By: Diane Benjamin
I’m losing track of how many meetings have been held to discuss the June flooding. Tonight is part 4? 5? Not sure!
I hope everything that has already been discussed is skipped, presentations have a habit of showing the same slides over and over and then adding a couple new ones at the end. Citizens want to know when the combined sewer problems are going to get fixed!
The most troubling part is a council initiative by Ward 7 alderman Molly Ward:
Molly thinks the City should compensate homeowners who had sewage backup in their basements. The City did get millions from the feds, Ward is likely eying it.
Problem #1:
If the City pays people aren’t they admitting the sewage is their fault?
Problem #2:
Over 500 claims were filed with the City’s insurance company, will payments be restricted to sewage only? If this was an “Act of God” flood, why is water flooding not included?
Problem #3:
Mollie wants the City to discriminate based on income level? So, if household income is less than let’s say $30,000 they get money, if it’s $30,100 they don’t?
Problem #4:
If the City decides to discriminate based on income, other assistance, and insurance coverage every claim will need to be assessed individually. It will take many hours of staff time to review claims and the program could easily devolve into “who you know”.
Problem #5:
Paying people for “Acts of God” sets a precedence that will require payments for all future “Acts of God”.
Bloomington has known for decades the infrastructure needs updated. Past City Managers and staff kicked that can with the blessing of past Councils. New gifts to citizens are more exciting than maintenance. That’s why the west side is getting a water park instead of just a new pool.
Local elections determine what government you have. Keep in mind Jeff Crabill voted against moving forward with fixing sewers: https://blnnews.com/2021/08/06/crabill-is-the-eastgate-hero-not-so-fast/
Social Justice warriors aren’t going to vote for essential services. Past councils got union buddies elected so they would have work, that’s how you got the Coliseum.
Government should be boring. It is not their job to entertain you, redistribute wealth, or create jobs. Voting for candidates who feel otherwise created this disaster. Not voting in local elections is the real crime!
The first job of government is to preserve freedom and liberty for future generations. Their second job is essential services citizens can not do for themselves: roads, police, fire, water, sewers.
Instead, citizens will be gifted with an updated library and a water park. Lots of citizens won’t be able to read in their basements however.
Sewage in homes is a disaster. It does prove why government must be limited. Limited government would have fixed the sewers because it understands that is their job. Progressives always dream up new instead. How about not voting for them from now on?
You claim climate change isn’t happening after 9 inches of rain falls in June in single storm. And of course according to you, it isn’t happening after an entire town was flooded a couple of weeks ago. Even cities with extensive sewer and storm water Infrastructure would find it hard to handle that amount of rain. You then want to have a magical solution with “small government”.
That doesn’t make any sense. You claim that’s why “small government” should exist. If you have “small government”, all those people would get nothing from that “small government”. “Small government” wouldn’t actually invest in infrastructure. Their laissez faire philosophy would have free markets and corporations build that infrastructure. There would be winners and losers, corporations would bypass rural America as unprofitable.
You know who just passed legislation increasing our infrastructure investment? The Biden administration. Small government looks good on paper, it doesn’t work in reality.
A tiny PERCENT of the infrastructure bill is infrastructure! Why did some parts of the City not flood? Maybe because they had separate sewer and storm water systems? A glacier used to come all the way to Leroy, what melted it? China is building a coal plant every week, they are exempt from Global Warming crap. You make no sense! If you paid attention to the citizens at Council meetings, some have been dealing with flooding for 50 years. Climate change is laughable, it’s a money game and nothing else.
Perhaps you should begin to understand the difference between small and limited government. Governments should exist to basically protect private property. Is infrastructure improvements improvements provide for the protection of capitalism also.
And reading your entire statement makes me question whether you understand in the least what government is supposed to do.
Obviously doesn’t, L would love Cuba
Diane love this post. So true. This goes to my saved file for future reference. I love how you always hit the target.
If anyone supports authoritarian government it’s you. You’d be right at home in Russia. Or even in Hungary. Every one here has to bow to your every thought. Scary.
Thanks for the comedy!
Small government for a small town not a reason for small government to support the infrastructure people live in than I have one question why are we are paying more in taxes than most of the country for what? Welcome to the environment that Democrats provide to you
Dinosaurs took up smoking, which killed them off and STARTED global Warming! That melted the glaciers, which cleared the way for farming, so farmers could use BIG tractors and drive Ranch King 2000 trucks and clear pastures for cows to pass wind in, ALL of which is heating up the earth-DUH!