It's becoming quite apparent that NJ lawmakers have a spending addiction.
For a long time, us taxpayers have looked the other way. We've been embarrassed to tell our friends (our neighbor Pennsylvania is so snotty). We've been shielding the spending addicts from criticism, justifying their irrational behavior to others, believing the lies they tell and ultimately shelling out more money to support their addictive habits.
And it's time to stop enabling that addiction and time to acknowledge that there is a problem. Because there is. New Jersey has no control over its state spending. And us taxpayers (enablers) are shouldering more and more of the burden. Well it's time for some tough love. I'm calling for an intervention.
COMMON SYMPTOMS OF A SPENDING ADDICTION:
1.) The inability to stop or control spending: Our state officials have proven that they can not control state spending. We've heard nothing but empty promises, and they continue to spend and spend.
When they run out of money, they ask us for more.
Despite NJ's skyhigh state and local tax burden (10th highest in the nation http://www.taxfoundation.org/files/sr153.pdf) They just approved 11 percent raises for our judges and 17 percent for state prosecutors. Now, Corzine wants to borrow $2.5 BILLION for school improvements. Do you have any idea how much money that is?
Ok let's break down that figure. To show you how much $2.5 billion is, think about this, every week for a year, the state's borrowing $48 million. Every day, $6.8 million and every hour, $286,172 and damn near $5,000 a second. In the time it took you to read this paragraph, the state would have borrowed about $12,000.
If that's not shocking then how about $42.1 BILLION that he will spend on transportation projects over the next 10 years under Corzine's new toll hike plan?
2.) The addict will attempt to hide spending or keep purchases secret: We just recently learned the details of Corzine's super secret highway toll hike proposal. Mr. Corzine, what else do you have up your sleeve?
3.) Problems at school or work, excessive absences: Because of a certain party hopping incumbent, lawmakers have come under scrutiny for failing to attend local and state government meetings. Problems arose earlier in the year with certain politicians not paying their taxes. It's understandable, because spending addicts traditionally do not like to spend the money on sensible things like federal tax bills, instead, spending addicts like to fund frivolous or whimsical purchases.
4.) Changes in friends, withdrawing to social groups that enable or share spending addictions: What we're noticing, is that our wayward and capricious public officials are surrounding themselves with a bad crowd of spending addicts. They won't listen to us, they don't want to hear us tell them to stop spending, and they don't want to admit that there's a problem, so they've withdrawn from us, shutting us out. This corrupts our governmental balance, and we need to separate them from the rotten crowd they've been hanging around these days... Those spending addicts are a bad influence on our hometown lawmakers.
5.) Addict will do anything to support the spending addiction: including lying, or abusing relationships by asking for more money, or stealing it. NJ is famous for its tomatoes and dirty politicians. They lie to us about their spending plans and habits, they use their public positions to take bribes from people and they abuse our relationship with them by demanding more money to support the spending addiction.
6.) The addict needs to spend in order to feel normal: All sense goes out the window, and in the face of a budget crisis, an eroding middle class and a slouchy economy, some politicians refuse to stop wasteful spending. For example, buying the Ocean Ice Palace in Brick for a community center? Like really?! What happened to the FoodTown site that was supposed to be a community center? Oh yeah, ten years later, it's still a vacant lot. Hmm... What about the Trader's Cove fiasco? Um. Here's a suggestion: Instead of buying frivolous (decaying) property parcels, then dumping millions into their (stagnated) development and then abandoning the project halfway through, just stop spending.
ADMIT THAT YOU HAVE A PROBLEM: The first step is always admitting to yourself that you have a problem. NJ has a spending problem. The lawmakers are co-dependent upon the taxpayers to support their spending projects and it's becoming a bit of a burden.
TELL PEOPLE/ ASK FOR SUPPORT: State spending addicts need to reach out and ask for help. They need clear cut boundaries that sketch out the guidelines for acceptable behavior. We can't have them throwing money out the window for fun, and they need our help and support. Because really, every addict is a slave to their addiction. And we need to help the addicts see that they can and will beat the burning urge to spend.
DO NOT SURROUND YOURSELF WITH ADDICTS: We need to take control here and break up that bad crowd that our state lawmakers are running with. Spending addicts need to surround themselves with reasonable people, and not other runaway spending addicts.
SELF ESTEEM: We need to support our wayward spending addicts. They can get better. They are worth it. They owe it to themselves to kick their addiction. They just need our help and loving support.
The road to recovery is a long one. And it will be hard for the spending addicts and for us loyal taxpayers. But it's worth it because if we don't have to support a spending addiction, think about how much tax dollars we'll free up for other worthwhile endeavors.
