens in capitals all over the country. As it is, not raising taxes hasn't solved all our problems. It hasn't paid down the debt and deficit all over the country, it hasn't put folks back to work, it hasn't spurred wealthy folks to grow jobs in industries, or very much anywhere else. But one thing a lot of people can say. They can say they won't be going to their favorite state park this weekend.