New GiN Feature…Deserving of Darts
Recently the GiN “Whine List” focused on a group of 50 Lincolnites who showed up at a City Council meeting in green shirts to protest the proposed elimination of the City Forester position. For many years running, the City of Lincoln has been running budget deficits.
Unfortunately, too many city voters swallowed the bad information shoveled at them about the arena project and voted to ensure, not only that the City will remain awash in red ink for a very long time, but that essential spending on things such as streets will continue to be deferred. I recommend we all buy by a Big Foot truck and buckle up. Those potholes, ruts, washboards, and chunks of asphalt are here to stay, folks. (Yes, I am ranting about a pet peeve. More on that soon, I absolutely guarantee you.)
We’re up to our eyeballs in debt but have decided to go on a massive spending spree on an arena like a shopaholic on their final binge before filing bankruptcy, and are confronting yet another budget deficit.
- Dart for Mayor Beutler
Mayor Chris Beutler painted himself into a nice little corner by declaring “a cleaner, greener Lincoln” formerly http://www.1011now.com/news/headlines/90319852.htmland in little time at all, proved himself a hypocrite in suggesting the City Forester position be cut. What did he expect, for heaven’s sake? In order for Lincoln to be a model green city we simply MUST have a tree supervisor. The only thing surprising is Beutler’s surprise at being confronted by angry citizens calling him a hypocrite.
Mayor Beutler most assuredly deserves a dart…right on the bullseye.
- Dart for each member of the City Council
In this instance, there are plenty of darts to go around. Lincoln City Government provides a very target rich environment. As Deena Winters reported in her Lincoln Journal Star story on August 10, the City Council spent the bulk of a lengthy meeting on the subject of the City Forester.
From Winters’ report, the time they did not spend on that incredibly important matter was focused on a parade of angry people demanding one program or another not be cut and, drum roll, please…that taxes be increased instead. My favorite quote from the article:
“When you cut StarTran, you cut into people’s lives,” Jeff Altman said. “If you want to raise my taxes, I’m fine with that.”
I cannot determine from the LJS article, but it appears that the City Council was not very capable of resistance. They voted to restore the City Forester position in a fashion. It doesn’t appear either, but one does wonder: did they ask any of the people clamoring for taxes to be raised if they indeed are taxpayers themselves?
All things considered, the Lincoln City Council members are quite worthy of darts.
GiN better stock up. Most assuredly, there will be more to come.
