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[pct-l] Sec. N (and tax cuts!)
- Subject: [pct-l] Sec. N (and tax cuts!)
- From: playing.thru at verizon.net (Playing Thru)
- Date: Mon Jun 30 19:48:25 2003
Sorry, but a recent post hit a nerve. This is probably not the right forum for this, but I didn't start it.
Bear with me. I promise to bring it back on the right subject toward the end.
Aren't tax cuts great! No they probably are not, but I think they are better than the alternative.
Just a few years ago there were budget surpluses in the just about every state and the Fed. Today
just about every state is in the red and facing some serious budget problems. The Fed is always in
the red, but that is for another discussion. Ever wonder how this happens? When politicians have
money, they spend it. When they spend it, the size of government increases. And when the
economy turned and those surpluses dried up, they had to find a way to keep all their pet
politicians programs. So they try to raise taxes, fees, and increase every source of government
income possible. When this is not enough, they start cutting services. But, not those pet
programs. They cut where the public feels the pain. Ever wonder why when a tax cut or bond
issue is on the ballot we are told that if funds are taken away police and fire protection will suffer?
Or schools? Or, in this cause, the NFS and NPS?
In my opinion, the only way to reduce government pork is to reduce the money supply to them. I
kept track of all the taxes I paid one year. I mean all taxes; income, property, sales, utility,
gasoline, user fees; Recreational Fee Demo Programs (again, for another discussion), etc.. ALL
taxes! It came out to more than 61 % of my income. I suggest you try it sometime. You might be
surprised at how much of your work day is spent supporting government. For the record, I live in
California, which some of the highest taxes in the country.
Yes, don't forget to vote. Please. Unfortunately, we choose the politician and are rely on her/him
to make the correct decisions on how the money is spent. I am waiting for the day when the
Internet is prevalent enough where the people can vote on government bills. Then all we will need
politicians for is to write the bills. They wouldn't even need to be employed full-time (some might
say they aren't now). The money we save of their salaries could be used for something like.... trail
maintenance.
On the subject of trail maintenance and smart spending. I agree trails need to be maintained, but I
think this needs to be done sensibly. When I hike a trail that has a 8 foot wide swath cut through
the brush I have to wonder, do these trails really need to be "maintained" to this extent and who is
the intended user. The brush is has been cut is thrown in unnatural heaps on the side of the trail
where it dries and becomes a fire hazard. Trails maintained in this manor take away from the
wilderness experience, are ugly, and cost us all more than they should. I even think some of the
blow downs need to be left in place. It would keep the mountain bikers off the trails. Hikers can
go over most blow downs. Having to get off a bike and carry it over obstacles several times
would probably discourage most mountain bikers.
When I described the PCT to a good friend in the Yukon, he asked me a couple of times "Is it a
route or a trial?" In the Yukon, maintain trails are few and far between. Most are "maintained" by
frequency of use. Of course, there typically is not the amount of under brush in the Yukon as
there is in some of the states, but he did start me questioning the over maintenance and over
engineering of some of the trails in US.
Just... "Playing Thru".