Dec 12
You get stupid when you spend other people’s money. You can’t help it. You just do.
Like spending $517,000 to teach 55 kids to raise vegetables when less could have put them through college.
And $784 grand for inflatable alligators for Cleburn, Texas:
Hi, I’m Mr. Feddy Boondoggle
A complete list at Senator Coburn’s website.
H/T: Don Surber
December 12th, 2008 at 4:51 pm
What great fun; Sen William Proxmire did the same thing decades ago with his Golden Fleece Awards. Let’s guess that almost none of the grants was originated by a career civil servant. These things are dictated by Members of Congress as the lubricant of legislation in a representative democracy. What’s more, the people of every electorate see great merit in the projects that happen in their space. You might as well fulminate against occasional rain showers as against pork projects. Even Coburn’s report could be categorized as a waste of government ink.
December 12th, 2008 at 4:56 pm
I agree about civil servants not doing this. And it isn’t a lubrican of democracy, it is a lubricant of corruption.
A flat tax or fee would shut these down as people felt the pain equally of stupid governmental spending.