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Up to the minute notes on the current state of free thinking and free living: Kentucky moonshine - original analysis and reporting from MoreThings, and all round pop culture museum of sight and sound - photo galleries, mp3 and video downloads.
Al Barger and MoreThings - getting people's goats since 1998.
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February 16, 2003
Why is all this the fed's responsibility?
The main point of this Time story on homeland defense seems to be that nearly every locality in the country is waiting anxiously on the federal government to give them money for emergency preparedness and security improvements.
Some of these things may be appropriately federal functions. Some of the security around airports and shipyards may be legitimate federal items, as they are national and international, and perhaps more closely related to the idea of military defense.
However, why would it be assumed that the federal government should buy the hazmat suits for every local fire department? What, your local county budget is strapped? Well, redo your budget, change your priorities. Raise your local taxes [and take the heat for it] or -God forbid- cut some stuff out. Maybe the library doesn't get a new branch for a year or two, or you trim some welfare programs.
Also, local governments could get voluntary fund raising in the community. Local churches and scout troops and such would jump at the opportunity to have bake sales to raise money for equipment or training for local emergency response. Instead of throwing more billions of charity to the widows of rich New York stockbrokers, they could donate to emergency preparedness in their local community.
Of course, while they're baking those cookies and writing those checks, it might occur to them to wonder what the hell is happening with all the tax money they've been paying out, and what it is being spent on that is more important than this.
posted by Al at 2/16/2003 06:12:00 PM
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