For a long time, us taxpayers have looked the other way. We've been embarrassed to tell our friends (our neighbor Pennsylvania is so snotty). We've been shielding the spending addicts from criticism, justifying their irrational behavior to others, believing the lies they tell and ultimately shelling out more money to support their addictive habits.
And it's time to stop enabling that addiction and time to acknowledge that there is a problem. Because there is. New Jersey has no control over its state spending. And us taxpayers (enablers) are shouldering more and more of the burden. Well it's time for some tough love. I'm calling for an intervention.
COMMON SYMPTOMS OF A SPENDING ADDICTION:
1.) The inability to stop or control spending: Our state officials have proven that they can not control state spending. We've heard nothing but empty promises, and they continue to spend and spend.
When they run out of money, they ask us for more.
Despite NJ's skyhigh state and local tax burden (10th highest in the nation http://www.taxfoundation.org/files/sr153.pdf) They just approved 11 percent raises for our judges and 17 percent for state prosecutors. Now, Corzine wants to borrow $2.5 BILLION for school improvements. Do you have any idea how much money that is?
Ok let's break down that figure. To show you how much $2.5 billion is, think about this, every week for a year, the state's borrowing $48 million. Every day, $6.8 million and every hour, $286,172 and damn near $5,000 a second. In the time it took you to read this paragraph, the state would have borrowed about $12,000.
If that's not shocking then how about $42.1 BILLION that he will spend on transportation projects over the next 10 years under Corzine's new toll hike plan?
2.) The addict will attempt to hide spending or keep purchases secret: We just recently learned the details of Corzine's super secret highway toll hike proposal. Mr. Corzine, what else do you have up your sleeve?
3.) Problems at school or work, excessive absences: Because of a certain party hopping incumbent, lawmakers have come under scrutiny for failing to attend local and state government meetings. Problems arose earlier in the year with certain politicians not paying their taxes. It's understandable, because spending addicts traditionally do not like to spend the money on sensible things like federal tax bills, instead, spending addicts like to fund frivolous or whimsical purchases.
4.) Changes in friends, withdrawing to social groups that enable or share spending addictions: What we're noticing, is that our wayward and capricious public officials are surrounding themselves with a bad crowd of spending addicts. They won't listen to us, they don't want to hear us tell them to stop spending, and they don't want to admit that there's a problem, so they've withdrawn from us, shutting us out. This corrupts our governmental balance, and we need to separate them from the rotten crowd they've been hanging around these days... Those spending addicts are a bad influence on our hometown lawmakers.
5.) Addict will do anything to support the spending addiction: including lying, or abusing relationships by asking for more money, or stealing it. NJ is famous for its tomatoes and dirty politicians. They lie to us about their spending plans and habits, they use their public positions to take bribes from people and they abuse our relationship with them by demanding more money to support the spending addiction.
6.) The addict needs to spend in order to feel normal: All sense goes out the window, and in the face of a budget crisis, an eroding middle class and a slouchy economy, some politicians refuse to stop wasteful spending. For example, buying the Ocean Ice Palace in Brick for a community center? Like really?! What happened to the FoodTown site that was supposed to be a community center? Oh yeah, ten years later, it's still a vacant lot. Hmm... What about the Trader's Cove fiasco? Um. Here's a suggestion: Instead of buying frivolous (decaying) property parcels, then dumping millions into their (stagnated) development and then abandoning the project halfway through, just stop spending.
HOW TO BATTLE ADDICTION
ADMIT THAT YOU HAVE A PROBLEM: The first step is always admitting to yourself that you have a problem. NJ has a spending problem. The lawmakers are co-dependent upon the taxpayers to support their spending projects and it's becoming a bit of a burden.
TELL PEOPLE/ ASK FOR SUPPORT: State spending addicts need to reach out and ask for help. They need clear cut boundaries that sketch out the guidelines for acceptable behavior. We can't have them throwing money out the window for fun, and they need our help and support. Because really, every addict is a slave to their addiction. And we need to help the addicts see that they can and will beat the burning urge to spend.
DO NOT SURROUND YOURSELF WITH ADDICTS: We need to take control here and break up that bad crowd that our state lawmakers are running with. Spending addicts need to surround themselves with reasonable people, and not other runaway spending addicts.
SELF ESTEEM: We need to support our wayward spending addicts. They can get better. They are worth it. They owe it to themselves to kick their addiction. They just need our help and loving support.
The road to recovery is a long one. And it will be hard for the spending addicts and for us loyal taxpayers. But it's worth it because if we don't have to support a spending addiction, think about how much tax dollars we'll free up for other worthwhile endeavors.