Thursday, November 10, 2016

Once More Unto the Breach



Given the remarkable results of the November 8, 2016 elections, it's high time to resurrect this thing and start shining the old spotlight again on areas where the local press, such as it is, falls down flat on its face by failing to ask the right questions of the right people at the right time and then following up relentlessly.


If the latest fiasco of an election has proven anything, it's that the American Fourth Estate has devolved into a fourth-rate amateur hour affair where solidly informing the citizenry of pertinent facts takes a backseat to the reporting of the unimportant and irrelevant. Some "news" sources can't even point to the insidious 24-hour news cycle as the cause, as they've become outright propaganda organs that simply masquerade as journalistic endeavors. We all know the usual suspects on this score.


So, in solemn recognition of this disturbing state of affairs, I think it's time to invent a new dance. It shall be called...


The Lynnwood Shakedown!


If you think I'm kidding, you'd be mistaken. I'm still working out the details but the various dance moves will allude to the numerous inventive ways in which dollars are hoovered right out of your wallet by the local gubmint.


For starters... well, where to begin? There is much to discuss regarding the latest raft of graft on our ballots, but I'll start with Lynnwood Transportation Benefit District Proposition No. 1, which was on your ballot if you live in our fair city. It passed with almost 57% of the vote per the county auditor.


It's estimated that it will generate an additional $2 million per year and be dedicated to transportation improvements as enumerated in the link above (routine maintenance, operations, construction, etc. that are related to transportation).


Now, one would think that before shaking down the locals for yet more cash, some belt-tightening would take place in the form of scuttling unnecessary programs.


Right?


You know where this is going.


Last I heard, Lynnwood University was still going strong. (If you're unfamiliar with this, exercise your Google kungfu and magic it up and then ask yourself if this is a necessary function of government and a wise expenditure of scarce taxpayer dollars).


I'd love nothing more than to furnish a dollar figure for you so you could see what this costs yearly, and then calculate what percentage of $2 million dollars that is so you could see how much less they could be shaking you down for. Alas, I couldn't find such a dollar figure. For some mysterious reason it doesn't seem to be broken out for inquiring minds in the latest city budget. Why on earth do you suppose that might be the case? Perhaps it escaped my eyes and one of you can point me towards it in the comments section below.