Tax cutting the trees down

I'm sure many people didn't give much though to a recent story about the city of Grand Rapids being forced to cut down dozens of ash trees due to the spread of the invasive pest, the Emerald Ash Borer but I think it's something you should pay attention to. Millions of trees are being killed by this pest but efforts to contain its spread were cut:

In April 2003, the state cut down more than 15,000 trees in Wyoming as a part of a federally-funded eradication effort. But over the last two years, the feds cut funding for the program and by the time trees in Cascade Township were found with it last June, the state had already decided to concentrate their efforts on other parts of Michigan. That means local municipalities and property owners are on their own.

"They've left basically this side of the state to deal with the problem," said Public Works Director Patrick Bush.

I'm sure some people will dismiss this as not a major news story but imagine streets lined with large, stately trees that the city of Grand Rapids is now going to have to replace:

Heartwell said the city's 7,000 ash trees are at risk because of the invasive species of beetle whose larvae feed on the inner bark of ash trees, disrupting the tree's ability to transport water and nutrients.

"This is significant," Heartwell said. "It's going to change the face of Grand Rapids."

Last fall, the city unveiled a plan to replace all the city's ash trees over the next 10 years. The plan is expected to cost between $7 million and $12 million.

Imagine the quality of life in those neighborhoods that will be lost, the higher heating and cooling bills due to the loss of shade and windbreak. These seem like silly concerns because our society often dismisses things that no one is able to package and sell in a sound byte. But also add up the tax dollars that need to be spent to deal with the problem and the loss of home value in the neighborhoods defined by streets lined with beautiful trees. Federal and state government should have been managing the crisis before it got out of hand but instead they passed it off to overwhelmed local officials and homeowners. Now communities all over are dealing with the problem and who knows how much money it will cost in the long run because government didn't wisely allocate its resources and people weren't willing to support the programs needed to avoid this problem.

And why couldn't we have just spent the money to deal with the problem in the first place? Because some people would cry about tax dollars being "wasted fighting bugs." I think they're just greedy, the same kind of greed that says a person with mental or physical problems should be forced to go out and earn a living instead of getting a "handout." The starve the beast and drown government in the bathtub crowd doesn't care about those that can't help themselves. They don't want to pay for mental institutions or welfare agencies, food stamps or Head Start. They don't mind taxes for roads, mostly torn up by the big trucks that take merchandise from one rich man's warehouse to another. They don't mind taxes to pay for big stadiums where they have luxury boxes. And they don't mind paying taxes for airports where they can fly their private planes. But taxes to fight bugs are a sign of bloated bureaucracy and if only we'd "trim the fat" we'd balance the state budget and everything would be fine.

Once again, I remind you of Howard Wolpe's famous words: "Read my lips, raise YOUR taxes." Feel good tax cuts are passed by politicians which mostly benefit the wealthiest Americans but then spend whatever it takes on a war without end or even a reason. We pass the burden down to the people least able to deal with it while the rich and powerful party away. They always cry "class warfare" whenever anyone brings up the widening imbalance between rich and poor in America and usually they manage to force people to back down. But change is coming...

The poor are finally waking to the fact that as they are told their kids' schools may have to shut early, luxury yacht owners can't find a slip for their million dollar toys. While people grumble yet pay their dues to the federal government, the rich hide behind tax shelters and then try to convince you they're being over-burdened. Well, that's too bad for them because I thought we "are all hurting" yet the rich are making more and more money every year while our services are being cut.

Sadly, most people don't seem to get it. I guess it's easier to blame the guy who's in between jobs or to shift the burden to the single mom who left her abusive boyfriend and now has to support her and her kid. Maybe it takes a little intelligence to think in the long term instead of seeking immediate gratification. Maybe it's asking to much for people to see the forest for the trees.

We've been seriously ignoring our long-term problems while relying on short term thinking and feel good solutions to complex issues. We can continue to ignore the warning signs: the dead trees, the potholes in the road, the closed school buildings and the workers headed out of state or we can understand that the paid lobbyists have bought our government and are going to keep squeezing as much money out of it as they can. Meanwhile, you wonder why they're closing schools and hospitals. But don't worry, this is just a story about a couple of dead trees...