BCT Editorial – 9/28/08

This page was last updated on September 28, 2008.

Drink up; Editorial; Beaver County Times; September 28, 2008.

The editorial asserts reducing the Allegheny County drink tax from 10% to 7% because revenue is greater than expected is “the right way to go.” Maybe it’s just me, but isn’t this inconsistent with other Times editorials that constantly tell us we need tax dollars to fix the infrastructure? Perhaps the infrastructure owned by Allegheny County is OK. <g>

You know, the Times never has explained why people who buy alcoholic drinks in bars and restaurants and/or who rent cars should be the ones to subsidize those who ride PAT. Instead, why not levy a tax specific to newspaper sales? After all, I see more people reading newspapers on the buses than I see drinking on the buses.

The editorial concludes with “If the drink tax is so onerous, why are so many people still drinking?” No, I’m not kidding. What this means, of course, is no tax is onerous to the Times as long as people keep up the taxed activity. I guess that explains why the Times constantly lobbies in favor of new taxes or increases in existing taxes. Here’s a variation on the question. “If the income and payroll taxes are so onerous, why are so many people still working or otherwise earning income?”