BCT Editorial – 7/10/07

This page was last updated on July 10, 2007.

Silver lining; Editorial; Beaver County Times; July 10, 2007.

Below is a detailed critique of the subject editorial.

“In a way, the shutdown of Pennsylvania government because Gov. Ed Rendell and Republicans can’t agree on a budget has a silver lining.

“In states like New Jersey and Maryland, governors and lawmakers are fighting over whether to raise taxes or cut programs to cover gaps between revenue and expenditures.

“In Pennsylvania, the governor and lawmakers are fighting over a surplus and whether to supplement it. Although the shutdown is an inconvenience, that’s a nice problem to have.”

[RWC] What must it be like to live in the world of a Times editorial author?

Let’s recap some of the facts. What did/does Mr. Rendell want to do with the surplus? Use it to pay down debt? Return it to taxpayers? Cut taxes to bring spending and taxes into balance? None of the above. Mr. Rendell wants to use the surplus to fund new programs, but even that isn’t enough. Mr. Rendell pushed for an additional tax on electricity consumption, an additional tax on oil products, and House Democrats proposed a 10% tax on alcoholic drinks.

“The governor and lawmakers are fighting over a surplus and whether to supplement it?” Please. The facts show the sentence should read, “The governor and lawmakers are fighting over a surplus and how to spend it and more.”

Finally, why is any government collecting more taxes than it needs “a nice problem to have?” This money belongs in the pockets of the people who earned it, not in the hands of a bunch of politicians trying to find new ways to spend it.