As the debate intensifies over the upcoming T-SPLOST vote, I find it interesting that some organizations — notably the Fayette County Chamber of Commerce and the Fayette County Board of Realtors — have gone on record as supporting increased taxation.
The goal of these organizations coincides with that of the Democrat Party, whose prime directive seems to be to extract as much tax money as possible from Americans.
This in direct conflict with the goals of the TEA Party, the grass-roots organization whose name is taken from the acronym, “Taxed Enough Already.”
I suppose we could call the Fayette Chamber of Commerce and Board of Realtors supporting members of the NoTEA Party, since they seem to believe that we are “Not Taxed Enough Already.”
The NoTEA (pronounced “naughty”) Party scheduled a rally on July 17 to support additional taxation. Since this letter is being written before the event, I don’t know if it was well attended, but I suspect the turnout was dismal. It almost certainly did not draw the same attendance as local TEA Party rallies.
Why is a T-SPLOST even necessary? Governments ask constituents to give them additional money because they’ve failed to properly allocate the money they already collect.
Part of the government’s mandate is to provide adequate infrastructure for its citizens. It has failed to do so, so “the region” is asking voters for additional money, called T-SPLOST, to be earmarked for transportation.
This is similar to the county asking for additional money, called E-SPLOST, to make up for their failure to adequately plan for and fund education, which is also their mandate.
What’s next? C-SPLOST to pay for cops? F-SPLOST to pay for firefighters?
Perhaps if the government (at all levels) did not cast itself as “Big Nanny,” spending money on goods and services people should be providing for themselves, it would have enough money to provide its mandated services.
Governments are not mandated to provide recreational and sports venues, from Turner Field to the Kedron pool, or to provide “senior services,” such as scrap-booking and tai chi classes, or to entertain the populace with concerts and belly dance lessons.
Nor are they mandated to provide endless handouts to people who have made stupid life choices (high-school dropouts, unwed mothers, drug addicts, etc.).
Government officials need to re-read their constitution/charter to remind themselves what a government is supposed to do.
If the T-SPLOST should pass, Fayette County would be a donor county, meaning that more tax will be collected from purchases in the county than spent on transportation projects in the county.
Frankly, about half of the money collected would go to MARTA, which would do almost nothing to relieve traffic congestion.
That’s the reason the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) recently admitted that passage of the T-SPLOST would not relieve traffic congestion.
That big ball of highways you see depicted in the TV ads would stay balled-up, while much of the extra tax money would be poured down the rat hole called MARTA, which continues to attract fewer and fewer riders.
Whether the T-SPLOST wins or loses, the Fayette County Chamber of Commerce and the Fayette County Board of Realtors have “outed” themselves as tax-and-spend liberals.
I have to believe that individual business owners who make up the Chamber of Commerce and individual Realtors who make up the Board of Realtors tend to be conservatives — TEA Party supporters — and I’m sure their organization’s official NoTEA stance does not sit well with them.
I expect to see dwindling membership in these organizations in the near future. And I’m certain that businesses that choose to stay in those organizations will lose business from people who do not agree with their liberal viewpoint. It’s called “voting with your feet.”
Randy Drake
Peachtree City, Ga.
[The editor replies: I cannot resist a heart-felt “Amen! Preach it, brother!”]
