Letter to the Editor, Posted: 11/9/05
TO THE EDITOR:
Like the inevitable outcome of any ìPonsiî scheme, the ìno new taxesî montra has claimed a victim. In the most politically conservative region in our country, conservative politicians and their ìthink tanksî have done, well, the unthinkable.Ý
San Diego, California, the seventh largest city in our country, is financially bankrupt.Ý
While state law may prevent Minnesota government from going bankrupt, the recent Itasca Project research, conducted by Brookings Institute scholars, portends the inevitable bankruptcy of our Minnesota economy.
The editorial board of the Pioneer Press, realizing the credibility of the Brooking Institute and other recent credible findings, lamented in their Nov. 1 editorial titled ìAssessing the cost of stateís deferred maintenance.îÝ
ìIn the current political environment, Minnesota takes baby steps on problems that require Paul Bunyan-sized strides. Thereís a broad consensus that ramping up early childhood education is essential. But resources come in dribs and drabs.Ý
ìThereís broad consensus that the metro transportation system needs bigger fixes, but the politics of taxes and transportation mean incrementalism prevails. Thereís a political hot potato going on in public education finance.î
ìItís up to the voters next year to ask candidates what theyíll do about deferred maintenance on Minnesotaís quality of life that is so well documented and inadequately attended to.îÝ
It is time for the politics of short-sighted incrementalism to be held to account.
Wade Vitalis
Shafer
©ECM Post Review
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