Can you say, “Potholes!” Now, can you say, “lot’s of potholes!”
It seems potholes are everywhere and getting worse daily as State legislators ignore the cries of citizens to fix or repair the roads with the money they’ve already collected from increased gas taxes. Gas taxes that were promised to be used exclusively for road repair and resurfacing when it was passed.
Potholes in SC are bad. But, this seems to be a growing trend across all states where State legislatures are passing increased gas taxes only to renege on repairing roads.
The pothole pictured to the right, along with many others throughout SC, caused severe damage to a Standard newspaper reader’s car. The almost one foot deep pothole bent a front wheel and busted a front tire. How long until the State of S.C. repairs roads with the money they’ve already collected?
South Carolinians are still waiting for relief from the ill effect of bad roads with potholes and patchwork scabbed repair work. Many of those same roads are plagued with rock and rubble covering the street, causing cracked windshields from kicked up rocks, as well as busted or damaged tires and bent rims.
Interestingly, as bad as roads are, I’ve traveled down U.S. Highways and State roads in S.C. where bike paths and curbs are being put in instead of roads being repaired and drainage culverts in perfect condition are being pulled out of the ground and replaced by I’m assuming “new and improved” drain culverts. As a former drill sergeant once said, “we have here a failure to communicate!” What S.C. roads need is road surface repair, replacement and resurfacing, not curbs and widening for bike paths in the countryside or beautification. Really?
Curbs and bike paths is typically of of the United Nations Agenda 21 playbook for accepting Federal Grant money with strings attached to control population movement. Would the State of S.C. be participating in that kind of policy?
Author Terri Hall, writing for Selous Foundation for Public Policy Research, said of this phenomena, “In Michigan, at an intersection of a highway and a local road, federal mandates for highway reconstruction forced taxpayers to build four wheelchair accessible ramps and curbs at each corner. None of them even connect to a sidewalk. After a few feet in length, one ramp abruptly ends into a utility pole! Cost to taxpayers, $10,000.” She continued her remarks by saying that in San Angelo, Texas, the city planned to build, “a 3.7-mile bike trail at a cost of $4 million. ” Hill asked why the city would spend over $1 million a mile and reveals that, “the Texas Department of Transportation offered them a $3.2 million grant, likely from federal funds.”
Hill added that, “This push for sidewalks and hike & bike trails is part of the ‘complete streets’ and sustainable development policies sweeping the country that mandate a certain amount of highway dollars be committed to hike and bike trails, curbs and sidewalks, even when they don’t make sense. All this wasteful spending derives from gas tax revenues collected at the pump…”
Hold it! Did she say “gas tax?” Like State gas taxes? Yes, the same kind as State legislators hung around the neck of South Carolinians several years ago.
Isn’t there supposed to be a certain amount of trust earned by State Legislators and a moral obligation to tell the truth about what is taking place in the State government for the people? Or have the rules changed so that State Legislators can lie, cheat and steal at will with no moral trust involved? And no consequences either.
I immediately think of the former chairman of the S.C. Senate Ethics Committee, Senator Paul Campbell, Republican from Charleston District 44. Campbell was not only driving while drunk as Highway Patrol video showed, but dissembled to Highway Patrol and State citizens by switching places with his wife so he would not be implicated in the drunk driving charge yet allowing his wife to take the charge instead of him, and then the Dorchester Presbyterian Church Elder lied about it. Not much morality or ethics there. Geez, is that his version of “What Would Jesus Do”?
So, not only did Campbell fall under seducing spirits of alcohol, he tried to weasel his way out of it by his conduct and his dissembling lie, all while bringing contempt on the religious faith and belief of the majority of S.C. citizens–the Christians in this State. If it were not the sad truth it would be considered a joke, but that is what some self serving S.C. elected representatives make South Carolinians look like–a joke!
And that’s exactly what the roads in S.C. look like–a joke! And why? Because of the same mentality of the mentioned Senator Campbell and many others in S.C., that being, they think since they are in elective office they can do as they please and will continue to do so long as they can get away with doing it. Doesn’t matter if it’s moral, ethical, right, or wrong. That is the unfortunate attitude of many in positions of power in S.C.
Where are those who plead for votes and money when they are running for political office right now when we need them to represent our needs? Will no State Legislator stand up for the people? Is anybody in charge here? Were the promises of State legislators just more lies to placate us to increase taxes?
The upcoming 2020 election will be one for remembering fake promises and fake politicians and fake offers to represent the people. When everyday folk, who pull out of our pockets to pay for those who run for political office, can’t get the ‘time of day’ except during ‘gimme money to run’ season, then there is a problem in understanding on one or both sides of the coin. We’ll see how that works out for them at election time.
Michael Reed is Editor of The Standard, a pastor, businessman and conference speaker.
RSS - Posts