A Good Government Story

Sure, government has its flaws, but the current fad of demonizing government it almost to the point of sounding traitorous really gets to me.

The people participating in and cheering this movement on rail against having to pay taxes and fearmonger about "socialism." Yet they benefit every day and in so many ways from government services and infrastructure, including being able to travel on publicly funded (socialized) roadways to get to their rallies, gathering at government buildings and grounds to hold their protests, and relying on publicly funded airwaves to convey their messages.

That kind of hit home the other day when a South Milwaukee resident told me about a pothole in the street in front of her house. When she called City Hall about it, the city employee she talked to said she would put it on the project board and that it would get fixed. She then thanked the resident for calling and reporting the pothole.

My question to this resident was did her neighbor who has voiced an ideology similar to the no-taxes, no-regulations, no socialism factions make any self-sufficiency move or indicated any intent to repair the pothole himself. Her answer was, "No".

Although the pothole wasn't in the street in front of my house and even though I might never drive on the street that does, I want to give the City of South Milwaukee a big "thank you." One aspect of government that is generally overlooked in the government-bashing trend is that the "you" in my "thank you" includes me. It also includes the resident who reported the pothole. It includes the city employee who answered the phone, whose salary we pay and who also pays taxes to fund the city that employs her. It includes my neighbors and all of my other fellow South Milwaukee residents. We are all part of this society we live in and need to contribute to its common good.

The same day my South Milwaukee acquaintance told me about her pothole-city response experience, I learned about a movement called The Coffee Party.  http://www.coffeepartyusa.com/

Seems like a more reasonable approach than screaming, name calling and insulting.