Hi, friends!
I hope your day went well. Topic tonight is brought to you by the dipshits running the US House of Represent.
They’re voting on legislation that would basically abolish the IRS and replace it with a national consumption tax.
Now I hate being taxed as much as the next person, but those dipshits aren’t competent enough to define a decent alternative. Also, lower income folks would be fucked by a national consumption tax. And I’m sure the super rich and corporations would love it!
Anyways, do you have an example of law that were passed which were exceedingly fucking stupid? Let’s talk about dumbassery.
I have a couple MN & Minneapolis-specific ones.
In 2021’s election, we had ballot initiative #2, the “abolish the police” amendment, which wasn’t *really* about entirely ending policing, as much as it was about changing the way they are budgeted–removing their ability to just have a budget & set number of officers *automatically* w/o the mayor or city council needing to determine their budget each year...
There were *lots* of other things #2 would’ve done, too…. but the biggie was that it would’ve meant MPD’s budget wouldn’t automatically “come directly off the top, anymore”
Because the MPD’s union, back in the 1950’s/60’s “Red Scare” years, had basically scared Mpls residents into putting language into the city charter, where there are just *baseline* dollars AND staffing levels (1 officer, per ____ Minneapolis residents). This means that the city council members, Mayor, and residents have literally no say & no control over basic staffing levels *and* where a significant part of the city budget goes, every year…
It’s BAD budgeting. YES, there *are* absolutely arguments to be made about “counting on your budget,” and “knowing ahead of time,” being good…
BUT, MPD’s budget is a significant portion of city expenses–And our City council AND mayor *ought* to HAVE to “make the hard decisions” regarding the overall city spending budget, rather than being able to SIDESTEP those hard decisions!!!
When there are revenue percentages simply baked into the city charter, it allows the Mayof & Council to just “throw their hands up” metaphorically speaking, and abdicate decision-making responsibility.
We have the same stupid problem, in our State Constitution, regarding Transportation funding…
A few years back–during the T-paw administration, Pawlenty & his republican buddies in the legislature decided to “put it before the people,” without really explaining what enshrining funding in the Constitution would really mean, for *legislstors.*😒🙄🤬
Basically, now every budgetary cycle, our State Transportation levels are on “autopilot,” Transportation just getsa certain percentage of the state budget.
That’s GREAT, if you’re thinking in z short-term way, “Because Transportation Always GETS guaranteed funds!“(🙄🙄🙄)
But it’s incredibly STUPID & shortsighted, when it comes to keeping up with state Transportation funding needs!!!
*Because* ______% of state revenue *automatically* goes to “Transportation”?
Legislstors don’t NEED to actually vote on how much to SPEND anymore… they don’t need to make the hard decisions of “what do we need to fund now?” Because they cam throw their hands up, say, “Oh golly gee, we only have ______ dollars available!” And they can get away with NOT FIXING roads & bridges, or creating new & needed Transportation lines, because, “we just don’t have the money!”
It’s STUPID, annoying and STUPID, because it means–like the city council & mayor in Mpls, *state legislstors DON’T have to be accountable for not doing things or fixing broken stuff.
They can simply excuse themselves because “There’s not enough money available!”
And the stupid public–who voted for those asanine amendments will BELIEVE them.
I HATE those sorts of stupid amendments, and it STILL makes me angry, that so FEW people saw through the bills & allowed the gullible & dumb them into law!😠😡🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬
Yeah there’s a state law from the 50s requiring Kansas City, MO, to allocate 20% of their budget for the KC police.
And last November, 63% of the voters for the state of Missouri voted to force them to increase it to 25%.
Because once you leave KC or StL, the residents of Missouri are overwhelmingly white and scare of dangerous cities full of scary black people.
Work… management is pushing for improved efficiency.
Highly improbable based on the workforce they hired which is around 40% nepo babies (friends and family who can’t get jobs on their own.) Only way to improve things is fire most of them, but that’s not going to happen.
I have wisely decided to shut the fuck up and not lift a finger to help Team Stupid out of their predicament.
Our brilliant, red-state legislature banned CBD supplements for pets.
State to stop sale of CBD pet supplements
Because we all know that calming chews are a gateway drug… to puppy PCP. Or hound heroin. Or mutt morphine.