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Originally Posted by BCC1
'Old guys' are some of the biggest drains on taxpayers, between SS & Medicare. But, I don't mind paying for them. It's our burden.
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NAH! We paid in before you were born, and neither Medicare or Social Security would be broke if the a$$es in congress would have not raided those funds for other purposes. Keep in mind that we old farts continue to pay, especially those of us that are self employed, a category that I, and many individuals over age 65, fall into. We paid in more ways then most younger folks can imagine, but that's OK, we owe it to you--the government says so!
As much as I try to keep this thread on track about the marine industry, it seems to quickly stray off course. I guess I'm looking at this in a different light than some folks, but I've been around long enough to know that ALL taxes are regressive. When my kids were born I told them early on that I don't owe them straight teeth and a college education. While I paid for the overpriced orthodontist and actually worked a second job at night to cover the expense, my children managed to get through college without living on campus, going to frat parties, traveling to South Beach for Spring Break and they actually bought their own cars by working summer jobs. I didn't want, or expect the taxpayers of Maryland or the U.S. to fund their education. Yep, they took out loans, and they paid them back. They didn't deadbeat on those loans and they paid back every penny without COD (cash offa' Dad).
One of the transportation trust fund projections in my area is a bridge over a small creek known as Winters Run. There's a bridge across it now, but it's pretty old, maybe over 100 years old, it's made of stone and structural steel, the roadbed is made of 4X10 timbers and they're in great shape. Somebody in the county government said the bridge is old (like me) and must be replaced to prevent someone from plunging 6 feet to the creek bed if it were to collapse.
Now, in order to replace that perfectly sound bridge (bridge inspectors said it was still sound) the county said they had to hire a consultant, you know, one of those folks that comes from out of town with briefcase filled with 35-mm slides, a PC and a Power Point Program. The cost of the consultant study was just under $1-million dollars. The result of the study revealed while the bridge is still structurally sound, it should probably replaced within the next 20 years--NO $HIT!
Next came the architectural study--it was less expensive at just under $400,000. They said the bridge should be moved upriver about 50 feet so the old bridge could be preserved as an historical artifact. (I guess George Washington slept under the bridge, or something like that).
Of course, by moving the bridge upstream 50 feet meant that it would be on private property, which the county and state had to acquire from the owners at a price you could have purchased the Brooklyn Bridge for. What the Hell, it's only taxpayer dollars, and they have more then they need--especially the old guys and gals. Of course the purchase had to first be approved by the County Council, the Department of Transportation, and loads of lesser known agencies, both state and federal. That took nearly two years. In the mean time the country constructed a temporary bridge over the old bridge--just to be on the safe side. The cost of the 44-foot bridge was just under $300,000 and it's barely wide enough for a compact car to pass over. If you own a Hummer, forgetaboutit!
Fast forward (a term never used in government) to today. The new bridge, which will be in place sometime in the next decade, will cost taxpayers about $10-million. It will be wide enough for two lanes, made of concrete and steel, and because it's upstream, where the creek is a bit wider, it will be about 70 feet long. Additionally, taxpayers will have to fork out another million for rerouting the existing road to the new bridge.
It's this kind of insanity that we're dealing with on a daily basis. Three Hillbillies (mountain Williams for the politically correct faction) with chain saws and a wheelbarrow could have replaced the existing bridge in a month and wouldn't have broken into a sweat in doing so. When construction begins I'll try and shoot some photos of the shovel leaners that will be on the construction site. Anybody wanna' guess at the number of folks the state and county will have there supervising. And, I can almost guarantee you it will take at least a year or two to build this bridge that really isn't needed at all. Local historians tell us the first bridge was built in less than two weeks.
If this "old man" seems to sound somewhat cynical it's probably because I have a right to be that way--I EARNED IT!
: I'm slowly but surely being taxed to oblivion, and so is everyone that participated in this thread and forum. This regressive gasoline tax is just one more, very-long nail in the coffin of every industry in this nation. If you don't think so, I want you those naysayers to take 6-percent of their annual income, income after taxes, and put it in a bank account. Then, at the end of the year, take all those dollars out of the bank, open the door of your fireplace or wood-stove, toss the money in the door and throw a lit match on it. At least you'll benefit from the heat while it burns, which is more than you'll benefit from King O'Mally's gasoline tax.
NOW I'M GONNA' GET DRUNK!
Gary
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