Things getting lost in the wake of a Stormy Trump… the total waste of time and money that the current Alaska Legislature is.
Yep, it’s been a stealth legislature so far, which is probably better than some years filled with spoiled brat whining to the press about how mean the other guys are. But still, this has been pretty much the definition of a do nothing legislature. They are on track to pass the least bills ever by an Alaska Legislature. Now again, I realize that can be a plus were it not for the fact that some bills that have not received a vote really should.
For instance, the smoking bill to protect workers and others from second hand smoke. Gabrielle LeDoux has held up this bill for two years despite bipartisan support. One can only suppose her real bosses… you know, the ones she listens to as opposed to those who elected her… have some stake in keeping smoking alive and well in our state. Smokers will die but the industry will survive. And really, given that corporations are people too, aren’t we happy about that?
Then there is the crime bill that needs fixing – except, of course, for the fact that Alaskan politicians can’t agree on whether it’s AM or PM on a cloudy day so they for sure can’t agree on a fix of the crime bill. Nope, even if they do agree on the particulars, no one is going to let the other party have what they consider a “win”.
This, of course, means that the people of this state get no wins at all – just a lot of bloated, hot air assholes extending their middle fingers to members of the other party while screwing Alaskans out of anything that even faintly resembles good governance.
Another good for instance – a balanced budget. Yep, never going to happen in Alaska except in your dreams or if the oil companies decide to just donate a couple billion to our bleeding budget. The majority of Alaskans agree that new revenue streams are needed because they value the services they are receiving and are willing to play the role of adults in this scenario and pay for those services. This goes against the grain of everything Republicans believe. I know, I know, you thought they were the party of fiscal conservatism. Silly you. That only counts if Democrats are proposing the budget. Under Republicans, fiscal conservatism gets redefined as “we don’t give a crap, we aren’t going to back taxes and give the Dems a win”. No, instead they’ll kneel by their beds every night and pray for another boom that we promise not to piss away. Unfortunately, god is on to us and aint’ giving us one.
Maybe there is something to be said for a dictatorship. At least in that scenario, we don’t have to feel responsible for the idiots in power since we had no choice. In a democracy, we have no one to blame but ourselves for the jerks we elect.