Published on Monday, August 25, 2003 by the Madison Capital Times
Bush Policies Make Tough Times Tougher
by Dave Zweifel
These are painful times in America.
I see it nearly every day here at the office as a seemingly endless line of public officials, concerned citizens and advocates for the poor, needy and disabled drop in to plead for editorial support for their causes.
The mayor and county executive are telling their department heads to make deep cuts in the services they provide citizens because there simply isn't enough money.
The district attorney and the sheriff plead that deep cuts in their budgets will hurt law enforcement and actually drive up the population in the county jail, which will then cost more money.
The school district has to appeal to the voters in a referendum to get permission to keep class sizes manageable and leaky roofs fixed.
Lifeguards aren't serving public beaches like they once did and weed cutters aren't cutting as much even though portions of our lakes are clogged with growth.
The public works people may have to cut back on snowplowing or brush pickup.
Advocates for the disabled tell us about people languishing on endless waiting lists to get services.
Nonprofits that work with kids to get them a good start on life haven't enough to work with all who need help.
State workers, meanwhile, are getting pink slips and legislators want even deeper cuts in the work force.
All the while, many individual property taxpayers call to say they can't afford to pay any more. And, for heaven's sake, don't touch the income or sales taxes, either.
On top of everything else, health care costs are soaring, eating into meager raises that, if they're lucky, employees are getting from their bosses these days. Millions more are being relegated to the ranks of the uninsured.
Yes, painful times.
Yet we've got billions upon tens of billions to pour into a quagmire of our own making in Iraq. Billions more to develop a pie-in-the-sky missile shield and add even more weapons to our incredible military arsenal.
And hundreds of billions more to give tax cuts to the people who can best afford to pay taxes.
Just thinking of that dichotomy makes it even more painful.
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